Brain
Why is it so hard to think straight when you’re tired? Here’s what’s going on in your brain
Most of us could use more sleep. We feel it in our urge for an extra cup of coffee and ...
People with more active brains have shorter lifespans, study suggests
There are many factors that influence how long somebody lives. Some, like their genes, are out of their control. Others, ...
Can we slow the progression of Alzheimer’s by seeding our guts with ‘better’ bacteria?
Male — but not female — mice had reduced amyloid beta plaques in the brain after antibiotic treatment ...
Video: Here’s what sugar does to our brains
When you eat something loaded with sugar, your taste buds, your gut and your brain all take notice. This activation ...
Why your brain filters out things you don’t need to see
Scientists have long known that our sensory processing must automatically screen out extraneous inputs — otherwise, we couldn’t experience the ...
‘It’s not impossible’: Study claims yoga breathing techniques could ‘cleanse the brain’
Our brains are washed by a constant flow of cerebrospinal fluid, which plays the important role of carrying away waste ...
‘It’s unsettling’: Cancer cells use the body’s nerves to attack the brain, studies suggest
Tumour cells can plug into—and feed off—the brain’s complex network of neurons, according to a trio of studies. This nefarious ...
‘Live life to the fullest’: Should autism research shift away from the search for a cure and focus on wellness?
“There’s no cure for autism and anybody who tries to sell you a cure is lying,” [Lizzie] Acevedo, a single ...
What’s behind human brain disorders? Mouse Genetics Project expects to yield many answers
The Sanger Institute Mouse Genetics Project is part of the international effort to discover the function of every gene in ...
Brain implants may one day boost our abilities to text, drive, communicate and think
An injection of Silicon Valley chutzpah has energised the field of brain-computer or brain-machine interfaces in recent years. Buoyed by ...
Can we treat Alzheimer’s by ‘seeding our guts’ with beneficial bateria?
In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine earlier this year, microbiologist Hemraj Dodiya of the University of Chicago and ...
Viewpoint: Neurodiversity movement hurts people with autism by ‘romanticizing’ the disorder
In the past decade, neurodiversity’s popularity has grown enormously, largely because of the buzz surrounding Steve Silberman’s book NeuroTribes (2015). Today, the ...
Brain scans, like DNA, can say a lot about who you are. That creates ethical, privacy concerns.
Many people are aware—and properly protective—of the vast stores of information contained in their DNA. When DNA samples were collected ...
Experimental blood tests for Alzheimer’s could boost research, treatment of the disease
Narrowing in on diagnostic biomarkers could make an illusive disease easier to catch early ...
Left-handed, right-handed? Researchers zeroing in on genetic factors, development in the womb
For the first time, scientists have pinpointed regions of human DNA that closely relate to whether people are right- or ...
Scientists dive deep into how the brain processes vision
How is the retina formed? And how do neurons differentiate to become individual components of the visual system? By focusing ...
Humans can categorize colors they don’t have words for, research on stroke victims shows
After patient RDS (identified only by his initials for privacy) suffered a stroke, he experienced a rare and unusual side ...
Polydactylism: Six fingers and toes may be better than five
In a thrilling paper published recently in Nature Communications, researchers set out to study the abilities of people with extra fingers. This condition, known ...
Just one head injury could ‘tangle’ proteins in the brain, leading to Alzheimer’s
A single serious knock to the skull could be all it takes to develop the nerve damage thought to be ...
Left-handed? Genes link handedness to language facility but also schizophrenia and anorexia
Despite its ubiquity to the human experience, there are lots of unresolved questions related to handedness, such as how lefty ...
‘Artificial’ memory and identity’: Scientists create memories ‘indistinguishable’ from natural ones—in mice
Experience and memory are inexorably linked, or at least they seemed to be before a recent report on the formation of completely ...
‘It seems so obvious’: How parasites influenced the evolution of human brains
It seems so obvious that someone should have thought of it decades ago: Since parasites have plagued eukaryotic life for ...
How the brains of different dog breeds have evolved to meet our needs
As humans have gone, so have their canine companions. But a new study shows the subtle ways our long-lasting partnership ...
Viewpoint: There’s a problem with autism studies. They rarely use the same set of tools to measure results.
Clinical trials of autism treatments rarely use a consistent set of tools to measure efficacy, a new study suggests. Instead, ...
Chasing true understanding of the brain: Why progress may be dependent on ‘trial and error, and some luck’
Billions of dollars are flowing into research and neurotechnology projects like the U.S. Brain Initiative, Europe’s Human Brain Project, and ...
Viewpoint: If you want your children to have healthier brains, don’t let them play tackle football
If U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams asked for our advice (he hasn’t), we’d recommend that he issue the following statement: ...
We can cure Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia, glioblastoma in mice. Why not humans?
Lab mice endure a lot for science, but there’s often one (temporary) compensation: near-miraculous recovery from diseases that kill people ...
