Muscling Up Brain-Computer Interfaces
The internet is abuzz with reports of neuroscientists linking the human brain to computers to eliminate the clickety keyboard and empower us to control personal electronic devices or manipulate robotic arms. But the science beneath the sizzle doesn’t support all the sensational claims, and there are significant practical hurdles. Unless you have a medical condition…
Read MoreThe Strange Case of the “Sonic Attack” in Havana: Cuban Scientists Narrow in on Suspect
HAVANA–The US State Department warns US citizens not to travel to Cuba because numerous US Embassy employees in Havana have been targeted in specific attacks that have caused hearing loss and serious central nervous system injury, but the culprit, means, and motive for the international crime remain a mystery despite a year of reporting. Senator…
Read MoreShock Therapy: New Understanding and Old Ignorance
WASHINGTON, DC–Speaking at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Washington, DC on November 14, 2017, Dr. Wendy Marie Ingram, Psychiatric Epidemiologist at the Geisinger Medical Institute in Pennsylvania, presented new research on the effects of anesthesia on electroconvulsive therapy (ECT or shock therapy). The results help answer long-standing questions about the controversial treatment, but social…
Read MoreSmoking Pot as a Teen a Major Risk Factor for Schizophrenia
The scientific evidence linking cannabis use in adolescence to schizophrenia in adulthood is now so strong that the general public must be alerted. This was the pronouncement of researchers from Germany and England speaking October 9, 2017, at the World Psychiatric Association meeting in Berlin. “There is no doubt,” concludes Sir Robin Murray, Professor of…
Read MoreThe Custodian Who Left His Mark on Neuroscience
Working alone at the turn of the 20th century in Spain, Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852-1934) ventured into science as both an artist and a pathologist, and became the first person to see a neuron. Working by gaslight, he made thin slices of brain tissue and subjected them to the same silver-nitrate chemistry he used to capture…
Read MoreWhen Music Makes You Cry
Ever find yourself moved to tears by music? Eva Cassidy’s Somewhere over the Rainbow does it for me. How about you? Many types of music can move people to tears—blubbering in the balcony is iconic in opera. The phenomenon of crying sparked by music is an interesting but little-studied behavior. According to a new…
Read MoreFatal Attraction: A Common Infection Linked to Sexual Deviance
According to a study by Janus and Janus,14 percent of male and 11 percent of females in the United States have had personal experience with sadomasochistic sexual practices. Although human behavior is complex, an intriguing link has been identified between sex and violence and a common parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, which is acquired from cats. It is well-established that parasitic infections…
Read MoreSea Lion Attack Video–LIFEMORTS In Action
Dramatic cell phone video captures the brain’s threat detection and response in action when a young girl sitting on the edge of a wharf is suddenly dragged into the water by a sea lion. Like a bolt of lightning a bystander instantly leaps into the murky water to rescue the child from the jaws of the…
Read MoreBrainwaves in people addicted to internet gaming are different
Researchers reported this week in the journal Scientific Reports, that they are able to identify differences in brain connectivity in people who are addicted to internet gaming. Most appropriately, scientists are able to do this by tapping into the brain’s Wi-Fi-like electrical signals radiating through gamer’s skulls. After sampling only 10 minutes of brainwave…
Read MoreItalian Doctor to Perform Head Transplant on Donald Trump—Fake News?
Italian Neurosurgeon Sergio Canavero has made headlines around the world with his plans to perform the first ever head transplant on a human being. Presidential advisors in the United States have suggested that President Donald Trump would be the ideal subject for the new procedure. Late yesterday, White House Press Secretary, Sean Spicer, confirmed that…
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