Brain And Consciousness Research - October 2009 Archives

Researchers find brain cell transplants help repair neural damage (10/31/2009)

This study aimed at determining whether autografted cells derived from primate cortical gray matter, cultured for one month and re-implanted in the caudate nucleus of dopamine depleted primates, effectively survived and migrated. When transplanted, autologous cells, derived from the most dopamine depleted region of the caudate nucleus, migrated, re-implanted into the right caudate nucleus, and migrated through the corpus callosum to the contralateral striatum. Re-implanted cells survived at rate of 50 percent four months post-implantation. ...> Full Article

Changes in brain chemicals mark shifts in infant learning (10/30/2009)

When do you first leave the nest? Early in development infants of many species experience important transitions -- such as learning when to leave the mother's protection to start exploring the world. Neuroscientists have now pinpointed molecular events occurring in the brain during that turning point. The findings, in animals, may help explain the strength of attachments in many species -- including the conundrum of why human children form strong attachments to even abusive caregivers. ...> Full Article

The pain of torture can make the innocent seem guilty (10/29/2009)

Psychologists at Harvard University have found that the more a person appears to suffer when tortured, the guiltier they are perceived to be. According to the researchers, those complicit with the torture need to justify the torture, and therefore link the victim's pain to blame. ...> Full Article

Faulty 'wiring' in the brain triggers onset of schizophrenia (10/28/2009)

A new study by researchers at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, has discovered abnormalities in the white matter of the brain that seem to be critical for the timing of schizophrenia. The study, led by Professor Phillip McGuire and Dr. Sophia Frangou, has been published in this month's edition of the British Journal of Psychiatry. ...> Full Article

Music makes you smarter (10/27/2009)

Regularly playing a musical instrument changes the anatomy and function of the brain and may be used in therapy to improve cognitive skills. ...> Full Article

Sex-based prenatal brain differences found (10/26/2009)

Prenatal sex-based biological differences extend to genetic expression in cerebral cortices. The differences in question are probably associated with later divergences in how our brains develop. This is shown by a new study by Uppsala University researchers Elena Jazin and Björn Reinius, which has been published in the latest issue of the journal Molecular Psychiatry. ...> Full Article

Now hear this (10/26/2009)

A Johns Hopkins team says it has for what is believed to be the first time managed to measure and record the elusive electrical activity of the type II neurons in the snail-shell-like structure called the cochlea. ...> Full Article

Women outperform men when identifying emotions (10/25/2009)

Women are better than men at distinguishing between emotions, especially fear and disgust, according to a new study published in the online version of the journal Neuropsychologia. As part of the investigation, Olivier Collignon and a team from the Université de Montréal Centre de recherche en neuropsychologie et cognition demonstrated that women are better than men at processing auditory, visual and audiovisual emotions. ...> Full Article

Extremists more willing to share their opinions, study finds (10/24/2009)

People with relatively extreme opinions may be more willing to publicly share their views than those with more moderate views, according to a new study. The key is that the extremists have to believe that more people share their views than actually do, the research found. ...> Full Article

Study finds high volume video gamers have more difficulty staying attentive (10/23/2009)

A new Iowa State University study has found that high volume action video game players -- those who play around 40 hours per week -- actually had more difficulty keeping focused on tasks requiring longer, more proactive attention than those who played video games less than a couple of hours a week. ...> Full Article

2 brain structures key to emotional balance especially in threatening situations (10/23/2009)

Researchers have discovered that a primitive region of the brain responsible for sensorimotor control also has an important role in regulating emotional responses to threatening situations. This region appears to work in concert with another structure called the amygdala to regulate social and emotional behavior. ...> Full Article

Understanding the brain's natural foil for over-excited neurons (10/22/2009)

Glutamate is to the brain like coffee is to our bodies. A cup of Joe in the morning can wake us, but overloading on caffeine causes the stimulant to work against us. ...> Full Article

Neuroscientists find neural stopwatch in the brain (10/21/2009)

MIT researchers have identified populations of neurons that code time with extreme precision in the primate brain. These neurons are found in two interconnected brain regions, the prefrontal cortex and the striatum, both of which are known to play critical roles in learning, movement, and thought control. ...> Full Article

Looking for the origins of music in the brain (10/21/2009)

Music serves as a natural and non-invasive intervention for patients with severe neurological disorders to promote long-term memory, social interaction and communication. However, there is currently no plausible explanation of its neural basis for why and how music affects physical and psychosocial responses. ...> Full Article

Diabetic episodes affect kids' memory (10/21/2009)

Children who have had an episode of diabetic ketoacidosis, a common complication of diabetes, may have persistent memory problems. ...> Full Article

Smart rat 'Hobbie-J' produced by over-expressing a gene that helps brain cells communicate (10/20/2009)

Over-expressing a gene that lets brain cells communicate just a fraction of a second longer makes a smarter rat, report researchers from the Medical College of Georgia and East China Normal University. ...> Full Article

Stimulus grant of nearly $9 million to UC San Diego funds big study of young brains (10/19/2009)

Thanks to a grant of $8,950,590 provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, researchers at the University of California, San Diego, looking for the biological bases of differences in human behavior will use sophisticated gene-mapping tools and imaging technology to collect a wealth of data about brain development in children. ...> Full Article

Bosses who feel inadequate are more likely to bully (10/18/2009)

Bosses who feel incompetent are more likely to bully their employees, according to new research from UC Berkeley and the University of Southern California. But flattery, the study warns, may not be the best way to soothe the savage boss ...> Full Article

Juggling enhances connections in the brain (10/17/2009)

Learning to juggle leads to changes in the white matter of the brain, an Oxford University study has shown. ...> Full Article

Will this trip be exciting? Consumers respond best to vacation ads that match current emotions (10/17/2009)

Most of us won't respond to the call of adventure while soaking in a relaxing bath. According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, we're more likely to book a weekend at a spa. ...> Full Article

Colombian guerrillas help scientists locate literacy in the brain (10/17/2009)

A unique study of former guerrillas in Colombia has helped scientists redefine their understanding of the key regions of the brain involved in literacy. The study, funded by the Wellcome Trust and the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science, has enabled the researchers to see how brain structure changed after learning to read. ...> Full Article

Confidence may not be convincing when recommending products or services (10/16/2009)

Sometimes people can gain influence by expressing uncertainty, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. ...> Full Article

Scientists give flies false memories (10/16/2009)

By directly manipulating the activity of individual neurons, scientists have given flies memories of a bad experience they never really had, according to a report in the Oct. 16 issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication. ...> Full Article

Brain power goes green (10/15/2009)

Our brains, it turns out, are eco-friendly. A study published in Science and reviewed by F1000 Biology members Venkatesh Murthy and Jakob Sorensen reveals that our brains have the amazing ability to be energy efficient. ...> Full Article

Declines in other thinking and learning skills may precede memory loss in Alzheimer's disease (10/15/2009)

Cognitive abilities other than memory, including visuospatial skills needed to perceive relationships between objects, may decline years prior to a clinical diagnosis in patients with Alzheimer's disease, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. ...> Full Article

Action video game players experience diminished proactive attention (10/15/2009)

Video game players are often accused of passively reacting to tasks that are spoon fed to them through graphics and stimuli on the screen. A group of researchers from Iowa State University shows that playing lots of video games has different effects on two types of cognitive activity, proactive and reactive attention. ...> Full Article

Like humans, monkeys fall into the 'uncanny valley' (10/14/2009)

Princeton University researchers have come up with a new twist on the mysterious visual phenomenon experienced by humans known as the "uncanny valley." The scientists have found that monkeys sense it too. ...> Full Article

Self-sacrifice among strangers has more to do with nurture than nature (10/14/2009)

Culture is more important than genes to altruistic behavior in large-scale societies ...> Full Article

Candy bar or healthy snack? Free choice not as free as we think (10/14/2009)

If you think choosing between a candy bar and healthy snack is totally a matter of free will, think again. A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research shows that the choices we make to indulge ourselves or exercise self-control depend on how the choices are presented. ...> Full Article

Eating liqorice in pregnancy may affect a child's IQ and behavior (10/10/2009)

Expectant mothers who eat excessive quantities of liquorice during pregnancy could adversely affect their child's intelligence and behavior, a study has shown ...> Full Article

Where religious belief and disbelief meet (10/9/2009)

While the human brain responds very differently to religious and nonreligious propositions, the process of believing or disbelieving a statement, whether religious or not, seems to be governed by the same areas in the brain. ...> Full Article

Where's the science? The sorry state of psychotherapy (10/8/2009)

The prevalence of mental health disorders in this country has nearly doubled in the past 20 years. Who is treating all of these patients? Clinical psychologists and therapists are charged with the task, but many are falling short by using methods that are out of date and lack scientific rigor. ...> Full Article

Study: Body posture affects confidence in your own thoughts (10/7/2009)

Sitting up straight in your chair isn't just good for your posture -- it also gives you more confidence in your own thoughts, according to a new study. Researchers found that people who were told to sit up straight were more likely to believe thoughts they wrote down while in that posture concerning whether they were qualified for a job. ...> Full Article

Perceptions might often kick a player when they are down (10/7/2009)

Just like Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown, kicking a football through goal posts can be an elusive task, according to Purdue University research. People trying to kick field goals will see a much smaller goal after unsuccessful attempts. But those who kicked better judged the goal posts to be farther apart and the crossbar lower to the ground. ...> Full Article

Scientists identify protein that enhances long-term memory by controlling rest intervals (10/6/2009)

Discovery could lead to treatments for learning and memory deficits, particularly Noonan's syndrome ...> Full Article

Cholesterol necessary for brain development (10/6/2009)

A derivative of cholesterol is necessary for the formation of brain cells, according to a study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet. The results, which are published in the journal Cell Stem Cell, can help scientists to cultivate dopamine-producing cells outside the body. ...> Full Article

Special brain wave boost slows motion (10/5/2009)

Researchers have found that they can make people move in slow motion by boosting one type of brain wave. The findings offer some of the first proof that brain waves can have a direct influence on behavior, according to the researchers, who report their findings online on Oct. 1 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. ...> Full Article

Eating sweets every day in childhood 'increases adult aggression' (10/5/2009)

Children who eat sweets and chocolates every day are more likely to be violent as adults, according to a Cardiff University study. Researchers found a higher percentage of adults who were violent at age 34 had eaten sweets every day, compared to those who were non-violent. This link persisted after controlling for other factors. ...> Full Article

The making of the male brain (estrogen required) (10/4/2009)

It's often said that overly macho males suffer from "too much testosterone." But a new study in mice reveals how estrogen might share in that blame. ...> Full Article

Study shows that color plays musical chairs in the brain (10/4/2009)

Research shows for the first time that the brain can latch on to color and assign it to a different object ...> Full Article

Researchers use computational models to study fear (10/3/2009)

University of Missouri researchers have started using computational models of the brain, making it easier to study the brain's connections. Guoshi Li, an electrical and computer engineering doctoral student, has discovered new evidence on how the brain reacts to fear, including important findings that could help victims of post-traumatic stress disorder. ...> Full Article

Why one way of learning is better than another (10/3/2009)

A new study from the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital of McGill University reveals that different patterns of training and learning lead to different types of memory formation. The significance of the study, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, is that it identifies the molecular differences between spaced training (distributed over time) and massed training (at very short intervals), shedding light on brain function and guiding learning and training principles. ...> Full Article

Mad genius: Study suggests link between psychosis and creativity (10/2/2009)

Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear. Sylvia Plath stuck her head in the oven. History teems with examples of great artists acting in very peculiar ways. Were these artists simply mad or brilliant? According to new research, maybe both: volunteers with the specific variant of neuregulin 1 were more likely to have higher scores on the creativity assessment and also greater lifetime creative achievements than volunteers with a different form of neuregulin 1. ...> Full Article

You must remember this: Scientists develop nasal spray that improves memory (10/2/2009)

Good news for procrastinating students: a nasal spray developed by scientists promises to give late night cram sessions a major boost, if a good night's sleep follows. In a research report featured as the cover story of the October 2009 print issue of the FASEB Journal, these scientists show that a molecule from the body's immune system (interleukin-6) when administered through the nose helps the brain retain emotional and procedural memories during REM sleep. ...> Full Article

Infant pain, adult repercussions (10/1/2009)

Researchers explore mechanisms of how infant pain changes sensitivity in adults ...> Full Article