Brain and mind news and Brain Teasers

Study Shows Spinal Cord Regeneration - A U.S. scientist has demonstrated in a lab animal the successful regeneration of injured spinal nerve endings and recovery of arm movements. July 22, 2006

Training Attention - New brain-imaging techniques could teach people to strengthen the parts of the brain that control attention. July 21, 2006

Researchers Find Fewer Neurons In The Amygdala Of Males With Autism - Researchers at the University of California, Davis, M.I.N.D. Institute have discovered that the brains of males with autism have fewer neurons in the amygdala, a part of the brain involved in emotion and memory. July 20, 2006

Study Confirms Males/females Use Different Parts Of Brain In Language And Visuospatial Tasks - Differences in the way men and women perform verbal and visuospatial tasks have been well documented in scientific literature, but findings have been inconsistent as to whether men and women actually use different parts of their brains. July 19, 2006

Eyes Help Animals In Processing Of Sounds - A recent study of owls' eyes and ears is helping to explain how animals focus on the noise from what they're looking at amidst a cacophony of sounds. July 18, 2006

Mayo Clinic Study Finds Weight Loss Precedes Dementia Diagnosis In Women - Mayo Clinic researchers have found that women who develop dementia experience a decline in weight as many as 10 years prior to the onset of memory loss, compared to peers who do not develop dementia. July 17, 2006

Bird Brains Shrink From Exposure To Contaminants - The regions in robins' brains responsible for singing and mating are shrinking when exposed to high levels of DDT. July 16, 2006

Where We Change Our Mind - Whether finding your way through an unfamiliar neighborhood to a friend's house or deciding on a political candidate, your brain is adept at adapting. July 15, 2006

Scientists Build Brain Box Computer - Scientists at The University of Manchester are to build a new type of computer which mimics the complex interactions within the human brain. July 14, 2006

Growing New Brain Cells - Drugs that trigger the birth of neurons could provide the next generation of treatments for neurodegenerative disease, as well as depression. July 13, 2006

Increasing Consumer Preferences By Manipulating Memory - Consumer preferences for a brand can be increased over the competition by techniques used to manipulate memory, finds research published in Applied Cognitive Psychology. July 12, 2006

REM Sleep Behaviour Disorder Is An Early Marker Of Neurodegenerative Diseases - The front page of the July 2006 issue of The Lancet Neurology, the journal with the highest international impact, contains a work that shows the relationship between disorders during REM sleep and future neurodegenerative pathologies. July 11, 2006

Genetics Behind Developmental Brain Disorders May Play A Wider Role With Congenital Diseases - Findings of a recent genetic study on developmental brain disorders may be the “tip of an iceberg” revealing factors involved with a number of congenital diseases, according to UC Irvine researchers. July 10, 2006

The brain, Traffic And Nano-Circuits - E-Science Takes On Major Challenges - Research into three major scientific and technological challenges is to receive a major boost from the application of e-Science and grid computing. July 09, 2006

Face Blindness Is A Common Hereditary Disorder - In the first study to examine whether the inability to recognize faces can be inherited, researchers found that it is in fact a common disorder that runs in families and is one of the most frequent disorders ... July 08, 2006

Doctors Say Man's Brain Rewired Itself - Doctors have their first proof that a man who was barely conscious for nearly 20 years regained speech and movement because his brain spontaneously rewired itself ... July 07, 2006

Mental Exercise May Help Stave Off Parkinson's - People who have Parkinson's disease may someday find themselves undergoing a mental training regimen that helps them respond better to the drugs they take and to avoid surgery. July 06, 2006

Precisely Mapping And Stimulating The Brain - Accurately mapping the functioning of the human brain was previously deemed impossible. However, a young Finnish company, Nexstim, that is pioneering the supply of precise brain stimulation systems is inspiring a paradigm shift. July 05, 2006

Scientists Identify Brain Region Responsible For Calculating Risk Versus Reward - As any gambler knows, the most important decision is where to play. Some flit from table to table, machine to machine and game to game. Now researchers have used those tendencies to probe the function of the human brain as it chooses between ... July 04, 2006

Chromosomal Tests Can Determine Brain Tumor Therapy - A trial involving two types of rare, malignant but treatable brain tumors shows that missing portions of two chromosomes can predict which patients will likely do better with therapy. July 03, 2006

Connections Between Neurons Act As Information Filters In The Brain - For the first time, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have demonstrated that cell-cell contacts in the brain play an active role in processing information: called synapses ... July 02, 2006

Detecting Prejudice In The Brain - Three Florida teenagers recently pleaded not guilty to the brutal beatings and in one case, death, of homeless men ... July 01, 2006

He Who Hesitates ... Might Get A Bargain - In the first article to examine bargaining behavior from a consumer perspective, researchers from the University of Maryland found that buyers gauge the success of a round of bargaining not by the final price ... June 30, 2006

People Remember Prices More Easily If They Have Fewer Syllables - In the first study to combine theories of working memory and numerical cognition, researchers find that every extra syllable in a product's price decreases its chances of being remembered by 20 percent. June 29, 2006

Memory Loss Affects More Of The Brain Than Previously Thought - Memory loss associated with early Alzheimer's disease (AD) may be linked to altered activity in several areas of the brain, according to a study in the July issue of Radiology. June 28, 2006

Study Reveals How ADHD Drugs Work In Brain - Although millions depend on medications such as Ritalin to quell symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), scientists have struggled to pinpoint how the drugs work in the brain. June 27, 2006

How The Brain Masks Alcohol Impact - Dartmouth College researchers say they've discovered more about how the brain works to mask or suppress the impact alcohol has on motor skills. June 26, 2006

A Neural Mosaic Of Tones - The brain filters what we hear. It can do this in part because particular groups of neurons react to specific frequencies of sound. June 25, 2006

Brain Function And Negative Thinking Linked To Late-onset Depression - Late-onset depression, which first emerges in people aged 60 and over, is linked to a decline in the brain's executive functions that leads to repetitive, negative thought patterns a new study reveals. June 24, 2006

Music Thought To Enhance Intelligence, Mental Health And Immune System - A recent volume of the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences takes a closer look at how music evolved and how we respond to it. June 23, 2006

Central Nervous System Beckons Attack In MS-like Disease - It may sound like a case of blame the victim, but researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown that cells in the central nervous system can sometimes send out signals that invite hostile immune system attacks. June 22, 2006

Brain Region Linked To Fly Slumber - Researchers at Northwestern University have pinpointed a brain area in flies that is crucial to sleep, raising interesting speculation over the purpose of sleep and its possible link with learning and memory. June 21, 2006

How The Brain Creates False Memories - Hundreds of scientific studies in the past few decades have shown that the memories of people who observe complex events are notoriously susceptible to alteration if they receive misleading information ... June 20, 2006

Computerized Atlas Highlights 'Plethora' Of Changes In Brain Disorder - A computerized atlas has brought unprecedented sensitivity to the search for brain structure changes in a genetic condition known as Williams syndrome, revealing 33 abnormalities in the folding of the brain's surface. June 19, 2006

Researchers Show How Brain Decodes Complex Smells - Duke University Medical Center researchers have discovered how the brain creates a scent symphony from signals sent by the nose. June 18, 2006

Our Brains Compensate For Aging - One of two separate areas of the brain light up when younger people look at a house or a face, but each image activates both areas of the brain at the same time in older persons, the study said. June 17, 2006

Sleepy Fruit Flies Provide Clues To Learning And Memory - Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered that a brain region previously known for its role in learning and memory also serves as the location of sleep regulation in fruit flies. June 16, 2006

Dartmouth Researchers Find Where Musical Memories Are Stored In The Brain - A group of Dartmouth researchers has learned that the brain's auditory cortex, the part that handles information from your ears, holds on to musical memories. June 15, 2006

10 Most Interesting, Strangest Mental Disorders - A psychiatrist can never know for sure what is in his patient’s mind. There are plenty of different diseases, deviations and disorders in psychiatrics. Here are the most interesting ones ... June 14, 2006

How The Brain Interprets The Intent Of Others - Two Dartmouth researchers have learned more about how the human brain interprets the actions and intentions of others. June 13, 2006

Lead Exposure Leads To Brain Cell Loss And Damage Years Later - Eighteen years later, people who worked with lead have significant loss of brain cells and damage to brain tissue. June 12, 2006

Brain Changes Significantly After Age 18, Study Says - In a study aimed at identifying how and when a person's brain reaches adulthood, the scientists have learned that, anatomically, significant changes in brain structure continue after age 18. June 11, 2006

Seeing While Hearing Speeds Brain's Processing Of Speech - David Poeppel says the study indicates that when a listener can see the speaker's mouth, the listener's brain predicts what sound is about to be heard, a process called predictive coding. June 10, 2006

Erotic Images Elicit Strong Response From Brain - A new study suggests the brain is quickly turned on and "tuned in" when a person views erotic images. June 09, 2006

Brain On chip: Nerve Tissue Interfaced With A Computer Chip - The scientists in Martinsried developed a revolutionary non-invasive technique that enables them to record neural communication between thousands of nerve cells ... June 08, 2006

Hypnotic Suggestion Can Override Brain - A U.S. study that used hypnotic suggestion found the brain can override responses experts have long assumed to be ingrained and automatic, such as reading. June 07, 2006

Studies Affect Brain Growth - Researchers from German Universities in Regensburg and Jen determined that when a person is involved in some sort of studies, a mass of his brain's gray substance tends to increase. June 06, 2006

Females Have More Complex Brain Structure - According to the researcher, female brain contains 20 per cent more grey matter as compared with that of male's, its neurons are closer to each other. June 05, 2006

Brain Tortures Humans With Music Hallucinations - "Music hallucination is a serious problem. It doesn’t let people sleep and think,” says British psychiatrist Victor Aziz. June 04, 2006

Beautiful Music Cures Brain Diseases - A Los Angeles scientist believes that living cells can make distinct sounds, which might someday help doctors “hear” diseases. June 03, 2006

Birth Of A Notion - Scientists have used data from scans of 183 subjects to identify brain areas that consistently become active in a variety of cognitive tasks, such as reading, learning a rhythm or analyzing a picture. June 02, 2006

Vitamin B For A Better Brain - An Australian study has found a diet rich in B group vitamins may improve our capacity to think and remember. June 01, 2006

Study Looks At Deep Brain Stimulation For Depression - Neurocognitive and personality variables may predict whether patients with treatment-resistant depression will respond to deep brain stimulation. May 31, 2006

Mothers'Drinking Shrinks Fetal Brain - Routine ultrasounds show that heavy drinkers who continue to imbibe after learning they are pregnant may carry fetuses with reduced skull and brain growth ... May 30, 2006

How The Brain Sees People In Motion - A swaying tree and a moving person activate distinctive areas of the brain's visual cortex, since recognizing people is essential for social interaction. May 29, 2006

Scientists Identify Molecule That Links Both Sides Of The Brain - A Queensland Brain Institute-led team has identified a molecule that plays a key role in establishing the major nerve connections between each side of the adult brain. May 28, 2006

Brain Scans Get At Roots Of Prejudice - The human brain may have a built-in mechanism for keeping racially or politically distinct groups apart, a new Harvard study suggests. May 27, 2006

Brain Communicates In Analog And Digital Modes Simultaneously - Dr. Rhawn Joseph have argued that the brain works by both a digital and an analog system, with the brain signaling continuously, whith digital systems represent signals in the timing of pulses. May 26, 2006

How The Brain Builds Its Image Of The Body - Scientists have identified the region of the brain that is responsible for the way people view their bodies. May 25, 2006

Robotic Joystick Reveals How Brain Controls Movement - By training a group of human subjects to operate a robot-controlled joystick, Johns Hopkins researchers have shown that the slower the brain “learns” to control certain muscle movements ... May 24, 2006

Life Without Pain - Norrbottnian congenital insensitivity to pain, a disease that brings complete insensitivity even to injuries that cause severe pain in healthy people, is caused by a mutation in a gene on chromosome 1. May 23, 2006

Girls Have Big Advantage Over Boys On Timed Tests - A study involving over 8,000 males and females ranging in age from 2 to 90 discovered that females have a significant advantage over males on timed tests and tasks. May 22, 2006

Humans Do Not Understand Mirror Reflections - Psychologists at the University of Liverpool have found that people still find it difficult to understand how mirrors work. May 21, 2006

Lost In Thought: Brain Research - Can one literally "lose oneself" in an experience? Many theoretical models of the mind reject this notion... May 20, 2006

Myths About The Brain: 10 Percent and Counting - Do we really use only a small portion of our brain? If the answer to this question is yes, then knowing how to access the "unused" part of our brain should unleash untapped mental powers and allow us perform at top efficiency. May 19, 2006

The Brain's Executive Is An 'Event Planner' - The brain's "executive" center plans behaviors not by specifying movements required for given actions, but rather the events that will result from those actions. May 18, 2006

Brain Not Body Makes Athletes Feel Tired - Fatigue is in the mind, not the muscles, suggests a new study. May 17, 2006

Male Rivalry Increases When Females At Most Fertile - Men become more jealous of dominant males when their female partner is near ovulation. May 16, 2006

Your Brain Remembers What You Forget - Scientists have shown that even though you've had an apparent memory lapse, your brain never forgot what you should have done. May 15, 2006

The Brain Is Wired For Sex - Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers have discovered a vast network of neurons in the brain of mice that governs reproduction and controls the effects of reproductive status on other brain functions. May 14, 2006

How The Brain Makes A Whole Out Of Parts - When a human looks at a number, letter or other shape, neurons in various areas of the brain's visual center respond to different components of that shape, almost instantaneously fitting them together like a puzzle to create an image ... May 13, 2006

Meditation Found To Increase Brain Size - Researchers at Harvard, Yale, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found the first evidence that meditation can alter the physical structure of our brains. May 12, 2006

Mind Rewind - Brains Run in Reverse - When faced with a new learning task, our brains replay events in reverse, much like a video on rewind, a new study suggests. May 10, 2006

Lesbians' Brains React Differently - Lesbians' brains react differently to sex hormones than those of heterosexual women, new research indicates. May 9, 2006

Anticipating Pain Hurts - Researchers use brain scans to unravel the biology of dread. May 7, 2006

Scientists Discover Intelligence Gene - Intelligence is significantly influenced by genetic factors. May 5, 2006

Human Brain Shuts Down - Researchers caught the brain in the act of losing "self" as it shuts down during a demanding sensory task. May 5, 2006

Hormones May Affect How Brain Listens - Hormones modulate courtship signals. May 5, 2006

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