Tech's Brain Effect: It's Complicated
We don't yet know what the immersion in technology does to our brains, but one neuroscientist says the answer is likely to be that there's good, there's bad, and it's complex.
Neuroscience2239 articles archived since 1845
The Adult Brain Does Grow New Neurons After All, Study Says
Study points toward lifelong neuron formation in the human brain’s hippocampus, with implications for memory and disease
A Genetic Basis for Insomnia Emerges from the Twilight
Gargantuan studies show links between sleep difficulties and cardiovascular and psychiatric illnesses
The Creativity of ADHD
More insights on a positive side of a “disorder”
For Alzheimer's Sufferers, Brain Inflammation Ignites a Neuron-Killing "Forest Fire"
And it could also be the kindling sparking Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative maladies
Ultrasound Beams and Nanoparticle Cages: Toward More Targeted Brain Treatments
A new technique lets scientists accurately direct drugs to specific regions of the brain
Why Do We Crave Sweets When We're Stressed?
A brain researcher explains our desire for chocolate and other carbs during tough times
Gene in Infamous Experiment on Embryos Points to New Stroke Treatment
Biology at the center of last year’s contentious gene-edited twins result may hold other benefits for brain injury
Our Brains Really Remember Some Pop Music
Although millennials' memory of recent pop tunes drops quickly, their ability to identify top hits from the 1960s through 1990s remains moderately high. Christopher Intagliata reports.
Drunk Witnesses Remember a Surprising Amount
Interviewing an inebriated person at the scene may be more accurate than waiting until he or she is sober
Rocking Helps Adults Sleep Too
Adult humans, as well as mice, slept better when gently rocked.
Targeting Certain Brain Cells Can Switch Off Pain
By turning off certain brain cells, researchers were able to make mice sense painful stimuli—but not the associated discomfort. Karen Hopkin reports.
Better Biomarkers Could Help Us Treat Alzheimer's
We need better molecular biomarkers to create targeted drugs
How the Brain Reads Faces
Brain regions that process faces reveal deep insights into the neural mechanisms of vision
Why Rocking to Sleep Is a Matchless Sedative—and Elixir
Back-and-forth motions may tweak the sensory organs that control our balance and spatial orientation
The Cerebellum Is Your "Little Brain"—and It Does Some Pretty Big Things
A newly identified circuit connecting the cerebellum to the brain’s reward centers in mice could help scientists understand autism and addiction
"Mona Lisa Effect" Not True for Mona Lisa
The Mona Lisa effect is the illusion that the subject of a painting follows you with her gaze, despite where you stand. But da Vinci's famous painting doesn't have that quality. Christopher Intagliata reports...
Fake Whiskeys and Octo-Ecstasy
Scientific American assistant news editor, Tanya Lewis, and collections editor, Andrea Gawrylewski, take a deeper look at two short articles from the Advances news section of the December issue, on counterfeit whiskeys and the effect of real ecstasy...on octopuses...
Gene Therapy Targets Epilepsy
Anti-seizure medication doesn’t work in every person with epilepsy. But a treatment option is emerging that would spare the need for brain surgery.
Does Weight-Loss Surgery Rewire Gut–Brain Connections?
Bariatric procedures are revealing new insights into the dialogue between bowel and brain