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Our friends at UCSF's Carry the One Radio have put together an awesome podcast, with a fresh new format. The podcast team explores a single theme in Neuroscience, in this case, the brain and communication, and interviews three neuroscientists with diverse approaches to exploring this essential topic. Check it out here:
“Brain Meets Word: The Neuroscience Behind Communication” Tongues, songbirds and perfect fifths, oh my! Seemingly disparate subjects yes, but remarkably similar nonetheless. In this episode, we investigate some of the far corners of the neuroscience behind communication! We start with a simple question: how does the human brain coordinate all of the muscles that allow us to speak? In part 2, we learn how male songbirds perfect their mating calls and how all the single birds respond. And finally, a neuroscientist/professional opera-singer tells us about the mystery of musicality, and the science behind becoming a great musician. Part One: “On the Tip of My Tongue” The human brain precisely controls numerous muscles when we speak, but scientists know very little about how exactly this happens... Our producers Ryan Jones and Kate Woronowicz talk with David Conant, a doctoral student in Dr. Edward Chang’s lab at the University of California - San Francisco, about how patients with epilepsy are helping us unravel this great mystery. Part Two: “A Bird Song to Remember” Spring is in the air and with it, a cacophony of bird songs. But these birds aren’t born knowing how to sing. It’s only after the brain goes through complex chemical dances that these males can attract their perfect mates. Listen to Peter Chisnell talk with Dr. Gregory Ball, neuroscientist at the University of Maryland, about how hormones refine male bird songs and in turn, how these songs change birds’ brains. Part Three: “The Sound of Music(ality)” Practice makes perfect, but is that all it takes to become a great musician? Lynn Wang talks to Dr. Indre Viskontas, neuroscientist and professional musician, about her research studying how musicality works. At the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Indre teaches “Training the Musical Brain,” a class where students learn how to practice basic music perceptual skills. In addition, she’s interested in understanding how elements such as emotion and expression make us better musicians.
How does the brain produce thought? Where is memory encoded in the brain? How do we reconstruct images in our brain?
These are some brain questions that fascinate my neighbor Rob, who has studied engineering and now works in photonics. He has no background in neuroscience, but wants to learn about it. Sure, he has the Internet, but it's really a jungle out there. I think a compact book is always a better map to begin exploring uncharted territory, so I suggested him to check out the 30-Second Brain. Although brief on content, it is a book with a wide and riveting helicopter view of neuroscience.
Read MoreWhat are the brain mechanisms at work when playing the children's game "Concentration"? Do adults benefit from playing it?
Kids seem to remember the tiniest of details from everywhere. But as adults we’ve all had our blurry moments – when all that information gets lost in the jungle of neurons and refuses to leave the tip o’ the tongue, driving us a little crazy. Tinkering with memory using simple card games and extensive brain training has been under the lens lately. But could a game like Concentration help you concentrate? Let’s find out.
Read MoreDoes chewing gum help with memorization? Can chewing gum during a test improve your test scores?
Well ... maybe.
There is a strong effect of context on memory recall. You'll probably perform better on a test if you take it in the same room where you memorized the information included in the test. The same holds true for chomping on a stick of Juicy Fruit. ...
Read MoreWhat if our brains had too many neurons? What would happen? In this Ask a Neuroscientist response, we discuss how making too many neurons is a natural part of brain development, and the (controversial) theory that overgrown brains are a marker for autism spectrum disorders.
Image Source: Wellcome Trust
Read MoreThe brain is a gas-guzzler. Weighing in at only 2% of the mass of your body, the brain consumes over 20% of the body’s energy. The idea that high-activity regions of the brain need more blood is the principle behind human neuroimaging techniques like PET and MRI, but how do neurons ask for more blood when they need it?
Read MoreAn engineering student named Mollie asks how feasible it will be for her to go to graduate school in neuroscience. To help answer, I repost a conversation with the Director of Stanford's Neuroscience PhD program. Also: So you want to be a Research Assistant in the lab - how do you find a job opening?
Read MoreToday, our guest is Carl Hart, associate professor of psychology and psychiatry at Columbia University and author of the 2013 book, High Price: A neuroscientist’s Journey of Self Discovery That Challenges Everything you Know about drugs and society. We’ll be speaking with him about surprising discoveries about psychoactive drug use, and how neuroscience can better inform policy
Is restless leg syndrome a neurological disorder? What could be the root cause and is there any cure?
I fell deep into a rabbit hole of RLS and related research in writing this article. RLS is a neurological disorder, and we have some tantalizing clues about its cause--but there are far more questions than answers at this point. But two candidates are dopamine and iron.
Read MoreAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is finally in the spotlight. As a rare neurodegenerative disease characterized by the progressive loss of a subset of motor neurons, ALS has often been overshadowed by other diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. However, thanks to events such as the viral Ice Bucket Challenge last summer and Eddie Redmayne’s Oscar winning portrayal of Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything, ALS has entered the public consciousness. In parallel, the scientific field has also experienced major growth, with new disease-causing mutations being reported on a regular basis. Labs have rushed to understand how these genetic mutations cause neurodegeneration, but a fundamental question remains unanswered: why do only certain motor neurons die in the course of ALS? After all, genetic mutations are global, and yet in ALS and most neurodegenerative diseases, only a subset of neurons die.
Read MoreHome of NeuWrite West and the Stanford Neuroblog.
Do you have burning questions about how the brain works? You’ve come to the right place! Submit all your questions to NeuWrite West and we will have a neuroscientist research and answer your question.
Note: The NeuWrite West team consists of research scientists. Therefore, we can not provide answers to questions of a medical nature; we are not medical doctors.
Questions will have a turn-around time of approximately one month.
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