27
POPSCan human consciousness survive without a brain? "Why do you think there is such resistance to studies like yours? Because we're pushing through the boundaries of science, working against assumptions and perceptions that have been fixed. A lot of people hold this idea that, well, when you die, you die; that's it. Death is a moment — you know you're either dead or alive. All these things are not scientifically valid, but they're social perceptions.How is technology challenging the perception that death is a moment?"
4
POPSFreakiest (Lab) Animals The last one is Humanzee: It reads "Ok, so this one doesn't actually exist." But could have... The one I find most intriguing is The spider/goats: A private biotechnology company in Canada has managed to breed goats whose milk contains spider silk, the same things the eight-legged insects use to make webs and considered one of the strongest fibers occurring in nature. The silk is compatible with the human body and can be used to repair tissues and create replacement ligaments. No word on whether the goats are able to climb buildings or rescue damsels-in-distress. About the smart mice: Scientists managed to implant a few of the little rodents with human brain cells amounting to about one percent of their total grey matter. The same group has plans to produce mice with one hundred percent human brain cells, which they have permission to do unless the mice start exhibiting human traits. What, like banding together to escape?
7
POPSApply a skeptic’s careful eye "1. Unnatural environment for cognition 2. Scans are indirect measurements of brain activity. 3. Colors exaggerate the effects in the brain. 4. Brain images are statistical compilations. 5. Brain areas activate for various reasons."
0
POPSYou're in Good Hands... with computer games Allstate insurance has contracted Posit Science to deliver its InSight software to older drivers to help them improve their cognitive abilities. So tell the kids they have to get off the joystick so granddad can do his homework.
12
POPS Brain's Hub of Fear Found The results of the study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, Burroughs Wellcome Fund, the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience and the Yerkes Center, are detailed in the October issue of the journal Nature Neuroscience. The genetically engineered virus was injected into the amygdala of the mice by Emory graduate student Kimberly Maguschak. The amygdala is a part of the brain thought to be important for forming memories of emotionally charged events. "We found that after beta-catenin is taken out, the mice can still learn to fear the shocks," Maguschak said. "But two days later, their fear doesn't seem to be retained because they spend half as much time freezing in response to the tone." So it appears that beta-catenin is turned on in the amygdala to help in signaling during the learning process, Maguschak said.
8
POPSIs It Possible To Have An 'Out-of-Body' Experience? "Death is not a specific moment," he says. "It is a process..." "... a period of time, which may last from a few seconds to an hour or more, in which medical efforts may succeed in restarting the heart and reversing the dying process. What people experience during this period provides a unique window into what we are all likely to experience during the dying process." Clip Song
0
POPSPersistince affects student performance This fascinating Scientific American article makes the case that an attitude of persistence and hard work leads to greater learning and achievement. What it doesn't mention (but is also true) is that persistence actually impacts intelligence - gene expression is affected by stimulation and persistence.
0
POPSAuction bidding 'driven by fear' Interesting. My weekly experience at the horses probably makes me agree. (but I'm still getting used to living on my superannuation - considerably less than our prior combined salaries)
4
POPSNurture affects physiology A study at the University of Minnesota is finding that nurture in early childhood really does matter to the physical structure of the brain.
18
POPSBeauty and the Brain Future work may elucidate the long-term effects of one's surroundings on brain function and the relationship between aesthetically pleasing spaces and their functionality. What one considers beautiful is, of course, influenced by culture, learning, and experience, and not everything we find beautiful will ultimately be traceable to the structure and function of our brain. The larger question "What is beauty?" still poses a major challenge, but answering it no longer seems so impossible.
17
POPSMirror Neuron - Almost everything you wanted to know Very interesting and educative read: Based on context, mirror neurons can distinguish intention. The activity of the observer’s mirror neurons is greatest for the neat scenario—almost double the amount in the messy one—because drinking is a more fundamental intention than cleaning up.
13
POPSThe New Science of Fear: Can It Predict Bravery at 13,500 Feet?
"Mujica-Parodi says:"You're kind of like a rubber band, in that when you go up, you come back down right away. You're conserving your sympathetic dominance for when it's actually needed." These results, Mujica-Parodi says, mirror those of my fMRI session. It's not that I stayed cool when I was plummeting toward earth—"You were in actual danger," she says, so "a strong excitatory response was appropriate"—but that when I wasn't falling I suppressed the fear response and conserved my energy. The upshot: I might do well at keeping calm in the face of lethal danger, as most firemen and policemen do. More important, my results seem to reinforce Mujica-Parodi's theory, which could mean that in the future recruiters for the military and law enforcement will have a way to screen applicants for the most suitable training and job assignments. Our conversation turns back to the sky dive. "Would you go again?" Mujica-Parodi asks. "I think so," I tell her. But not right now. Maybe in a fe
2
POPSSeek The Spirit How can a non-material manifestation be captured? By recording energy levels - photography should go beyond formation of colors - for crying out loud, we are living in the 21st century you know!
21
POPSBeauty and the Brain Future work may elucidate the long-term effects of one's surroundings on brain function and the relationship between aesthetically pleasing spaces and their functionality. What one considers beautiful is, of course, influenced by culture, learning, and experience, and not everything we find beautiful will ultimately be traceable to the structure and function of our brain. The larger question "What is beauty?" still poses a major challenge, but answering it no longer seems so impossible.
2
POPSWe is all on drugs So,it wasn't just E.A.Poe and Lewis Carol.All the great minds dabbled.It doesn't mean your brain turns to mush.That's what happens if you listen to the prohibitionist nonsense spouted by the Harperites.Morality has no place when dealing with the lives of others.
13
POPSThe 'satellite navigation' in our brains
n a follow-up study, Dr Spiers and Professor Maguire used the Playstation2 video game "The Getaway" to examine how taxi drivers use their hippocampus and other brain areas when they navigate. Taxi drivers used the virtual reality simulation to navigate the streets of London whilst lying in an fMRI brain scanner. The researchers found that the hippocampus is most active when the drivers first think about their route and plan ahead. By contrast, activity in a diverse network of other brain areas increases as they encounter road blocks, spot expected landmarks, look at the view and worry about the thoughts of their customers and other drivers. "The hippocampus is crucial for navigation and we use it like a 'sat nav'," says Dr Spiers from the Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience at UCL. "London taxi drivers, who have to know their way around hundreds of thousands of winding streets, have the most refined and powerful innate sat navs, strengthened over years of experience."
4
Pops
Newest Clips
Latest Comments
Most Pops
Print
Save
Turn on live update