Samara Khan ‘19 According to a recent study by the PEW Research Center, 78 percent of Americans aged 12 to 17 have cell phones. The majority of these individuals spend about 4 to 6 hours on their phones each day. This increased time on cell phones means more exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, or RT-EMF. Although there have been several studies that have aimed to … Continue reading Cell Phone Use May Have Negative Consequences
By Marcia-Ruth Ndege ‘21 Human pluripotent stem cells can differentiate into nearly any cell in the human body. Recently, geneticist Abed AlFatah Mansour and other scientists from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies used them to build human brains in mice. The differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells gave rise to small brain-like structures known as brain organoids about the size of a lentil. Researchers … Continue reading Scientists Are Growing Human Brains in Mice
By Maryna Mullerman ‘20 A smile is often associated with positive feedback and friendly gestures. Jared D. Martin and researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison aimed to reevaluate this nonverbal social tool. They suggested that there are three distinct smiles that could be encountered — reward, affiliation, and dominance — with each smile playing a different role in human society. Verbal communication activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal … Continue reading Functionally Different Smiles Cause Distinct Physiological Responses in Humans
By Marcia-Ruth Ndege ‘21 For the first time in history, researchers have established a direct connection between eye movement patterns and brain activity. Using brain imaging technology, scientists from the Baycrest Rotman Research Institute (RRI) found evidence that the brain uses eye movements to help recreate vivid moments. Dr. Bradley Buchsbaum, a scientist at RRI and a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, … Continue reading Direct Connection Between Eye Movement Patterns and Memory Established
By Marcia-Ruth Ndege ‘21 The rise of three-dimensional brain structures is improving and personalizing medicine by allowing neuroscientists to closely examine the intricacies of the brain. This promising approach is centered around obtaining region-specific 3D brain cultures from individuals and assembling circuits and pathways in the samples. Sergiu Pasca, an assistant professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine, … Continue reading Disease Development Modelled by Induced Pluripotent Cells in 3D Brain Structures
By Meenu Johnkutty ‘21 While a number of the beneficial effects of music are well-known, recent research suggest that music not only increases brain plasticity but also plays a robust role in sharpening mental skills and improving speech recognition. Since reading music activates multiple areas of the brain, it is no surprise that the brains of professional musicians are quite different than those of their … Continue reading Subtleties in Brains of Jazz Pianists and Classical Pianists Explored
By Marcia-Ruth Ndege ’21 In human embryos, the brain begins to develop during the first trimester of pregnancy. Proper brain development is critical at its early stages and could have detrimental effects if something goes awry. Scientists and researchers have investigated and familiarized themselves with the basics of brain development. A new study has shown that an unexpected participant plays a major role in this … Continue reading Ultraconserved Elements Found to Affect Brain Development
By Nita Wong ’21 In today’s fast-paced society, daydreaming carries a negative connotation. Whether it be in class or during a work meeting, a wandering mind is not considered a positive trait. Recent research, however, suggests that daydreaming may denote superior brain efficiency and capacity. A study led by Christine Godwin and Eric Schumacher of the Georgia Institute of Technology’s School of Psychology examined the … Continue reading Daydreaming – A Possible Sign of Brain Efficiency
By Maryna Mullerman ’20 The brain metabolizes more glucose — a simple and widely accessible sugar — than any other organ in the human body. Daniel Longman and researchers from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom explored the trade-off involving the brain and muscles, or physical performance, in people. The study investigated how mental and physical activities are affected when they are performed … Continue reading The Selfish Brain: A Trade-off Between Cognitive And Physical Performance in Humans
By Maryna Mullerman ’20 Artificial light and technology have been known to affect human sleep patterns. Scientists think that the circadian clock — physiological 24-hour cycle — might shift in the future. Sarah L. Chellappa and researchers from Harvard Medical School aimed to understand how chronic exposure to light at night affects human health and behavior. They explored how differences in light sensitivity between sexes … Continue reading Sex Differences Affect Light Perception And Sleep
By Melvin Li ’20 Glioblastomas are among the most malignant brain tumors. People diagnosed with them, typically do not have many options for treatment due to the tumors’ abilities to resist apoptosis, or cell death. The tumors tend to grow quickly and are very aggressive; due to the amount of blood supplied to the brain, tumor cells get ample nutrients and growth factors to proliferate. … Continue reading New Study Shows that Sinomenine Hydrochloride Inhibits Human Glioblastoma Cell Growth
By Karis Tutuska ’18 A goodnight’s sleep is crucial not only for cognitive function, but for long-term physical health as well, which is why so much effort has gone into studying the mechanisms of sleep. While scientists have long known the key brain circuits that control NREM sleep (non rapid eye movement, associated with light sleep) and REM sleep (rapid eye movement, associated with deep sleep … Continue reading The Brain Circuit that Wakes You Up
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