Neuroscience

There are a few areas where computers cannot surpass humans and a new study says music is still among them. Neuroscientists in a new study looked at the brain's response to piano sonatas played either by a computer or a musician and found that, while the computerized version elicited an emotional response – particularly to unexpected chord changes - it was not as strong as listening to the same piece played by a professional pianist. Senior research fellow in psychology Dr Stefan Koelsch, who carried out the study with colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain…

The "La Mente Bilingüe" research team headed by Itziar Laka leads at the University of the Basque Country aims to find out how the brain acquires and manages languages and to discover in what way languages being similar or different is influential in this process. In order to understand how we become fluent in a language and to better comprehend bilingualism, the La Mente Bilingüe ("the bilingual brain") research team at the Faculty of Arts of the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU analysed the acquisition process for languages. Despite much research on acquisition of languages…

The cognitive strategies humans use to regulate emotions can determine both neurological and physiological responses to potential rewards, a team of New York University and Rutgers University neuroscientists has discovered. The findings in Nature Neuroscience shed light on how the regulation of emotions may influence decision making. Previous research has demonstrated these strategies can alter responses to negative events. However, less understood is whether such strategies can also efficiently regulate expectations of a future reward or a desired outcome. Scientists have already determined…

A new publication answers centuries' old questions regarding the mechanism and function of humor, identifying the reason humor is common to all human societies, its fundamental role in the evolution of homo sapiens and its continuing importance in the cognitive development of infants. Previous theories have only ever applied to a small proportion of all instances of humor, many of them stipulating necessary content or social conditions either in the humor itself or around the individual experiencing it. But this doesn't explain why an individual can laugh at something when no one else around…

Rett syndrome is a genetic brain development disorder that primarily affects females. It is predominantly caused by a sporadic mutation in the MECP2 gene on the X chromosome. The syndrome becomes apparent from around six months of age when development stagnates and acquired skills, such as coordination, speech, communication skills and cognitive function deteriorate. Other problems can include, breathing, cardiac function, chewing, swallowing, and digestion. Rett syndrome has often been misdiagnosed as cerebral palsy, and shares some similarities with autism. A blood test, as well as…

A new discovery by University of Western Ontario scientist Graham Thompson claims to be conclusive evidence that the 'selfish gene', introduced conceptually in 1976 by British biologist Richard Dawkins, isn't just accepted as a natural extension to the works of Charles Darwin, but is now confirmed. In studying genomes, the word 'selfish' does not refer to the human-describing adjective of self-centered behavior but rather to the blind tendency of genes wanting to continue their existence into the next generation. Ironically, this 'selfish' tendency can appear anything but selfish when the…

Researchers have determined that there are hundreds of biological differences between the sexes when it comes to gene expression in the cerebral cortex of humans and other primates. These findings indicate that some of these differences arose a very long time ago and have been preserved through evolution. These conserved differences constitute a signature of sex differences in the brain. Many more obvious gender differences have been preserved throughout primate evolution; examples include average body size and weight, and genitalia design. This study, believed to be the first of its kind,…

We grow closer and closer to an understanding of the mechanisms underlying addictions, and with that knowledge we also learn about other illnesses. It is not new to think of eating disorders as addictions, but the connection has often been one of analogy, not brain function. In a piece in Scientific American magazine, an interesting exploration of the underlying mechanisms that may be at play with anorexia nervosa: Addicted to Starvation: The Neurological Roots of Anorexia "What is more, cultural cues cannot easily explain why the afflicted, who are shockingly skinny, misperceive themselves…

Want to get a male mouse excited? A group of steroids found in female mouse urine is all it takes, say researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. They found the compounds activate nerve cells in the male mouse's nose with unprecedented effectiveness. "These particular steroids, known as glucocorticoids (GCCs), are involved in energy metabolism, stress and immune function," says senior author Timothy E. Holy, Ph.D., assistant professor of neurobiology and anatomy. "They control many important aspects of the mouse's physiology and theoretically could give any mouse…

One of the great scientific challenges is to understand the design principles and origins of the human brain. New research has shed light on the evolutionary origins of the brain and how it evolved into the remarkably complex structure found in humans. The research suggests that it is not size alone that gives more brain power, but that, during evolution, increasingly sophisticated molecular processing of nerve impulses allowed development of animals with more complex behaviors. The study shows that two waves of increased sophistication in the structure of nerve junctions could have been the…