Monday, 20 August 2012
Do we synchronize our neurons to synchronize our thoughts?
Just as the pendulum of a clock oscillates to keep the time, the human brain’s networks of neurons oscillate together to help us encode certain memories. Or at least that is one of the functions attributed to these neuronal oscillations, which have been largely preserved throughout the history of evolution in the animal kingdom. Researchers are taking a growing interest in these oscillations, because if they do let the brain encode information in terms of time, they represent a valuable tool in addition to the mechanisms by which the brain generates its many spatial representations of the body and the world outside it. (more…)
The Emergence of Consciousness | Comments Closed
Monday, 13 August 2012
Genes to Cognition Online
There are not too many web sites about the human brain that are structured according to the human organism’s levels of organization, so that readers always keep this fundamental concept in mind. That is understandable, given the all the extra work involved in writing the content for such a site. But a handful of writers have been energetic enough, or foolish enough, to attempt this approach, including yours truly, with The Brain from Top to Bottom.
Because web sites like mine are so scarce, I would feel remiss if I did not let my readers know about another one that has been around for a few years now. It is called Genes to Cognition Online (first link below). (more…)
From the Simple to the Complex | Comments Closed
Monday, 6 August 2012
Our Mirror Neurons Prefer the Movements We’ve Already Learned
Often I use this blog to talk about the latest studies in neuroscience. But this week I want to talk about a study that was conducted a few years back, because it provides a good introduction to the brain cells known as mirror neurons, which are often described as strange entities indeed.
Mirror neurons were first identified in the motor area of the frontal cortex of monkeys, by Italian neurophysiologist Giacomo Rizzolatti, in the early 1990s. Rizzolatti discovered that these particular neurons became activated not only when monkeys made a hand gesture or a facial expression (as is normal for motor neurons), but also when monkeys watched other monkeys doing so, without making the gesture or expression themselves (hence the name “mirror neurons”). (more…)
Body Movement and the Brain | Comments Closed
Monday, 30 July 2012
The Shrinking Human Brain: What Does It Mean?
We all know that a few interesting hyperlinks and a bit of curiosity can add up to a massive waste of time. But sometimes it can be time well wasted. Consider, for example, what I learned on the little trip through cyberspace that I’m going to tell you about now.
Since I live in Montreal and write a web site about the human brain, the on-line article that I’ve listed as the first link below caught my eye. It’s from McGill University, in my home town, and it discusses a book called Big Brain, published in 2008 by two neuroscientists, Gary Lynch and Richard Granger. In this book, the authors describe the discovery of the “Boskops” skull in South Africa in the early 1900s. (more…)
Evolution and the Brain | 1 comment
Monday, 23 July 2012
Alzheimer’s Type Dementia
Two months ago, some new content to The Brain from Top to Bottom has been added: a sub-topic entitled “Alzheimer’s Type Dementia” under the main topic “Mental Disorders”. This form of dementia, more commonly referred to as Alzheimer’s disease, receives a lot of attention in the media, but its causes remain uncertain. (more…)
Mental Disorders | Comments Closed
