Tastes Like Neuroscience
retrospectacle | April 9, 2008
Something to think about next time those vanity pangs hit (Mac-users, I'm looking at you): new research published in the April 2nd Journal of Neuroscience reports that botulium (the toxin in the popular cosmetic Botox injections) can reach the nervous system when injected into the facial muscles of rats. Although the toxin would only reach the nerve in minute amounts, botulinum toxin is potent even in small amounts and may still disrupt nerve activity. Currently the FDA is reviewing the safety of Botox injections, which are used to paralyze the muscles of the face and thereby reduce the…
omnibrain | March 31, 2008Welcome to the most recent installation of the neuroscience blog carnival, Encephelon, here at Of Two Minds! Steve and I thought we would mix things up a little bit and let a guest blogger summarize the best brain blogging (submitted to us (this week)). That guest is none other that famed socialite Paris Hilton, who wished to take this opportunity to attempt to change her image from fashionista to neuronista. Please welcome Paris!
Hi neurokids, Paris here. While I'm sure that you have already formed an opinion of me due to the massive media coverage of my escapades and foibles, hopefully…
retrospectacle | March 29, 2008
There are some things I consider news, and some things I just consider "well, duh." File this study, which reported that high school students don't care that loud music damages their hearing, under the second category. Kids These Days (tm) have been listening to loud music as long as their has been loud music to listen to, and I doubt very much that this will change. The reason for that is hinted at in the study itself: that teenagers believe themselves to be invincible, with very "low personal vulnerability" to permanent hearing loss. So despite the understanding that loud noise can damage…
omnibrain | March 27, 2008 Growing up it seemed like the only science on television was Mr. Wizard, Nova, and Star Trek (ok ok ... it's fiction but most scientists love star trek). Now there are a number of channels that regularly feature science shows. National Geographic, the Discovery Channel, the Science Channel, Discovery Health, the Learning Channel, and even the History Channel. There are probably even a few more I don't even know about. It's great!
However, It seems like 90% of these 'science' shows are actually engineering shows or something else sciency but not quite science. Usually they build stuff and…
retrospectacle | March 26, 2008
As noted in the sidebar here, I'm at the University of Michigan, involved in hearing research. So, I was so thrilled when it was brought to my attention that research from our institute, on the topic of cochlear implants, was being mentioned in this month's 'Economist' magazine! The article is a good summary of the current state of cochlear implant research, and has some interesting diagrams. Download the PDF here.
Slightly less noble, but kind of humorous, is that the research was also mentioned as a blurb in the most recent Playboy. Not that you read the articles or anything!
retrospectacle | March 18, 2008 I once had a conversation with a doctor about Gulf War Syndrome (GWS). They said,"Its frustrating to treat something that you can't describe and that has no definite cause." However, the numbers of affected soldiers, coming back to the US after the first Gulf War with a bevy of mysterious chronic ailments, speak to the reality of *some* cause.
Officially, symptoms attributed to this syndrome encompass chronic fatigue, loss of muscle control, headaches, dizziness and loss of balance, memory problems, muscle and joint pain, indigestion, skin problems, shortness of breath, and even insulin…
retrospectacle | March 12, 2008
It is well accepted that there are a few components to Alzheimer's risk: age (risk increases in old age), environment (severe head trauma, high cholesterol, obesity, or some drugs may increase risk), and genetics. A recent study published in the Archives of Neurology has contributed new evidence towards how genetics may be key. The authors examined more than 100 families, and the incidence of Alzheimer's therein, and found that more than 22% of adult children who had a parent with Alzheimers developed the disease themselves. This risk grew with age--42% of adults 70 and older who had a…
sb admin | March 2, 2008We'll be going live tomorrow, March 3rd so come back for our exciting launch then. If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment or send an email to me at steve@oftwominds.org or shelley@oftwominds.org.
Also... if you'd like an oftwominds.org email address (or any other google application) we'll be offering those to our readers. Just shoot me an email and I'll get you setup.
We look forward to seeing you more very soon!
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retrospectacle | February 11, 2008Ok, ok, I know I'm supposed to be on hiatus here. But how could I resist posting this adorable plush neuron? Waaaaay better than a teddy bear, in my opinion.
I must resist the urge to make cuddly neural nets out of dozens of them...
via ModCloth (and Giant Microbes)
retrospectacle | January 31, 2008Brenden Maher at Nature emailed me this morning to clue me in on an anonymous survey that their editors are doing on the topic of cognitive enhancers (a spawn of the commentary piece on the same subject a few weeks back.)
If you'd like to take the survey, check it out here.
retrospectacle | January 15, 2008Hydrocephalus, sometimes called "water on the brain," is a condition where cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) accumulates in the ventricles of the brain. This causes the expansion of the ventricles which displaces the brain, sometimes causing brain damage due to the intracranial pressure. The condition happens when a blockage occurs in the normal drainage of CSF into the circulatory system or there is an over-production of CSF. Hydrocephalus is rather common, occurring in 1 in 500 births, and can be treated by creating an artificial shunt to direct the excess CSF out of the ventricles.
Late last week…
retrospectacle | January 8, 2008This video is one of the most amazing things I've ever seen on YouTube. It shows the oh-so-careful surgical removal of an egg-sized cyst (intact) from a person's brain. The cyst is a hydatid cyst, which is the result of a parasitic infection by tapeworm larvae(Echinococcus). Generally speaking, it does not occur in the USA, but rather occurs in Mediterranean countries, the Middle East, the southern part of South America, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, and southern parts of Africa. The cysts, which are initiated by one larvae, eventually come to house thousands of tapeworm larvae. So it is…
retrospectacle | January 7, 2008I think I might have been quoted in today's Chronicle of Higher Education journal, except I can't find out since it requires a subscription (which U of M doesn't have.) Well humbug.
From what I could tell from the title, the article is about drugs which enhance cognition, which I discussed 2 weeks back when Nature released a commentary on the topic. Will somebody let me know what I supposedly said?
retrospectacle | January 7, 2008True to form, OmniBrain has posted an informative video about the "ice cream headache" also known as "Iceberger's syndrome." This is the nominally painful headache one experiences after eating too much of something extremely cold. While no "silent killer," as the video jokingly claims, "brain freeze" is actually a real thing (sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia) with a perfectly reasonable cause.
When you consume something very cold like ice cream or a 40 oz Slushie, it rapidly chills the roof of your mouth (the hard palate). Just above the hard palate is the sphenopalatine nerve which is…
retrospectacle | January 6, 2008Trepanation is a procedure where a hole is drilled into the skull, exposing the dura mater and brain for either medical (releif of pressure) or mystical (supposed heightened consciousness)purposes. It is likely the oldest procedure in neurosurgery and has been practiced by many ancient peoples all over the world.
A commenter on this post referred me to an amazing video he created animating the process of trepanation. Check it out, its really good (hat tip Jona!)
I would say 'don't try this at home,' but it looks like modern-day elective trepanation is already a fad in communities which…
retrospectacle | January 4, 2008While this short YouTube clip is ostensibly a preview of a TV show about brain surgery and tumor removal, the clip itself had some amazing footage of conscious brain surgery that I hadn't seen before on the internet. There is a little blood, so if you are squeamish about blood and guts you may not want to peek. For all of you who are curious as to what an exposed human brain looks like, and how modern surgery is performed, check it out!
Continued under the fold....
This video describes how neurosurgeons find tumors by using electrical stimulation in the brain.
retrospectacle | January 3, 2008
What looks like a bevy of medieval torture tools is actually a early 19th century set of German neurosurgical tools. I think I would be terrified if a doctor walked into my room and opened that innocuous-looking velvet-lined case to reveal all those gleaming edges and tongs and probes, all meant for the purpose of carving the human brain.
It contain 17 compartments which accommodate a full set of instruments made from unplated polished steel, brass and horn. They are signed by Zitier, Heine and Sandill and it is likely that the boxed set was made specifically to accommodate these…
retrospectacle | December 26, 2007It has been suspected for some time that taking fish oil may reduce the risk of developing age-related Alzheimers disease. Fatty fish, like salmon, are rich in oils which contain omega-3 acids. Omega-3's cannot be manufactued by the body and must be acquired through diet or vitamins.
New research from UCLA's Dr. Greg Cole has now shown that these acids (also called docosahexaenoic acid or DHA) increases the production of a protein called LR11, which in turn has been confirmed to destroy the protein that forms beta-amyloid plaques. LR11 can reduce beta-amyloid production by guiding APP (the…
retrospectacle | December 19, 2007A commentary today in Nature, by Sahakian and Morein-Zamir, poses the question: if you could take a pill which enhanced attention and cognition with few or no side effects, would you?
But I ask, why wouldn't you?
Interest in potions and drugs which increase awareness and "brain power" has been around for thousands of years. Many natural compounds from ginseng to coffee to cocaine have been touted as a dubious panacea for a muddled mind. However in the pharmaceutical age, we are now in possession of agents which actually do enhance cognition through changes in neurotransmitter release. For…
retrospectacle | December 17, 2007Along with Shelley, I am a graduate student in the Neuroscience Program at UM. The last three years my labmates and I have made a trilogy of satirical neuroscience posters poking mild fun at the mystical art of brain science. Shelley has kindly invited me to write on said trilogy. Also in any spare time remaining I punish myself with some rather difficult neural engineering experiments. (Tim Marzullo)
Episode 1: Spurious Correlations
You know the experience. To quote Allen Ginsburg, "everybody's serious but me." You walk around the massive meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, with 30,000…