PennNeuroKnow – Breaking down the brain for everyone to understand

PENN neuroknow

Breaking down the brain for everyone to understand

Can chocolate make you smarter?

I have some good news for all my fellow chocolate lovers out there: chocolate might help your brain function better!

September 1, 2026
After the antibiotics: When Lyme disease persists

Lyme disease, a tick-transmitted infection, is commonly treated with antibiotics. However, some people experience debilitating neurological symptoms even after treatment. Let’s explore the controversy surrounding whether these symptoms are “real”, or simply “all in their head”.

August 25, 2026
Magnetic compasses help pigeons navigate in the dark

Finding your way home in the dark can be challenging, but pigeons have developed surprising navigational strategies to sense magnetic fields to make it home safe.

August 18, 2026
Faster is not always better: How a faster kinesin motor does more harm than good

Moving cargo along axons requires extreme precision, where timing and pacing are just as critical as raw function. Moving too fast or too slow cause problems. This article explores how a KIF1A motor mutation causes KIF1A to walk faster along the microtubule but disrupts the cell.

August 4, 2026
Caught a case of the yawns?

Can you make it through this article without yawning? Scientists are still trying to understand the neuroscience behind contagious yawns. Let’s discuss the most prominent theory.

July 28, 2026
My buddy Claude, friend or foe?

While Claude, ChatGPT and other generative AIs are doing the work, what’s happening (or not happening) in your brain?

July 21, 2026
Becoming man’s best friend: Biology’s survival guide for animals in a world with humans

Many animals have evolved to coexist with—or even rely on—humans. A few key changes in neurobiology may explain how evolution has shaped dogs and other animals into human companions.

July 14, 2026
Out of thin air: The brain at high altitude

Lower oxygen at high altitude poses a serious danger to climbers, but some populations have adapted to thrive in these conditions. What differences in the brain and body confer protection to inhabitants of these harsh environments?

July 7, 2026
The missing community in the link between hearing loss and dementia

Acquiring hearing loss later in life is one of the strongest risk factors for dementia, a condition that affects cognitive abilities, like memory, in aging adults. Yet as researchers attempt to understand this connection, one overlooked community could provide new insights: early-deafened people.

June 30, 2026