A parasitic fungus infects ants and manipulates their behavior. What’s happening behind the scenes?
Can fungus turn ants into zombies?
Shopping the brain: How to find regions to test drive
With a complex organ like the brain, how do neuroscientists decide where to focus their attention? Two newer technologies are paving the way for a fast process that helps researchers make this important decision.
How did the chicken cross the road?
There’s a reason chickens have their unique strut. The “bob” of a chicken’s head as it walks allows it to see, and is enabled by some amazing neural systems.
A window of opportunity for learning
How our early life experiences during “critical periods” permanently shape our brain
The case for turning up the bass
Music is more than just hearing sound; it’s also feeling it. Scientists have shown that feeling the bass makes music more enjoyable and causes people to dance more.
When did you become you?
We all have something about us that makes us unique. Find out how scientists are using fish to uncover when in life this individuality emerges.
We have the technology!
Neuroscientists often develop entirely new tools to better understand the brain. Neuropixels is one such technology that is helping neuroscientists answer major questions.
2022 Neuroscience Year in Review
Read about what excited our writers about neuroscience this year.
Cutting through the “noise”
Learn about 1/f, the static that’s anything but random
Why do we get the hiccups?
… and other brain reflexes that we may have inherited from our distant ancestors.
Studying Animal Behavior Through the Ages
How do scientists study animal behavior? Discover how our methods have developed through the ages, and what we can learn about ourselves from studying other animals.
Is your brain full of plastics?
Humans consume a shocking amount of plastic particles; what effects do they have on the brain?
How a volcano turned a brain into glass
Researchers found perfectly preserved neurons in the remains of the Mount Vesuvius eruption
I Got It From My Mama: Maternal Microbes Support Brain Development of Her Offspring
New research in mice shows how gut microbes affect the brain, even before birth.
Where There’s Smoke
New evidence for epigenetic changes in the brains of cigarette smokers
French Fries or Side Salad?
New research sheds light on why dieting is so challenging
It’s in the blood
How scientists transferred the cognitive benefits of exercise to aged mice…without having to work out
These Circuits Were Made for Walking
A baby’s first steps
The Biased Brain
Your brain might be ready to think it is “us” vs. “them,” but you don’t have to.
Light at night may mess with your brain
A new study may help us understand how nighttime light exposure leads to behavior changes
Healing in Nature
How the outdoors can improve mental health
Artificial Sweeteners and the Brain
Are they really better for you?
Alone, but not lonely
Socially distancing from each other has been tough, and being alone also has biological consequences. However, being alone and being lonely are not the same.
Insulating your memories
Neuronal insulation provided by myelin is important for a type of memory formation
LSD on the brain
A psychedelic drug may be a therapeutic breakthrough
Making Memories
How do we form memories, and why does this process break down in autoimmune encephalitis?
A Shocking Discovery
Some scientific experiments are odd, but without this strange experiment neuroscientists would not be very ‘hoppy’. Learn about what neuroscience’s history owes to frogs and an Italian scientist born in the 18th century.
Brainwashed
Parasites can literally control the minds of other creatures
Learning to Read the Mind
Signals in the brain can be decoded to infer visual experiences
Ride the Wave
Brain waves almost sound made up, like something that doesn’t exist. However, brain waves are very real, and scientists are very interested in them.
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