Neuroscience

The hormone oxytocin is well-known as the “bliss hormone” because it is secreted upon stimulation by touch and is known to result in a feeling of calm and physical relaxation. But odder claims are…

The brain is like a muscle; it can get into a routine.  But mixing up the workout a little is healthy in both cases.  In the brain, however, it isn't without difficulties. Learning a new…

Researchers have moved a step closer to find a treatment for the fatal neurodegenerative disorder Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) after a Portuguese team from the Centre for Neurosciences at the…

Brain activity is a complex cipher but researchers were recently able to 'decode' monkey thoughts and determine how the little primates were planning to approach the same task - before they…

Why do clowns freak us out?  And why are robots cute until they look too much like people, and then then they creep us out? It's our old friend the Uncanny Valley and it basically postulates…

Over the last half century, it has been established that fish and migratory birds use the planet's magnetic field to help find their way, an interesting zoological mystery. Researchers have now…

Older honey bees halt and even reverse the effects of brain aging when they are given roles typically handled by younger bees. This has led researchers to suggest that that social interventions may…

Self-control is a finite commodity.  Neuroscientists recently took a look at what happens when a person runs out of patience and loses self-control. This self-control, they say, is limited…

We tend to associate with people we like and that like us because they are like us - so it's no surprise I hang out with wickedly smart, outrageously attractive people. Long-term relationships, even…

The anterior insular cortex is a small region of the brain, but it plays a big role in human self-awareness and in neuropsychiatric disorders. A unique cell type, the von Economo neuron (VEN), is…