#neuroscience

#neuroscience

Sometimes, you can be talking to someone for hours, and it feels like only a few minutes. You natter and natter without ever having to think of what to say or cringe through any awkward silence. There's a gentle sway to things - you listen, they speak, they listen, you speak. The chat dances to the easy and comfortable rhythm of the conversational tide.

As I've shared before, when I was 12, I was playing at a friend's house one hot August afternoon when I was told I was needed at home. As I turned into my long driveway, I saw the lights of an ambulance, a stretcher being loaded into the back. The doors slammed shut. The whirling lights threw red streaks across the oaks as it sped past me out of our driveway. No one noticed the small, pale, immobilized girl standing by the mailbox.

You've seen it on T-shirts, Instagram captions, and coffee mugs: "Good vibes only." But is it just a trendy phrase or is there real science behind the power of positive thinking? As it turns out, there is. Neuroscience shows what many of us instinctively feel: staying optimistic, practicing gratitude, and spreading kindness can do more than just lift your mood. They can actually change how your brain works, and even influence your long-term health. Let's take a closer look at how positivity affects the brain, and how you can train your mind to be more resilient, optimistic, and happier.

Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

This summer, I did something unusual for me: I hit pause. After a year that included launching an in-person summit for nearly 200 women, hosting a retreat in Cabo, launching my podcast (with co-host Dr. Nicole Martin), and releasing a book, I was, in a word, tired. The kind of tired that no amount of coffee or color-coded planner could fix.

In a previous post, I described the life of Heinz Lehmann, a young German physician who fled the rise of Nazi power and settled in Canada, where he played a major role in the recognition of chlorpromazine as a treatment for psychoses. As it turns out, he was one of many talented physicians and scientists who settled in Britain, the U.S., and Canada, where they contributed to the growth of neuroscience and neuropharmacology.

We tend to think that we experience the world as it is. We see and hear things, store them away as knowledge, and then take new facts into account. But that's not how our brains actually work. In reality, we filter out most of what we experience, so that we can focus on particular points of interest. In effect, we forget most things so we can zero in on what seems to be most important.

'I got woken up by a massive thump on the shoulder. So I opened my eyes, and I could see next to my bed a very vague hazy version of Robin as if he was pushing himself through treacle to be seen, and I was just transfixed, and I could see him become more and more clear, I could see the outline of his hair and his face, but he suddenly just dissolved from the top down.'

Children's brains are more attuned to unusual details instead of familiar patterns, resulting in high scores for intuition, unlike older individuals who rely on established patterns.

Erin Kunz of Stanford University indicates that brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) can restore speech for paralyzed individuals by decoding signals from the brain's motor cortex, revealing intended speech.

Tim Gregory notes that the most climate-concerned environmentalists are often the least supportive of nuclear power, despite its potential to mitigate global warming through zero carbon emissions.

Caffeine can make the sleeping brain more active and less restful, particularly in young adults, according to a study from the University of Montreal.

Fear-based messages often activate a resistance response in the brain, leading to further entrenchment of beliefs. Instead, messages highlighting benefits promote openness and learning.

The researchers used virtual reality to show test subjects images of human faces displaying signs of infection, revealing a distinct neurological response compared to neutral and fearful faces.

In his book, Awakenings, Sacks describes their condition: "They would be conscious and aware - yet not fully awake; they would sit motionless and speechless all day...as passive as zombies."

The accelerated ageing occurred even in people who didn't become infected, with structural changes in brain scans most noticeable in older people, male participants, and those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Giving yourself mental space isn't a luxury; it is a biological and cognitive necessity, crucial for overall well-being.

Citizen neuroscientists have collected nearly 8,000 brain-activity recordings across Tanzania and India, yielding data equivalent to lab-quality recordings for under US$50 per participant.

I called the book Still Me because it's not just from the perspective of the person with dementia; I mean it from the perspective of the carer too. You are not just a carer, you are entitled to a life outside that.

Providing opportunities for children to engage in parent-directed and self-selected play can support this rapid phase of synaptic growth for boosted cognitive development and emotional maturity.

Lying is baked into human behavior. Research indicates that most people lie occasionally, while some lie daily. However, not all lies are intended to harm.

The first brain regions to rouse during waking up are associated with executive function and decision-making, indicating a structured wave of activation from front to back.