Does the head remain briefly conscious after decapitation (revisited)? A Straight Dope Classic from Cecil's Storehouse of Human Knowledge June 12, 1998 Dear Cecil: In the answer about the guillotine in your online archive, you say that "the fatal blow induces immediate unconsciousness." — Joel Brusk, via AOL Dear Joel: Let's see. A lot of people disputed my claim that victims of the guillotine blacked out immediately. Not likely. But let's return to the original question, appalling though it may be: Is a severed head aware of its fate? It doesn't get any better. Is it possible? Then I received a note from a U.S. My friend's head came to rest face up, and (from my angle) upside-down. I've spoken with the author and am satisfied the event occurred as described. — Cecil Adams
3D map of human brain is the most detailed ever - health - 20 June 2013 The folds, creases and intricate internal structures that make up the human brain are being revealed in unprecedented detail. A new three-dimensional map called BigBrain is the most detailed ever constructed, and should lead to a more accurate picture of how the brain's different regions function and interact. Until now, the precise placement of the neurons that make up our brain circuitry has been difficult to map, largely because the human brain's surface is covered with folds and creases. Slicing a brain exposes only two dimensions, so it is often unclear where and how the cells within these folds are organised in three-dimensional space. To make the new map, Katrin Amunts of the Jülich Research Centre in Germany and her colleagues embedded a 65-year old woman's brain in wax, sliced it into more than 7400 sections each 20 micrometres thick – one-fifth of the width of a human hair – and made digital images of the slices, also at a resolution of 20 micrometres. Tour de force
What Neuro-revolution? The Public Find Brain Science Irrelevant and Anxiety-provoking It feels to me like interest in the brain has exploded. I’ve seen huge investments in brain science by the USA and Europe (the BRAIN Initiative and the Human Brain Project), I’ve read about the rise in media coverage of neuroscience, and above all, I’ve noticed how journalists and bloggers now often frame stories as being about the brain as opposed to the person. Look at these recent headlines: “Why your brain loves storytelling” (Harvard Business Review); “How Netflix is changing our brains” (Forbes); and “Why your brain wants to help one child in need — but not millions” (NPR). There are hundreds more, and in each case, the headline could be about “you” but the writer chooses to make it about “your brain”. Consider too the emergence of new fields such as neuroleadership, neuroaesthetics and neuro-law. Having said all that, I’m conscious that my own perspective is heavily biased. Now there’s even more evidence that the neuro-revolution is on hold. “I became severely depressed.
Blueprint for an artificial brain: Scientists experiment with memristors that imitate natural nerves Scientists have long been dreaming about building a computer that would work like a brain. This is because a brain is far more energy-saving than a computer, it can learn by itself, and it doesn't need any programming. Privatdozent [senior lecturer] Dr. Andy Thomas from Bielefeld University's Faculty of Physics is experimenting with memristors -- electronic microcomponents that imitate natural nerves. Thomas and his colleagues have demonstrated that they could do this a year ago. He will be presenting his results at the beginning of March in the print edition of the Journal of Physics published by the Institute of Physics in London. Memristors are made of fine nanolayers and can be used to connect electric circuits. Like synapses, memristors learn from earlier impulses. Andy Thomas explains that because of their similarity to synapses, memristors are particularly suitable for building an artificial brain -- a new generation of computers.
Mind-reading monkey brains look similar to ours - life - 15 June 2013 MONKEYS may have a primitive version of the human ability to put ourselves in another's shoes. Intelligent animals such as apes can intuit others' intentions, suggesting they have some theory of mind capability. But only humans can reason that others may not hold their own beliefs. To study this difference, Rogier Mars of the University of Oxford and colleagues scanned 36 people's brains. Using an algorithm, they created a map of how an area associated with theory of mind is connected to brain regions linked to abilities such as face recognition and interpretation. Next, the researchers scanned 12 macaque brains for a similar pattern of connections. That doesn't necessarily mean the structures share a function, Mars says. Laurie Santos of Yale University says the structural differences may one day tell us why non-human primates lack the ability to think about others' beliefs. This article appeared in print under the headline "Monkeys in other monkeys' shoes" More From New Scientist
BREAKTHROUGH: DMT Found in the Pineal Gland of Live Rats In a major breakthrough in consciousness and psychedelic studies, Cottonwood Research Foundation has published a paper (soon to appear in the Journal Biomedical Chromatography) documenting the presence of DMT in the brains of living rats. For decades researchers have hypothesized that DMT may be one of the neurochemicals responsible for consciousness, dreams and visionary experiences. It’s certainly responsible for these and ever weirder experiences for those who have smoked it or taken Ayahuasca. DMT has been documented as naturally occurring in human blood, but this was not conclusive evidence that it is produced in the brain. DMT is structurally related to Serotonin, Melatonin and Pinoline, so the small traces in human blood could be an enzymatic breakdown product of these precursor molecules. Now we have clear proof of DMT being manufactured in the living Pineal Glands of rats, and that the genes responsible for this exist in the Pineal Gland and Retina! From the press release:
Síndrome de Burnout: um artigo que faz a diferença Por PROF.MS. ELIZABETH GALVÃO Do original: Síndrome de Burnout- Hoje quero abordar um assunto delicado, que – em maior ou menor medida – afeta ou vai afetar a todos nós, no ambiente de trabalho: o esgotamento profissional ou, como é conhecido tecnicamente, a Síndrome de Burnout. Primeiro, vamos à definição clássica sobre o problema. O que é a Síndrome de Burnout “Burnout (esgotamento profissional) é definido como uma síndrome psicológica decorrente da tensão emocional crônica no trabalho. Burnout geralmente ocorre em profissionais que lidam com pressão emocional constante em seu dia-a-dia, e mantém contato direto com pessoas em situações estressantes, por longo período de tempo. Esses profissionais se deparam com eventos estressores no ambiente de trabalho, além do intenso e contínuo contato interpessoal. Como acontece O fator estressor, seja qual for, físico ou psicológico, ativa o sistema neuroendócrino. Exaustão emocional – falta de energia associada a sensação de esgotamento emocional.
3D map of human brain is the most detailed ever - health - 20 June 2013 The folds, creases and intricate internal structures that make up the human brain are being revealed in unprecedented detail. A new three-dimensional map called BigBrain is the most detailed ever constructed, and should lead to a more accurate picture of how the brain's different regions function and interact. Until now, the precise placement of the neurons that make up our brain circuitry has been difficult to map, largely because the human brain's surface is covered with folds and creases. Slicing a brain exposes only two dimensions, so it is often unclear where and how the cells within these folds are organised in three-dimensional space. To make the new map, Katrin Amunts of the Jülich Research Centre in Germany and her colleagues embedded a 65-year old woman's brain in wax, sliced it into more than 7400 sections each 20 micrometres thick – one-fifth of the width of a human hair – and made digital images of the slices, also at a resolution of 20 micrometres. Tour de force
Banishing consciousness: the mystery of anaesthesia - health - 29 November 2011 Read full article Continue reading page |1|2|3 I WALK into the operating theatre feeling vulnerable in a draughty gown and surgical stockings. I smile weakly and ask for a gin and tonic. I have had two operations under general anaesthetic this year. What they didn't tell me was how the drugs would send me into the realms of oblivion. The development of general anaesthesia has transformed surgery from a horrific ordeal into a gentle slumber. That is starting to change, however, with the development of new techniques for imaging the brain or recording its electrical activity during anaesthesia. Consciousness has long been one of the great mysteries of life, the universe and everything. Altered consciousness doesn't only happen under a general anaesthetic of course - it occurs whenever we drop off to sleep, or if we are unlucky enough to be whacked on the head. It was a Japanese surgeon who performed the first known surgery under anaesthetic, in 1804, using a mixture of potent herbs.