Live Music’s Unique Spark: A Brain’s Emotional Journey

Summary: Live music significantly amplifies emotional responses in the brain compared to recorded tunes. By measuring amygdala activity, researchers found that live performances evoke stronger emotional reactions, fostering a deeper…

Music’s Universal Pulse: Body and Emotions Unite Across Cultures

Summary: A groundbreaking cross-cultural study has revealed that music universally influences bodily sensations and emotions, transcending cultural boundaries. Researchers from Western and East Asian backgrounds discovered that emotional and structural…

First-in-humans discovery reveals brain chemicals at work influencing social behavior

Scientists discuss their work to discover insights into the complexities of the brain and mind. Recently, the researchers, including (from left) Dan Bang of Aarhus University in Denmark, Ken Kishida…

A Prelude to Speech: How the Brain Forms Words

Summary: Researchers made a groundbreaking discovery on how the human brain forms words before speaking. By utilizing Neuropixels probes, they’ve mapped out how neurons represent speech sounds and assemble them…

Shaping Empathy: Adult Brains Can Learn Compassion

Summary: Empathy, often considered a fixed trait, has been shown to be malleable in adults, influenced by observing the empathetic reactions of others. The study utilized Computational Modeling and functional…

Neural Decoding Unveils Secrets of Navigation

Summary: A new study combines deep learning with neural activity data from mice to unlock the mystery of how they navigate their environment. By analyzing the firing patterns of “head…

Wearable Tech Reads Human Emotions

Summary: Researchers unveiled a pioneering technology capable of real-time human emotion recognition, promising transformative applications in wearable devices and digital services. The system, known as the personalized skin-integrated facial interface…

New brain stimulation technique shows promise for treating brain disorders

This figure summarizes the outcomes following ultrasound stimulation. Low-intensity brainwave-like pattern ultrasound stimulation sequentially stimulates TRPA1 in astrocytes, leading to BEST1-dependent neurotransmitter secretion. This, in turn, stimulates adjacent neurons, inducing…

Ketamine’s Key to Unlocking Social Bonding in Depression

Summary: Researchers made a significant breakthrough in understanding how ketamine treats depression-related social impairments, focusing on the drug’s effects in the mouse model. Their study shows that (R)-ketamine, as opposed…

Neuroscientist uses AI to map learning, decision-making, to discover how brains work

Meta-learning of RL. Credit: Nature Neuroscience (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01485-3 With trial and error, repetition and praise, when a puppy hears “Sit,” they learn what they’re expected to do. That’s reinforcement…