IBM’s Watson to Join Research Team at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer becomes the first university of receive a version of IBM’s Watson system. Rensselaer hopes to find new uses for Watson and develop its cognitive capabilities, as well as using the system for Big Data research.
New Drug Target Identified for Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s Disease
Researchers report that the protein Klotho plays an important role in the health of myelin, the insulating material allowing for the rapid communication between nerve cells. These findings may lead to new therapies for multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD).
Engineers Solve a Biological Mystery and Boost Artificial Intelligence
Simulating 25,000 generations of evolution within computers, researchers discover why biological networks tend to be organized as modules, a finding that will lead to a deeper understanding of the evolution of complexity.
NIH Study Advances Understanding of Movement Control
Voluntary movements involve the coordinated activation of two brain pathways that connect parts of deep brain structures called the basal ganglia, according to a study in mice.
A Better Way to Culture Central Nervous Cells
A protein associated with neuron damage in Alzheimer’s patients provides a superior scaffold for growing central nervous system cells in the lab.
Study Shows how Brain Cells Shape Temperature Preferences
A new study shows a complex set of overlapping neuronal circuits works in concert to drive temperature preferences in the fruit fly Drosophila by affecting a single target, a heavy bundle of neurons within the fly brain known as the mushroom body. These nerve bundles play critical roles in learning and memory.
Neuroscientists Pinpoint Location of Fear Memory in Amygdala
Researchers examine the how fear responses are learned, controlled, and memorized. They show that a particular class of neurons in a subdivision of the amygdala plays an active role in these processes.
Glial Cells Assist in the Repair of Injured Nerves
Researchers have discovered that, following nerve damage, peripheral glial cells produce the growth factor neuregulin1, which assists in the regeneration of damaged nerves.
When Food Porn Holds No Allure: The Science Behind Satiety
New research sheds light on why images of enticing food affect us less when we are full.
Science Needs a Second Opinion: Researchers Find Flaws in Study of Patients in “Vegetative State”
Reanalysis points to a number of flaws in a study which claimed EEG identified awareness in some patients diagnosed as being in a vegetative state.
