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learning

·April 22, 2025·4 min read

Temporary Anxiety Impairs Threat Recognition and Learning

A brief episode of anxiety can significantly impair a person’s ability to distinguish between safe and dangerous environments, according to new research using a virtual reality flower-picking game. Participants who developed clear spatial memory of which areas contained “stinging bees” (simulated by mild shocks) exhibited lower anxiety, while those who couldn’t differentiate the zones maintained high anxiety—even in safe spaces.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 17, 2025·5 min read

Synapses Use Multiple Learning Rules to Encode New Information

New research reveals that individual neurons follow multiple learning rules simultaneously, challenging the long-held belief that synaptic plasticity operates uniformly throughout the brain. Using advanced two-photon imaging, scientists tracked changes in synapses during learning in mice, uncovering that different regions within a single neuron adapt using distinct plasticity mechanisms.

This shows a person and a digital brain.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 13, 2025·5 min read

How Psychology Has Shaped, and Continues to Shape, AI

Psychology has been instrumental in the evolution of artificial intelligence, offering foundational insights into learning, cognition, and behavior that have shaped key AI technologies. From early neural networks based on Hebbian learning to modern deep learning and metacognition, psychological theories continue to inform AI’s development.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 7, 2025·3 min read

Daydreaming Helps: Mind Wandering Aids Unconscious Learning

A new study finds that spontaneous mind wandering may actually boost learning during tasks that require minimal attention. Researchers recorded brain activity while participants completed a simple, low-effort learning task based on probability.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 1, 2025·5 min read

Brain Mapping Tool Reveals How Learning Rewires Synaptic Links

Researchers have developed DELTA, a powerful new imaging method that maps brain-wide synaptic changes during learning. By labeling synaptic proteins before and after behavioral training, scientists can now visualize where and how neural connections shift over time.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 31, 2025·5 min read

Glutamate Unlocks Brain Cell Channels to Enable Thinking and Learning

Researchers used advanced cryo-electron microscopy to capture atomic-level images of how glutamate, a key neurotransmitter, opens channels in brain cells. These channels, known as AMPA receptors, are essential for neuron-to-neuron communication and play a role in learning, memory, and disorders like epilepsy.

This is a drawing of a neuron and dendrites.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 21, 2025·5 min read

Dendrites Link Memories Formed Close in Time

A new study shows that our brains physically link memories formed close together in time through changes in the dendrites of neurons, rather than in the cell bodies. Using advanced imaging in mice, researchers found that the same dendritic branches are activated when closely timed experiences are encoded, effectively binding the memories.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 20, 2025·5 min read

Brain Activity Reveals How We Learn From Mistakes

New research uncovers how the brain processes learning by identifying the exact moment an animal learns a new skill. By observing individual neurons in mice, scientists found that learning occurs much faster than previously thought, in as few as 20 to 40 tries.

This shows people around a campfire talking.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·March 18, 2025·7 min read

When Did Humans First Speak? Genes Offer New Clues on Language Origins

New genetic research suggests that humans first developed language around 135,000 years ago when populations began geographically splitting, followed by widespread social use around 100,000 years ago. Using data from 15 genetic studies, researchers found that early human groups branched out approximately 135,000 years ago, which likely coincides with the origin of language as a cognitive system.

This shows adults, children and speech bubbles.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 1, 2025·4 min read

Multilingualism Starts Early: Study Challenges View on Language Learning

A new study of 121 infants in Accra, Ghana, reveals that babies regularly hear between two and six languages from multiple caregivers. Unlike the Western model of learning one language from a primary caregiver, these children acquire language through a dynamic social environment.

Featured Neuroscience

·February 19, 2025·6 min read

Brain Circuit Identifies What’s Familiar, Important, or Just Background

Scientists have identified a previously unknown brain circuit that rapidly evaluates sensory information by integrating memories and emotions. This direct feedback loop between the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus allows the brain to prioritize important sights and sounds almost instantly.

This shows a man at a computer and a marmoset.

Featured Neuroscience

·February 18, 2025·6 min read

Why We Keep Exploring Even After Learning the Best Strategy

A new study reveals that both humans and marmosets continue to adjust their behavior even after learning an optimal task strategy. Instead of sticking to a known successful approach, they subtly modify their responses based on their most recent experience.

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learning

Temporary Anxiety Impairs Threat Recognition and Learning

Synapses Use Multiple Learning Rules to Encode New Information

How Psychology Has Shaped, and Continues to Shape, AI

Daydreaming Helps: Mind Wandering Aids Unconscious Learning

Brain Mapping Tool Reveals How Learning Rewires Synaptic Links

Glutamate Unlocks Brain Cell Channels to Enable Thinking and Learning

Dendrites Link Memories Formed Close in Time

Brain Activity Reveals How We Learn From Mistakes

When Did Humans First Speak? Genes Offer New Clues on Language Origins

Multilingualism Starts Early: Study Challenges View on Language Learning

Brain Circuit Identifies What’s Familiar, Important, or Just Background

Why We Keep Exploring Even After Learning the Best Strategy

Music and Nature Work in Harmony to Ease Stress and Lift Mood

Listening to Music After 70 May Cut Dementia Risk by Nearly 40%

Brain Circuits Split Food Choices Between Sugar and Fat Cravings

Alzheimer’s Disrupts Brain’s Internal Clock, Unraveling Gene Rhythms

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