News

Scientists Identify Brain Region That May Give Rise to Schizophrenia

by Carl Sherman

Activity in a specific part of the hippocampus seems to predict who will develop schizophrenia and reflect the severity of symptoms, according to a new study that may pave the way for novel tests and treatments.

The Veteran Neurologist
Dana Press Books

The Veteran Neurologist

Q&A with Walter Bradley

by Aalok Mehta

Walter G. Bradley, author of the new book Treating the Brain: What the Best Doctors Know, explains why finding the right doctor is essential and how the Internet is changing the doctor-patient relationship.

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News

Neurons Are ‘Green,’ Sending Signals Ultra Efficiently

by Aalok Mehta

Brain cells spend far less energy sending electrical signals than previously thought, according to a new study that may change the way we look at brain scans.

News

Training a Skeptical Eye on Neuroscience

by Syd M. Johnson

At a neuroethics conference in Nova Scotia, panelists advised taking claims about neurotherapy and brain imaging with a grain of salt.

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News

Major Cause of ‘Tone Deafness’ Found

by Jim Schnabel

The condition known as congenital amusia may be caused when a specific connection between the temporal and frontal lobes of the brain is missing or degraded, according to new research.

Wired for Hunger

Wired for Hunger

The Brain and Obesity

by Marcelo O. Dietrich, M.D., and Tamas L. Horvath, D.V.M., Ph.D.

Cerebrum

Because food is not always plentiful, humans have evolved to eat whenever it is available. Researchers are starting to tease out the brain circuits that elicit this “eat” message, a network that may contribute to today’s widespread obesity. Effective obesity treatment likely will involve combination of drugs, in addition to psychological approaches and exercise—not just a single pill. An accompanying story addresses what goes wrong in people with anorexia nervosa.

News

Music Training Linked to Better Understanding of Speech

by Kayt Sukel

Having musical skills can also help people pull out spoken words buried in a thicket of other chatter, a recent study suggests.

Weighing In on 'Conditioned Hypereating'
Book Review

Weighing In on 'Conditioned Hypereating'

by Lisa J. Merlo, Ph.D., and Mark S. Gold, M.D.

Author and former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David A. Kessler presents a provocative theory of why we overeat, complete with sound (though somewhat limited) science, a pair of addiction researchers write in this review.

Blog

When Senses Combine

Synesthesia, which can cause people to see sounds and feel tastes, isn’t as unusual as you'd think, says neurologist Richard Cytowic. Do you have it?

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Free Lecture Friday in Washington, DC

Even More Dangerous Music

A third lecture in a series on "dangerous music," on Nov. 6 at 6:15 pm, focuses on examples in the classical genre before venturing into the links between arson, murder and heavy metal and the issue of music and torture. Part of the “Music and the Brain” series, presented by the Library of Congress and the Dana Foundation.

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News

Brain Activity May Help Forecast Most Effective Antidepressant Medication

by Kayt Sukel

Recording fine-grained electrical activity seems to predict a person’s responsiveness to one common drug, in an early trial.

Updating the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

Updating the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

by David J. Kupfer, M.D., Emily A. Kuhl, Ph.D., William E. Narrow, M.D., M.P.H., and Darrel A. Regier, M.D., M.P.H.; and Paul R. McHugh, M.D.

Cerebrum

Four scientists involved in revising the leading clinical guide for diagnosing psychiatric disorders acknowledge that the current edition does not account for disorders’ complexity and suggest a move away from using simple “yes/no” questions to arrive at a diagnosis. In a complementary article, a psychiatrist and critic of the existing edition urges the editors to reject symptom-based diagnoses and instead to focus on disorders’ underlying causes.

Partner Site

Trace the Route from Genes to Cognition

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s Genes to Cognition (G2C) Online project, sponsored in part by the Dana Foundation, includes an interactive Web site with information on neuroscience topics, especially on cognitive disorders, brain processes and research approaches. The site’s multimedia “maps” illuminate the connections between topics, so you can trace your own path through the site. [off-site link]

Inside the Minds of Thrill-Seekers
From the News Office

Inside the Minds of Thrill-Seekers

Some of us find jumping out a plane terrifying even in theory; for others, though, it quickly fades from thrilling to tedious. In this briefing paper, science writer Brenda Patoine explains how neuroscientists are unraveling the mysteries of these “novelty seekers” by studying their unique brain responses and genetics, offering up insights into topics as diverse as addiction, marital infidelity and human evolution.

Edward Rover Elected Chairman

Edward Rover Elected Chairman

October 6, 2009

Edward Rover was elected chairman and CEO of the Dana Foundation on Tuesday at a meeting of the Board of Directors. Rover has served as president since May 2000. He succeeds William Safire, who died last month.

IN MEMORIAM

WILLIAM SAFIRE, 1929-2009

Credit: New York TimesWith sadness the Dana Foundation announced that Chairman William Safire died Sunday, September 27, 2009.  He was 79 and served as chairman since 2000. “We mourn Bill not only because we have lost our chairman but because we have lost a dear friend, a man devoted to the Foundation and its work," said Edward Rover, then-president of the Foundation. "During his tenure, Bill was our greatest champion--always working to enhance and build Dana’s mission and outreach."

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News

Discoveries Flow from Newest Stem Cells

by Ann Parson

Two years after the first human iPS stem-cell lines were created by reprogramming skin cells, researchers have developed lines covering more than 20 human diseases. These lines are helping scientists watch how disease changes cells in real time as well as investigate drugs to combat disease.

Ability to Catch Dyslexia Early May Help Stem Its Effects

Ability to Catch Dyslexia Early May Help Stem Its Effects

by Elizabeth Norton Lasley

BrainWork

New educational approaches and advances in brain-based research are making it possible to detect dyslexia even in children too young to read. Though it is not a cure, stepping in early with targeted intervention could prevent reading problems from derailing a child’s education.

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A Farewell to Bill
Column

A Farewell to Bill

by Guy McKhann, M.D.

Brain in the News

The Dana Foundation's late chairman, William Safire, felt deeply about the Dana Foundation’s role in brain research and brain-related activities.

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Podcast

Memories of a Sleepless Night

On the monthly NeuroPod, Nature reporter Kerri Smith reports on how sleep deprivation affects your memory, teaching mice to play video games in the name of neuroscience, the evolution of the human cerebral cortex and how different two brains can be, and still perform the same task . [off-site audio link]

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A Clue in the Multiple Sclerosis Mystery
Column

A Clue in the Multiple Sclerosis Mystery

by Ralph Steinman, M.D.

Immunology in the News

Scientists do not yet understand what triggers the attack on myelin that leads to MS, but in the last two years they have learned much about the what happens after the attack is triggered.

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Teaching Artists Are Getting Web-connected
Column

Teaching Artists Are Getting Web-connected

by Janet Eilber

Arts Education in the News

A webposium and expanding online presence signal how teaching artists are using new technologies to expand and enhance communication.

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Learning How You Learn Best
Partner site

Learning How You Learn Best

"Your Brain at Work: Making the Science of Learning and Memory Work for You" is an interactive Web site exploring how learning changes with age, learning better in the workplace and how a brain-healthy lifestyle can support learning throughout life. It's the newest piece in the Dana Alliance's Cognitive Fitness at Work series, developed in partnership with The Conference Board. [off-site link]

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Book Releases
Treating the Brain: What the Best Doctors Know

Treating the Brain: What the Best Doctors Know

by Walter G. Bradley

Known by medical students and physicians across the globe as the editor of the leading neurology textbook, Neurology in Clinical Practice, Dr. Walter Bradley now provides a definitive resource for patients, caregivers and other health practitioners.

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The Faces of a New Field

The Faces of a New Field

The author of Deep Brain Stimulation chats about the promises of the technology, its ethical implications and the colorful cast of patients and doctors she met while researching the book.

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Cerebrum 2009: Emerging Ideas in Brain Science

Cerebrum 2009: Emerging Ideas in Brain Science

In this third annual anthology of articles selected from Cerebrum, the online magazine, a stellar group of scientists and science writers, including neuroscientist Guy McKhann, computational neuroscientist Sebastian Seung, developmental psychologist Jerome Kagan and neurologist Stephen L. Hauser, introduce readers to cutting-edge developments in brain science.

Try to Remember

Try to Remember

by Paul R. McHugh, M.D.

One of our country’s leading authorities on psychiatry tells the unforgettable story of how lives can be destroyed by faddish misdirections of thought and therapeutic practices. His first-hand account begins in the 1990s with his battle against the theory of “repressed sexual memories” and ends with his concern that excessive diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder is today placing many patients in treatments that leave their real mental troubles untouched. A passionate advocate for the contribution of psychotherapy to healing, McHugh reaches out to patients, families, and mental health providers to explain how to work together toward effective diagnosis and treatment to win a contest for mental peace.

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Best of the Brain from Scientific American

Best of the Brain from Scientific American

Mind, Matter, and Tomorrow's Brain

by Floyd E. Bloom, M.D.

Top neuroscientist Floyd E. Bloom has selected the most fascinating brain-related articles from Scientific American and Scientific American Mind since 1999 in this collection. Divided into three sections—Mind, Matter, and Tomorrow’s Brain—this compilation takes you to the latest information from the front lines of brain research.

Audiobooks Now Available

Audiobooks Now Available

The Creating Brain, The Ethical Brain, Your Brain on Cubs and Best of the Brain from Scientific American are available now as audiobooks at Audible or iTunes.


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New Book: Treating the Brain: What the Best Doctors Know


Treating the Brain by Walter G. BradleyEven in this information age, people dealing with often-serious neurological problems face the daunting task of finding accurate, credible and understandable information—the essential medical fact. Using case histories as examples, Walter G. Bradley, one of the world’s leading neurologists, explains the neurological examinations, tests, clinical features, causes and treatments available for Alzheimer’s disease, migraines, stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson’s and other frequently diagnosed neurological disorders. Available online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. 

Events

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October 22, 2008

From the Archives: Understanding Childhood Brain Disorders

Dana Center, Washington, DC
Martha Denckla, M.D., Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Jerome Kagan, Ph.D., Emeritus professor, Harvard University discuss “Understanding Childhood Brain Disorders” at the Dana Center. Noel Gunther, Learning Media WETA-TV was moderator.

All Events »

Focus on Neuroeducation

Neuroeducation Emerges as Insights into Brain Development, Learning Abilities Grow

As scientists learn more about how the brain grows and learns, universities are developing programs to translate those insights into practical classroom strategies.

The latest research in neuroscience is providing evidence that supports a notion long argued by advocates: that the arts improve learning and cognition.
 

2009 Learning, Arts, and the Brain Summit - Jerome Kagan_thumbnailWhy the Arts Matter: Jerome Kagan Gives Six Good Reasons for Advocating the Importance of Arts in School

"It is not possible to live by rationality alone," said cognitive-research pioneer Jerome Kagan during the Learning, Arts, and the Brain conference in Baltimore. 


The Arts Will Help School Accountability: Commentary by Mariale Hardiman

Federal and state policy makers should expand their view of what constitutes an effective school based on the evidence of science and of experience, proposes a neuroeducation specialist at Johns Hopkins University.  For example, at the school she ran in Baltimore, "as teachers designed arts-integrated lessons that fostered creative thinking, a transformation occurred in the school."


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