Mood & Mind

Inside the brains of people who can't picture things in their mind.

Scientists just did it to mice—and we may be next.

A silent symphony is playing inside your brain right now as neurological pathways synchronize in an electromagnetic chorus that's thought to give rise to consciousness. Yet how various circuits throughout the brain align their firing is an enduring mystery, one some theorists suggest might have a solution that involves quantum entanglement. The proposal is a bold one, not least because quantum effects tend to blur into irrelevance on scales...

The puzzle of memory has intrigued philosophers and intellects for a very long time. Plato and Aristotle believed that memory was found only in the realm of the soul and the mind, but there was nothing corporeal or physical about it. Memory is closely tied to our sense of self and subjective experiences, but there are physical processes that are associated with remembering. Modern analogy likes to compare computer memory to that of the brain,...

Early detection of dementia may be possible by analyzing speech patterns.

From conveying precise instruction to evoking entire new worlds, words and their meanings are central to our existence as humans. But how the multitude of cells making up a human brain take abstract noises or symbols and convert them into something with meaning has long been a mystery. New techniques that can track brain activity down to a single neuron are now revealing exactly where this sound translation takes place within our minds. "Humans...

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are at the centre of a collision between social and biochemical outlooks on depression, finds Andy Extance

npj Aging - Investigating nutrient biomarkers of healthy brain aging: a multimodal brain imaging study

This cohort study examines data from Rush Memory and Aging Project, including autopsy results and up to 24 years of follow-up, to determine the association between lifestyle and cognitive function independently of Alzheimer disease pathology burden.

Brief doze may delay brain shrinkage, which occurs faster in people with neurodegenerative diseases

Scientists have developed a machine learning model that predicts Alzheimer's onset up to seven years early, identifying high cholesterol and osteoporosis as key predictors, especially in women. Published in Nature Aging, this study marks a significant step toward early diagnosis and understanding of Alzheimer's.

Hye Kyung Baek*, Young Jun Kim, Yeon Sun Lee, Hye Ri Jo, Mi So Park, Dong Guk Shin, Hyun A Shim. Journal of Acupuncture Research 2022;39:275-82. https://doi.org/10.13045/jar.2022.00206

Heading to the bar? Read this first.

"Following this diet is associated with lower risk of cognitive decline.”

But if I told you this two decades ago, you’d think I’m crazy.

The number of older people, including those living with dementia, is rising, as younger age mortality declines. However, the age-specific incidence of dementia has fallen in many countries, probably because of improvements in education, nutrition, health care, and lifestyle changes. Overall, a growing body of evidence supports the nine potentially modifiable risk factors for dementia modelled by the 2017 Lancet Commission on dementia prevention, intervention, and care: less education, hypertension, hearing impairment, smoking, obesity, depression, physical inactivity, diabetes, and low social contact.