‘travelling’ brain waves may help working memory

The act of holding information in mind is accompanied by coordination of rotating brain waves in the prefrontal cortex, a phenomenon that may convey specific advantages, a new study suggests. A stadium wave forms when fans in adjacent sections stand up and then sit back down in sequence around the seating area. This creates a …

breathing: the master clock of the sleeping brain

While we sleep, the brain is not switched off, but is busy with “saving” the important memories of the day. To achieve that, brain regions are synchronized to coordinate the transmission of information between them. Yet, the mechanisms that enable this synchronization across multiple remote brain regions are not well understood. Traditionally, these mechanisms were …

how to map your nervous system: polyvagal theory – part 2

Did you know that you can test your vagal nerve function, and not only can you test it, but you can begin to tap into the healing power of the vagus nerve? Your vagus nerve is responsible for the regulation of internal organs such as digestion, heart rate, respiratory rate and impacts certain reflex actions …

is the physical world a neural network?

Spoiler alert: there's nothing practical about this article... The most recent observations at both quantum and cosmological scales are casting serious doubts on our current models. For instance, at quantum scale, the latest electronic hydrogen proton radius measurement resulted in a much smaller radius than the one predicted by the standard model of particles physics, which now …

how to map your nervous system: polyvagal theory – part 1

With anxiety, depression, and stress on the climb, have you ever wondered how you can understand your reactions to life’s challenges and stressors? Or maybe you wondered how you can become more resilient? Did you know that you can map your own nervous system? This is such a powerful tool that can help you shift …

nerve signalling: tracing the wiring of life

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has rewarded scientists for an amazing voyage of discovery inside the human nervous system – one that has revealed how the myriad tiny signals firing through nerve cells keeps us alive, thinking and moving. Estimates vary wildly, since of course, no-one has counted them all, but there are …

scientists discover basic principle of neuroplasticity

Our brains are famously flexible, or “plastic,” because neurons can do new things by forging new or stronger connections with other neurons. But if some connections strengthen, neuroscientists have reasoned, neurons must compensate lest they become overwhelmed with input. In a new study in Science, researchers at the Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT …

effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation on neurotransmitters

The authors of a recent review of research on the effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (EMR) exposure on the brain and nervous system say "With the rapid development of electronic information in the past 30 years, technical achievements based on electromagnetism have been widely used in various fields pertaining to human production and life. Consequently, …

seven facts about the brain that incline the mind to joy

The mind and the brain are mainly (and perhaps entirely) a single unified system Almost every – and perhaps every – subjective state is correlated with an objective, material brain state. Other than a transcendental factor – call it God, Spirit, Energy, or by whatever name – by definition, what else could be going on …