Using 20 years of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from tens of thousands of brain imaging experiments, neuroscientists at the University of Massachusetts have created a geometry-based method for massive data analysis to reach a new understanding of how thought arises from brain structure. The research, appearing in the current issue of Nature Scientific […]
Working with mice, researchers at the University of Toyama were able to generate artificial links between unrelated pieces of information stored in memory, resulting in long-lasting changes in behavior. The work, published in in Cell Reports, may point the way to the development of new treatments for disorders such as PTSD, where the main symptoms […]
In an intriguing new study, University of Warwick researchers say that while low educational attainment is associated with mental illness, happiness – or mental wellbeing – was equally likely across all levels of educational attainment. The study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, set out to examine socioeconomic factors related to high mental wellbeing, […]
High-fat diets have long been known to increase the risk for heart disease and stroke, but there is new evidence to link diets high in fat with a range of psychiatric disorders. Central to this newly recognized mind-gut relationship are the microorganisms that inhabit our intestines – the gut microbiome. Increasingly, scientists are finding the […]
New University of Waterloo research that examined people’s smartphone habits as well as their analytical, verbal, and numeracy skills found an association between heavy smartphone use and lowered intelligence. The three studies, appearing in the journalComputers in Human Behavior, suggest that having convenience at our fingertips is making it easy for us to avoid thinking […]
A new report in the International Journal of Eating Disorders is the first to show that the longer someone suffers from anorexia nervosa, the more likely they are to show alterations in DNA methylation. These alterations cause changes in gene expression which can affect a range of physiological mechanisms. The study, entitled “DNA methylation in […]
University of Rochester computer scientists have developed innovative software that turns smartphones into mental health monitoring devices. Describing the project at this week’s American Association for Artificial Intelligence conference in Austin, Texas, researcher Jiebo Luo said the program analyzes “selfie” images and videos taken as the user engages with social media. Rather than direct interaction […]
Spinal cord injuries that result in paraplegia may one day be treatable using a technique that bypasses the damaged neural pathways that connect the brain to the spinal locomotor center. The researchers, from the National Institute for Physiological Sciences in Japan, have demonstrated how the computer-controlled bypass circuit allowed a subject to use hand movements […]
A new study by researchers at the University of Oxford shows that mental illnesses reduce life expectancy by 10-20 years, a loss of years that’s equivalent to or worse than that for heavy smoking. The researchers say the figures should galvanize governments and health and social services to put a much higher priority on how […]
Emotions affect not only our mental state, but also different areas of the body. These conscious feelings help individuals fine-tune their behavior to better match the challenges of the environment. Anxiety may be experienced as pain in the chest, for example, whereas falling in love may be associated with warm sensations all over the body. […]
