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Lack of math education negatively affects adolescent brain and cognitive development

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A new study suggests that not having any maths education after the age of 16 can be disadvantageous.

Adolescents who stopped studying maths showed a reduction in a critical brain chemical for brain development. This reduction in brain chemical was found in a key brain area that supports maths, memory, learning, reasoning and problem solving.

This amount of brain chemical successfully predicted cognitive performance 19 months later. [Read more…] about Lack of math education negatively affects adolescent brain and cognitive development

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  • Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brain
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    Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brainAn enhanced learning environment during the first five years of life shapes the brain in ways that are apparent four decades later, say Virginia Tech and University of Pennsylvania scientists writing in the June edition of the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. The researchers used structural brain imaging to detect the developmental…
    Tags: brain, study, education, cognitive

Study shows how taking short breaks may help our brains learn new skills

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In a study of healthy volunteers, National Institutes of Health researchers have mapped out the brain activity that flows when we learn a new skill, such as playing a new song on the piano, and discovered why taking short breaks from practice is a key to learning.

The researchers found that during rest the volunteers’ brains rapidly and repeatedly replayed faster versions of the activity seen while they practiced typing a code.

The more a volunteer replayed the activity the better they performed during subsequent practice sessions, suggesting rest strengthened memories. [Read more…] about Study shows how taking short breaks may help our brains learn new skills

Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brain

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An enhanced learning environment during the first five years of life shapes the brain in ways that are apparent four decades later, say Virginia Tech and University of Pennsylvania scientists writing in the June edition of the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience.

The researchers used structural brain imaging to detect the developmental effects of linguistic and cognitive stimulation starting at six weeks of age in infants.

The influence of an enriched environment on brain structure had formerly been demonstrated in animal studies, but this is the first experimental study to find a similar result in humans. [Read more…] about Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brain

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  • Top educational apps for children might not be as beneficial as promised
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    Top educational apps for children might not be as beneficial as promisedLog on to any app store, and parents will find hundreds of options for children that claim to be educational. But new research suggests these apps might not be as beneficial to children as they seem. A new study analyzed some of the most downloaded educational apps for kids using…
    Tags: educational, children, study, researchers, learning, education
  • Amazon indigenous group's lifestyle may hold a key to slowing down aging
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    Amazon indigenous group's lifestyle may hold a key to slowing down agingA team of international researchers has found that the Tsimane indigenous people of the Bolivian Amazon experience less brain atrophy than their American and European peers. The decrease in their brain volumes with age is 70% slower than in Western populations. Accelerated brain volume loss can be a sign of…
    Tags: brain, study, age, health, life
  • Fertility treatment affects children's growth patterns but not for long
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    Fertility treatment affects children's growth patterns but not for longChildren born as a result of fertility treatment have different growth patterns to naturally-conceived children but, by the time they reach the age of 17, they are of similar height, weight and body mass index (BMI), according to research published today (Wednesday) in Human Reproduction. The study of 81,461 children from…
    Tags: children, study, health, age, life
  • Lack of math education negatively affects adolescent brain and cognitive development
    31
    Lack of math education negatively affects adolescent brain and cognitive developmentA new study suggests that not having any maths education after the age of 16 can be disadvantageous. Adolescents who stopped studying maths showed a reduction in a critical brain chemical for brain development. This reduction in brain chemical was found in a key brain area that supports maths, memory,…
    Tags: brain, education, cognitive, study

Press (re)play to remember – How the brain strengthens memories during sleep

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While we sleep, the brain produces particular activation patterns. When two of these patterns – slow oscillations and sleep spindles – gear into each other, previous experiences are reactivated. The stronger the reactivation, the clearer will be our recall of past events, a new study reveals.

Scientists have long known that slow oscillations (SOs) and sleep spindles – sudden half-second to two-second bursts of oscillatory brain activity – play an important role in the formation and retention of new memories.

But experts in the UK and Germany have discovered that the precise combination of SOs and sleep spindles is vital for opening windows during which memories are reactivated; helping to form and cement memories in the human brain. [Read more…] about Press (re)play to remember – How the brain strengthens memories during sleep

Amazon indigenous group’s lifestyle may hold a key to slowing down aging

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A team of international researchers has found that the Tsimane indigenous people of the Bolivian Amazon experience less brain atrophy than their American and European peers. The decrease in their brain volumes with age is 70% slower than in Western populations. Accelerated brain volume loss can be a sign of dementia.

The study was published May 26, 2021 in the Journal of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences.

Although people in industrialized nations have access to modern medical care, they are more sedentary and eat a diet high in saturated fats. In contrast, the Tsimane have little or no access to health care but are extremely physically active and consume a high-fiber diet that includes vegetables, fish and lean meat. [Read more…] about Amazon indigenous group’s lifestyle may hold a key to slowing down aging

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  • Coffee lovers, rejoice! Drinking more coffee associated with decreased heart failure risk
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    Coffee lovers, rejoice! Drinking more coffee associated with decreased heart failure riskDietary information from three large, well-known heart disease studies suggests drinking one or more cups of caffeinated coffee may reduce heart failure risk, according to research published today in Circulation: Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal. Coronary artery disease, heart failure and stroke are among the top causes of…
    Tags: risk, study, life, health
  • Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brain
    33
    Scientists say active early learning shapes the adult brainAn enhanced learning environment during the first five years of life shapes the brain in ways that are apparent four decades later, say Virginia Tech and University of Pennsylvania scientists writing in the June edition of the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. The researchers used structural brain imaging to detect the developmental…
    Tags: brain, study, health, age, life
  • Obesity and cancer: Studies highlight different aspects of the connection
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    Obesity and cancer: Studies highlight different aspects of the connectionMulti-factorial metabolic and inflammatory abnormalities in obesity, independently or in combination, seems to be the critical biological link of obesity, cancer and racial/gender health disparities. However, the specific cross-talk between these factors remain elusive. Because of the extraordinary relevance in understanding the relationship between obesity-associated inflammation and comorbidities with cancer…
    Tags: risk, health, life
  • Fertility treatment affects children's growth patterns but not for long
    31
    Fertility treatment affects children's growth patterns but not for longChildren born as a result of fertility treatment have different growth patterns to naturally-conceived children but, by the time they reach the age of 17, they are of similar height, weight and body mass index (BMI), according to research published today (Wednesday) in Human Reproduction. The study of 81,461 children from…
    Tags: study, health, age, life

Robotic ‘Third Thumb’ use can alter brain representation of the hand

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Using a robotic ‘Third Thumb’ can impact how the hand is represented in the brain, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.

The team trained people to use a robotic extra thumb and found they could effectively carry out dextrous tasks, like building a tower of blocks, with one hand (now with two thumbs).

The researchers report in the journal Science Robotics that participants trained to use the thumb also increasingly felt like it was a part of their body. [Read more…] about Robotic ‘Third Thumb’ use can alter brain representation of the hand

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  • Touch-and-know: Brain activity during tactile stimuli reveals hand preferences in people
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    Touch-and-know: Brain activity during tactile stimuli reveals hand preferences in peopleHave you ever wondered whether the brains of right-handed people work differently from those of left-handers? Is it possible to distinguish between them by observing their brain activity in response to stimuli or tasks? These are important questions from the perspectives of both basic sciences and application-based fields such as…
    Tags: brain, study, hand, technology, science

Solving the cocktail party problem

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Conducting a discussion in a noisy place can be challenging when other conversations and background noises interfere with our ability to focus attention on our conversation partner.

How the brain deals with the abundance of sounds in our environments, and prioritizes among them, has been a topic of debate among cognitive neuroscientists for many decades.

Often referred to as the “Cocktail Party Problem”, its central question focuses on whether we can absorb information from a few speakers in parallel, or whether we are limited to understanding speech from only one speaker at a time. [Read more…] about Solving the cocktail party problem

Head to toe: Study reveals brain activity behind missed penalty kicks

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Are penalty shots a soccer player’s dream or nightmare? What should be an easy shot can become a mammoth task when the hopes and fears of an entire nation rest on a player’s shoulders, leading them to choke under pressure.

Understanding the brain activity behind choking is the driving force behind a new study in open-access journal Frontiers in Computer Science.

The study is the first to measure brain activity during penalty shots in a soccer pitch environment. It finds that people who choked activated areas of the brain involved in long-term thinking, suggesting that they were overthinking the consequences of missing the shot. [Read more…] about Head to toe: Study reveals brain activity behind missed penalty kicks

Turns out developing a taste for carbs wasn’t a bad thing

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A new study looking at the evolutionary history of the human oral microbiome shows that Neanderthals and ancient humans adapted to eating starch-rich foods as far back as 100,000 years ago, which is much earlier than previously thought.

The findings suggest such foods became important in the human diet well before the introduction of farming and even before the evolution of modern humans.

And while these early humans probably didn’t realize it, the benefits of bringing the foods into their diet likely helped pave the way for the expansion of the human brain because of the glucose in starch, which is the brain’s main fuel source. [Read more…] about Turns out developing a taste for carbs wasn’t a bad thing

Researchers identify a psychedelic-like drug without the hallucinogenic side effects

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Psychedelic drugs have shown promise for treating neuropsychiatric disorders such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

However, due to their hallucinatory side effects, some researchers are trying to identify drugs that could offer the benefits of psychedelics without causing hallucinations.

In the journal Cell on April 28, researchers report they have identified one such drug through the development of a genetically encoded fluorescent sensor – called psychLight – that can screen for hallucinogenic potential by indicating when a compound activates the serotonin 2A receptor. [Read more…] about Researchers identify a psychedelic-like drug without the hallucinogenic side effects

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  • AI-designed serotonin sensor may help scientists study sleep and mental health
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    AI-designed serotonin sensor may help scientists study sleep and mental healthSerotonin is a neurochemical that plays a critical role in the way the brain controls our thoughts and feelings. For example, many antidepressants are designed to alter serotonin signals sent between neurons. In an article in Cell, National Institutes of Health-funded researchers described how they used advanced genetic engineering techniques to…
    Tags: serotonin, sensor, brain, researchers, lab, health