neuroscience
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Scientists can create and erase memories 'at will'
A person is the sum of their memories, so what happens when our personal histories can be deleted at will? That's the ethical dilemma facing researchers over at the University of California, San Diego, who have found that it's possible to delete and recover memories created in the minds of genetically engineered rats in the same way MIT scientists did with mice last year. In a slightly gruesome series of experiments, the rodents were given electric shocks while their neurons were bombarded by light pulses delivered by an optical fiber implanted into their brains. After a while, the shocks stopped, but whenever their brains were stimulated, the rats continued to feel fear, since they were drawing on memories.
This is what brain synapses look like in 3D
Many know that brains are inherently complex things; there are trillions of synapses converting chemical and electrical signals in a human mind. However, did you know that even those synapses are very complex? If not, it should be perfectly clear now. German scientists have used a mix of extremely high-resolution microscopes (both electron and fluorescent), mass spectrometry and protein detection to create a super-detailed 3D map of a synapse in a rat's brain. It's almost like a miniscule city -- those dots you see represent 300,000 proteins, and only a tiny portion (the glowing red patch at the bottom) is transmitting chemicals.
MIT can map the activity of every neuron in an animal's brain
Scientists have long yearned for a neuron-by-neuron illustration of brain activity; get that and you can see exactly what drives an animal's thoughts and reflexes. MIT may make those wishes come true, as it just revealed a system that produces a complete 3D neural activity map. The discovery revolves around a light field microscope (which refracts light to create a 3D image) that's optimized for looking at the electrical pulses of each neuron, right down to the millisecond time level. So far, researchers have created videos showing what's happening within the entire nervous system of a c. elegans worm, and the brain of a zebrafish larva.
Recommended Reading: the decline of Wikipedia, safecracking the brain and more
Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology in print and on the web. Some weeks, you'll also find short reviews of books dealing with the subject of technology that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read. The Decline of Wikipedia by Tom Simonite, Technology Review Wikipedia is still far and away one of the world's biggest websites but, as Tom Simonite explains in this piece for MIT's Technology Review, it's not without its share of problems -- problems that have been holding it back from becoming the trusted, authoritative source it's strived to be. Simonite looks at the roots of those problems and what they've meant for the site, and also what it's doing to address them, including a new initiative that promises to bring some of the biggest changes yet to a site that has tended to steer clear of change over the years.
Researchers link brains, control each other's actions via the internet (video)
Human brain-to-brain interfacing seems like the stuff of fiction (Pacific Rim, anyone?), but researchers at the University of Washington have made it a reality. A team led by faculty members Rajesh Rao and Andrea Stocco claim to have pioneered the world's first human-to-human experiment of the sort. Rao and Stocco were placed in different buildings and hooked up to two devices to record, interpret and send their brain signals via the internet. The sender (Rao) wore an EEG machine while the receiver (Stocco) was connected to a transcranial magnetic stimulation coil. The experiment was performed with a simple arcade-style video game, the objective of which was to shoot baddies out of the sky. Rao watched the screen and visualized lifting his hand to press the space bar to fire, but Stocco was the trigger man. Clear across campus, Stocco's finger tapped the space bar at the appropriate time, eliminating the target, despite being unable to hear or see the game's display. To learn more, check out the video after the break or the source link below.
Allen Institute completes gene expression map of the human brain in high-resolution 3D
As a species, we've spent a lot of time learning how the human brain works, but we've had to go without a true, thorough map of how genes manifest themselves in our craniums; previous maps have been limited to the simpler minds of mice. The Allen Institute for Brain Science is now known to have solved that mystery by recently finishing an extensive, detailed 3D atlas of genetic expression within our own brain tissue. Accomplishing the feat required no small amount of resources, including the definition of 900 subdivisions, conducting over 62,000 gene expression probes and producing the MRI scans of two and a half brains, but the result is a potentially vital tool for neuroscience and education. Curious web users can see a visual map of gene expression based on virtually any criteria they need, whether it's a physical region of the brain, a disease type or the exact gene they'd like to track down. For many, the best news about the map may simply be that it's free and public: anyone with enough experience in genetics can learn more about what makes the mind tick through their browsers, and what they find might just lead to new discoveries.
Guitar Hero clone used to teach unknowable, subconscious passwords
We're not entirely sure if this new development in password technology is amazing or terrifying or both, but a group of cryptographers and neuroscientists have developed a method through which a subject can be taught a 30-character password and not even know that they know it. This is all accomplished through repeated play sessions of a keyboard-controlled Guitar Hero clone. I mean, how else would you do it?The "game," developed by Stanford University student Hristo Bojinov, has players pressing the S, D F, J, K and L keys on their keyboards as corresponding symbols fall from the top of the screen to the bottom, as seen above. During a standard 45 minute play session, nearly 4,000 "notes" are generated and entered by the player, 80 percent of which are actually part of a cryptographic sequence. By the time the session is over, the subject has "learned" a 30-character password, though it is supposedly impossible for them to actually know what it is.In order to "enter" the password, the subject plays a round of the game in which their 30 character password is randomly jumbled with other 30-character sequences. The subject subconsciously trained on their specific password would statistically perform better on those sequences rather than the sequences belonging to other passwords, thus verifying their identity.Unfortunately, Bojinov's subconscious encryption engine isn't playable online at present. Maybe that's for the best, though -- we're not sure how ready we are to be implanted with unknowable knowledge.
Newcastle University neuroscientists use video game for stroke rehab
Video games aren't neuroscience, unless they're helping stroke victims recover physical function in a scientific, medical capacity: then they're totally neuroscience. The above video shows off Circus Challenge, an action game from Newcastle University and Limbs Alive Ltd designed to help stroke patients regain motor control of their weakened hands and arms.Circus Challenge uses "next-gen" motion controllers – not the Wii, as other rehab systems have – to have patients fling pies at clowns, juggle, dive and perform other Big Top-inspired feats, with the difficulty progressing as motor skills improve. Newcastle received £1.5 million from the Health Innovation Challenge Fund for its project, and hopes to use the funds to provide remotely monitored, at-home therapy for stroke patients.Aside from all the philanthropy and innovation in the Circus Challenge project, we think the game design is pretty pretty as well. Check it out for yourself up top.
Military deploys VR NeuroTracker game to train special ops forces (video)
We've seen virtual reality used to simulate the experience of being in space, to train engineers and even to help patients regain mobility, so it's no surprise that the military is recognizing VR's potential, too. The US Special Operations Command recently announced that it will employ NeuroTracker -- a system currently used to train athletes in the NFL and NHL -- to assess and improve commandos' response times and perceptive capabilities. The VR setup tasks commandos with following the movements of four different balls projected on a 3D screen, the catch being that four "decoy" objects are also bouncing around. NeuroTracker assesses how well an individual can keep track of the designated targets, and also helps determine how he or she would be able to predict trajectories in the field. Once a user has completed the first game, several variations come into play, including a version that speeds up the balls' movements and one that pits two players against each other. CogniSens, the company behind NeuroTracker, says the game develops perceptive abilities just like a workout develops muscles; there's even a high-intensity gameplay option that combines the mental challenge with physical conditioning exercises.
Researchers develop 'wireless optical brain router' to manipulate brain cells
Optogenetics might be a relatively unknown area of neuroscience, but it's one that, thanks to some new research, could soon find itself (and its rodental subjects) in the spotlight. For the uninitiated, it's the practice of manipulating animal cells using light (with a little help from gene therapy). Until now, optogenetic equipment has been large and unwieldy, making testing on subjects (read: rats) painstaking. Startup, Kendall Research, has changed all this, creating wireless prototypes that weigh just three grams (0.11 ounces). By eschewing bulky Lasers for LEDs and Laser diodes, the equipment is small enough that it can be attached to the rodents. At that point, their brain function can be manipulated with the touch of a button, and different parts can be stimulated without breeding mutant variants -- a controversial practice that doesn't even yield results in real time. The "router" is powered wirelessly by super capacitors below test area, and researchers can conduct experiments remotely, even automatically. Human applications for this are still some way off, but we're sure our future overlords will make good use of it.
MIT researchers locate genes that help underlie memory formation, zap some mice
Over time, the neurons in your brain are going to change. And that's only natural. When you experience a new event, your brain encodes the memory by altering the connections between neurons, which is caused by turning on several genes within these neurons. Recenty, a team of neuroscientists at MIT published their findings in the Dec. 23rd issue of Science in which the group was able to pinpoint some of the exact locations of memory formation within the brain. The team, led by Yingxi Lin, found that the Npas4 gene is especially active in the hippocampus, a brain structure known to be critical in forming long-term memories. Once engaged, the Npas4 gene turns on a series of other genes that modify the brain's internal wiring by adjusting the strength of synapses, or connections between neurons. The findings were obtained by studying the neural activity of mice which underwent mild electric shocks when they entered a specific chamber. Upon receiving the shock, researchers noted that Npas4 is turned on very early during this conditioning. The research is still in its early stages and while the researchers have identified only a few of the genes regulated by Npas4, they suspect there could be hundreds more that help with the memory formation process. The lesson learned: stick to it and if you have any questions, mildly shock some mice.
BU wizards find success in unconscious neurofeedback learning, announce plans for secret lair
You will learn French this week, even if you're not aware that it's happening. Neuroscientists at Boston University have discovered that patients can quickly learn new skills while having their brain patterns modified via decoded functional magnetic resonance imaging. The group found that pictures gradually build up inside a person's brain, appearing first as lines, edges, shapes, colors and motion in early visual areas with the brain then filling in greater details as needed to complete the object. From there, a correlation was confirmed between increased visual learning and fMRI neurofeedback, repetitions of the activation pattern leading to long-lasting performance improvement. Interestingly, the approach worked even when test subjects were not aware of what they were learning... which is why that sweater you unconsciously knitted last night should fit Johnny Boy like a glove.
FCC grants radio spectrum to muscle-stimulating wireless devices for paralysis patients
The medical community is all smiles today, because the FCC has decided to allocate a chunk of radio spectrum for potentially life-altering wireless devices. Designed for stroke patients and those suffering from brain or spinal cord injuries, these so-called medical micropower networks (MMN) use a set of implanted electrodes and a wearable wireless controller to stimulate the muscles of a paralyzed user. In a statement issued last week, the FCC announced that these devices have been approved for use within the 413 to 457MHz range, as requested in a petition from the Alfred Mann Foundation, which has already constructed several prototype MMN systems. The organization's CEO, David Hankin, immediately lauded the ruling, adding that the Foundation now plans to launch trials of MMN systems on humans, in the hopes of receiving clearance from the FDA. "The FCC's decision removes the most significant roadblock to helping people," Hankin said. "The frequency that has been approved for use is the most efficient for penetrating tissue with radio waves and without which the new generation of our implantable neurostimulator technology would be impossible to advance." The significance of the occasion wasn't lost on FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, either. "These broadband-enabled technologies are life-changing, impacting individuals, families, and communities in ways we can only begin to imagine," Genachowski said in a prepared statement. His sentiments were echoed in remarks from fellow commissioner Mignon Clyburn, who heralded the decision as "one of the most important the commission has adopted during my tenure," citing its potential to "greatly improve the lives of those who are faced with some of today's most difficult medical challenges."
Researchers create spinal cord connectors from human stem cells, heralding breakthrough
It's taken many years and more than a bit of brainpower, but researchers at the University of Central Florida have finally found a way to create neuromuscular connectors between muscle and spinal cord cells, using only stem cells. Led by bioengineer James Hickman, the team pulled off the feat with help from Brown University Professor Emeritus Herman Vandenburgh, who collected muscle stem cell samples from adult volunteers. After close examination, they then discovered that under the right conditions, these samples could be combined with spinal cord cells to form connectors, or neuromuscular junctions, which the brain uses to control the body's muscles. UCF's engineers say the technique, described in the December issue of the journal Biomaterials, marks a major breakthrough for the development of "human-on-a-chip" models -- systems that simulate organ functions and have the potential to drastically accelerate medical research and drug development. These junctions could also pay dividends for research on Lou Gehrig's disease or spinal cord injuries, though it remains unclear whether we can expect to see these benefits anytime soon.
MIT unveils computer chip that thinks like the human brain, Skynet just around the corner
It may be a bit on the Uncanny Valley side of things to have a computer chip that can mimic the human brain's activity, but it's still undeniably cool. Over at MIT, researchers have unveiled a chip that mimics how the brain's neurons adapt to new information (a process known as plasticity) which could help in understanding assorted brain functions, including learning and memory. The silicon chip contains about 400 transistors and can simulate the activity of a single brain synapse -- the space between two neurons that allows information to flow from one to the other. Researchers anticipate this chip will help neuroscientists learn much more about how the brain works, and could also be used in neural prosthetic devices such as artificial retinas. Moving into the realm of "super cool things we could do with the chip," MIT's researchers have outlined plans to model specific neural functions, such as the visual processing system. Such systems could be much faster than digital computers and where it might take hours or days to simulate a simple brain circuit, the chip -- which functions on an analog method -- could be even faster than the biological system itself. In other news, the chip will gladly handle next week's grocery run, since it knows which foods are better for you than you ever could.
Princeton neuroscientists map your brain, play words with subjects
Don't speak. Princeton researchers know just what you're saying -- kind of. Alright, so the Ivy league team of neuroscientists, led by Prof. Matthew Botvinick, can't yet read your minds without the help of a functional MRI, but one day the group hopes to take your silent pauses and broadcast them for public consumption. By mapping highlighted areas of brain activity to words meditated upon by subjects, the group was able to create "semantic threads" based on "emotions, plans or socially oriented thoughts" associated with select neural activity. So, what good'll these high-brow word association experiments do for us? For one, it could pave the way for automatic translation machines, extending a silicon-assisted grok into our nonverbal inner worlds that churns out computer-generated chatter; giving a voice to those incapable of speech. And if it's used for bad? More terrifically horrific psychobabble poetry penned by Jewel's unencumbered mind. Actually, wait. We might be into that.
IBM's cognitive computing chip functions like a human brain, heralds our demise (video)
After having created a supercomputer capable of hanging with Jeopardy's finest, IBM has now taken another step toward human-like artificial intelligence, with an experimental chip designed to function like a real brain. Developed as part of a DARPA project called SyNAPSE (Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electronics), IBM's so-called "neurosynaptic computing chip" features a silicon core capable of digitally replicating the brain's neurons, synapses and axons. To achieve this, researchers took a dramatic departure from the conventional von Neumann computer architecture, which links internal memory and a processor with a single data channel. This structure allows for data to be transmitted at high, but limited rates, and isn't especially power efficient -- especially for more sophisticated, scaled-up systems. Instead, IBM integrated memory directly within its processors, wedding hardware with software in a design that more closely resembles the brain's cognitive structure. This severely limits data transfer speeds, but allows the system to execute multiple processes in parallel (much like humans do), while minimizing power usage. IBM's two prototypes have already demonstrated the ability to navigate, recognize patterns and classify objects, though the long-term goal is to create a smaller, low-power chip that can analyze more complex data and, yes, learn. Scurry past the break for some videos from IBM's researchers, along with the full press release.
KDDI's mind-reading Android app monitors your brainstorms, or lack thereof... (video)
Ready for an epic brainwave dance-off between Jobs' Jets and Rubin's Sharks? Well, put down your shivs and get back to that alpha state because it's gonna take a little while. Developed by KDDI's R&D labs, this prototype mind-monitoring, sensor-laden headband connects wirelessly to your Android device to let you know just how stressed out you are. All it takes is a simple 30-second game of "mash mash mash the little green robot" (amongst others) to translate your focused and relaxed states into an easily readable brain pattern chart. The tech's nothing we haven't already seen the ominously named NeuroSky do for the iOS platform, but it should help to get those fanboy flames a-blazing. Of course, if mobile OS turf wars don't get your neurons in a tizzy, you could always spend half a minute thinking of your honey -- or actual honey. Whatever floats your neural boat. Video demonstration after the break.
Toyota Prius Project's concept bike lets you shift gears with your mind
Got mind control on the mind? Check out this new concept bike from Deeplocal -- a Pittsburgh-based design house that's adding a neurological twist to the art of cycling. As part of Toyota Prius Project No. 11, the company outfitted the seat post of a Parlee PXP aero road bike with a wireless transmitter, allowing users to remotely shift gears with a smartphone. Deeplocal's designers then added a set of neuron transmitters to a helmet and re-programmed the PXP to communicate with them -- meaning, in theory, that riders could control the bike's gears by simply thinking about it. Theory, of course, isn't the same thing as practice, but perhaps the concept will become a reality if we think really hard about it.
Paralyzed man can stand and walk again, thanks to spinal implant
Here's an amazing story to end your week on a high note: a 25-year-old paraplegic is now walking again, thanks to a groundbreaking procedure developed by neuroscientists at the University of Louisville, UCLA and Cal Tech. The Oregon man, Rob Summers, was paralyzed below the chest in 2006, after getting hit by a speeding car. This week, however, doctors announced that Summers can now stand up on his own and remain standing for up to four minutes. With the help of a special harness, he can even take steps on a treadmill and can move his lower extremities for the first time in years. It was all made possible by a spinal implant that emits small pulses of electricity, designed to replicate signals that the brain usually sends to coordinate movement. Prior to receiving the implant in 2009, Summers underwent two years of training on a treadmill, with a harness supporting his weight and researchers moving his legs. This week's breakthrough comes after 30 years of research, though scientists acknowledge that this brand of epidural stimulation still needs to be tested on a broader sample of subjects before any definitive conclusions can be drawn. Summers, meanwhile, seems understandably elated. "This procedure has completely changed my life," the former baseball player said. "To be able to pick up my foot and step down again was unbelievable, but beyond all of that my sense of well-being has changed." We can only imagine.
