Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique
Book Excerpt

Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique

by Michael S. Gazzaniga, Ph.D.

Cerebrum | August 25, 2008

In his new book, Michael S. Gazzaniga explores what it means to be human. In this excerpt from Chapter 3, he explores the evolutionary and social reasons for why we deceive one another—and ourselves.

The Quest for Longer Life
Book Review

The Quest for Longer Life

by Mark Mattson, Ph.D.

Cerebrum

Mark Mattson of the National Institute on Aging notes that the brain is mostly missing from David Haycock’s otherwise fascinating exploration of the history of trying to prolong life.

Aneurysm a Grim Diagnosis

Dana Press Blog

Even with prompt treatment, the chances of recovering from a burst aneurysm—like the one that felled Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, a Democrat from Ohio, this past week—remain low, a prominent neurologist says.

News

Neuroscience and Music Conference Explores Benefits, History of the Art

by Maria Schamis Turner

Music training improves cognitive functions such as spatial perception and memory and may be useful in rehabilitating people suffering from neurological damage, new research reveals.

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Newborn Brain May Be Wired for Speech

Newborn Brain May Be Wired for Speech

by Faith Hickman Brynie

BrainWork

Infant brains show activity similar to adult brains in response to language. Newborns are able to distinguish normal speech in their native language from speech played backward or in a foreign language, for example.

Essay

The Expanding Potential of Deep Brain Stimulation

The success of using deep brain stimulation to treat advanced Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders is leading to promising new treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, Tourette’s syndrome and severe depression, according to Mahlon R. DeLong and Thomas Wichmann. Part of our  2008 Progress Report on Brain Research,  an annual review of cutting-edge findings.

Focus May Change in Alzheimer's Research
Column

Focus May Change in Alzheimer's Research

by Guy McKhann, M.D.

Brain in the News

Dr. Guy McKhann reports back from the 2008 International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Chicago, and he finds much change in the air. Our "in the News" pages feature new links each week to stories our advisors recommend from around the Web.

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News

Alzheimer’s Conference Offers Cautious Hope for New Treatments

by Aalok Mehta

Despite some high-profile setbacks, promising results from preliminary clinical trials have left Alzheimer’s researchers optimistic about new treatments down the road.

Podcast

An Interview with William Safire and FENS Highlights

Nature NeuroPod

Nature reporter Kerri Smith explores research into the “orchestra-like” electrical harmony of the brain, chats with Dana Foundation Chairman William Safire about what’s so exciting about neuroscience and investigates some of the scientific and artistic highlights of the recent Federation of European Neuroscience Societies meeting in this month's NeuroPod, produced in association with the Dana Foundation.

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Deep Brain Stimulation Offers Hope in Depression

Deep Brain Stimulation Offers Hope in Depression

by Jamie Talan

Cerebrum

There is a new hope for patients who have severe depression. An experimental surgical procedure, deep brain stimulation, is proving to reverse the effects of unrelenting depression by stimulating a precise network of brain cells. Jamie Talan reveals how some of the top scientists are using this procedure. 

Brain Tumors: The Latest Research
News Follow-up

Brain Tumors: The Latest Research

by Don Long, M.D., Ph.D.

Johns Hopkins neuroscientist Don Long and colleagues review the state of treatment for gliomas, including the type Sen. Ted Kennedy was diagnosed with. While standard therapies offer some help, those on the way or in testing now hold greater promise.

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Learning, Arts, and the Brain
New Research

Learning, Arts, and the Brain

Dana Consortium studies find strong links

For the first time, coordinated, multi-university scientific research brings us closer to answering the question: Are smart people drawn to the arts or does arts training make people smarter?

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Podcasts

The Brain-Injured Soldier

A two-part podcast about the connection and intersection of brain injury and post traumatic stress disorder in U.S. veterans of the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Part of our podcasts section.

Arts Education: Spelling Out What Works
New Publication - AVAILABLE FREE

Arts Education: Spelling Out What Works

Edited By Barbara Rich, Ed.D., and Jane L. Polin

This new book examines innovations in arts-teacher training and features the best practices at 24 higher-education institutions. Also included are proceedings from Dana’s 2007 national symposium on how colleges, universities and conservatories can enhance arts learning. (Free pdf version)

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George Will Riffs on Cubs Book

George Will Riffs on Cubs Book

The Newsweek columnist uses examples from Your Brain on Cubs to explain the “neurological affliction” of rooting for a team with a history of letdowns. Also, Steve Mirsky of Scientific American talked with editor Dan Gordon about the book recently, as did Ira Flatow on National Public Radio's Science Friday show. Visit the book page for more links to interviews and news coverage.

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Beatles' Magical Memory Tour
Brain Research

Beatles' Magical Memory Tour

Be part of an online study using people's recollections of the Beatles to discover the link between music and memory. Participants can input their own memories about the Beatles and explore other people’s memories, finding out which albums evoke the most memories; which songs evoke positive or negative memories; and which news events are most vividly remembered. The study, launched by the British Association of the Advancement of Science, is also supported by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives.

"Brain Fitness" at Work
Partner site

"Brain Fitness" at Work

We've all seen the news: We can affect how our brains work.  Neuroscience tells us that we can increase our chances of maintaining our mental edge and functional independence throughout our lives. How? By working to keep our brains fit the way we work to keep our bodies healthy. This validated guide, available via The Conference Board's Web site, explains how.

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Book Releases
Cerebrum 2008: Emerging Ideas in Brain Science

Cerebrum 2008: Emerging Ideas in Brain Science

In this second annual anthology, top scientists and scholars interpret the latest discoveries about the human brain and confront their implications for fields from architecture to ethics, music to health care policy. Foreword by Carl Zimmer.

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Your Brain on Cubs

Your Brain on Cubs

Inside the Heads of Players and Fans

Edited by Dan Gordon

A group of today’s leading science writers and neuroscientists explore here the ways that our brain functions when we participate in sports as fans, athletes, and coaches, taking baseball as the quintessential sport for all three perspectives.

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The 2008 Progress Report on Brain Research
Free Publication - Online

The 2008 Progress Report on Brain Research

Describes the top findings in brain research during 2007 affecting areas such as disorders of development, aging, and movement, as well as mental and thought disorders. This year’s report includes a special essay on deep brain stimulation by prominent neuroscientists Mahlon R. DeLong and Thomas Wichmann.

Wired for Goodness

Wired for Goodness

by Donald W. Pfaff, Ph.D.

A distinguished neuroscientist gives us a science-based hypothesis of why humans across time and geography have such similar notions of right and wrong.

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Best of the Brain from Scientific American

Best of the Brain from Scientific American

Mind, Matter, and Tomorrow's Brain

by Floyd E. Bloom, M.D.

Top neuroscientist Floyd E. Bloom has selected the most fascinating brain-related articles from Scientific American and Scientific American Mind since 1999 in this collection. Divided into three sections—Mind, Matter, and Tomorrow’s Brain—this compilation takes you to the latest information from the front lines of brain research.

Defining Right and Wrong in Brain Science

Defining Right and Wrong in Brain Science

Essential Readings in Neuroethics

by Walter Glannon, Ph.D.

The fifth volume in The Dana Foundation Series on Neuroethics, this collection provides readers with the seminal writings on past, present and future ethical issues facing neuroscience and society.

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Events

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July 13, 2008

Music and the Brain: From Perception to Emotion

Pianists Richard Rentsch (r) and Orazio Sciortino (l) participating in Music and The Brain: From Perception to Emotion. The event was held at the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) in Geneva.

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