Lifeboat Foundation

The map reveals how every single neuron in the nervous system of the small worm communicates wirelessly.

Making a significant stride in scientific advancement, researchers have created the first-ever map that illustrates the wireless communication among every individual neuron in the nervous system of a small worm.

This is the first time a map of a neuropeptide network is created in any mammal, even though the same has been successfully done in simple organisms.

Scientists have characterized the folding of the cerebellar cortex using data from a sample of 56 mammalian species, allowing them to study the diversity and evolution of cerebellar folding.

As humans, we live in our thoughts: from pondering what to make for dinner to daydreaming about our last beach vacation. Now, researchers at HHMI’s Janelia Research Campus have found that animals also possess an imagination.

A team from the Lee and Harris labs developed a novel system combining virtual reality and a brain-machine interface to probe a rat’s inner thoughts.

They found that, like humans, animals can think about places and objects that aren’t right in front of them, using their thoughts to imagine walking to a location or moving a remote object to a specific spot.

Researchers at the Barrow Neurological Institute have conducted a study revealing that residing in areas with average air pollution levels is associated with a 56% increased risk of Parkinson’s disease when compared to those living in regions with the lowest level of air pollution.

The study, which was recently published in Neurology – the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology – was conducted to identify national, geographic patterns of Parkinson’s disease and test for nationwide and region-specific associations with fine particulate matter.

“Previous studies have shown fine particulate matter to cause inflammation in the brain, a known mechanism by which Parkinson’s disease could develop,” says Brittany Krzyzanowski, PhD, a researcher at Barrow Neurological Institute, who led the study. “Using state-of-the-art geospatial analytical techniques, we were, for the first time, able to confirm a strong nationwide association between incident Parkinson’s disease and fine particulate matter in the U.S.”

As human beings, our lives are intertwined with our thoughts, whether we’re contemplating dinner options or indulging in memories of our recent beach getaway.

Interestingly, scientists at HHMI’s Janelia Research Campus have discovered that animals also have an imagination.

A group of researchers from the Lee and Harris laboratories devised an innovative approach that fuses virtual reality with a brain-machine interface to explore the inner thoughts of rats.

Are you captivated by the enigma of consciousness? Intrigued by the complexities of the human mind? Or perhaps, you’re just a seeker, thirsty for knowledge that lies beyond conventional wisdom? As a futurist, evolutionary cyberneticist, and philosopher of mind, I invite you on a mind-bending, soul-stirring expedition with a just-released remastered version of my documentary film Consciousness: Evolution of the Mind (TV-PG). Watch it now in its entirety on YouTube (Ecstadelic Media channel)!

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Consciousness: Evolution of the Mind (2023 | Remastered)

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In the future, it could facilitate an even greater fusion between retinal implants and the human body.

A multinational group lead by Francesca Santoro, a researcher at Jülich, has created an intelligent biochip that effectively mimics the human retina, opening up new possibilities in bioelectronics.

The retina is a layer of neural tissue located at the back of the eye that plays a crucial role in the visual process. This key part of the eye is in charge of translating light into electrical signals that are transmitted to the brain, enabling us to see and understand images. It is this process that the new biochip recreates.

New research in social bats raises the intriguing possibility that evolution can reprogram the brain’s “place cells,” which are typically associated with location, to encode all kinds of environmental information.

They look like storm clouds that could fit on the head of a pin: Organoids are three-dimensional cell cultures that play a key role in medical and clinical research. This is thanks to their ability to replicate tissue structures and organ functions in the petri dish. Scientists can use organoids to understand how diseases occur, how organs develop, and how drugs work.

Single-cell technologies allow researchers to drill down to the molecular level of the cells. With spatial transcriptomics, they can observe which genes in the organoids are active and where over time.

The miniature organs are usually derived from stem cells. These are cells that haven’t differentiated at all, or only minimally. They can become any kind of cell, such as heart or kidney cells, muscle cells, or neurons. To make stem cells differentiate, scientists “feed” them with growth factors and embed them in a nutrient solution.