Lifeboat Foundation

^b Department of Polymer Science and Engineering and Key Laboratory of High Performance Polymer Materials and Technology of MOE, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210,023, China.

^c Institute of Chemical and Bioengineering, ETH Zurich, Vladimir Prelog Weg 1, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland.

Received 21st February 2019, Accepted 17th April 2019.

Using these passive haptic learning gloves for playing the piano, researchers are helping TBI victims re-learn critical skills.

A discovery at University of Limerick in Ireland has revealed for the first time that unconventional brain-like computing at the tiniest scale of atoms and molecules is possible.

Researchers at University of Limerick’s Bernal Institute worked with an international team of scientists to create a new type of organic material that learns from its past behavior.

The discovery of the “dynamic molecular switch” that emulates synaptic behavior is revealed in a new study in the journal Nature Materials.

Researchers have discovered the human brain’s enhanced processing power may stem from differences in the structure and function of our neurons. Credit: Queensland Brain Institute / Professor Stephen Williams.

The human brain’s function is remarkable, driving all aspects of our creativity and thoughts. However, the neocortex, a region of the human brain responsible for these cognitive functions, has a similar overall structure to other mammals.

Researchers from The University of Queensland (UQ), The Mater Hospital, and the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital have shown that changes in the structure and function of our neurons may be the cause of the human brain’s increased processing power.

The experiments demonstrated that the blood cells can sense when the environment outside the capillaries is low in oxygen – which occurs when neurons take up more oxygen to generate energy – and respond by rushing to deliver more. They also observed that this response if very rapid, occurring less than a second after oxygen is pulled out of the surrounding tissue.

This phenomenon is unique to the capillaries because of their size. The thin walls of the microvessels mean that the oxygen levels in adjacent brain tissue are mirrored within the capillaries, which can signal to red blood cells to spring into action.

The findings could have implications for a number of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease. It has been observed that blood flow in the brains of people with the disorder is impaired when compared to healthy brains. The difficulty in delivering the oxygen necessary for neuronal activity may help explain the cognitive difficulties that are one of the hallmarks of the disease.

Vanadium dioxide is a strange material that “remembers” information and when it was stored. This is akin to biological memory.

People affected by the lethal glioblastoma cancer only live for 12–18 months after diagnosis.

A global trial that began in 2007 has confirmed that a vaccine for the treatment of the most lethal brain cancer can give patients years of extended life.

Peterschreiber.media/iStock.

Continue reading “Scientists have just made a breakthrough for a potential glioblastoma drug” »

Can quantum theory explain consciousness?

By mushrooms…?

People like Nathan have found out first hand that they can. You may have also seen scientists and doctors talking about mycotherapy for serious chronic conditions like cancer and HIV. That’s because many conditions thought of as diseases really have the same cause– an immune system that was unbalanced and compromised by environmental factors or diet.

Certain foods we eat are inflammatory, they boost problematic cells in our body called TH2 cytokines, which cause inflammation, and these cells can cause allergic reactions, auto-immune conditions, and weaken the cancer-fighting TH1 cytokines. When the TH1 cytokines are weakened by inflammatory foods, cancer is allowed to thrive and grow and spread.

Continue reading “MUSHROOMS VS CANCER: Can immune systems fight off cancer when balanced” »