Perspective: robotics and the brain
Dr Nick Hawes discusses the value of applying what we know about the brain in the areas of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Course: Good Brain, Bad Brain: Basics
Perspective: computer science and the brain
Professor Russell Beale explains how knowledge of the human brain can impact on developments in computer science.
Case study: schizophrenia
The two previous case studies have focussed on two conditions where a single cause has been identified, namely glial pathology and a mutant gene. However, for many brain disorders research …
Case study: Huntington’s disease
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a disorder that someone is born with yet they often don’t experience symptoms until well into adulthood. It occurs when an individual has a mutated form …
Case study: multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition that affects the central nervous system. It is relatively rare with about 120,000 in the whole of the UK having a diagnosis. The symptoms …
What is Normal Brain Function?
Most brain function studies centre around the function of the so-called ‘normal’ human brain, with the occasional example of where we might consider the brain to be dysfunctioning, for example …
Perspective: music and the brain
Professor Michael Zev Gordon discusses how studying the workings of the brain can give insight into the creative and emotional impact of music. In Step 3.4 we considered what we …
Are all functions highly localised?
We have explored the concept that functions may be localised and have looked at examples for some of the sensory functions that the brain performs. Of course, we don’t just …
Studies of Language and the Brain
Understanding and use of complex language is often considered to be one of the defining features of humans. It is, therefore, unsurprising that there has been a considerable research effort …
Processing Sensory Information
For areas of the brain that process sensory information, studies have enabled us to map where in the brain this sensory information is processed. Originally this work was rather slow …
Case study: antidepressants
Clinical depression is a well-recognised human condition with a characteristic set of symptoms. There are a number of therapeutic approaches which can be considered; the choice of which is used …
Altering neurotransmission 2b: post-release
An explanation of how chemical neurotransmitters can affect cell function at the synapse, focusing on processes in the synaptic cleft and post-synaptic cell.
Altering neurotransmission 2a: pre-release
An explanation of how chemical neurotransmitters can affect cell function at the synapse, focusing on processes in the pre-synaptic terminal.
How Does the Brain Learn?
The recognition that the brain is not “hard-wired” but that there is a highly dynamic process of synaptic remodelling going on throughout life is functionally very important. Most neurones are …
