With a flash of light, a neuron's function is revealed

EurekAlert: "Using light, scientists traced a fish's swimming response to the neurons that control it. Their technique could become a powerful way to learn how biological systems work."

Yale team finds mechanism that constructs key brain structure

EurekAlert: "Yale University researchers have found a molecular mechanism that allows the proper mixing of neurons during the formation of columns essential for the operation of the cerebral cortex, they report in the Sept. 16 online issue of the journal Nature."

'Alert Status' Area In Brain Discoved: New Understanding Of Anesthesia

ScienceDaily: "A new understanding of how anesthesia and anesthesia-like states are controlled in the brain opens the door to possible new future treatments of various states of loss of consciousness, such as reversible coma, according to scientists."

Fake Video Dramatically Alters Eyewitness Accounts

ScienceDaily: "Researchers at the University of Warwick have found that fake video evidence can dramatically alter people's perceptions of events, even convincing them to testify as an eyewitness to an event that never happened."

Reading Kafka improves learning, suggests UCSB psychology study

EurekAlert: "Reading a book by Franz Kafka -- or watching a film by director David Lynch -- could make you smarter. According to research by psychologists at UC Santa Barbara and the University of British Columbia, exposure to surrealism enhances the cognitive mechanisms that oversee implicit learning functions."

Scary music is scarier with your eyes shut

EurekAlert: "Dr. Talma Hendler of Tel Aviv University reports that the simple fact of closing the eyes can elicit more intense physical responses in the brain itself, visible on fMRIs."

Sleep Helps Reduce Errors In Memory, Research Suggests

EurekAlert: "Sleep may reduce mistakes in memory, according to a first-of-its-kind study. The findings have practical implications for everyone from students flubbing multiple choice tests to senior citizens confusing their medications."