Adderall, Ritalin and other “smart drugs” have become popular among college students and young professionals, who use them to enhance performance.
Brain
Where Does Fear Come From? (Hint: It’s Not the Creepy Basement)
To the average observer, it would seem that 44-year-old patient “SM” was just another typical mother of three: she scores normally on IQ tests, has good language skills and a decent memory.
Study: A Second Exam for Brain Death is Unnecessary — and Reduces Organ Donations
Deciding to remove a loved one from life support is a heart-wrenching decision. But for families of eligible organ donors, their decision has an even wider impact — there are 108,725 people currently waiting for organs for …
The Bright Side of Anger — It Motivates Others
On the whole, brain scans shore up what we’ve known all along about our emotions: some are positive and some are negative.
Be Honest. Does this Study Make My Butt Look Big?
Are you sitting down? A British researcher has proposed a new form of reflexology — one based on the notion that the sensations of the body are mapped onto the buttocks, just as they are in the brain, where they can more …
Study: Acupuncture May Change the Way the Brain Perceives Pain
The idea of pricking your body with needles in order to relieve pain seems nothing if not counterintuitive, but thousands of acupuncture patients swear the treatments are effective in addressing pain of all kinds.
They All Look the Same: How Racism Works Neurologically
You’ve heard the racial epithet: All you people look the same. It’s detestable, but a new study shows that the racist observation happens to be true.
I Know the Truth, So Don’t Bother Me With Facts
Global warming is a hoax! Climate change, like autism, is actually caused by vaccines, typically administered by Apollo astronauts who didn’t really land on the moon. Oh, and President Obama was born in Kenya. These, at least, …
Debunking the Headlines: Falling in Love in 0.2 Sec.? We Don’t Think So
An assistant professor of psychology at Syracuse University wanted to know what love looked like in the brain. So she analyzed a collection of studies that focused on imaging the brain during romantic moments. What she found was …
The ‘Mommy Brain’ Is Bigger: How Love Grows a New Mother’s Brain
Take heart, new moms: you may be feeling overwhelmed, exhausted and distracted, but your brain is actually growing. Especially if you’re the kind of mom who’s been driving your friends and family mad by talking about how perfect, …
Why Hearing Half of a Cell-Phone Conversation Drives You Nuts
I was walking in front of Grand Central Terminal on 42nd St. one evening and overheard a man in a business suit talking — and lying — on his cell phone. “I’m in the supermarket,” he said. “Just got here.”
Brain Science: Does Being Left-Handed Make You Angry?
We used to think that the left brain controlled your thinking and that the right brain controlled your heart. But neuroscientists have learned that it’s a lot more complicated.
Training Your Brain to Learn Better (Even Without Drugs)
I’m excited to be starting my “new school year” as a blogger here on Healthland — and what better way to begin than with news about boosting your ability to learn, using neuroscience! One of the hottest articles flying around the Web today is Benedict Carey’s great New York Times science story headlined “Forget What You Know …