Brain scans show that when people listen to songs, an area in the left hemisphere decodes speech-like sounds while one on the right processes musical information.
Brains affected by autism appear to share a problem with cells that make myelin, the insulating coating surrounding nerve fibers that controls the speed at which the fibers convey electrical signals.
Brain organoids grown in the lab look a lot like developing human brains. But a new study finds some important differences that could affect how scientists use them.
Black and Hispanic people often don't volunteer for studies of Alzheimer's disease, despite their risks for developing it. Researchers are working to make studies more inclusive, but it's not easy.
Brain scans of 104 boys and girls doing basic math tasks found no gender differences. The finding adds to the evidence that boys and girls start out with equal ability in math.
Researchers say clusters of human brain cells grown in the lab can spontaneously generate electrical patterns similar to the brain waves of a 6-month-old fetus.
Pain researchers say men and women respond differently to pain, and women may "feel more" pain than men. Understanding the differences in pain perception could lead to better treatments.
There's still much research to be done before the device is routinely useful. But one man was able to use it to gently grasp his wife's hand and feel her touch — an emotional moment, he says.
Neurologist Guy Leschziner, author of The Nocturnal Brain, says the brain can be in different sleep stages at once — which explains why people sometimes walk, eat and even have sex when sleeping.
Move over, fruit flies, rats and zebrafish. Squid and octopuses have elaborate brains and behaviors, and scientists say studying them in the laboratory could yield important biological insights.
Fresh water quenches thirst almost instantly, but salt water doesn't. New research shows how cells in the gut and on the tongue help the brain keep just the right concentration of salt in our bodies.
Some kids seem resilient from the start — readily able, like dandelions, to cope with stress and adversity. But pediatrician Thomas Boyce says biologically reactive kids need more support to thrive.
Growing up, Judith Grisel struggled with alcohol, marijuana and cocaine. Now as a neuroscientist, she's working to understand the biological basis of addiction. Her new book is Never Enough.
Researchers say the metabolism of a woman's brain remains higher than a man's throughout a lifetime. And that may help with late-life creativity and learning.
Researchers have pinpointed the neurons that give pain its unpleasant edge. By turning these neurons off in mice, the scientists relieved the unpleasantness of pain without numbing sensation.
People with symptoms suggesting depression felt better immediately when tiny pulses of electricity reached a brain area called the lateral orbitofrontal cortex.
When people are feeling glum, it often means that brain areas involved in emotion and memory are communicating. Researchers have now observed the circuit in action in humans.
A brain structure that helps us walk in a straight line also appears to play a central role in emotional control and decision-making. The findings about the cerebellum challenge years of dogma.
Scientists at Johns Hopkins have identified a brain region in monkeys that influences their desire to take big risks. When this area is inactivated, the monkeys tend to hedge their bets.
