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How the Brain Makes Memories: Rhythmically!

By Guest PostOctober 9, 2011Health, Sciencearvind kumar, brain, brain mechanisms of learning, brain rhythms, connections between neurons, conventional wisdom, detuning process, einstein, experimental data, frequency, mayank r mehta, memory disorders, mozart, neural signals, neuro physicists, optimal brain rhythm, optimal learning, spike trains, stimuli, synapses, synaptic plasticity, synaptic strength

The brain learns through changes in the strength of its synapses — the connections between neurons — in response to stimuli.

Now, in a discovery that challenges conventional wisdom on the brain mechanisms of learning, UCLA neuro-physicists have found there is an optimal brain “rhythm,” or frequency, for changing synaptic strength. And further, like stations on a radio dial, each synapse is tuned to a different optimal frequency for learning.

The findings, which provide a grand-unified theory of the mechanisms that underlie learning in the brain, may lead to possible new therapies for treating learning disabilities. (more…)

Choosing Microsoft Over the NFL

By Guest PostOctober 9, 2011Sports, Technologyacc, albert rocker, atlanta, atlantic coast conference, biggest software company, celebrity, david dowling, florida state, game, georgia institute of technology, georgia tech athlete, gigantic championship rings, irwin dolobowsky, it infrastructure, Microsoft, microsoft recruiter, national football league, nfl, trish lincoln, university of washington, virginia tech, yellow jackets

*Albert Rocker found himself at a crossroads of two big dreams: The Georgia Tech athlete had to choose between playing a final year of college football for a shot at the National Football League, or accepting a job offer from “the biggest software company ever created.”*

REDMOND, Wash. – It was the toughest decision of Albert Rocker’s life: should he pursue a career in the National Football League (NFL), or one at Microsoft?

At the Georgia Institute of Technology, Rocker was an outside linebacker for the Yellow Jackets football team with one year of eligibility remaining – one last football season to woo the NFL. Rocker played in a total of 38 games over his college career, including all 13 games of his junior season in 2010 – he was set to be a starter if he returned for his last year of eligibility. (more…)

Everest Expedition Suggests Nitric Oxide Benefits for Intensive Care Patients

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2011Healthcxe expedition, everest expedition, hypoxia, low oxygen levels, shortage of oxygen, xtreme everest team

The latest results from an expedition to Mount Everest that looked at the body’s response to low oxygen levels suggest that drugs or procedures that promote the body’s production of a chemical compound called nitric oxide (NO) could improve the recovery of critically ill patients in intensive care. (more…)

Who’s More Likely to offer a Bribe?

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2011Culturebribery, business person, collective feeling, collectivist cultures, corruption, kurt kleiner, laboratory, nina mazar, pankaj aggarwal, researchers, society, university of toronto scarborough, utsc

*U of T professors show collectivism and bribery linked*

Why are some places more prone to bribery and corruption than others?

Part of the answer seems to be the level of collective feeling in a society, according to research by Pankaj Aggarwal, University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) professor of marketing in the Department of Management, and Nina Mazar, University of Toronto professor of marketing. (more…)

Space Observatory Provides Clues to Creation of Earth’s Oceans

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2011Sciencecreation of oceans, early earth, early solar system, kuiper belt, oort cloud, oort cloud comets

PASADENA, Calif. — Astronomers have found a new cosmic source for the same kind of water that appeared on Earth billions of years ago and created the oceans. The findings may help explain how Earth’s surface ended up covered in water. (more…)

MSU Research Sheds Light on Origins of Greatness

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2011Healthlifetime success, origins of greatness, working memory capacity

EAST LANSING, Mich. — What makes people great? Popular theorists such as the New Yorker’s Malcolm Gladwell and the New York Times’ David Brooks argue that intelligence plays a role – but only up to a point. Beyond that, they say, it’s practice, practice, practice. (more…)

There Are No Clear Lines When It Comes To Homeland Security, Says Napolitano

By Guest PostOctober 8, 2011Politicsamerica, amsterdam, canadian airspace, Christmas day, cyber security, cyberspace, detroit, ghana, homeland security and national security, international in nature, jackson institute of global affairs, janet napolitano, nation, nigeria to amsterdam, nigerian citizen, northwest airlines flight, not easy to draw red lines, secretary of defense, secretary of homeland security, terrorism, underwear bomber, united kingdom, united nations, united states, yemen

Protecting the nation from terrorism, breaches in cyber security and other threats inside its borders is such a massive undertaking it is “not easy to draw red lines” that can chart individual or departmental responsibilities, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said during a campus visit on Oct. 6.

In a talk hosted by the Jackson Institute of Global Affairs, Napolitano used the example of the so-called “Underwear Bomber” — a suspected terrorist who attempted to blow up (using explosives hidden in his underwear) a Northwest Airlines flight between Amsterdam and Detroit on Christmas Day 2009 — to illustrate the partnerships that are required to ensure the nation’s safety. Her talk in the Law School’s Levinson Auditorium highlighted the importance of international partnerships in that mission. (more…)

Scientists Identify Microbes Responsible for Consuming Natural Gas in Deepwater Horizon Spill

By Guest PostOctober 7, 2011Environmentapril spill, bacteria, cold loving bacteria, colwellia, cycloclasticus, david valentine, deepwater horizon oil spill, DNA, ecological history, ethane, geological past, gulf of mexico, methane, microbe, molly redmond, national science foundation, natural gas, oceanography, oceanospirillales, petroleum hydrocarbons, propane, psychrophilic, sequencing dna, spill, submerged plume, surface oil slicks, ucsb, university of california at santa barbara, water temperature

*Water temperature played key role*

In the results of a new study, scientists explain how they used DNA to identify microbes present in the Gulf of Mexico following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill–and the particular microbes responsible for consuming natural gas immediately after the spill.

Water temperature played a key role in the way bacteria reacted to the spill, the researchers found. (more…)

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