Vision, hearing, touch, pain and how the brain moves the body.
Neuroscience News
Why does artificial touch fade over time? Penn State engineers used fNIRS brain imaging to solve sensory habituation during transcutaneous nerve stimulation, discovering a 5-second pulse protocol that maintains a stable sense of touch while the brain recruits distributed networks.
Senses and movement
The Transmitter
Michael W. Cole’s new book makes a convincing case that the dynamic movement of signals underpins just about everything the brain does, though it misses mention of relevant theoretical and single-cell work.
Senses and movement
ScienceDaily
A surprising discovery suggests that some early signs of Alzheimer’s disease may begin outside the brain. Using miniature laboratory systems made from human cells, scientists found that genetic mutations associated with inherited Alzheimer’s can disrupt nerve-to-muscle connections without any involvement from the brain or spinal cord. This could help explain why some patients experience changes in balance, walking…
Brain disorders
ScienceDaily
Scientists propose that the brain’s mysterious cross-wiring, which connects each hemisphere to the opposite side of the body, may have originated more than 500 million years ago in the visual systems of ancient fish. Rather than evolving for a specific advantage, this unusual arrangement may simply be a legacy of evolution building new brain circuits on an ancient foundation.
Senses and movement
ScienceDaily
A surprising discovery at UC San Diego suggests that chronic lower back pain may become deeply embedded in the brain's sense of personal identity. Researchers found that movement-triggered pain activates a brain network associated with self-awareness and memories, even though ordinary acute pain typically shuts this network down. This unexpected difference could explain why conventional pain medications often…
Senses and movement
MIT News
Researchers hope to use these sensors to help people with amputation achieve more natural movements with their prosthetic limbs.
Brain tech and AI
ScienceDaily
Scientists have discovered a surprising two-way relationship between sleep and growth hormone, revealing how the brain carefully balances physical recovery with wakefulness. The findings could help explain why poor sleep harms metabolism and brain health, potentially opening the door to new treatments for sleep and neurological disorders.
Sleep and dreams
Science News
Optogenetics, recognized by the 2026 medicine Nobel, makes cells respond to light, including eye cells that normally relay signals to the brain.
Senses and movement
MIT News
Scientists find that learning to identify a new object subtly reshapes visual processing in the brain.
Memory and learning
MIT News
A simple brain circuit measures objects’ distance from the body using touch signals from a rodent’s whiskers, MIT scientists find.
Senses and movement
MIT News
Brain cells take in many signals through thousands of circuit connections. A new study discerns the rules that turn inputs into a functional arrangement for neurons that process vision.
Senses and movement
MIT News
A new biohybrid system developed at MIT is the first living implant that uses rewired nerves to revive paralyzed organs.
Senses and movement
MIT News
Researchers find a component of the brain’s dedicated language network in the cerebellum, a region better known for coordinating movement.
Senses and movement
MIT News
Somatostatin-expressing neurons follow a unique trajectory when forming connections in the visual cortex that may help establish the conditions needed for sensory experience to refine circuits.
Development and aging
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