I want to mention a couple key techniques in neuroscience: Calcium imagingTLDR; you can visualize stimulated neurons by putting in a protein that “glow” with activity! Neurons “fire.” This is biology jargon for cells having a specific type of activity, like when neurons communicating between each other. Communication between neurons can happen in a variety […]
The journey involved in processing smell begins with cells that reside in the olfactory epithelium. (While we don’t have them, many mammals have a vomeronasal organ (VNO) to sense pheromones) Anyway, these smell cells have a lifespan of about a month, but you don’t have to learn what a magnolia flower smells like every month […]
This painting is a bit abstract, but you might be able to identify a face. Meanwhile, an AI might have difficulty identifying this as a portrait – we’re smarter than a computer! The brain region primarily responsible for identifying faces is called the fusiform gyrus. We don’t have brain areas specific for identifying trees, but […]
It’s very possible for life outside of earth to exist – the incomprehensibly large numbers of planets make this a possibility. But “life” in this context usually incorporates single celled organisms, not necessarily a multicellular being with a consciousness. It’s unlikely for a single celled organisms to have thoughts, just because it’s such a complicated […]
Is “food addiction” is real? Despite similarities between junk food consumption and drug addiction, one is still more extreme than the other. Here is how the two compare: (1) a main criteria for labeling something addictive is its ability to produce withdrawal symptoms, like a fever induced by quitting smoking cold turkey. Quitting cookies may […]
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