Tag: neural

ScienceDaily (June 23, 2010) A fascinating new study combines snakes with brain imaging in order to uncover neural mechanisms associated with "courage." The research, published by Cell Press in the June 24 issue of the journal Neuron, provides new insight into what happens in the brain when an individual voluntarily performs an action opposite to that promoted by ongoing fear and may even lead to new treatment strategies for those who exhibit a failure to overcome their fear.

ScienceDaily (Feb. 26, 2010) A paralyzed patient implanted with a brain-computer interface device has allowed scientists to determine the relationship between brain waves and attention.

Characteristic activity patterns known as beta and delta oscillations have been observed in various regions of the brain since the early 20th century, and have been theoretically associated with attention. The unique opportunity to record directly from a human subject's motor cortex allowed University of Chicago researchers to investigate this relationship more thoroughly than ever before.

A tiny radio chip implanted in a moth harvests power and senses neural activity.

Thanks to the shrinking size of electronics, researchers have been exploring increasingly sophisticated implantable devices, paving the way for new prosthetics and brain-machine interfaces. But a big challenge has been how to deliver power to electronic components embedded within the body.

Biodegradable circuits could enable better neural interfaces and LED tattoos.

By building thin, flexible silicon electronics on silk substrates, researchers have made electronics that almost completely dissolve inside the body. So far the research group has demonstrated arrays of transistors made on thin films of silk. While electronics must usually be encased to protect them from the body, these electronics don't need protection, and the silk means the electronics conform to biological tissue. The silk melts away over time and the thin silicon circuits left behind don't cause irritation because they are just nanometers thick.