G.A.S. Spells Stress As with so many wondrous discoveries of science and medicine, it was by chance that Hungarian-born Hans Selye (1907-1982) stumbled upon the idea of the General Adaptation Syndrome (G.A.S.), which he first wrote about in the British journal Nature in the summer of 1936. The G.A.S., alternately known as the stress syndrome,…
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Recent studies of brain development in teenagers may finally give parents the scientific authority to say “No you’re not!” in answer to the common adolescent complaint, “But I’m old enough to make my own decisions!” That authority comes from brain imaging studies that reveal some surprising features of the adolescent brain. Deborah Yurgelun-Todd and colleagues…
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remember my mother’s vegetable garden when I was a child, corn plants tall like skyscrapers. I remember when I fell out of a tree and everyone from the neighbor’s barbecue rushed over to see if I’d broken a bone. Remember, remember… the verb itself is poetic, connotating the essence of experience. The notion of memory…
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We recently received this question from a commenter: What is the difference between Alzheimer’s and dementia? That is a great question, and one that many people ask, so I thought I would tackle it here. When we talk about dementia, we are talking about symptoms. The term “dementia” describes a set of symptoms that includes…
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Almost all of behavior involves motor function, from talking to gesturing to walking. But even a simple movement like reaching out to pick up a glass of water can be a complex motor task to study. Not only does your brain have to figure out which muscles to contract and in which order to steer…
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Does it drive you crazy when you can’t remember where you put your keys? You probably weren’t paying much attention when you set them down. Each of the exercises in our Attention suite helps retrain the brain to focus its attention, so you feel more aware and less distracted. To learn more about how our…
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Happy Valentine’s Day, all! Since February 14th has rolled around yet again, we would like to offer some highlights covering the latest in neuroscience research as it relates to love, affection, romance, and (almost) everything in between. “Love is like an hourglass, with the heart filling up as the brain empties.” -Jules Renard What happens…
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Chances are, you’ve never heard of Solomon Carter Fuller, who was the first African-American psychiatrist in the United States and one of the pioneers of Alzheimer’s research. In honor of Black History Month, I thought it would be fun to share something about the life and times of this influential scientist and doctor. Dr. Fuller…
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One of the most common questions we get here at Posit Science is “How can I improve my memory?” First, it’s important to understand the fundamental question: what is memory? There are several different types of memory, with the two main categories being long-term memory and short-term (aka working) memory. Within long-term memory, there are…
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I stumbled across this video the other day and couldn’t resist sharing it. In under 5 minutes, the video gives you a fun, energetic, and engaging overview of the brain’s two thinking systems: the fast, or instinctual system, and the slow, or purposeful system. Learn how these two kinds of thinking systems work together and…
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