Professor Ben and the Left Hemisphere

moshita:

Best Rehab Counseling Degrees

(via neuromorphogenesis)

psydoctor8:

Adrian Raine on Neurocriminology for the WSJ

The field of neurocriminology—using neuroscience to understand and prevent crime—is revolutionizing our understanding of what drives “bad” behavior.

If early biological and genetic factors beyond the individual’s control make some people more likely to become violent offenders than others, are these individuals fully blameworthy? And if they are not, how should they be punished?

A more profound understanding of the early biological causes of violence can help us take a more empathetic, understanding and merciful approach toward both the victims of violence and the prisoners themselves. It would be a step forward in a process that should express the highest values of our civilization.

Bonus video of Dr. Raine explaining the fMRI images above. Really glad to see his work out there. 

Here’s the problem with implementing neuroscience into the legal system, it’s too deterministic for what our current legal system can handle, sure there are tests of competency but this adds a whole new level.  If everyone is supposed to be equal under the law and our constitution what happens when findings like these become accurate enough to adapt or secure the sentencing protocol and/or sentencing outcomes. Particularly for those whose brains have predisposed them to be criminals. It could be possible that these findings will even change the very basis of our system as we know it. For instance, how can we normally sentence someone when it has been scientifically proven that they are physically not able to feel empathy or are not able to make correct law abiding decisions. It would be like expecting someone with no tongue to speak and then grade them on their performance. 

Next I believe we need to consider what happens when we are able to predict at an early age those who will be killers and those who will not be.  Can we morally label these children as killers before they commit the crime? This kind of system could save us from catastrophes like the ones we have seen in recent months. But, is it worth it? Can or should we consider environmental factors? Could the label just become a self-fulfilling prophesy? There are many questions left to answer and at the rate neuroscience is growing it looks like we may have to come up with some answers soon. 

(via neuromorphogenesis)

neuroimages:

More on CLARITY here.

jtotheizzoe:

Seeing the Brain With New CLARITY

A new brain imaging technique called CLARITY allows neural structures to be reconstructed in three dimensions better than ever before. It does so by turning the brain “transparent”.

Truly understanding the inner workings of the brain means studying not only how individual neurons function, but also how they are wired together. Even with techniques like the beautiful “brainbow”, untangling spaghetti-like long-range connections has proven difficult. 

Stanford University neuroscientists have taken a step in that direction with their new CLARITY method. Neurons and other cells are normally labeled by sticking fluorescent tags on various proteins and other molecules that a researcher wants to study. That way we can literally see where and how they function. But looking into a three-dimensional brain is like peering into murky water: the fatty cell membranes and neuron sheaths just get in the way. 

The Stanford researchers immobilized these mouse brains in a gel, then washed away all the murky muck. This left all the connections and proteins in their right place, free to be labeled in a clear block of brain Jell-O.

For more: Head over to Nature News to read more, and be sure to watch their great, detailed video to find out more about how it was done. If you’re interested, here’s the research paper in this week’s Nature. 

Here’s the point where we start identifying not only more specific features of brain structures but more importantly the systems of connection between those structures as they touch on in the article description above.
It has started to become more and more important for us as neuroscientists  to identify these pathways because of our inability to determine causality when studying brain only a brain structure. How do we know that this piece is truly at the center of a behavior and not just a connection between the structure that actually is necessary. the brain is infuriatingly complex, but here we are on our way to understanding its vastness 

(via fuckyeahneuroscience)

Ill take Ventral tegmentum for 600 please.

(via neuromorphogenesis)

circulatorylife:

Plastination – first accomplished by von Hagens in Germany in 1977 – is the process where human tissue is saturated with a plastic polymer that replaces water in the cells, resulting in them lasting longer than the Egyptian mummies.

Body Worlds

Man, just look at this science, Look! This was once a breathing thinking working organism. With all of his feelings and experiences stored in that silly grey thing up there, amazing. Fantastic midsagittal cut btw.