Category Archives: Brain activity

‘Silence’ helps the brain encode information

Neuroscientists at NeuRA and UNSW Sydney have shown that the brain may ignore input known as ‘chatter’ and instead use periods of silence to register information about its environment. The scientists have challenged the conventional wisdom that neural activity is the main driver of human perception.   Dr Ingvars Birznieks and Dr Richard Vickery have developed a novel method of […]

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How often do you stop and think about it?

To think of thinking seems like a peculiar task. For most of us, thinking occurs constantly despite rarely giving it a thought. However, as Jess Hazelton discusses below, when we take a few moments and evaluate what our brain is capable of, it is truly astounding! Acting as a control centre for our entire body, we can understand our brain […]

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Shining a light on brain activity in toddlers with autism

Using fNIRS opens doors and provides new opportunities for studying brain activity that was not previously possible. Autism spectrum disorder, or ASD, is a complex developmental disability; signs typically appear during early childhood and affect the ability to communicate and interact with others. There is no known single cause of autism, but increased awareness and early diagnosis and intervention lead […]

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