Discovering the Brain

Discovering the Brain PDF Author: National Academy of Sciences
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309045290
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 195

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Book Description
The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."

Discovering the Brain

Discovering the Brain PDF Author: National Academy of Sciences
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309045290
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 195

Get Book Here

Book Description
The brain ... There is no other part of the human anatomy that is so intriguing. How does it develop and function and why does it sometimes, tragically, degenerate? The answers are complex. In Discovering the Brain, science writer Sandra Ackerman cuts through the complexity to bring this vital topic to the public. The 1990s were declared the "Decade of the Brain" by former President Bush, and the neuroscience community responded with a host of new investigations and conferences. Discovering the Brain is based on the Institute of Medicine conference, Decade of the Brain: Frontiers in Neuroscience and Brain Research. Discovering the Brain is a "field guide" to the brainâ€"an easy-to-read discussion of the brain's physical structure and where functions such as language and music appreciation lie. Ackerman examines: How electrical and chemical signals are conveyed in the brain. The mechanisms by which we see, hear, think, and pay attentionâ€"and how a "gut feeling" actually originates in the brain. Learning and memory retention, including parallels to computer memory and what they might tell us about our own mental capacity. Development of the brain throughout the life span, with a look at the aging brain. Ackerman provides an enlightening chapter on the connection between the brain's physical condition and various mental disorders and notes what progress can realistically be made toward the prevention and treatment of stroke and other ailments. Finally, she explores the potential for major advances during the "Decade of the Brain," with a look at medical imaging techniquesâ€"what various technologies can and cannot tell usâ€"and how the public and private sectors can contribute to continued advances in neuroscience. This highly readable volume will provide the public and policymakersâ€"and many scientists as wellâ€"with a helpful guide to understanding the many discoveries that are sure to be announced throughout the "Decade of the Brain."

From Neurons to Neighborhoods

From Neurons to Neighborhoods PDF Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309069882
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 610

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Book Description
How we raise young children is one of today's most highly personalized and sharply politicized issues, in part because each of us can claim some level of "expertise." The debate has intensified as discoveries about our development-in the womb and in the first months and years-have reached the popular media. How can we use our burgeoning knowledge to assure the well-being of all young children, for their own sake as well as for the sake of our nation? Drawing from new findings, this book presents important conclusions about nature-versus-nurture, the impact of being born into a working family, the effect of politics on programs for children, the costs and benefits of intervention, and other issues. The committee issues a series of challenges to decision makers regarding the quality of child care, issues of racial and ethnic diversity, the integration of children's cognitive and emotional development, and more. Authoritative yet accessible, From Neurons to Neighborhoods presents the evidence about "brain wiring" and how kids learn to speak, think, and regulate their behavior. It examines the effect of the climate-family, child care, community-within which the child grows.

Neuronal Networks in Brain Function, CNS Disorders, and Therapeutics

Neuronal Networks in Brain Function, CNS Disorders, and Therapeutics PDF Author: Carl Faingold
Publisher: Academic Press
ISBN: 0124158641
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 537

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Book Description
Neuronal Networks in Brain Function, CNS Disorders, and Therapeutics, edited by two leaders in the field, offers a current and complete review of what we know about neural networks. How the brain accomplishes many of its more complex tasks can only be understood via study of neuronal network control and network interactions. Large networks can undergo major functional changes, resulting in substantially different brain function and affecting everything from learning to the potential for epilepsy. With chapters authored by experts in each topic, this book advances the understanding of: - How the brain carries out important tasks via networks - How these networks interact in normal brain function - Major mechanisms that control network function - The interaction of the normal networks to produce more complex behaviors - How brain disorders can result from abnormal interactions - How therapy of disorders can be advanced through this network approach This book will benefit neuroscience researchers and graduate students with an interest in networks, as well as clinicians in neuroscience, pharmacology, and psychiatry dealing with neurobiological disorders. - Utilizes perspectives and tools from various neuroscience subdisciplines (cellular, systems, physiologic), making the volume broadly relevant - Chapters explore normal network function and control mechanisms, with an eye to improving therapies for brain disorders - Reflects predominant disciplinary shift from an anatomical to a functional perspective of the brain - Edited work with chapters authored by leaders in the field around the globe – the broadest, most expert coverage available

Mapping the Brain and Its Functions

Mapping the Brain and Its Functions PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309044979
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 180

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Book Description
Significant advances in brain research have been made, but investigators who face the resulting explosion of data need new methods to integrate the pieces of the "brain puzzle." Based on the expertise of more than 100 neuroscientists and computer specialists, this new volume examines how computer technology can meet that need. Featuring outstanding color photography, the book presents an overview of the complexity of brain research, which covers the spectrum from human behavior to genetic mechanisms. Advances in vision, substance abuse, pain, and schizophrenia are highlighted. The committee explores the potential benefits of computer graphics, database systems, and communications networks in neuroscience and reviews the available technology. Recommendations center on a proposed Brain Mapping Initiative, with an agenda for implementation and a look at issues such as privacy and accessibility.

Development of the Nervous System

Development of the Nervous System PDF Author: Dan H. Sanes
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0080472494
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
Development of the Nervous System, Second Edition has been thoroughly revised and updated since the publication of the First Edition. It presents a broad outline of neural development principles as exemplified by key experiments and observations from past and recent times. The text is organized along a development pathway from the induction of the neural primordium to the emergence of behavior. It covers all the major topics including the patterning and growth of the nervous system, neuronal determination, axonal navigation and targeting, synapse formation and plasticity, and neuronal survival and death. This new text reflects the complete modernization of the field achieved through the use of model organisms and the intensive application of molecular and genetic approaches. The original, artist-rendered drawings from the First Edition have all been redone and colorized to so that the entire text is in full color. This new edition is an excellent textbook for undergraduate and graduate level students in courses such as Neuroscience, Medicine, Psychology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, and Developmental Biology. - Updates information including all the new developments made in the field since the first edition - Now in full color throughout, with the original, artist-rendered drawings from the first edition completely redone, revised, colorized, and updated

Caffeine in Food and Dietary Supplements

Caffeine in Food and Dietary Supplements PDF Author: Leslie A. Pray
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780309297493
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Caffeine in Food and Dietary Supplements is the summary of a workshop convened by the Institute of Medicine in August 2013 to review the available science on safe levels of caffeine consumption in foods, beverages, and dietary supplements and to identify data gaps. Scientists with expertise in food safety, nutrition, pharmacology, psychology, toxicology, and related disciplines; medical professionals with pediatric and adult patient experience in cardiology, neurology, and psychiatry; public health professionals; food industry representatives; regulatory experts; and consumer advocates discussed the safety of caffeine in food and dietary supplements, including, but not limited to, caffeinated beverage products, and identified data gaps. Caffeine, a central nervous stimulant, is arguably the most frequently ingested pharmacologically active substance in the world. Occurring naturally in more than 60 plants, including coffee beans, tea leaves, cola nuts and cocoa pods, caffeine has been part of innumerable cultures for centuries. But the caffeine-in-food landscape is changing. There are an array of new caffeine-containing energy products, from waffles to sunflower seeds, jelly beans to syrup, even bottled water, entering the marketplace. Years of scientific research have shown that moderate consumption by healthy adults of products containing naturally-occurring caffeine is not associated with adverse health effects. The changing caffeine landscape raises concerns about safety and whether any of these new products might be targeting populations not normally associated with caffeine consumption, namely children and adolescents, and whether caffeine poses a greater health risk to those populations than it does for healthy adults. This report delineates vulnerable populations who may be at risk from caffeine exposure; describes caffeine exposure and risk of cardiovascular and other health effects on vulnerable populations, including additive effects with other ingredients and effects related to pre-existing conditions; explores safe caffeine exposure levels for general and vulnerable populations; and identifies data gaps on caffeine stimulant effects.

Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide

Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide PDF Author: Hubert Vaudry
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9781402073069
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 432

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Book Description
Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide is the first volume to be written on the neuropeptide PACAP. It covers all domains of PACAP from molecular and cellular aspects to physiological activities and promises for new therapeutic strategies. Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide is the twentieth volume published in the Endocrine Updates book series under the Series Editorship of Shlomo Melmed, MD.

The Enteric Nervous System

The Enteric Nervous System PDF Author: John Barton Furness
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 312

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Book Description


A History of Nerve Functions

A History of Nerve Functions PDF Author: Sidney Ochs
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521247429
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 452

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Book Description
Recent developments have extended our knowledge of the basic functions of nerves: notably, the demonstration of the mechanism within nerve fibers which transports a wide range of essential materials. In order to understand how this discovery occurred, it is necessary to examine its history. The story begins in ancient Greece when nerves were conceived of as channels through which animal spirits carried sensory impressions to the brain. As science developed, the discoveries of various physical and chemical agents supplanted the agency of animal spirits until the molecular machinery of transport was recognized. In this fascinating and complete history, Sidney Ochs begins with a chronological look at this path of discovery, followed in the second half by a thematic approach wherein the author describes the electrical nature of the nerve impulse, fiber form and its changes in degeneration and regeneration, reflexes, learning, memory and other higher functions in which transport participates.

Translational Research in Traumatic Brain Injury

Translational Research in Traumatic Brain Injury PDF Author: Daniel Laskowitz
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1498766579
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme