Listening to cheerful music can be one way to put you in a good mood on the way into work. But beware – it can also make you think that everyone else feels just as happy as you do.
Continue reading… “Upbeat Music Creates Illusion That Everyone Around You Is Happy”
Whilst the creatures can clearly be seen to react to a jab or blow, experts have disagreed over whether the reaction indicates a sensation of pain, or is little more than a basic reflex.
Continue reading… “Scientists Determine That Goldfish Can Feel Pain”
A newly created set of light-sensitive proteins grants scientists unprecedented control over the brain’s biochemistry, potentially shedding light on addiction and other complex neural processes. To demonstrate the potential of this novel molecular toolbox, researchers from Stanford University engineered mice to carry light-sensitive proteins in the brain’s reward center, which responds to drugs of abuse. Using pulses of light delivered directly to the brain, researchers were able to induce a druglike state, ultimately conditioning the mice to behave like drug-addicted animals.
Continue reading… “Hooked On Light – Could Reveal The Biochemistry Of Addiction”
Famous works of abstract art achieve popularity by using shapes that resonate with the neural mechanisms in the brain linked to visual information, a psychologist at the University of Liverpool has discovered.
Continue reading… “Key To Abstract Art Is The Evolution Of Our Visual System”
Why does it seem many people begin with political preferences and then try to find reasons justifying their inclinations? Why is it so difficult to sway people who care deeply about politics no matter how compelling the facts or persuasive the prose? University of Nebraska-Lincoln research may help to answer these questions.
Continue reading… “Political Preferences: It Might Not Be What You Think”