Summary: A large international study found a direct association between eating ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and a measurable decline in the brain’s ability to sustain attention and process information quickly. Following more than 2,100 middle-aged and older adults, researchers report that even a small daily increase in UPF intake — for example, adding a single packet … Read more

Summary: The sensation of a “full head” or being overwhelmed by information is common, especially when someone else vividly recalls a shared moment you do not. Neuroscience shows the brain is not a storage container that fills up; it is a dynamic system that filters, encodes and reconstructs experience. Unlike a hard drive that saves … Read more

Summary: For decades, mental health care has largely equated recovery from depression with removing sadness. New research challenges that assumption, arguing the most dangerous element of depression is not negative feeling but the loss of positive emotion — anhedonia. This condition, present in the vast majority of patients, undermines motivation, increases suicide risk, and resists … Read more

Summary: Imagine “tasting” a word or “seeing” a blue note during a jazz solo. For about 1% to 4% of people, this isn’t a metaphor but a neurological reality known as synesthesia (also spelled synaesthesia). In synesthesia, stimulation of one sense automatically triggers a vivid, involuntary experience in another, unrelated sense. Research indicates this trait … Read more

Summary: For years, Fragile X syndrome (FXS)—the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability—has been studied primarily through the lens of neurons. New research from the Salk Institute reveals that astrocytes, the star-shaped glial cells that support neurons, play a central role in FXS symptoms. By selectively suppressing a specific protein pathway, researchers reduced seizure … Read more

Summary: A new international study found a clear association between eating ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and a measurable decline in the brain’s ability to focus. Researchers followed more than 2,100 middle-aged and older adults and discovered that even a modest daily increase in UPF intake — for example, adding a single packet of chips or a … Read more

Summary: Scientists have mapped a specific neural pathway that controls how the body adapts to changes in dietary protein. The study centers on the liver-derived hormone FGF21 and shows how it communicates with a precise group of hindbrain neurons to regulate food choice, appetite and energy expenditure. Contrary to the common view that metabolic control … Read more

Summary: For decades, mental health care has focused on reducing sadness as the main route to treating depression. New research reframes that view: the most damaging feature for many patients is not negative emotion but the loss of positive emotion—anhedonia. A targeted therapy called Positive Affect Treatment (PAT) aims to restore joy, motivation, and reward … Read more

Summary: A new study reframes mobile vibration from a simple alert into a full expressive channel. The research introduces “tactons”—structured vibrotactile patterns crafted to convey emotions, support social connections, and represent personal memories—showing that haptic feedback can become a meaningful medium for communication and inclusion. By treating vibration as an expressive medium rather than a … Read more

Summary: For years, Fragile X syndrome (FXS)—the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability—has been studied mainly from a neuronal perspective. New research from the Salk Institute highlights a crucial role for astrocytes, the star-shaped glial cells that support neurons. The study shows that selectively suppressing a protein pathway called BMP signaling in astrocytes reduces … Read more