From Mouse to Man

What the latest basic science research is telling us about the human mind

Philip M. Newton, Ph.D. is a Neuroscience Lecturer at Swansea University Medical School in the United Kingdom. See full bio

August 28, 2009

Youtube helps identify a new tool in the evaluation of brain injury

How YoutubeTM helped researchers identify a new tool for rapid evaluation of head injury.

Boxing, bomb blasts, bar brawls, bike accidents and the Baltimore Ravens.......what do all these things have in common? They're all a cause of Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI. Read More

April 26, 2009

What is dopamine?

What is dopamine? What does it do and how does it do it? These questions have caused controversy in neuroscience for decades. A new study from the UK may have some of the answers. Read More

February 18, 2009

To clarify; alcoholics and liver transplants

I have received a number of comments on my original post and I want to make sure I'm absolutely clear. My intention was to use the issue of liver transplantation to highlight how some people view alcoholics as being at fault for their alcoholism.

February 15, 2009

Do alcoholics deserve liver transplants?

This story is making the rounds again. It reveals a lot about how society thinks of alcoholics.

January 29, 2009

The anatomy of posttraumatic stress disorder

What parts of the brain are involved in posttraumatic stress disorder? A recent study of Vietnam veterans used a novel and clever strategy to produce some unexpected results. Read More

January 11, 2009

Potential Treatments for Alcoholism and Drug Addiction

A lot of work, in both the public and private sectors, is being put into the development of medications to treat alcohol and drug addiction. Here I will give you an overview of ongoing research and highlight some of the most exciting developments. Read More

January 8, 2009

Addiction IS a treatable disease

(Update, Jan 15 2009. This post was written in response to one from Stanton Peele entitled "Lies that addiction experts tell us part 3......". The title of Stanton Peeles post has subsequently been changed to "Addiction myth #3.......". I tell you this to explain the numerous references to "lies" and "lying" that appear here). Read More

December 31, 2008

Bad Science

Learn how to spot bad science, how to tease out the truth from the hyperbole, and where to go for good science. Read More

December 3, 2008

Social Anxiety Disorder and The Placebo Effect

The Placebo Effect, where patients derive benefit from a "dummy" pill, has been described many times over the years. New research shows that there is a genetic basis for the placebo effect in sufferers of social anxiety disorder. Read More

November 24, 2008

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Cannabis. A Potted History

"....because I can't forget no matter how hard I try.........."
Corporal Cloy Richards, PTSD sufferer.

Cannabis has often been proposed to treat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and rates of marijuana use are significantly higher in PTSD sufferers. However like all medical marijuana issues it's controversial and complicated. I will try and explain some of the science behind the issue.

The human brain has been called the most complex object in the known universe, and in many ways it's the final frontier of science. A hundred billion neurons, close to a quadrillion connections between them, and we don't even fully understand a single cell.

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