Can genetics predict what we can learn from playing video games? The interest in the influence of video game experience on our daily life is constantly growing. What is the role of individual differences? Can genetic predisposition make us more prone to learn from playing video games? Lorenza Colzato • September 16, 2014 • 1 comment
Is exerting mental effort always good for performance? One would think that more information and more mental effort should lead to faster and better performance. However, a recent finding shows that people can in fact overthink their highly automatic skills by exerting mental effort. Bruno Bocanegra • September 09, 2014
Sunshine is needed for social behaviour! The incidence of autism has rapidly increased by 600% in the last decades while we still don’t know the fundamental cause of it. Genetics certainly play a role but apart from this there is also something in the environment...sunshine! Monica Wong • September 02, 2014 • 1 comment
Eating and running your way to the right decision Do you ever wonder why sometimes a decision seems straightforward, but at other times takes hours of deliberation? Some simple lifestyle choices might help you solve your everyday dilemmas! Frank Hezemans • August 19, 2014
Khat, a “natural” amphetamine? Khat consumption has become a worldwide phenomenon broadening from Eastern Africa and the south west of the Arabian Peninsula to ethnic communities in the rest of the world. Why people are using khat? Is it self-medication? Roberta Sellaro • August 05, 2014
The next big(ger) thing: Metamodulation Neuromodulation has been a field of great interest, providing valuable insights into the effects of substances on the activity of neurons. However, it appears that neuromodulators are not insensitive to modulation themselves, leading to metamodulation. Nastasia Griffioen • July 15, 2014
Reversing the effects of aging It sounds like science fiction: Having someone else’s body sown onto your own body; having their young blood flow through your old veins to reverse the effects of aging and become younger. But this isn’t fiction, this is recent science. Eefje Poppelaars • July 01, 2014 • 1 comment
Cocaine use enhances distraction Studies suggest that recreational use of cocaine is associated with significant impairments in the same cognitive control functions affected by chronic use. Are up to 4 grams monthly enough to damage the ability of suppressing irrelevant information? Roberta Sellaro • June 24, 2014 • 2 comments
Neuroscientists with DREADDs – don’t dread them! Growing long hair and waxing it until you get greasy locks isn’t that spectacular. But it’s not those DREADDs that we are talking about - neuroscientists have a new tool in their repertoire: Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs. Claudia Pama • June 17, 2014
