Category Archives: Behavioral Neuroscience

March 13

Into the Mind of the Manatee

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The Lazy Life of the Sea Cow Manatees are the gentle giants of the ocean. Reaching 13 feet long and weighing more than a ton, these mammals should give off a dominating presence, but in reality, the opposite is true [1]. Manatees tend to get along well with most aquatic species. They have no natural […]

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September 19

Solving the Puzzle of Addiction

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According to the United Nations’s World Drug Report of 2024, the number of people who use drugs worldwide had risen to 292 million in 2022, a 20 percent increase over the past 10 years (1). Further more, an estimated 64 million of those people suffer from a substance use disorder (addiction). The study of addiction […]

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July 18

Operation PTSD

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The full-scale invasion of Ukraine that started in 2021 has had devastating impacts on the daily lives of those in Ukraine, and this includes a dramatic increase in those suffering from PTSD in this war-torn country. Although 2021 was not the beginning of the tensions between Russia and Ukraine (1), as the war rages on, […]

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January 25

Chasing a Runner’s High 

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5ks, 10ks, half marathons, full marathons, ultra marathons… These terms bring a smile to the face of people who enjoy running, but the same words may strike up a reasonable sense of dread in others. Distance running is a popular hobby for people all over the world hoping to maintain and improve their cardiac fitness, […]

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January 18

New year, same old new me: The science of making resolutions and (hopefully) keeping them

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Already given up on New year’s resolutions? Some useful tips from psychology and neuroscience of habit formation might help!

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December 28

Into the Flow: Insights into the elusive Flow State 

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Have you ever been so absorbed in an activity that time stops; you are completely dialed in and acutely aware of every movement of your body; you’re performing at your highest level, but you feel no effort; you are completely in the moment, and it feels incredible! This is flow. What is Flow? I experienced […]

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October 19

Like a Moth to a Flame: How Artificial Lights Affect Moths’ Behavior

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Why do moths flock to lamps and other light sources that may even hurt them? Research suggests that bright artificial lights may be confusing the navigational skills of our small, winged friends.

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September 07

You can’t win if you don’t play

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When I think about the happiest moments from my childhood, I’ll often reflect on the times my sister and I played “school” (as the younger sibling, I was always the student…), when my best friend and I played with Barbies and dress-up clothes in her basement, or when we played hide-and-seek with other kids in […]

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July 27

To believe or not to believe: belief effects and the placebo.

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A book called ‘The Secret’ caused a real buzz when it was released in 2006. It claimed that you could use the power of your mind to attract and ‘manifest’ all the awesome things you wanted in life. Suddenly, everyone was all about “manifesting their dreams,” as if it were a magical spell. Although most […]

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April 27

Screaming into the void: What plants are trying to tell us

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Imagine walking through a field on a hot, dry summer day. There is nobody around and the world is blissfully quiet – at least, you think it is. If only you could hear sounds at ultrasonic frequency, you would in fact hear loud “screaming” coming from all around you. You would hear the surrounding plants […]

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