November 14

Red Ribbon Week: A Neuro Perspective

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“If I eat a brain of a meth-addict, will I get high?” “Are street rats and lab rats the same?” “What happens if I eat a rat brain?” These are some of the questions that my lab encountered when we visited a middle school in Escondido, CA as classroom speakers last week. Together the Mandyam […]

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November 07

SFN 2013: Writers’ picks

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This weekend, San Diego is the host city to the unbelievably huge Society for Neuroscience annual meeting. 30,000 neuroscientists from all over the world will flood downtown and the zoo (and maybe the conference center). If you’re one of those neuroscientists, we’ve all put together our recommendations for things to do at the conference, as […]

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November 05

Get Data

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The Society for Neuroscience meeting is less than a week away! Have you been up all night to get data for your poster? We know the feeling… If you need a break from battling Illustrator, check out this promotional video for the UCSD Neurosciences Graduate Program SfN Social!! Special thanks to @123ComicBro for filming and […]

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November 01

A Furry Little Problem

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You may know them best as hunky Derek Hale, shy and brilliant Remus Lupin or Jacob Black, one third of pop culture’s most (in)famous love triangle.  They may be called shifters, or weres, or lycans.  I’m talking about America’s second favorite mythical hunk: the werewolf.     Stories of men turning into wolves go back as […]

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October 31

Tricked By Your Treat

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WARNING! This infographic may make you think twice before devouring your sugary stash of Halloween candy.  

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October 30

True Blood: Sucking the Magic Out of Vampires

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Blessed with charismatic looks, viciously sharp fangs, and an immortal existence, vampires have simultaneously delighted and horrified for centuries—now, with the recent folkloric addition of skin that sparkles like diamonds, mere mortals don’t stand a chance!  And yet, while the modern-day vampire embodies all that is dangerous but sinfully irresistible, the science behind vampire mythology […]

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October 29

The science non-fiction of a bodiless brain

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The brain. Nestled cozily inside its skull and properly integrated with its body’s peripheral nervous and circulatory systems, the organ is revered as a sacred abode for our thoughts, emotions, and identity. But extracted from this natural habitat, its slimy cortex and gyrating gyri can make one squeamish. Don’t worry, we neuroscientists aren’t offended. It’s […]

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October 28

Let’s Talk About LGBTQ Visibility in Science, Baby

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In both social and scientific spheres, Dr. Ben Barres has consistently been an advocate for the little guy. He is openly transgender, and has encouraged open discussion on topics such as the marginalization of women in science. In addition, his research focuses on glia, which could also be considered as the marginalized cells within neuroscience […]

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October 28

Zombies are real – I wish I was kidding.

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Zombies terrify me. Maybe it’s their helter-skelter gait and bloody outstretched arms, or perhaps the fact that they eat brains, and I happen to like brains. That must be it. You know what’s also horrifying? Our contrived Hollywood concept of zombies is derived from the Haiti zombi, a real phenomenon that occurred in the context […]

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October 27

The Shape of Things to Come

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Experts overwhelmingly agree: Robots will soon overthrow humanity. The only question is whether they will merely enslave us1 or will entirely destroy the human race2,3,4. To better face our coming downfall, it is important to understand how machines will gain the powers to destroy us. They have already bested us in chess5, game shows6, and […]

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