¡Viva Cristo Rey!

neurolove:

I think the cerebellum is one of the prettiest parts of the brain (for basic anatomy, go here).  This is an image of the cerebellum showing purkinje cells in yellow and their outputs (axons that will take the information to the brain) in red.  For more information about the cerebellum and purkinje cells, check out my post here.  I love this image- all you can see is neurons, but you can see how compact they are on the outer layers of the tissue (just like cortex! They make up the gray matter.) and how the axons travel in the middle parts (just like the rest of the brain! They make up the white matter).

[Image Source]

neurolove:

Cerebellar purkinje cells

The cerebellum, its name meaning “little brain” in Latin, really does look like a smaller brain located just below the back of the occipital lobe.  The cerebellum is often ignored in research (MRI researchers are especially guilty of ignoring activations back there).  It seems to be involved in coordination and balance, but likely has other purposes as well. 

In cross-section, the cerebellum itself looks like a tree, and the neurons inside of it (purkinje cells, named after the anatomist who first studied them) are definitely very tree-like.  You can see the yellow neurons here have some big extensions like a tree trunk and then many, many branches off of them, just like trees do.  It’s less obvious how very tree like they are in this image as they cover and overlap each other, but I thought this picture was beautiful nonetheless! 

[Image Source]

I LOVE THE CEREBELLUM. I love the whole brain, really. It is just so beautiful.

(via fuckyeahneuroscience)

quantumaniac:

Periodic Table Shoes

WANT WANT WANT

(via fyeahchemistry)

Admiring rat barrel cortex :) (Taken with Instagram at Wilson Hall)

quantumaniac:

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

Our universe is rife with waves. Although the term Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum may seem strange and distant - you’re much more familiar with it then you think! In fact, the spectrum is nothing more than the range of the different types of electromagnetic waves that are possible. Different types of waves are classified by their wavelengths and frequencies - if one changes, so does the other (they are inversely proportional). The longer a wave’s wavelength, the shorter it’s frequency - and thus it is less energetic. 

Radio - These have the longest wavelength of anything on the EM Spectrum. These are the types of waves that travel to your radio! However, these types of waves are emitted by many other things, not just your favorite radio station. Stars and gases in space emit these types of waves all the time. 

Microwaves - Slightly more energetic than radio waves are microwaves, which yes, are the types of waves in your actual microwave at home! Microwaves are frequently used in Radio Astronomy by studying the natural cosmic radiation in space. Microwaves can be captured and studied by setups like the Very Large Array shown below: 

Infrared - Next up is what enables night vision goggles to work! This is also known as thermal vision, because our skin emits infrared radiation! Infrared radiation detection is frequently used in military devices, and it is often used by astronomers to be able to see through thick regions of star dust!

Visible - This aptly named section of the spectrum is the part the humans can see. Every massive (mass containing) object that we can see emits visible radiation. A typical human eye can detect wavelengths of visible light from about 390-750 nm (nanometers). In terms of visible light, red is the least energetic (longest wavelength) and violet is the most energetic! 

Ultraviolet - This is one of the types of radiation that the sun emits, and what causes our sunburn! Ultraviolet (UV) is the type of radiation that occurs immediately before violet (ultra-VIOLET), because it has a shorter wavelength - similar to how infrared has a longer wavelength than red light (infra-RED). The hottest objects in the universe usually emit UV radiation. The visible parts of the sun’s radiation is not what burns us - it is the invisible UV radiation. 

X-Rays - These are the types of rays that doctor’s use to look at your bones! The man who discovered them, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, was awarded the first ever Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery, in 1901. Very hot gases in the universe also emit harmful X-rays. 

Gamma Rays - These rays are the most energetic and powerful waves on the entire spectrum. Radioactive materials can emit gamma rays, and sometimes powerful particle accelerators, like those at CERN, can produce them as well. Only incredible violent and energetic events can emit gamma rays - such as supernovas or the collision of stars and galaxies. 

(via fyeahchemistry)

psydoctor8:

“MIT researchers turn on a memory”

Researchers chose to test a simple kind of memory — a fear memory. In one experiment, mice were put in a chamber, allowed to explore, and given a foot shock. The next time the mice were put in the same dangerous chamber, they remembered the unpleasant electric shock and froze, taking on a defensive stance. Researchers had, however, inserted a gene that codes for a light-sensitive protein into the cells involved in making a memory. They then tested what happened when they turned on a light to activate those cells, without putting the mice in the same chamber. They saw the freezing behavior, as if the mice were reliving the memory.

“This is the most dramatic way to show that high cognitive phenomenon, like memory recall, can be generated, can be artificially generated by poking cells in the brain,” Tonegawa said in an interview.

He said there were about 20,000 neurons, or brain cells, involved in this particular kind of memory.  [via]

I’ve seen a couple of these optogenetic experiments. It’s pretty fascinating to be able to manipulate the neural response in vivo.  

We do some optogenetics in my research lab. It’s pretty awesome.

(via fuckyeahneuroscience)

explore-blog:

Stanford neuroscientists host the world’s first love competition, asking contestants between the ages of 10 and 75 to spend 5 minutes in an fMRI machine thinking deeply about the person they love. The results are certain to bring a tear to your eye.

Complementary reading: 5 essential books on the psychology of love.

(via fyeahchemistry)

"

Fiat fiat fiat. Initial potential energy is anathema!

…Unless it’s easier for final potential energy to be anathema!

Stephen

Only in Vanderbilt Catholic…

Lucid dreaming

is awesome.

Lucid dreaming is when you are hanging out in your dream and you know you are dreaming. It’s super meta. 

Nowadays, most of my dreams are lucid dreams. Not only is it just cool to experience your dreams this way, but it also means you can start to consciously manipulate your dreams. 

In recent years, I’ve gotten semi-good at being able to control my dreams. This is a skill that takes a long time to perfect. I plan on working on it for my whole life.

It also brings up some interesting questions like, Can I sin while I am dreaming? If I am under control of my decisions during this dream, am I held morally accountable? I’ll be honest, I often don’t make good choices in my lucid dreams because I know there won’t be any consequences in real life. Or will there? 

Just something to think about.

This is a post about sleep.

Basically everybody dreams (unless there’s something really wrong with you), though some never remember their dreams. At any rate, dreaming usually occurs during REM sleep, which is short for “rapid eye movement.” Basically your eyes dart all over the place like you’re watching something, when you’re not. Like this baby is doing, in addition to being adorable.

Check out the graph above. This is what the average person’s sleep cycle is like. Awake is at the top, and then each category below that is increasingly deep levels of sleep. You will notice a few things about the graph:

• There’s a rhythm to this sleep pattern. In the average person, one cycle takes about 90 minutes. 
• You have more deep sleep early in the night, and more light sleep, especially REM sleep, when it’s closer to morning.
• Consequently, you dream more closer to morning.

Also, naps are awesome. Kayla’s nap tip: 60-minute naps are probably a bad idea. When you wake up from a nap, you want to have just been in a light stage of sleep. If you wake up during deep sleep, you’ll feel groggy and may be even more tired than before. See where the average person’s sleep cycle is after 1 hour? Yep, right in the middle of really deep sleep. Take naps in increments of 90 minutes, or keep them shorter than 30 minutes. (This is a generalization, and everyone’s sleep cycles are different. It’s possible that 60 minutes is perfect for you, but it’s not likely.)

I like my friends.

ilovecharts:

by bandragirl

Accurate.

sweetandlovelygirl7:

psychologymajorrat:

[Picture: Background: 6 piece pie style color split with dark teal blue, and sky blue alternating. Foreground: A white lab rat with two visible arms and red eyes. Top text: “’I love you’” Bottom text: “’Aw, I experience a rush of dopamine and oxytocin with you, too’”]

because Valentine’s Day.

Now I’m watching heart transplant surgery.

Dude, can you imagine how weird the chest cavity looks for that brief moment when there is no heart in it??!? 

I’m watching brain surgery on an awake patient on YouTube.

Yes, this is how I procrastinate.