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A Brain Implant Improved Memory, Scientists Report
Scientists have developed a brain implant that noticeably boosted memory in its first serious test run, perhaps offering a promising new strategy to treat dementia, traumatic brain injuries and other conditions that damage memory. The device works like a pacemaker, sending electrical pulses to aid the brain when it is struggling to store new information, but remaining quiet when it senses that the brain is functioning well. In the test, reported Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications, the device improved word recall by 15 percent — roughly the amount that Alzheimer’s disease steals over two and half years.
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Talking with—Not Just to—Kids Powers How They Learn Language
Children from the poorer strata of society begin life not only with material disadvantages but cognitive ones. Decades of research have confirmed this, including a famous 1995 finding by psychologists Betty Hart and Todd Risley: By age four children reared in poverty have heard 30 million fewer words, on average, than their peers from wealthier families. That gap has been linked to shakier language skills at the start of school, which, in turn, predicts weaker academic performance. But the sheer quantity of words a toddler hears is not the most significant influence on language acquisition.
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In Promoting Green Behaviors, Pride Beats Guilt
When it comes to our relationship to the environment, we have a lot to feel guilty about. That has led many environmental organizations to leverage that uncomfortable feeling. Don't recycle that bottle, and it'll probably end up in the ocean, where fish will eat the degraded plastic and die. How does that make you feel? It turns out that this is not an optimal approach to promoting environmentally friendly behavior. Recent research concludes that, when it comes to saving the Earth, pride is a far stronger motivator than guilt.
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Natural Opioids in the Brain May Support Social Bonding
Oxytocin and dopamine have long been lauded as hormonal wellspring of happiness, but researchers suggest that these natural opioids may also play an important role in social attachment.
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How Low Income Affects Routine Decisions
The US government shutdown has left scores of people without paychecks. Their worries about money will be difficult to suppress and may interfere with other experiences, research suggests.
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Funding for Training Methods to Enhance Cognition in Aging
The National Institute on Aging (NIA), one of the 27 institutes and centers within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), invites clinical trial applications for developing or improving novel training methods to enhance cognition in aging.
