Quick links from the past week in mind and brain news:
Nature has put all of their schizophrenia special issue articles, features and podcast in one handy accessible page.
There’s an extensive list of psychologists on Twitter over at The BPS Research Digest. Where else do you get to ask psychologists to free associate?
Slate has an excellent piece on why diagnoses of ‘child bipolar disorder’ are skyrocketing in the United States.
A history of cigarettes being edited out of famous photos for modern audiences. Addiction Inbox on tobacco-inspired history editing. Still hungry for, er… less? See the follow-up.
Science News on how minds wander 30 percent of the time during all activities except sex – when we lie back and think of England. God save the Queen.
Missed this last week: ‘What is psychopathology?’ A mini blog carnival hosted by The Thoughtful Animal hits the wires.
The New York Times reports on how the Chinese government are increasingly using psychiatric hospitals to silence dissidents.
The psychology of immersion in video games. An excellent post from the Psychology of Video Games blog covers who games achieve that little touch of the Matrix.
Wired looks back on how the world’s first lobotomy was performed 75 years ago today.
The next step in research showing how a visual-spatial puzzle like Tetris after emotional upset could prevent PTSD-like flashbacks is covered at Not Exactly Rocket Science.
BBC News has video on a robot actress who makes her debut in Japan – who I actually quite fancy until it moves. My eyes! My eyes!
Genes to brains to minds to… murder? The wonderful Neuroskeptic looks at some unusual claims made by a new case study.
BoingBoing has a copy of one of Elvis’s prescriptions. Note to dead Elvis: balanced medical care does not mean uppers and downers in equal proportions.
Want to prove a point about electrical activity in the scalp muscles being confused for brain activity? Why not use an Amazonian neurotoxin to paralyse yourself? Oscillatory Thoughts covers the amazing study.
Discover Magazine has a piece on an interesting theory that a virus may be causing some cases of schizophrenia.
Would you get a tattoo if it was offered free? Perhaps after downing a few beers. Irrationally Yours discusses a curious instant study on a strange promotional offer.
Analysis, the BBC Radio 4 documentary programme, discusses a new UK scheme to rehabilitate offenders funded by bonds. Essentially, you get make money on your investment if re-offending is cut – like betting on social interventions.
A new evidence-based approach to radically re-understanding mental illness from the ground up is covered by an excellent piece at The Neurocritic.
The Chronicle of Higher Education discusses art school and mental health.
Literacy may have stolen brain power from other functions, says Ars Technica. In my case, my sense of style.
All in the Mind, the Aussie one that is, had a brilliant programme on a modular approach to understanding the development of the mind.
Balanced arguments are more persuasive. PsyBlog covers research on how too much rhetorical bias turns us off.
Mind Hacks 
The “Nature” compendium of schizophrenia includes an article about rocketing mental health problem figures in China…….could it be that the item from the New York Times about interning dissidents has part of the answer here?