Mind Hacks

Brain scan lie detection knocks on the court doors

Wired Science interviews a professional observer in the most important legal hearing for the use fMRI brain scan ‘lie detection’ technology yet to come to court.

The observer was Owen Jones, a professor of law and biological sciences at Vanderbilt University, and the hearing was over the scientific status of ‘lie detection’ scans done by commercial company Cephos and are been touted by the defence in a case of someone accused of defrauding medical insurance in the US.

The debate is over whether the technology reaches the Daubert standard, criteria for whether scientific testimony or a specific technology is considered reliable enough to be admissible as evidence.

The case is interesting in light of the discussion we covered about the variety of possible legal uses of fMRI, as the lawyers wanting the evidence admitted are not wanting to use it as a straight-forward truth test about something that did or did not happen in the external world.

But rather, whether the accused is telling the truth about their earlier intentions. In other words, it’s a question of their honesty about an earlier mental state.

Wired.com: Is there anything special about the way the defense is trying to use fMRI in this case?

Jones: One of the things about this case that has gone undernoticed is that even though fMRI lie detection has not yet been admitted, the purposes for which people are seeking to admit it are already rapidly evolving. In this case, the defense is not attempting to introduce fMRI lie detection for purposes of verifying what was at some past time an external state of the world as, for example, when a hypothetical defendant says he was in his house at the time of the alleged murder. That would be a natural context to use lie detection. You‚Äôd ask, ‚ÄúWere you home? Are you lying?‚Äù

In this case, the defense is taking it to the meta-level. They are using a scan as evidence of a person‚Äôs prior state of mind. What‚Äôs at issue is whether the defendant knowingly and willfully did what he did. The defense is therefore attempting to offer fMRI to demonstrate his past state of mind. The report actually says, ‚ÄúDoctor Semrau‚Äôs brain indicates he is telling the truth in regards to not cheating or defrauding the government.‚Äù It means that we‚Äôre introducing evidence of the brain‚Äôs current assessment of the brain‚Äôs former mental state. That‚Äôs one of the things that makes it tricky. He‚Äôs trying to have his brain testify as to the prior state of his brain.

For fMRI to have already reached that level of complexity in the first case in which there has been a Daubert hearing gives some indication of how much more future litigation there is likely to be in this arena.

Although it seems a great deal of scientific evidence was presented by both sides, as far as I can make out, the type of ‘lie detection’ scanning done in this case deviates so far from the standard (and still not very reliable) lab procedure that the main thrust of the argument to have the scans admitted seems to be ‘oh, go on!’

Link to Wired Science on ‚ÄòWatershed‚Äô Legal Hearing (via @edyong209)

Ancient Egyptian neuroscience

The Edwin Smith papyrus is one of the oldest medical texts in the world and is an Ancient Egyptian treatise on surgery, particularly after head injuries. In contains perhaps the first ever recognition that a part of the brain can be linked to a specific function as it describes how someone can be left ‘speechless’ after a penetrating wound to their temple.

The Egyptian tourist board has put the full translation of the document online. It seems to be taken directly from the 1920s translation of James Breasted so the language is a little arcane but case twenty is the one we’re most interested in:

Case Twenty: Instructions concerning a wound in his temple, penetrating to the bone, (and) perforating his temporal bone.

Examination: If thou examinest a man having a wound in his temple, penetrating to the bone, (and) perforating his temporal bone, while his two eyes are blood shot, he discharges blood from both his nostrils, and a little drops; if thou puttest thy fingers on the mouth of that wound (and) he shudder exceedingly; if thou ask of him concerning his malady and he speak not to thee; while copious tears fall from both his eyes, so that he thrusts his hand often to his face that he may wipe both his eyes with the back of his hand as a child does, and knows not that he does so…

Diagnosis: Thou shouldst say concerning him: “One having a wound in his temple, penetrating to the bone, (and) perforating his temporal bone; while he discharges blood from both his nostrils, he suffers with stiffness in his neck, (and) he is speechless. An ailment not to be treated.”

Treatment: Now when thou findest that man speechless, his [relief] shall be sitting; soften his head with grease, (and) pour [milk] into both his ears.

I’m not sure if I’d be too pleased to wake up after a serious brain injury to find someone pouring milk in my ears, but then again, I’m not an Ancient Egyptian.

However, the case seems to be a clear case of a type of speech impairment, aphasia, caused by damage to the temporal lobe.

If you’re interested in some background on the discovery and significance of the papyrus, one of the most important in the history of medicine, there’s an excellent article from a previous incarnation of Neurophilosophy that you shouldn’t miss.

Link to Wikipedia on the Edwin Smith papyrus.
Link to complete translation.
Link to Neurophilosophy on the papyrus.

The difficulty of profiling killers

The Guardian has a compelling yet disturbing article on criminal profilers and how the practice is attempting to recover from the early days of profiler ‘experts’ who based their predictions on little more than guesswork, sometimes with disastrous results.

It’s written by journalist Jon Ronson who takes an incisive look into the history of criminal profiling in the UK and the impact of the Rachel Nickell case where a profiler wrongly implicated a man who spent 14 months in custody while the actual murderer went on to kill a mother and her daughter.

The practice has become considerably more scientific and considerably less dramatic as a result. The piece is essential reading if you’re interested in the psychology of profiling and a revealing look into the mistakes of the Nickell case.

Link to Guardian article on criminal profiling (via @researchdigest)

2010-05-14 Spike activity

Quick links from the past week in mind and brain news:

The Pentagon jumps on the brain implants for everything bandwagon but suggesting they could be a treatment for trauma, according to a piece in Wired. Shorter tours of duty like other coalition forces apparently not an option.

The Neurocritic has CASES OF INJURY OF THE HEAD, ACCOMPANIED BY LOSS OF BRAIN (oozing from the skull). Dig those old skool neurology cases.

Some of the best visual illusions are rounded in a gallery by Scientific American.

Overcoming Bias has a fantastic follow-up to our post on the ‘unskilled and unaware of it’ effect on subsequent studies that show the effect’s limitations and ways of manipulating it.

The psychological aftershocks of the Haiti earthquakes are covered in a powerful piece from the LA Times.

Science News on a study finding how bereaved relatives are helped by chance to view body after sudden loss, even in cases of violent death.

Independent walking robots made of DNA at Not Exactly Rocket Science. Yeah you heard, Mr ‘I Think You’ve Seen Terminator One Too Many Times’. Bunkers, now!

The Telegraph covers a case of a woman unable to recognise people by their voice.

Doctors are desensitised to other people’s pain, says a study covered by the BPS Digest. Can’t wait for the follow-up on dentists.

The New York Times discusses the science of a happy marriage. Doesn’t mention the difficult to achieve ability of noticing new female haircuts without prompting.

Near misses fuel gambling addiction according to a new study covered by Neurophilosophy.

There’s a video of the Best Illusion of the Year over at Scientific American. Clearly came out after the UK coalition government formed.

Faculty of 1000 discuss a paper finding that MRI affects brain activity. Let the weeping commence.

Want a career in social neuroscience? The Science careers blog has a post especially for you.

The Guardian reports that BBC4 are to screen a documentary following patients as they are sectioned (‘committed’) to psychiatric hospital. Wow.

There’s an interesting discussion on the philosophy of illness and our relationship to our bodies over at ABC Radio National’s Philosopher’s Zone.

Wired covers a recently released document giving some new information on the origins of the CIA’s MKULTRA ‘mind control’ project.

So, like what’s happened to Furious Seasons?

BBC Radio 4 has a great series on lie-detection and lie-detectors.

Men, teaching may be bad for your marriage, at least according to a study covered by NCBI ROFL. Being surrounded by beautiful women apparently.

The Wall Street Journal discusses Carl Jung’s mysterious ‘Red Book’ and an exhibition currently based on the tome. Article has awesome first paragraph.

Olivia Judson discusses if its possible to enhance the placebo effect at The New York Times.

Scientific American Mind’s Twitter feed has just become awesome.

Married neuroscience tag team Chris and Uta Frith discuss their life and work on BBC Radio 3’s Night Waves.

The Guardian has a piece on how mental illness is a low development priority despite it being a major cause of disability in the developing world.

A study raises questions about the role of brain scans in courtrooms and is ably covered by Not Exactly Rocket Science.

Built for sin

There’s a fascinating short article in The New York Times about physical attributes and the chance of ending up becoming a criminal or ending up in the clink.

Linking physical traits to criminality may sound like a throwback to the biological determinism advocated by 19th-century social Darwinists who believed that there was a genetic predisposition for wrongdoing. Practitioners are quick to distance themselves from such ideas.

Mr. Price, for example, argues that crime can be viewed, at least partly, as an ‚Äúalternative labor market.‚Äù If individuals with certain physical attributes are disadvantaged in the labor force, they may find crime more attractive, he said…

A link between a physical attribute and salary, or crime, does not necessarily mean cause and effect. Mr. Mocan pointed out that we do not know why someone who is overweight, unattractive or short is at a disadvantage in the labor market or more likely to commit a crime. It could be employer discrimination, customer preference or that the physical attribute may make the worker less productive. If a job involves carrying heavy loads, for instance, brawn would be an advantage.

That is what both Howard Bodenhorn, an economist at Clemson University, and Mr. Price concluded from 19th-century prison records. In that era increased body weight was associated with a lower risk of crime. In the 21st century, though, in which service jobs are much more common, Mr. Price found that being overweight was linked to a higher risk of crime.

The whole article is worth reading in full as it has lots of great snippets about how attractiveness is related to criminal activity and why Americans are getting shorter.

Link to NYT on ‘For Crime, Is Anatomy Destiny?’ (via @crime_economist)

Pereira morning

I’m in the beautifully green city of Pereira as I’ve been kindly asked to speak at the National Psychiatry Residents Conference here in Colombia.

I shall try and at least make sure Spike activity appears but otherwise the next few days might be a bit quiet, not least as I admire the spectacular surroundings and enjoy the conference.

Square eyes are a window to the soul

A video streaming site called Documentary Heaven has, among other things, a stack load of high quality psychology documentaries for your viewing pleasure.

There drawn from TV so they’re a bit of a mixed bunch from the lamentable BBC series ‘The Human Mind’, to the excellent biography of mathematician and subject of ‘A Beautiful Mind’ John Nash and the simply sublime programme ‘Beyond Good and Evil’ on Friedrich Nietzsche.

The definition of psychology is a little bit wide, but there’s plenty of good material to check out. In addition, I’d recommend the remarkable ‘Dr Money and the Boy with No Penis’, the level-headed documentary ‘Psychopath’, an informative BBC programme entitled ‘How Does Your Memory Work?’ and a good piece on synaesthesia called ‘Derek Tastes of Earwax’.

Not all of the links work and some are clearly drivel (‘The Secret’? Mercy no) but there are some gems there and hopefully a few starters above. Don’t miss the ‘Older Entries’ link at the bottom of the page for more.

Link to Documentary Heaven psychology collection.

Don’t throw the baby out with the cortisol

I have a bullshit switch. It gets triggered when I hear certain phrases. ‘Neuroplasticity’ is one, ‘hemisphere’ is another and ‘raises dopamine’ is a regular button pusher. That’s not to say people can’t use these phrases while talking perfect sense, but I find it useful that they put me on my guard.

Most recently, I’ve found the phrase ‘raises cortisol’ to be a useful way of alerting me to the fact that the subsequent words may be a few data points short of a bar graph – potentially some poorly understood drivel.

This has been recently by demonstrated by scaremongering advice handed out to parents based on the claim that some vaguely specified study has ‘shown’ that something or other ‘raises cortisol levels’ in children.

The experts then go on to explain that cortisol is ‘bad’ for the developing brain because, as we all know, at least according to the scientific stereotype, cortisol is the ‘stress hormone’.

A few weeks ago psychologist Penelope Leach claimed that leaving babies to cry means “huge quantities of the stress hormone cortisol are being released in that baby’s brain, flooding his brain and his central nervous system, and one of the things we’ve learnt is that lots of cortisol washing about is really not good for the developing brain”.

This claim is apparently also in her new book and it made headlines around the world: ‘Crying babies at risk of brain damage’, ‘Leaving your baby to cry could damage its brain new book claims’, ‘Letting newborns cry is bad for them: study’ and so on.

The excellent Neuroskeptic blog noticed that ubiquitous psychologist Oliver James was recently advising people that leaving children in childcare could raise the risk of behaviour problems later in life because a study found that cortisol “levels had doubled within an hour of the mother leaving them in daycare”.

These claims both reflect one-dimensional thinking about how the brain works. Yes, stress tends to raise cortisol levels and there is good evidence to suggest that chronically high levels of stress and cortisol may be detrimental to brain, but this conclusion is typically drawn from people who have been through some fairly serious shit, wars, deprivation, trauma, or have specific hormone problems.

There is remarkably little research on cortisol, everyday stresses in young children and none to suggest normal variation damages the brain in any way. In fact, a couple of studies suggest that higher cortisol levels in young children are related to better mental performance but you probably won’t hear about these. You’ll also not hear about the recent study in the Journal of Pediatrics that found that breast-fed infants had higher cortisol levels.

That’s not to say that all of the studies have found a positive effect (there’s a fair research base on how higher cortisol levels during pregnancy can, in some situations, lead to later problems) but just that its common that ‘experts’ in vaguely related field will cherry pick brain studies to support what they already say.

This is particularly effective when it chimes with our folk neuroscience: dopamine equals addiction, cortisol equals stress, serotonin equals enjoyment, the right-hemisphere equals creativity and so on. None of which makes sense its own. They’re all useless when used as stereotypes.

As Neuroskeptic notes, virtually every form of physical activity raises cortisol levels, so you can’t just blithely apply the over-generalisation without making a nonsense of the world.

Or indeed, of childcare.

Link to Neuroskeptic on cortisol and pop childcare advice.

The ups and downs of smouldering talent

In Touched with Fire psychologist Kay Redfield Jamison argued that history’s great artists were more likely to have experienced mood problems and especially the ups and down of ‘manic depression’ that fuelled their intense creativity. The idea is attractive, although her book relied on a case by case interpretation of often long-dead figures.

Nevertheless, a new study on almost three quarters of a million Swedish young people has found remarkable support for the theory where high school students who had the highest levels of academic performance were, later in life, four times more likely to be hospitalised for bipolar disorder than average pupils.

It was also noticeable that pupils in the lowest grade range were also twice as likely to develop bipolar, with average students being at lowest risk.

The researchers controlled for parents level of education, social status and birth conditions to rule out these other factors which are known to affect the chances of developing the condition but the effect still remained.

In contrast, there seems to be a fairly direct relationship between performing poorly at school and the chance of developing schizophrenia in later life, suggesting that, to a certain extent, different influences on the developing brain may be at play.

However, it’s worth noting that although the rate of bipolar for the best performing pupils quadrupled, the risk remains low. For example, of the 9,427 top performing students only 12 were diagnosed and hospitalised with bipolar – a high rate compared to the average performers but still rare.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists have a great podcast discussion of the study with the lead researcher, psychiatrist James McCabe, and the full text of the paper is available online as a pdf.

Although McCabe suggests that the more ‘creative’ subjects seems to be most associated with bipolar, I have to say that’s probably pushing it a bit they seem to be fairly evenly spread, although, interestingly, performing well in handicraft and sport indicated the students were less likely to be diagnosed with the condition in later life.

pdf of scientific article.
Link to PubMed entry for same.
Link to Royal College of Psychiatrists podcast about the study.

Lost letter days

One of the most delightful ways of testing social opinion has got to be the ‘lost letter’ technique, where researchers ‘lose’ paid up letters addressed to various controversial organisations to see how many get dropped back in the post box.

A new study, led by psychologist Tracey Witte, used exactly this technique and suggests that stigma concerning suicide may be improving as they found no difference in the amount of ‘lost letters’ that reached their final destination between those addressed to the fictional organisations the ‘American Heart Disease Research Foundation’, the ‘American Diabetes Research Foundation’ and the ‘American Suicide Research Foundation’.

In case you’re wondering, the addresses are otherwise identical (the same PO Box number) to reduce any other forms of bias. Only the names differ.

There have been some inventive ‘lost letter’ studies in the past, including the original 1965 one which found that three quarters of the letters to the ‘Medical Research Associates’ or a ‘Mr. Walter Carnap’ arrived at their destination but only one quarter of those addressed to either ‘Friends of the Communist Party’ or ‘Friends of the Nazi Party’ arrived.

Perhaps more relevant to today’s climate was a study completed in California in the year 2000 which found that letters addressed to the ‘Gay Marriage Foundation’ were significantly less likely to be returned than letters addressed to the ‘Blue Sky Foundation’.

As the researchers of the new study on suicide stigma note, one of the advantages of the technique is that it’s unobtrusive and “exceedingly unlikely that participants in these studies even know that their behavior is being measured by researchers.”

Link to PubMed entry for suicide ‘lost letter’ study.

Clutter blindness

NPR has an interesting interview on the phenomenon of compulsive hoarding where people will be almost unable to throw out used items and will collect mountains of clutter in their houses to the point where they can no longer see the walls.

The discussion is with psychologists and hoarding researchers Randy Frost and Gail Steketee and has lots of novel insights on a recognised but not well-understood behaviour.

I was struck by the bit where the interviewer highlights that lots of hoarders collect newspapers and Frost replies that “we think it’s related to a sense of wanting to acquire and preserve opportunities”. They also discuss the interesting concept of ‘clutter blindness’.

There are lots of similar parts that made me questions the traditional one-size-fits-all explanation that its just variant of obsessive-compulsive disorder or OCD.

Apparently the two psychologists have written a book on the topic called Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things and you can read an excerpt on the NPR website.

By the way, if you’re interested in learning more, don’t miss the short documentary Possessed that we’ve recommend previously and you can watch online.

Link to NPR on ‘Hoarding: When Too Much ‘Stuff’ Causes Grief’.

Carrot junky

I originally thought that this might be one of the traditionally light-hearted articles about medical problems in fictional characters published around Christmas but it appeared in a October 1996 edition of the Australia and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry.

I don’t have access to the full text of the article so I can’t say for sure but it seems to be serious. God knows how it got published but it remains a fascinating if bizarre insight into one of the lesser touted ‘addictions’.

Carrot addiction.

Kaplan R.

Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 1996 Oct;30(5):698-700.

OBJECTIVE: A case report of carrot addiction is presented with a review of the literature and comment on the role of beta carotene in addictive behaviour.

CLINICAL PICTURE: The addiction occurred in a 49-year-old woman under conditions of stress due to marital problems, leading to a depressive illness and increased smoking. The patient maintained that the sensations of carrot craving and withdrawal were quite distinct from those associated with smoking.

TREATMENT: The patient was advised to record her daily carrot consumption.

OUTCOME: The patient did not return for several months, but stopped eating carrots after an operation, at which time she also stopped smoking.

CONCLUSION: Compusive carrot eating, regarded as a rare condition, has received scant documentation, unlike hypercarotenemia due to unusual diets or food fads. Nervousness, craving, insomnia, waterbrash and irritability are associated with withdrawal from excessive carrot eating. The basis for the addiction is believed to be beta carotene, found in carrots. Does carrot eating, an aggressively oral activity, merely act as a behavioural substitute for smoking? Or does beta carotene contain a chemical element that replicates the addictive component of nicotine? Further study of this unusual but intriguing addiction may reveal more about the basis of all addictions, with particular implications for the cessation of cigarette smoking.

UPDATE: Blimey. Turns out the article is serious. Thanks to Avicenna for pointing out that the full article is available online.

Carrots. Just say no.

Link to PubMed entry for ‘carrot addiction’ article.

The sexploitation psychosis

Sex Madness was a curious 1938 sexploitation film that claimed to warn of the dangers of syphilis but was really an excuse to show risqu√© sex scenes that would have otherwise been banned by the film censors of the time.

As you might expect, watching the film now it seems remarkable that anyone would see anything in it worth censoring, but the concern about ‘sex madness’ was not entirely fictional.

Untreated syphilis typically leads to neurosyphilis where the disease attacks the nervous system and leads to dementia and madness.

It has been with us for possibly thousands of years and there is a rule of thumb that for any famous figure who died ‘mad’ before the 1950s someone will have suggested they died of syphilis.

However, it was truly a nasty way to go and a genuine danger considering that the first safe and effective antiobiotic treatments were not widely available until after World War Two.

For a long time before then, the most effective treatment was to be infected by malaria which would give you a fever so strong that the syphilis bacteria would die in your body due to the high temperature. The hope was that the malaria could be treated by quinine before you died from that. The discovery won Julius Wagner-Jauregg the Nobel prize in 1927.

So when the ‘sex madness’ film was made there was a genuine need to warn people about syphilis although the ‘madness’ angle gave the producers an excuse to show people acting ‘crazily’ and going ‘wild’ while melodramatising the effects of syphilis and ‘immoral behaviour’.

The whole film is now in the public domain and it is remarkable as a historical document, for the appalling acting and for its awesome film poster.

Link to ‘Sex Madness’ on YouTube.
Link to ‘Sex Madness’ on archive.org

Eight minutes of incompetence

ABC Radio National’s Science Show has a fantastic short segment on the ‘unskilled and unaware of it’ effect, also known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, where people with low levels of ability in a certain field vastly over-rate their talents because they lack the skills to judge their own competence.

It is my second favourite cognitive bias in psychology (after Emily Pronin’s discovery of the ‘bias blind spot‘) and the study also demonstrated the paradoxical effect whereby improving people’s skills reduced their self-assessment as they also learned to judge their ability level more accurately.

The segment in the science show is a wonderfully concise guide to the effect and start with the same wonderful story of the lemon juice covered bank-robber as the scientific paper.

Link to Science Show on the Dunning-Kruger effect.

Ego tripping the Freud fantastic

I just got sent this fantastic article from The Guardian in 2006 where neuropsychologist Paul Broks discusses Freud’s legacy in light of the burgeoning brain sciences.

As always, Broks writes brilliantly, and the piece starts with a wryly observed domestic scene.

One Sunday morning, when he was four years old, my son climbed into bed with his mother. I was downstairs making coffee. “Mum,” I heard him saying as I returned, “I’d like to kill Daddy.” It was a dispassionate declaration, said serenely, not in the heat of a tantrum or the cool spite of a sulk. He was quite composed. Shouldn’t you be repressing this, I thought.

The article was written on what would have been Freud’s 150th birthday and the rest is equally engaging.

Link to ‘The Ego Trip’ in The Guardian (thanks Ceny!)

2010-05-07 Spike activity

Quick links from the past week in mind and brain news:

Wired Science covers a rather nasty case of the consequences of long-term laughing gas abuse.

Washing your hands reduces cognitive dissonance according to a new study covered by the Brainstorm blog.

Scientific American has another one of Jesse Bering’s excellent columns – this time on the mystery of pubic hair.

Different types of synaesthetic experiences involve different brain mechanisms. Great coverage of a new study by Neurophilosophy.

New Scientist covers a new study finding that methylation markers used in protein expression from immune system genes were different in people diagnosed with PTSD.

Forgiving yourself eases procrastination, according to the BPS Research Digest. I’ve put it on my list for tomorrow.

Lingua Franca, the ABC Radio National language programme, discusses the psychological links between our written names and our identities.

Apparently there is a working torrent for PBS behavioural economics documentary Mind Over Money here.

BoingBoing has the cognitive bias song. I assume everyone is singing it these days.

Simon Baron-Cohen writes an article for The Guardian saying that it’s not sexist to accept that biology affects behaviour. Although he does seem to have a bit of an odd definition of determinism.

Neuronarrative has an excellent interview with cognitive scientist Mark Changizi. “Everything We Knew About Human Vision is Wrong”.

Optogenetics and the control of the brain with fibre optics is the focus of an article in this week’s Nature.

Ingenious Monkey reports on a study finding that a touch from a woman increases financial risk taking in both sexes.

Another study finding that computer games damage the brain. No wait, my mistake, it’s another one finding cognitive benefits. This time for multisensory processing.

Sensory Superpowers blog discusses how blind people can play ‘beep baseball‘.

Data-logging your life is covered in an article from The New York Times on obsessive personal empiricism.

Inkling Magazine discusses technology-related delusions and paranoia, partly inspired by one of my first academic papers.

What do English speaking philosophers study? The Splintered Mind has the low down.

The Science Network has a streamed version of the neuroscience and philosophy documentary ‘The I of the Vortex’.

Another study finding detrimental effects for toddlers watching lots of television is covered by BBC News. As have been found previously.

The Economist sounds a note of caution on television viewing studies, however, as measures of TV viewing time are notoriously unreliable.

A study comparing the DNA of identical twins with multiple sclerosis finds little to explain why the disease develops according to an article in Science News.

Scientific American tackle a study finding that men can suppress food cravings better than women. Just think of England honey.

Although autism is usually thought of as a disability, a New Scientist article discusses the fact that the condition can be associated with various cognitive advantages.

To the bunkers! BBC News reports on a study on robot-inflicted injuries. Next, a study on spanner-inflicted malfunction.

The Loom has great coverage of the recent study finding evidence for ‘Neanderthal genes‘ in our DNA.

There’s a great short article on the origin of the ‘disease model‘ of addiction over at Addiction Inbox.

PLoS One has a remarkable scientific paper “on the existence of a sort of second law of thermodynamics for sentimental relationships”. Our love ‘aint nothing but tamed chaos baby.

The talents of the middle-aged brain are explored on the New York Times well blog.

New Scientist discusses the evolution of handedness.