Do you hear what I see? How blindness changes how you process the sound of movement

Detecting and tracking motion is key to survival. The ability to extract auditory information from a noisy environment changes when your brain isn’t wired to rely on vision.

Woon Ju Park, Research Scientist, University of Washington • conversation
Dec. 18, 2023 ~7 min

Climate change is altering animal brains and behavior − a neuroscientist explains how

Rapidly changing temperatures and sensory environments are challenging the nervous systems of many species. Animals will be forced to evolve to survive.

Sean O'Donnell, Professor of Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Science and Biology, Drexel University • conversation
Nov. 13, 2023 ~7 min


MIT announces 2023 Bose Grants for daring new research

Grants fund studies of honeybee tracking, glass building materials, and defining excellence in human movement.

Becky Ham | Office of the Provost • mit
Sept. 29, 2023 ~6 min

How do flies find every stinky garbage dumpster? A biologist explains their sensory superpower

Flies often beat out competitors for food because of their specialized sensing organs called antennae.

Christine Picard, Associate Professor of Biology, Indiana University • conversation
Sept. 4, 2023 ~6 min

Poor sense of smell tied to higher depression risk in older adults

"Smell is an important way to engage with the world around us, and this study shows it may be a warning sign for late-life depression."

Kristen Crocker-Johns Hopkins • futurity
June 26, 2023 ~7 min

Seeing dead fruit flies is bad for the health of fruit flies – and neuroscientists have identified the exact brain cells responsible

When fruit flies see other dead fruit flies, their life spans are cut short. Other species also undergo analogous physiological changes when seeing their dead.

Christi Gendron, Research Assistant Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan • conversation
June 13, 2023 ~7 min

Politicians love to appeal to common sense – but does it trump expertise?

We often view common sense as an authority of collective knowledge that is universal and constant.

Magda Osman, Principal Research Associate in Basic and Applied Decision Making, Cambridge Judge Business School • conversation
May 31, 2023 ~8 min

Key neurons in mice ‘learn’ to sniff out threats

Researchers are finding out more about how smell affects threat assessment in two new studies with mice.

Kelsie Smith-Hayduk - U. Rochester • futurity
Feb. 10, 2023 ~6 min


Study may explain why too much of a good smell can stink

A paradoxical new finding shifts our understanding of smell. It may explain how we can tell smells apart and why some good smells go bad.

Harrison Tasoff-UC Santa Barbara • futurity
Jan. 4, 2023 ~11 min

MIT system “sees” the inner structure of the body during physical rehab

A system for monitoring motion and muscle engagement could aid the elderly and athletes during unsupervised physical rehabilitation for injuries or impaired mobility.

Rachel Gordon | MIT CSAIL • mit
Oct. 11, 2022 ~8 min

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