Neuroanthropology

For a greater understanding of the encultured brain and body…

Archive for July 23rd, 2008

Colombia, Peace and Progress

Posted by dlende on July 23, 2008

On Sunday the 20th of July, millions of Colombians gathered to march for peace around the world. The streets of Bogotá were packed.

In Paris Juanes, Ingrid Betancourt and others held the concert Paz Sin Fronteras

After the dramatic rescue of fifteen hostages, including Ingrid Betancourt, Colombians look to the future. Juan Manuel Santos, the minister of defense, has co-written an editorial in today’s New York Times. NPR covered the march for peace. And El Tiempo, Colombia’s leading newspaper, celebrates the 20 de Julio through extensive coverage and even photos and videos that readers have uploaded from around the world

Posted in general | Leave a Comment »

Paintball Sentry Gun

Posted by dlende on July 23, 2008

You can’t get much more cultural than this–the hours of effort, the level of expertise, the amount of geekdom. It just wouldn’t play anywhere else.

I found out about this through “Some Guy Went and Built a Sentry Gun” which provides some much needed cultural context, including 134 comments.

Posted in Fun and Humor, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Conferences on Compassion and Ritual

Posted by dlende on July 23, 2008

The Common Bond Institute will be hosting its third international conference entitled “Engaging the Other: The Power of Compassion.” The conference runs Sept 4-7 2008 in San Francisco.

The Collaborative Research Centre “Ritual Dynamics” will host an international conference “Ritual Dynamics and the Science of Ritual.” This one runs Sept 29-Oct 2 2008 in Heidelberg.

Posted in Conferences | Leave a Comment »

Wednesday Round Up #21

Posted by dlende on July 23, 2008

The Brain

Gene Expression, Metamorphosis
Remodeling the brain and body in real-time?

Carl Zimmer, How Your Brain Can Control Time
“The three methods your mind uses to reverse, speed, and even slow the minutes”

Adam Keiper, The Synapse and the Soul
Excellent review of Michael Gazzaniga’s new book Human: the good, the bad, and the ugly. For more from Adam Keiper, check out his homepage.

The Evolving Mind, Doctor, My Mind Hurts!
Overcoming mind-brain dualism through bi-directional influences. One blogger’s struggles.

Deric Bownds, Brain Regions Active During Different Economic Decisions
How different parts of the brain handle different parts of decision making

Deric Bownds, Ecocultural Basis of Cognition
“Farmers and fishermen are more holistic than herders.” Cultural ways of paying attention to your environment changes how you perceive the world.

The Neurotic, JoVE: Journal of Visualized Experiments
Check out the video of an adult rat brain rewiring itself

Erik Sofge, For Future of Mind Control, Robot-Monkey Trials Are Just a Start
Popular Mechanics takes on brain-computer-machine interfaces and the future of cybernetics

Eureka Alert, Laka: ‘Language Exists in the Brain’
Misleading title. Really about research on bilingual processing of language.

On Amir, Tough Choices: How Making Decisions Tires Your Brain
“The brain is like a muscle: when it gets depleted, it becomes less effective”

Kim Masters, Neuroscience Helps Marketers Judge Ads’ Impact
Relatively balanced NPR piece on neuroscience and marketing, in this case television ads and “viewer’s attention span, memory and level of engagement”

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in Links | Leave a Comment »

Pharyngula on epigenetics

Posted by gregdowney on July 23, 2008

P. Z. Myers of Pharyngula, when he isn’t driving creationists into paroxysms, can write some great translations of biological concepts for the average reader. He does this in the post, Epigenetics, where he points out some of the problems with textbook definitions of the term. I really recommend checking this post out, but get a cup of coffee and a comfortable seat before you do — the post is not lite fare.

Epigenetics, although devilishly difficult, is absolutely essential for breaking with the common conception of DNA as ‘blueprint’ or marching orders for biological processes. In biological developmental processes, the expression of DNA is quite a bit more interesting than just ‘genes made it happen.’ Myers lays out a host of good examples, such as the variable degree to which histones permit or inhibit DNA transcription, the inactivation of parts of DNA when methylated, how chromosome geometric arrangement might affect gene expression, and other factors. He also discusses X chromosome inactivation in females (because they have two, one has to shut down), genomic imprinting on non-sex chromosomes (Myers discusses chromosome 15 and some of the disorders that can result), and disease changes in genetic expression (such as liver cirrhosis and retroviral insertions, which I touched on in an earlier posts on ‘identical’ twins).

Grunt Doc joked in the last Grand Rounds blog carnival that he hoped our post on psychiatric genetics ‘wouldn’t be on the test’; that goes double for the material Myers is covering. Fascinating, but, wow, tough to wrap the head around. But it’s already making me look at our calico cats in a new light…

Stumble It!

Graphic: Originally from Nature 441, 143-145 (11 May 2006); downloaded from UNSW Embryology, h/t to Pharyngula.

Posted in general, Genetics | 1 Comment »

 
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