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Brain Science Podcast #33: Exercise and the Brain

Episode 33 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Harvard physician, Dr. John Ratey about his new book Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain.

John J Ratey, MD

We explore the exciting evidence about how exercise helps the brain. It stimulates the release of a number of different neurotransmitters and neuropeptides, but probably more importantly it helps keeps these compounds balanced. We consider why exercise is so important in dealing with stress, in treating a wide range of mental illnesses including depression, anxiety, and attention deficit disorder. There is also evidence that exercise improves our ability to learn and our ability to avoid the loss of mental agility associated with aging.

Listen to Episode 33 Now.

This episode contains information that everyone can use. I hope you will share it with your friends and family.

Links and References:

Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain (2008) by John J. Ratey

Dr. Ratey's website: Go here for more interview of Dr. Ratey and also to find links to the latest research about exercise and the brain.

Listen to Dr. Ratey's Interview Now.

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Monday, March 17, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #32: Illustrations and Enhanced Podcast

Episode 32 of the Brain Science Podcast was a whirlwind tour of brain anatomy based on Beyond the Zonules of Zinn: A Fantastic Journey Through Your Brain (2008) by David Bainbridge. The author has graciously share the illustrations from his book and I have posted a special page that is keyed to the podcast. I have also created an enhanced version (AAC) version of the podcast, which will not appear in the feed. I think the images are best viewed on the web, but I would appreciate your feedback on both the website illustrations and the enhanced podcast.

See the illustrations on the Brain Science Podcast website.

View the enhanced podcast (requires Quicktime).

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #32: A Whirlwind Tour of the Brain

Episode 32 of the Brain Science Podcast is a whirlwind (55 minute) tour of brain anatomy. It is based on David Bainbridge's new book: Beyond the Zonules of Zinn: A Fantastic Journey Through Your Brain (2008). Within the next few days I will be expanding the show notes to include key illustrations from the book. I want to thank David for sharing these images and I encourage everyone to read the book.

Listen to Episode 32

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Listen to Episode 17 of Books and Ideas

Friday, March 7, 2008

Books and Ideas #17: Interview with author Mur Lafferty

Ginger and Mur

Episode 17 of Books and Ideas is an interview with writer Mur Lafferty. Mur's podcasts I Should Be Writing and Geek Fu Action Grip helped inspire me to start podcasting, so I was excited to get a chance to talk with her about her new novel, Playing for Keeps. We also talk a little about the challenges of podcasting.

Listen to episode 17

Part 1 of the audio version of Playing for Keeps is included in this episode. It starts at 30:48. You can find the novel at http://playingforkeepsnovel.com or at http://podiobooks.com.

Mur emphasized that her "street team" has done a lot to promote Playing for Keeps. Special thanks go to Natalie Metzger and Jarod Axelrod for artwork, and to Chris Miller for the companion video podcast, which is available on youtube.

Mur co-wrote Tricks of the Podcasting Masters with Rob Walch.

She has also had several great stories on Escape Pod. My favorite is "I look Forward to Remembering You," which is scheduled to become a video on http://strangerthings.tv.

To find more of Mur's work go to http://murlafferty.com.

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Friday, February 22, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #31: Brain Rhythms with György Buzsáki

György Buzsáki, author of Rhythms of the Brain (OUP 2006) is a Professor of Neuroscience at Rutgers University. His book is a comprehensive review of the current state of research in the field of brain oscillations. It includes the role of these oscillations in sleep and memory. In episode 31 of the Brain Science Podcast Dr. Buzáki explains why the rhythms of the brain are important and reflects on why this field has been neglected by some neuroscientists. I think he makes a convincing case for the position that these rhythms are an essential component of brain function.

Listen to Dr. György Buzsáki's interview about Brain Rhythms

György Buzsáki, Professor of Neuroscience at Rutgers University
- Learn about his lab and research
- Contact information

SHOW NOTES:

Partial List of Scientists Mentioned:

Stephen Strogatz: known for his discovery of "small world" architecture
- His 2003 bestseller Sync: The emerging science of spontaneous order is aimed at a general audience
Nancy Kopell: mathematician
- Buzsaki recommends her review of the analytical approaches to neuronal oscillators: We got Rhythm: Dynamical Systems of the Nervous System. N Am Math Soc 47: 6-16 (2000).
Zoltán Néda (Bebes-Bolyai University Romania): the spontaneous synchronization of hand clapping
Hermann Haken: German laser physicist who studies bidirectional causation
- The Science of Structure: Synergetics (1984)
John O'Keefe (University College, London): along with Lynn Nadel he discovered how the hippocampus forms a cognitive map of the world
- He has shown how the timing of osscillations in the hippocampus are important
- "Independent rate and temporal coding in hippocampal pyramidal cells" by John Huxter, Neil Burgess, and John O'Keefe. Nature 425, 828-832 (23 October 2003)
David McCormick (Yale University): showed that neurons from the thalamus of a ferret can oscillate spontaneously
- He has also studied the oscillations of place cells in the hippocampus
David Hubel and Thorston Wiesal: along with Vernon Montcastle they pioneered the use of single neuron recordings in the neocortex of casts and monkeys
- Montcastle, VB (1997) "The Columnar Organization of the Neocortex." Brain 102:01-722.
Claude Shannon: founder of Information Theory
Jan Born (University of Lübeck, Germany): experiments with how sleep improves both memory and problem solving

Topics and questions:

Basics of oscillations and synchrony
What functions are accomplished by brain rhythms?
The role of hippocampal ripples in memory
What happens to our brain rhythms while we sleep
The importance of synchrony in saving energy in the brain

This episode will appeal to listeners with a background in math or engineering, but Dr. Buzsáki provides numerous everyday examples that make the material accessible to everyone.

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Friday, February 8, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #30: The Evolution of Language

Episode 30 of the Brain Science Podcast is a discussion of The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language by Christine Kenneally. We focus mostly on the first part of the book, which tells the story of how the study of language evolution has grown from almost a banned subject to a new field of inquiry called evolutionary linguistics. We also reflect on how recent findings in neuroscience like the importance of plasticity are influencing the field.

Listen to Episode 30

Scientists Discussed in the Episode:

*References:

Pinker, Steven, and Paul Bloom, "Natural Language and Natural Selection," Behavioral and Brains Sciences 13 (1990): 707-84.

Marc D. Hauser, Noam Chomsky, and W. Tecumseh Fitch (2002). "The Faculty of Language: What Is It, Who Has It, and How Did It Evolve?" Science 298:1569-1579.

Christine Kenneally, The First Word: The Search for the Origins of Language (2007).

Stanley I. Greenspan and Stuart G. Shanker, The First Idea: How Symbols, Language, and Intelligence Evolved from our Primate Ancestors to Modern Humans (2004).

*Additional references can be found in Kenneally's book and at the websites of the scientists listed above.

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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #29: Author Maryanne Wolf talks about reading and the brain

Dr. Maryanne Wolf, Director of The Center for Reading and Language Research at Tufts University

Brain Science Podcast #29 is an interview with cognitive neuroscientist, Dr. Maryanne Wolf, author of Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain. I discussed her book in Episode 24, so this interview was an opportunity to ask her some follow-up questions, and to focus more on how children learn to read. Dr. Wolf shares her ten years of experience helping children learn to read and developing programs to help children with problems like dyslexia. She shares some practical advice for parents as well as her concerns about how reliance on the internet could influence reading skills.

I enjoyed the conversation and, while I especially want to share this episode with parents, I think Dr. Wolf gives everyone some interesting ideas to consider. Listen to the interview.

Links:

Maryanne Wolf:

The Center for Reading and Language Development (Tufts University)
RAVE-O: A Comprehensive, Fluency-Based Reading Intervention Program

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Listen to Dr. Novella's interview

Friday, January 18, 2008

Books and Ideas #16: Steven Novella from the Skeptics Guide to the Universe

Episode 16 of Books and Ideas is a conversation with Dr. Steven Novella from the popular podcast The Skeptics Guide to the Universe. This interview is a response to numerous requests from fans of the Brain Science Podcast, but I put it in the Books and Ideas feed so that Dr. Novella could share some of his personal experiences both as a physician and as a podcaster.

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Show Notes:

Dr. Novella talked a little bit about why he became a physician and about choosing neurology as his specialty. We talked about the role of imaging and how recent advances in neuroscience are influencing patient care. We also talked about the importance of helping patients get accurate information, both from the internet and from their physicians, and how the pressure for physicians to see large numbers of patients hinders good communication. Dr. Novella is committed to evidence-based medicine and we talked about the role of skepticism in evaluating medical claims, both from mainstream and alternative sources. Dr. Novella also talked briefly about his podcast and his blogs, including a new blog specifically devoted to promoting evidence-based medicine.

In the last section of this episode I looked back on the first 15 episodes of Books and Ideas. I particularly want to thank Matthew Cobb for being my first guest back in episode 7. You can get his book Generation at the Books and Ideas aStore at Amazon.com.

Links:

The Skeptics Guide to the Universe
Dr. Novella's Blogs:
- Neurologica
- Science Based Medicine
Matthew Cobb:
- Listen to discussion of his book Generation (episode 6)
- Listen to interview (Episode 7)
- Cobb's home page
- Cobb's blog on Vox

Friday, January 11, 2008

Brain Science Podcast #28: Interview with UAB's Dr. Edward Taub

Edward Taub, PhD, pioneer of Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy

Episode 28 of the Brain Science Podcast is an interview with Dr. Edward Taub who for the last 20+ years has been pioneering the use of Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy in the rehabilitation of stroke and other neurological disabilities. I have talked about his work in previous episodes (including episode 10 and episode 26) as an important example of the practical implications of brain plasticity. Listen Now.

In this interview Dr. Taub shares his personal experiences in the front lines of clinical research, including both its rewards and frustrations. He also explains the basics of how constraint-induced therapy (CI Therapy) works and how his work is being expanded to help patients with a wide variety of problems including cerebral palsy, head trauma, multiple sclerosis, and focal hand dystonia.

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