Category Archives: Isabelle Abbey-Vital

News and Views: The Brain Activity Mapping Project – What’s the plan?

Posted on April 24, 2013 by thebrainbank

“If the human brain were so simple that we could understand it, we would be so simple that we couldn’t” – Dr. Emerson Pugh Isabelle Abbey: An ambitious project intended to unlock the inscrutable mysteries of nerve cell interactions in … Continue reading →

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The Superhuman Savants

Posted on April 5, 2013 by thebrainbank

Savant syndrome is an incredibly rare and extraordinary condition where individuals with neurological disorders acquire remarkable ‘islands of genius’. What’s more, these ‘superhuman’ savants may be crucial in understanding our own brains. ‘Savant’, derived from the French verb savoir meaning … Continue reading →

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Love is in the air: Why Sperm love the smell of flowers and how this could be used as a fertility aid

Posted on February 11, 2013 by thebrainbank

Flowers have long been prized for their natural beauty and almost guarantee a positive reception when given as a romantic gift. However, it appears that the chemical responsible for floral smells (‘bourgeonal’) is also linked with love and romance in … Continue reading →

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Why can’t we tickle ourselves but schizophrenics can?

Posted on December 24, 2012 by thebrainbank

Have you ever tried to tickle yourself? Try it; you will find that the feeling will be nothing like the sensation you get when someone else tickles you. But why is this the case? The simplest answer to this question … Continue reading →

Posted in Isabelle Abbey-Vital | 4 Comments

Why do you play?

Posted on October 21, 2012 by thebrainbank

In July of this year, an 18-year old boy died in an Internet Cafe in Taiwan, after supposedly playing the video game ‘Diablo 3’ for 40-hours straight. Over the past decade, video gaming has become a controversial topic of escalating … Continue reading →

Posted in Isabelle Abbey-Vital | 5 Comments