World renowned neuroscientist Adrian Owen and his team at Western University have developed a new strategy for predicting cognitive performance in Canadian university football players based on results from online surveys completed by the general population. The most...
Brain and Mind Institute
International study investigates near death experiences using data from text mining
A new study using text mining and artificial intelligence from Western University and University of Liège (Belgium) provides quantitative scientific proof that most people respond positively to near death experiences (NDEs). This innovative data strategy provides an...
Neuroscience controversy resolved: The hippocampus is not just a GPS
It’s a controversy that goes back to a Nobel Prize winning idea that there is a specific part of our brain that acts as our Global Positioning System (GPS), responsible for knowing at any given time where we are in the world and how to navigate it. Recently,...
New study advances quest to better understand consciousness
In his landmark 2006 study, Western University’s renowned neuroscientist Adrian Owen and his collaborators showed for the first time ever that functional neuroimaging can reveal conscious awareness in some patients who appear to be entirely vegetative and can even...
Left- and right-handers share similarities in the brain when it comes to numbers
Left- and right-handers may write with different hands, but the brain processes numbers the same way for both. This is according to a new study from Western University. In a Registered Report, supported in part by BrainsCAN, Western researchers Celia Goffin, Moriah...
Western University develops first-of-its-kind task-based map of the human cerebellum
It is the second largest part in the human brain and contains more neurons than any other. Tucked under the back of the cerebral cortex, the cerebellum is often overlooked when considering how the brain manages complex cognition such as language or problem solving....
Brain and Mind Institute study shows how fast human brains ‘see’ the world
A new study from Western University’s renowned Brain and Mind Institute shows how fast our brain makes sense of a world in which the images of people, places and things are constantly shrinking, expanding and changing on the retina at the back of our eyes. The...
ICU patients with non-brain-related injuries may suffer undetected cognitive dysfunction
A new study led by Western University and Lawson Health Research Institute has found that most patients entering hospital intensive care units (ICU) for non-brain-related injuries or ailments also suffer from some level of related cognitive dysfunction that currently...
Brain health of older adults enhanced by low-intensity physical activity
Older adults who engage in short bursts of physical activity can experience a boost in brain health even if the activity is carried out at a reasonably low intensity, according to new findings from Western University. Researchers from Western’s School of Kinesiology...
London Brain Bee 2019 encourages next generation of neuroscientists
For more than 40 years, some of Western University’s most internationally recognized research has come from the field of neuroscience research. A special event, later this spring, aims to encourage and foster the next generation of neuroscientists as Western hosts the...
Your spinal cord is ‘smarter’ than previously thought: research shows our spinal cords contribute to sophisticated hand function
We often think of our brains as being at the centre of complex motor function and control, but how ‘smart’ is your spinal cord? Turns out it is smarter than we think. It is well known that the circuits in this part of our nervous system, which travel down the length...
World’s largest sleep study shows too much shut-eye can be bad for your brain
Preliminary results from the world’s largest sleep study have shown that people who sleep on average between 7 to 8 hours per night performed better cognitively than those who slept less, or more, than this amount. Neuroscientists from Western University’s renowned...