Spring 2004
Brain Research for a Smarter World
CLA scientists and their students are creating and sharing new knowledge about the brain and human behavior...
Jonathan Gewirtz: High Anxiety
Mary Kennedy: Stories, Rhymes and Memories
Monica Luciana: Drawing on the Brain
Chad Marsolek: Finding Fido
Gail Peterson: Shaping Behavior
Peter Watson: First Words
Jack Avery: Talking the talk
Danielle Cheek: Finding the right fit
Last year, I watched in dismay as a brilliant, accomplished friend struggled to find words and lift a fork to her mouth following what she now calls a "brain blowout." She's her old self again, but we both think more than we used to about the brain and its tics and disturbances.
Most of us know someone who has experienced some form of disruption in "normal" brain functioning—a friend in the throes of depression, a parent or partner with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, a colleague in rehab following a stroke. And of course we all experience mood swings or moments of forgetfulness—those times when the brain's circuitry just seems out of whack.
After viewing her last brain scan, my friend's neurologist told her, "I would know your brain anywhere." That gave me pause. Are our brains like our faces? No two alike? We know that some people are "brainy," while others are slow learners. Some people remember every detail of their lives with crystal clarity, while others' recollections are spotty or vague. Some learn languages or play the clarinet with great facility; others struggle with languages and music but find calculus a breeze.
No doubt the brains of all these people look as different, and are as different, as my face or brain and yours, not to mention those of the CLA faculty researchers who are finding out just what those differences are and what they mean.
The human brain looks pretty unremarkable on the surface. It's a pinkish-grey, spongy blob of furrows, bumps, and fissures weighing about three pounds and looking rather like a muskmelon that's seen better days. It's what most of us can't see that's so impressive.
The brain contains roughly 100 billion nerve cells. It governs everything from breathing to heart rate to complex problem solving. It is nearly without limit in its capacity and its reach—even in its ability to study itself. In the words of Emily Dickinson, "The brain is wider than the sky."
So who should care about neuroscience?
This issue of CLA Today is for anyone who's ever tasted an orange, heard a robin's trill, touched or sniffed a rose petal, been pricked by a thorn, smelled coffee brewing, pounded a nail, yelled "ouch," thrown a ball, or identified the color red. It's for anyone who has looked at a scene and translated seeing into words or a painting. It's for anyone who's ever said, "That's [Joe or Sue or Fido]," or "I've heard that song before."
It's also for anyone whose brain has ever taken a hike, fogged over, hiccupped, or otherwise failed to function smoothly. It's for anyone who has ever searched for an vagrant word, been distracted, lost car keys, stared blankly at a blank computer screen, thrown a tantrum, been afraid, forgotten a name or telephone number, or stopped in a doorway and wondered, "What in the world was I about to do?"
It's for anyone who has ever learned a language or played a musical instrument. It's for every parent or teacher who has coached a child's developing brain in accomplishing its finest work, the miracle of language acquisition.
The CLA researchers featured in this issue are working with colleagues across the University to solve the brain's mysteries and put their solutions to work in peoples' lives. That's the beauty of research. It's the brain in action. It's knowledge creation for a smarter and better world.
CLA research labs and clinics
Department of Psychology
Center for Cognitive Sciences
The hub of research in the cognitive sciences at the University.
Computational Perception & Action Lab
Neural mechanisms that support human visual perception.
Psychoacoustics Laboratory
Relationship between the physical characteristics of acoustic stimuli and the psychological experiences or perceptions of listeners.
Translational Research in Cognitive and Affective Mechanisms Laboratory
Some current projects: studies of cognitive control over habitual and emotional responses; and decision-making and emotional mechanisms in schizophrenia.
Vision Research Laboratories
Vision and Attention Laboratory
Neural basis of human vision, visual attention, and visual awareness.
Visual Cognition Laboratory
Human cognitive abilities—especially aspects of memory, learning, vision, and emotion.
Computational Vision Laboratory
How the visual brain arrives at interpretations of the retinal image that are useful for everyday decisions and actions.
Minnesota Lab for Low-Vision Research
Dedicated to understanding reading difficulties and other visual problems encountered by people with low vision.
Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences
Julia M. Davis Speech-Language-Hearing Center
- Speech Language Services for Children, Adolescents, & Adults
- Communication Skills Group for Adults with Developmental Disabilities
- Concentrated Aphasia Mgmt. Program
- Adult Communication Therapy: Stroke and Brain Injury Survivors
- Audiology Services