Anatomy, Physiology and Neuroscience

A recent post got me thinking. The mirror test of self awareness can't be considered an absolute test for self awareness, as the only conclusion you can take from an animals inability to recognise its self is that it failed the test. My dog for instance, hates the rain, if when she gets to the door and it's raining she refuses to go for a walk. I may be wrong here, but for me this implies she's makeing a choice, based on a future event. Given that there are animals that are definately not aware, a duck for instance. This would automatically mean we can create a linear graph, unaware at the begining and humans (conceted I know but what else) at the finnish. My ques…

Cell phone addicts lousy drivers even when not calling ... frighteningly similar to ... Multitaskers poor producers even when not multitasking I think the evidence is beginning to build that humans are not computers — that is, we cannot run multiple "applications" efficiently. I wish there was a conclusive study that proved this to American business so we never again hear an interviewer ask, "And how are you at multitasking?" Maybe this question should be illegal, like asking someone to sit for a lie detector test.

Hi..I'm trying to go through previous exam questions but can't really find the right answers for questions. Pls help! 1. The brain is located within the skull, and further protected by the meningies and CSF. Which of the following statements about these features of anatomical organisation is correct? a) There is a direct passage(aqueduct) connecting the lateral ventricles to the fourth ventricle-----wrong b) As well carrying oxygenated blood to the brain, the cerebral arteries also resorb CSF from the sub-arachnoid space---wrong? c) the only brain regions that are separated by dura mater are 1: between the dorsal aspect for the two cerebral he…

When an organ such as the kidney is donated, the total resistance withing the vessels increases (because a kidney which represents a resistance was connected in parallel). Because of this increase in resistance, flow of blood decreases obviously. But my question is, why does the cardiac output decrease and the heart rate decrease (a bradycardia in patients with 1 kidney is normal). Isn't the heart supposed to compensate for this decrease in flow by increasing its cardiac output?!! I found this confusing. Please Help Thank you

Would it be healthier to eat one big meal a day rather than 3 small sized meals throughout the day? If you ate one big meal it would give your body and metabolism more time to digest and process the food. Could it be healthier?

Neurotracers are substances used to label the motor and sensory axons in the peripheral nerves till the spinal cord.. What are those substances? How can we use? What are the history of this procedure?

Other than converting chemicals via gluconeogenesis, it's to my understanding the only way glucagon can raise blood glucose levels is by signaling the liver to release glucose from glycogen. So is there any other way glucagon can raise blood glucose, and can someone confirm if glucagon can by pull sugar back out of cells via transport through their membranes? If so, what is the mechanism? Thanks

Hi all, So according to our lecturer, there exists a location within out body that has cardiac muscle (apart from the heart of course). Can anyone tell me where you would find cardiac muscle other than in the walls of the heart where it forms myocardium? I've tried researching this but to no avail. Hopefully someone can help me out. Thanks in advance

If ingesting high fat oils via food can lead to blocked arteries, etc, then isn't the same true for applying oil to the skin? The oil is absorbed into the skin, and eventually the bloodstream. So what's the difference? I'm asking because i was thinking of switching from using a moisturiser on my skin, to an oil such as almond oil, as it's a natural product and minus the chemicals in a moisturiser.

What cortical areas could become impaired in premature infants suffering from fat malabsorbtion? And what would the mechanism look like? Thanks in advance!

The DNA which carries the whole information about a human body could be partially changed. I m not posting the theory here but if it is workable, i could be contacted.. example: two brothers are born twin and one develop a desease.Both are having almost same food and same atmosphare, having same parents. why doctors cant assess one devlope a chronic illness cus normally they will ask you,did ur parents or in ur faimly any one has dibeties,means thats why you have it. Its not true but the whole medical science have followed the same road and never thought of the cause.. why too many fat people are in one city like london because they are having junk food so why the rest …

I am not trying to simplify how to prevent heart disease, bearing in mind that genetics, diet and behaviour play such an important role in heart disease. However, what if taking high levels of garlic could prevent the risk of atheroma, aneurysm and thrombosis, all so common in the West due to over-nutrition? It appears as if the active agent is S-methyl cysteine found in both garlic and turmeric. So, for the people in Britain who love a good curry, the news is great. Keep eating your curry and you could prevent heart disease... This is an interesting article from the land of curry experts - India: Abstract Link

Does anyone know whether Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation and/or mouth-to-mouth resuscitation are really able to bring a person back to life like they are consistently portrayed as being able to do in the movies? Don't misunderstand, I know that both techniques are routinely used to keep someone alive until the ambulance arrives by keeping their blood flowing and oxygenated, but can they actually restart a person's heart and make it beat again on its own? Or is that a complete myth?

Hi, I am very interested in the subject of spinal injury cord regeneration, because this would be a huge blessing to thousands who are handicapped by spinal injuries. I know I could look this up on the net but I would like the views ideas of this forum! Alan

Any scientific articles or scientific documentaries that you have heard of about this subject, especially more current ones? http://www.huffingto..._n_1495791.html http://www.scienceda...20504110504.htm http://www.livescien...ifferences.html http://www.scienceda...00802091205.htm http://www.scienceda...10609084808.htm Examples:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3350010/Dogs-have-a-sense-of-right-and-wrong.html http://englishrussia...cow-stray-dogs/ <---this article is amazing http://www.pbs.org/d...es/dog-science# http://email.eva.mpg...Tomasello05.pdf http://www.pbs.org/w...smart-dogs.html http://articles.cnn....ms?_s=PM:LIVING http…

Hi, I will be very specific ... Is there a relationship / correlation between the Parietal lobe & the Temporal lobes ? (inc. via parts) thanks in advance, although I hope there is a specific answer

The molecule PGC-1 is very high expressed in muscle. It is physiologically induced by exercise and can be chemically induced by clenbuterol. Clenbuterol can also be given in combination with phosphodiesterase inhibitors to prolong the induction of PGC-1. PGC-1 occurs in two isoforms alpha and beta. They have similar actions. Inducing PGC-1 might be a perfect treatment for many diseases. 1) It increases lipid and glucose oxidation: Helps against diabetes 2) It seems to decrease inflammation i the muscle: Helps against inflammation. The 2 is very interesting. there is lots of interest in myokines (substances released by muscle that act like cytokines) PGC-1 al…

Some dietists talk about putting the body on 'fat burn mode' by having certain diet specially on breakfast in order to lose weight; instead of typical breakfast meals that put the body in a starving 'fat storing mode' How such 'modes' can be detected ? By some blood analysis; or urine analysis, sugar levels, or what ?

I have often wondered how it is that humans (and presumably other animals whose senses are more acute than ours) are able to sense either the presence of someone/something nearby even though your five senses do not consciously detect them, or when we are being watched. Now, psychic explanations aside, which as a good scientist I cannot flat out dismiss as the explanation, is there some other possibility that could explain this mysterious phenomenon? I know that of all the sensory information received by our brains from our five (or six?) senses, only a fraction of that information is consciously perceived. Is it possible that the explanation could reside in some of th…

When NMDA is agonized while inhibitory signaling increases, words and places become proper objects.

Good Day. My first post on this forum and from a preliminary check did not indicate this has been a discussion before. The development of diet pills of the last while has been orbiting around the idea of being a weight loss pill. Strip away appetite and give the body what it needs. Oddly enough in this day and age we haven't managed to get that right and they often have rather unpleasant side effects long term. So what about a full diet supplement? Forget about the weight loss side of things which appears to be just messing everything up. Surely we must understand the human body enough by now to be able to know what it's exact dietary requirements are. For the…

I live in the UK and I struggle to sleep during the hot period. What I can I do to make my time at night a much better experience? I know I can use AC, Fans, sleep naked blah blah blah, and I have tried all of these. I want to take this further than the obvious. Can I condition my body to get "used" to the heat e.g. If I wear thick clothing during the day so it deosn't feel hot at night or gradually lower the temperature of my shower over a period of time? What sort of materials should I keep in the bedroom e.g. reflective materials to direct heat away of matt materials to absord the heat? Do I keep the window/door open e.g Window open to let the heat…

I recently tried a pressure point for one of my chronic headaches and it did reduce the intensity significantly. Is that just placebo effect, or is something actually going on? I've not really been able to find any information about acupressure. Everything that I can find just lumps it in as a type of acupuncture and either praises it as ancient wisdom or dismisses it offhand via the genetic fallacy. I can't find any actual rational discussion of what, if anything, actually happens when these nerve clusters are massaged. Does putting pressure on nerve clusters do anything? Google searches for acupressure throw out mostly neurological uses, which makes me think the…

Hello to all, I have a (few) specific questions. From a physiological standpoint, how much work is obtainable with pure muscle power? Also, how is energy used in the body to perform work? Thanks for any help.

I would make a poll but I dont know which options would appear so I rather give an open question... For the expertsand the not so experts, which body parts are more problematic than they are useful? For example hands are very useful and rarely ever present problems (I use them every day and I have to give little thought to their care)... On the other hand I think the digestive system is full of crap and it has the additional problem that its entrance, the mouth, is hard to mantain hygienically well