Reshaping the Sensory Environment Sensory Accuracy Survival of all animals depends on the accuracy with which sensory information is processed by the nervous system. Integrating this information in an efficient and effective manner depends on dynamic strategies that the nervous system relies on to determine the reliability and accuracy of the sensory inputs (reviewed by Zaidel, Turner, and Angelaki, 2011). This essay examines contemporary theories that attempt to explain how these strategies

Human Brain One of the most complex organs in the universe, the human brain, continues to be a scientific mystery. In vertebrate and most invertebrate animals, the brain is the central aspect of the nervous system. The brain can be simple, as in some insects, or extremely complex, as in the human brain which can encompass anywhere from 15-33 billion neurons linked with 10,000 or more synaptic connections. The brain is

Each has its own skills associated with that specific areas (e.g. thinking is generally associated with the frontal cortex whilst vision with the occipital lobe; the frontal lobes are associated with motor control, speech, abstract thought, and sense of self, whilst the parietal lobes contain bodily sensations and the temporal lobes record hearing). Likewise each hemisphere has its specific expertise too with the analytical left containing speech, mathematical skills,

Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cell Recent studies on biological anatomy of the eye discovered an additional photoreceptor within the mammalian eye. The cells discovered mediate the primary non-image visual activities with the vision system. The functioning of these cells aids in various significant processes including the regulation of the papillary reflex activity in response to light, as well as, the circadian photo entrainment. These cells, called the intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion

This is called acute adrenal failure or an Addisonian crisis. It can be fatal if it isn't cared for. The indications may include: Pain in the abdomen, lower back or legs Severe vomiting and diarrhea Dehydration Low blood pressure Loss of consciousness (Addison's disease, 2010). Secondary adrenal deficiency takes place when the pituitary gland fails to manufacture adequate adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), a hormone that rouses the adrenal glands to produce cortisol. If ACTH production is too

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) PET represents a new step forward in the way scientists and doctors look at the brain and how it functions. An X-ray or a CT scan shows only structural details within the brain. The PET scanner gives us a picture of the brain at work. - What is PET? The epigraph above is reflective of the enthusiasm being generated among clinicians concerning the advent of positron emission tomography