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Cell Biology

How the optics of soap bubbles may help us understand the … – Phys.Org

June 20, 2017 Scientists at the University of St Andrews have developed a new microscopy method that analyses interference patterns to create images of the forces living cells apply as they grow, divide and migrate: shown is the force pattern generated by a human embryonic kidney cell in contact with a probe that is read out by red light. Credit: University of St Andrews

Scientists at the University of St Andrews have developed an advanced new microscopy technique that could revolutionise our understanding of how immune and cancer cells find their way through the body.

Elastic Resonator Interference Stress Microscopy (ERISM) images the extremely weak mechanical forces that living cells apply when they move, divide, and probe their environment.

As described in Nature Cell Biology today (Monday 19 June 2017), ERISM resolves the tiny forces applied by feet-like structures on the surface of human immune cells.

These feet allow immune cells to find the fastest route to a site of infection in the body. Similar structures may be responsible for the invasion of cancer cells into healthy tissue and it is planned to use ERISM in the future to learn more about the mechanisms involved in cancer spreading.

The physical effect giving soap bubbles their rainbow-like appearance is a phenomenon called thin-film interference. It is based on interaction of light reflected on either side of a soap film. The different colours that white light consists of interact with different local thicknesses of the thin film and generate the familiar rainbow patterns. Effectively the colours are an image of the film thickness at each point on the surface of the soap bubble.

A similar effect can be used to determine the forces exerted by cells. Professor Malte Gather of the School of Physics and Astronomy at St Andrews explained: "Our microscope records very high colour resolution images of the light reflected by a thin and soft probe. From these images, we then create a highly accurate map of the thickness of the probe with a mind-blowing precision of one-billionth part of a metre.

"If cells apply forces to the probe, the probe thickness changes locally, thus providing information about the position and magnitude of the applied forces.

"Although researchers have recorded forces applied by cells before, our interference-based approach gives an unprecedented resolution and in addition provides an internal reference that makes our technique extremely robust and relatively easy to use."

This robustness means that measuring cell forces could soon become a tool in clinical diagnostics. For example, doctors may find that the ERISM method can complement existing techniques to assess the invasiveness of cancer. Work to scale up ERISM for use in the clinic is now underway.

Explore further: Researchers use optogenetics and mathematical modelling to identify a central molecule in cell mechanics

More information: Nils M. Kronenberg et al. Long-term imaging of cellular forces with high precision by elastic resonator interference stress microscopy, Nature Cell Biology (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncb3561

All cell types continually generate forces in the human body. An interdisciplinary cooperation of biologists and physicists including Heidelberg researcher Prof. Dr Ulrich Schwarz now succeeded in performing high-resolution ...

Inspired by the structure of moth eyes, researchers at North Carolina State University have developed nanostructures that limit reflection at the interfaces where two thin films meet, suppressing the "thin-film interference" ...

FAU researchers develop method of measuring forces of tumor cells as they migrate through connective tissue.

Buttercup flowers are known for their intense, shiny yellow colour. For over a century, biologists have sought to understand why the buttercup stands out. University of Groningen scientists have now brought together all that ...

An interaction between two proteins enables cancer cells to use the physical forces of healthy cells to start spreading to other parts of the body.

Francis Crick Institute scientists have discovered that immune cells called B cells use mechanical forces to physically pull antigens such as viruses or toxins from the surfaces of other cells.

Antibiotics were the wonder drug of the 20th century, but persistent use and over-prescription have opened the door that has allowed bacteria to evolve resistance. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ...

When you lift weights, carry heavy boxes, or engage in physical activity, the cells in your body stretch and deform to accommodate your movements. But how do your cells recover, or return to their original state, once you ...

At asphalt volcanoes in the Gulf of Mexico that spew oil, gas and tar, mussels and sponges live in symbiosis with bacteria providing them with food.Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology and colleagues ...

When both partners benefit from a relationshipbe they husband and wife or pollinator and flowerthe relationship is known as a mutualism. But sometimes partners do not deliver their side of the bargain while still reaping ...

A user-friendly switch for controlling room temperature, the thermostat is a classic example of the kind of tools engineers build.

Chimpanzees adapt their behaviour to match the group, just as humans do, according to new research led by the University of St Andrews.

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How the optics of soap bubbles may help us understand the ... - Phys.Org

Biochemistry

Mystery science – Gazette

Students from local high schools descended on the Department of Biochemistry recently to try out their scientific and detective skills.

For the first time, the department opened its doors to students from ODonel and Holy Heart for a daylong field trip. It saw them role play as junior crime scene investigation agents tasked with determining if a local fisherman had a freezer full of flounder or near extinct Atlantic Bluefin tuna.

Using a procedure called the Biuret method, students compared the composition of both fish species by measuring protein content.

Our equipment is basically gathering dust over the summer, so this was an opportunity to introduce high school students to biochemistry, let them see the lab and apply some modern techniques to the things theyve been learning in class, said Dr. Mark Berry, head, Department of Biochemistry.

Jamie Parsons is a science teacher at Holy Heart and an alumnus of the biochemistry department; he participated in the field trip with students from his Grade 11 international baccalaureate (IB) biology class.

He says he speaks really highlyof the biochemistry program at Memorial.

This allows my students to get a glimpse of the kind of fun stuff they can learn about and hopefully it will plant the seed that will get them to come to Memorial, said Mr. Parsons. They think away is better, but Ive been telling them Memorial is a great school. Theres a natural tendency to want to go and explore, and I get that. But its also okay to stay here. Many of us who stay here also do well.

Photo: Chris Hammond

Mr. Parsons also says that he and the students cant do everything theyd like to in their labs and that this was a chance to expose some of Holy Hearts top students to Memorial and the biochemistry department in particular.

Dr. Berry is hoping to repeat the field trip in future years with other schools.

Im in preliminary discussions with the biology and chemistry departments to see if we can put together a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Promo Science proposal, he said. Id love to see this expand to a week or two of visits from other school groups, both high school and junior high.

The program was funded by Memorials Quick Start Fund for Public Engagement. It supports small projects that support activities that foster public engagement and collaboration.

Kelly Foss is a communications advisor with the Faculty of Science. She can be reached at kfoss@mun.ca.

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Mystery science - Gazette

Anatomy

Spotted: Millie Bobby Brown Playing Doctor On ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ – Konbini US

The year is 2015. For the past two years Millie Bobby Brown, yet to become a household name, has been discovering the joys of acting.

The third child of a family of four kids, Millie's family emigrated to Orlando, Florida, when the futureactress was four years old.

Kelly and Robert Brown started to notice their daughter's star talent at a young age, deciding to invest everything in taking Millie to auditions around the country.

A worthwhile investment, it was to turn out, as in 2013, Millie Bobby Brown found her first role in Alice in Wonderland spin-off Once Upon a Time.

From there she bagged a regular double role as a brother and sister duo on BBC America'sIntruders.

After makingbrief appearances in NCIS and Modern Family, Millie Bobby Brown touched down atGrey Sloan Memorial Hospital for a spot inGreys Anatomyinwhat wouldturn out to be her last role as an unknown actor.

In the episode "I Feel the Earth Move" of Grey's Anatomy season eleven, the city of Seattle is hit by a serious earthquake which rocks the roots of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. As a result, Maggie and Ethan find themselves stuck in a lift while Meredith takes over a series of tricky operations.

With the emergency services inundated with calls, Owen receives a call directly to the hospital from a panicked young girl called Ruby. Her mother has fallen and is unconscious, prompting Owen to join forces with the police to track the call and come to the girl's aid.

Owen and Amelia team up to help Ruby's mother over the telephone and discover that her airways are blocked.

(Photo: ABC)

Things quickly go from bad to worse when the woman's lips start turning blue. The young girl examines her mother's throat in an attempt to get rid of any obstacles but nothing works.

Finally, the doctors realize that the woman is suffering from a tension pneumothorax and the little girl is forced to pierce her mother's throat to release the trapped air.

While the operation works briefly, the woman loses consciousness again and Owen has to teach Ruby how to perform CPR (to the rhythm of the Bee Gee's "Stayin' Alive", of course).

In the end, the family is finally rescued and helicoptered into the hospital. Of course, Ruby's mother survives and in classic Grey's Anatomy style, Owen and Ruby come together for an emotional reunion.

Following the success of her role as Eleven in the breakout hit Stranger Things, Millie Bobby Brown is in for a seriously busy year. Along with her young colleagues from the Netflix original show, she's been reeling off appearances on talk shows and panels like nobody's business.

Everywhere she lands, she seems to unveil a new talent from singing at the Emmysto rapping with Jimmy Fallon. She's also been picked to face a Calvin Klein line and collaborated with Converse. The most impressive part of it all: she's still only 13 years old.

With filming of Stranger Things season two done and dusted, Millie is ready to break the world of Hollywood blockbusters, starting withGodzilla: Kings of the Monstersset for a 2019 release.

Ready to hit Netflix on October 31, here's hoping Stranger Things manages to avoid Netflix's recent cancellation spree and live on for another few seasons.

Read More ->Why 'Flaritza' was the most powerful ship of OITNB season 5

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Spotted: Millie Bobby Brown Playing Doctor On 'Grey's Anatomy' - Konbini US

Anatomy

State Anatomy Board honors those whose bodies were donated to medical research and education – Carroll County Times

The Anatomy Board of Maryland held a ceremony to honor those who have donated their bodies to support medical knowledge Monday afternoon at Springfield Hospital Center.

Friends and family members of the deceased were invited for a memorial ceremony at the hospital center in Sykesville, which features a dedicated gravesite to those who had their bodies donated to the anatomy board.

Ronn Wade, director of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene State Anatomy Board, said they've held the event for more than 40 years, as both a way to commemorate the sacrifice of those who gave their bodies after death as well as a way to give a chance for a final farewell from their friends and families.

According to Wade, bodies belonging to the Anatomy Board are used in training medical students at schools, trauma training, surgeon training and military medical programs throughout the state.

While many of the bodies come from donors who willingly submit their bodies to the process prior to their deaths, others belong to people who have not been claimed by family members following their deaths.

DYLAN SLAGLE/STAFF PHOTO / Carroll County Times

From left, Joe, Jean and Melina Buttice of Riverdale look on during a flag presentation ceremony during a memorial service for people who have donated their bodies to science held by the Anatomy Board of Maryland at Springfield Hospital Center in Sykesville Monday, June 19, 2017. The Buttices attended the ceremony to remember Joseph Buttice.

From left, Joe, Jean and Melina Buttice of Riverdale look on during a flag presentation ceremony during a memorial service for people who have donated their bodies to science held by the Anatomy Board of Maryland at Springfield Hospital Center in Sykesville Monday, June 19, 2017. The Buttices attended the ceremony to remember Joseph Buttice. (DYLAN SLAGLE/STAFF PHOTO / Carroll County Times)

"If someone dies and no one claims the body, the state basically has a duty and responsibility to provide for a decent and dignified disposition," Wade said. "It has the right, since it's using public funds, to provide for the use of the body to advance the public health interest."

Wade said when he began working for the board 40 years ago, they had between 300 and 400 donors, but now they have more than 75,000.

Adam Puche, Anatomy Board vice chairman, opened the ceremony by talking about how important these donated bodies are to the educational process of medical students as well as their impact on society as a whole.

"Medical donors touch the lives and hearts of their friends and families, but they also touch the lives of medical professionals," Puche said. "And through that contact they have with us, they touch the lives of thousands and thousands of people."

To honor the faiths of the deceased, the Rev. Patrick M. Carrion, director of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Imam Faizul Khan of the Islamic Society of Washington Area, the Rev. Edward Richardson of Springfield State Hospital and Rabbi Ruth Smith, chaplain of the University of Maryland Medical Center each stepped forward to say a prayer for the lost loved ones.

David McCloud attended after the death of his father. He said he was impressed with the service and the emphasis on different faiths stuck out to him.

"It was very comforting. When my father passed, I had to let the state handle the arrangements, and I'm actually very satisfied with what I've seen," McCloud said. "It kind of eased my guilt because I wasn't able to do it myself."

For Joyce Kindle, the ceremony was a way for her to say goodbye to her daughter's father. Kindle said she wasn't aware that his body had been donated to the Anatomy Board until she began to search for where bodies go when not claimed.

"It was nice. We needed closure," Kindle said. "If something like this happens to other people they need closure, and we didn't get that. I was even thinking during the ceremony that I might want to do this."

Outside, Heather Sinclair was joined by about a half-dozen others carrying signs protesting the ceremony.

Sinclair said though she is a supporter of the donation process, she believes the current system does not give enough time or effort to find or contact family members who may have other plans for the deceased. Sinclair said that she supports Nancy's Law, a bill that would allow a friend or relative of a decedent to arrange the final disposition of their unclaimed body beyond the 72-hour limit that is currently in place, at which point the State Anatomy Board takes control of the body. The bill was proposed and quickly died during the 2016 General Assembly.

"We totally support body donation," Sinclair said. "But they call these unclaimed and they're not contacting the families. We just want them to make reasonable and good faith efforts to contact the family and check with the missing person's registry."

jacob.denobel@carrollcountytimes.com

410-857-7890

Twitter.com/Jacob_deNobel

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State Anatomy Board honors those whose bodies were donated to medical research and education - Carroll County Times

Anatomy

Brandel Chamblee and the anatomy of Brooks Koepka’s dominant … – GolfDigest.com

Richard Heathcote

Brooks Koepka poses with the winner's trophy after his victory at the 2017 U.S. Open at Erin Hills. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Golf Channels Brandel Chamblee doesnt just shoot from the lip, as many of his detractors no doubt think he does. Whatever his analysis (or whether you agree or not), thought and research have gone into it.

So, that said, here is his take from the Live From the U.S. Open show on Sunday night on how Brooks Koepka dismantled Erin Hills and the field:

You sit around sometimes at the 19th hole and you play that game, the composite player. What if somebody drove it like Nicklaus, hit their irons like Johnny Miller, had a short game like Seve, putted like Tiger Woods?

More contemporary analysis would be, what if you hit as straight as Jim Furyk and putted like Brandt Snedeker? Well, [Koepka] hit as many fairways this week as Jim Furyk. He putted as well as Brandt Snedeker. In between, he was a man of his own.

RELATED: Brooks Koepka muscles his way into history

You start to look at what he did and you wonder, why hasnt this guy done this all the time, what he did this week versus other weeks? Typically he averages about 50 percent of the fairways. This week he hit 87.5 percent of the fairways. When you consider he was driving the ball about 320 yards, thats mind-blowing enough. Typically he hits 63 percent of the greens. This week 86 percent of the greens. Incidentally, the first person in history to hit over 80 percent of the fairways and 80 percent of the greens.

This is the more important picture: the rough proximity. For whatever reason, hes not good out of the rough. Now thats the reason he hits only 63 percent of the greens. Hes almost the worst on tour out of the rough. But this week, because he was not ever in the rough he could match greens for every fairway he hit.

Yes, you can say the fairways were wide, and they were, but they were also sloped. He was quite a bit better than average and quite a bit better than his average. And time and time again he was amongst, if not the longest in the field. Hes standing up there, hes never done this before, playing for a U.S. Open, this sets him up to do the rest of the work with his iron play.

And there you have it, the anatomy of a dominant performance.

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Brandel Chamblee and the anatomy of Brooks Koepka's dominant ... - GolfDigest.com

Embryology

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority – Wikipedia

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health in the United Kingdom. It is a statutory body that regulates and inspects all clinics in the United Kingdom providing in vitro fertilisation (IVF), artificial insemination and the storage of human eggs, sperm or embryos. It also regulates human embryo research.

After the birth of Louise Brown, the world's first IVF baby, in 1978 there was inevitably some concern about the implications of this new technology. In 1982, the government formed a committee chaired by philosopher Mary Warnock to look into the issues and see what action needed to be taken.

Hundreds of interested individuals and organisations, including doctors, scientists and health organisations to patient and parent organisations and religious groups, gave evidence to the committee.

The final report has been much admired around the world for the depth and delicacy of its consideration of these very controversial and emotive issues.[citation needed]

In the years following the Warnock report,[1] proposals were brought forward by the government in the publication of a white paper Human Fertilisation and Embryology: A Framework for Legislation in 1987. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990[2] was drafted taking the report into account.

The 1990 Act provided for the establishment of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), an executive, non-departmental public body, the first statutory body of its type in the world. The HFEA is the independent regulator for IVF treatment and human embryo research and came into effect on 1 August 1991. The 1990 Act ensured the regulation, through licensing, of:

The Act also requires the HFEA keep a database of every IVF treatment carried out since that date and a database relating to all cycles and use of donated gametes (egg and sperm).

In 2001, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Research Purposes) Regulations 2001/188 extended the purposes for which embryo research could be licensed to include increasing knowledge about the development of embryos, increasing knowledge about serious disease, and enabling any such knowledge to be applied in developing treatments for serious disease.

This allows researchers to carry out embryonic stem cell research and therapeutic cloning providing that an HFEA Licence Committee considers the use of embryos necessary or desirable for one of these purposes of research.

The Human Reproductive Cloning Act 2001 was introduced to explicitly prohibit reproductive cloning in the UK.

In 2004, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (Disclosure of Donor Information) Regulations 2004/1511, enabled donor-conceived children to access the identity of their sperm, egg or embryo donor upon reaching the age of 18.

The Regulations were implemented on 1 April 2005 and any donor who donated sperm, eggs or embryos from that date onwards is, by law, identifiable. Since that date, any person born as a result of donation is entitled to request and receive the donors name and last known address, once they reach the age of 18.

The European Union Tissues and Cells Directives (EUTCD) introduced common safety and quality standards for human tissues and cells across the European Union (EU).

The purpose of the directives was to facilitate a safer and easier exchange of tissues and cells (including human eggs and sperm) between member states and to improve safety standards for European citizens. The EUTCD was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 2 March 2004 and published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 7 April 2004. Member States were obliged to comply with its provisions from 7 April 2006.

In 2005, the House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee published a report on Human Reproductive Technologies and the Law.

This inquiry investigated the legislative framework provided by the 1990 Act and challenges presented by technological advance and recent changes in ethical and societal attitudes".

In light of the Committee's report, and legislative changes that had already been made, the Department of Health undertook a review of the 1990 Act. They then held a public consultation based on their review of the Act, and following this published a White Paper, Review of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, within which Government presented its initial proposals to revise the legislation.

A Joint Committee of both houses scrutinised the Government's recommendations, and provided its views on what ought to be the final form of the Bill to be brought to parliament.

The Bill was finally brought to the House of Lords in November 2007, passing through the House of Commons through Spring and Autumn of 2008, and finally receiving Royal Assent on 13 November 2008. The HFE Act 2008 updates the law to ensure it is fit for purpose in the 21st century. It is divided into three parts:

The main new elements of the Act are:

The current statutory functions of the HFEA, as a regulator under the HFE Acts 1990 and 2008 and other legislation include:

Multiple pregnancy is the single biggest risk to patients and children born as a result of fertility treatment. Women undergoing IVF treatment are twenty times more likely to have a multiple birth than if they conceive naturally.

After carefully considering views from clinics, patients and professional bodies, the HFEA decided to set a maximum multiple birth rate that clinics should not exceed, which will be lowered each year. All clinics will have their own strategy setting out how they will lower the multiple birth rate in their clinic by identifying the patients for whom single embryo transfer is the most appropriate treatment. The HFEA aims to reduce multiple births from IVF treatment to 10% over a period of years.

Former Chairs include Professor Lisa Jardine, Walter Merricks, Shirley Harrison, Lord Richard Harries, Dame Suzi Leather, Baroness Ruth Deech and Colin Campbell.

Other notable former members include Professor Emily Jackson.

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Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority - Wikipedia

Embryology

Should We Adopt Embryos? – HuffPost UK

We are all familiar with the process of adopting children, but what about the idea of adopting embryos? There are a number of embryo adoption agencies in the US and the first, Snowflakes, began its embryo adoption programme twenty years ago. New Zealand also operates a form of embryo adoption. Having just completed a study looking at the experiences of people using Snowflakes, I am interested in asking whether we should follow this lead and have embryo adoption in the UK.

When people have in vitro fertilisation (IVF) for fertility problems, eggs and sperm are fertilised in a petri dish to create embryos and these can be used in their treatment or frozen and stored to use later. Often couples end their fertility treatment with unused embryos in storage, and one option is to donate them to others to start a family. Currently, when a couple in the UK donate their embryo, they usually have no say in who receives it, and there is no contact between the donors and potential recipients.

Embryo adoption is different. In embryo adoption programmes donors can choose who receives their embryo. Donors are given information about potential recipients by the agency, which can include details about their religious beliefs, education, interests and family life. Also, if the donors and recipients are agreeable, they can arrange contact with each other after the child is born. We have done two studies on the experiences of people using Snowflakes embryo adoption agency in the US. We found that the donors felt a sense of responsibility towards their embryos and wanted to make sure they went to a good home. Both donors and recipients thought that being open with their children about their origins was important. There was also a desire to share information about the children and keep in contact with each other, and some donors and recipient couples had met face-to-face. On the whole, the people in our study were happy with the amount and type of contact they had. In cases where the contact did not involve the children, it was seen as a way of keeping the channels open in case the children wanted to make contact with their embryo donors in the future.

In the UK, there are no embryo adoption programmes but legally, there is nothing preventing clinics from starting them. At the moment, if a couple know someone with an embryo to donate, they can ask a clinic if they can use that particular embryo - you can donate to someone you know. Also, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), who regulate fertility treatment in the UK, says that donors can put extra conditions on how they want their eggs, sperm or embryos stored or used, which, theoretically at least, gives the donors some potential say in choosing who gets their embryo.

So should clinics start embryo adoption programmes in the UK?

Embryo adoption has been controversial in the US. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine has argued that applying similar adoption procedures used for existing children to embryos is unwarranted because, in their view, embryos are not people and therefore recipients do not require such detailed vetting procedures. From this perspective, embryo donation should be seen as a medical procedure rather than being seen as a form of child adoption. However, whatever your view of the status of the embryo, it is not unreasonable to allow for the fact that some donors might have an interest in who receives their embryos.

A problem arises, though, if potential donors want to impose discriminatory conditions on who should receive their embryo. For example, saying that they did not want their embryos to go to a lesbian couple. Clinics have to abide by the Equality Act and could not discriminate on certain grounds such as gender and sexuality. How clinics should monitor such choices is a difficult question, but one solution would be to counsel people with embryos to encourage choices that are not illegally discriminating.

Finally, there could be practical difficulties regarding organisational arrangements and the associated costs involved. However, if there was sufficient demand for an embryo adoption programme, such practical difficulties could be overcome.

So should we have embryo adoption in the UK? Without any evidence to suggest embryo adoption is harmful, there is no reason why this should not be offered. In New Zealand such programmes are mandatory, but my view is people should be given a choice. Embryo adoption could operate alongside, rather than replace, existing embryo donation programmes. Embryo adoption could give those who wanted it the opportunity to choose who they donate to and to have contact with them while the child is growing up.

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Should We Adopt Embryos? - HuffPost UK

Neuroscience

Neuroscience: How music meets mind – Nature.com

Adam Ockelford Profile: 2017. ISBN: 9781781256039

Buy this book: US UK Japan

Whether tapping a foot to samba or weeping at a ballad, the human response to music seems almost instinctual. Yet few can articulate how music works. How do strings of sounds trigger emotion, inspire ideas, even define identities?

Cognitive scientists, anthropologists, biologists and musicologists have all taken a crack at that question (see go.nature.com/2sdpcb5), and it is into this line that Adam Ockelford steps. Comparing Notes draws on his experience as a composer, pianist, music researcher and, most notably, a music educator working for decades with children who have visual impairments or are on the autistic spectrum, many with extraordinary musical abilities. Through this prism of the overtly remarkable, Ockelford seeks to shed light on music perception and cognition in all of us. Existing models based on neurotypical children could overlook larger truths about the human capacity to learn and make sense of music he contends.

George Pickow/Three Lions/Getty

How the human brain processes music remains a mystery.

Some of the children described in Comparing Notes might (for a range of reasons) have trouble tying their shoelaces or carrying on a basic conversation. Yet before they hit double digits in age, they can hear a complex composition for the first time and immediately play it on the piano, their fingers flying to the correct notes. This skill, Ockelford reminds us, eludes many adults with whom he studied at London's Royal Academy of Music. Weaving together the strands that let these children perform such stunning feats, Ockelford constructs an argument for rethinking conventional wisdom on music education.

He positions absolute pitch (AP) as central to these abilities to improvise, listen and play. Only 1 in 10,000 neurotypical people in the West have AP the ability to effortlessly, without context, name the note sounded by a violin or a vacuum cleaner (That's an F-sharp!). Among those on the autism spectrum, the number rises to 8%, roughly 1 in 13. For people born blind or who lost their sight early in infancy, it is 45%. AP, Ockelford argues, enables children to sound out and tinker with familiar tunes; that experimentation leads to a deep grasp of musical structure.

Many of the children Ockelford works with were born blind and autistic. For them, the predictability of the keyboard experienced through the lens of AP can trigger obsessive fascination. The US television programme 60 Minutes featured footage of musical savant Rex Lewis-Clack as a toddler: as he falls asleep next to a keyboard, we see his hand drowsily reaching out to play two last notes before he drifts off. Children with this kind of passion can spend hundreds of hours at the keyboard, mapping sound to movement.

An experiment with Derek Paravicini one of Ockelford's most accomplished students, now an adult supports the idea that AP underlies a sense of musical structure rather than being solely responsible for remarkable performances. Ockelford asked Paravicini to play back two versions of the same piece: one flouting the conventional rules of Western harmony, the other following them. Paravicini's performance of the second was much more accurate. This suggests that he relies on intuition about structures typical to Western music, to which he was exposed during some crucial period of brain plasticity.

Ockelford devotes much of Comparing Notes to an entertaining but idiosyncratic romp through music theory and psychology, including his own zygonic theory. This holds that repetition and transformation of musical elements can be perceived as intentional imitation an insight born in improvisation games with his students. Although few would argue with its central tenet, zygonic theory has not gained much traction, partly because its complex notation does not seem to produce insights different from those of simpler tools. In one diagram, an arrow between two identical notes shows that repetition leads to a sense of imitation and derivation surely better conveyed in a sentence. The increasingly intricate diagrams do not seem to communicate more than basic concepts such as transposition (the repetition of a pattern of notes at a different pitch level).

Ockelford also misses opportunities to develop his ideas about how structure and repetition work. In comparing music and language, he refers only once to Aniruddh Patel's influential Music, Language, and the Brain (Oxford University Press, 2008), which explores this terrain. He never mentions Diana Deutsch's speech-to-song illusion, a demonstration of how repetition can transform a spoken phrase into a perceived song (D. Deutsch J. Acoustical Soc. Am. 124, 2471; 2008), or my 2014 On Repeat (Oxford University Press), which takes a psychological approach to understanding how repetition in music 'plays' the mind.

Many examples in Comparing Notes rely on the ability to read music, yet the book elucidates topics (such as the definition of a scale) that most people able to follow the examples would already understand. Thus, the target audience seems hazy. For a fuller understanding of how music works, I recommend consulting an overview from musicology, such as Mark Evan Bonds' Listen to This (Prentice Hall, 2008), and one from psychology, such as Daniel Levitin's This is Your Brain on Music (Dutton Penguin, 2006). Ockelford's perceptive chronicle of his experiences with extraordinary music makers reminds us, however, that this puzzle is one that we need to keep probing.

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Neuroscience: How music meets mind - Nature.com

Neuroscience

Neuroscience Tells Us How to Hack Our Brains for Success – Entrepreneur

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Whats the secret to success? Some would argue that insanely successful peoplepossess traitslike having a vision, showing gratitude, being honest, learning from failureand having a high emotional intelligence.

While these traits definitely play a role, the real secret to success comes down to science,particularly advancements in neuroscience, and how you can condition your brain to achieve your dreams and goals.

The neuroscience of success can get complicated, but its really about how your brain functions in three different areas:reticular activating system (RAS), the release of dopamineand your memory. If youre not a science person, Ill try and make this all as painless as possible.

Related:How to Hack Your Brain Chemicals to Be More Productive

Located at the base of the brain where it connects with the spinal cord, theres one of most important parts of the brain:thereticular activating system.

RAS influences cognition and is basically a filter for the roughly eight million bits of information (subconsciously) flowing through our brain. In other words, it eliminates the white noise. When a message gets past the RAS filter it enters the cerebrum and is then converted into conscious thoughts, emotionsor even both.

As Ruben Gonzalez, author ofThe Courage to Succeed,explains, Even though the cerebrum is the center of thought, it will not respond to a message unless the RAS allows it. The RAS is like Google. There are millions of websites out there, but you filter out the ones you are not interested in simply by typing a keyword.

So, what messages get through? Pretty much just the ones that are currently important to you. For example, if youre focused on preparing for a speaking engagement then your RAS is going to filter in the thoughts that are going to make your presentation a success, such as the tools and resources youll need to deliver a memorable speech.

As Gonzalez adds, This means the more you keep your goals top of mind, the more your subconscious mind will work to reach them. Thats why writing your goals down every day, visualizing your intended outcome and regularly saying affirmations is so important! Doing those things truly does help you to focus your subconscious mind on whats important to you.

Related:The Extraordinary Power ofVisualizingSuccess

While RAS can help you focus on the desired outcome youd like to receive, the release of dopamine is what makes success feel oh-so-good.

As Mark Lukens, founding partner of Method3, wrote recently, When we succeed at something, our brains release chemical rewards, the most important of which is the neurotransmitter dopamine, a chemical best known for the role it plays in addiction and drug use. Dopamine, despite this negative association, is a natural part of how our brains function, producing the sensation of pleasure whenever you taste coffee or chocolate, or when you achieve a big win.

Because of this, it makes sense that dopamine is strongly connected to motivation, driving us to repeat the behaviors that create that rush, even when we arent experiencing it. However, the dopamine response is short-term, but since our brains remember how awesome it was before, we strive to seek it out over and over again.

Thats when dopamine loops enter the picture.After youve experienced repeated success the pleasure you initially had gets smaller and smaller. Think of it this way:After youve already beaten a video game, it just doesnt feel as good the second or third time, right? Thats when you seekbigger rewards, like unlocking trophies, new charactersor swag when completing a level.

Under the right circumstances, this can drive us to seek out ever-greater thrills, adds Lukens. Its why video game players are constantly engaged, its the reason why you check your phone every minute after updating your Facebook status, and its what motivates us in accomplishing bigger and better things.

For instance, if your goal was to acquire three new clients within two weeks, then yournext goal would be to acquire six new clients in one week. Everything else is the same, except the more challenging, and rewarding, task of doubling your stable of clients.As an added perk, this also helps you weed out the work and goals that arent motivating you or your team.

Related:Trigger These 4 Key Brain Chemicals for Happier Workers

Neuroscientists who have studied the way that thebrain retrieves memoriescan also determine success.

Think about that for a second. That time you went mountain biking and had a nasty spill? That was a bad experience that might discourage you from mountain biking again, at least for the foreseeable future. The same is true with starting a business.It failedand now you are more hesitant about taking that risk again.

Scientists, however, found that we can edit those bad memories to remove the negative associations. In fact, this memory therapy is used to treat PTSD sufferers. You can also edit good memories to further propel youtowards success.

To weaken bad memories, bring that memory back and then let it get smaller and dimmer, like youre watching a small black-and-white TV fade out. Once there, insert new details that scramble the memory. For instance, think about the time you bombed while giving a speech or investor pitch. Now just imagine that your audience was dressed in something that made you laugh. Do that five or 10 times and that memory will make you chuckle.

As for strengthening your memories, recall the good memories as bright and loud as possible, like watching a movie in an IMAX theater. Keepadding how that experience made you feel for five or 10 times. You should now feel on-top-of-the-world. Use that to motivate you going forward.

Related:How to Be Grateful When Times Are Tough

The good news is that you can actually rewire your brain to become more successful. In fact,according to neuroscientist Michael Merzenich, it takes just 30 hours of training based on specific neuroscience techniques to improve your memory and cognition, speech patternsand reading comprehension.

I know. That may sound like a lot. But, thats just an hour a day for a month to achieve life-long success. I think thats totally worth it. And, most of this training involves simple daily tasks, like:

John Rampton is an entrepreneur, investor, online marketing guru and startup enthusiast. He is founder of the online invoicing company Due. John is best known as an entrepreneur and connector. He was recently named #3 on Top 50 Online Influ...

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Neuroscience Tells Us How to Hack Our Brains for Success - Entrepreneur

Neuroscience

Noninvasive Deep Brain Stimulation – Has Neuroscience’s Holy … – Discover Magazine (blog)

A high-profile paper in Cell reports on a new brain stimulation method thats got many neuroscientists excited. The new technique,called temporal interference (TI) stimulation, is said to be able to reach structures deep inside the brain, using nothing more than scalp electrodes.

Currently, the only way to stimulate deep brain structures is by implanting electrodes (wires) into the brain which is an expensive and potentially dangerous surgical procedure. TI promises to make deep brain stimulation an everyday, non-invasive tool. But will it really work?

The paper comes fromNir Grossman et al. from the lab of Edward S. Boyden at MIT. Their technique is based around applying two electrical fields to the subjects head. Each field is applied using two scalp electrodes.

It is the interaction between the two fields that creates brain stimulation. Both fields oscillate at slightly different frequencies, for instance 2 kHz and 2.01 kHz. Where these fields overlap, a pattern of interference is created which oscillates with an envelope at a much lower frequency, say 10 Hz. The frequency of the two fields is too high to have any effect on neural activity, but the interference pattern does have an effect.

Crucially, while the electric fields are strongest close to the electrodes, the interference pattern is most intense at a remote point which could be deep in the brain. Heres an overview:

Grossman et al. present a lot of evidence validating the TI concept and showing that it does allow selective, deep-brain stimulation in mouse brains. The most striking data comes from an experiment in which Grossman et al. used TI to stimulate the hippocampus of mice without stimulating the cerebral cortex. This is remarkable because the hippocampus is deep in the brain, and far from the electrodes:

Whats more, TI stimulation is steerable. By varying the strength of the two electrical fields, Grossman et al. were able to move the stimulation zone. This holds out the exciting possibility that neuroscientists could easily stimulate different brain regions, without having to implant an electrode in each one.

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Theres no doubt that this is one of the most exciting neuroscience papers to come along in a long time. Its a clich, but TI really could revolutionize neuroscience, as well as having clinical applications in the treatment of disorders such as Parkinsons disease and more.

But will it work in humans? Grossman et al. imply that it will:

We anticipate that it might rapidly be deployable into human clinical trials, as well as studies of the human brain.

Grossman et al. seem so confident about the human applications of TI, they used a human brain in their graphical abstract (reproduced above) even though only mouse brains appear in the paper.

Theres one obvious snag though: scale. The human brain is much bigger than the mouse brain. When Grossman et al. achieved deep stimulation of the mouse hippocampus, the hippocampus was about 3 millimeters away from the electrodes. In humans, the depth would be about ten times as high.

Presumably, it would be possible to compensate for the increased distances by using stronger electrical fields in humans, but this might create safety issues. Boyden and his group are reportedly working on human studies at the moment.

Another problem with TI could be that the stimulation zone wont have clean edges: brain areas close to the stimulation target may get some degree of stimulation too. This would be undesirable, although its not necessarily a fatal problem, and optimization of the electrode placement could help to sharpen the stimulation zone.

Finally: how new is the idea of TI? Grossman et al. dont cite any previous literature on the method. This lead me to assume, when I read the paper, that the idea of deep stimulation via two interfering electrical fields was a new one.

However, I learned on Twitter that its not a new concept. Interferential Stimulation (IS) was reportedly first proposed by Soviet scientists as early as 1965, and has since become an established tool in electrotherapy, i.e. the use of electrical stimulation on the nerves to treat pain. Heres a 1996 patent (one of many) for an Interferential stimulator for applying localized electrotherapy stimulation.

As far as I can see, Grossman et al. are the first people to use interferential stimulation in the brain, but they didnt originate the technique itself.

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Noninvasive Deep Brain Stimulation - Has Neuroscience's Holy ... - Discover Magazine (blog)