Throughout life the human brain is constantly changing and modifying itself to adapt to the changing demands of the environment. This so-called cognitive plasticity is an inherent characteristic of the brain that essentially reflects one’s ability to learn. Older individuals tend to vary substantially to the degree that they show improvement through cognitive intervention and […]
The two hemispheres of the brain are connected by an extensive bundle of nerve fibers known as the corpus callosum. This enables neural information both to be exchanged and shared between the two halves of the brain, or possibly delegated to a greater extent to one hemisphere more than the other. If the corpus callosum […]
PLOS one; Nygaard, E., Slinning, K., Moe, V. & Walhovd, K.B.
Advanced mental functions rely on large-scale networks of communicating brain cells, and the coordination of information from widespread regions of the brain. It has been proposed that the communication-efficiency of these networks is something that declines as we age, and that this may help to explain phenomena such as slowing reaction times with advanced age, […]
Today LCBC hosted a lunch meeting with Bård Harstad from UiO’s Department of Economics. Bård gave us an insightful and very entertaining lecture entitled “Time-inconsistent preferences in economics and policy”. How do we perceive the costs relative to the benefits of any given situation as a function of time? Are we adept at investing time […]
We were fortunate enough to host a lunch meeting with guest speaker Prof. Ola Didrik Saugstad on the theme of oxygen supplements to newborns following birth asphyxia. Saugstad’s research efforts have been hugely influential in changing perspectives and practice regarding the resuscitation of babies following oxygen starvation at birth. While hospital practice previously favoured supplying newborns with pure oxygen, Saugstad’s research […]
What is it that determines the brain’s potential for flexibility? In a new perspective paper, LCBC examines the case for brain plasticity — the potential for long-lasting change in the way the brain both functions and is structured. Brain plasticity is the mechanism that allows us to learn new skills and information, and to adapt our […]
As a reward for being named as a world-class research group and our founders Anders and Kristine receiving the the Research Prize for 2015, our group jetted off to Barcelona for a long weekend, to engage ourselves in discussions of the overarching theoretical perspectives running through aging and Alzheimer’s research, this time against a sunny beach backdrop. The weekend featured a guest talk from […]