Nanobiology Notes

A new type of mathematics

From TEDxMontreal: http://tedxtalks.ted.com/video/TEDxMontreal-David-Dalrymple-A More... John von Neumann: The Computer and the Brain Nature article on 2-photon microscopy: Visualizing hippocampal neurons with in vivo two-photon microscopy using a 1030 nm picosecond pulse (January, 2013 - free online access) by Ryosuke Kawakami, Kazuaki Sawada, Aya Sato, Terumasa Hibi, Yuichi Kozawa, Shunichi Sato, Hiroyuki Yokoyama & Tomomi Nemoto Singularity University: http://singularityu.org/ - David Dalrymple's antidisciplinary, non-institutional science and technology project for digital replication of the functionality (“mind”) of simple nervous systems (“brain”)

Perkinjes and Granules and Schwanns, oh my...

It's tempting to oversimplify things. Like neurons. It would be nice if there were one type of neuron, and all you needed to know about how neurons work could be clearly labelled on a diagram of that one type of neuron. Well, nature LOVES to specialize. So, before getting deeper into how neurons work, I thought it would be good to take a step back and get some vocabulary in place... The Basics From University of Washington's 'Neuroscience for kids': Neurons come in many different shapes and sizes. Some of the smallest neurons have cell bodies that are only 4 microns wide. Some of the biggest neurons have cell bodies that are 100 microns wide. Neurons are similar to other cells in the body because: Neurons are surrounded by a cell membrane. Neurons have a nucleus that contains genes. Neurons contain cytoplasm, mitochondria and other "organelles" . Neurons carry out basic cellular processes such as protein synth...

Diffusion Imaging - Mapping the Connectome

From The Human Connectome Project Is a First-of-its-Kind Map of the Brain's Circuitry : Working with $30 million and just half a decade, the Human Connectome Project aims to create a first-of-its-kind map of the brain’s complex circuitry, detailing every connection linking thousands of different regions of the brain. ... The project aims to tap state-of-the-art brain scanning technologies, including diffusion imaging, various MRI methods, and magnetoencephalography to map not just how messages move through the brain, but how various regions work together via networks and networks of networks to achieve the complexity that is the human mind. With map resolutions down to the voxel – small swaths of grey matter containing about one million neurons each – researchers estimate the HCP will generate about one petabyte of data, which will require its own supercomputer to process. All that scanning, data gathering, and analysis should pay off though, HCP researchers say. The end result wil...

Beta Rhythm (Music of the Mind)

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