Neuropsychology

Can We Change?
Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain: How a New Science Reveals Our Extraordinary Potential to Transform Ourselves
by Sharon Begley
Is it really possible to change the structure and function of the brain, and in so doing alter how we think and feel? The answer is a resounding yes. In late 2004, leading Western scientists joined the Dalai Lama at his home in Dharamsala, India

Teenage Brain: A work in progress
by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
New imaging studies are revealing - for the first time - patterns of brain development that extend into the teenage years. Although scientists don't know yet what accounts for the observed changes, they may parallel a pruning process that occurs early

Author Q&A
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
Q: What do you think is the most exciting development in the area of brain research in the past five years? A: There have been so many startling developments in the past five years-the completion of the genome that will really help us to open up the black

The Nuns of Mankato, Regeneration
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
The brain's plasticity not only helps with recovery but may actually play a role in preventing brain disease. For evidence, just visit the School Sisters of Notre Dame nunnery in remote Mankato, Minnesota.

Limits to Plasticity
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
Despite the brain's amazing ability to adapt, there are limits to its flexibility. Age does make it harder to reroute and establish new circuits. Music teachers, chess champions, and star athletes all advise parents to start their disciples young.

Learning To Change
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
The neural pathways that control the basic functions we need to survive-heartbeat, temperature control, breathing-are already connected at birth, but many more pathways are determined by the greatest environmental factor in our lives: learning.

Nature or Nurture
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
Being altogether human, which means in part understanding who and what we are, we are curious about the answer to the question of which force plays a stronger developmental role: genes or environment.

Drugs, Malnutrition, and Stress
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
Though we should all heed the lesson to follow, expectant mothers should take it very seriously. The developing brain in the fetus is extremely sensitive to its environment. Most pregnant women are aware of the dangers they can pose to their unborn babies

Massive Cell Death
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
The human brain has evolved, thanks to natural selection, always in the direction of pushing our genes forward. Different sections of the brain expanded and specialized from the less complex swelling at the end of a nerve cord in primitive vertebrates

Kids' Brains Must Be Different ...
Endangered Minds: Why Children Don't Think And What We Can Do About It
by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.
'Kids' brains must be different these days,' I remarked half jokingly as I graded student essays in the faculty room late one afternoon. 'If I didn't think it was impossible, I would agree with you,' chimed in a colleague who had experienced

Our Anxious Culture: Triggers for Anxiety
Poe's Heart and the Mountain Climber : Exploring the Effect of Anxiety on Our Brains and Our Culture
by Richard M. Restak, M.D.
Unfortunately, our brain isn't very proficient at probability estimation. Take an airplane phobia, for instance. Untold numbers of people suffer from a fear of flying, an anxiety condition that can range from the mildly discomfiting to the totally

Learn as much as possible about how your brain works
Mozart's Brain and the Fighter Pilot : Unleashing Your Brain's Potential
by Richard M. Restak, M.D.
This is the most important factor in getting smart and staying smart. In order to do this, you don't have to become a neurologist or subscribe to scholarly journals on neuroscience (the study of the brain at every operating level ranging from everyday

Introduction
The New Brain: How the Modern Age Is Rewiring Your Mind
by Richard M. Restak, M.D.
We have learned so much about the human brain during the past two decades that it's fair to speak of a revolutionary change in our understanding. The era of the Old Brain is giving way to that of the New Brain.

The Many Faces of Trauma and Recovery
Invisible Heroes: Survivors of Trauma and How They Heal
by Belleruth Naparstek
A wide range of situations can catalyze post-traumatic stress, and there are many avenues-seemingly different, but very much related-to recovery. Here are some personal stories from trauma survivors that provide a sampling of traumatic situations

A Jungle of Neurons
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
The human brain is responsible for the painting of Van Gogh, the creation of democracy, the design of the atomic bomb, psychosis, and the memory of one's first vacation and of the way that hot dog tasted. How does this organ encompass such diversity?

Development, Part 1
A User's Guide to the Brain: Perception, Attention, and the Four Theaters of the Brain
by John J. Ratey, M.D.
She was doing it again. That young woman who periodically showed up dressed in a Western shirt and kerchief was standing in front of the automatic sliding doors at the Safeway supermarket.