Mindcare Counselling Blog

In this week's Journal of Neuroscience, Pitt researchers report progress in understanding how drugs act on dopamine-producing neurons; could enable them to create more targeted treatments PITTSBURGH—The classic symptoms of schizophrenia – paranoia, hallucinations, the inability to function socially—can be managed with antipsychotic drugs. But exactly how these drugs work has long been a mystery. Now, researchers at Pitt have discovered that antipsychotic drugs work akin to a Rube Goldberg machine— that is, they suppress something that in turn suppresses the bad effects of schizophrenia, but not the exact cause itself. In a paper published in this week's  Journal of Neuroscience,  they say that pinpointing what's actually causing the problem could lead to better avenues of schizophrenia treatment that more directly and efficiently target the disease. "In the past five years or so, we've really started to understand what may be going wrong with the schizophrenic bra...

The road to a Nobel Prize began for one scientist in elementary school when his father placed a sign on his bedroom door proclaiming him to be a "doctor." For another Nobel laureate, it was a childhood breakfast with the famous scientist (and Nobelist) Linus Pauling. Another noted researcher went against all expectations of her day to pursue science in school, even though she was a woman. Yet another took inspiration from a yellow sweater knitted by his mother. Those are among the experiences that helped launch the careers of scientists from diverse backgrounds who are featured in a new video series launched today by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society. Titled Spellbound: How Kids Became Scientists, its debut coincides with the ACS' 242nd National Meeting & Exposition in Denver and is part of the Society's observance of the  International Year of Chemistry . Rich with high-definition graphics, animations and commentary ...

The Case for Mind-Brain Unity by Jamie Hale on Psych Central | World of Psychology : 'via Blog this' Image Credit :  Lee Takeuchi

Exercise can be as effective as a second medication for as many as half of depressed patients whose condition have not been cured by a single antidepressant medication. UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists involved in the investigation, recently published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, found that both moderate and intense levels of daily exercise can work as well as administering a second antidepressant drug, which is often used when initial medications don't move patients to remission. The type of exercise needed, however, depends on the characteristics of patients, including their gender. These findings are the result of a four-year study conducted by UT Southwestern's psychiatry department in conjunction with the Cooper Institute in Dallas. The National Institute of Mental Health-funded study, begun in 2003, is one of the first controlled investigations in the U.S. to suggest that adding a regular exercise routine, combined with targeted medications, actually ...

Since the early days in the 1940s, computers have routinely been described as “brains” — giant brains or mathematical brains or electronic brains. Scientists and engineers often cringed at the distorting simplification, but the popular label stuck. IBM Dharmendra Modha, an I.B.M. researcher, is the leader of the project to create cognitive computer chips. Wait long enough, it seems, and science catches up with the metaphor. The field of “cognitive computing” is making enough progress that the brain analogy is becoming more apt. I.B.M. researchers are announcing on Thursday two working prototype cognitive computer chips. The chip designs are the result of a three-year project involving I.B.M. and university researchers, supported by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The academic collaborators are at Columbia University, Cornell University, the University of California, Merced and the University of Wisconsin. The results to date have been sufficiently encouraging that Darpa...

Researchers at The University of Nottingham are to investigate whether the therapeutic effects of clay modelling could help disturbed teenagers deal with their feelings of anger, anxiety and depression. Academics are teaming up with professionals in the NHS, Nottingham Contemporary art gallery and local artists for the innovative project that will look at the potential benefits that clay could offer to young people struggling with mental health problems. Dr Gary Winship, of the University's School of Education, part of the project team, said: "With its qualities of cold resistance and suitability for moulding, we believe creative play through clay could be an exciting alternative therapy for young people suffering from a range of mental health vulnerabilities. "Anecdotally, it may offer potential therapeutic effects through the cathartic venting of emotions through banging, squashing, bending or breaking the clay." The £25,000, one-year project will focus on young ...