Beethoven’s Music

Genius, Curiosity, Liver Disease, and Lead

Larry S. Sherman and Dennis Plies

In our book, Every Brain Needs Music: The Neuroscience of Making and Listening to Music, we discuss the contributions of curiosity to creating music. Curiosity is a trait that can be described as “a state of information seeking that can...

May 25, 2023

Q&A: Simon LeVay on Attraction, Love, Sex

Why do we have sex? Why do we fall in love? What attracts us to one another? And how do we compare to other species in the animal kingdom? Researchers have been trying to answer these questions for years, and...

August 3, 2022

Daniel Graham in Conversation with Lindsey Bell About An Internet in Your Head

The metaphor of the brain as a computer has defined the neuroscience field for much of the modern era. Whether we realize it or not, we think of our brains as computers. But as neuroscientists increasingly reevaluate their assumptions about...

March 4, 2022

Stephanie D. Preston in Conversation with Robyn Massey About The Altruistic Urge

From the Good Samaritan to Wesley Autry, who jumped in front of a train to save another, stories of altruism fascinate people for many reasons. We are struck by these self-sacrificing acts, and moved by such heroism. Why do ordinary...

February 14, 2022

Richard Ambron in Conversation with Robyn Massey About The Brain and Pain

For forty years, Richard Ambron directed a neuroscience lab at the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. This experience makes him uniquely qualified to explain not only how pain happens, but also how to think about and...

February 4, 2022

Stephen Ross in Conversation with Robyn Massey on Chimpanzee Memoirs

Chimpanzees fascinate people for many reasons. The apes’ resemblance to humanity, as seen in their use of tools and their complex social lives, can awe us. But what moves someone to dedicate their lives to chimpanzees? In this conversation, Stephen...

January 13, 2021

Talking Alzheimer’s Research with Nonexperts

By Han Yu

Accomplished popular science. Yu delivers an expert account of the groundbreaking research that revealed the genetics and biochemistry of [Alzheimer’s] disease. —Kirkus In today’s featured SFN post, Han Yu introduces us to her forthcoming book, Mind Thief: The Story of...

January 12, 2021

Where Is Neuroscience Heading?

By Ashley Juavinett

“You might not know it yet, but you do want to be a neuroscientist, and this compelling book will show you why and how. A wonderful, entertaining, yet eminently practical guide to joining the quest to solve our deepest, richest...

January 11, 2021

Our Sense of Touch in the Social-Distancing Era

By Sushma Subramanian

“In this addictively readable book, Sushma Subramanian explores our vital human sense of touch in terms of history, science, culture, family and most of all humanity. It’s a story full of insight and surprise, told by a science writer with...