Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [neurology]

Generally regarded as the center of the nervous system in most living beings.

134 questions
5
votes
0 answers

Does 70% of our brains cells change every day? If yes, how significant is that?

Frederick Travis claims that 70% of our brain cells change every day (for example in this clip and in this talk). Considering that we've got a lot of brain cells, that 70% seems a lot as well. If this is the case, what does that mean? What kind of…
hurdsean
  • 151
  • 2
5
votes
2 answers

Is transcranial Direct Current Stimulation beneficial for a healthy human brain?

I recently ran into a website making some pretty interesting claims about "transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)". The claims are as follows: Overclock your brain using transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to increase the…
raveturned
  • 161
  • 4
4
votes
0 answers

Barbara Arrowsmith–Young's Neuroplasticity exercises

I recently attended a very interesting talk from this woman about how she changed her own brain using exercises that simulated deficient areas. While this was very interesting, especially from the stand point of someone suffering with a learning…
theheadofabroom
  • 149
  • 1
  • 3
4
votes
1 answer

Are consumer brain-wave devices faster than keyboard/mouse?

I've seen advertisements for headsets such as the OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator, and recently there is a NeuroSky MindWave. Are these devices really capable of beating a keyboard and mouse for either high throughput or low latency? Edit: For a simple…
DeadMG
  • 231
  • 1
  • 6
4
votes
0 answers

Does area of the brain associated with the sense of self "shut down" when praying?

Is there any study done on the claim that the area of the brain associated with the sense of self "shuts down" when praying? In the NBC News article "What Happens to Your Brain When You Pray?", Newberg makes the following statement: it was…
Grasper
  • 3,315
  • 2
  • 22
  • 34
4
votes
0 answers

Are our gut microbes responsible for 50-90% of our behaviour-regulating neuro-transmittors?

I have always concidered this channel serious, but they are making very bold claims. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3Ftj5E90tY 50% of our dopamine and 90% of our serotonin is created by microbes in our guts. Is this true and could someone put…
Kristoffer Nolgren
  • 1,100
  • 8
  • 20
4
votes
0 answers

Do we "live" further in the past based on how tall we are?

Vsauce, in this video, You Live In The Past, viewed over 5 million times, claims that when you tap your nose and your toes at the same time, they feel as if they happened at the exact same time (which they did, but it takes longer for the signal to…
J.Todd
  • 649
  • 6
  • 15
4
votes
1 answer

Does birth control decrease gray matter in the brain?

I read once that women who take birth control pills experience decreases in gray matter. The researchers found that certain regions of the cortex were thinner in women who took birth control pills than in women who were not on the pill. Birth…
Lindsay
  • 41
  • 1
4
votes
0 answers

Does our subconscious not understand negation?

Supposedly our subconscious cannot understand negatives. Therefore we should formulate all our goals in a positive way. Instead of writing down "Don't smoke" as a goal we should use "Be smoke free". How much merit is there to this idea? Here are…
Joschua
  • 281
  • 2
  • 10
4
votes
0 answers

Can a "brain-sensing headband" be used to train to be less stressed?

Interaxon claim that their "brain-sensing headband", Muse, together with an iOS or Android app, can provide a user with some feedback that can be used to train the brain to become more calm and less stressed. A brain fitness tool that helps you do…
davitenio
  • 141
  • 2
4
votes
0 answers

Can irregular sleeping hours cause developmental issues for the brain?

It seems to be a common belief (i.e. here) that in order for our brain to rest and grow properly, we need to have regular, maintained sleeping regimes. While there seems to be no doubt that sleeping less than usual, or going to sleep on a very…
josh
  • 141
  • 3
3
votes
1 answer

Does Korean ginseng develop brain efficiency and prolong life?

From Proceeding of the Mini Workshop Southeast Asia Germany Alumni Network (SEAG): "... the Korean ginseng (Panax schinsen) has been well known as a tonic, treatment for Diabetes Mellitus, effective to develop energy, sex ability, to cure eyes…
KMoraz
  • 887
  • 8
  • 14
3
votes
1 answer

Does looking at screens damage your brain?

I found several articles that warn of the dangers of too much computer time, especially for children. Oxford Learning, Jun 2010: Too much computer time can be bad for your brain However, a recent article in the New York Times showed how, thanks…
JamesM
  • 147
  • 3
3
votes
1 answer

Does salt (or sodium) not make you thirsty?

This is from a Toronto MS thesis: High dietary sodium intake is hypothesized to increase food intake (FI), fluid intake and glycemic response. Two short-term randomized repeated-measures studies measured the effects of acute sodium intake on FI,…
Fizz
  • 57,051
  • 18
  • 175
  • 291
3
votes
0 answers

Does stimulating the hypothalamus signal brain to store less body fat?

I come across another Indiegogo project that promises a weight loss just by carrying their device on the head. This device stimulates nerves behind the ear. They claim that these nerves send a signal to the hypothalamus, part of the brain that…
Grasper
  • 3,315
  • 2
  • 22
  • 34
1 2 3
…
8 9