McGovern Institute

How the brain keeps time

Study reveals neuron-firing patterns that underlie time measurement.

October 8, 2015

Researchers have found that neuron firing patterns in the inferior temporal (IT) cortex, highlighted here, correlate strongly with success in object-recognition tasks.

How the brain recognizes objects

Neuroscientists find evidence that the brain’s inferotemporal cortex can identify objects.

October 5, 2015

Flickr users tagged a photograph similar to this one
“architecture," “tourism," and "travel.” A machine-learning system that
used a novel training strategy developed at MIT proposed “sky," “roof,”
and “building”; when it used a conventional training strategy, it came up
with “art," “sky,” and "beach.”

More-flexible machine learning

Giving machine-learning systems “partial credit” during training improves image classification.

October 1, 2015

CRISPR systems are found in many different bacterial species, and have evolved to protect host cells against infection by viruses.

New system for human genome editing has potential to increase power and precision of DNA engineering

CRISPR-Cpf1 offers simpler approach to editing DNA; technology could disrupt scientific and commercial landscape.

September 25, 2015

This illustration shows a brain with the amygdala highlighted in the center. In the background are models of the serotonin molecule.

Possible new weapon against PTSD

Blocking a newly identified memory pathway could prevent the disorder.

August 31, 2015

Young brains can take on new functions

Visual cortex of blind children can be remodeled to process language.

August 27, 2015

Wired for habit

Researchers discover neurons in the brain that weigh costs and benefits to drive formation of habits.

August 19, 2015

By analyzing brain regions, researchers can predict clinical responses to cognitive behavioral therapy in patients with social anxiety.

Toward smarter selection of therapy for psychiatric disorders

Researchers find that brain scans can predict the success of treatment for social anxiety disorder.

August 11, 2015

Spit take

A newly discovered feeding behavior in worms could shed light on human heart function.

July 23, 2015

MRIs for a more peaceful world

Neuroscientists and political scientists join together to advance peace and reconciliation.

July 9, 2015

This image illustrates nerve fibers that originate in a part of the prefrontal cortex associated with emotion. The green shows the termination of fibers from a part of the prefrontal cortex in the striatum; the red depicts striosomes; and the yellow shows their overlap. The researchers found that the striatum — particularly the striosomes — may act as a gatekeeper that processes sensory and em...

How we make emotional decisions

Neuroscientists identify a brain circuit that controls decisions that induce high anxiety.

May 28, 2015

Seeking deeper understanding of how the brain works

Edward Boyden develops techniques to study the brain, and how it operates, in finer detail.

May 21, 2015

Seeing gender

MIT neuroscientists pinpoint neurons that help primates tell faces apart.

May 8, 2015

Professor Nancy Kanwisher and lab members celebrate her award.

BCS Professor Nancy Kanwisher wins outstanding postdoc mentor award

April 17, 2015

Study links brain anatomy, academic achievement, and family income

In middle-schoolers, neuroscientists find differences in brain structures where knowledge is stored.