A Little-Known Structure Tells Our Brains What Matters Now
Work with monkeys and mice has shed light on the filtering role of a neglected feature of the mammalian brainAt Scientific American, we learn from a team of neuroscientists, how our brains distinguish important from unimportant sensations. We filter out many more signals than we pay attention to, especially in familiar situations. We notice what has changed — especially if it’s an opportunity or a problem. While the prefrontal cortex is associated with decision-making, it turns out to get some help from a tiny structure in the brain stem, as these researchers discovered: How does the brain accomplish these feats of focus? In recent research at Northwestern University, the University of Chicago and the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, Calif., we have illuminated a new answer to this question. Through several studies, we have discovered that Read More ›