Science News: Our Weekly Picks from Around the Web

Childhood ‘screen time’: Warning over TV and computers
“Parents need to do more to stop children spending too much time watching television or playing computer games, according to a psychologist.”
www.bbc.co.uk (05/21/2012)

Face Your Fears and Scare the Phobia Out of Your Brain
“A single positive exposure to a dreaded thing, like a spider, can reset the fright mechanism, research suggests.”
www.usnews.com (05/21/2012)

Neuroscience Art: Greg Dunn’s Neurons Painted In Japanese Sumi-e Style
“Greg Dunn is a neuroscience PhD student at the University of Pennsylvania and an artist passionate about Japanese minimalist scrolls. While these interests may appear radically incongruous, Dunn’s artwork suggests otherwise. The artist creates dazzling works of enamel, gold leaf and ink inspired by science.”
www.huffingtonpost.com (05/23/2012)

Healthy Brain Connections Keep Us Smart In Old Age
“Maintaining healthy nerve connections among distant brain areas may help keep us smart in old age, according to new research published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry this week.”
www.medicalnewstoday.com (05/23/2012)

Some Fats May Harm the Brain More
“Some studies have linked dietary fat to the development of dementia later in life. A new study suggests that the risk may depend on the type of fat consumed.”
blogs.nytimes.com (05/21/2012)

Brain cells prune circuits in the brain by eating away excess synapses
“We’re born with our brains prewired, but as information comes in from our environment, this circuitry is updated. A study from Boston Children’s Hospital provides a new glimpse of how this happens: Brain cells known as microglia, tuned into the crosstalk between neurons, literally engulf unnecessary connections, known as synapses, and prune them away.”
www.news-medical.net (05/24/2012)

UCSF receives $20M Sandler Foundation gift for neuroscience research and care
“UCSF has received a challenge gift of $20 million from the Sandler Foundation that will provide major support for the university’s groundbreaking research and clinical care efforts regarding neurological diseases.”
www.news-medical.net (05/25/2012)