Neuroscience | Penn Today

Study explores neurocognitive basis of bias against people who look different

Research from Penn Medicine shows brain responses and attitudes reinforce the “anomalous is bad” stereotype.

Elderly hands sewing with a needle and thread at a table with sewing supplies, a younger pair of hands assists at the side.

How to foster supported decision making for adults with cognitive impairment

Supported decision making helps medical professionals identify what people living with dementia can do, not what they can’t.

young person with beard lights a cigarette

Risk-taking behavior has a signature in the brain, big data shows

While there is no such thing as a single “risk area” of the brain, a study of 12,000 people led by the Wharton School’s Gideon Nave found a connection between genes, lower levels of gray matter, and risky behavior.

Scientists identify the region of the brain associated with risk-taking—and it could explain why some people are more likely to smoke and drink

Gideon Nave of the Wharton School spoke about research he co-authored, which identified areas of the brain linked with risk-taking. “We find that we don’t have only one brain region that is the ‘risk area,’” he said. “There are a lot of regions involved.”

A close of a neuron with green, red, and blue fluorescent labeling

Parkinson's disease pathology is tied to the activity of cell's 'recycling centers'

Genetic variations associated with both increases and reductions in risk of the neurodegenerative disease alter the action of ion channels within cellular organelles called lysosomes, a new Penn study finds.

Wharton School Press launches new virtual Meet the Authors series

Wharton School Press launches new virtual Meet the Authors series. The LinkedIn Live event series will feature leading Wharton faculty and other Wharton School Press authors in lively, fast-moving conversations about their books.

Person running outside in warm weather, wearing a tanktop, running pants, and earbuds.

Self-awareness can drive behavior change, reprogram the brain’s reward system

Most people break New Year’s resolutions within a few weeks. Neuroscientist Vera Ludwig offers six tips to move mindfully through this process, leading to a greater chance for success.

Organoids to rebuild the brain

Penn neuroscientists are developing innovative ways to treat neurological diseases, including implanting neural tissue like a brain organoid to rebuild brain circuitry.

colorful rendering of the brain with dots indicating synapses

Scientists identify brain cells that drive wakefulness and resist general anesthetics

A new study that identifies the neurons that promote wakefulness supports a long-debated hypothesis that the brain’s sleep regulation mechanism also regulates its response to general anesthetics.

A person in a suit and button-down shirt sitting on a stairwell landing, smiling. The intricate white stairwell and a brick wall behind it are to the person's right.

A modified game of ‘chicken’ reveals what happens in the brain during decision-making

Research from the Platt Labs found that in rhesus macaques, two regions of the brain mirror those of similar regions in humans, broadening the understanding of what unfolds, neurologically, when people interact and cooperate.

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