Prolonged attention to internet content can lead to repetitive behaviors, overstimulate our brains, and reward us in ways similar to other forms of addiction.

Our capacity for empathy has evolutionary roots. The theory of embodied simulation proposes empathic mirrored responses are triggered by witnessing another’s behavior or emotions.

And other neuroscience news you may have missed in October 2023.

Blood tests for biomarkers of Alzheimer’s could catch the disease earlier and make it easier to diagnose.

Viewing our smartphone screens at night disrupts our brain’s natural processes that allow us to get ready for bed.

Neuroscientists think a cluster of cells in the brain that stimulate appetite could be a target for eating disorder therapies.

Some cells grow to help turn off cells that inhibit movements, effectively allowing us to better fine-tune our movement.

Areas in our brain involved with movement are activated when we hear music, helping us anticipate musical patterns and compelling us to move to the beat.

The health benefits of exercise are well-established. Recent research makes a case for how high-intensity exercise repairs and boosts the brain and may even supercharge the fight against age-related neurodegenerative disease.

Maryann Martone has spent much of her career pushing for neuroscience data to be more open and useful for scientists and, ultimately, anyone interested in neuroscience.