Posts tagged Texas
CU RESEARCHERS DEVELOP NEW SOFTWARE TO ADVANCE BRAIN IMAGE RESEARCH
Jun 26th
A University of Colorado Boulder research team has developed a new software program allowing neuroscientists to produce single brain images pulled from hundreds of individual studies, trimming weeks and even months from what can be a tedious, time-consuming research process.
The development of noninvasive neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, spurred a huge amount of scientific research and led to substantial advances in the understanding of the human brain and cognitive function. However, instead of having too little data, researchers are besieged with too much, according to Tal Yarkoni, a postdoctoral fellow in CU-Boulder’s psychology and neuroscience department.
The new software developed by Yarkoni and his colleagues can be programmed to comb scientific literature for published articles relevant to a particular topic, and then to extract all of the brain scan images from those articles. Using a statistical process called “meta-analysis,” researchers are then able to produce a consensus “brain activation image” reflecting hundreds of studies at a time.
“Because the new approach is entirely automated, it can analyze hundreds of different experimental tasks or mental states nearly instantaneously instead of requiring researchers to spend weeks or months conducting just one analysis,” said Yarkoni.
Yarkoni is the lead author on a paper introducing the new approach to analyzing brain imaging data that appears in the June 26 edition of the journal Nature Methods. Russell Poldrack of the University of Texas at Austin, Thomas Nichols of the University of Warwick in England, David Van Essen of Washington University in St. Louis and Tor Wager of CU-Boulder contributed to the paper.
Brain scanning techniques such as fMRI have revolutionized scientists’ understanding of the human mind by allowing researchers to peer deep into people’s brains as they engage in mental activities as diverse as reciting numbers, making financial decisions or simply daydreaming. But interpreting the results of brain imaging studies is often more difficult, according to Yarkoni.
“There’s often the perception that what we’re doing when we scan someone’s brain is literally seeing their thoughts and feelings in action, but it’s actually much more complicated,” Yarkoni said. “The colorful images we see are really just estimates, because each study gives us a somewhat different picture. It’s only by combining the results of many different studies that we get a really clear picture of what’s going on.”
The ability to look at many different mental states simultaneously allows researchers to ask interesting new questions. For instance, researchers can pick out a specific brain region they’re interested in and determine which mental states are most likely to produce activation in that region, he said. Or they can calculate how likely a person is to be performing a particular task given their pattern of brain activity.
In their study, the research team was able to distinguish people who were experiencing physical pain during brain scanning from people who were performing a difficult memory task or viewing emotional pictures with nearly 80 percent accuracy. The team expects performance levels to improve as their software develops, and believes their tools will improve researchers’ ability to decode mental states from brain activity.
“We don’t expect to be able to tell what people are thinking or feeling at a very detailed level,” Yarkoni said. “But we think we’ll be able to distinguish relatively broad mental states from one another. And we’re hopeful that might even eventually extend to mental health disorders, so that these tools will be useful for clinical diagnosis.”
Earth Day Network Aims for Billion Acts of Green
Apr 21st
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-21-02.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 21, 2011 (ENS) – Earth Day Network and
Facebook are collaborating to motivate people to participate in the
Billion Acts of Green campaign with a new application for publicizing
environmental actions. The Facebook app is part of Earth Day Network’s
campaign to reach “a billion….
BP to Pay $1 Billion for Early Gulf Coast Restoration
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-21-03.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 21, 2011 (ENS) – BP has agreed to provide $1
billion toward early restoration projects in the Gulf of Mexico to
address injuries to natural resources caused by latest year’s oil
spill, the largest in U.S. history. …
<http://www.youtube.com/embed/OkQSQvvkW08>
Japan Enforces No-Go Zone Around Crippled Nuclear Plant
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-21-01.html>
TOKYO, Japan, April 21, 2011 (ENS) – The Japanese government will
enforce a no-entry zone within 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) of the
battered Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant from midnight
Thursday, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said today…..
Bolivia Celebrates Law Granting Rights to Mother Earth
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-20-01.html>
LA PAZ, Bolivia, April 20, 2011 (ENS) – Bolivia today marked the
International Day of Mother Earth with a ceremony in the Plaza
Murillo, the center of political power. An ancient ritual shared
center stage with speeches in which authorities in this Andean nation
extolled the Law of Mother Earth – the world’s first legislation …
BP Sues Transocean for $40 Billion Over Gulf Oil Spill
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-20-02.html>
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, April 20, 2011 (ENS) – On the first
anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig blowout in the Gulf of
Mexico, BP today filed a $40 billion lawsuit against the rig’s owner,
Transocean…..
UN Chief Charts Five-Step Path to Global Nuclear Safety
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-19-02.html>
KIEV, Ukraine, April 19, 2011 (ENS) – As he prepared to visit
Chernobyl 25 years after the world’s worst nuclear disaster, UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outlined a five-step plan to strengthen
global nuclear safety…..
Entire Gulf of Mexico Reopened to Fishing a Year After BP Spill
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-19-01.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 19, 2011 (ENS) – Federal regulators today
reopened commercial and recreational fishing in all federal waters of
the Gulf of Mexico that were closed to fishing due to the BP Deepwater
Horizon oil spill……
BP Blowout One Year Later: Drilling Safety an Explosive Issue
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-18-02.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 18, 2011 (ENS) – Hundreds of activists
protesting fossil fuels marched to the Department of the Interior’s
headquarters today and swarmed inside, calling for the abolition of
offshore oil drilling, coal mining and tar sands extraction……
Georgia Court Rejects Air Permit for New Coal-Fired Power Plant
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-20-092.html>
ATLANTA, Georgia, April 20, 2011 (ENS) – A Georgia administrative
law court has sided with two citizen groups opposed to the proposed
Longleaf coal-fired power plant in Blakely, Georgia, designed to be
the largest coal plant in the nation…..
Huge Texas Wildfires Scorch 1.5 Million Acres
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-19-091.html>
AUSTIN, Texas, April 19, 2011 (ENS) – A unprecedented wildfire
situation in Texas has set more than 1.5 million acres ablaze, forced
hundreds of people to flee their homes and destroyed hundreds of homes
and buildings…..
U.S. Offers $5 Million to Advance Electric Vehicles
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-19-093.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 19, 2011 (ENS) – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven
Chu Tuesday announced $5 million in new funding for community efforts
to deploy electric vehicle infrastructure and charging stations. ..
Shell Eco-Marathon Winner Gets Over 2,500 Miles Per Gallon
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-19-092.html>
HOUSTON, Texas, April 19, 2011 (ENS) – A prototype car that achieved
an amazing 2,564.8 miles per gallon won first place in the Shell
Eco-marathon 2011 in Houston this past weekend. …
EPA Considers Ban on Dangerous Chemicals in Spray Foam Insulation
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-16-092.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 16, 2011 (ENS) – The U.S. EPA is considering a
ban or restriction on consumer insulation and sealant products
containing a family of chemicals known as diisocyantes….
U.S. Alliance Debunks Myths Surrounding Fuel Efficent Cars
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-16-091.html>
NEW YORK, New York, April 14, 2011 (ENS) – Go60MPG, a new alliance
of American environmental groups, is rallying support to raise
federal fuel efficiency standards for new cars to 60 miles per gallon
by the year 2025…..
Congress Pulls Wolves Off Endangered Species List
<http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2011/2011-04-14-093.html>
WASHINGTON, DC, April 14, 2011 (ENS) – Congress today approved a
budget bill that includes a rider removing wolves in Montana, Idaho,
Washington, Oregon and Utah from the federal endangered species list
and sets the stage for near-term delisting in Wyoming. The measure
returns control of wolf management to the states….
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Press Releases From the Environmental Marketplace
Hospitals Around the Country Hold Earth Day Events to
Highlight Importance of “Going Green”
<http://www.world-wire.com/news/1104210001.html>
WASHINGTON, D.C., April 21, 2010 –/WORLD-WIRE/– Hospitals and
other members of the health care sector will be marking Earth Day
2011 with a wide variety of events showcasing their efforts to
develop sustainable operations and reduce their environmental
footprint. From making a rap video to staging water tasting and other
educational games, those engaged in sustainable health care are
finding fun and creative ways to educate their peers and their
communities about their successes in lessening their impact on the
environment.
Toyota Financial Services Celebrates Earth Day and Boys & Girls
Clubs of East Los Angeles with $500,000 Investment and “BE GREEN
DAY” <http://www.world-wire.com/news/1104190001.html>
<http://www.world-wire.com/news/1104190001.html>
American Standard Inspires Solutions in Earth Day Video, ‘Water
Wake-Up Call’ <http://www.world-wire.com/news/1104180001.html>
PISCATAWAY, N.J., April 18, 2011 –/WORLD-WIRE/– – Water usage
and costs affect all Americans and are becoming newsier topics every
day. As Earth Day on April 22 nears, environmental news will get a
special focus.
Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud Retains Power in Scandalous
Malaysian Polls <http://www.world-wire.com/news/1104190002.html>
KUCHING, SARAWAK, MALAYSIA, April 19, 2011, –/WORLD-WIRE/–377,000
votes from a population of 2.4 million have been sufficient to enable
Abdul Taib Mahmud (“Taib”), the controversial Chief Minister of the
Malaysian state of Sarawak, to be returned to office for his seventh
term in power. Despite heavy criticism over graft and abuse of power,
the Taib-led Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition has won the Sarawak state
polls, which were held last Saturday, with a majority of 54.5% of the
votes.
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Boulder, Colo., Leads U.S. Metro Areas in Wellbeing
Mar 21st