BrainBlog

Again and again and again ... "Pentagon Wants Psychologists to End Ban on Interrogation Role" by James Risen The New York Times 24 January 2016 Read article here [Photo by Anthony Risser, 15 June 2008, Philadelphia]

The new novel from Joyce Carol Oates is about a person with amnesia and his relationship with his clinical scientist. Place this work of fiction adjacent to the non-fiction work about Patient H.M and - voila! - the covers seem to create what could be another story! I will be writing and posting a review of the Joyce Carol Oates novel here next week.

UCL (University College London) is presenting a four-week MOOC on the FutureLearn platform (no cost) titled "The Many Faces of Dementia" . The course begins on 14th March. Course Description Four domains are explored: Familial Alzheimer's Disease, bvFTD, Dementia with Lewy Bodies, and Posterior Cortical Atrophy.

Lumosity to Pay $2 Million to Settle FTC Deceptive Advertising Charges for Its “Brain Training” Program Company Claimed Program Would Sharpen Performance in Everyday Life and Protect Against Cognitive Decline For Release January 5, 2016 FTC Press Release Case Timeline here

Pan-American Health Organisation Webpage PubMed Search Results for "Zika Virus" Search Results ECDC Webpage WHO 21 October 2015 Article Microcephaly - NINDS Microcephaly Information Page Basic Information Webpage ECDC "Rapid Risk Assessment" on risk of microcephaly in Zika virus infection (24 Nov 2015) pdf Paper

A good read from Slate about the movie, "Concussion": Concussion Lies by Daniel Engber Slate 21 December 2015 Concussion Lies (link) Don't mistake drama for truth, fiction for fact, excellent acting for documentary accuracy. And, in the bigger picture, the loudness of an argument for the sound scientific basis of that argument.

Otfried Spreen

Public Workshop - Neurodiagnostics and Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Medical Devices Workshop, November 19-20, 2015 Meeting homepage with links to agenda, background papers, and webcast streams from the meeting. [snip] "The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the following two-day public workshop entitled, “Neurodiagnostics and Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Medical Devices Workshop.” The focus of the first day of the workshop will be cognitive assessment medical devices, which are intended to provide healthcare professionals with an evaluation of cognitive function through non-invasive measurements. The focus of the second day of the workshop will be non-invasive brain stimulation medical devices, which are medical devices that are intended to improve, affect, or otherwise modify the cognitive function of a normal individual (i.e., without a treatment objective) by means of non-invasive electrical or electromagnetic stimulation to the head. The purpose of t...

Dr. Otfried Spreen died, aged 89, on the 29th of November. A colleague, a mentor, a professor for so many of us in neuropsychology. A true gentleman. A true academic. Our profession will miss him and his contributions.

Dr. Kerry Hamsher died on 23rd October, 2015. Dr. Hamsher's commitment to neuropsychology as a science and as a profession was an ever-present one. His was an encyclopedic and sharp mind that could wrap itself around any clinical topic related to the central nervous system and behavior. He was indefatiguable in his pursuit of best practices for the education and post-graduate training of neuropsychologists. He was an essential participant in the work of the Houston Conference and within the American Board of Clinical Neuropsychology (ABCN). His two-year fellowship program at the Neurology Department of the University of Wisconsin Medical School – Milwaukee Clinical Campus during the decade of the 1980s was to become a model of post-graduate training in neuropsychology. A student of Dr. Arthur L. Benton, he was instrumental in the development of the Multilingual Aphasia Examination (MAE), the Facial Recognition Test (FRT), the Judgment of Line Orientation test (JLO), and the...

The first part of a two-part course on the topic, Principles of fMRI , opens at Coursera in October. Addendum: Opening day is Monday, the 12th of October.

The Brain, within its Groove Runs evenly--and true-- But let a Splinter swerve-- 'Twere easier for You-- To put a Current back-- When Floods have slit the Hills-- And scooped a Turnpike for Themselves-- And trodden out the Mills-- -Emily Dickinson In the world of MOOCs, few courses have shown the creativity of purpose and the dedicated following as has the course "Modern and Contemporary American Poetry" by Dr. Al Filreis of the University of Pennsylvania and Director of its wonderful Kelly Writers House. It opens today for its fourth offering Few courses, in real life or online, have such a dedicated teacher as Al. The course, part of Al's regular teaching at Penn in its English Department, has been presented in MOOC form at this time of year in 2012, 2013, and 2014 at Coursera. The ten-week course is back, opening today to thousands of students, myself included (fourth timer). Week after week, this likely remains the largest single collection of ded...

Oliver Sacks.

Earlier today, the Alzheimer's Disease International group released its "World Alzheimer Report 2015" document. It can be found at: Report .

My Katrina blog entry from 03 September 2005: Shame on US The "Fuck Katrina" Mixtape:

Prof. Jean Aicardi .

Friday, the 7th of August 2015, was the day the anti-torture reformers (The "Dissidents") won a victory that was a decade-long in the making. Here is the approved resolution: document here . Now, the devil will be in the details as the ban needs to be encoded and formalized. Stay vigilant. Regardless of whether or not you are a member of the APA (I am not), stay vigilant. But, enjoy and long remember the day when the membership won an important victory. Psychologists Approve Ban on Role in National Security Interrogations James Risen The New York Times 07 August 2015 Read the article here . Other media reports include Democracy Now! coverage and interviews and another excellent BuzzFeed piece. [Photo by Anthony Risser, 15 June 2008, Philadelphia]

This is a "turning point" week for American psychology, with implications that are generational, rather than short-term. These are implications that directly impact the profession and science of psychology and the degree of trust that the public can have in psychology. Will the APA as an entity say "no" to torture, say "no" to its increased militarization, and say "no" to this Obedience-To-Our-Authority approach to membership, especially members who disagree with the entity's 'party line'? Or will it say "yes" to a return to ethics, say "yes" to an embrace of "First, Do No Harm" approach to its services, and say "yes" to an end of its bullying of people who do not agree with them? We still do not know. You can find the "Hoffman Report" here: click here Wednesday was a pre-conference day of workshops and meetings for the APA, including a meeting of its Council of Representatives. ...

Tell the American Psychological Association that torture is wrong, that they need to find a way to become ethical representatives of psychology and psychologists --- or they should just remove themselves from being a body that purports to represent American psychologists and psychology. [Photo by Anthony Risser, 15 June 2008, Philadelphia]