Knowing something about the human brain and how it works is vital for those who engage in the educational ministry of the church. This article reviews several resources providing important information about the brain, including insight as to the ways in which this information connects with teaching and learning practice in the church. Focusing on…

The terrestrial slug "Limax" is able to acquire short-term and long-term memories during aversive odor-taste associative learning. We investigated the effect of the selective serotonergic neurotoxin 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT) on memory. Behavioral studies indicated that 5,7-DHT impaired short-term memory but not long-term memory. HPLC…

Much recent research on mechanisms of learning and memory focuses on the role of heterosynaptic neuromodulatory signaling. Such neuromodulation appears to stabilize Hebbian synaptic changes underlying associative learning, thereby extending memory. Previous comparisons of three related sea-hares (Mollusca, Opisthobranchia) uncovered interspecific…

A good deal is now known about the neural circuitry involved in how conditioned fear can augment a simple reflex (fear-potentiated startle). This involves visual or auditory as well as shock pathways that project via the thalamus and perirhinal or insular cortex to the basolateral amygdala (BLA). The BLA projects to the central (CeA) and medial…

Neurological examination of children includes the screening for soft neurological signs (NSS). There is little knowledge about their evolution during adolescence, except that their lasting presence has been associated with developmental, psychological, and cognitive disorders. We report the results of a NSS exam (assessing gross and fine motor…

Paper examines the underlying mechanisms of three neural network models in an attempt to simplify the diverse details involved in specific neural modelling and simulation. (Author)

Theories explaining the mechanisms of adaptive behavior, pattern recognition, conditioned reflexes and other complex forms of learning and language are presented. (Author/HB)

A report on the simplification of these concepts of "neuron gas" or "netlet" to neural net models. (Author)

Proposed is a neuronal network capable of learning pattern discrimination. (Author)

A discussion of two classes of natural opiate peptides (endorphins and enkephalins) recently found in the brain, and the role they may play in linking emotion and memory. (BB)

The functional architecture of the primary visual cortex has been explored by monitoring the responses of individual brain cells to visual stimuli. A combination of anatomical and physiological techniques reveals groups of functionally related cells, juxtaposed and superimposed, in a sometimes complex, but presumably efficient, structure. (BB)

In an attempt to resolve the question as to whether children with autistic traits have an organic nervous system lesion, auditory nerve and brainstem evoked responses were recorded in a group of 15 children (4 to 12 years old) with autistic traits. (Author)

Nerve circuits are usually analyzed in terms of the axon, the long fiber of the nerve cell. It now appears that there are many circuits involving only the nerve cell's shorter extensions, the dendrites. (Author/BB)

To help educators understand the cognitive and behavioral sequelae of cerebral injury, the neuropathology of traumatic brain injury and the main neuropathological features resulting from trauma-related brain damage are reviewed. A glossary with definitions of 37 neurological terms is appended. (Author/DB)