Window to the soul (or at least the brain)

The media has been awash lately in stories about brain imaging, from Slate to the Baltimore Sun to the New York Times Magazine. Broadly speaking, brain imaging allows scientists to see what parts of the brain are active when a person performs a specific task, such as reading or problem-solving. Brain imaging offers tremendous insights into the physiological origins of human thought and decision-making, and it is a powerful tool for studying brain disorders such as autism and dyslexia. Carnegie Mellon, of course, is making excellent use of this technology, and you can learn more here and here. (You may also have heard about this study, which made news recently.)

Jonathan Potts