Beyond relief: The neurobiology of MDMA therapy and its implications for mental health

Health / /

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating mental health condition that has long eluded easy treatment solutions due to its common comorbidity with other behavioral health conditions such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. However, a novel approach has emerged in recent years: MDMA-assisted therapy. This revolutionary treatment involves the controlled use of MDMA, […]

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Dead yet conscious: Some CPR survivors recall events during heart failure

Biology, Health / /

How long can the brain function without oxygen from the heart? For a long time, scientists thought that the answer was about 6–10 minutes before the brain undergoes permanent damage. However, recent research reveals that 1 in 5 people who undergo cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and survive can remember events from when they were “dead.”  When

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Catch basin for microplastics: The sedimentary storage of plastics in Narragansett Bay

Environment / /

Within just the top two inches of sediment covering the shorelines and seafloor of Narragansett Bay, over 1,000 tons of microplastics reside. As a relatively new factor in the sedimentary system, plastics have reached the majority of ecosystems on the planet, from the highest mountain peaks to the deepest parts of the oceans. Microplastics vary

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Opinion: A surface-level look into quantum states from a chemistry major fascinated by electrons

Chemistry, Opinion, Physics / /

The electron exists in a state of superposition: They inhabit multiple states simultaneously. For example, an electron can be in one quantum state as well as a different one. This doesn’t mean that it is in both states at once but that it is in a superposition of both states. It is both and none

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Making AI more “human”: A conversation with Northeastern AI professor Lawson Wong

Technology, World / /

What is “intelligence”? Large language models like ChatGPT have showcased an impressive ability to generate human-like responses that appear highly intelligent. The current trend in AI development seems to revolve around creating increasingly larger models, with billions upon billions of parameters, as a path toward achieving general-purpose AI. However, Yann Lecun, chief AI scientist at

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Defeating paralysis: revolutionary brain implant allows woman to speak after 18 years 

Biology, Health, Technology / /

In 2004, a sudden brainstem stroke left the then 30-year-old Ann Johnson completely paralyzed. It took years of physical therapy for her to regain enough muscle control to express emotion on her face and breathe independently, but the muscles controlling her speech remained stagnant. Her daughter, 13 months old at the time of the stroke,

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