Perception News

May 23, 2026

Top Headlines

Scientists Warn That Current Vitamin B12 Guidelines May Be Putting Your Brain at Risk

May 22, 2026 Getting enough vitamin B12 to meet current health guidelines may not actually be enough to protect the aging brain. Researchers at UC San Francisco found that older adults with “normal” but lower ...

Scientists Discover Why Alzheimer’s Risk Hits Women so Much Harder

May 20, 2026 Women may be especially sensitive to the effects of common dementia risk factors, according to a new UC San Diego study of over 17,000 adults. Researchers say tailoring prevention strategies specifically for women could be key to reducing ...

Scientists Reveal How Seven Days of Fasting Transforms the Human Body

May 17, 2026 Scientists have discovered that the human body undergoes a dramatic internal transformation during extended fasting, with major changes appearing only after about three days without food. In a seven-day water-only fasting study, researchers tracked ...

Scientists Reversed Memory Loss by Recharging the Brain’s Tiny Engines

May 16, 2026 Researchers have shown for the first time that malfunctioning mitochondria — the cell’s energy generators — may directly cause cognitive decline in neurodegenerative diseases. By creating a new tool that temporarily boosts mitochondrial ...

Scientists Find Hidden Brain Nutrient Deficit That May Fuel Anxiety

May 16, 2026 A major analysis of brain scans found that people with anxiety disorders have noticeably lower levels of choline, a nutrient crucial for healthy brain function. The strongest evidence appeared in the prefrontal cortex, the region tied to emotional ...

Scientists Say Just 30 Minutes of Exercise a Week Could Transform Your Health

May 15, 2026 You may not need hours at the gym to boost your health after all. Researchers say just 30 minutes of high-intensity exercise per week — broken into tiny bursts of effort that leave you out of ...

Is Cannabis Safe After 65? Stanford Experts Reveal 5 Risks Older Adults Should Know

May 15, 2026 Cannabis use among older adults is rising fast, but today’s marijuana is far more potent than many people realize — and experts warn the risks may be underestimated. Stanford Medicine specialists ...

The Brain’s “Feel Good” Chemical May Be Secretly Fueling Tinnitus

May 15, 2026 Scientists have uncovered evidence that serotonin — the same brain chemical boosted by many antidepressants — may actually worsen tinnitus. Using advanced light-based brain stimulation in mice, researchers identified a serotonin-driven circuit ...

This Daily Habit Could Lower Dementia Risk by 35%, Scientists Say

May 13, 2026 A huge long-term study found that drinking two to three cups of coffee a day was linked to a much lower risk of dementia, especially before age 75. Researchers say caffeine may help keep brain cells active while reducing inflammation and harmful ...

Your “Um” and Pauses Could Reveal Early Dementia Risk

May 13, 2026 The little pauses, “ums,” and moments when you struggle to find the right word may reveal far more about your brain than anyone realized. Researchers discovered that everyday speech patterns are closely tied to executive function — the mental ...

Scientists Discover the Brain’s Hidden “Stop Scratching” Switch

May 10, 2026 Scientists have uncovered a hidden “stop-scratching” signal in the nervous system that tells your brain when enough scratching is enough. The discovery centers on a molecule called TRPV4, which acts like part of an internal braking system for ...

Scientists Say Travel Could Slow Aging and Boost Your Health

May 4, 2026 A new study suggests travel could be a surprisingly powerful anti-aging tool. By viewing tourism through the lens of entropy, researchers found that positive travel experiences may help the body stay balanced and resilient. Activities like exploring ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:39am EDT

The Creepy Feeling in Old Buildings Might Have a Surprising Cause

May 3, 2026 A hidden force may be quietly shaping how you feel—and you’d never even know it. Infrasound, an ultra-low-frequency vibration below the range of human hearing, is everywhere from traffic to old ...

Scientists Found the Brain Doesn’t Start Blank, It Starts Full

May 3, 2026 The brain’s memory center may begin life more like a crowded web than an empty canvas. Researchers discovered that early neural networks in the hippocampus are dense and seemingly random, then ...

Scientists Discover a Hidden Brain “cleaning” Effect Triggered by Movement

May 1, 2026 Scientists have uncovered a surprising link between simple body movement and brain health: every time you tighten your abdominal muscles—even ...

This AI Knew the Answers but Didn’t Understand the Questions

Apr. 30, 2026 For decades, psychologists have debated whether the human mind can be explained by one unified theory or must be broken into separate parts like memory and attention. A recent AI model called Centaur ...

A Hidden Map in Your Nose Could Explain How Smell Works

Apr. 30, 2026 Scientists have finally cracked one of the biggest mysteries in the senses: how smell is organized. By mapping millions of neurons in mice, researchers discovered that smell receptors in the nose ...

MIT Scientists Turn Chaotic Laser Light Into Powerful Brain Imaging Tool

Apr. 28, 2026 Scientists at MIT discovered that chaotic laser light can spontaneously form a highly focused beam instead of scattering—if the conditions are just right. This “pencil beam” enabled them to ...

Your Dreams Aren’t Random. Here’s What’s Really Happening

Apr. 28, 2026 Dreams are more structured than they seem, shaped by both personal traits and real-world experiences. Researchers found that the brain doesn’t just replay daily life—it reshapes it into ...

Scientists May Have Found the Brain’s Switch for Chronic Pain

Apr. 27, 2026 Deep within the brain, scientists have uncovered a hidden “switch” that may decide whether pain fades away—or lingers for months or even years. Researchers found that a small, little-known ...

Fish Oil May Be Hurting Your Brain, New Study Finds

Apr. 26, 2026 Fish oil has long been praised as brain-boosting, but new research suggests the story may be more complicated. Scientists found that in people with repeated mild head injuries, a key omega-3 fatty ...

These 80-Year-Olds Have the Memory of 50-Year-Olds. Scientists Now Know Why

Apr. 23, 2026 A rare group of adults over 80, known as SuperAgers, are rewriting what we thought was possible for the aging brain. With memory abilities comparable to people decades younger, their brains either ...

Artificial Neurons Successfully Communicate With Living Brain Cells

Apr. 18, 2026 Engineers at Northwestern University have taken a striking leap toward merging machines with the human brain by printing artificial neurons that can actually communicate with real ones. These ...

Scientists Map the Brain’s Hidden Wiring Using RNA Barcodes in Major Breakthrough

Apr. 7, 2026 Researchers have developed a cutting-edge technique that uses RNA “barcodes” to map how neurons connect, capturing thousands of links with single-synapse precision. The method transforms brain ...

Scientists Discover Hidden Brain Switch That Tells You to Stop Eating

Apr. 6, 2026 Your brain’s “stop eating” signal may come from an unexpected source. Researchers found that astrocytes—once thought to just support neurons—actually play a key role in controlling ...

The Brain Might Not Create Consciousness After All

Apr. 6, 2026 Is consciousness something the brain produces, or is it woven into the fabric of reality itself? Renowned neuroscientist Christof Koch is challenging long-held scientific assumptions by confronting ...

Your Brain Could Help Solve Autism and Most People Don’t Know It

Apr. 8, 2026 A new survey reveals a striking disconnect in how Americans think about autism research. While nearly everyone agrees that studying the autistic brain is essential, most people are unaware that brain ...

Just a Few Minutes of Effort Could Lower Your Risk of 8 Major Diseases

Mar. 30, 2026 Just a few minutes of getting out of breath each day could dramatically cut your risk of major diseases—including heart disease, dementia, and diabetes. A large study of nearly 100,000 people found ...

Stroke Triggers a Hidden Brain Change That Looks Like Rejuvenation

Mar. 29, 2026 After a stroke, the brain may do something surprisingly hopeful—it can “refresh” parts of itself. Researchers analyzing brain scans from over 500 stroke survivors found that while the damaged ...

Vivid Dreams May Be the Secret to Deeper, More Restful Sleep

Mar. 26, 2026 Vivid dreams might be doing more than just entertaining your mind at night. Researchers found that immersive dreaming can actually make sleep feel deeper and more refreshing, even when brain activity ...

A Gene Mutation May Trap the Brain in the Wrong Reality in Schizophrenia Patients

Apr. 3, 2026 A newly identified gene mutation may help explain why schizophrenia patients struggle to update their understanding of reality. The mutation disrupts a brain circuit involved in flexible ...

Closing Your Eyes to Hear Better Might Be a Big Mistake

Mar. 20, 2026 Many people believe closing their eyes sharpens hearing, but that is not always true. In noisy settings, participants struggled more to hear faint sounds with their eyes closed, while matching ...

Scientists Link Childhood Stress to Lifelong Digestive Issues

Mar. 17, 2026 Early life stress may set the stage for long-term digestive problems by disrupting the gut-brain connection. Studies in both mice and thousands of children found links to symptoms like pain, ...

ADHD Brains Show Sleep-Like Activity Even While Awake

Mar. 17, 2026 Researchers have identified a surprising brain pattern that may help explain why people with ADHD often struggle to stay focused. Even while awake, their brains can slip into brief episodes of ...

Scientists Turn Brain Cells Into Alzheimer’s Plaque Cleaners

Mar. 11, 2026 Scientists have developed a promising new approach to treating Alzheimer’s disease by turning ordinary brain cells into powerful plaque-clearing machines. Instead of requiring frequent antibody ...

Boosting a Key Brain Protein Could Help Treat Rett Syndrome

Mar. 6, 2026 Researchers have discovered a new way to increase a key brain protein damaged in Rett syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that affects thousands of children worldwide. Early studies in mice and ...

Scientists Discover the Brain Protein That Drives Cocaine Relapse

Mar. 6, 2026 Cocaine addiction isn’t simply a failure of willpower — it’s the result of lasting biological changes in the brain. Researchers at Michigan State University discovered that repeated cocaine use ...

This Ancient Sea Creature May Already Have Had a Brain

Mar. 6, 2026 Advanced 3D reconstructions of the comb jelly’s aboral organ reveal a sensory system far more complex than scientists expected. The organ contains a wide variety of specialized cells and is closely ...

Your Brain Can Trick You Into Liking Artificial Sweeteners

Apr. 9, 2026 Your brain might be quietly deciding what tastes good before you even take a sip. Researchers found that simply changing what people thought they were drinking—sugar or artificial sweetener—could ...

Alzheimer’s May Begin With a Silent Drop in Brain Blood Flow

Feb. 24, 2026 Subtle changes in brain blood flow and oxygen use are closely linked to hallmark signs of Alzheimer’s, including amyloid plaques and memory-related brain shrinkage. Simple, noninvasive scans may ...

These Overlooked Brain Cells May Control Fear and PTSD

Apr. 4, 2026 Astrocytes, once thought to be mere brain “support cells,” are now revealed to be key players in fear memory. Researchers found they actively help form, recall, and weaken fear responses by ...

Psychedelics May Work by Shutting Down Reality and Unlocking Memory

Feb. 15, 2026 Psychedelics can quiet the brain’s visual input system, pushing it to replace missing details with vivid fragments from memory. Scientists found that slow, rhythmic brain waves help shift ...