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Doctor writing medical literature in a spooky laboratory with skeleton. — From *The American Domestic Medicine* H. Gates 1817. Baltimore: F. Lucas

Persons interested in reviewing Tacking on the Styx may request one of a limited number of links to an online copy. Reviews at professional sites, Amazon, GoodReads, personal blogs, or likewise are appreciated.

Homecoming

In Chapter 4, the main character, Tom, comes to his parents’ home for the first time since suffering a major seizure event. Despite growing up there, he cannot predict the appearance of any room:

Hiking in Africa

This particular section of Chapter 20 involves Tom hiking through a forest in East Africa in a remote section. He gets hit with a bit of seizure activity and begins to lose not his consciousness but his train of thought:

Plumbing Emotions

Tom discusses his fears of surgery with his girlfriend, pointing out that emotional integrity concerns him greatly. The subsequent section discusses research using epilepsy surgery to discover the centers of emotional recognition in music:

Glossary

Memories could be lost if two key brain regions fail to sync together, study finds March 15, 2023
Learning, remembering something, and recalling memories is supported by multiple separate groups of neurons connected inside and across key regions in the brain. If these neural assemblies fail to sync together at the right time, the memories are lost, a new study has found.
Social isolation triggers astrocyte-mediated deficits in learning and memory February 14, 2023
In animal models, social isolation triggers memory and learning deficits that are mediated by hyperactivity of the most abundant brain cell, the astrocyte. Importantly, inhibiting this hyperactivity reversed the cognitive deficits associated with social deprivation.
Mushrooms magnify memory by boosting nerve growth February 10, 2023
Researchers have discovered the active compound from an edible mushroom that boosts nerve growth and enhances memory.
How the 'construction site' of long term memory gets built in the brain February 6, 2023
The proteins responsible for forming memories in neurons change depending on experience, a hint at how our brains build memory.
Brain 'zips and unzips' information to perform skilled tasks February 6, 2023
The human brain prepares skilled movements such as playing the piano, competing in athletics, or dancing by 'zipping and unzipping' information about the timing and order of movements ahead of the action being performed, a new study reveals.
An action plan to prevent Alzheimer's disease January 31, 2023
Memory loss, behavioural changes, cognitive deficits: Alzheimer's disease leads to a dramatic loss of autonomy for those affected and has a heavy impact on health costs. Its prevention has become a real social challenge. An international task force is setting out guidelines for innovative services to prevent Alzheimer's disease. These will soon be […]
Events serve as 'stepping stones' en route to retrieved memories January 26, 2023
Lost your keys again? You might retrace your steps by scanning your memory using certain event boundaries -- when one event ends (say, walking in the door with your keys) and another begins (checking your phone, turning on the TV).
Our memory for objects might be better than we think January 23, 2023
The next time you're struggling to remember exactly where you left your keys, parked your car or put down your glasses, don't necessarily give up on your memory completely. Previous research has shown that, if people are shown a large number of objects, they are very good at subsequently remembering which objects they have seen.
Why do we remember emotional events better? January 19, 2023
Neuroscientists identified a specific neural mechanism in the human brain that tags information with emotional associations for enhanced memory. The team demonstrated that high-frequency brain waves in the amygdala, a hub for emotional processes, and the hippocampus, a hub for memory processes, are critical to enhancing memory for emotional stimuli. Disrupti […]
'Zone of uncertainty' in the brain influences its ability to form new memories January 12, 2023
Researchers discover how the 'Zona Incerta' communicates with the neocortex.
New research shows dynamics of memory-encoding synapses in the brains of live mice January 12, 2023
A team that has used two-photon imaging technology to show the creation and elimination of synapses between neurons in the brains of live mice.
Glial cells help memory along January 10, 2023
There are two fundamentally different cell types in the brain, neurons and glial cells. The latter, for example, insulate the 'wiring' of nerve cells or guarantee optimal working conditions for them. A new study has now discovered another function in rodents: The results suggest that a certain type of glial cell plays an important role in spatial l […]
Human-approved medication brings back 'lost' memories in mice January 9, 2023
Students sometimes pull an all-nighter to prepare for an exam. However, research has shown that sleep deprivation is bad for your memory. Now, neuroscientists have discovered that what you learn while being sleep deprived is not necessarily lost, it is just difficult to recall. Together with his team, he has found a way to make this 'hidden knowledge […]
Blood pressure drug holds promise for treating PTSD January 5, 2023
There is new evidence that a 50-year-old blood pressure drug could find new purpose as a treatment to mitigate the often life-altering effects of increasingly prevalent PTSD, scientists say.
Holding information in mind may mean storing it among synapses December 29, 2022
Comparing models of working memory with real-world data, researchers found that information resides not in persistent neural activity, but in the pattern of their connections.
How the brain stores remote fear memory December 26, 2022
A remote fear memory is a memory of traumatic events that occurred in the distant past -- a few months to decades ago. A mouse study has now spelled out the fundamental mechanisms by which the brain consolidates remote fear memories. The study demonstrates that remote fear memories formed in the distant past are permanently stored in connections between memo […]
Brain circuit that converts spatial goals to escape actions discovered December 21, 2022
Researchers have revealed a brain mechanism that mice use to instinctively escape to shelter when faced with a threat. This is the first time that neuroscientists have been able to find such a clear link between spatial goals and actions.

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Epilepsy Research News — ScienceDaily

Epilepsia

Mental Health Research News — ScienceDaily

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Epilepsy Research News — ScienceDaily

Epilepsia

Mental Health Research News — ScienceDaily