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Science

Aussie Scientists Discover Brain-Healing Mechanism 21

Posted by timothy from the mother-of-invention dept.
MQBS writes "Researchers at the University of Queensland have discovered a way to make the brain heal itself. The article is a bit light on detail but it looks fairly important (at least to the unknowledgable about advanced neuroscience (like me)). I like the part about incrased memory... anyone care to be a complete GNU/Linux source code concordance ^_^?"
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Aussie Scientists Discover Brain-Healing Mechanism More

Aussie Scientists Discover Brain-Healing Mechanism

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  • Incresed memory (Score:3, Funny)

    by FattMattP ( 86246 ) on Tuesday October 08, 2002 @10:08PM (#4414310) Homepage
    I like the part about incrased memory...
    ...to help remember those hard to spell words. :-)

  • big news (Score:5, Informative)

    by d_i_r_t_y ( 156112 ) on Tuesday October 08, 2002 @10:13PM (#4414341) Homepage Journal
    this is big news folks... isolating a particular type of stem cell is approaching the level of finding a holy grail. while differentiation, the process by which stem cells (which can become theoretically any type of cell) actually become a differentiated cell-type (eg a muscle cell, or an adipocyte, a fat cell) is poorly understood, isolating (and then being able to maintain and grow) a neural stem cell line is a big step (well, it was when i was doing my undergrad circa 5 years ago..).

    go the green and gold.

  • Immediately think of Deep Blue Sea [imdb.com]???

    Otherwise, this is very kewl.

    Lets just hope they don't start doing experiments on genetically altered sharks :)
  • ...that human beings broke the 640Kb memory barrier...

    hopefully, you'll someday be able to pick up 2x256Mb BRIMMs (BRain-Inserted Memory Modules) to increase your small and outdated BRAM (BRAin Memory).

    • The problem with the Human Brain Storage System [TM] isn't really total capacity, but instead the memory addressing system. It doesn't even use a simple system like a linearly numbered addresses, instead it seems to use an sense/input based address system, where an image and a smell (or other inputs) will give you back a memory of your first tricycle. Too bad what you really wanted was the answer to the exam question.

      I also think H.B.S.S. manufacturers have let quality control slip a little bit, as the address systems don't appear to be consistent across similar models. This is especially apparently when "Male" and "Female" type models try to interface and compare stored memory concerning things like whose turn it is to walk the dog.
      • In yet another example of the link between memory access and external stimuli, access to the "proof-reading" memory routines appears to only be accessible after the "clicking the Submit button" stimuli has been provided.

      • CAM (Score:3, Funny)

        by Merlin42 ( 148225 )
        I think the term you are looking for is CAM: Content Adressable Memory.

        It is used commonly to implement things like caches and switches/routers. CAM tends to have scalability issues, as you pointed out. This scalability is usually salved via a hierarchy (cf L1, L2, L3 ... caches). The HBSS currently solves this via an external hierarchy: HBSS -> PDA -> Computer -> Internet -> HyperInteligentSecretAlienOverseers (Ooops that was supposed to be secret .. oh well ;).

        Now the idea of adding another level of heirarchy(in the form of some extra GreyMatter) closer to the existing HBSS would definately improve throughput and decrease latencies (cf cpus w/ on die cache tend to perform better).

  • This is nice, but.. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ballzhey ( 321167 ) on Tuesday October 08, 2002 @10:34PM (#4414447) Homepage
    We really don't need increased memory, we need increased working memory to hold more that 5-10 activation patterns or concepts in our head at a time. Why?
    There is no know limit to the amount of information that the brain can encode in long term memory since the brain is a distributed system (one neuron doesn't correspond to one item, it's only a component in a vector) and since the brain has 10^12 neurons with and avg of 10,000 connection each.
    Adding cells is the trivial solution.
    We could take invitro ones and put them in your head 75+ years ago if we wanted.
    Hooking them up to do something useful would be the problem since everyone's head is already wired differently and we really would not know how to signal the new neurons to form new connections without messing the old connections up.

    By the way, we need to give up the new addage that learning/ encoding new memories should be fast like in the Matrix. Learning is slow on purpose. If you are interested read Kandel and Schwart (2000). It's only 1414 pages.

  • I can think of quite a lot of politicians who could benefit from brain regeneration. (Maybe it's the air in Washington...?)

  • Call Me a Skeptic (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    "The article is a bit light on detail ...."

    A bit light on detail, I suppose, is a nice way saying there is _no_ detail. Stem cell "contamination" in tissue from alternate sources (e.g., blood) is not uncommon, and would suggest that one must show that the cells are indeed neural stem cells and not of another known type. I also find it curious that the linked article is directed to discovery.com, while a peek at the current online issue [nature.com] of Nature Neuroscience doesn't mention this "breakthrough" at all.

  • ... but I'm still waiting for a hangover cure that works.

    What do we have to do to convince people to start concentrating on important medical research?
  • While it may not be possible - at least for a while - to dump a load of new neurones into the brain; to extend working memory or to enhance cognitive processing abilities for instance. It may be easier - again for the moment - to use the new neurones to join silicon chips to regions of the brain. This could be a simpler - if cruder - way around the problem. It would also probably be on a much finer scale than the current generation of cachlear implants, which are relatively clunky and cumbersome.

    It would be nice to think that we could be directly plugged into a phone or a tv or a computer without the (sometimes) inconvenience of our eyes and ears. Or that we could, a la the matrix have information downloaded into our personal cranial RAM available for instant access.

    • I don't know about you guys but I don't want Neo's jack in my neck i much rather have Johnny's a bit less intrusive.

      On the side note I hope that research on repairing the brain continues as cancer and other trumatic illnesses good work guys!!
        • I don't know about you guys but I don't want Neo's jack in my neck i much rather have Johnny's a bit less intrusive.


        Think BlueTooth 2.0 :)

        Why have a jack at all?
  • ...Stuff that Grey Matters?
  • Quothe the thing:
    I like the part about incrased memory... anyone care to be a complete GNU/Linux source code concordance ^_^?"

    Sorry this isn't Microsoft 451 (the number of times windows crashes and burns) Bill isn't driving around setting your OSS on fire.... well not that we're supposed to know about.
    We don't need people walking around with programs in their memories

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