New Issue Out Now: BRAIN INVASION

The brain is an amazing thing: it allows to think, feel, create and do lots of other less-glamorous things like breathe and digest your lunch. But what's even more amazing is the system that our body has involved to keep it that way. This issue of the newsletter is all about how things can find their way inside our heads- for better or for worse!

 

https://bit.ly/2LwCVRU

First off, have a look at our primer on the different ways in, intracortical implants to poorly cooked food (page 3), and learn more about the body's first line of defense (page 7-8). We also have a first-hand account of a particularly sneaky invader (page 4), as well as clinical reports of foreign objects turning up where they definitely shouldn't be (page 9)! But it's not all bad news! Recent developments have meant that our senses can be augmented (or even repaired, pages 5 and 10), and optogenetics has "illuminated" a whole new realm of experimental possibilities (page 13-14). Are we ready for blending our brains and technology? We have two stories examining the ways authors play with the idea of cyborgs (pages 11-12), as well as providing some thought-provoking watching material (page 7).
Of course, we also have stories from the here and now on campus. What's the point of publishing negative results (page 19)? Are MSc students treated fairly (page 18)? What is it like to work for a big pharma company (page 16)? And, most importantly: what the heck is going on with those yellow buses all over campus (page 21)?

Happy reading, dear readers! We hope that this issue will stick in your head.

Constance Holman and Claudia Willmes
Editors-in-Chief