science newsletter: Science News SciGuru.com

Παρασκευή 27 Σεπτεμβρίου 2013

Science News SciGuru.com

Ballet dancers’ brains adapt to stop them getting in a spin
Language gap between rich and poor children begins in infancy, Stanford psychologists find
Can Traumatic Brain Injury Impair a Child's Working Memory?

Ballet dancers’ brains adapt to stop them getting in a spin

Posted: 26 Sep 2013 03:05 PM PDT

Scientists have discovered differences in the brain structure of ballet dancers that may help them avoid feeling dizzy when they perform pirouettes.

The research suggests that years of training can enable dancers to suppress signals from the balance organs in the inner ear.

The findings, published in the journal Cerebral Cortex, could help to improve treatment for patients with chronic dizziness. Around one in four people experience this condition at some time in their lives.

Language gap between rich and poor children begins in infancy, Stanford psychologists find

Posted: 26 Sep 2013 08:43 AM PDT

Fifty years of research has revealed the sad truth that the children of lower-income, less-educated parents typically enter school with poorer language skills than their more privileged counterparts. By some measures, 5-year-old children of lower socioeconomic status score more than two years behind on standardized language development tests by the time they enter school.

Can Traumatic Brain Injury Impair a Child's Working Memory?

Posted: 26 Sep 2013 08:35 AM PDT

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) during childhood can have long-term effects on cognitive and psychosocial functioning, including poor academic achievement. Pediatric TBI can cause significant deficits in working memory, as demonstrated in a study published in Journal of Neurotrauma, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available on the Journal of Neurotrauma website.