I am working on a PhD in music theory and cognition. I hate wasting time, but sometimes my brain needs a break from reading/writing/listening/analyzing. Help me create a list of films and documentaries that relate in some way to my field so that I can stare at a screen sometimes and still feel like I'm feeding my unquenchable desire to learn about music and mind. [more inside]
posted by nosila on Nov 1, 2009 - 15 answers

What is the best way to test cognitive function, inexpensively, privately, and repeatably? I'm looking for some semi-objective means of evaluating different tweakings of my head-med cocktail for Adult ADD and Depression. (I am experimenting under the care and guidance of a physician and am reasonably well versed in the pharmaco-kinetics and -dynamics of my meds -- so please note that I'm not soliciting advice concerning the dangers of making one's own medication decisions.)
posted by anonymous on Mar 6, 2009 - 10 answers

I'm working on my PhD in artists' books at the moment. Recently, pursuing aspects of creativity from a cognition-and-creativity viewpoint has become interesting to me. I need a toehold on the science, here. [more inside]
posted by aesop on Mar 3, 2009 - 5 answers

In need of some daily source of random math problems (upto basic calculus) that will reinforce or (if necessary) re-establish some real fundamental concepts in the algebra portions of calculus, unless something else might work. [more inside]
posted by JoeXIII007 on Feb 11, 2009 - 4 answers

Can I learn how to write and think faster? Any tips you'd suggest? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Dec 10, 2008 - 9 answers

What's my brain missing that prevents me from being able to (ever) read music? [more inside]
posted by qsysopr on Oct 26, 2008 - 31 answers

In an image like this, does the alignments of the faces affect the viewers' perceptions or opinions of the people, and if so, does this cognitive bias for or against left or right carry over even to images where the faces are the same (Ie: "I think both people on the left side of either image look more trustworthy.")? Does the alignment of a single subject and addition of negative space also have an affect ("The woman in the second image looks meaner.")? I'm not so much asking for a referendum on these particular examples as I am curious about any empirical studies or statistics relating to this topic. Thanks!
posted by Alvy Ampersand on Sep 27, 2008 - 2 answers

Brain Training Games like Brain Age are a big hit lately -- Do you think they actually improve cognition? [more inside]
posted by phylum sinter on Sep 6, 2008 - 9 answers

I'm about to embark on a PhD in cognitive neuroscience (imaging genetics, to be specific). It's going to be a long 4 years, is keeping a lab notebook going to ease the discomfort? [more inside]
posted by doctor.dan on Apr 28, 2008 - 18 answers

Name-my-major, Hivemind. So I go to an unusual school in that we don't have clear-cut majors, and we basically pick an area of "focus". I'm actually currently (unofficially) studying my own brain, because it's strangely hampered in certain capacities (like the process of reading music, despite being very musical and understanding cognitively exactly what's going on), or performing basic math (despite endless repetition). It's also weirdly bolstered in other regards: I have an unbelievable propensity for forming the visual "distortions" one might associate with hallucinogens. [more inside]
posted by dmaterialized on Mar 13, 2008 - 14 answers

I'd like some advice about preventing "regression" in the ability to speak a foreign language. If I am away from communicating in a foreign language for a few days, it feels like I might have lost it. That's because when I start speaking, I don't feel like I can get into it. [more inside]
posted by gregb1007 on Oct 11, 2007 - 10 answers

How do I get terrible images and memories out of my head? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Mar 28, 2007 - 30 answers

How do I improve my ability to form mental images? [more inside]
posted by philosophistry on Dec 25, 2006 - 16 answers

From the age of 17 until about 30, I was doing alot of 'partying', enough binge drinking and bong tokes to have surely killed a lot of brain cells. Currently I may go out hard like once every two months. I always partied like a rockstar, and have probably 'forgotten' more wild nights than my tamer aquaintances have probably ever experienced. I am not exactly proud of this. And now, after all these years of neurological irresponsibility, I seem to be walking around in a constant cognitive haze. Some days are better than others, but for the most part, I feel like I just woke up, feeling groggy, all day long. A kind of perma-fog. All of my cognitive functions seem to be a little numbed. My question for all the neurologists out there is what is causing this post-hangover fog on my brain, will it ever go away, and what can I do to lift it away. Do I need to get a B12 injection, eat lots of fish, lay off the sauce, or am I simply going to be in this purple haze forever.....
posted by jasondigitized on Oct 3, 2006 - 30 answers

Toddler capabilities. What are 14- to 18-months old capable of doing with regard to physical safety? [more inside]
posted by acoutu on Jul 16, 2006 - 17 answers

What experiments have been carried out where animals perform better than us at particular cognitive tasks? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on May 9, 2006 - 13 answers

What if there was a video game you could play only by moving your eyes across the screen? What sort of game would this be? [more inside]
posted by Laugh_track on Feb 17, 2006 - 28 answers

How does a deaf person, without reading or writing skills, process information? Years ago, I worked with a wonderful man, who was developmentally disabled, knew only a few rudimentary ASL signs, but was able to perform activities of daily living very well. What are your ideas about his thought processes? [more inside]
posted by jsteward on Nov 23, 2005 - 18 answers

Does a person's native language affect their cognitive skills and thinking patterns? [more inside]
posted by kcm on Nov 22, 2005 - 48 answers

Are mental blanks normal? [more inside]
posted by wackybrit on Jul 21, 2005 - 31 answers

Books v Audio Books: What is the unique value of the work of reading? [more inside]
posted by peacay on May 25, 2005 - 23 answers

I want to cultivate some good mental exercising habits. For that, I need some good, diverse sources for puzzles and activities. Specifically, I'm looking for, preferably free, sites with a decent database of verbal, logical, spatial, lateral thinking games. The format can be flexible, so crosswords are included. Also, games that test and hone reflexes and reactions are also welcome. Additionally, ADHDers are also advised to stimulate the cerebellum. Any help on that? Basically, I'd like a list of resources for complete brain workout, that can be performed atleast once every day. Obviously, I'm not looking for one site to include all of the above.
posted by Gyan on Apr 20, 2005 - 25 answers

What makes something Interesting? [more inside]
posted by JZig on Apr 12, 2005 - 8 answers

One of my bright fourth-grade students asked me something she said has been bugging her for a while: "Why don't people have lines? Like in the cartoons?" Not as in lines of dialogue; lines in the drawing, to mark our feature. [more inside]
posted by argybarg on Mar 24, 2005 - 45 answers

In good light, when I look at a blank white sheet of paper the edge of the right looks like RGB colors seperating. Red, then yellow, then the white sheet itself. If I look at the left edge, it appears slightly blue. What is wrong with me?
posted by Keyser Soze on Dec 5, 2004 - 12 answers

What on earth is going on in children's heads?

I have no memory of being a child, and certainly none of what sort of things I thought about when I was a kid. As an adult, I see kids do inexplicable things and wonder just how the heck they thought to say/do such strange things; and I see kids witness/experience things that they have no framework whatsoever for understanding.

What goes on in a kid's brain? Is it noise, is it long ponderings, is it blank, is it confused, etc. Any idea what "it sounds like" inside there? [more inside]
posted by five fresh fish on Dec 1, 2004 - 61 answers

When I perform some everyday tasks, or walk past certain locations, I think the exact same things every time. It isn't just me, is it? Is there a term for these unbidden little standard thoughts, and can I train myself to stop thinking them? [examples inside] [more inside]
posted by jack_mo on Dec 15, 2003 - 13 answers