Our First Anniversary

A year has come and gone since BrainFacts.org launched in May 2012. In that time, visitors have read about everything from cell phones and cancer to brain-based robots. But whether the topic is memory or movement, each article is reviewed by at least three neuroscientists for accuracy, including a member of our editorial board.

To celebrate this milestone, we've put together the most popular articles from each section of the site. Did your favorite article make the list?

Top Articles by Category

About Neuroscience: Illuminating the Brain
The discovery of a protein that gives jellyfish their colorful glow revolutionized scientists' view of the nervous system, allowing them to add color to what had only been seen in black and white.

Brain Basics: The Neuron
Cells within the nervous system, called neurons, communicate with each other in unique ways. The neuron is the basic working unit of the brain.

Sensing, Thinking, and Behaving: Taste and Smell
Although most of us don’t think of it in this way, the related senses of taste and smell help us interpret the chemical world.

Diseases and Disorders: Hard Knocks: The Science of Concussions
Scientists have long known that blows to the head can be dangerous. What happens in the brain when two athletes collide on the field?

Across the Lifespan: Teen Brain Vulnerability Exposed
The changes taking place in the adolescent brain lead to increased vulnerability to drug abuse and may also contribute to the emergence of psychiatric disorders.

In Society: The Truth About Lies: The Science of Deception
Scientists want to understand the changes that take place in the brain when we deceive. What they find could one day have important moral and legal implications.

Neuromyth: You only use 10 percent of your brain
You use all of your brain.

Ask an Expert: How does the brain use food as energy?
Just like other cells in the body, brain cells use a form of sugar called glucose to fuel their activities. This energy comes from the foods we consume daily, and is regularly delivered to brain cells through the blood.

Meet the Researcher: Carla Shatz: Shattering the Glass Ceiling
An award-winning neurobiologist encourages students to ask for advice.

Do you have ideas for new articles you’d like to see? We’d love to hear from you. Send your comments to BrainFacts@sfn.org.

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Image courtesy of C. Geoffrey Lau.