Catrina M. Hacker

February 27th, 2024

Penn NeuroKnow. The most remarkable piece of machinery you'll ever encounter is right between your ears. In this post, learn how your brain outcompetes even the most advanced tech.

September 5th, 2023

Penn NeuroKnow. Several myths about the brain are so popular that you might not realize they're false. I break down what these myths claim, where they came from, and whether there's any truth behind them.

August 11, 2023

Brains in Briefs. How does our brain coordinate billions of neurons to keep itself in sync? I summarize work from two NGG students that offers one piece to this puzzle.

June 14, 2023

International Autoimmune Encephalitis Society blog. I break down the differences between intracellular and extracellular antibodies and how that differentiates subtypes of AE associated with one versus the other.

April 18th, 2023

Penn NeuroKnow. Losing your memory can be devastating, but a promising new study is paving the way toward a new approach to treating memory loss.

April 7th, 2023

Brains in Briefs. Our visual system is more than just a camera. Read about how recent NGG grad Dr. Adeeti Aggarwal demonstrated how waves of brain activity in the mouse brain might help make their visual systems more than just cameras.

February 21st, 2023

International Autoimme Encephalitis Society blog. I break down why research progresses at the pace that it does with a specific eye toward research on autoimmune encephalitis.

February 16th, 2023

Review of Models of the Mind by Grace Lindsay.

February 7th, 2023

Penn NeuroKnow. A new study finds links between several viruses and brain diseases. I break down what this study does and doesn't tell you about what to think next time you get the flu.

January 31st, 2023

Penn NeuroKnow. Music is more than just hearing sound; it's also feeling it. Scientists have shown that feeling the bass makes music more enjoyable and causes people to dance more.

November 1st, 2022

Penn NeuroKnow. What we think we see isn't always what's really in front of us. Scientists use optical illusions to demonstrate how our brains use quick tricks to shape how we see the world.

October 12, 2022

Simons Collaboration on the Global Brain news site. Long-term recordings of large populations of neurons reveal neural motifs representing internal states.

September 14th, 2022

International Autoimmune Encephalitis Society blog. Many types of autoimmune encephalitis can result in movement disorders. In this post I break down some of the most common movement disorders and how they help distinguish subtypes of autoimmune encephalitis.

August 23, 2022

Penn NeuroKnow. Just like humans, praying mantids can see in 3D. Studying how their brains accomplish this might help us build machines that can do the same.

June 14, 2022

Penn NeuroKnow. How our brain signals when rewards differ from what we expect.

April 12, 2022

Penn NeuroKnow. Why the relationship between brain size and intelligence is so complicated.

February 1, 2022

Penn NeuroKnow. Recent developments in our understanding of how COVID-19 affects the brain have led scientists to revisit an old idea that Alzheimer's could be virally induced.

November 23, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. Restoring sight to the blind sounds like science fiction, but a recent study puts us one step closer to making this fantasy a reality.

September 28, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. What makes some images easier to remember than others?

September 8, 2021

International Autoimmune Encephalitis Society blog. What is known about the relationship between autoimmune encephalitis and eating disorders?

July 27, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. What is happening differently in our brains when conversations click versus when they don't?

May 25, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. To learn about how we recognize faces, neuroscientists study the most and least skilled face recognizers.

March 23, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. How do we decide when to try something new and when to stick with what we know?

January 26, 2021

Penn NeuroKnow. Big companies like Google and Spotify use what we know about the brain to build a class of models called neural networks that help power many of their services.