With new scanning technology available, scientists hope to be able to learn more about people and how their minds work. Through a study called the Human Connectome Project, scientists hope to be able to scan 1,200 adult brains to learn what gives us our special skills unique to each person. They have 68 at the moment. Each patient has to have their brain scanned for four hours, as well as play games and do things such as math and gambling. They also submit DNA samples for additional information.
The goal of scientists is to see if how your brain is wired relates to special skills that people have such as social skills or music skills. The participants have to take tests to see how you are at such activities.
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The study has been related to the Human Genome project, a project where samples of DNA were decoded by scientists and shared with the scientific world. "We are very optimistic that as the community delves in and begins working on these data sets, they will reveal new insights into the brain circuits of healthy adults," says Prof David Van Essen of Washington University, who is the head of the project.
Another goal that the scientists involved have is learning more about disorders such as Dementia and Alzheimer’s. They say that if they learn more about the brain, they can discover why these diseases happen, and they could slow the rate that they happen.
This study reminds me of what we are learning in biology about DNA. The project has a similar format to the Human Genome project, which we discussed in class. The DNA of the test subjects are also used by scientists to compare between others to see how differences in DNA relate to differences in the brain's functioning. We also learned how scientists use DNA samples to compare different people's DNA in class.
I personally think this is a great advance. If we can find out more how our minds work, we can try to treat or prevent diseases such as Alzheimer’s. We could also learn more about certain disorders and learn about new disorders in the brain, and they they happen.
Article By Pallab Gosch of BBC News
