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UCL Neuroscience is a grouping of neuroscience-related research at University College London (UCL). It comprises over 400 senior principal investigators and includes 184 Professors, 34 Fellows of the Royal Society and 51 Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences.[1][2] It is currently ranked second in the world for neuroscience and behaviour by Thomson ISI Essential Science Indicators.[2]

History

In June 2004 a team of researchers from the Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience at UCL published research in Nature describing how the human brain subconsciously remembers the details of past dangers.[3] In December 2004 researchers from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience published research identifying the part of the human brain where unconscious fluid movements are stored.[4] In 2005 Tania Singer and Professor Christopher Donald Frith of the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and the Functional Imaging Laboratory published the results of a study using transcranial magnetic stimulation which showed for the first time the role of sensorimotor components in empathy for pain in other people.[5] In February 2006 a team from UCL led by Dr Leun Otten published research showing that it may be possible to predict how well the human brain will remember something before the event has even taken place.[6]

In April 2006 a team from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience published research showing that individuals with a skill for learning other languages could have more "white brain matter" in a part of the brain which processes sound.[7] In August 2006 a team led by Dr Emrah Duzel of the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience published research showing that exposure to new experiences can boost the memory of the human brain.[8] In January 2007 Professor van der Lely of the UCL Centre for Developmental Language Disorders and Cognitive Neuroscience published details of a 10-minute screening test capable of identifying pre-school children who might be dyslexic.[9]

In June 2008 a team led by Dr Rebeccah Slater of UCL Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology published research showing that infants may be experiencing discomfort when their body movements, blood pressure and facial expressions show them to be pain free.[10] In March 2009 a team led by Professor Eleanor Maguire of UCL published a study showing that it is possible read a person's spatial memories by using a brain scanner to monitor the electrical activity of the brain.[11] In December 2009 Professor Sophie Scott of the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience conducted research into how the human voice works and interacts with the brain as part of BBC Radio 4's Vox Project.[12]

In March 2010 Stephanie Burnett of UCL published a study of attitudes to risk which showed that adolescents are more excited when they have lucky escapes when playing video games than other age groups.[13] In June 2010 academics from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience published research suggesting that humans have a distorted “mental map” of their hands, which stretches them in one direction and squashes them in the other.[14] In September 2010 academics from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Pompeu Fabra University, ICREA and the University of Barcelona published research identifying an area of the human brain which constructs a 'map' of the human body in space using a combination of tactile information from the skin and proprioceptive information about the position of the hands relative to the rest of the body.[15]

Organisation

UCL Neuroscience is organised thematically across a number of faculties at UCL but is principally part of the School of Life and Biomedical Sciences, which is composed of the UCL Faculty of Biomedical Sciences and UCL Faculty of Life Sciences.[16]

Research

University College London

UCL Neuroscience is ranked second in the world (and first in Europe) for neuroscience and behaviour by Thomson ISI Essential Science Indicators, with more than twice as many publications and citations as any other European institution. UCL Neuroscience generates over 30% of the UK’s contribution to the most highly cited publications in neuroscience, more than twice as much as any other university.[2] In neuroimaging and clinical neurology, UCL produces 65% and 44% respectively of the UK's contribution to the world's most highly-cited papers.[2] UCL Neuroscience raised over £312 million in research funding over the period 2005 to 2010.[2]

The following neuroscience-related institutes are based at UCL:[16]

Many UCL Neuroscience researchers are also involved in the translational research at the three biomedical research centres at UCL and its associated hospitals:[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Europe gets centre of excellence for neuroscience". Nature. 19 August 2008. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  2. ^ a b c d e "About Us". UCL Neuroscience. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
  3. ^ "Brain has 'early warning system'". BBC News. 12 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  4. ^ "Why only dancers can do a mental pirouette". The Guardian. 22 December 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  5. ^ "The painful side of empathy". Nature. 2005. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  6. ^ "Scientists 'can predict memories'". BBC News. 27 February 2006. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  7. ^ "Polyglots 'have different brains'". BBC News. 6 April 2006. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  8. ^ "New experiences 'improve memory'". BBC News. 2 August 2006. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  9. ^ "Early warning test for dyslexia". BBC News. 22 January 2007. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  10. ^ "Babies feel more pain than doctors realise". The Telegraph. 23 June 2008. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  11. ^ "Scientists able to read people's minds". The Independent. 13 March 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  12. ^ "Why do human voices sound the way they do?". BBC News. 1 December 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  13. ^ "Like all drugs, miaow-miaow should be legal". The Times. 19 March 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  14. ^ "Blundering goalkeepers 'think their hands are wider'". The Times. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  15. ^ "How brains guide hands to swat flies". The Times of India. 15 September 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  16. ^ a b c "Departments and Institutes". UCL Neuroscience. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
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