Technology

Recent articles

Tic-tac-toe board with pills representing x’s and o’s.

Basic pain research ‘is not working’: Q&A with Steven Prescott and Stéphanie Ratté

Prescott and Ratté critique the clinical relevance of preclinical studies in the field and highlight areas for improvement.

By Sydney Wyatt
18 April 2025 | 7 min read
Close-up of high-resolution fMRI images.

Functional MRI can do more than you think

Recent technological advances provide a range of new and different information about brain physiology. But taking full advantage of these gains depends on collaboration between engineers and neuroscientists.

By Laura Lewis
14 April 2025 | 8 min listen
A cortical neuron glows orange and red.

START method assembles brain’s wiring diagram by cell type

The new technique mapped the interactions of about 50 kinds of inhibitory neurons in the mouse visual cortex in finer detail than previous approaches.

By Holly Barker
31 October 2024 | 5 min read
Research image of a variety of brain atlases.

New ‘decoder’ tool translates functional neuroimaging terms across labs

The compendium of brain-parcellation atlases makes it possible to compare large-scale network data, which often involves different and overlapping network names.

By Holly Barker
23 July 2024 | 4 min read

Robots boost data consistency in rodent studies reliant on mechanical, optogenetic stimulation

Two new devices take experimenter variation out of the equation, the lead investigators say.

By Calli McMurray
15 May 2024 | 0 min watch
A figure walks along a long road with a gene-sequence-like pattern.

How long-read sequencing will transform neuroscience

New technology that delivers much more than a simple DNA sequence could have a major impact on brain research, enabling researchers to study transcript diversity, imprinting and more.

By Tychele Turner
22 November 2023 | 7 min listen

New specs immerse mice in virtual worlds

The tool — called “MouseGoggles” — could provide rodents with an improved virtual experience in the lab, at a lower cost than current techniques.

By Holly Barker
16 October 2023 | 3 min read

Lightweight system captures brain activity while mice jump

A thin “micro-tether” and rotating connector facilitate uninterrupted, hours-long neural population recordings as the animals freely explore their environment.

By Maris Fessenden
26 September 2023 | 3 min read
An illustration of a hand placing letters spelling the word voice on a black board.

Debate unfurls over inclusivity and authenticity in research involving minimally verbal autistic people

Autism researchers can’t agree on how far to go to validate the input they gather from minimally verbal autistic people who use certain communication devices.

By Brendan Borrell
25 September 2023 | 11 min read
Two mice touching.

‘Social touch’ responses in mice gauged with unprecedented control

A new tool could help decipher the brain circuits underlying aversion to social touch, which is common in people with autism.

By Celia Ford
19 September 2023 | 4 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Bag of umbilical cord blood.

Why hype for autism stem cell therapies continues despite dead ends

After numerous tests, there is still no evidence that these experimental treatments help, so now is not the time to expand access to them.

By Paul Knoepfler
22 August 2025 | 6 min read
Research image of cortical maps of somatosensation.

Adult human cortex does not reorganize after amputation

The results from a new longitudinal study contradict classic findings in monkeys but may not warrant a rewriting of the textbooks just yet.

By Angie Voyles Askham
21 August 2025 | 8 min listen
A James Hudspeth.

Remembering A. James Hudspeth, hair cell explorer

Hudspeth, who died 16 August at age 79, devoted his 50-year career to untangling how the ear converts sound into electrical signals.

By Calli McMurray
21 August 2025 | 7 min read

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