Attention

Recent articles

Abstract diagram of a visual awareness test.

Attention not necessary for visual awareness, large study suggests

People can perceive some visual information even if they do not pay direct attention to it.

By Kristel Tjandra
1 July 2025 | 5 min read

The brain’s quiet conductor: How hidden cells fine-tune arousal

New research published today suggests that the pericoeruleus acts as a kind of micromanager of arousal, selectively inhibiting different subgroups of locus coeruleus neurons depending on the behavioral context.

By Mac Shine
7 May 2025 | 59 min watch
Cognitive neuroscientist Nick Turk-Browne helps an infant into an fMRI machine.

What infant fMRI is revealing about the developing mind

Cognitive neuroscientists have finally clocked how to perform task-based functional MRI experiments in awake babies—long known for their inability to lie still or take direction. Next, they aim to watch cognition take shape and settle a debate about our earliest memories—with one group publishing a big clue today.

By Calli McMurray
20 March 2025 | 12 min read
Drawing by Santiago Ramón y Cajal of a hypothesis for how signals travel through neurons.

‘Sacred objects’ display discredits Golgi and Ramón y Cajal’s rivalry: Q&A with curator Daniel Colón Ramos

A new exhibit that opened last week shows drawings from the influential duo side by side for the first time and recasts them as collaborators. It also reveals lessons for modern scholars.

By Claudia López Lloreda
10 December 2024 | 9 min read

Autism research hits the road

Some scientists are thinking creatively about how to collect data in flexible environments and meet communities where they’re at.

By Giorgia Guglielmi
8 December 2023 | 0 min watch
A young girl sits on the couch biting her thumb.

Children with autism and ADHD often have additional mental health conditions

The dual diagnosis frequently co-occurs with anxiety, depression and developmental and language delays.

By Maaisha Osman
10 February 2023 | 2 min read
Illustration of hybrid objects: part light bulb, part lab vial, some in blue and some in red to signify null and replicated results

Null and Noteworthy: Autism and aging, anorexia overlaps, pregnancy effects

In this edition of Null and Noteworthy, researchers replicate encouraging findings on autism and aging and shoot down a host of potential links between pregnancy complications and having a child with autism.

By Laura Dattaro
10 February 2022 | 5 min read

Myelin loss may explain how autism-linked DNA deletion affects cognition

Deleting a copy of the gene TBX1 depletes the fatty myelin insulation that surrounds neurons and reduces cognitive speed in mice.

By Anna Goshua
8 December 2021 | 3 min read
Illustration shows a cartoon-like simple figure made out of a switchboard, with colorful cables converging on an area deep in the brain.

Brain’s sensory switchboard has complex connections to autism

An atypical thalamus may underlie not only sensory issues in autism but also difficulties with social skills, attention and memory.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
15 November 2021 | 9 min read
Annimation of eye tracking application following the pupil in a man's eye.

Web app tracks pupil size in people, mice

The app relies on artificial intelligence and could help researchers standardize studies of pupil differences in autistic people and in mouse models of autism.

By Rahul Rao
8 October 2021 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Mother mouse and her offspring.

Maternity induces lasting gene-expression changes in mouse brains

The findings add to a small but growing body of research on neurological changes linked to pregnancy, birth and parenting.

By Amber Dance
12 June 2026 | 5 min read
Map of socioeconomic opportunity in the United States next to visualizations of functional connectivity and structure in sensory and motor cortices.

IQ’s link to brain structure, function in children may be a mirage

A child’s socioeconomic status, screen time and amount of sleep all show stronger associations with measures of brain structure and function, according to an imaging study of nearly 12,000 9- to 10-year-olds.

By Natalia Mesa
11 June 2026 | 5 min read
Photo collage of Tempest McDonald.

When autistic kids grow up, Chapter 2: “You need to go to college”

With just a high school equivalency degree and struggling as a single mother, Tempest McDonald is forced to shift her priorities.

By Brady Huggett
11 June 2026 | 28 min listen