MEG

Illustration of hands organizing objects of various shapes and sizes.

Simply making data publicly available isn’t enough. We need to make it easy — that requires community buy-in.

I helped create a standard to make it easy to upload, analyze and compare functional MRI data. An ecosystem of tools has since grown up around it, boosting reproducibility and speeding up research.

By Russell Poldrack
17 January 2024 | 7 min read
Dr. Edgar helps the participant prepare for the magnetoencephalography (MEG) exam.
Spectrum Microphone

Auditory cortex may develop early in autism

A well-studied brain response to sound appears earlier than usual in young children with autism.

By Nora Bradford
16 September 2022 | 3 min read
Child in an MEG machine
Spectrum Microphone

Making neuroimaging accessible for more autistic children

A new protocol aims to help researchers include more autistic people — especially those who are minimally verbal or have intellectual disability — in imaging studies.

By Laura Dattaro
6 April 2021 | 8 min read
Illustration shows an ear balancing on a brain, surrounded by barriers blocking sound waves

Confusion at the crossroads of autism and hearing loss

Hearing difficulties and autism often overlap, exacerbating autism traits and complicating diagnoses.

By Jyoti Madhusoodanan
12 August 2020 | 15 min read

Autistic children’s auditory delays may persist into adulthood

A delay in autistic children’s brain responses to sound may continue into adulthood.

By Laura Dattaro
10 March 2020 | 4 min read
Child in a bike helmet repurposed as a brain scanner, smiles and laughs

Modified bike helmet scans brains of people in motion

A magnetic scanner fitted within an ordinary bicycle helmet may make it easier to visualize autistic children's brains.

By Princess Ojiaku
20 December 2019 | 2 min read
Child in magnetoencephalograph (MEG) scanner

Brains of minimally verbal autistic children respond slowly to sound

Several of the brain’s responses to sound are sluggish in autistic children who speak few or no words, compared with those who are verbal.

By Nicholette Zeliadt
4 May 2019 | 4 min read
Portrait of Dr. Timothy Roberts

In quest for autism biomarkers, this technique has magnetic appeal

To find biological markers of autism, scientists would be wise to measure the brain's electrical activity along with the resulting magnetic fields.

By Timothy Roberts
26 March 2019 | 6 min read
Child in MEG with eeg cap

Autistic children may have to mute own perspective to grasp others’

To understand another person's point of view, children with autism may need to actively suppress their own.

By Bahar Gholipour
6 December 2018 | 5 min read

New tool models source of signals in brain imaging techniques

New open-source software helps scientists pinpoint where electrical signals are produced in the brain.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
5 November 2018 | 3 min read

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Research image of neurons in the fly’s ventral nerve cord.

New connectomes fly beyond the brain

Researchers are mapping the neurons in Drosophila’s ventral nerve cord, where the central nervous system meets the rest of the body.

By Laura Dattaro
26 July 2024 | 7 min read
Illustration of researchers talking to laypeople amidst strands of DNA.

Building an autism research registry: Q&A with Tony Charman

A purpose-built database of participants who have shared genomic and behavioral data could give clinical trials a boost, Charman says.

By Cathleen O’Grady
25 July 2024 | 8 min read

Cerebellar circuit may convert expected pain relief into real thing

The newly identified circuit taps into the brain’s opioid system to provide a top-down form of pain relief.

By Angie Voyles Askham
24 July 2024 | 6 min read