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Alcoholism is a multifaceted disease, affecting almost every system in the body, including neurological, physiological/hormonal, and cardiovascular systems. Scientists have known for a long time that alcoholism is partly inherited: based on twin and family studies, 50% of the risk comes from the genes someone receives from their parents.

Making an accurate decision requires one to estimate the certainty of an anticipated outcome, given existing evidence. Currently, it is believed that activity in prefrontal cortical regions like the orbitofrontal cortex reflects the accumulated evidence of all possible outcomes, which then prompts the choice of the option with the most compelling evidence.

Niamh O’Sullivan’s interest in science was kindled at a young age when she noticed the segregation of certain physical characteristics in her extended family. Learning that genetics controlled the segregation of these dominant traits, O’Sullivan entered the science program at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.

In his iconic book, Cosmos, Carl Sagan wrote that the cerebral cortex is where “matter is transformed into consciousness.” This profound function requires approximately 16 billion neurons that are classified according to their morphology, molecular properties, and connectivity.

Growing up in Montana, David Werner fueled his curiosity about the natural world with frequent visits to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks. While majoring in biology and chemistry at Ashland University in Ohio, his interest in neuroscience peaked when he realized that treatment for neurodegenerative and neurophsychiatric disorders is geared toward symptoms rather than the root cause.

It has been a busy year for the team at NeuroScientistNews. Since our launch in early 2014, we’ve covered the most exciting breakthroughs and discoveries in research and clinical neuroscience. In case you missed our most popular stories the first time around, here they are again:.

The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) is holding its 44th annual meeting, Neuroscience 2014, in Washington DC from November 15-19 2014.  A large meeting such as Neuroscience 2014 that attracts more than 30,000 attendees can be a little overwhelming.