Your brain is more than a bag of chemicals - David Anderson
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- TED Talk
Let’s Begin…
Modern psychiatric drugs treat the chemistry of the whole brain, but
neurobiologist David Anderson believes in a more nuanced view of how the
brain functions. He illuminates new research that could lead to
targeted psychiatric medications -- that work better and avoid side
effects. How's he doing it? For a start, by making a bunch of fruit
flies angry. (Filmed at TEDxCaltech.)
Additional Resources for you to Explore
How does my brain work? In this TED Playlist, the mysteries of the brain are explained by researchers at the edge of science.All kinds of minds asks the provocative question: What can the world learn from different kinds of minds? David Anderson describes the paradoxical effect of stimulants, like cocaine or Ritalin, on certain types of hyperactivity. Research into the so-called "Ritalin Paradox" at the molecular and cellular level has led to important new insights.At TEDxCaltech, Thomas R. lnsel, M.D., director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), explains that we need to stop thinking about “mental disorders” and start
understanding them as “brain disorders" in his Talk "Toward a new understanding of mental illness."7 TED Talks about fruit flies! And why fruit fly research is no joke.

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