When I asked about how EPA was in Boston this year, I got only one response and that was by Marie Helweg-Larsen -- who may have felt obligated to respond since she's on the EPA board of directors (NOTE: I voted for her). I know that other Tipsters were there, holding sessions and making presentation but since there was no response from them, I assume that EPA really sucked (remember: if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all ;-).
I ask about CNS because one of the bloggers at the Scientific American website provides a summary of several presentation. Of particular interest to me is the report that shows that years of second language study seems to make the learner's brain processing more similar to a native speaker's processing of spoken grammar -- another piece of evidence against the strong form of the critical period hypothesis for language acquisition. See: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2014/04/08/brains-in-boston-weekend-recap-of-cognitive-neuroscience-societys-annual-meeting/ But of more general interest is the opening keynote address by Suzanne Corkin, the researcher who spent so much time studying "HM". Quoting from the blog: |One of the most moving moments of the conference was |in the opening keynote address by MIT neuroscientist |Suzanne Corkin. Corkin spoke about the legacy of H.M., |a patient who underwent a procedure to prevent epileptic |seizures that left him unable to form new memories. Corkin, |who spent decades studying H.M., discussed how he helped |illuminate the distinctions between different memory forms |and where they are located in the brain (to learn more about |H.M., check out the May/June issue of Scientific American |Mind). But Corkin also discussed the man behind the initials, |describing his gentle and remarkably upbeat disposition, |given that he was repeatedly confronting a confusing, |context-free present. Her talk included a poignant and |powerful audio recording of Corkin and H.M. chatting in 1992. |In the excerpt, H.M. professes to "not mind" all of the tests |and studies, saying simply, "I figure what's wrong about me |helps you help others." Sounds nice. I'm sure that someone had to go to this meeting, if for no other reason than to collect more material on debunking neuroscience research. ;-) -Mike Palij New York University [email protected] P.S. No indication if there was a poster reporting a cross-species replication of brain activity in a dead tuna. ;-) --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=36111 or send a blank email to leave-36111-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
