Watching the Brain at Work: MRIs and Beyond

Recommended QUEST Resources

• Discuss the Watching the Brain at Work: MRIs and Beyond story

  Discuss the Watching the Brain at Work: MRIs and Beyond TV story on the KQED QUEST Community Science Blog.

• See additional photos for this story

  What's it like to have a brain scan? See additional photos for this story on flickr.com.

• Alzheimer's: Is the Cure in the Genes?

  By 2050, as our population ages, 15 million Americans will suffer from Alzheimer's disease – triple today's number. Researchers at San Francisco's Gladstone Institutes have found that a gene may hold the key to a cure.

• The Science of Making Decisions

  Have you ever looked at your credit card bill and thought you needed to have your head examined? Stanford University is using complex brain imaging to study how humans make shopping decisions, and are finding that emotions play a large role in everyday purchases.

Additional Links

• The Lucas Center

  The Richard M. Lucas Center for Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Imaging is one of the few centers in the world with major centralized resources devoted to research in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), spectroscopy (MRS) and X-Ray/CT imaging. The Center has pioneered MRI/MRS/X-Ray/CT technology while developing new techniques that benefit patients with stroke, cancer, heart disease, and brain disorders.

• Bob Dougherty's brain research

  Bob Dougherty's current research focus is on the functional organization of the human brain. I use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as well as behavioral measures to study brain organization. I also study children with these techniques in order to understand how the brain develops.