Controlling the Brain With Optogenetics Using Lasers and Magnets To Treat Substance Abuse

Scientists have developed a novel therapy called optogenetics using electromagnetic stimulation and laser light on the brain to treat substance abuse such as cocaine addiction.

Optogenetics is a technique used in behavioral science to control brain activity. This type of technique is called neuromodulation. It is done by stimulating specific individual neurons in the brain using light to elicit a predetermined reaction. What makes optogenetics particularly special is that the technique can alter brain activity of the subject without compromising or directly affecting its behavior.

By employing electromagnetic stimulation instead of lasers, the researchers are confident that it can directly control and even eradicate substance addiction in humans. They are also optimistic that this type of therapy is ready for human clinical trials.

Lab experiments have shown that they through optogenetics, they can turn on and turn off this type of compulsive behavior by using laser light on the prefrontal cortex of lab rats.

Lightning May Induce The Onset of Headaches and Migraine

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati found that lightning may cause the onset of headaches and migraines.

When there is an imbalance of positive and negative charges in the atmosphere, lightning occurs. This occurs when the lower area of a storm cloud becomes negatively charged while objects on the ground become positively charge which causes an imbalance.

The clash of these two charges creates a bolt of electricity that is lightning. This happens to align and balance the atmospheric charges back to normal. The actual process on the formation of lightning is still being investigated.

A lightning bolt may carry as much as one billion volts of electricity. These lightning discharges can create a short burst of electromagnetic waves which creates a magnetic field. There are occasions when objects in the lightning's path becomes permanently magnetized. This effect is known as lightning-induced remanent magnetism, or LIRM.

The science of Bioelectromagnetics which is the study of the interaction between electromagnetic fields and biological entities, are looking into the effects of electromagnetic waves such as LIRM and the human body.