There are 12 13 differences between the 2 photos. Can you spot them all?

[Click on picture below to jump to higher resolution]

(puzzle created for the Smartkit site)

Anyone recognize which castle this is?

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If the last series problem was too easy for you, here’s another to try.

[To give everyone a chance, will delay displaying comments/answers for a day. Thanks.]

(puzzle created for the Smartkit site)

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Which figure continues the series below?

(puzzle created for the Smartkit site)

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Don’t expect an answer to this puzzle anytime soon….

Just published today on the NASA/JPL website. Kevin Baines, a member of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory team, says:

This is a very strange feature, lying in a precise geometric fashion with six nearly equally straight sides. We’ve never seen anything like this on any other planet. Indeed, Saturn’s thick atmosphere where circularly-shaped waves and convective cells dominate is perhaps the last place you’d expect to see such a six-sided geometric figure, yet there it is.

For the full story, and more pictures, click here.

If you’d like to see another space image that conveys a "high degree of order", click here. For powerful words by Carl Sagan, click here.

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New research out of Northwestern University’s Neuroscience Laboratory drastically changes our understanding of the brain.

The study, to appear in the April issue of Nature Neuroscience reveals that musical training not only alters the wiring of the cortex of the brain but also the brainstem.

Classical neuroscience teaches that the brainstem (the very
bottom portion of the brain that attaches to the spinal cord) is
basically a fixed and unchanging structure. This study clearly
indicates otherwise.

Additionally, the study also shows that children exposed to musical training have better equipped auditory processing for speech sounds. Nina Kraus, senior author of the study notes:

Increasing music experience appears to benefit all children — whether musically exceptional or not — in a wide range of learning activities. Our findings underscore the pervasive impact of musical training on neurological development. Yet music classes are often among the first
to be cut when school budgets get tight. That’s a mistake

Interestingly, the team at Northwestern has found in previous research that some learning disabled children have abnormalities in their brainstem that lead to impaired processing of sound and that furthermore these deficits can be improved with auditory training.

"We’ve found that by playing music — an action thought of as a function of the neocortex — a person may actually be tuning the brainstem," says Kraus. "This suggests that the relationship between the brainstem and neocortex is a dynamic and reciprocal one and tells
us that our basic sensory circuitry is more malleable than we previously thought."

For a related Smartkit article discussing the beneficial effect of music on brain power, click here. If you’d like to try to temporarily increase your spatial-temporal IQ, click here to listen to Mozart’s Sonata for two pianos K448.

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Thanks to Kevin Stone from Brainbashers.com for this logic puzzle:

Albert is a keen dog admirer and over the years has had a number of
dogs. He has had an Alsatian, a Dalmatian, a Poodle and a Great Dane,
but not necessarily in that order. Albert had Jamie first. The
Dalmatian was an adored pet before the Great Dane. Sammy, the Alsatian,
was the second dog Albert loved. Whitney was housed before the Poodle
and Jimmy was not a Great Dane. Can you tell each of the dogs’ name and
the order in which Albert had them?

( © Kevin Stone www.brainbashers.com )

Will unmask answers in a day or two.

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Here’s a classic puzzle from the great Sam Loyd (1841-1911):

Make one word with the letters: Nine Thumps

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Why is it that the majority of highly talented kids never go on to become eminent adults in their field of giftedness?

Came across an interesting article on the Northwestern University website that discusses some of the personality characteristics of those who do actually go on to become eminent adults; here is a summary:

• Preference for solitude which typically begins in childhood
• Lack of concern with conventionality, especially social conventions
• Extraordinary ability to cope with tension. History of stressful
  childhoods with tense and even traumatizing family situations
• High drive and energy. Workaholics. Many forego marriage, children and other normal joys of life because they fear it will detract from their dedication to their work

Another interesting factor mentioned in the article, which I’ve heard before, is that many eminent individuals lost a parent in childhood or adolescence.

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In the last 12 months, several articles have come out that have forced neurologists to seriously reconsider their basic understanding of vegetative states and coma.

From the March 2007 issue of Annals of Neurology, we have yet another article detailing the little understood yet dramatic effects Zolpidem (Ambien) can have on patients with severe hypoxic-ischemic brain injury (i.e., as is typically seen in cardiac arrest when there is a lack of blood flow and oxygen to the brain).

From the EurekAlert:

…researchers conducted a study of a 48 year-old woman who developed akinetic mutism due to oxygen deprivation to her brain following an attempted suicide by hanging. The patient was totally dependent, unable to speak or walk, and was using a feeding tube for nourishment, although she was able to understand single words. Two years after the suicide attempt, she was given zolpidem for a bout of insomnia; 20 minutes later, she was able to communicate to her family, eat by herself, and move. These effects lasted for up to three hours.

Ironically, Zolpidem (Ambien) is a widely prescribed sleeping pill.

The near-miraculous effects this drug can have on patients with severe brain injury were discussed in this earlier Smarkit article.

Reference: "Clinical and Imaging Evidence of Zolpidem Effect in Hypoxic
Encephalopathy," Christine Brefel-Courbon, Pierre Payoux, Fabienne Ory,
Agnes Sommet, Tarik Slaoui, Gaelle Raboyeau, Beatrice Lemesle, Michele Puel, Jean Louis Montastruc, Jean-Francois Demonet, Dominique Cardebat, Annals of Neurology, March 2007

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Can you find the hidden animal?

Don’t look too hard, you may miss it… 

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Can certain smells boost brain power? Let’s first take a look at what else certain odors can do:

• Stores are now using special odors to make customers buy things and spend more money
• The leathery smell of a new car is an artificial odor sprayed on to enhance buyer satisfaction
• Casinos are using odors to make people gamble more
• London’s Heathrow Airport has used the scent of pine needles to reduce passenger tension and stress
• Bad odors can make people more aggressive.
• Olympic weight lifters have used smelling salts before competition to boost their strength
• Although going for a closed MRI scan can make people feel as if they’re getting buried alive, a vanilla-like odor has been shown to reduce anxiety by 63 percent in patients going for such a test. [Reference 1]

As you can see, smells are powerful forces that can change your mood and mindset. They have a surprising power to make us aggressive, happy, relaxed, anxious, focused, or aroused.

How can smells wield such power over us?

Odors can affect basic biologic processes. “Smell receptors” in your nose connect directly to the limbic area of the brain. (The limbic area is sometimes referred to as the “emotion center” of the brain.) The limbic area, in turn, connects to special brain regions that have major influences over basic bodily processes: (References 2-4)

• Heart rate
• Brain wave patterns (EEG)
• Blood pressure
• Muscle tension
• Skin temperature

Importantly, the limbic area also houses the hippocampus—the memory engine of the brain. Since smell signals project into the limbic area, it should not be too surprising, therefore, that smell can also affect memory. This leads us to the field of aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy seeks to capitalize on this nose-limbic system connection to enhance mental and physical well-being. Typically, its practitioners use essential oils (volatile organic oils derived from plants) to bring these changes about. While I am skeptical of many of the bold claims made for aromatherapy, certain studies have actually shown some real benefits and results.

Special odors can boost cognition

A study done in 2003 showed that rosemary could increase alertness. Additionally, it produced a “significant enhancement of performance for overall quality of memory and secondary memory factors”. (Reference 5)

Research out of the Neurological Clinic at the University of Kiel in Germany demonstrated that the essential oils of peppermint and eucalyptus increased cognitive performance. These same oils also had a muscle-relaxing and mentally relaxing effect. (Reference 6)

A survey of the aromatherapy literature also reveals this anecdotal evidence:

• Jasmine has been linked with an alert and awake mental state.
• Lavender may be good for reducing test anxiety or anxiety right before you give a speech. It may also be useful for reducing excess stress that may get in the way of studying.
• Vanilla lifts a person’s mood.
• Ginger is thought to promote alertness and stimulate cognition.
• Citrus is also felt to be energizing. Some companies are using lemon essential oils in offices to negate the effects of the post-lunch dip on alertness

Some cautions, however:

Odors may influence different people differently.

Just because essential oils come from plants does not mean that they are automatically safe. Be well informed before you use any essential oil. When not used properly, essential oils can do more harm than good.

"Aromatherapy for Dummies" by Kathi Keville is a good book to consult for more information on how to use essential oils responsibly.

Reference 1: Redd WH, Manne SL, Peters B, et al. Fragrance administration to reduce anxiety during MR imaging. J Magn Reson Imaging. Jul-Aug 1994;4(4):623-626.

Reference 2: Bensafi M, Rouby C, Farget V, et al. Autonomic nervous system responses to odours: the role of pleasantness and arousal. Chem Senses. Oct 2002;27(8):703-709.

Reference 3: Sanders C, Diego M, Fernandez M, et al. EEG asymmetry responses to lavender and rosemary aromas in adults and infants. Int J Neurosci. Nov 2002;112(11):1305-1320.

Reference 4: Kim YK, Watanuki S. Characteristics of electroencephalographic responses induced by a pleasant and an unpleasant odor. J Physiol Anthropol Appl Human Sci. Nov 2003;22(6):285-291.

Reference 5: Moss M, Cook J, Wesnes K, et al. Aromas of rosemary and lavender essential oils differentially affect cognition and mood in healthy adults. Int J Neurosci. Jan 2003;113(1):15-38.

Reference 6: Gobel H, Schmidt G, Soyka D. Effect of peppermint and eucalyptus oil preparations on neurophysiological and experimental algesimetric headache parameters. Cephalalgia. Jun 1994;14(3):228-234; discussion 182.

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Thanks to Riddles.com for this this quick clock brain teaser:

At noon and midnight the hour and minute hands are exactly coincident with each other. How many other times between noon and midnight do the hour and minute hands cross?

Will unmask answers in a day or 2

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A $58,000 prize was offered for this puzzle that recently appeared on a late-night phone quiz show.

Add the pence, listed: Two pounds, 25p, £1.47, 16p, Fifty pence

The problem, however, is that no one seems to be able to solve it.

And since the company is refusing to explain the answer (which is 506), many are claiming the puzzle is bogus.

Any thoughts?

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How much control do we really have of our ship?

Most of us assume that the vast majority of our brain is preoccupied with mediating our ongoing conscious experience of the world. What if, however, this conscious experience is mediated by only 5% of our brain, and the other 95% is busy doing something different- something we’re not consciously aware of?

It turns out the latest neuroscientific research indicates your brain is very busy taking in information about your environment that you are not conscious of, and processing it. For example, when you walk into a room full of people at a party, your brain is likely absorbing and sampling faces, actions, and pieces of conversation that you have absolutely no conscious awareness of.

This reflexive, effortless processing of environmental information at an entirely subconscious level was verified, perhaps for the first time, in a study done at the University College London.

Invisible, “subliminal” pictures were shown to study subjects and although totally unaware of them, the images did in fact trigger changes in the occipital cortex: the visual processing area of the brain.

According to the news release by the University College London, the findings also imply that “techniques such as subliminal advertising, now banned in the UK but still legal in the USA, certainly do leave their mark on the brain”.

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Thanks to Bob from England for this unique “Birthday Puzzle”. Can you find all the letters of the alphabet hidden in the picture below?

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