Summary: Hiding deep within the human mind-or perhaps closer to its surface than many would care to know-are forces that can cause one person to assault and kill another. This program studies the primal centers of the brain and the behaviors they control in order to gain an understanding of violence. Illustrating the role of brain chemicals like dopamine and serotonin as well as social conditioning that...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
View online at AVOD
Summary: Pain has a clear purpose: warning the body of invasion and other dangers. But the connection between pain and the human mind is more mysterious. This program examines various types of pain and their frequently elusive neurological aspects; it also presents methods, both clinical and alternative, that help long-term sufferers cope with debilitating pain. Distinguishing between acute and chronic...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: Which is more enjoyable-the satisfaction of desire, or the sensation of longing itself? This program looks at the emotional, neurological, and genetic aspects of seeking and gaining pleasure, analyzing close ties between the search for gratification and the preservation of self and species. Examining a wide range of ways to follow one's bliss-including sex, artistic creation, the consumption of...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: Using sophisticated 3-D animation, this program, divided into two parts, takes viewers on a journey deep into the brain to study the effects of the three substances. The first part illustrates the major functions of the brain and shows how its principal cells, the neurons, communicate with each other through electrical and chemical signals. In the second part, animated molecules of nicotine,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Humans may be the only species to shed tears. Does that make crying a strictly human act? This program explores the deep well of animal instinct that, shaped by eons of evolution, still informs our expression of grief, fear, anger, and even joy. Focusing on the development of distress signals in early hominid infant behavior, the program investigates differences in crying between adults and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Wang, Sam
Summary: In thirty-six each half hour lectures, Professor Sam Wang explores the science and mystery of the human nervous system, from essential neurochemical and neurobiological processes to the psychological and social constructs they are thought to produce.
Format: moving image
Publisher / Publication Date: Teaching Co. 2010
Copies Available at Woodmere
2 available in Adult Non-fiction, Call number: 612.8 NEUCall number: DVD 612.8 NEU
Summary: What happens in our brains when we think something is funny? Is laughter a form of self-defense? Can a joke be scientifically analyzed? This program studies the human response to humor from a physiological and psychological standpoint. Highlighting the importance of vocal cords in producing laughter, the program contrasts human and simian forms of humor and gives viewers an evolutionary...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: Better self-control begins with an understanding of the psychological factors that affect behavior. Section one of this program focuses on the influence of brain structure, brain chemistry, and genetics on behavior; section two illustrates key concepts of psychoanalytic theory; and section three distinguishes between classical and operant conditioning. Strengths and limitations of the...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
View online at AVOD
Summary: The question of animal intelligence has been debated for centuries. In recent years, science has come closer to proving that animals think and feel-perhaps not at the level of humans, but in ways that are nevertheless authentic. This classic program brings viewers into the midst of eye-opening zoological, neurological, and psychological research, revealing what many scientists believe to be...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: Why does tolerance for alcohol differ so widely from person to person? Do genetic factors make alcoholism unavoidable in some people? Should we drink at all? This program searches for answers, following addiction expert Dr. John Marsden as he observes-and participates in-experiments that assess alcohol's neurological and physiological impact. After exploring basic chemical and evolutionary...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: Is the heart more than just a muscular pump? Does it have a neurological importance, or perhaps even a mental or emotional capacity, overlooked by modern science? This program examines controversial theories about the heart emerging from diverse perspectives. Dr. Rollin McCraty of central California's Institute of HeartMath outlines basic ideas of cardiac-related emotional intelligence; Dr....
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: Whether it is due to a specific time of life or a particular style of living, hormones are believed to alter moods and erode bodily health. In this program, endocrinologist Lorraine Fitzpatrick, of the Mayo Clinic; a woman who has kept a video diary charting her monthly bouts with PMS; and a cast of teens and seniors investigate how hormones affect different stages of life, such as puberty and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: The human nerve center never rests-even during sleep, it works diligently to process and build on the information gathered by our senses. Of course, healthy sleep is only one of many vital ingredients the brain needs to develop and thrive, as this film illustrates in detail. Other factors discussed in the program include ongoing contact with negative (deterring) and positive...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2003
View online at AVOD
Summary: As amazing as it is complex, the human body is a marvel of biological machinery! This collection of 52 video clips (30 seconds to 2 minutes 30 seconds each) combines high-quality film footage and detailed animations to take a close-up look at the body's building blocks, the architecture of the body, the nervous system, the five senses, blood circulation, respiration and nutrition, and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2011
View online at AVOD
Summary: A landmark study of the facial expressions of native Papua New Guineans suggests that all human beings share six basic emotions. But what happens in the brain to trigger those emotions, and how do emotional responses differ according to age and experience? In this program, Dr. Susan Greenfield considers past attempts to explain emotions in terms of brain areas-and then asserts that the answers...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Is the most exhilarating of human emotions simply nature's way of keeping our species alive and reproducing? This program studies the behavior of men and women as they experience the magical feeling of attraction; it also presents a lively look at what happens inside a love-struck brain. Commentary from renowned anthropologist Dr. Helen Fisher reveals the significance of vocal cords, sense of...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: This program looks at nerve signals and how they are transmitted. It looks at the part played by nerve messages in reflex activities and at both the chemical and electrical activities of networks of nerve cells in contact.
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: The Selfish Gene is frequently misread as a biological justification for ruthless behavior. In this classic program, author Richard Dawkins sets the record straight through an exploration of selfishness and enlightened self-interest built upon evidence from the Prisoner's Dilemma game and real-world non-zero-sum social situations. "The tragedy of the commons," symbiotic behavior among animals,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
View online at AVOD
Summary: Testosterone-it affects a man's strength, sex drive, desire for status, and parenting skills. It even affects how long he will live. This program explores the science behind masculinity and the central role testosterone plays in male development. At Texas A&M, Dr. Gerianne Alexander tracks the eye movements of infants and the gender-based preferences they reveal. Further links between...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: In his book The Paradox of Choice, Barry Schwartz tackles one of the great mysteries of modern life: why is it that societies of great abundance - where individuals are offered more freedom and choice than ever before - are witnessing a near-epidemic of depression? Conventional wisdom tells us that greater choice is for the greater good, but in this TEDTalk Schwartz argues just the opposite as...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: Daniel Goleman brought the concept of "EI" to prominence as an alternative to more traditional measures of IQ with his mega-best-seller Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ - and since the publication of that book, conferences and academic institutes have sprung up dedicated to the idea. In this TEDTalk, Goleman explores the question of why we aren't more compassionate more of...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: Imagine simulating an entire brain in three-dimensions - complete with memory, perception, even mental illness - and actually functioning in real time! Henry Markram is director of Blue Brain, a supercomputing project that can model components of the mammalian brain in precise cellular detail - and simulate their activity. In this TEDTalk, Markram describes the awe-inspiring feat of...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
View online at AVOD
Summary: Pawan Sinha researches how our brains interpret what our eyes see - and, equipped with that knowledge, he gives blind children the gift of sight. In this TEDTalk, he details his groundbreaking investigation into the neurology of the human visual system, as well as his insights into engineering, autism, and other subjects. Sinha explains how his vision-restoring treatment can help us better...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: In this TEDTalk MIT neuroscientist Ed Boyden shows how, by inserting genes for light-sensitive proteins into brain cells, he can selectively activate or deactivate specific neurons with fiber-optic implants. With this unprecedented level of control Boyden has managed to cure mice of analogs of PTSD as well as certain forms of blindness. On the horizon: neural prosthetics. Session host Juan...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2011