[FUN_Mail] Fwd: Another classic paper

Tue Sep 9 08:10:57 EDT 2014

I’m not even going to try to top Noah’s example, but this is a fun conversation so I’ll toss in a few favorites from the turn of the more recent century regarding what was, at the time a controversial assertion of neurogenesis in the adult primate/human brain.  Not sure I’d call these the most amazing ever neuroscience papers ever, but they are easy for undergrads to read and the contrary results reliably generate lively class discussions (null results published in Science).  Plus there’s a New Yorker article that describes some of the context for the science and the drama:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9809557

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10521353

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11739948

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2001/07/23/rethinking-the-brain

_____________________________________________

Barbara Lom, PhD
Professor & Chair of Biology
Davidson College
Box 7118 - Davidson, NC 28035-7118
704-894-2338 (office) 704-894-2512 (fax)
http://www.davidson.edu/academics/biology/faculty/barbara-lom

On 9/9/14, 5:36 AM, "Noah Sandstrom via FUN_Mail" <fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>> wrote:

Richard, Sam, do you really consider 1952 and 1962 to be "old school"?
While perhaps predating what we might consider "modern neuroscience" I
would put Brown-Séquard's *1889* article in *Lancet* ("Note on the effects
produced on man by subcutaneous injections of a liquid obtained from the
testicles of animals") at the top of my list! In this paper, Brown-Séquard
explores the behavioral and cognitive effects of extracts from dog and
guinea pig testicles when self-injected. It is a tour-de-force that
reflects the passion, commitment, and fortitude we should all strive to
have as scientists (how strongly do you believe in the importance of the
questions you are asking?); it raises thought-provoking questions about
quantification, methodology, standardization (what, exactly, are "great
powers of defecation?); and it makes clear that, as rough as some of our
research students may think they have it, they are way better off than
those of Brown-Séquard who had to measure the length of his jet of urine.
In all seriousness, though, this is the first paper I have students in my
Hormones and Behavior class read. Great questions, after all, stand the
test of time!

Thanks for asking this great question, Bill!
Noah

Brown-Séquard CE. Note on the effects produced on man by subcutaneous
injections of a liquid obtained from the testicles of animals.*Lancet* 1889;
2: 105-107.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Richard Olivo via FUN_Mail <fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>>
Date: Mon, Sep 8, 2014 at 8:14 PM
Subject: [FUN_Mail] Another classic paper
To: "fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>" <fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>>

I suppose I'm old school too, but my nominee would be Hubel and Wiesel's
classic paper on primary visual cortex:

Hubel DH & Wiesel TN (1962). Receptive fields, binocular interaction and
functional architecture in the cat's visual cortex. J Physiol 160, 106–154.

This paper made sense of what neurons in the cortex were doing in creating
the next step in visual perception, and it also revealed how they were
arranged anatomically. It was a major step in advancing our understanding
of the mammalian brain, and it opened a huge field of research on visual
processing that is still flourishing today.

Best wishes,
Richard Olivo
rolivo at smith.edu<mailto:rolivo at smith.edu>

On Sep 8, 2014, at 1:16 PM, "Gizerian, Samantha via FUN_Mail" <
fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>> wrote:

Call me old school, but the paper that really blew my mind, and continues
to amaze students is Hodgkin and Huxley J. Physiol. (1952) 117, 500-44.
(here:
http://www.sfn.org/~/media/SfN/Documents/ClassicPapers/ActionPotentials/hodgkin5.ashx)
The whole series is great, but the last paper summing up the experiments is
really the one that is amazing.  In context of the time and techniques
available, it is a pretty stunning achievement as well.  Not to mention
that finally we have the tangible connection that students are looking for
between the physics they didn't want to learn and the neuroscience they
signed up for.

Sam

_____________________________
Samantha S Gizerian, PhD
Clinical Assistant Professor
Associate Director for Undergraduate Studies
Dept. of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience
College of Veterinary Medicine
Washington State University
Pullman, WA 99164-7620
sgizerian at vetmed.wsu.edu<mailto:sgizerian at vetmed.wsu.edu>
509-335-0986

-----Original Message-----
From: FUN_Mail [mailto:fun_mail-bounces at lists.funfaculty.org] On Behalf
Of Mike Wiest via FUN_Mail
Sent: Monday, September 08, 2014 10:04 AM
To: Schettino, Luis F.
Cc: FUN Mail
Subject: Re: [FUN_Mail] FW: [Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience
newsletter] Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience newsletter

The "Inception" paper from the Tonegawa lab was the one that came to mind
for me too...!

Cheers
Mike

On Sun, Sep 7, 2014 at 9:44 PM, Schettino, Luis F. via FUN_Mail <
fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>> wrote:

Wow, this is EXACTLY what came to my mind when I read the question. No
doubt this article is one of the coolest studies out there. It is
incredibly creative and technically challenging. Great suggestion Ian!

Luis F. Schettino
Psychology Department
Oechsle Hall
Lafayette College
Easton, PA 18042
(610)330-5934

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ian via FUN_Mail Harrington" <fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>>
Cc: "FUN Mail" <FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org>>
Sent: Sunday, September 7, 2014 9:37:16 PM
Subject: Re: [FUN_Mail] FW: [Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience
newsletter] Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience newsletter

What a great question, Bill! BTW, it sounds like a nice way to put
together the perfect reading list for a seminar class. Can I suggest
either that the replies go to the whole list or that Bill posts the
results?

Maybe I'm guilty of some kind of recency effect with this suggestion
since I just used it in class but if they have some interest in
plasticity and behavior I'd have to suggest von Melchner, Pallas, & Sur
(2000):

http://web.mit.edu/msur/www/publications/visual.pdf

It was preceded by a companion paper by Sharma, Angelucci, & Sur
(2000) that is purely physiological:

http://web.mit.edu/msur/www/publications/induction.pdf

I suppose if you're going to publish in Nature you might as well do it
in bunches!

IH

On Sun, Sep 7, 2014 at 8:16 PM, Calin-Jageman, Robert via FUN_Mail <
fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:fun_mail at lists.funfaculty.org>> wrote:

Here’s a thought-provoking question from Bill Grisham.  Respond back
to him directly
(dr.billgrisham at gmail.com<mailto:dr.billgrisham at gmail.com><mailto:dr.billgrisham at gmail.com>
)
or back to the whole list (FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org><mailto:
FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org<mailto:FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org>> )

In the course of working with undergraduates on a research project
this summer, we have read relevant research articles. As my students
are wrapping up their research project, they asked to read the most
amazing neuroscience article ever. What would YOU recommend?

William (Bill) Grisham, Ph.D.
Adjunct Professor
Department of Psychology, UCLA
1285 Franz Hall
PO Box 951563
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563

(310) 825-7990
Dr.billgrisham at gmail.com<mailto:Dr.billgrisham at gmail.com><mailto:Dr.billgrisham at gmail.com>

MAILMAN_MIMEDEFANG WRAP
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*Ian A. Harrington, Ph.D.*

Augustana College, Psychology

Director, Program in Neuroscience

639 38th St., Rock Island, IL 61201

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