Nine WashU faculty elected to AAAS

Nine faculty members at Washington University in St. Louis are among the 502 new fellows selected by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), one of the most distinct honors in the scientific community. The 2023 class includes: Deanna Barch, Laura Bierut, Kendall Blumer, Andreas Burkhalter, Jennifer Heemstra, Kathleen McDermott, Jeffrey Miner, Camillo Padoa-Schioppa and David Perlmutter. It is also the 150th year […]

Scholars receive grants from McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience

Neuroscience researchers Tom Franken, MD, PhD, and Alessandro Livi, PhD, are among the recipients of this year’s McDonnell Center for Systems Neuroscience Small Grants. The awards are each $100,000 over two years. Franken, an assistant professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, studies how the brain makes sense of visual scenes. […]

Padoa-Schioppa receives NIH grant

Camillo Padoa-Schioppa, PhD, professor of neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine, as well as professor of biomedical engineering and of economics, received a five-year $2.3 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research titled “Neuronal mechanisms of good-based economic decisions.” Originally published on The […]

New insight into how brain neurons influence choices

When you are faced with a choice — say, whether to have ice cream or chocolate cake for dessert — sets of brain cells just above your eyes fire as you weigh your options. Animal studies have shown that each option activates a distinct set of neurons in the brain. The more enticing the offer, […]

Penny-wise, pound-foolish decisions explained by neurons’ firing

Spending decisions influenced by adaptation in neural circuits From the WashU Newsroom… The British have a pithy way of describing people who dither over spending 20 cents more for premium ice cream but happily drop an extra $5,000 for a fancier house: penny wise and pound foolish. Now, a new study suggests that being penny wise […]