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we want to know how the mind works

MIT's Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences stands at the nexus of neuroscience, biology and psychology. We combine these disciplines to study specific aspects of the brain and mind including: vision, movement systems, learning and memory, neural and cognitive development, language and reasoning. Working collaboratively, we apply our expertise, tools, and techniques to address and answer both fundamental and universal questions about how the brain and mind work.

don't you?


Image shows an adult zebra finch with two 4-week-old juveniles. Image / Aaron Andalman.

Spotlights
Singing in the brain: MIT study yields birdsong insight
In work that offers insights into how birds--and perhaps people--learn new behaviors, MIT scientists have found that immature and adult birdsongs are driven by two separate brain pathways, rather than one pathway that slowly matures.
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Cultural insights
Brain scans support surprising differences in perception between Westerners and Asians. East is East and West is West, and the difference between them is starting to turn up even on brain scanners.
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