Brenda Patoine
Brenda Patoine is a freelance science writer, reporter, and blogger who has been covering neuroscience research for more than 30 years. Her specialty is translating complex scientific findings into writings for the general public that address the question of “what does this mean to me?” She has interviewed hundreds of leading neuroscientists over three decades, including six Nobel Laureates. She founded ScienceWRITE Medical Communications in 1989 and holds a degree in journalism from St. Michael’s College. Other areas of interest are holistic wellness, science and spirituality, and bhakti yoga. Brenda lives in Burlington, VT, with her cat Shakti.
Who is Left Behind in the Movement to Normalize Marijuana?
In the rush to cash in on cannabis, some vulnerable populations—including people in marginalized groups and all children—may pay a steep price.
The Great Telemedicine Experiment
Covid precautions have led to a massive increase in treatment from screens and phones. Is it worsening health disparities—and changing medicine permanently?
Migraine: The Road to New Targeted Drugs
Research from four labs in different parts of the world led to a major breakthrough—and the 2021 Brain PrizeThe 2021 Brain Prize went to four individuals whose independent research led to useful treatments for a disorder affecting a billion people.
Your Brain on Food
Science is increasingly unpacking the ways that diet influences cognitive function and emotional well-being. Growing evidence suggests that the right diet may in fact mitigate some of the ill effects of stress on the brain, while the wrong diet may worsen the effects.
Ready to Read?
Neuroimaging confirms the key role of white matter in reading ability, but the translation to the classroom lags. Where does the research stand?
Pandemic Brain: Parsing the Mental Health Toll
Many experts have sounded the alarm for an approaching tsunami of psychological maladies that could sink an already overburdened mental healthcare system.
Neuroscience Adapts to the Covid World
The impact has been sudden and unprecedented, shifting brain science research priorities, and sending shock waves through academia and the global research community.
Tracking the Neural Footprints of Consciousness
Two leading theories that are diametrically opposed are part of a new $20 million international research program to explore how consciousness arises and correlates in the brain.
Social Media & Teens: No Simple Answers
Scientists are just beginning to investigate how social media and other digital media may physically impact the developing brain
NIH ‘Sound Health’ Grants Raise the Volume on Music, Singing Research
We sense that music changes our moods and thinking, but how and why? US national health institutes are sponsoring a wave of studies to investigate.