List of All Articles with Tag 'ie'

Have you got a favourite track? Well, it’s time to turn it up and enjoy the beat with a warm cup of coffee. Everyday pleasures like listening to music or sipping a cup of coffee can elevate brain activity, improving cognitive performance including in tasks demanding concentration and memory, according to a recent study. A group of researchers looked at a new NYU Tandon School of Engineering study involving MindWatch a brain-monitoring technology. MindWatch is an algorithm that analyses a person’s brain activity from data which is collected from a wearable device which can monitor electrodermal activity (EDA). EDA is a measure of electrical changes in the skin triggered by emotional stress, often associated with sweat responses. In the study, published in Nature Scientific Reports, participants were made to wear these skin-monitoring wristbands as well as brain-monitoring headbands to complete a range of cognitive tests. The tests were conducted while the participants listened to music, drank their coffee and smelled perfumes reflecting their individual preferences. These tests were completed again without any of those stimulants. Researchers found that both music and coffee significantly influenced participants’ brain arousal, and put them in a “state of mind” that could “modulate their performance in the working memory tasks they were performing,” the NYU press release says. The wearable device found that the stimulates specifically triggered increased “beta band” brain wave activity which is linked to peak cognitive performance. Perfumes also had a slight positive effect, suggesting to researchers that there is a need for further investigation. “The pandemic has impacted the mental well-being of many people across the globe and now more than ever, there is a need to seamlessly monitor the negative impact of everyday stressors on one’s cognitive function,” says Rose Faghih, an associate professor of biomedical engineering who developed MindWatch in six years. “Right now MindWatch is still under development, but our eventual goal is that it will contribute to technology that could allow any person to monitor his or her own brain cognitive arousal in real-time, detecting moments of acute stress or cognitive disengagement, for example. “At those times, MindWatch could ‘nudge’ a person towards simple and safe interventions — perhaps listening to music — so they could get themselves into a brain state in which they feel better and perform job or school tasks more successfully, professor Faghih added. The specific tests used in this study involved a working memory task, called the n-back test which involves presenting a sequence of stimuli to the participants, in this case, images or sounds. It was shown one by one, and people were asked to indicate whether the current stimulus matched the one presented "n" items back in the sequence. This study employed a 1-back test — the participant responded "yes" when the current stimulus is the same as the one presented one item back — and a more challenging 3-back test, asking the same for three items back. Three types of music were also tested out, there was energetic and relaxing music familiar to the participants, as well as novel AI-generated music that reflected the subject’s tastes. Results showed that familiar, energetic music led to the best performance, followed by AI-generated music tailored to the participant’s taste. Coffee and perfume had lesser but still noticeable positive impacts. The MindWatch team wish to conduct further experiments to confirm the tool’s reliability and understand the broader effectiveness of various interventions on brain activity. Researchers have noted that while specific interventions might generally boost brain performance, individual results may vary. The study is published in the journal Nature. Read More ‘The Puss in Boots Effect:’ Women use infant-directed speech when addressing dogs with larger eyes Study reveals one thing to focus on if you want to live to 100 Extreme heat may speed up cognitive decline for people from poorer neighbourhoods Quick, moist and flavourful: Jurgen Krauss’s marble cake Mother whose hot flushes led to leukaemia diagnosis says ‘don’t ignore’ symptoms What happens at a sexual health check-up?

Storm chasers filmed the inside of a hurricane and it looks just as terrifying as you might imagine it would. The footage taken from inside the eye of Hurricane Lee was captured on Friday (8 September) as the storm moved over the Atlantic Ocean. The video taken shows lightning striking inside the Category 4 hurricane, illuminating the cloud wall around it and with the black eye overhead. The stunning clip was captured by the U.S. Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron in Biloxi, Mississippi. They are affectionately known as the “Hurricane Hunters”. As a Category 4 storm, Hurricane Lee has sustained winds of between 130 to 156 mph. The storm was located off the coast of Puerto Rico and was forecast to move northwards. The footage was able to be captured thanks to the squadron’s WC-130J Hercules aircraft. These planes are specifically designed for flying weather reconnaissance and have equipment onboard including sensors and instruments to measure the profile of a hurricane’s wind, temperature and pressure. The Hercules aircraft can stay airborne for up to 18 hours ensuring the crew onboard can record the weather data over a long time period. In a statement released by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Hurricane Center, they were unable to determine what the impact of the storm might be on the country’s eastern coast yet. The statement read: “It remains too soon to know what level of impacts, if any, Lee might have along the U.S. East Coast and Atlantic Canada late this week.” Hurricane Lee is the fourth hurricane to be recorded during the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, along with nine other named storms. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

More sightings of Danelo Cavalcante, including one of him clean shaven, are made outside police perimeter.

Over its history, social media has provided us with some truly legendary content that will live long in the memory. Today is the 11 year anniversary of one such tweet, in which British actor Danny Dyer called the 9/11 attackers “slags”. The horrifying attacks on 11 Septemer 2001 claimed the lives of 2,977 victims when 19 terrorists hijacked and crashed four planes in a co-ordinated attack on the United States. The events shocked the world and the disbelief at what actually occurred has continued for years following. 11 years after the attacks in 2012, Dyer took to Twitter to express just that, writing in typical Cockney fashion: “Can’t believe it’s been nearly 11 years since them slags smashed into the twin towers it still freaks my nut out to this day.” At the time, Dyer deleted the tweet shortly after posting it, but not before several screenshots saw it go down in internet history. “Can’t believe it’s been 11 years since Danny Dyer’s brilliant 9/11 tweet,” one person wrote. Some pointed out that we have reached the point where the tweet sent by Danny Dyer is as far away from us as it was after the events of 9/11. One X/Twitter user explained: “Realising it’s now as many years since Danny Dyer’s tweet as it was between 9/11 and him writing it.” Another said: “We are now as far away from Danny Dyer's 9/11 tweet as Danny Dyer's 9/11 tweet was from 9/11.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Olivia Rodrigo has divided social media after hosting a meet and greet in Target. Why? Because Rodrigo wasn't even there, and it was completely virtual. In a clip posted to X/Twitter, a 'Good 4 U' singer was sitting crossed-legged on a large digital screen as diehard fans asked questions. "A virtual meet and greet… this feels so dystopian," the original tweet read – and many more agreed. "They sounded like a sitcom laugh track when they cheered," one joked, while another person added: "This is so awkward like the pauses and the late reactions why would she do this LMAO." Meanwhile, many others believed it to be an innovative concept. "Honestly I think it’s a cool and accessible way for fans to meet people, plus it’s safer," one person wrote. "When they start doing these using AI reconstructions of people and their voices without the real person needing to spend their time meeting people - then it really becomes dystopian-like." "This is such a cool idea honestly," a second fan penned, with another reiterating: "I actually love this. It’s great for artists' safety and gives fans a chance to feel seen." One X user wrote: "Feels amazing tbh. If only I could call like this to my family that lives in another country. My son could see his grandparents in real size more often." It comes after the 20-year-old dropped her second studio album GUTS last Friday (8 September). To celebrate the release, Rodrigo surprised fans across New York at the GUTS Gallery pop-up experience. "I never got to actually experience any of the fun events that go along with an album release!” she told PEOPLE . "I never got to watch people as they listened to the songs for the first time. It’s really fun." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Kadarius Toney had some fun at his former team -- the New York Giants -- expense despite some critical drops for the Chiefs last Thursday.

9. Dogs have a sweet tooth, but cats don't.

Apple Inc. is extending an agreement to get modem semiconductors from Qualcomm Inc. for three more years, a

From Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton going big to Vitek Vanacek staying put, here are three bold predictions for the New Jersey Devils in the 2023-24 NHL season.

Philadelphia Eagles' Jalen Carter made a sparkling debut to put himself ahead of the pack in the Defensive Rookie of the Year race this season.

Looking for a boost for your fantasy football team? These five players can help you shore up your roster ahead of Week 2.

Crossing in the rain? The Starling Crossing will create a wider buffer for you. Crossing diagonally? It'll adapt to your path.