Working to Improve the Accuracy of Proton Beam Treatments
Proton beam treatment works by bombarding the tumor with a stream of high-speed protons that kill the tumor cells. The treatment is designed to target only the affected area, thus reducing collateral damage to the tissue surrounding the tumor. The tricky part is making sure that the protons hit their mark. The protons are only effective when they hit […]
Brown Seeks to Change The Way We Think About Anesthesia
Emery Brown, MD, PhD, and a team of collaborating investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital are hoping to make a fundamental change in the way anesthesiologists think about the process of sedation—one that changes the focus from the body to the brain. Image ©sergey7777 / 123RF Stock Photo LEARN MORE
Mass General Research Roundup for July 2016
Study Shows that Mental Overload Dampens Creativity Does having too much on your mind leave you feeling disconnected and uninspired? You are not alone. A recent study by Mass General researchers suggests that when our minds are in a cluttered state, we have a greater tendency to overlook both the world around us and the […]
Making Popcorn at the Mass General Picnic
Editor’s Note: This summer we have two communications interns working with us to write stories about research at the hospital and their experiences being part of the hospital community. This is a post by our intern Alyssa. On one of the first days of my internship, I was given a sheet of paper outlining important dates […]
Why A Cluttered Mind is Bad for Creativity
Massachusetts General Hospital researcher Dr. Moshe Bar explains why a clear mind is vital for innovative thinking in a recent New York Times opinion piece. “We found that a high mental load consistently diminished the originality and creativity of the response: Participants with seven digits to recall resorted to the most statistically common responses (e.g., white/black), whereas participants with […]
Longest Day Event Offers Insights into Alzheimer’s Disease
(Editor’s note: This summer, the Mass General Research Institute has two communications interns working with us as we work to highlight all of the research that takes place across Massachusetts General Hospital. Here is a post from our intern, Milo Goodman.) Last month, Alyssa and I took a trip over to the MGH Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging for […]
Mass General Researchers Unwrap Their Scientific Challenges Over Lunch
(Editor’s Note: The Massachusetts General Hospital Research Institute has two communications interns from Emerson College this summer. This post is from our intern Alyssa.) I’ve been alternating my time at the Mass General Research Institute between creating social media friendly content, generating story outlines, and delving into unfamiliar clinical research. But one of my favorite experiences was […]
Mass General Researcher Uses the Web to Map the mind
We’ve all seen those quizzes on the web and in our social media feeds: Which 90s TV star are you? What character would you be in the Harry Potter universe? Normally, we see them as a fun and inconsequential distraction, a way to pass the time while we’re waiting in line at the store or unwinding at […]
Why Our Next President Should Meditate
Researchers at Mass General found that people who practiced meditation, as well as other deep relaxation techniques, decreased their doctor visits by 42 percent when compared to the year before learning to practice meditation. In addition, lab use dropped by 44 percent. Researchers believe the relaxation lead to healthy changes in the body, including less inflammation. READ MORE