Category Archives: Neurochemistry

The chemical palette of emotion

Like how artists uses paints, textures, and materials to create their artwork, nature “uses” molecules and their respective atoms to create the biological entities that we recognize around us. I’d like to begin a series of essays on the details of how the current understanding of chemistry relates to human emotion and psychology, and how […]

Computational Pharmacology of Copaiba

In this post I’d like to discuss a natural product that is near and dear to my heart; the oil of the Copaiba genus of trees. The reason this natural product is special to me is because it’s mechanism of action was part of a side project I investigated as a graduate student. During that […]

Computational Pharmacology of Racetams

Today I will be discussing an interesting class of compounds referred to as racetams. Racetams are relatively simple molecules discovered over 60 years ago. Like many simple, aliphatic molecules with nitrogen incorporated, they have a distinct psychoactive effect. Looking at the physicochemical diversity among the five commercially available racetams I have studied, there is a […]

Video Games

Consider an example of the human brain application functioning; while playing video games. Video games are a popular form of media which requires input to progress normally. On the surface, it seems ridiculous to think video games may have a mental benefit. It can often include repetitions of the same goal or pattern, which is […]

Neuroplasticity

As one considers the concept of natural selection with respect to modern science, it is manifest the human mind has the capacity to learn virtually anything. This concept, termed neuroplasticity, reflects the fact that performing an action fires specific neurons relative to that action. Whether that’s putting a ball in a cup or nuclear physics, […]