Research done by the Mind Research Network is having such an impact that it now has to be published online more than once a year.
Lisa Breeden, MRN communications director, said MRN was supposed to only publish an annual report of its findings online, but substantial research results warranted the report to be published intermittently at the conclusion of studies. She said this year’s report includes studies on topics like schizophrenia, autism and memory retention.
“There are about 200 people that I contacted to inform about the report, and I’ve only heard rave reviews about publishing it online,” Breeden said, adding that the report marks advancements in learning about psychological disorders and addiction.
Mike Dougher, MRN’s chief research officer, aided in compiling research performed by a number of researchers. He said this year’s report focused on drug addiction, and that there are now ways to determine if drug abusers are more likely to relapse after stopping use.
“Researchers are performing genetic and neurological tests to determine if there is a higher chance of relapse after stopping cocaine abuse,” Dougher said.
He said other studies include possible ways to help enhance learning and memory retention. Neurosystems for National Security, for example, is a study dedicated to how the human brain stores information and how fast it stores it, according to the report.
Dougher said this could be a huge breakthrough in studying the human brain and how it learns new information.
“It’s like something out of a sci-fi novel,” Dougher said.
Vince Clark, a psychology professor at UNM, studied how the brain reacts to a small electric current and how that may help the brain to learn more.
Clark said studying how the brain learns could benefit addicts in overcoming habits.
“Addiction is learned, so you have to basically unlearn addiction,” Clark said. “This can also possibly help people with learning disabilities or brain damage.”
*MRN’s 2010 Research Report is available at www.mrn.org. Those who prefer a printed copy of the report should contact Erika Anaya at 505-272-5028 or eanaya@mrn.org. *
