Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Brain Waves

Brain Waves

Brain waves are electrical signals generated by the neurons in the brain, which are regularly monitored to measure mental activities. Brain waves and their frequency ranges can be measured using an electroencephalogram or EEG. There are four main types of brain waves, each with distinct characteristics:

Cognitive Enhancers: Cholinesterase Inhibitors and NMDA Receptor Antagonists

Cognitive Enhancers: Cholinesterase Inhibitors and NMDA Receptor Antagonists

Cognitive enhancers, also known as "smart drugs," are substances used to enhance memory, mental alertness, and concentration. These can be natural or synthetic and improve cognition in conditions like Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurodegenerative diseases. Some common examples include caffeine, amphetamines, methylphenidate, modafinil, arecoline, donepezil, vortioxetine, and piracetam. These enhancers work on the principle of synaptic plasticity and altered circuit function.

Understanding Sleep

Understanding Sleep

Sleep, an essential biological state, involves significant reductions in physical activity, sensory awareness, and interaction with the environment. This complex physiological process is primarily regulated by specific brain regions, notably the hypothalamus and pons, which govern the sleep-wake cycle or circadian rhythm.
The circadian rhythm, a nearly 24-hour cycle, is deeply influenced by environmental light cues. Light exposure directly affects the hypothalamus, which in turn regulates...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Salient experiences enhance mundane memories through graded prioritization.

Science advances·2025

Same author

Co-localized optode-electrode design for multimodal functional near infrared spectroscopy and electroencephalography.

Neurophotonics·2025

Same author

Beta-band neural variability reveals age-related dissociations in human working memory maintenance and deletion.

PLoS biology·2024

Same author

The right posterior parietal cortex mediates spatial reorienting of attentional choice bias.

Nature communications·2024

Same author

Lesion network guided delta frequency neuromodulation improves cognition in patients with psychosis spectrum disorders: A pilot study.

Asian journal of psychiatry·2024

Same author

A pilot study to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of lesion network guided transcranial electrical stimulation in outpatients with psychosis spectrum illness.

Asian journal of psychiatry·2023

Same journal

Dupilumab Emerges as an Effective Antibody Therapy for Eosinophilic Esophagitis.

Annual review of medicine·2026

Same journal

CAR T Cell Toxicities and Emerging Treatment Strategies.

Annual review of medicine·2026

Same journal

Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy: A Rapidly Evolving Landscape.

Annual review of medicine·2026

Same journal

Accessibility of Somatic Genetic Testing for Cancer Treatment Decisions.

Annual review of medicine·2026

Same journal

Diffuse Parenchymal Lung Disease: Updates in Pathophysiology and Management.

Annual review of medicine·2026

Same journal

Revascularization for Ischemic Cardiomyopathy: Disproving the 45-Year-Old Concept of Hibernating Myocardium.

Annual review of medicine·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 6, 2025

How to Calculate and Validate Inter-brain Synchronization in a fNIRS Hyperscanning Study

How to Calculate and Validate Inter-brain Synchronization in a fNIRS Hyperscanning Study

Published on: September 8, 2021

Synchronizing Brain Rhythms to Improve Cognition.

Shrey Grover¹, John A Nguyen¹, Robert M G Reinhart^1,2,3,4

¹Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA; email: grovers@bu.edu, akida@bu.edu, rmgr@bu.edu.

Annual Review of Medicine

|October 9, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) rapidly improves cognition by modulating brain network rhythms. This noninvasive neuromodulation offers a promising drug-free approach for cognitive brain disorders.

Keywords:

cognition cognitive deficits cross-frequency coupling neuropsychiatric disorders synchronization transcranial alternating current stimulation

More Related Videos

Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice

Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice

Published on: July 31, 2019

The Combination of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Electroencephalogram

The Combination of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Electroencephalogram

Published on: October 10, 2025

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 6, 2025

How to Calculate and Validate Inter-brain Synchronization in a fNIRS Hyperscanning Study

How to Calculate and Validate Inter-brain Synchronization in a fNIRS Hyperscanning Study

Published on: September 8, 2021

Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice

Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice

Published on: July 31, 2019

The Combination of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Electroencephalogram

The Combination of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Electroencephalogram

Published on: October 10, 2025

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Science
Neuromodulation

Background:

Cognitive impairment is prevalent in neuropsychiatric disorders, significantly reducing quality of life.
Synchronous electrophysiological rhythms are crucial for brain network communication underlying cognition.
Disruptions in these rhythms contribute to cognitive deficits in neuropsychiatric conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

To review the emerging technology of transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS).
To highlight tACS's potential in improving cognitive functions by modulating network synchronization.
To discuss the future of noninvasive neuromodulation for cognitive brain disorders.

Main Methods:

Review of existing research on transcranial alternating current stimulation.
Analysis of studies demonstrating tACS effects on cognitive domains.
Exploration of tACS's mechanism in modulating rhythmic network synchronization.

Main Results:

Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) shows early, remarkable results in enhancing various cognitive functions.
tACS effectively modulates properties of rhythmic synchronization in large-scale brain networks.
The technology demonstrates rapid improvements in human cognition.

Conclusions:

tACS is a promising noninvasive neuromodulation technique for cognitive enhancement.
Future research can establish tACS as a drug-free, circuit-based therapeutic for cognitive disorders.
Modulating network synchronization offers a pathway to rescue cognitive function.