Gustation: Taste Perception

In this video I explain the process of transduction for taste and how gustatory cells detect tastant molecules in food. I discuss structures of the tongue, including papillae, taste buds, and gustatory cells and consider evolutionary explanations for changes in the number of taste buds over time. I also mention the phenomenon of supertasters, who are more sensitive to taste … Read More

Early Ways of Studying the Brain

In this video I discuss early approaches to studying the brain by looking at cases of brain damage and attempting to connect areas of damage to deficits or changes in behavior. The case of Phineas Gage is considered, as well as Paul Broca’s work studying brain damage associated with speech production problems such as aphasia. Don’t forget to subscribe to … Read More