We have long been told a simple story about reward: Dopamine is the "wanting" molecule that drives us toward goals, and opioids are the "liking" molecules that provide the hit of pleasure once we get ...

In two separate studies, researchers learned more about the way that our brains respond to music. One study found that brain neurons synchronize with musical rhythms, while the other showed how ...

Researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine and Tufts Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences have found a surprising connection between a fungus associated with alcohol use disorder and the ...

Cannabis potency and use among teenagers has increased in recent years. Researchers are looking at the risks of smoking and ...

I was a third-year medical student at Northwestern on my ICU rotation the first time I saw a dopamine drip. The patient was pale and motionless, his blood pressure dropping by the minute despite large ...

A new study is challenging one of neuroscience’s most enduring ideas: that the brain’s reward system exists to make us feel good. Instead, researchers argue that it is built to optimize energy.