Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Fri, Apr 26, 2024 05:38 PM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian

Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, University of Cambridge
Professor Barbara J Sahakian DSc FBA FMedSci

Professor Barbara J Sahakian is based at the University of Cambridge Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute. Sahakian is also an Honorary Clinical Psychologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital and a Fellow of Clare Hall, Cambridge. She is a Fellow of the British Academy and the Academy of Medical Sciences. She was a Member of the International Expert Jury for the 2017 Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung Prize. She is a Past President of the British Association for Psychopharmacology and of the International Neuroethics Society. Sahakian has an international reputation in the fields of psychopharmacology, neuropsychology, neuropsychiatry, neuroimaging and neuroethics. She is best known for her work on problems of cognition and motivation in brain injury, ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ cognitive deficits in depression and early detection and early treatment with cholinesterase inhibitors in Alzheimer’s disease. She has over 475 publications in high impact scientific journals. The ISI Web of Science database credits her with a Hirsch (h) index of 130 and Google Scholar h-index of 143. Sahakian co-invented the neuropsychological CANTAB and EMOTICOM tests (www.cambridgecognition.com) and the University of Cambridge/PEAK Advanced Training Programme and the Wizard Apprentice Memory Game (www.peak.net) . Sahakian has contributed to Neuroscience and Mental Health Policy, including the UK Government Foresight Project on Mental Capital and Wellbeing (Beddington et al., 2008, Nature), the Strategy for Mental Health for the Medical Research Council (Sahakian et al., 2010, The Lancet) and the Grand Challenges in Global Mental Health (Collins et al., 2011, Nature). She was a member of the Institute of Medicine Planning Committee (USA) on Enabling Discovery, Development, and Translation of Treatments for Cognitive Dysfunction in Depression. She is on the Committee for the Strategy for Neuroscience and Mental Health for the Department of Health. In March 2017, she participated in the Global Council on Brain Health meeting in Washington, DC. She has spoken at the World Economic Forum, Davos, 2014 and is a member of the WEF on the Future of Neurotechnologies and Brain Science. She is also on the Clinical Advisory Board of the Human Brain Project. She is a member of the Wellcome Trust Science Innovation Translation Programme Advisory Group and the Wellcome’s Innovator Awards Advisory Group. She is a member of the Irish Research Council Laureate Awards Committee.

How antidepressants, ketamine and psychedelic drugs may make brains more flexible – new research

Oct 24, 2023 09:31 am UTC| Health

The first-line pharmacological treatment for major depressive disorder (MDD) are antidepressant drugs known as selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs). But a significant proportion of people dont respond to these...

Cognitive flexibility: the science of how to be successful in business and at work

Apr 14, 2023 14:12 pm UTC| Health

The word permacrisis was selected as the word of the year for 2022, referring to a feeling of being permanently in crisis. The business world has certainly faced continuous and increasingly frequent disruptions over the...

Emotional 'blunting' and antidepressants – new research suggests why this is happening

Jan 26, 2023 11:58 am UTC| Health

Reinforcement sensitivity is an important behavioural process that allows us to learn from our environment through either positive/rewarding or negative feedback. When we get together with friends or go for a run,...

Vaccine passports: why they are good for society

May 16, 2021 12:24 pm UTC| Technology

As more and more people get vaccinated, some governments are relying on vaccine passports as a way of reopening society. These passports are essentially certificates that show the holder has been immunised against...

How chronic stress changes the brain – and what you can do to reverse the damage

Mar 12, 2020 17:31 pm UTC| Health

A bit of stress is a normal part of our daily lives, which can even be good for us. Overcoming stressful events can make us more resilient. But when the stress is severe or chronic for example caused by the breakdown of a...

Cheap diuretic pill could help with autism symptoms

Jan 28, 2020 08:23 am UTC| Health

It is possible to improve symptoms in autistic children with a cheap generic drug, our latest study shows. The drug, bumetanide, is widely used to treat high blood pressure and swelling, and it costs no more than 10 for a...

Economy

Beyond the spin, beyond the handouts, here’s how to get a handle on what’s really happening on budget night

Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, TV or news websites on budget night. The quickest way to find out what...

Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility

Ivan Vladislavić is Johannesburgs literary linkman. He tells us, in the first pages of his new book, The Near North, that before cities were lit, first by gaslight and later electricity, people of means paid torchbearers...

What if the Reserve Bank itself has been feeding inflation? An economist explains

Heres something for the board of the Reserve Bank of Australia to ponder as it meets next month to set interest rates. It has pushed up rates on 13 occasions since it began its attempt to restrain inflation in May...

China’s new world order: looking for clues from Xi’s recent meetings with foreign leaders

There is broad consensus that Chinese foreign policy has become more assertive and more centralised in the decade since Xi Jinping has ascended to the top of Chinas leadership. This has also meant that Chinese foreign...

How India’s economy has fared under ten years of Narendra Modi

More than 960 million Indians will head to the polls in the worlds biggest election between April 19 and early June. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is seeking a third...

Politics

Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board

To say that the Labour party is flying high in the polls is something of an understatement. But despite its consistent lead against the Tories, the opposition finds itself in a rather odd position: on the cusp of power but...

History for sale: what does South Africa’s struggle heritage mean after 30 years of democracy?

One of my favourite statues is the one of Nelson Mandela at the Sandton City shopping centre in Johannesburg. Larger than life, its oversized bronze shoes shimmer in the evening light, polished by the hands of many...

Sudan: civil war stretches into a second year with no end in sight

In the early hours of April 15 2023, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) a Sudanese paramilitary force attacked the military airstrip in the town of Merowe and deployed troops across strategic locations in Sudans capital,...

Turkey’s suppression of the Kurdish political movement continues to fuel a deadly armed conflict

The world has 91 democracies and 88 autocracies. Yet 71% of the worlds population (some 5.7 billion people) are living under autocratic rule, a big jump from 48% ten years ago. This trend towards authoritarianism can...

Georgia is sliding towards autocracy after government moves to force through bill on ‘foreign agents’

Georgias ruling party attempted to pass a controversial bill on foreign agents in March 2023. The law would have required civil society groups and the media to register as being under foreign influence if they receive...

Science

A Nasa rover has reached a promising place to search for fossilised life on Mars

While we go about our daily lives on Earth, a nuclear-powered robot the size of a small car is trundling around Mars looking for fossils. Unlike its predecessor Curiosity, Nasas Perseverance rover is explicitly intended to...

The rising flood of space junk is a risk to us on Earth – and governments are on the hook

A piece of space junk recently crashed through the roof and floor of a mans home in Florida. Nasa later confirmed that the object had come from unwanted hardware released from the international space station. The 700g,...

Peter Higgs was one of the greats of particle physics. He transformed what we know about the building blocks of the universe

Peter Higgs, who gave his name to the subatomic particle known as the Higgs boson, has died aged 94. He was always a modest man, especially when considering that he was one of the greats of particle physics the area of...

Could a telescope ever see the beginning of time? An astronomer explains

The James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST for short, is one of the most advanced telescopes ever built. Planning for JWST began over 25 years ago, and construction efforts spanned over a decade. It was launched into space on...

US media coverage of new science less likely to mention researchers with African and East Asian names

When one Chinese national recently petitioned the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to become a permanent resident, he thought his chances were pretty good. As an accomplished biologist, he figured that news...

Technology

SHIB Price Climbs as Shibarium Upgrade Sparks Optimism Among Investors

The Shiba Inu cryptocurrency surged over 4% on April 26, buoyed by executive enthusiasm for the forthcoming Shibarium upgrade to enhance the platforms functionality and security. Shibarium Upgrade Fuels Market Optimism,...

China Investigates Digital Yuan Architect Yao Qian Amid CBDC Concerns

Yao Qian, a pivotal figure behind Chinas digital yuan, is under investigation for alleged misconduct, casting uncertainty on the future of Chinas CBDC initiatives. Probe into Yao Qian Shakes Foundations of Chinas...

Shein Joins Facebook, Amazon in EU Digital Regulations Compliance

Under the EU Digital Regulations, Shein has joined tech giants like Facebook, Amazon, and Google in meeting the strict compliance standards set by the EUs Digital Services Act due to its user base surpassing 45 million in...

Metaplanet Inc. Buys $6.25M in Bitcoin, Pivots to Digital Assets

In a strategic financial maneuver, Metaplanet Inc., a prominent Japanese public company, has invested $6.25 million in Bitcoin, marking its entry into the burgeoning cryptocurrency market. Metaplanet Dives into Crypto,...

Samsung Galaxy S24 FE Details Leak: Model Numbers, Name Uncovered

New leaks disclosing the Galaxy S24 FEs model numbers and official name have contributed to the series anticipation as Samsung advances the devices production. Leak Unveils Samsung Galaxy S24 FE Details Samsungs...