Clinical implications of brain asymmetries.

No two human brains are alike, and with the rise of precision medicine in neurology, we are seeing an increased emphasis on understanding the individual variability in brain structure and function that renders every brain unique. Functional and structural brain asymmetries are a fundamental principle of brain organization, and recent research suggests substantial individual variability in these asymmetries that needs to be considered in clinical practice. In this Review, we provide an overview of brain asymmetries, variations in such asymmetries and their relevance in the clinical context.

Monitoring Brain Activity in VR: EEG and Neuroimaging.

Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used in neuroscientific research to increase ecological validity without sacrificing experimental control, to provide a richer visual and multisensory experience, and to foster immersion and presence in study participants, which leads to increased motivation and affective experience. But the use of VR, particularly when coupled with neuroimaging or neurostimulation techniques such as electroencephalography (EEG), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), or transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), also yields some challenges. These include intricacies of the technical setup, increased noise in the data due to movement, and a lack of standard protocols for data collection and analysis.

Hemispheric asymmetries and brain size in mammals.

Hemispheric asymmetries differ considerably across species, but the neurophysiological base of this variation is unclear. It has been suggested that hemispheric asymmetries evolved to bypass interhemispheric conduction delay when performing time-critical tasks. This implies that large brains should be more asymmetric.