HORIZONSRESEARCH In this issue THE THINKING MACHINE? plus news and views from across the University University of Cambridge research magazine www.rsd.cam.ac.uk Issue 5 | Spring 2008 EDITORIAL DR DENIS BURDAKOV COMMITTEE COURTESY OF THE CAMBRIDGE GREEK PLAY Foreword A Happy New Year to all of our readers and contributors! This issue coincides with a double celebration for Research Services Division, as we mark five years of Horizon Seminars and the twentieth in the series: ‘The Thinking Machine?’ on 18 March. Not only do these events provide a forum for showcasing interdisciplinary research at Cambridge, but also excellent Orchestrating brain Greek tragedy: setting networking opportunities for activity the stage today speakers and delegates alike. Our front cover shows Dr Máté Lengyel from the Department of Engineering ‘in search of lost Contents memories’. In the Spotlight section, Research News 3–7 he describes how the intriguing Recent stories from across the University process of memory storage and recall is being revealed by computational neuroscience. We Spotlight: The Thinking Machine? 8–17 also hear from computer scientists Modelling uncertainty in the game of Go 9 who are modelling how humans In search of lost memories 10 resolve ambiguities in language and use diagrams for reasoning. We Can machines read? 12 contemplate why it has been so Can machines reason? 13 hard to program a computer to play Orchestrating brain activity 14 the ancient Chinese game of Go. We consider how the brain The thinking hominid 16 orchestrates the ‘daily dance’ of sleep and wakefulness, and we Preview 18–19 look back a million years to ask Greek tragedy: setting the stage today when mankind first showed evidence of a thinking brain. Cambridge has many examples Features 20–29 of cross-School research initiatives A campaign of silent resistance 20 that bring together the best in their field to address challenging Great expectations in pregnancy research 22 questions of the day. We will be Putting metabolism on the eco-map 24 highlighting these initiatives in Finding fault 26 coming issues, beginning with Rebellion, repression, retribution 28 ‘Great expectations’ in our Feature section this time. Many thanks to all of this issue’s In Focus: Arts and Humanities Research Council 30–31 contributors for their fascinating insights into their research projects: from Anglo-Irish history to Inside Out: Dr Spike Bucklow 32 ecotoxicology, archaeology to law, medicine to Greek tragedy. Research Support 33–35 We look forward in 2008 to keeping you abreast of the ground- News from Research Services Division 33 breaking research happening across News from Cambridge Enterprise Ltd 34 the University. Please email your Forthcoming events 35 comments and suggestions for future coverage to me at [email protected] The Back Page Your way into Cambridge Cover photograph of Dr Máté Lengyel 'in search of lost memories' by Dr Quentin Huys and Dr Máté Lengyel, with kind permission of Nature Neuroscience. Edited by Louise Walsh. Designed by Cambridge Design Studio (www.cambridgedesignstudio.org). Dr Louise Walsh Printed by Cambridge University Press (www.cambridge.org). Editor ©2008 University of Cambridge and Contributors as identified. All rights reserved. 2 | Issue 5 | Spring 2008 RESEARCH NEWS ‘Rising stars’ Asking ‘are you awake?’ with brain imaging Even though we might be able to hear someone speaking, shine on our powers for understanding what is actually being said Would you like to switch off as we go to sleep. communicate your DANIEL J MITCHELL, MRC CBU expertise to the public and become an ambassador for your subject? One year on from its launch, the Rising Stars public communication course is readying itself for training a new group of inspiring undergraduates, postgraduates, post-docs and early career academics for the benefit of the wider community. The course is the first of its kind in the UK and has been organised by the University’s Office of External Affairs and Communications with funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The participants have been putting their new skills into practice at Magnetic resonance image of the mouth, ear and brain festivals, museums and schools, as well as in the media. ‘The Rising Stars scheme enabled me to join a Using brain imaging techniques, process sound, brain processes involved in community of young researchers with Cambridge scientists have shown that speech comprehension are compromised a passion for public communication,’ those regions in the brain that understand even at quite low levels of sedation,’ said said Dr Nikiforos Karamanis, who sentences and form memories show Professor Menon. ‘These results have writes for Research Horizons on reduced activity after sedation. These important implications for our page 12 of this issue. ‘It gave me the findings help us to understand how understanding of how and where opportunity to prepare and deliver speech is decoded in the brain, and have anaesthetic drugs work in the brain, and several outreach events and made me clinical implications for monitoring what neural processes are involved in feel more confident in my ability to anaesthesia and patients with brain injury. consciousness.’ present my expertise to the public.’ The recently published results are the Being able to assess comprehension Penny Wilson, Head of Community culmination of a study conducted under without spoken responses has huge Affairs, is delighted both with the the lead of Dr Matt Davis at the Medical resonance for two clinical settings. ‘A success of the course and with the Research Council Cognition and Brain small proportion of anaesthetised patients enthusiasm shown by the participants: Sciences Unit (MRC CBU) and Professor report memories of events that occurred ‘Underlying the scheme is the real David Menon at the University’s Division in the operating theatre,’ said Professor need to create dialogue between the of Anaesthesia in the Department of Menon. ‘With this methodology, we could University and the wider community Medicine. refine our judgement of how deep and to communicate research and its Dr Davis, a cognitive neuroscientist, anaesthesia needs to be to prevent contribution to society. It is the young has developed a method that detects comprehension and memory during academics who make the best when the brain has comprehended operations. The information also helps us ambassadors for the University for speech, not simply heard it: ‘We look at to understand functional imaging studies many audiences, and it is they who the brain’s response to sentences that we have undertaken in patients will become the role models for the containing ambiguous words. Of the most following brain injury – in individuals who next generation.’ commonly used 5000 words in spoken appear to be in a coma or the vegetative English, over 80% change their meaning state.’ in different contexts – such as the word For patients in the vegetative state, shell, which can refer to a bullet or part of who are awake and yet show no outward a sea creature.’ Understanding these signs of awareness, this tool is already words triggers additional processing in the providing important information. ‘Being brain as it retrieves the different meanings able to show brain activity that indicates and selects the one that fits the sentence comprehension in the patient brings hope context; this activity can be visualised to carers, and might guide treatment and using functional magnetic resonance rehabilitation,’ said Dr Davis. imaging (fMRI). In this recent study, 12 anaesthetists at For more information, please Addenbrooke’s Hospital volunteered to contact Dr Matt Davis For more information on the receive varying amounts of sedation to ([email protected]) or Rising Stars programme, please test at what level their brain could Professor David Menon contact Emma Wenborn understand speech. ‘Our research showed ([email protected]). This ([email protected]). that although brains that are sedated to research was published in PNAS the same level as in sleep are able to (2007) 104, 16032–16037. Issue 5 | Spring 2008 | 3 RESEARCH NEWS Unlocking the PROFESSOR NEIL TUROK secrets of the universe Cosmic defects and adolescent galaxies – two research projects in Cambridge are bringing us closer to understanding the cosmos. Cosmic texture Astronomers believe that the universe was Theoretical Physics (DAMTP), and Dr Mike building blocks of galaxies like our Milky created 13.7 billion years ago following a Hobson, of the Astrophysics Group at the Way has proved elusive. In a recent study, cosmic explosion, the residual energy of Cavendish Laboratory, concluded that the due to be published in March in the which can still be detected as cosmic properties of the cold spot are consistent Astrophysical Journal, an international microwave background (CMB) radiation, with its having been formed by a texture. team of astronomers led by Dr Martin which fills the universe. The matter hurled ‘If this is the case,’ said Professor Turok, ‘it Haehnelt at the Institute of Astronomy outwards from the fireball eventually will revolutionise our understanding of were able to capture starlight from 27 cooled enough to form galaxies across the how the fundamental symmetries adolescent galaxies about 2 billion years expanding universe. between the particles and forces were after the Big Bang. They pointed the Cambridge scientists working with the broken as the universe emerged from the world’s most powerful telescopes, located Institute of Physics of Cantabria in Spain Big Bang.’ Professor Turok was awarded in Chile, to the same patch of sky for the may have discovered a remnant in the the prestigious Technology, Entertainment, equivalent of 12 nights. ‘It is precisely CMB from the Big Bang called a ‘texture’. Design (TED) prize in November in because this was the first time the sky As the universe cooled and underwent recognition of his work in cosmology and had been searched with this level of transitions, physicists believe that vacuum his efforts as an education activist.