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The series documents the history of neuroscience featuring eminent scientists in the field. The second instalment consists of interviews with °×С½ãÂÛ̳'s Professor Richard Frackowiak, as well as Professor Terry Jones, Professor Sir Peter Mansfield and Professor Roger Odridge.Ìý

In 1995, as Professor of Cognitive Neurology the °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Institute of Neurology, Professor Richard Frackowiak established the Functional Imaging Laboratory (now the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging), where he developed new techniques for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In a now famous study - produced with his team at the °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Wellcome Neuroimaging Unit - Professor Frackowiak showed that in London taxi drivers, there was a connection between an area of the brain (the hippocampus) and their highly developed spatial and navigation skills. The hippocampus had enlarged as a result of navigational experience.

Professor Terry Jones was responsible for installing one of Britain's first Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanners at the Hammersmith Hospital in 1979, where he recruited Richard Frackowiak, among others, to conduct research. Professor Roger Odridge's research focuses on the development and clinical application of MRI technology, and he patented several of the widely used methods currently used in MRI scanning. Professor Sir Peter Mansfield and his team have shown how the radio signals from MRI could be mathematically analysed and, as a result, interpreted into useful images. This work won him a Nobel Prize in 2003, which he shared with Paul Lauterbur.

The podcasts can be downloaded from , or from the along with transcripts of the interviews.

Part 1 of 'Today's Neuroscience, Tomorrow's History' (which can be accessed using the link at the top of this page) included interviews with Professor Uta Frith, Professor Richard Gregory, Professor Sir Michael Rutter, and Professor Elizabeth Warrington. A series of podcasts charting , including lectures and interviews with some of the most important people in the field, will be coming soon.

°×С½ãÂÛ̳ Context

The Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at °×С½ãÂÛ̳ has a tradition of excellence in furthering the academic study of the history of medicine and an awareness of its importance. The centre is committed to furthering the knowledge of medicine's past in order to offer analyses of the complexities and ambiguities, as well as the hard-won knowledge, surrounding health, diseases, and their treatment.

°×С½ãÂÛ̳'s presence on iTunes U features lectures (including its popular Lunch Hour Lectures), interviews and seminars. Subjects range from a discussion on the topic of 'Genomics, Identity and Health' (°×С½ãÂÛ̳ Anthropology), Dr Kasia Boddy (°×С½ãÂÛ̳ English) on 'Boxing: A Cultural History', and a lecture by Stephen Brown (°×С½ãÂÛ̳ National Medical Laser Centre) on photodynamic therapy for cancer patients. There is also a weekly °×С½ãÂÛ̳ News Podcast, published on Friday afternoons (click here for the most recent instalment).

Image: Professor Richard Frackowiak ©Wellcome Images

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