Péguy’s Lucidity or the Enigma of Our “Guilty Absent‑Mindedness” The thinker Charles Péguy, in a sharply observed passage cited by Francine Lenne, pinpoints a fundamental yet widespread error of human reasoning:“Speaking of what one does not know (…) will always remain man’s favorite occupation.” With a clinical edge of irony, he notes that while the…
In Alzheimer’s disease, memories fade, but awareness of that loss can fade as well. This double disruption highlights the deeper impact of the disease on the sense of self. Alzheimer’s is often described as a “disease of memory.” While this description captures its most visible symptom, it oversimplifies the profound disruption it causes. The disease…
Can a simple word trigger an uncontrollable reaction? Some rare phenomena suggest that language can act far beyond its meaning. Some oddities slip into everyday life like flashes of absurdity. In Morocco, for reasons no one has yet explained, the mere mention of the word “honey” can trigger uncontrollable outbursts in certain individuals a phenomenon…
Alzheimer’s progression is not random. Mathematical models are now helping decode its hidden pathways. Alzheimer’s disease remains one of the most formidable challenges in neurology, both in terms of its growing prevalence and the complexity of its underlying mechanisms. While amyloid plaques and tau tangles are well-established pathological markers, a fundamental question persists: why do…
Remembering everything, forgetting nothing… what if that ability isn’t a gift, but a burden? The rare case of hyperthymesia raises questions about the role of forgetting. On June 8, 2000, a letter arrived on the desk of Professor James McGaugh, a neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine. It was from a woman named Jill…
What if well-being protects memory? A study suggests our psychological state may play a key role in cognitive aging. Preventing cognitive decline has become a major public health concern. As life expectancy increases, so do cases of dementia, pushing researchers to identify factors that could help protect the brain. Risk factors such as depression and…
What if some non-speaking autistic individuals can read but can’t show it? A study challenges how we assess language abilities. The absence of functional speech in some autistic individuals often leads to a general underestimation of their cognitive and linguistic abilities. This perception is rooted in a confusion between language and spoken output, as if…
When everything feels harder for no clear reason, it may not be a loss of ability but a shift in the brain’s priorities. Mental fatigue is one of the most universal experiences of modern life. After hours of focusing, learning, or handling repetitive tasks, a subtle heaviness sets in and motivation begins to wane. This…
What if some voices come from our own mental images? A hypothesis that challenges how we understand hallucinations. Every time he closes his eyes, the image of his father appears, a stern face etched into childhood memory. And with it, a harsh, violent voice. No one is speaking. He’s alone in the room. But he…
In Parkinson’s disease, treatments relieve but do not repair. A new approach now aims to directly replace lost neurons. Parkinson’s disease affects nearly 1% of people over the age of 60. It results from the gradual degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, a deep brain region involved in motor control. This neuronal loss…