Phil Jaekl Author Profile | The Scientist Magazine®

Phil Jaekl

Phil is a freelance science writer and book author with an academic background in cognitive neuroscience at the postdoctoral level. Aside from his research publications he has written on topics related to neuroscience for popular venues such as The Atlantic, Nautilus, The Guardian and Wired magazine and has contributed feature-length essays to Aeon. He lives in the Norwegian Arctic in Tromsø.

Experiment Gone Awry Suggests Novel Way to Combat Hypoxia

Phil Jaekl | Oct 1, 2021 | 4 min read

While exploring suspended animation in mice, scientists discover how an enzyme can protect the brain from dangerously low levels of oxygen.

Screams Communicate Human Emotions

Phil Jaekl | Jul 1, 2021 | 5 min read

A group of self-styled screamologists are sifting through the noisiness of nonverbal human vocalizations and finding previously undemonstrated forms of communication.

Researchers DNA Barcode the Arctic

Phil Jaekl | Apr 1, 2019 | 4 min read

A group of scientists in northern Norway are using the technique to measure biodiversity’s response to past and present climate change.

Brain Rhythms Guide How Humans Pay Attention

Phil Jaekl | Dec 1, 2018 | 4 min read

A perception of sustained focus may actually be the result of cycles of fluctuating rather than continuous neural activity, according to new behavioral and neurological data from studies in humans and macaques.

The Wada Test, 1948

Phil Jaekl | Nov 1, 2017 | 2 min read

A decades-old neurological procedure developed under unique and difficult conditions in postwar Japan remains critical to the treatment of epilepsy.

Mysterious Brain Waves May Connect REM Sleep with Visual Experiences

Phil Jaekl | Jul 16, 2017 | 3 min read

New methods could propel investigation of neural “PGO” wave patterns that may underlie critical aspects of visual experience, dreaming, and even psychosis.