Understanding our brains is complicated, beware of simple ideas

Biologists and chemists seek the biomolecular basis of our brains, while medics and psychotherapists study how the brain’s function affects our health. Psychologists and social scientists try to understand the links between our brains, our behaviour and our nature; and our cognitive mechanics have been explored and exploited by computational scientists. Yet despite all this effort (and much more besides) the brain remains a darkened isle – crudely mapped and poorly understood. In this issue, we’re looking at just a few of the areas where chemistry is helping us to understand our brains better.