Thought-Provoking Music; This Band of N.Y. Scientists Has Plenty of Brain Power

Byline: Ann Geracimos, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

Members of the Amygdaloids rock band call their music "heavy mental" for good reason. Lyrics, composed by the pioneering group of New York University scientists, are all about the functions and foibles of the brain.

Joseph LeDoux, the group's co-founder, isn't personally fond of heavy-metal music, but he certainly qualifies as a heavy in the mentally challenging field of neuroscience. His multi-institutional Center for the Neuroscience of Fear and Anxiety, funded for several years by Bethesda's National Institute of Mental Health, investigates the physical mechanisms behind such states of mind as panic attacks and stress-related illnesses.

The other three performers - an established environmental scientist and two postgraduate researchers - are no slouches, either.

Audience members attending the band's only public appearance in the District to date, Jan. 3 on the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage, witnessed a laid-back, …

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Publication information: Article title: Thought-Provoking Music; This Band of N.Y. Scientists Has Plenty of Brain Power. Contributors: Not available. Newspaper title: The Washington Times (Washington, DC). Publication date: January 29, 2008. Page number: B01. © 2009 The Washington Times LLC. COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale Group.

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