Salk scientist Rusty Gage was the first to show that the human brain can generate new neurons well into adulthood, overturning a century of scientific dogma that held the adult brain to be fully developed and incapable of regeneration. Gage’s discovery of human adult neural stem cells was a landmark event in the history of neuroscience, forever changing how we think about the flexibility and regenerative power of the adult brain. We’ve now learned where these stem cells are and what cells they can turn into. We’re also getting a clearer sense of how diet, exercise, stress, and disease can influence adult neurogenesis, and how this affects our learning, memory, and mental health. Read more from the 2000s time capsule in the newest issue of Inside Salk: inside.salk.edu #SalkInstitute #Neuroscience #StemCells #SanDiego #California