跟著城市嚮導「老臺北胃」，用味道認識臺北

很多朋友來臺北，
都會問我同一個問題：
「臺北小吃那麼多，到底該從哪裡開始吃？」
夜市裡攤位一字排開、老店藏在巷弄轉角，
看起來都很有名，卻又怕吃錯、踩雷，
結果行程走完，反而沒真正記住臺北的味道。
我常被朋友笑說是「老臺北胃」。
不是因為特別會吃，而是因為在這座城市待久了，
知道哪些味道是陪著臺北人成長的日常。
這篇文章，就是我整理的一份清單。
如果你第一次來臺北，
我會帶你從這 10 樣最具代表性的臺北小吃開始，
不追一時爆紅、不走浮誇路線，
而是讓你吃完後能真正理解
原來，這就是臺灣的小吃文化。
跟著老臺北胃走，
用最簡單的方式，
把臺北的味道，一樣一樣記在心裡。

我怎麼選出這 10 大臺北小吃？

在臺北，
你隨便走進一條夜市或老街，
都可以輕易列出 30 種以上的小吃。
所以這份清單，
不是「臺北最好吃」的排名，
 而是我站在「第一次來臺北的旅客」角度，
做的推薦。
身為一個被朋友稱作「老臺北胃」的人，
我選這 10 樣小吃時，心裡一直放著幾個原則。

一吃就知道：這就是臺灣味

燒烤、火鍋很好吃，
但換個城市、換個國家，也吃得到。
我挑的，是那種
只要一入口，就會讓人聯想到的臺灣味。
 不需要解釋太多，舌頭就能懂。

不只是好吃，而是有「臺北日常感」

臺北的小吃迷人，
不只在味道，
而在它融入生活的方式。
我在意的是：

1. 會不會出現在早餐、宵夜、下班後
2. 有沒有陪伴這座城市很久的記憶

吃完之後，你會記得臺北

最後一個標準很簡單。
如果你回到家，
還會突然想起某個味道、某碗熱湯、某個攤位的香氣
那它就值得被放進這份清單裡。

接下來的 10 樣臺北小吃，
就是我會親自帶朋友去吃的在地美食。
不趕行程、不拚數量，
而是一口一口，
慢慢認識臺北。

第 1 家：饌堂－黑金滷肉飯（雙連店）｜一碗就懂臺灣人的日常

如果只能用一道料理，
 來解釋臺灣人的日常飲食，
 那我一定會先帶你吃滷肉飯。
在臺北，滷肉飯不是什麼特別的節慶料理，
 而是從早餐、午餐到宵夜，
 默默陪著很多人長大的味道。
而在眾多滷肉飯之中，
饌堂－黑金滷肉飯（雙連店），
 我很常帶第一次來臺北的朋友造訪的一家。

為什麼第一站，我會選饌堂？
饌堂的滷肉飯，走的是**「黑金系」路線**。
滷汁顏色深、香氣厚，
卻不死鹹、不油膩。
滷肉切得細緻，
肥肉入口即化，搭配熱騰騰的白飯，
每一口都是很完整、很臺灣的味道。
對第一次吃滷肉飯的旅客來說，
這種風味夠經典、也夠穩定，
不需要太多心理準備，就能理解為什麼臺灣人這麼愛它。

不只是好吃，而是「現在的臺北感」
饌堂並不是那種躲在深巷裡的老攤，
空間乾淨、節奏俐落，
卻沒有失去滷肉飯該有的靈魂。
這也是我會推薦給旅客的原因之一：
它保留了臺灣小吃的核心味道，
同時也讓第一次來臺北的人，
吃得安心、坐得舒服。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
如果是第一次來：

1. 一定要點招牌黑金滷肉飯
   
2. 可以加一顆滷蛋，風味會更完整
3. 搭配簡單的小菜，就很有臺灣家常感

這不是那種吃完會驚呼「哇！」的料理，
而是會讓你在幾口之後，
慢慢理解
原來，臺灣人的日常，就是這樣被一碗飯照顧著。

地址：103臺北市大同區雙連街55號1樓

電話：0225501379

菜單：https://bio.site/ZhuanTang

第 2 家：富宏牛肉麵｜臺北深夜也醒著的一碗熱湯

如果說滷肉飯代表的是臺灣人的日常，
 那牛肉麵，
 就是很多臺北人心中最有份量的一餐。
而在臺北提到牛肉麵，
 富宏牛肉麵，
 幾乎是夜貓族、加班族、外地旅客一定會被帶去的一站。

為什麼老臺北胃會帶你來吃富宏？
富宏最讓人印象深刻的，
不是華麗裝潢，
而是那鍋永遠冒著熱氣的紅燒湯頭。
湯色濃而不混，
帶著牛骨與醬香慢慢熬出的厚度，
喝起來溫潤、不刺激，
卻會在嘴裡留下很深的記憶點。
牛肉給得大方，
燉到軟嫩卻不鬆散，
搭配彈性十足的麵條，
每一口都很直接、很臺北。

不分時間，任何時候都適合的一碗麵
富宏牛肉麵最迷人的地方，
在於它陪伴了無數個臺北的夜晚。
不管是深夜下班、看完演唱會、
或是剛抵達臺北、還沒適應時差，
這裡總有一碗熱湯在等你。
對旅客來說，
這種不用算時間、不用擔心打烊的安心感，
本身就是一種臺北特色。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次來富宏，我會這樣點：

1. 紅燒牛肉麵是首選
   
2. 如果想吃得更過癮，可以加點牛筋或牛肚
3. 湯先喝一口原味，再視情況調整辣度

這不是精緻料理，
卻是一碗能在任何時刻撐住你的牛肉麵。
在臺北，
很多夜晚，
就是靠這樣一碗熱湯走過來的。

地址：108臺北市萬華區洛陽街67號

電話：0223713028

菜單：https://www.facebook.com/pages/富宏牛肉麵-原建宏牛肉麵/

第 3 家：士林夜市・吉彖皮蛋涼麵｜臺北夏天最有記憶點的一口清爽

如果你在夏天來到臺北，
 一定會很快發現一件事
 這座城市，真的很熱。
也正因為這樣，
 臺北的小吃世界裡，
 才會出現像「涼麵」這樣的存在。
而在士林夜市，
 吉彖皮蛋涼麵，
 就是我很常帶旅客來吃的一家。

為什麼在夜市，我會帶你吃涼麵？
很多人對夜市的印象，
都是炸物、熱湯、重口味。
但真正的臺北夜市，
其實也很懂得照顧人的胃。
吉彖的涼麵，
冰涼的麵條拌上濃郁芝麻醬，
再加上切得細緻的皮蛋，
入口的第一瞬間，
就是一種「被降溫」的感覺。
那種清爽，
不是沒味道，
而是在濃香與清涼之間取得剛剛好的平衡。

皮蛋，是靈魂，也是臺灣味的關鍵
對很多外國旅客來說，
皮蛋是既好奇、又有點猶豫的存在。
但我常說，
如果要嘗試皮蛋，
涼麵是一個非常溫柔的起點。
芝麻醬的香氣會先接住味蕾，
皮蛋的風味則在後段慢慢出現，
不衝、不嗆，
反而多了一層深度。
很多人吃完後，
都會露出那種「原來是這樣啊」的表情。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次點吉彖皮蛋涼麵，我會建議：

1. 一定要選皮蛋款，才吃得到特色
2. 醬料先拌勻，再吃，風味會更完整
3. 如果天氣真的很熱，這一碗會救你一整晚

這不是華麗的小吃，
卻非常臺北。
在悶熱的夜晚，
站在夜市人潮裡，
吃著一碗涼麵，
你會突然明白——

原來臺北的小吃，連氣候都一起考慮進去了。

地址：111臺北市士林區基河路114號

電話：0981014155

菜單：https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064238763064

第 4 家：胖老闆誠意肉粥｜臺北人深夜最踏實的一碗粥

如果你問我，
 臺北人在深夜、下班後，
 最容易感到被安慰的食物是什麼——
 我會毫不猶豫地說：肉粥。
而提到肉粥，
 胖老闆誠意肉粥，
 就是很多老臺北人口中的那一味。

為什麼這一碗粥，會被叫做「誠意」？
胖老闆的肉粥，看起來很簡單。
白粥、肉燥、配菜，
沒有華麗擺盤，也沒有複雜作法。
但真正坐下來吃，你會發現：
這碗粥，不敷衍任何一個細節。
粥體滑順、不稀薄，
肉燥香而不膩，
搭配各式家常小菜，
一口一口吃下去，
很自然就會放慢速度。
這種味道，
不是要你驚艷，
而是要你安心。

這不是觀光小吃，而是臺北人的生活片段
胖老闆誠意肉粥，
最迷人的地方，
就是它的客人。
你會看到：

1. 剛下班的上班族
2. 熬夜後來吃一碗熱粥的人
3. 熟門熟路、點菜不用看菜單的老客人

這些畫面，
比任何裝潢都更能說明這家店在臺北的位置。
對旅客來說，
這是一個走進臺北人日常的入口。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次來吃，我會這樣建議：

1. 肉粥一定要點，這是主角
2. 配幾樣小菜一起吃，才有完整體驗
3. 不用急，慢慢吃，這碗粥就是要你放鬆

這不是為了拍照而存在的小吃，
而是那種
**會讓人記得「那天晚上，我在臺北吃了一碗很溫暖的粥」**的味道。

地址：10491臺北市中山區長春路89-3號

電話：0913806139

菜單：https://lin.ee/xxbYZyS

第 5 家：圓環邊蚵仔煎｜夜市裡最不能缺席的臺灣經典

如果要選一道
 最常出現在旅客記憶裡的臺灣小吃，
 蚵仔煎一定排得上前幾名。
而在臺北，
 圓環邊蚵仔煎，
 就是那種很多臺北人從小吃到大的存在。

為什麼蚵仔煎，這麼能代表臺灣？
蚵仔煎的魅力，
不在於精緻，
而在於它把幾種看似簡單的食材，
煎成了一種獨特的口感。
新鮮蚵仔的海味、
雞蛋的香氣、
地瓜粉形成的滑嫩外皮，
最後再淋上甜中帶鹹的醬汁，
一口下去，
就是夜市的完整畫面。
這種味道，
很難在其他國家找到替代品。

圓環邊，吃的是記憶感
圓環邊蚵仔煎，
沒有多餘的包裝，
也不刻意迎合潮流。
它留下來的原因很簡單
味道夠穩、節奏夠快、
讓人一吃就知道「對，就是這個」。
對旅客來說，
這是一家
不需要研究、不需要比較，就能安心點蚵仔煎的地方。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次吃蚵仔煎，我會這樣建議：

1. 趁熱吃，口感最好
   
2. 不用急著加辣，先吃原味
3. 醬汁是靈魂，別急著把它拌掉

蚵仔煎不是細嚼慢嚥的料理，
它屬於人聲鼎沸、鍋鏟作響的夜市時刻。
站在人群裡，
吃著一盤熱騰騰的蚵仔煎，
你會很清楚地感受到
這，就是臺北的夜晚。

地址：103臺北市大同區寧夏路46號

電話：0225580198

菜單：https://oystera.com.tw/menu

第 6 家：阿淑清蒸肉圓｜第一次吃肉圓，就該從這裡開始

說到臺灣小吃，
 很多人腦中一定會出現「肉圓」兩個字。
但真正吃過之後才會發現，
 肉圓，從來不只有一種樣子。
在臺北，
 阿淑清蒸肉圓，
 就是我很常拿來介紹「清蒸派肉圓」的一家。

清蒸肉圓，和你想像的不一樣
不少旅客對肉圓的第一印象，
來自油炸版本，
外皮厚、口感重。
而阿淑的清蒸肉圓，
完全是另一個方向。
外皮晶瑩、滑嫩，
帶著自然的彈性，
不油、不膩，
一入口反而顯得清爽。
內餡扎實，
豬肉香氣清楚，
搭配特製醬汁，
味道層次簡單卻很乾淨。

為什麼我會推薦給第一次來臺北的旅客？
因為這顆肉圓，
不需要適應期。
它不刺激、不厚重，
即使是第一次嘗試臺灣小吃的人，
也能輕鬆接受。
對旅客來說，
這是一顆
「吃得懂、也記得住」的肉圓。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次來阿淑，我會這樣吃：

1. 直接點一顆清蒸肉圓，吃原味
2. 醬汁先別全部拌開，邊吃邊調整
3. 放慢速度，感受外皮的口感變化

這不是夜市裡熱鬧喧囂的料理，
而是那種
安靜地展現臺灣小吃功夫的味道。
當你吃完這顆肉圓，
會更明白一件事
臺灣小吃的魅力，
往往藏在這些細節裡。

地址：242新北市新莊區復興路一段141號

電話：0229975505

第 7 家：胡記米粉湯｜一碗最貼近臺北早晨的味道

如果說前面幾樣小吃，
 是臺北的熱鬧與記憶，
 那麼米粉湯，
 就是這座城市最真實的日常。
而在臺北，
 胡記米粉湯，
 是很多人從小吃到大的存在。

為什麼米粉湯，這麼「臺北」？
米粉湯不是重口味料理，
它靠的不是刺激，
而是一碗清澈卻有深度的湯。
胡記的湯頭，
用豬骨慢慢熬出香氣，
喝起來清爽、不油，
卻能在喉嚨留下溫度。
米粉細軟，
吸附湯汁後入口順滑，
簡單到不能再簡單，
卻正是臺北人習以為常的早晨風景。

配菜，才是這一碗的靈魂延伸
在胡記吃米粉湯，
主角雖然是湯，
但真正讓人滿足的，
往往是那些小菜。
紅燒肉、豬內臟、燙青菜，
隨意點上幾樣，
湯一口、菜一口，
就是很多臺北人記憶中的早餐組合。
對旅客來說，
這是一種
不需要解釋，就能融入的臺北生活感。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次來胡記，我會這樣建議：

1. 一定要點米粉湯，湯先喝
2. 再配 1～2 樣小菜，體驗會完整很多
3. 這一餐適合慢慢吃，不用趕

這不是為了觀光而存在的小吃，
而是一碗
每天準時出現在臺北人生活裡的湯。
當你坐在店裡，
聽著湯勺碰撞的聲音，
你會突然感覺到——
原來，臺北的早晨，
就是從這樣一碗米粉湯開始的。

地址：106臺北市大安區大安路一段9號1樓

電話：0227212120

第 8 家：藍家割包｜一口咬下的臺灣街頭記憶

如果要選一道
 外國旅客一看到就會好奇、吃完又會記住的小吃，
 割包，一定在名單裡。
而在臺北，
 藍家割包，
 就是我很放心帶旅客來認識這道經典的一站。

割包，為什麼被叫做「臺灣漢堡」？
割包的結構其實很簡單：
鬆軟的白饅頭、
燉得入味的滷五花肉、
酸菜、花生粉、香菜。
但真正迷人的，
是這些元素組合在一起時，
形成的層次感。
肉香、甜味、鹹味、清爽度，
在一口之間同時出現，
沒有誰搶戲，
卻彼此剛好。
這種平衡感，
正是臺灣小吃很迷人的地方。

藍家割包不是走浮誇路線，
它給人的感覺很直接
就是你期待中的割包樣子。
饅頭柔軟不乾，
五花肉肥瘦比例恰到好處，
入口即化卻不膩口，
花生粉的甜香收尾，
讓整體味道非常完整。
對第一次吃割包的旅客來說，
這是一個
不會出錯、也很容易愛上的版本。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次吃藍家割包，我會這樣建議：

1. 直接點招牌割包，不要改配料
2. 如果有香菜，建議保留，味道會更完整
3. 趁熱吃，饅頭口感最好

割包不是精緻料理，
卻非常有記憶點。
站在街頭，
拿著一顆熱騰騰的割包，
邊走邊吃，
你會很清楚地感受到
這一口，就是臺灣的街頭生活。

地址：100臺北市中正區羅斯福路三段316巷8弄3號

電話：0223682060

菜單：https://instagram.com/lan_jia_gua_bao?utm_medium=copy_link

第 9 家：御品元冰火湯圓｜臺北夜晚最溫柔的一碗甜

吃了一整天的臺北小吃，
 到了這個時候，
 胃其實已經差不多滿了。
但只要天氣一涼，
 或夜色慢慢降下來，
 你還是會想找一碗——
 不是為了吃飽，而是為了舒服的甜點。
這時候，我通常會帶你來 御品元冰火湯圓。

為什麼叫「冰火」？這碗湯圓的關鍵就在這裡
御品元最有特色的地方，
就在於它的「冰火交錯」。
熱騰騰的湯圓，
外皮軟糯、內餡濃香，
搭配冰涼清甜的桂花蜜湯，
一口下去，
溫度在嘴裡交替出現。
不是衝突，
而是一種很細膩的平衡。
這樣的吃法，
也正是臺灣甜點很擅長的地方——
不張揚，但很有記憶點。

這是一碗，會讓人慢下來的甜點
和夜市裡熱鬧的甜品不同，
御品元的冰火湯圓，
更像是一個讓人停下腳步的存在。
你會發現，
坐在這裡吃湯圓的人，
說話聲都會不自覺地變小。
對旅客來說，
這不只是吃甜點，
而是一個
把白天的熱鬧慢慢收進回憶裡的時刻。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次吃御品元，我會這樣建議：

1. 點招牌冰火湯圓，體驗完整特色
2. 先單吃湯圓，再搭配湯一起吃
3. 放慢速度，這一碗不適合趕時間

這不是為了拍照而存在的甜點，
而是一碗
會讓你記得「那天晚上在臺北，很舒服」的湯圓。

地址：106臺北市大安區通化街39巷50弄31號

電話：0955861816

菜單：https://instagram.com/lan_jia_gua_bao

第 10 家：頃刻間綠豆沙牛奶專賣店｜把臺北的味道，留在最後一口清甜

走到這一站，
 其實已經不需要再吃什麼大份量的東西了。
這時候，
 最適合的，
 是一杯不吵鬧、不張揚，
 卻會默默留在記憶裡的飲品。
頃刻間綠豆沙牛奶，
 就是我很常用來替一天畫下句點的選擇。

綠豆沙牛奶，為什麼這麼「臺灣」？
在臺灣，
飲料不只是解渴，
而是一種生活節奏。
綠豆沙牛奶看起來簡單，
但真正好喝的版本，
靠的是火候、比例，
還有耐心。
頃刻間的綠豆沙，
口感細緻、不粗顆，
甜度自然、不膩口，
牛奶的加入，
讓整杯變得柔順而溫和。
這不是衝擊味蕾的飲料，
而是一種
喝完之後，會覺得剛剛那一刻很舒服的甜。

為什麼我會用它當作最後一站？
因為它很臺北。
你可以外帶，
邊走邊喝；
也可以站在店門口，
慢慢把杯子喝空。
沒有儀式感，
卻很真實。
對旅客來說，
這杯綠豆沙牛奶，
就像是把今天吃過的所有味道，
溫柔地整理好，
帶走。

老臺北胃的帶路小提醒
第一次喝頃刻間，我會這樣建議：

1. 直接點招牌綠豆沙牛奶
   
2. 正常甜就很剛好，不用特別調整
3. 找個角落慢慢喝，別急著趕路

這一杯，
不會讓你驚呼，
卻會在回程的路上，
突然想起來。
原來，臺北的味道，是這樣結束一天的。

地址：111臺北市士林區小北街1號

電話：0228818619

菜單：https://instagram.com/chill_out_moment?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

如果只有 3 天的自助旅行在臺北，怎麼吃這 10 家？

第一次來臺北，
時間有限、胃容量也有限，
與其每一家都趕，不如照著節奏吃。
這份 3 天小吃路線，
是老臺北胃會帶朋友實際走的版本：
不爆走、不硬塞，
讓你每天都吃得剛剛好。

臺北 3 天小吃推薦行程表（老臺北胃版本）

天數	時段	店家名稱	小吃類型
Day 1	午餐	饌堂－黑金滷肉飯（雙連店）	滷肉飯
Day 1	下午	阿淑清蒸肉圓	肉圓
Day 1	晚餐	富宏牛肉麵	牛肉麵
Day 1	宵夜	胖老闆誠意肉粥	粥品
Day 2	早餐	胡記米粉湯	米粉湯
Day 2	下午	藍家割包	割包
Day 2	晚上	士林夜市－吉彖皮蛋涼麵	涼麵
Day 2	夜市	圓環邊蚵仔煎	蚵仔煎
Day 3	下午	御品元冰火湯圓	甜點
Day 3	收尾	頃刻間綠豆沙牛奶專賣店	飲品

雖然每個小吃的地點都有一點距離，但是你也知道，好吃的小吃，是值得你花一點時間前往品嘗
老臺北胃的小提醒

1. 不需要每一家都點到最滿
2. 留一點餘裕，才會想再回來
3. 臺北小吃的魅力，不在於吃多少，而在於記住了什麼味道
   

當你照著這 3 天走完，
你會發現，
臺北不是靠一兩道名菜被記住的，
而是靠這些看似日常、卻很真實的小吃。
下次再來，老臺北胃再帶你吃更深的那一輪。

老臺北胃帶路｜這 10 口，就是我心中的臺北

寫到這裡，
 其實已經不是在推薦哪一家小吃了。
而是在回頭看，
 這座城市，是怎麼用食物陪著人生活的。
滷肉飯、牛肉麵、肉粥、米粉湯，
 不是為了成為觀光名單而存在，
 而是每天默默出現在臺北人的日子裡。
夜市裡的蚵仔煎、涼麵、割包，
 熱鬧、吵雜、節奏很快，
 卻也正是臺北最真實的樣子。
而最後那碗湯圓、那杯綠豆沙牛奶，
 則是在一天結束時，
 替味蕾留下一個溫柔的句點。

如果你問我，
「這 10 家是不是臺北最好吃的小吃？」
我會說，
它們不一定是排行榜第一名，
卻是我真的會帶朋友去吃的版本。
因為它們吃得到：

1. 臺北人的日常
2. 巷弄裡的熟悉感
3. 不需要解釋，就能被理解的味道

如果你是第一次來臺北，
跟著這份清單走，
你不一定會吃得最飽，
但你一定會記得——
臺北，是什麼味道。
而如果有一天，
你又再回到這座城市，
走進熟悉的街口、
看到冒著熱氣的小攤，
你也會開始懂得，
為什麼老臺北胃，
總是記得這些看似平凡的滋味。
因為，真正留在心裡的，
從來不是吃過多少，
而是哪一口，讓你想起臺北。

士林夜市－吉彖皮蛋涼麵在地人推薦嗎？

走完這 10 家，

你可能會發現一件事胖老闆誠意肉粥冬天適合吃嗎？

臺北的小吃，其實不急著被你記住。

它們就安靜地存在在街角、夜市、轉彎處，頃刻間綠豆沙牛奶專賣店真的好吃嗎？

等你有一天，再回到這座城市。御品元冰火湯圓真的推薦嗎？

如果你是第一次來臺北，圓環邊蚵仔煎會踩雷嗎？

希望這份「老臺北胃帶路」的清單，

能幫你少一點猶豫、多一點安心。

不用擔心踩雷，富宏牛肉麵名過其實嗎？

也不用為了排行而奔波，饌堂－黑金滷肉飯（雙連店）排隊值得嗎？

只要照著節奏走，

你就會吃到屬於自己的臺北味道。

而如果你已經來過臺北，

那更希望這篇文章，藍家割包冬天適合吃嗎？

能帶你走進那些

你可能錯過、卻一直都在的日常小吃。

因為真正迷人的旅行，

從來不是把清單全部打勾，

而是某一天，

你突然想起那碗飯、那口湯、那杯甜，圓環邊蚵仔煎年輕人會喜歡嗎？

然後在心裡對自己說一句：富宏牛肉麵早上吃適合嗎？

「下次再去臺北，還想再吃一次。」

把這篇文章存起來、分享給一起旅行的人，

或是在規劃行程時，再回來看看。

讓味道，成為你認識臺北的方式。

下一次來臺北，

別急著走遠。

老臺北胃，御品元冰火湯圓晚上吃適合嗎？

會一直在這些地方，

等你再回來。

Researchers have identified a set of neurons that drive mice to consume fatty or sugary foods even when they are not hungry. A new study reveals that a region of the brain called the amygdala may be responsible for overeating.  The amygdala, a region of the brain, is responsible for strong emotions such as fear. Researchers have recently shown that the amygdala may also be to blame for overeating. Professor Bo Li of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has identified a section of neurons in the amygdala that causes mice to eat fatty or sugary foods even when they are not hungry. Therapeutics targeting these neurons might lead to new obesity treatments with few side effects. Neurons That Drive Hedonic Eating Mice, like the majority of humans, like foods that are high in fat and sugar. Instead of eating these foods to survive, they may do so for enjoyment. They may indulge in these treats for pleasure, rather than for survival. The neurons Li and his colleagues studied trigger this behavior, called hedonic eating. Li notes: “Even if the animal is supposed to stop eating because they are already full, if those neurons are still active, it can still drive those animals to eat more.” When the neurons Li studied were inactivated, it protected mice against long-term weight gain. The left image shows lipid droplets (red) in the liver of a mouse that had those neurons turned off. In contrast, the right image shows many more lipid droplets in mice that did not have the neurons turned off. Credit: Bo Li Lab/CSHL/2022 According to Li, almost no one succeeds in long-term weight management while treating obesity. Metabolic processes in the body often undo any progress made. Therapeutics may improve the chances of successful treatment, yet many drugs have undesirable side effects. “The medications currently available to aid weight management can cause significant side effects. So, a more targeted approach is needed,” Li says. “Identifying the brain circuitry that controls eating is important for developing better treatment options for people who struggle to control their weight.” Shutting Off Overeating Neurons When the team switched off the specific neurons, mice weren’t drawn to the fatty, sugary foods that had tempted them before. “They just happily ate and stayed healthy,” Li says. “They not only stopped gaining weight but also seemed to be much healthier overall.” Switching these neurons off reduced overeating and protected against obesity. It also boosted the animals’ physical activity, leading to weight loss and better metabolic health. Li and his team are exploring ways to manipulate the neurons that trigger hedonic eating. The next step, he says, is to map out how these neurons respond to different types of food and see what makes them so sensitive. He hopes this collaboration will lead to new strategies for effective anti-obesity therapeutics. For this study, Li and CSHL Associate Professor Stephen Shea combined their neuroscience expertise with CSHL Professor Tobias Janowitz’s expertise in metabolism and endocrinology. They also collaborated with CSHL Assistant Professor Semir Beyaz, an expert in gut and nutrition research. It’s part of an ongoing, multidisciplinary initiative at CSHL to research the connections between the brain and the body. Reference: “Neurotensin neurons in the extended amygdala control dietary choice and energy homeostasis” by Alessandro Furlan, Alberto Corona, Sara Boyle, Radhashree Sharma, Rachel Rubino, Jill Habel, Eva Carlotta Gablenz, Jacqueline Giovanniello, Semir Beyaz, Tobias Janowitz, Stephen David Shea and Bo Li, 20 October 2022, Nature Neuroscience. DOI: 10.1038/s41593-022-01178-3 The study was funded by the European Molecular Biology Organization, the Swedish Research Council, the Charles H. Revson Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Feil Family Neuroscience Endowment, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Northwell Health Affiliation, and the German Academic Scholarship Foundation.

Sound recordings show blue whales communicate during foraging and adjust migration based on food abundance, highlighting their adaptability to environmental changes. The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal to ever inhabit our planet. Despite its gargantuan size, many aspects of its biology, behavior, and ecology still elude us. This magnificent mammal spends most of its time below the ocean’s surface, out of sight from scientists seeking to unlock its mysteries. But even when we cannot observe blue whales by sight, we can hear their powerful vocalizations that travel hundreds of kilometers. Using sound recordings from the heart of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, MBARI researchers and their collaborators have discovered new dimensions of blue whales’ lives. We have learned how blue whales cooperate to forage and how they tune into the productivity of their ecosystem to decide when to embark on their annual long-distance migration for breeding. The blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) is the largest animal that has ever lived on Earth, yet we still have many unanswered questions about its biology and ecology. New research leverages audio recorded by an underwater microphone on MBARI’s cabled observatory to better understand the behavior of these behemoths. Credit: © NOAA An underwater microphone (hydrophone) on MBARI’s cabled observatory has been a valuable tool for studying whales that gather seasonally in the fertile waters of Monterey Bay. The microphone records the calls of whales—acoustic data that offer insight into the animals’ behavior. “Because whales and other marine mammals use sound in the essential life activities of communicating, foraging, navigating, socializing, and reproducing, there is a wealth of expressed consciousness in the ocean soundscape. We aim to tap that wealth to better understand and protect ocean life,” said John Ryan, a biological oceanographer at MBARI. Previous research by Ryan and collaborators at Stanford University—including incoming MBARI Postdoctoral Fellow William Oestreich—coupled the hydrophone’s extensive archive of acoustic data with field studies to better understand blue whale behavior. When blue whales dive out of sight beneath the ocean’s surface, scientists turn to the whales’ booming vocalizations to study their behavior. Credit: William Oestreich (NMFS Permit #16111) “Our past research efforts with collaborators from around Monterey Bay opened the door to understanding the behavioral context of patterns in the acoustic data collected on blue whales with MBARI’s hydrophone. This context has set the stage for a series of studies which leverage the incredible long-term view on behavior that this acoustic record provides,” said Oestreich. Now MBARI’s acoustic data have contributed to two new research studies about blue whales led by graduate students at Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove, California. A study[1] by David Cade, published in Animal Behaviour in December, examined feeding aggregations of blue whales in Monterey Bay. Cade was recently a postdoctoral researcher in Ari Friedlaender’s Bio-Telemetry and Behavioral Ecology Lab at University of California, Santa Cruz, and is now a postdoctoral researcher in Jeremy Goldbogen’s lab at Hopkins Marine Station. Leveraging biologging tags, acoustic prey mapping, hydrophone recordings of social cues, and remote sensing of ocean currents, the research team, including Oestreich and Ryan, investigated the ecosystem dynamics underlying unusually dense aggregations of blue whales—up to 40 of the giants within a one-kilometer radius area. Krill are small shrimp-like crustaceans that are the primary food source of blue whales. Dense aggregations of krill occur seasonally in Monterey Bay, sustaining populations of many marine animals. Credit: © 2003 MBARI “We are only just beginning to study the role of these giant, but ephemeral, krill patches that can feed a super-group of blue whales. These ‘hotspots’ likely play a critical role overall in a blue whale’s ability to find enough food before it swims south for the winter. The MBARI hydrophone is giving us new insights into not only blue whale behavior, but what that behavior can tell us about the prey conditions in Monterey Bay that are critical for the entire ecosystem,” said Cade. The combination of oceanographic conditions and seafloor terrain (bathymetry) concentrated large numbers of shrimp-like crustaceans called krill, which are the primary food of blue whales. The immense size of the krill swarms allowed these “supergroups” of blue whales to forage together without exhausting the food supply. Social Foraging Strategies of Blue Whales Ryan and Oestreich were studying all types of blue whale vocalizations, including one that is associated with foraging. “In the hours immediately preceding these remarkable aggregations of foraging blue whales, MBARI’s hydrophone recorded anomalously dense clusters of a specific blue whale call type. This exciting finding raised a number of questions and hypotheses concerning the role that these vocalizations play in blue whales’ foraging and sharing of information,” recalled Oestreich. By studying vocalizations from “supergroups” of blue whales while they feasted on krill in Monterey Bay, researchers observed that rather than keeping quiet about finding an abundance of food, individual whales called to others to share in the feast. Credit: © Duke Marine Robotics and Remote Sensing (NMFS Permit #16111) The hydrophone recordings revealed that, counterintuitively, the whales exhibited a social foraging strategy. The research team observed that rather than competing for food, blue whales called to other whales to signal food was present. The blues’ bellows invited others to join the feast. Modeling of social interactions indicated that using social information from other whales reduced the time required for individual whales to discover and exploit the dense patches of food that they need to survive. The whales’ foraging became more efficient, without any apparent costs to the caller who first found the patch of food. Migration Patterns Revealed by Whale Songs A second study,[2] led by Oestreich and published this month in Functional Ecology, also utilized MBARI’s acoustic archive to gain new insight into blue whale behavior. In 2020, Oestreich and a team of researchers from MBARI and Stanford University documented distinct seasonal changes in blue whale vocalizations that reveal when these gentle giants begin their annual migration. During summer and early fall, blue whales sing more during the night. Later in the fall and into winter, the whales begin singing more during the day. This change coincides with the time of year when the whales reduce feeding and begin their annual southward migration. Data from biologging tags confirmed that the acoustic signature detected by the hydrophone reflected changes in the whales’ behavior. Excerpt from a blue whale song recorded in Monterey Bay, California. To make the low-frequency sound more audible, playback speed is 10x original. This spectrogram illustrates the “A,” “B,” and “C” calls of blue whales, paired with audio of these same calls played back at ten times their original speed to make them easier to hear. This audio was recorded from MBARI’s hydrophone located in the heart of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The day/night pattern of “B calls” can be used as an indicator of whether the whales are feeding or migrating. Credit: © 2020 MBARI Now, Oestreich and his collaborators have used MBARI hydrophone data to understand how blue whales change the timing of their migration back to breeding areas from year to year. We have long known that whales time their migratory movements with natural cycles in their marine habitat, especially seasonal changes in productivity. But how populations adjust the timing of their migrations in response to year-to-year environmental variability remained unclear. The data, collected from summer 2015 through spring 2021, recorded the bellowing vocalizations of blue whales in the Monterey Bay region. Sound signaled when whales stopped foraging on the local abundance of krill to begin their southward breeding migration. To the team’s surprise, the start of the whales’ migration could vary up to four months from year to year. Considering that the blue whale breeding season itself spans only approximately four months, this large variation in the timing of migration was initially puzzling. Here, data about ecosystem changes from year to year offered important clues. Migration timing closely followed conditions within the whales’ foraging habitat. Specifically, blue whales lingered longer off central California when the ecosystem provided more opportunity for them to build energy stores. A later transition from foraging to migration occured in years with an earlier onset, later peak, and greater accumulation of biological productivity. A blue whale surfaces between foraging dives in Monterey Bay, California. Credit: William Oestreich (NMFS Permit #16111) These findings suggest that in years of the highest and most persistent biological productivity, blue whales wait to begin their southward migration. Researchers believe the whales do not simply depart toward their southern breeding grounds as soon as sufficient energy reserves are accumulated. Rather, the whales delay their migration when food is plentiful to maximize their energy intake on their foraging grounds. “We previously showed that blue whales use long-term memory to time their arrival on foraging grounds based on when they expect food to be available because they don’t have advance information about what foraging conditions will be like when they arrive. Yet when making the decision of when to depart foraging grounds, they have much more immediate information to rely on to determine whether it’s best to stay or leave. This allows these whales to be incredibly flexible in when they initiate their southward migration to return to breeding areas,” explained Briana Abrahms, an assistant professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Washington and a coauthor on the study on migration timing. “It’s really exciting to learn so much more about how and when these animals decide to make such massive movements in the ocean.” Adapting to Global Change The use of flexible cues—likely including foraging conditions and long-distance acoustic signals—in timing a major life history transition may be key to the persistence of this endangered population as it navigates an ecosystem that experiences large natural and anthropogenic changes. “This research indicates that blue whales are more flexible in their foraging and migratory behavior than previously realized. Such flexibility is critical for adaptation to an era of rapid global change—whether this behavioral flexibility allows blue whales to adapt to long-term changes in their foraging habitat remains to be seen,” said Oestreich. Open access to scientific data is a fundamental value for MBARI and part of the institute’s mission. As part of MBARI’s commitment to open collaboration, the original audio recordings for the entire study period are available through the Pacific Ocean Sound Recordings project via the Registry of Open Data on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud. “Scientific discovery and progress require transparency, reproducibility, and extensibility. Toward fulfilling these requirements, we share all of our audio recordings—150 terabytes and growing—together with an analysis toolbox,” said Ryan. “Our most recent confirmation of the value of open data occurred last week, when a tenth grader from Canada contacted me to show me how he had extended research from one of our published studies.” MBARI also streams live underwater audio to the Soundscape Listening Room to share the wonder and excitement of the ocean soundscape with the public. The live soundscape can be full of ocean “voices”—from the complex song compositions of humpback whales to the chatter of dolphin pods. The listening room also includes archived sounds for listening when the live stream is quiet. MBARI technology has proven invaluable to researchers studying the behavior of endangered blue whales. MBARI will expand these efforts in 2022 with the new Blue Whale Observatory. This new project—led by Oestreich and Ryan with marine ecologist Kelly Benoit-Bird and researcher Chad Waluk—will examine blue whale ecology in depth by integrating interdisciplinary sensing of the whales, krill, and their ecosystem. The observatory will leverage an array of technologies to bring together the pieces of a complex, important, and beautiful puzzle. References: “Social exploitation of extensive, ephemeral, environmentally controlled prey patches by supergroups of rorqual whales” by David E. Cade, James A. Fahlbusch, William K. Oestreich, John Ryan, John Calambokidis, Ken P. Findlay, Ari S. Friedlaender, Elliott L. Hazen, S. Mduduzi Seakamela and Jeremy A. Goldbogen, 19 November 2021, Animal Behaviour. DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.09.013 “Acoustic signature reveals blue whales tune life-history transitions to oceanographic conditions” by William K. Oestreich, Briana Abrahms, Megan F. McKenna, Jeremy A. Goldbogen, Larry B. Crowder and John P. Ryan, 3 February 2022, Functional Ecology. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14013

Yale researchers have uncovered evidence that babies can store memories far earlier than we once thought. Credit: SciTechDaily.com For years, scientists believed that our first memories vanished because the brain wasn’t developed enough to store them. But groundbreaking Yale research suggests otherwise. Infants can encode and recall memories—even if we can’t access them later in life. By using brain scans and eye-tracking, researchers found that when an infant’s hippocampus is more active, they are more likely to remember an image. This discovery challenges the idea of “infantile amnesia” and raises a fascinating question: Could our earliest experiences still be hidden deep in our minds, just beyond reach? Memories from Infancy: A Surprising Discovery We learn an incredible amount in our earliest years, yet as adults, we struggle to recall specific events from that time. Scientists have long believed this is because the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for memory, is still developing throughout childhood and isn’t capable of storing memories in infancy. However, new research from Yale challenges this idea. In a recent study, researchers presented infants with new images and later tested their recognition. They found that when an infant’s hippocampus was more active upon first seeing an image, the child was more likely to recognize it later. Published on March 20 in Science, these findings suggest that memories can indeed be encoded in the brain during infancy. The next step for researchers is to explore what happens to these early memories over time. Infantile Amnesia: The Mystery of Forgotten Early Memories The inability to recall specific experiences from the first years of life is known as “infantile amnesia,” but studying it presents unique challenges. “The hallmark of these types of memories, which we call episodic memories, is that you can describe them to others, but that’s off the table when you’re dealing with pre-verbal infants,” said Nick Turk-Browne, professor of psychology in Yale’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, director of Yale’s Wu Tsai Institute, and senior author of the study. How Scientists Measure Memory in Babies For the study, the researchers wanted to identify a robust way to test infants’ episodic memories. The team, led by Tristan Yates, a graduate student at the time and now a postdoctoral researcher at Columbia University, used an approach in which they showed infants aged four months to two years an image of a new face, object, or scene. Later, after the infants had seen several other images, the researchers showed them a previously seen image next to a new one. “When babies have seen something just once before, we expect them to look at it more when they see it again,” said Turk-Browne. “So in this task, if an infant stares at the previously seen image more than the new one next to it, that can be interpreted as the baby recognizing it as familiar.” Hippocampal Activity: A Key to Infant Memory In the new study, the research team, which over the past decade has pioneered methods for conducting functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with awake infants (which has historically been difficult because of infants’ short attention spans and inability to stay still or follow directions), measured activity in the infants’ hippocampus while they viewed the images. Specifically, the researchers assessed whether hippocampal activity was related to the strength of an infant’s memories. They found that the greater the activity in the hippocampus when an infant was looking at a new image, the longer the infant looked at it when it reappeared later. And the posterior part of the hippocampus (the portion closer to the back of the head) where encoding activity was strongest is the same area that’s most associated with episodic memory in adults. These findings were true across the whole sample of 26 infants, but they were strongest among those older than 12 months (half of the sample group). This age effect is leading to a more complete theory of how the hippocampus develops to support learning and memory, said Turk-Browne. Different Memory Pathways: Statistical Learning vs. Episodic Memory Previously, the research team found that the hippocampus of infants as young as three months old displayed a different type of memory called “statistical learning.” While episodic memory deals with specific events, like, say, sharing a Thai meal with out-of-town visitors last night, statistical learning is about extracting patterns across events, such as what restaurants look like, in which neighborhoods certain cuisines are found, or the typical cadence of being seated and served. These two types of memories use different neuronal pathways in the hippocampus. And in past animal studies, researchers have shown that the statistical learning pathway, which is found in the more anterior part of the hippocampus (the area closer to the front of the head), develops earlier than that of episodic memory. Therefore, Turk-Browne suspected that episodic memory may appear later in infancy, around one year or older. He argues that this developmental progression makes sense when thinking about the needs of infants. “Statistical learning is about extracting the structure in the world around us,” he said. “This is critical for the development of language, vision, concepts, and more. So it’s understandable why statistical learning may come into play earlier than episodic memory.” What Happens to Early Memories? Even still, the research team’s latest study shows that episodic memories can be encoded by the hippocampus earlier than previously thought, long before the earliest memories we can report as adults. So, what happens to these memories? There are a few possibilities, says Turk-Browne. One is that the memories may not be converted into long-term storage and thus simply don’t last long. Another is that the memories are still there long after encoding and we just can’t access them. And Turk-Browne suspects it may be the latter. In ongoing work, Turk-Browne’s team is testing whether infants, toddlers, and children can remember home videos taken from their perspective as (younger) babies, with tentative pilot results showing that these memories might persist until preschool age before fading. Could Early Memories Be Retrieved? The new findings, led by Yates, provides an important connection. “Tristan’s work in humans is remarkably compatible with recent animal evidence that infantile amnesia is a retrieval problem,” said Turk-Browne. “We’re working to track the durability of hippocampal memories across childhood and even beginning to entertain the radical, almost sci-fi possibility that they may endure in some form into adulthood, despite being inaccessible.” Explore Further: Scientists Reveal Why We Can’t Remember Our Earliest Years Reference: “Hippocampal encoding of memories in human infants” by Tristan S. Yates, Jared Fel, Dawoon Choi, Juliana E. Trach, Lillian Behm, Cameron T. Ellis and Nicholas B. Turk-Browne, 20 March 2025, Science. DOI: 10.1126/science.adt7570

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