Next time you feel positive or rewarded for something you've done consider the complex interaction at work in the brain of chemistry, emotions and decision making. For his work in neuromodulation and behaviour, Professor Ray Dolan of University College London is one of the winners of this year's Max Planck Research Award. The 1.5 million euro award of the Max Planck Society and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research. Professor Dolan is a pioneer of neurobehavioural research and heads the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging at UCL. Neuroimaging uses fMRI scans - functional Magnetic Resource Resonance Imaging - a technique allowing brain activity to be measured in near real time and offers a picture of which parts of the brain is at work and a way towards measuring brain activity. Guy Degen spoke with Professor Dolan while he was in Bonn this week for the award presentation and first asked him to discuss the chemistry of the brain and its relationship to our emotions and cognitive processes.