Peak Ch. 2

Question 1

brain adaptability and training

Answer 1

• There is a growing body of evidence that the structure and function of the brain change in response to mental training in the same way that muscles do
• If you practice something enough, your brain will repurpose neurons to help you with the task even if they already have another job to do

Question 2

function of the hippocampus

Answer 2

engaged by spatial location

Question 3

Maguire, 2000 London Taxi Drivers study method

Answer 3

used MRIs to look at the brains of 16 male London taxi drivers and compared them to the brains of 50 other males of similar ages who were not taxi drivers

Question 4

Maguire, 2000 London Taxi Drivers study findings

Answer 4

She found that the posterior hippocampus was larger in taxi drivers than in other subjects and that the more time one had spent as a taxi driver, the larger the posterior hippocampus

Question 5

Maguire London Taxi Drivers follow-up study

Answer 5

In a follow-up study, Maguire found that the posterior hippocampi of taxi drivers were significantly larger than bus drivers who spend their days driving around the same route

Question 6

Maguire London Taxi Drivers prospective study

Answer 6

Maguire also conducted a prospective study and found that the posterior hippocampi of taxi drivers who had continued their training grew in size, but there was no change in size for the control group or for those who did not continue their training

Question 7

brains of blind and deaf people

Answer 7

The brains of blind and deaf people “rewire” themselves to find new uses for the parts of the brain that are normally used for processing sight/hearing

Question 8

what part of the brain to blind people use when they read in Braille?

Answer 8

the visual cortex

Question 9

3-fingered Braille readers study

Answer 9

Three-fingered Braille readers experience higher sensitivity in the three fingers they use, but not in their other fingers

Question 10

near-sighted patients study

Answer 10

A 2012 study found that near-sighted patients could read letters that were 60% smaller and read faster after 3 months of training 3 times per week

Question 11

how does practice help with nearsightedness?

Answer 11

Blurry images result from an inability to see small details and difficulties detecting differences in contrast, which improving the image processing in the brain can help with

Question 12

homeostasis

Answer 12

the tendency of a system to act in a way that maintains its stability

Question 13

feedback mechanisms in the body

Answer 13

• The body is equipped with feedback mechanisms that maintain the status quo
• When you engage in sustained, vigorous physical activity, homeostatic mechanisms can no longer compensate and they activate different genes from the cells’ DNA, resulting in a change in the cell’s behaviour and the restoration of homeostasis

Question 14

how do you keep a homeostatic change from reversing?

Answer 14

you keep pushing yourself

Question 15

rat and homeostasis study

Answer 15

One study counted 112 genes that were turned on in response to a rat’s rapid increase in the use of a muscle in its rear legs, which eventually strengthened the rat’s muscles

Question 16

how does the brain adapt to mental activities?

Answer 16

• In the case of mental activities, the brain rewires its networks to strengthen and weaken brain connections, add new connections, and get rid of old ones
• The brain can also increase the amount of myelin to allow nerve signals to travel more quickly

Question 17

learning a new skill vs. practicing a skill that one has already learned

Answer 17

Learning a new skill is much more effective at triggering structural changes in the brain than continuing to practice a skill one has already learned

Question 18

Taub, 1995 string instrument players study findings

Answer 18

• The area of the brain controlling the left hand was significantly larger in musicians than in nonmusicians
• The brain areas controlling the fingers had taken over a section of the brain that was normally devoted to the palm
• The earlier a musician had started to play their instrument, the greater the expansion
• There was no difference between the musicians and nonmusicians in the size of the region controlling the fingers of the right hand

Question 19

Taub, 1995 string instrument players study takeaway

Answer 19

Taub’s study demonstrates that years of practice on a stringed instrument had caused the area of the brain that controls the fingers of the left hand to gradually expand, resulting in a greater ability to control those fingers

Question 20

impact of regular training on the brain

Answer 20

Regular training leads to changes in the parts of the brain that are challenged by the training

Question 21

brain differences in musicians

Answer 21

• The cerebellum is larger in musicians than in nonmusicians and the more hours of training a musician has had, the larger their cerebellum
• Musicians have more gray matter than nonmusicians do in various regions of the cortex, including the somatosensory region, the superior parietal region, and the premotor cortex

Question 22

brain differences in mathmaticians

Answer 22

• The inferior parietal lobule has more gray matter in mathematicians than non-mathematicians, which is a function of the number of years they spent as a mathematician
• This was observed in Einstein

Question 23

brain differences in pilots

Answer 23

The brains of pilots have more gray area in several areas including the left ventral premotor cortex, the anterior cingulate cortex, and the supplementary eye field, all of which are involved in the tasks needed to fly

Question 24

brain differences in divers

Answer 24

Cortical thickness is higher in competitive divers than in non-divers

Question 25

impact of age on brain malleability

Answer 25

Younger brains are more adaptable than older brains

Question 26

bent-twig effect

Answer 26

training at early ages can shape the course of later development

Question 27

example of the bent twig effect

Answer 27

adult pianists generally have more white matter in certain regions of the brain than nonmusicians, with the difference being attributed to the amount of time spent practicing in childhood. This leads to nerve signals being transmitted more quickly

Question 28

downside to brain malleability

Answer 28

Often, people who have developed one skill to an extraordinary ability have regressed in another area

Question 29

example of skill regression

Answer 29

The London taxi drivers performed worse on a standard test of spatial memory than the non-licensed drivers and the control condition

Question 30

upkeep and brain malleability

Answer 30

The cognitive and physical changes caused by training require upkeep

Question 31

example of upkeep and brain malleability

Answer 31

Retired London taxi drivers had less gray matter in their posterior hippocampus than active taxi drivers, though they still had more than the control condition

Question 32

do most of us engage in deliberate practice?

Answer 32

no, most of us favour “good enough” and don’t push ourselves to become expert

Question 33

the traditional approach and homeostasis

Answer 33

The traditional approach to learning doesn’t challenge homeostasis

Question 34

importance of deliberate practice

Answer 34

Deliberate practice allows you to reach your potential and make things possible that weren’t possible before