brain plasticity Flashcards
what is brain plasticity?
the brains tendency to change and adapt as a result of experiences and new learning.
this generally involves the growth of new connections.
According to Gopnik, at what age does the no. of synaptic connections peak in the human brain?
Age 2-3 years old approx
what happens to synaptic connections as we age?
As we age, rarely used connections are deleted and frequently used connections are strengthened.
what is synaptic pruning?
synaptic pruning is a process where rarely used connections are deleted and frequently used connections are strengthened.
synaptic pruning allows what to happen?
synaptic pruning allows lifelong plasticity
which 2 researchers studied plasticity?
Maguire et al. (2000) and Draganski (2006)
what did Maguire research?
the brains of London taxi drivers
what did Maguire find in the brains of taxi drivers?
Maguire found that taxi drivers had a higher volume of grey matter in the posterior hippocampus than in a matched control group.
what is the posterior hippocampus associated with?
the posterior hippocampus is associated with spatial and navigational skills.
what was the explanation as to why taxi drivers had more grey matter in their posterior hippocampus than a matched control group?
taxi drivers had more grey matter as they had to memorise a large amount of possible routes in London, therefore this area of the brain is used more than in non-taxi drivers.
what did Maguire discover about the amount of grey matter and the amount of time that the taxi drivers had worked for?
Maguire found that the longer the taxi drivers had been in the job, the more pronounced the structural difference in their brain.
Positive correlation.
what did Draganski research?
Draganski researched the brains of med students before their final exam and after
what was the method used in Draganski’s research?
Draganski imaged the brains of med students 3 months before their final exam and after it.
what did Draganski find by imaging the brains of med students?
Draganski found that learning-induced changes were seen to have occurred in the posterior hippocampus and parietal cortex, presumably as a result of the learning.
