Download Summary of: Stevens, Alison P. "Learning Rewires the Brain

Summary of:
Stevens, Alison P. "Learning Rewires the Brain." Student Science.
https://student.societyforscience.org/article/learning-rewires-brain, 2 Sept.
2014. Web.
Summary By: Jonathan Rice, Andre Lavigne, Kevin Strand, and Jordan Raymond
For Dr. Mills PSYC 100 class, Fall, 2014
In this article we learn that doing something over and over again doesn’t just
make it easier, but it actually changes the brain. Exactly how these processes
happen though is still unknown, however scientists have known that the brain
continues to develop up through our adolescence to adulthood. What we have
learned is that our brain never stops growing even when it is fully matured. We
know that our brain keeps changing, cells keep growing, and they will always
continue to do that as long as we continue learning. Scientists have just begun
unlocking these secrets of how we learn, not only in big pieces of brain tissue, but
even within individual cells.
We know that different parts of the brain have different functions, for example
the prefrontal cortex is the region right behind our foreheads where solve problems.
Other parts of the cortex on the outer parts of the brain help us process sights and
sounds. Deep in the brain where the hippocampus is located helps store memories
while also making sure you stay aware of your surroundings.
Scientists can see what part of the brain is active by using functional
magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI. The fMRI device uses a strong magnet to
detect changes in blood flow. Scientists can use the fMRI reveal where the blood is
flowing in the brain at the highest rate, seeing the boost of blood flow in cells
highlights which cells in particular are working the hardest.
After more research scientists found that areas that allow people to pay
attention became most active as someone begins a new task, but those attention
areas became less active over time. Other areas of the brain linked with
daydreaming and mind-wandering became more active as people became more
familiar with a task. With extensive practice a person can perform a task thinking
about other things or without think nothing at all.
The brain is made up of billions of nerve cells called neurons. Incoming
signals in the brain cause a listening neuron to fire or send signals of its own. A cell
fires these when an electrical signal travels through it. The signal moves away from
what is called the cell body down through a structure called an axon. When the
signal reaches the end of the axon, it triggers the release of those chemical
messengers. This continues throughout the cells and triggers the next cells to fire
and this process goes on and on.
As our brain learns something new, our cells send and receive specific
information about the task we are attempting to complete to become more
efficient. In a sense the neurons become wired together, neurons can signal several
of their neighbors at once. For example one neuron can transmit information about
the location of a baseball pitch thats flying toward you while also having other
neurons alert your muscles to get ready to swing the bat. When the neurons are
firing at the same time the connections between those neurons strengthen.
Our brain does quite the contrary of shutting down while we sleep. This is
because when we sleep, our brains store memories and the new information we
learned from that day. This means a poor night’s sleep can hurt our ability to retain
new information we learned that day. Specific cells in the hippocampus involve
storing memories, but these cells didn’t fire normally. Scientists found that instead of
electrical signals spontaneously fired near the middle of an axon, then traveled back
in the direction of the cell body. While we slept scientists found that our cells fired in
reverse.
Neurons are not the only type of cell in the brain, another type called glia
actually makes up a 85 percent of brain cells. For a long time, scientists thought that
glia simply held neurons together, but more recently they have found that glia
become active during learning. A certain type of glial cell wraps around certain nerve
axons. These wrapping cells create what’s known as the myelin sheath. Myelin
consists of protein and other fatty substances that insulates the axons. In axons, the
myelin sheath also has a second role which is that It actually speeds the electrical
signals along. That’s because glial cells force a signal to jump from one spot on the
axon to the next. As it hops between glial cells, the signal moves faster.
Outline of:
Stevens, Alison P. "Learning Rewires the Brain." Student Science.
https://student.societyforscience.org/article/learning-rewires-brain, 2 Sept.
2014. Web.
Learning Rewires the Brain Outline
A. TRAINING
a. It takes time and patience to learn new information
i. Athletes and scholars all do the same
B. GROWTH
a. The brain continue to change even after maturity
i. Cells grow or quit talking to other cells
b. Embryo’s brains forms different parts of the brain early into
pregnancy
i. 6 to 7 weeks in pregnancy
C. STUDIES
a. FMRI’s find the active part of the brain
b. Nathan Spreng
i. How the brain works when we learn
ii. Focused attention first, followed by daydreaming after
comfortable
c. Wiring
i. Spreng discovered the wiring of neurons
D. SLEEP
a. Learning
i. Doesn’t stop when asleep
ii. Storing of memories from the previous day
b. Mice
i. Cells fired in reverse while asleep
ii. Boosted learning, cell connection stronger
iii. Cells learning new info fire backwards
E. GILAL
a. Type of cells
i. Active during learning
F. LEARNING
a. Slowly is better
i. Spacing out over time improves ability to remember
b. Aha! Moment
i. Comes from the steady accumulation of information
Test Questions
1. Brain development stops completely once the brain has matured. T/F
2. For some, thinking about a complex task while performing it can actually
hinder the performance. T/F
3. When someone learns new information, the size of the myelin sheath on the
nerve cells of the brain increases. T/F
4. How long into an embryo’s gestation period does the brain begin to form into
different parts?
a.
8 months
b.
3 months
c.
6 weeks
d.
5 days
5.
When one falls asleep, the neurons associated with learning new things are
most likely to:
a.
Shut down
b.
Continue firing normally
c.
Fire faster than they would while conscious
d.
Fire in reverse
6.
The best way for the brain to learn and retain new information is:
.
To introduce new information quickly and rapidly
a.
To introduce new information slowly
Answer Key
1. False. Recent research has shown that the brain continues to grow and
develop well into adulthood.
2. True. People who have extensively practiced a certain task, such as playing a
musical instrument, are often able to perform the task without thinking.
Conscious thought regarding the task at hand has been shown to interfere
with the performance of the task.
3. True. The glial cells that make up the myelin sheath help electrical signals
move through the neuron faster. This increases the ability of the neuron to
send signals, and therefore help an individual learn better.
4. C. 6 weeks. Even at this early stage of development, the human brain will
begin to have specialized areas.
5. D. Fire in reverse. The process of cells firing in reverse helps to improve the
connection between them, and make the information easier to retain.
6. B. To introduce new information slowly. Learning new things at a slower
pace gives neuron pathways a chance to strengthen, as well as give the
myelin sheaths a better chance to insulate the pathways.