PSYC3338 Chapter Notes - Chapter n/a: Synaptic Plasticity, Motor Coordination, Neuroplasticity
Document Summary
Targeted mental and physical exercises seem to improve the brain in unexpected ways. The brain is like a tree moving in the wind - first this way, then that way, depending on how experience pushes it. But, merzenich is talking about something bigger: this ability of the brain to reconfigure itself has more dramatic implications. Change the input (behavior, mental exercise, physical skill, etc. ) and the brain changes accordingly. Mri machines reveal the new map - different regions actually light up. Regions of the brain can be taught to do different tasks if need be. If one area has a dysfunction, another can step in and take over. But, there are many unknowns to this theory of training of the brain. Ex. we do not know the limits of it. No one knows just how plastic the adult brain is as opposed to the child"s, except that it is less so.
