"Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science"

Here we have an interesting book on the brain and how it operates, and how that may differ to our past thinking. That being that the brain is 'plastic' and can be moulded throughout our lives, it's by no means a fixed state. This has huge implications of course and this book delves into this whole subject…

It was recommended to me by someone at HiveFest last year (that being the yearly meetup put on for those involved with the Hive blockchain). On the last night, I had a fascinating discussion with a couple of people on some of these concepts and a whole lot more - a story for another day - and this book was mentioned. So a couple of months later, I got round to adding it on my kindle.

Neuroplasticity does pop up once in a while in this BookBabble series, in particular You Are The Placebo may complement this well.

That said, let's jump in…

Some highlighted sections from the book followed by my additional thoughts…

neuroplasticity

The crux of the book and what we're talking about here. The whole subject of your brain being malleable. Humans are adaptation machines and this whole science proves and showcases this. It's just what we do and how we differ from other animals. They mainly have instinct (and some learning), we are useless for several years at the start but build from there, and continue until we die.

Younger people's brains change most of course, in a structural sense, plus they're learning more. And the brain is like a sponge during earlier years. It still applies if you're older, it's just it may be harder to do and take conscious effort as we're more set in our ways and have had years of conditioning.

Neuro is for “neuron,” the nerve cells in our brains and nervous systems. Plastic is for “changeable, malleable, modifiable.”

An explanation of the above. The neurons are the happy little fellows running around firing, and we can affect those through are thinking and actions.

One of these scientists even showed that thinking, learning, and acting can turn our genes on or off, thus shaping our brain anatomy and our behavior—surely one of the most extraordinary discoveries of the twentieth century.

Now we're talking epigenetics - gene modification.

Neuroplasticity has the power to produce more flexible but also more rigid behaviors—a phenomenon I call “the plastic paradox.”

Once behaviours are set, they become hard to change. This can be good or bad news depending what they are. We can use this to our advantage but quite often it can lead to the negative consequences over time.

A third of the elderly fall, and because they fear falling, they stay home, don’t use their limbs, and become more physically frail.

A self-fulfilling prophecy if you will. People get old before their time simply through fear of what may happen. Then by not getting exercise and stimulation, they actually become older.

localizationism

This is the theory that different brain functions can be localised to particular physical regions of the brain. This was long established but is disputed here, at least to a degree.

sensory substitution

Replacing one sense with another using a device. Bit complicated to go into here but see the wiki entry for more.

We see with our brains, not with our eyes

The eyes are light receptors which takes in the photons and sends it to the brain to be processed. There's a part of your brain that then deciphers that light and you 'see' the image. The same happens with sound, you 'hear' in the brain, your ears are receptors of sound waves.

Language development, for instance, has a critical period that begins in infancy and ends between eight years and puberty. After this critical period closes, a person’s ability to learn a second language without an accent is limited. In fact, second languages learned after the critical period are not processed in the same part of the brain as is the native tongue.

Things work a bit differently after those early years. Not only is it much easier in an anecdotal sense, science backs it up. Languages are hard to learn in later years (and you really need the motivation/necessity to do so) and you'll sound like a foreigner. If you learn it along with your native language you'll be near native in that tongue too.

Neurons that fire together wire together

A nice little saying that illustrates the point well. An example of the law of attraction in a way.

Neurons that fire apart wire apart—or Neurons out of sync fail to link

The opposite of the above. If they don't fire together then you won't make those connections stick.

Finally, Merzenich discovered that paying close attention is essential to long-term plastic change. In numerous experiments he found that lasting changes occurred only when his monkeys paid close attention. When the animals performed tasks automatically, without paying attention, they changed their brain maps, but the changes did not last. We often praise “the ability to multitask.” While you can learn when you divide your attention, divided attention doesn’t lead to abiding change in your brain maps.

It goes back to deliberate practice (discussed in Cal Newport's So Good They Can't Ignore You and elsewhere). Not just going through the motions but actually focusing full attention, getting feedback, and improving upon that. The 10,000 hours theory is based on deliberate practice rather than passively totting up the hours.

That reminds me: there were a lot of experiments on animals referenced in this book, which some readers may find not to their liking.

If you can’t register something clearly, you won’t be able to remember it well.

A clear entry with a hook that makes it stick.

That’s why learning a new language in old age is so good for improving and maintaining the memory generally. Because it requires intense focus, studying a new language turns on the control system for plasticity and keeps it in good shape for laying down sharp memories of all kinds.

Just because it's harder doesn't make it less worthwhile. In fact, the reasons for doing so go beyond just speaking that language when you visit the country. Just doing it as a hobby, like you would with various puzzles and the like keeps the brain active and engaged.

Source

actor Christopher Reeve, who suffered a severe spinal injury, demonstrated such plasticity, when he was able, through relentless exercise, to recover some feeling and mobility seven years after his accident.

Ol' superman had an unfortunate accident falling off a horse many years back, and this was a reference to him improving somewhat using these techniques.

If the parent is warm, gentle, and reliable, the child will frequently develop a taste for that kind of relationship later on; if the parent is disengaged, cool, distant, self-involved, angry, ambivalent, or erratic, the child may seek out an adult mate who has similar tendencies.

Children will mimic, mirror and learn (and subsequently act) from example. Monkey see, monkey do. At the very least it will have huge influence and require a big change as an adult to redress the balance.

We must be learning if we are to feel fully alive, and when life, or love, becomes too predictable and it seems like there is little left to learn, we become restless-a protest, perhaps, of the plastic brain when it can no longer perform its essential task.

You need to be stimulated enough to be interested and not bored, but not so much that it causes stress. A happy medium, which although not directly related is discussed in the book Flow.

“long-term potentiation,” or LTP

A process involving persistent strengthening of synapses that leads to a long-lasting increase in signal transmission between neurons.

“long-term depression,” or LTD

LTD encompasses a family of synaptic plasticity mechanisms that can be triggered by the synaptic or pharmacological activation of glutamate receptors. Apparently.

young people who doubt they will be able to handle the responsibilities of parenting are not aware of the extent to which oxytocin may change their brains, allowing them to rise to the occasion.

You just don't know until the time comes… with anything. People tend to rise to the occasion through necessity if nothing else. They can't see themselves performing with their current level of understanding but when push comes to shove, you get it done and deal with it on the fly.

learned non-use

Learned nonuse occurs when an individual suppresses the use of their affected limb, often after a stroke has impaired movement on that side. People get used to things a certain way after a while - use it or lose it!

training is more effective if the skill closely relates to everyday life; training should be done in increments; and work should be concentrated into a short time

Keep it similar to what the learner is used to or can relate to. Make it more fun and relevant. Not too much in one go, and shorter, focused bursts.

Many of these same principles are used in “immersion” learning of a foreign language.

Yep, best way to learn a language (in conjunction with other methods). I helped to coordinate a language immersion program myself (as well as volunteer) so can attest to some of what takes place.

The first step is for a person having an OCD attack to relabel what is happening to him, so that he realizes that what he is experiencing is not an attack of germs, AIDS, or battery acid but an episode of OCD.

There's a wholes section on OCD.

This is where someone having an attack just takes a step back and observes what's really going on. The point here is the OCD (an anxiety disorder), not the actual outward compulsion itself.

This relabeling allows them to get some distance from the content of the obsession and view it in somewhat the same way Buddhists view suffering in meditation: they observe its effects on them and so slightly separate themselves from it.

Become the observer rather than being too caught up in the situation.

After a patient has acknowledged that the worry is a symptom of OCD, the next crucial step is to refocus on a positive, wholesome, ideally pleasure-giving activity the moment he becomes aware he is having an OCD attack.

Pattern interrupt, re-frame and refocus attention. This moves things in the other direction and down a path of positivity and relaxation.

With obsessions and compulsions, the more you do it, the more you want to do it; the less you do it, the less you want to do it.

Habit, pure and simple.

Clearly mental practice is an effective way to prepare for learning a physical skill with minimal physical practice.

Visualisation is touted by many as a great tool and as important as any physical action. Studies have shown that just the mental practice gains results in its own.

Everything your “immaterial” mind imagines leaves material traces. Each thought alters the physical state of your brain synapses at a microscopic level. Each time you imagine moving your fingers across the keys to play the piano, you alter the tendrils in your living brain.

There are physical actions that result from visualising. It's not just a pie in the sky, woo woo type thing. It helps to put you in a better frame of mind, mentally rehearse what you need/want to do but also sets off physical actions, even if unseen.

French philosopher René Descartes

Ol' Descartes was a French philosopher, scientist, and mathematician, widely considered a seminal figure in the emergence of modern philosophy and science. He gets a little mention here and maybe worth more reading?

we cannot be so sure that thought won’t someday be explained in physical terms.

It already is to a degree but it's becoming more and more apparent that it can be explained in physical science terms and not just an esoteric theory sense.

Our genes have two functions. The first, the “template function,” allows our genes to replicate, making copies of themselves that are passed from generation to generation. The template function is beyond our control.

It's around 50/50. Half of what we are is genetically passed on, so we can't do all that much about that. The other half is a free-for-all so we can alter that how we wish.

The second is the “transcription function.” Each cell in our body contains all our genes, but not all those genes are turned on, or expressed.

Genes can be turned on and off and adjusted. All interconnected.

For children to know and regulate their emotions, and be socially connected, they need to experience this kind of interaction many hundreds of times in the critical period and then to have it reinforced later in life.

Going back to what we said earlier. Behaviours need to be reinforced with repetition in the early years, and once again in later years.

Procedural/implicit memory

Long-term memory of things we do almost unconsciously. Cleaning our teeth for example.

“explicit” or “declarative” memory

Recollection of facts and events that you consciously recall.

transference

A redirection of one's own emotions onto others.

dissociation

Detachment from the world around you.

dilettantism

A dabbler. Someone who has shallow interest in many things, but doesn't go deep.

Thanks Norman! Anything Else?

This is an in-depth science book and not a light read, but does a thorough job of expanding our understanding on the topic.

There are case studies of various people and experiments that support the concepts laid out. If you're into all that, then this is well worth a read. At the very least, it will help to expand on your knowledge and open the door to possibilities.

Interesting as it is, I won't be going back for a second read myself. I get the concepts and I'm more into how things can be used rather than the background that leads us there. Many love all that nitty-gritty data and all, so this would be great for them to get their teeth into.

As I say, check out my 'You Are The Placebo' BookBabble if you so wish, as that covers some similar ground. There's obviously plenty of other material on the subject out there too.

Happy reading!

First image my own, second linked to source

Check out the others in the series…

BookBabble #35: "The Brain That Changes Itself" by Norman Doidge

Some highlighted sections from the book followed by my additional thoughts…

Thanks Norman! Anything Else?