The following excerpts are taken from The Brain that Changes Itself, by Norman Doidge, When Bright Children Can't Learn, by John F. Heath, and Unlock the Einstein Inside: Applying New Brain Science to Wake Up the Smart in Your Child, by Ken Gibson.
Old Brain Science: Hardwired, Unchangeable
"For four hundred years mainstream medicine and science believed that brain anatomy was fixed . . . that after childhood the brain changed only when it began the long process of decline; that when brain cells failed to develop properly, or were injured, or died, they could not be replaced. Nor could the brain ever alter its structure and find a new way to function if part of it was damaged. (This) theory decreed that people who were born with brain or mental limitations, or who sustained brain damage, would be limited or damaged for life" (Doidge).
"For most of the past century, the mind was referred to as a "black box." It was the most mysterious three pound of matter known to man. Only a few years ago, medical students were still taught that the mind is like blank computer chips. If the components are not assembled correctly or parts are damaged, you are stuck with "defective merchandise." This was called the "hardwired" theory . . . if early brain development is not adequate, you are out of luck" (Heath).
And out of HOPE.
New Brain Science: Neuroplasticity
"Today, the black box has been unlocked and neuroscientists are able to peer inside. Although the view is not perfect, what they are seeing is astonishing and the "hardwired" theory is being tossed out as brain research undergoes a mammoth revolution. It is now known that the brain can rewire itself, grow new cells to replace damaged cells, reroute pathways where blockage occurs and develop new networks to make performance stronger and easier. Neuroscientists call this phenomenon "plasticity," something that was thought to be impossible only a few years ago. Because of . . brain . . plasticity, it is constantly changing cell connections and remodeling itself. This remodeling is dramatically affected by our ongoing experiences" (Heath).
"Neuro is for "neuron," the nerve cells in our brains and nervous systems. Plastic is for "changeable, malleable, modifiable." At first many of the scientists didn't dare use the word "neuroplasticity" in their publications, and their peers belittled them for promoting a fanciful notion. Yet they persisted, slowly overturning the doctrine of the unchanging brain. They showed that children are not always stuck with the mental abilities they are born with; that the damaged brain brain can often reorganize itself so that when one part fails, another can often substitute; that if brain cells die, they can at times be replaced . . . that circuits . . .we think are hardwired are not.
In the course of my travels I met a scientist who enabled people who had been blind since birth begin to see, another who enabled the deaf to hear; I spoke with people who had strokes decades before and had been declared incurable, who were helped to recover with neuroplastic treatments; I met peole whose learning disorders were cured and whose IQs were raised; I saw evidence that it is possible for eighty-year-olds to sharpen their memories to function the way they did when they were fifty-five. I saw people rewire their brains with their thoughts, to cure previously incurable obsessions and traumas.
The idea that the brain can change its own structure and function through thought and activity is, I believe, the most important alteration in our view of the brain since we first sketched out its basic anatomy and the workings of its basic component, the neuron" (Doidge).
For more from these books . . .
Plastic is Fantastic for Your Brain, Psychology Today
Review this page often to read more on Neuroplasticity!
Old Brain Science: Hardwired, Unchangeable
"For four hundred years mainstream medicine and science believed that brain anatomy was fixed . . . that after childhood the brain changed only when it began the long process of decline; that when brain cells failed to develop properly, or were injured, or died, they could not be replaced. Nor could the brain ever alter its structure and find a new way to function if part of it was damaged. (This) theory decreed that people who were born with brain or mental limitations, or who sustained brain damage, would be limited or damaged for life" (Doidge).
"For most of the past century, the mind was referred to as a "black box." It was the most mysterious three pound of matter known to man. Only a few years ago, medical students were still taught that the mind is like blank computer chips. If the components are not assembled correctly or parts are damaged, you are stuck with "defective merchandise." This was called the "hardwired" theory . . . if early brain development is not adequate, you are out of luck" (Heath).
And out of HOPE.
New Brain Science: Neuroplasticity
"Today, the black box has been unlocked and neuroscientists are able to peer inside. Although the view is not perfect, what they are seeing is astonishing and the "hardwired" theory is being tossed out as brain research undergoes a mammoth revolution. It is now known that the brain can rewire itself, grow new cells to replace damaged cells, reroute pathways where blockage occurs and develop new networks to make performance stronger and easier. Neuroscientists call this phenomenon "plasticity," something that was thought to be impossible only a few years ago. Because of . . brain . . plasticity, it is constantly changing cell connections and remodeling itself. This remodeling is dramatically affected by our ongoing experiences" (Heath).
"Neuro is for "neuron," the nerve cells in our brains and nervous systems. Plastic is for "changeable, malleable, modifiable." At first many of the scientists didn't dare use the word "neuroplasticity" in their publications, and their peers belittled them for promoting a fanciful notion. Yet they persisted, slowly overturning the doctrine of the unchanging brain. They showed that children are not always stuck with the mental abilities they are born with; that the damaged brain brain can often reorganize itself so that when one part fails, another can often substitute; that if brain cells die, they can at times be replaced . . . that circuits . . .we think are hardwired are not.
In the course of my travels I met a scientist who enabled people who had been blind since birth begin to see, another who enabled the deaf to hear; I spoke with people who had strokes decades before and had been declared incurable, who were helped to recover with neuroplastic treatments; I met peole whose learning disorders were cured and whose IQs were raised; I saw evidence that it is possible for eighty-year-olds to sharpen their memories to function the way they did when they were fifty-five. I saw people rewire their brains with their thoughts, to cure previously incurable obsessions and traumas.
The idea that the brain can change its own structure and function through thought and activity is, I believe, the most important alteration in our view of the brain since we first sketched out its basic anatomy and the workings of its basic component, the neuron" (Doidge).
For more from these books . . .
Plastic is Fantastic for Your Brain, Psychology Today
Review this page often to read more on Neuroplasticity!