The prefrontal cortex changes dramatically during the adolescent period. Gray matter declines in late adolescence years. It contains cell body and connections between cells, called synapses, and this decline corresponds to synapses pruning. Synapses pruning is the elimination of unwanted synapses. This process is partly dependent upon the environment. Synapses that are exercised are being strengthened and those that are not will be pruned away.…
1. One explanation for the advance in fine motor skills during middle school involves the increase in the amount of myelin in the brain.…
Our brains shape and reshape themselves in ways that depend on what we use them for throughout our lives. Learning language is a nice example of how experiences contribute to each person's unique pattern of brain development.…
Myelination for human began since the 14th week of prenatal development and this process will only be completed until someone reaches 20 up to 30 year of age. Myelination firstly takes place at the brain stem and cerebellum, and lastly expanding to the frontal lobes. Some of frontal lobe function includes decision-making, complex planning, and logical thinking. Thus, scientists presume that as myelin expands, the ability for someone to make a better judgment and assessment of situation will improve as…
To begin with, the changes that the young brain undertakes to create a complex organ are ultimately much faster and mature by the end of the long session. The neurons used to send signals around the body consist of nerve fibers, which slowly become insulated with Myelin, boosting the Axon’s transmission speed up to a hundred times (Dobbs 2011). The dendrites, which are root-like stems connected to the cell body, begin to grow richer and stronger as they use heavier synapses to pass information to another (Dobbs 2011). The less commonly used synapses consequently begin to weaken. It is called synaptic pruning, which causes the brain’s cortex to become thinner yet more proficient (Dobbs 2011). “Physiologically, adolescence brings a peak in the brain's sensitivity to dopamine, a neurotransmitter that appears to prime and fire reward circuits and aids in learning patterns and making decisions” (Dobb 2011)…
We’ve all heard music before. We listen to it every day. We sing it out for all the world to hear, whether we actually know how to sing in tune or not. Music is a large part of American society, American culture, and the American people. It’s in every aspect of our lives but somehow, it slips under the radar of importance. After all, how important can pop music with bad messages and even worse grammar be to an entire nation? In all honesty, it’s actually pretty important. Music in America is formulated, manufactured, and sold to the impressionable youths of our country.…
Babies at 1 year old can speak 2 to 4 simple words, for example mum and dad.…
Recently, one of the scientist called, Takuto Hatase has been studying about the differences between teenage boys and girls’ brain, to solve the problem that so many people have wondered. How does teenage boys and girls’ brain develop differently. We all know that there are slice differences, but Dr. Hatase is the first person who have studied how they are different. He generally studied three maijer area of the brain between girls and boys’ brain.…
The developmental stage of midlife has traditionally been studied less than many of the other developmental stages of life. The goal of this paper is to examine some of the aspects of midlife that are of particular interest as a greater number of people pass through this stage of their lives than ever before. This paper will attempt to shed light on the more notable choices and challenges of midlife, how traditional ideas about midlife may be shifting as this large demographic passes through and how our collective perception expands and evolves. In an ever-changing world, the successful navigation of midlife will involve adjusting and transitioning more than ever before.…
New research suggests that the development of a child’s brain starts when they are still in the womb. By the time they are born they already have millions of neurons already present and this number should remain fairly stable throughout their life. They start to learn mainly in the last 3 months before they are born and should (after birth) already be able to recognise familiar sounds and have some preference to certain tastes.…
According to Ormrod (2016), young children have more synapses than adults do, however the high amount of synapses that are growing eventually comes to a stop (p. 24). The auditory cortex begins to stop at about 3 months of age, the visual cortex stops at around 12 months of age, and lastly the frontal lobes stop at the age of 2-3 years old. During synaptic pruning, synapses that are proven to be useless, will die off and disintegrate (Ormrod, 2016, p. 24). Being that the loss of synapses is guaranteed to happen to every child, many researchers find that when a child is surrounded in a stimulation-rich environment, the child has a head start with academics as well as athletics (Ormrod, 2016, p. 32). When the environment that the child is submerged in is high in rich learning, the synaptic pruning proves to be more of a positive and useful process, rather than a detriment. Ormrod (2016) states that visual perception and language are two major concepts that are experience-expectant, which means that the experiences that humans encounter within their…
What are some examples of the physical and cognitive changes people go through when they enter late adulthood?…
This pruning back in adolescence allows the brain to keep the synapses that are being used most frequently and make them stronger. Myelin insulates the synapses that are the most used, making them stronger and more efficient. The synapses that aren’t being used are pruned back. There is a large amount of growth in synapses in adolescence, but in order to have strong connections in the most used areas the synapses that are not used are pruned back. The flexibility of the synapses in these early years helps adolescents to acquire new skills more quickly than adults. Behaviors or talents that are more frequently practiced have strengthened synapses. If not used, difficulties for the adolescent become more challenging because the synapses…
The brain is influenced in many different ways. The most important factors in brain development start with genetics, nutrition, and responsiveness from parents, daily experiences, and physical interactions. Parents need to know that children are learning and accepting more information that a fully grown adult. Children need positive and sensitive feedback from family. In the past, scientist believed that the human brains development was determined by a biologically determined path (Brotherson, 2005). This means that the brain would develop genetically through family, but leading technology and science proved that the brain is not predetermined genetically by family. The brain matures through the five senses: smell, touch, vision, taste, and hearing. The experiences that the five senses bring are very crucial to help build the connections that guide brain development.…
The brains of infants and children are known to be plastic, undergoing spurts of neuronal development in response to stimulus exposure during critical periods (Mundkur, 2005). This development consists of the genesis of neurons, increased connectivity between neurons and the routing of new synaptic connections between previously unrelated neurons. There is an incredible increase in synapses occurs during the first year of life. The functional architecture of the brain is created through the development of these synapses. By the time a child is three years old, a baby's brain has formed about 1,000 trillion connections about twice as many as adults have. Near age eleven, a child's brain begins eliminating the extra connections in a process calling "pruning".…