Brain Plasticity

Hebbian Principle

Neurons that fire together wire together and neurons that fire our of sync lose their link

Brain Development in Childhood

The brain is very malleable with heightened plasticity
During brain development experiences have a large impact on brain development and guiding synaptic pruning and rearrangement

Homunculus

Body representation in somatosensory and motor systems

Cross modal plasticity

The brain's ability to reorganize and adapt by repurposing regions typically dedicated to one sensory modality to process information from another modality

Long Term Potentiation (LTP)

When a neuron repeatedly fires and excites a neuron it can cause the connection between the neurons to become stronger (Plasticity at a neuronal level)

Stem Cells (Brain Plasticity)

In the CNS there are neural stem cells that generate neural progenitor cells and these can create new neurons and glial cells in the developing adult brain

Neurogenesis

Process by which new neurons are generated in the brain

How the ageing brain dies

We lose neurochemicals and synapses
Volume of the brain decreases
White matter tracks start to deteriorate

Cognitve Reserve Model

The brain has a buffer that can adapt and compensate for negative effects of aging - with the brain activating more of itself as a strategy

Bilateralisation

The brain recruiting the other hemisphere to assist in completing tasks