Neuroplasticity Analysis

As people age, it is natural for them to experience a mild degree of memory loss. However, some cases can be much more severe, and can have a variety of causes. When loss of memory and other mental functions becomes more severe, the condition is known as dementia. Dementia is caused by a variety of disorders, but

Two brain structures that could likely be affected by this damage are the frontal lobes and the temporal lobes. The frontal lobe produces speech, controls motor skills, and initiates leading functions such as thinking, personality, emotion and memory. (Huffman, K., Dowdell, K. 2015. Pg. 71). The temporal makes it possible for an individual to hear properly, comprehend language, recollect thoughts, and maintain emotional stability; this lobe also contains the auditory complex, which is responsible for the interpretation

As we age, our brain and nervous system go through natural changes. An aging adult may experience memory loss, decreased touch sensation, change in the perception of pain, change in sleep pattern, decreased coordination and increased risk for infection (Ignatavicius, 2013, p. 912) .

Finally, adulthood consists of early adulthood, middle adulthood and late adulthood. Early adulthood is a stage where individuals are physically in their best condition. Memory and thinking abilities are sharp, life decisions are made, and they take on roles of independence. Middle adulthood is when individuals start to reflect on their lives as a whole. Retirement planning and sadness over unaccomplished goals began to surface, during this particular stage. Some physical changes such as hearing and vision start to take place. Focusing more on health, relationships and becoming tolerable with death are all signs of late adulthood development. The immune system, vision, hearing, and muscle strength start to decline. Loss of memory is a cognitive trait that is related

The concept of neuroplasticity has long been questioned. The term of “neuroplasticity” did not even come about until the mid-late 20th century. When the term “plastic” was used to describe the brain by a select few neuroscientists, they were laughed at and the term was never thought of as a description for the human brain. The human brain was seen as a closed circuit and one that once you had it, you definitely had it. Scientists thought the brain would not develop anymore past a certain point in your life. Norman Doidge brings the concept of neuroplasticity into reality in his book “The Brain that Changes Itself,” a book about the triumphs in the frontier of brain science.

The videos that I watched we very informative and intriguing. In the neuroplasticity video it told us that neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity is how we become better at problem solving, learning a new language, and increasing our ability to focus. An example, of my road to mastering a subject would be me learning how to play the clarinet. I vividly remember the first day I played the clarinet, I still remember that I had to look at my fingers to see if I they were on the right keys. Doing anything the first time most of the time is hard at first, but with time it becomes a habit. At first when I got my clarinet they told me to get reeds, when I saw them the first time I just saw thick strips of wood.

In classical neuroscience, there was the theory that the adult brain was considered fixed and inflexible; every part had a specific purpose and function and when it is damaged, cannot be replaced or repaired. Today experimental techniques suggest and embrace the recognition that the brain is plastic and can change itself with exercise and understanding whether you are an infant or an adult. It explains that the brain is constantly seeping out in various directions and is apparently able to respond to injury with a striking functional reorganization, and sometimes actually thinks itself into a new structure of body arrangement. Doidge also argues that plasticity can be good or bad based on the way a brain is used. For instance, on the wrong side individuals who watches pornography have deleterious part of their brain that makes them addictive to watching porn and

A topic I learned more of this semester in regards to the older population was dementia. Some loss in memory function is an inevitable consequence of aging, and as one ages, it takes more time to process information and retrieve memories. However, "Dementia is a general term that refers to progressive, degenerative brain dysfunction, including deterioration in memory, concentration, language skills, visuospatial skills, and reasoning, that interferes with a person's daily functioning" (Mauk, 2014, p. 377). This loss of mental skills affects the ability to function over time, causing problems with memory and how one thinks, impacting these individual's overall quality of life.

Kevin Arnold once said, “Memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, and the things you never want to lose.” Memories are the things hold on to in life. Whether it’s bad or good, memories are engraved in us and as we carry them through our everyday lives they become a part of us. But what if as times goes by, those memories start to disappear? Imagine that the things you held onto for years could no longer be conjured up no matter how hard you tried. Or even worse, you begin to lose your language skills, ability to recognize familiar things and in turn, start to feel paranoid and confused constantly. For those who suffer from Alzheimer’s, as they age they experience a serious deterioration in one’s self.

There is one myth about growing older that has been permeating American culture for decades, and that is that mental decline, also known as having “senior moments,” is an inevitable result of aging. But this is simply not the case.

There are also cognitive changes during middle adulthood. There is a mixed pattern of positive and negative changes in cognitive abilities. Processing speed starts to decrease during this time period however crystallized thought does not decline until older age (pg. 456). Working memory begins to decline however semantic memory continues to increase as we learning throughout our older years (ph 456). Usually most memory decline is during older age and can be attributed to Alzheimer’s disease of dementia.

As age increases, we can expect some loss of heart, lung, joint, and sexual functioning. Some loss of brain cells and mental efficiency is a normal part of

Decay is a reduction in the ability to retrieve rarely used information over time. This often results from disuse or lack of practice of the concept. Even though the memory is forgotten, there is always a small part of the memory still inside a person’s brain that allows them to recollect the information with help. The article states how the adults were not able to answer the questions about topics learned when they were younger because of decay; they did not revisit the topics after learning them and with the lack of practice, they were not able to remember it. The article does not contradict the topic we learned in class, but it gives an example to the topic. The article gives strategies that can ensure long term memory, but that doesn’t

Looking throughout history, the brain has not always been associated with thought; even today we may associate such feelings as pain from the part of our body in which we were hurt, not as a mental state inside our brain. However when scientists observed brain injury patients they realised that thinking could take place in the brain. One famous example is Gage’s Case ; the calm railroad worker after a freak accident, that damaged the frontal lobes of his brain, turned into an aggressive person who became unrecognisable to his friends and family. Neuroscientists have now discovered with more cases similar to Gage’s that damage to specific regions of the brain can severely affect a person’s mental abilities or personality.

"I lost my keys again," my mother exclaimed at dinner a few nights ago, "I really am getting old." This use of old age as a justification for memory deficits is extremely common. Many people relate old age with loss of memory and other neurobiological functions. Why is it that aging seems to go hand in hand with losing and forgetting things? Is there a neurobiological explanation for this phenomenon?