Draganski (2004)

Question 1

What is…

Neuroplasticity

Answer 1

Neuroplasticity: The process by which our brains adapt to environmental changes.
Creation of Neural Networks: Occurs through long-term potentiation, involving the repeated firing of neurons.
Leads to increased dendritic branching, which increases the number of synapses.
Neural Pruning:Involves a decrease in the number of synapses due to the removal of dendritic branches.
Can result from neuron cell death, hormonal influences (e.g., cortisol), or disuse of a neural pathway.
The exact mechanism of neural pruning is not yet fully understood.

Question 2

Aim

Answer 2

To see whether learning a new skill, in this case juggling, would affect the brains of the participants.

Question 3

Method

Answer 3

• 24 volunteers between the ages 20 and 24 (21 females and 3 males)
• All participants were non jugglers at the beginning and each had an MRI scan taken of their brains
• The participants were taught a three-ball cascade juggling routine and practiced it until they mastered it
• When the participants mastered the skill, a second MRI was performed and once again 3 months later after not practicing the skill
• A control group of non-jugglers was maintained throughout the experiment

Question 4

Findings

Answer 4

• The researchers used **voxel-based morphometry **to analyze the MRI scans by determining the differences in the neural density (gray matter)
• The baseline scans (from start of the study) showed no significant differences between the jugglers and the non-jugglers
• At the end of the first part of the study, the jugglers showed a significantly larger amount of gray matter in the mid-temporal area in both hemispheres (an area associated with visual memory)
• Three months after the participants stopped juggling, when most participants forgot the skill, the amount of gray matter in these parts of the brain significantly decreased