The Terrible Teens, What's Wrong With Them? By Elizabeth Kolbert

Question 1

Temple University

Answer 1

• 80 mice to test “bad habits”
• plexiglas cage, singly/or groups of 3 and given ethanol spiked water
• Half 4 weeks old (adolescent)
• Half 12 weeks old (adult)
• Average adolescents outdrink the adult
• teen males “alone” drank same amount as adult
• Teen male Cage mates went on a bender drinking 30% more than solo girl

Question 2

In the Journal “Development Science”

Answer 2

-Researchers noted it was “Not Possible” to conduct a similar study on human adolescents “ethical concern.”

Question 3

Adults reminisce about adolescent years (10-25)

“reminiscence bump”

Answer 3

To adults the adolescent mind is a mystery.

Question 4

Frances Jensen, “ The teenage Brain: A neuroscientist’s Survial Guide to Raising Adolescents and young Adults.”

Answer 4

• MRI studies “adolescents have defective spark plugs”
• Civilized adults use “frontal and prefrontal parts of the cortex”
• teens are not firing on the frontal lobes
• Frontal lobes are the “executive function” for judgment.
• Frontal lobe links are the last regions to get connected, not fully myelinated until in the 20’s-30’s

Question 5

Laurence Steinberg Professor of psych at Temple and lead researcher of the inebriated-mouse study.

Author of “Age of Opportunity: Lesson from the New Science of Adolescence”

Answer 5

• He sees the problem as an enlarged nucleus accumbens, “pleasure center”
• Cookie Example: adults have tissue up nose and teens have heightened senses, NOTHING WILL FEEL AS GOOD AS WHEN YOU WERE A TEENAGER”
• teen deaths twice more than 1-4yr old and three times more than 5-14
• Number one cause of death is accidents “accidental bump” for teens

Question 6

Steinberg wants the legal driving age to be 18

T/F

Answer 6

True, kids understand the danger of driving but at this time they just don’t care about the risk.

Question 7

T/F Crime rates rise around age 10.

Answer 7

False

It is age 13 and peak at age 18
This “Crime Curve,” started in 1904 by G. Stanley Hall inventor of “Adolescence”

Question 8

C57BL/6J black mice, pink ears, and long tails

Answer 8

• Inbred for the purpose of experimentation
• Exhibit a number of infelicitous traits (susceptibility): Obesity, morphine, and nibble off cage-mates hair.
• Ethanol, they drink so much they would get a DUI.