Thursday, March 3, 2011

Brain Rules!

Go to the Brain Rules website and find the list of brain rules at the bottom of the page. Pick two of them and work through the interactive animation that is provided for each. When you are done, comment on which brain rules you chose, something that you learned or found interesting about each one, whether or not the rules you chose resonates with your own experiences, etc.

23 comments:

  1. I looked at the exercise animation and the animation on how every brain is wired differently. The exercise one actually made a lot of sense to me, because I find that when I exercise, I am able to think more clearly and focus better on whatever it is I'm doing. The animation no wiring was really interesting to me. I didn't know that people's experiences change the wiring of their brains, and this was really interesting to me.

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  2. 1. survival- human brain was only capable by the energy saved by being bipedal. the dual representation resonated with me because ive often wonder how we can interpret one thing in so many ways.
    2.stress- i found it interesting that low/medium stress is a good thing for cognitive abilities. i definitely can relate to being so stressed out you can't remember anything.

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  3. 1. Vision - I definitely could relate to this section, as I learn far better and can keep my focus better when I'm not just staring at a block of text. I also thought the part about "inattentive blindness" was interesting because I've definitely experienced it before.

    2. Sleep - I found this section interesting because I've had experiences with taking tests on very little sleep, and I know that under these circumstances I don't do nearly as well as I normally would. I also could relate to the section on how sleep helps us learn, because I've discovered that if I study the night before for a test and then get a good night's sleep, I can better remember the information the next day.

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  4. 4. Attention - we don't pay attention to boring things and we have short attention spans. This made a lot of sense to me because I've found that when I think i'm multitasking, I'm actually just alternating between two things (for example, doing homework and Facebook is not multitasking because i stop doing homework to do Facebook). And, I definitely agreed with the evidence that when you think you're "multitasking" you don't get as much done and make more errors. That's probably why it takes a while to do my homework if I'm texting, listening to music, gmail, Facebook at the same time. I also thought the info about driving on a cellphone is worse than being drunk is crazy (scary).

    11. Gender - male and female brains are different. I found the chart on psychiatric disorders to be consistent with what I've known. I know many guys that have ADD, but I can't name a single girl. And, i've found that a disorder such as anorexia is usually found in females (actresses especially), but i've never heard of an anorexic male.

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  5. Sleep: This section was very interesting, especially the clip about the nap zone. The nap zone happens from 1:30-2:45 and is a time when your brain wants to nap and your attention suffers. This occurs with me pretty regularly. I have to be extremely attentive during the last two periods of the day, because it is very easy for me to zone out/become distracted. The clip goes on to say how napping is quite beneficial and this is pretty true for me. When I have the time to take a nap after school, I always feel more refreshed and am able to focus more.

    Short term memory: This section really resonated with me. I've found that the tests I spend cramming the night before get lower scores than the tests I've spent at least a few days studying for. Repetition of material definitely helps me from blanking during a test or a quiz. I also found the idea of automatic and effortful processing interesting. I've definitely experience this. There are some memories that are easier to access than others (such as remembering an old password or a specific fact on a test). I also thought it was interesting how the human brain can only hold about seven pieces of information for less than 30 seconds; repetition must be done for it to be cemented in your brain.

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  6. 1. Exercise- As someone who absolutely needs to have his daily run/jog/physical exercise, I strongly advocate and agree with the benefits presented through aerobic AND strength training exercises. I tremendously enjoy weightlifting and running, and I feel significantly better both mind and body after I do such activities. In fact, if I don't get my workout in, I feel sluggish and lazy, and I cannot function at all. During second semester (which coincides with the beginning of track season), I always perform better, feel better, and sleep better every day. The exercise I get from track definitely has a positive effect on my body. However, like the slide said, exercise doesn't help my cognitive function at all. Instead, it just "forces" me to go to sleep sooner which gives me a more "awake" feeling in the morning.

    Attention: this section is something that I can once again reinforce. Multitasking is nearly impossible according to the website. In fact, talking while on the phone, as demonstrated by the graph, leads to a slower reaction time. A few years ago, my family was in a car crash. We were hit by a woman who was talking on the phone. When one of her hands left the wheel and the wheel started to curve, she lost control and hit us on the side. Because she panicked after she failed to give 100% attention to her driving, the woman hit our car, causing it to tumble over a few times. Multitasking, especially when doing life-threatening activities (such as driving) is something that should never be accomplished.

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  7. The rule stating that exercise boosts brain power is one I found to be true and very interesting. I have noticed that exercising/ playing sports has forced me to be more efficient when doing my homework because I have less time to do it. Without sports I tend to become extremely lazy and in most cases I get less sleep because I procrastinate so much. I really enjoyed was how they explained why our brains seemed to have developed to function better after having exercised.

    Rule # 3 stating that "Every brain is wired differently" based on the person's experiences, is one I found extremely interesting. At first I had assumed that all brains functioned in the same way, but it makes complete sense that this not be completely true. The fact that our brains work differently based on what we have experienced explains why people think, speak, observe, and react differently.

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  8. Sleep: It was so fascinating to me that there is a constant "battle" between the homeostatic sleep drive and the circadian arousal system that causes your natural sleep pattern/makes you want to take naps mid afternoon. For me, the less sleep I get the night before directly effects how sleepy I feel the next day during that time period when taking a nap would be the most fantastic and restorative thing to do! Personally, I also notice a tremendous difference during the day if I get less than eight hours of sleep per night, and my memory, cognitive abilities and overall alertness all suffer when I have gone numerous nights with little sleep.

    Stress: It was very interesting for me to learn about how stress can greatly damage your executive functions, memory, motor skills and immune system. This section also raised a good point that the stress you may have at your work or school still carries over to other parts of your life. It was a great reminder that even if you leave the circumstance or place that's causing you stress, your stress will still follow you! What definitely resonated with me is the fact that being only a tiny bit stressed actually enhances your cognitive abilities. Often times when I've saved major assignments until the last possible moment to do them (poor life choice) I am much more productive and efficient because i have the slight stress in knowing that it's my last opportunity to do it. However, when I become completely overwhelmed and stressed out with all the things I have to do, my stress is too much and I find myself completely unable to be productive because I'm too busy stressing!

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  9. Sleep: I found this piece to be very interesting. I can totally relate to feeling very tired and low in energy after a bad night's sleep. I also find it very cool how greatly sleeping affects the brain and your body;knowing that I'll perform better in many aspects just by getting a good night's rest makes me prefer to leave homework for the next day and rest my brain. I also like a idea of a nap being very helpful. I definitely feel refreshed and more in tune after a nap.
    2. Exercise: I found this piece very inspiring. I like the idea of exercising being so essential to not only good health physically, but also mentally. Plus it is always nice to get up and stretch your body after a day of just sitting in a classroom. This definitely makes me want to work out more often!

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  10. Survival: I found this segment very interesting. It is mind boggling to consider that the brain has come so far evolutionarily, and theoretically has so far to grow. In some sort of apocalyptic scifi future, I can see the brain developing and evolving in scary ways. What if in a time of disease and famine, death becomes an everyday experience. Surely the most fit humans, those who were naturally selected, would evolve to not feel emotion or grief. What a scary thought. This however isn't too much of a stretch. It is just as baffling to consider that we came out of creatures who could barely use their minds to comprehend dual representation of images.

    Stress: I personally didn't find this segment too hard to agree with. I also found the segment on depression and stress in new mothers to be quite interesting. I never considered it a possibility that stress could transfer from one person to another. A new born baby can probably pick up stress just as easily as any one of us, and the example in the video certainly made me consider how much stress I put into the environment. I think I'll try to limit my stress emissions in the future. (Global warming parallel? I think so)

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  11. Sleep: I definitely agree with the concept of sleep impacting a person's capacities. At the end of the week, I can really see a difference between my sleep deprived brain and my rested brain. I find that it's almost impossible to do the work of the last class on a Friday. I also have observed the capacity of sleep to cement memory. I find that if I study before going to sleep, I will remember the material much better in the morning. Also, the napping portion of the video rang true for me. I have taken countless post-school naps that have helped me to fight sleepiness later in the night.

    Stress: I find it very reasonable that stress could reduce a person's capacity to learn. I have found that if I study a review sheet a few minutes before a test, I will retain hardly anything. I assume this is because of a panicky feeling impeding any absorbing of the material. It also seems reasonable that a stressful home environment would limit intellectual ability. I can't imagine doing good quality work in a high-stress home. I consider myself lucky to live with parents that yell neither at me or at each other. Thanks Robert and Carol!

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  12. 1. Attention: I found the statistics on multitasking really interesting and also that our brains can only concentrate on one thing. I can definitely see that when I do homework though. The fewer things I try to do at the same time, the faster everything gets done.

    2. Short Term Memory: I was surprised at how much and how fast you forget things after you learn them. The importance of repetition was also really interesting, and how each repetition buys you a certain amount of time. Repetition is definitely important in studying and learning facts and vocabulary.

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  13. 1) Vision - I enjoyed learning about how much vision affects our memories. I liked how the site compares different kinds learning ("visual" versus "oral") as well as purely "visual" learning (text versus images). I also liked the exercise about the "inattentional blindness." I can also relate to the fact that people learn better with images, as diagrams and pictures help me a lot more than purely textual information.

    2) Wiring - I liked learning about this concept that each brain is "wired" differently based on experience. The example with the woman who suffered a stroke and could no longer read vowels surprised me. Before exploring this segment, I thought the brain separated ideas into more general categories, not specific areas such as vowels and consonants.

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  14. I looked at the Rules of Sleep and Stress and the brain is good at dealing with stress and stress increases memory as long as the stress is around a minute long. Any longer than that and the stress causes a breakdown of neural networks that might have otherwise helped you in the stressful event. This means stressing about events like the SAT are only helpful if you calm yourself quickly. Sleep is the other rule I looked at and it shows that sleep for as long as your body wants helps you perform the best you can. 8 hours for a week allows you to perform at near ideal settings.

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  15. The exercise segment was both interesting and relevant to me. I used to think that physical activity hindered my school work by eliminating study time, but I have come to realize that I perform better when I am exercising regularly. A good run relieves stress and prepares me for the tasks ahead. I have also noticed that I tend to get my best ideas when I go out for a walk or a run. I found the evolutionary explanation of exercise as conducive to good brain function especially interesting.

    The segment on stress is very relevant to me as well. Sometimes while I am studying, I undergo a short burst of high stress. Whatever the cause, I find that I do not usually remember anything I studied during that period in any degree of detail. Sometimes I reread the same passage several times to no avail. Also, when I was younger, test anxiety, especially in math, would hurt my performance on tests. Once, in seventh grade, I left an entire page of a test blank!

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  16. I looked at the effects of stress on the brain. I was surprised that stress had such a negative impact on the brain's capacity to store information. It made sense to me in terms of finals. During finals week, I start studying two weekends before. The first weekend I am not stressed out, and I learn a lot. However, the second weekend I am stressed out a lot, and I tend to learn that information less well.

    I also looked at the segment on sleep. What was most interesting was that sleep is part of the learning process. I was surprised how much test scores were affected by the amount you sleep. In the future I hope to use this information as a justification for sleeping more.

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  17. I watched the section on attention, and found that my suspicion that multitasking led to decreased efficiency was correct. I always noticed that when I was switching between various actions and thought processes I felt a short moment of confusion and disorientation. I had a feeling that this confusion continued in the background and lowered my ability to complete the tasks on hand. It seems that focusing on one thing at a time is actually a good idea.
    I also watched the section on sleep. What I found most interesting was the idea of the so called "nap zone" in the middle of the day. This was especially intriguing to me, as I've had sleep issues for the last few months during sixth period. Namely, I would suddenly, inexplicably feel ridiculously tired, and sometimes fall asleep (not a good idea during math class). The process of waking up was always instantaneous. As soon as the exhaustion started fading away, it was gone. The presentation suggested actually taking naps during this period, but that does not seem like a good idea. On the other hand, this may show that the problem isn't actually just a lack of sleep.

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  18. Learning about the brain interests me, so I ended up looking at all of the slideshows. I would still like to learn much more about the brain and mind.
    I found the section of how people's brains are wired differently very interesting. I have often wondered how different people think in different ways. Perceptions, memories, processing, etc. can be so different. Last semester in English class, we read "Why I Write" by Joan Didion. In this essay, she described her thought and writing process. She wrote about her attention to specifics and inability to think abstractly. She told of the pictures that would appear in her mind and how she created novels about them, not knowing when she started what the picture was about. Her style of thinking seemed so different from my own, and both styles are different from those of others. This slideshow did not answer my existing questions, but it brought up some new ones.
    Although I had heard the basic idea before, the section about the changeable nature of memory got me thinking. Apparently, each time one recalls a memory, that memory, in being relived, can be changed. Permanent memory does not exist. These ideas of changing memory brought up questions of truth, especially as it relates to personal experience.

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  19. 1) The benefits of exercise made a lot of sense with the evolutionary perspective the author gave. Humans evolved to run long distances to chase prey and walk long distance to migrate. The brain evolved to operate with the stimulation and hormones of exercise. So, it operates best under the same circumstances that our very distant ancestors faced (constantly running and walking). This resonates with my experiences: better mood, fewer negative thoughts, and better ability to focus after exercise.

    2) The evolution/ survivability of the brain was also very interesting. Walking upright saved energy that could be devoted to a large brain, and the difficult/changing climate of Africa made problem solving necessary. Also, I wonder whether HUNTING and EATING MEAT (skills that humans developed that some of their predecessors did not have) were important, because they allowed humans to get many more calories (a steak is much more filling than a bunch of fruits and vegetables).

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  20. I generally don't think of the global population as being lazy or inactive, yet in comparison to out ancestors we are. It is shocking that though doctors recommend between one half to two hours of exercise, that is hardly as much as our bodies evolved to need. In comparison to the "humans" who lived millions of years ago, even the most active of us today don't get near the 12 miles of exercise they did. I think that the link between exercise and mental performance should be emphasized. Although it is hard to leave time to workout in our busy schedules, exercise is so important, I think that it is fundamental to any healthy life style.

    I find myself constantly multitasking, and, as the site sais, it greatly increases the time it takes me to perform any task. I am constantly surrounded by distractions, sounds, and other stimuli that take away my attention. i have also found that the more I multitask that harder it is for me to focus on only one thing. I wonder why, neurologically, that is. I think that it is important to prevent kids and adults from having a lot of distractions because it takes so much longer to perform even basic tasks.

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  21. 1. Stress - I thought it was really interesting the way that stress was described to affect the brain. I've always heard that you can't think as well or store memories as efficiently when you're stressed, but i didn't realize that there were actually physical responses by the brain to long term stress. It's crazy to think that exposure to long term stress can actually deregulate and shrink the brain. It was also interesting that the emotional stability of the home plays such a large role in academic success. It makes sense that a less stressed and more conducive home environment would ease academic stress and therefore increase academic performance, and i feel like that is an issue that hits close to home for all of us.

    2. Vision - This was SO cool! "Hear a piece of information, and three days later you'll remember 10% of it. Add a picture and you'll remember 65%."
    That's insane. I never knew that the brain was so much better at remembering pictures than it was at remembering a piece of information. This seems to make sense though because when I try to remember a piece of information for a test or problem, I often find myself trying to visualize when I had written it down, seen it on a slide, or learned it for the first time. The fact that our brain perceives words as just lots of tiny pictures definitely explains why it would be so much less of an efficient way of learning than just studying pictures themselves.

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  22. 1) exercise: I never really realized how important exercise was. I have always felt the impact of playing sports or just running around and how my stress seems to go away, but i thought that was just from focusing on what i was doing/forgetting about whatever was stressing me out for a while. I didnt realize that exercise actually "zaps" stress. I also thought it was interesting how this goes back into our past, when humans were constantly on the move. I think its possible that ive seen the correlation between exercise and brain function without noticing it. During sports seasons i am constantly exercising and also getting my work done more efficiently than during off seasons. i had always attributed this to my lack of time during the sports seasons and the need to be more efficient, but my work during sports seasons is just as good if not better than during the off season.
    Sleep: I never realized how important sleep was for memorization. I never thought that a 26 minute nap could stimulate the brain that much, and 45 minutes can keep you going for six extra hours! I know what i will use my free periods for... There is one strange thing that i have found about myself and sleep. When i get 8+ hours i feel great. When i get 5-7 i dont feel so good. But when i get 2-4 hours i am extremely energetic.

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  23. I looked at sleep and exercise because I spend a lot of time doing these two things.

    Every day after school I take a nap just because I am so exhausted. I always thought that they were bad for me, and I took them anyways just because I could not resist. It was super reassuring to find that naps are actually good for your mental health. I will definitely continue taking naps!

    I also exercise a lot during the week. However, in contrast to what the website says, I actually feel mentally and physically drained after my trainings. I am exhausted and not able to produce my best work just because I am not sharp at all. I do not know why this is, but maybe it is because the workouts are just very long and intense.

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