More Experience = Bigger Brain?

1
More Experience Bigger Brain?

• An analysis by Oscar THE BOSS G.M and Aris
  Jean-Pierre Perez

2
Do experiences produce physical changes in the
brain (in other words, does nurture affect our
brains function)?

• Background 1785- Italian anatomist uses dogs
  from the same litter w/ birds from the same
  mother and trains each for extended periods of
  time. The control group was left untrained. The
  brains were analyzed.

3
Who?

• 1960s- Team consisting of Mark Rozenweig, Edward
  Bennett, and Marian Diamond of UC Berkeley
  utilize new technologies to investigate the same
  question.

Mark Rozenweig
4
The Subjects

• More convenient
• Small and cheap
• Bear large litters
• Brains of rats naturally smoother

5
The Experiment

• A total of 12 rats per condition (3 male rats
  per litter) for 16 experiments. Kept for 4-10
  weeks.
• Control Group- Standard cage w/ adequate food,
  constant supply of water. Multiple rats.
• Impoverished Group- Smaller cage, isolated in a
  separate room w/ adequate food and constant
  supply of water. Single rat.
• Enriched Group- Large cage, w/ variety of objects
  where they could play (something new placed every
  day), optimal conditions. 6-8 Rats

6
The Results

1. The cerebral cortex of enriched rats was heavier,
   thicker, and possessed larger neurons.
2. There was also overall higher chemical activity
3. The synapse was also 50 bigger for enriched
   rats.

7
Today

• The study presented new evidence to help shed
  some light on the issue of nature vs. nurture.
  The follow-up study comes from researcher Ian
  Sneddon and his team testing (more complex) pigs
  when placed in a maze test and tested w/ operant
  learning tasks.

8
Criticism and Controversy

• How else could the experimental conditions of
  the rats account for the differences in brain
  biology? Are laboratory mice comparable to wild
  mice?
• How could this research be used as
  sensationalistic pop psychology?
• Do rats brains reflect what happens in our
  (human) brains?

9
Fin