Essays on Plasticity

Sharp changes of mood and fervor of teenagers can be explained with the emission of hormones accompanying puberty. Certainly, hormones stimulate emotionality of young men and girls. But as the latest researches, the prime reason of typical teenage behavior – the revolutionary changes happening in a brain show. When the peak of readiness of cells of a brain to form active neural connections is reached, there are notable changes in behavior. Results of researches say that this period includes absolutely certain changes happening to all teenagers (regardless of culture in which they grow): the increased thirst for new; neglect ...

Erik Erikson’s theory of identity crisis emphasizes on cultural and social roles in the identity of the ego (Engler, 23). According to him, it is possible for people to continue developing in their adulthood. The stages that develop in adulthood are Intimacy and Isolation, Generativity and Stagnation, and Ego Integrity and Despair. In the Intimacy and Isolation stage, young adults are likely to try and build their self-esteem. However, both Erikson and Piaget admit that in adulthood behavior is determined by the person nurture and nature. Therefore, in adulthood, people build on to what they already have from ...

Abstract

Children from military families were said to have unique needs because of the distinct circumstance involving their growing up years. Studies revealed that a large number of military children were resilient enough to deal with their circumstances. However, it was also pointed out that not all children are the same, and there remains the possibility of going through difficulties when faced with challenging situations. Therefore, military families and their children should receive the needed support in order to help them deal with situations that are inherent in families with at least one military parent. Scholars suggest that children are ...

Lignin Chemistry

Lignin History Lignin is a plant-derived biopolymer with several applications. It is considered an effective alternative to chemically synthesized plastics that pose serious environmental problems during manufacture and disposal. Lignin is often obtained as a byproduct in paper and pulp manufacture. Lignin has to be dissolved to obtain cellulose from wood. In 1838, Anselme Payen discovered that wood contained cellulose, and oxidizable coatings (later called lignin) that bind the cellulose together (McCarthy and Islam, 2000). This coating material could be removed from wood after acid treatment and washing with an aqueous alkali solution (McCarthy and Islam, 2000). Later, several ...

The importance of primates for evolutionary theory can hardly be overstated. The applications of the traits – the foundation of the distinction between primates and other organisms – are widespread and profound in anthropology as well as basic biology. Primates are a diverse class of organisms that share a suite of derived traits (characteristics primates inherited from their common primate ancestor) that separates them from other organisms (Ryan). For instance, primates share several inherited primeval traits with other animals from a distant mammalian common ancestor such as having body hair (fur) and being warm-blooded and even more distant terrestrial vertebrate predecessors ...

Summary: In the article titled, “Abnormal Cortex Plasticity in Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy”, the authors investigate the role of defective motor plasticity in the pathogenesis of Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy (Strigaro et al.). Prior to this study, JME was linked to motor cortex hyper-excitability and to the abnormal function of thalamic networks. This study, identifies a new mechanism that can cause JME, a common form of generalized epilepsy seen in children. The motor cortex plasticity was studied using an interesting technique called the Paired Associated Stimulation (PAS). The details of this technique are discussed in the methodology section. The role of ...

Summary

Over the past few years, there has been a growing interest among neurosurgeons on the potential for therapies that impact on diseases, over and above the movement disorders and pain. One of the biggest targets of this increasing interest has been the nucleus accumbens. It has been studied for long, as an area of the brain that mediates a variety of behaviors, including reward and satisfaction (Salgado & Kaplitt, 2015). With this in mind, the modulation of the biology of the Nucleus Accumbens through either deep brain stimulation or through biological therapies like gene therapy or the transplantation of cells ...

Human beings as fans of outside work is nothing new: although modern society has the technology that allows large groups of these fans to gather, there is no doubt that fandom has been around a very long time. In fact, in Don Quixote—a novel written in two separately-published parts—the author had to write in a character who was initially created by a fan of the first part of the novel (Harris and Alexander 1998). This fan-made character then denounced his claim to being the true Don Quixote, and the novel meanders on—however, this is just one ...

Summary of the article

This article is about a study that was conducted to check the abnormal short latency synaptic plasticity in the motor cortex of subjects with Becker muscle dystrophy (BMD). Before the research could take place, the author indicates that the assessment of the cortical function especially with patients with BMD has brought about contradicting results. The researchers used the repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) so as to explore the excitability of the motor cortex. Therefore, the participants of the study were thirteen patients suffering from Becker Muscle dystrophy. Out of the thirteen patients, six of them are stated to have ...

Since time immemorial the world has been grappling with the question regarding the different behaviors exhibited by men and women respectively. This has been a much-debated issue in both the print and digital media. The Telegraph for instance carried an article on 14th September 2013 regarding this issue. The article titled Are Men Really From Mars? tried to address this age old question in the most captivating way. The author, Debbie Magids, offered a different dimension regarding the battle of sexes debate by asserting that men are not from Mars as many have been made to believe. The author further argues ...

- Luigi Galvani was the first man to reveal the electric nature of the nervous system. He did this by stimulating the legs of lab animals with electric currents in 1791. In 1914 Henry dale furthered the research of neurotransmitters by demonstrating the physiological action of acetylcholine.

Luigi Galvani was a physician and physicist and is known for his work determining the nature of how electric currents travel through the body. He did so by attaching electrodes to a frog’s nerve endings and observing the movements that occurred when electricity was applied. Sir Henry Dale is a London born expert ...

The nature-nurture controversy refers to the debate over whether heredity or environment play a greater role in a person’s behavior. The debate addresses how much of our makeup, behavior, personality and preferences are the product of biology such as genetics and biological makeup as opposed to the result of the way we are raised, our environment and essentially everything we come into contact with in our lifetime. Those following a nature viewpoint believe everything we are is a result of biology.

Evolutionary scientists believed in the nature side of the debate as did those following biological theories such as the one ...

The environmental pressures that are determining Aniisa’s post retirement adulthood seem overwhelming in so many ways. She will need personal resiliency and community support in order to experience Optimal Aging. When she moves to Canada her former stresses will be replaced by numerous new cultural stresses. If Anissa realizes that she should put satisfying her own needs first; she will have a much better chance of experiencing optimal aging. Active ageing is a concept she can use to make sure that in Toronto her needs are met for a safe home and good health care. She will need to find ways ...

1. Differences between the psychoanalyst and the behaviorist observation

a) The psychoanalyst argument: Psychoanalyst observes that each stage in life development is focused on solving a given conflict. It is due to poor development of trust arising from unreliable care taker of the child, which makes her feel unsecure and not safe to instances, such as darkness. The solution given is that caretakers should always work to create trust in the development of the child.

b) The behaviorist argument: The behavioral theorist would argue that development in the child’s behavior entirely depends on her environmental interactions. Fear or being frightened, especially ...

There are approximately 10,000 different species of birds worldwide. Bird families have some common characteristics. For example, birds are vertebrates, endothermic (warm blooded) in nature, have wings, have feathers, have a four chambered heart, have two legs, and lay eggs. They practically live anywhere and everywhere on the planet and not all of them can fly. Normally, birds are most likely to be found in warm, humid tropics, rainforests and as well as the frigid waters. Their migrations can be attributed to the seasonal availability of food and water. The ones which have a tendency to migrate from one place ...

Thesis statement

Learning various languages expands the boundaries for people and provides the different opportunities to cross-cultural dialogue, business development and employment. About 60% of the World population speak more than one language. Acquiring correct and intellible pronunciation, according to general observation, is one of the hardest tasks for all language learners. Most of the additional language learners develop an accent, that allows other people to distinguish non-native speaker and to make suggestions about her origin and native language. Presence of an accent commonly does not change intelligibility of the speech (perceived phonological constancy, Mulak et al., 2013), that is ...

Meet me at The Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) is a monthly museum program for people with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers (Chancellor et al., 2014). In this program, curators from the museum lead discussions about a handful of artworks from the museum’s collections. This encourages people with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers to interact with each other and share their opinions with art experts about the artwork in the galleries. Rosenberg (2009) stated that the MoMA program improved the mood of people with Alzheimer’s disease during and after the visit, decreased social isolation ...

Introduction

Evolution is the change animals and species undergo over time to adapt to certain environmental changes and eventually produce multiple descendent species. Evolution and natural selection are often taken as complimentary to each other. However, evolution, by definition, is a historical process of change, while natural selection is merely a mechanism that results in this change. Advances in technology and biology has thrown light on several causes and consequences of evolution. Some of the deepest understandings of evolution come from understanding fossils and examining phylogeny and from the study of natural selection. Evidences suggest that when natural selection is strong, the rate ...

i) the similarities and differences between L1 and L2 ii) psychological factors iii) social factors.

Then, drawing upon relevant literature, consider implications for language teaching/learning [250 words max].

This question as worded below specifies the student’s age, gender, L1 and country of origin. However, you may vary this question for gender, L1 and country of origin, if this would render it more useful for you. The student’s age, and other details as below, must remain the same. Ahmed is a nine-year old boy of Arabic background who immigrated to Australia through the family reunion scheme one year ago. He is living with his parents and two younger sisters in ...

Summary of three articles

A Sharper Mind, Middle Age and Beyond Article Summary The publication by Cohen Parricia, entitled “A Sharper Mind, Age and Beyond” without a doubt reveals that mental games does help elderly adults in ensuring that their cognitive skills remain high-pitched. The main variables or issues under deliberation in the publication was aimed at proving that mental games such as word searches, sudoku, and word matching in assisting older individuals to retain their cognitive skills. It was something that Sir William Osler who was the most influential physician in Johns Hopkins concurred by stating that human beings are more productive ...

Victor A. F. Lamme

Commentary:

- Consciousness is a much debated yet less known topic that has been debated by both science and philosophy. However most of our knowledge about consciousness stems from introspection and behaviour analysis. This paper helps us move away from the psychological intuitions of consciousness. - Through well-designed examples, the author allows us to understand that we cannot be the judge of our own consciousness. - We may think that we see the full picture but our consciousness consists of a small fraction of what is actually in front of us. This theory is well explained ...

Language acquisition is the process whereby children acquire the capacity to identify and comprehend a language either native or a second language. Most young children learn a language through observation and listening and from there, they learn to copy what they hear and pronounce it. Young children learn to speak through sounds and vocabulary by imitating what the people around them speaks (Kuhl, 2010). Children are exposed to a language and this exposure helps them to be able to interact with the rest of the people. Children are not taught a language but they acquire it from the people around them at a tender age. ...

Stem cells have a major role in the biological processes. Because of the ability of the stem cells to divide, they are important in the development of an organism and repair of damaged tissues. Stem cells have the potential to treat degenerative diseases like diabetes, Parkinson’s and heart disease. The unique characteristics of stem cells include its ability to divide, replicate and renew themselves for long periods. They are unspecialized; thus, they can produce specialized cell types. They can differentiate into other cells. Stem cells have regenerative abilities which make it useful in therapeutic interventions. They can produce ...

1. Concrete invention Roman technology is engineering practice that supported the Roman civilization resulting to expansion of its commerce and military for almost a thousand years. The Roman architecture has endured for more than 2000 years due to the way the Romans perfected use of three architectural elements; concrete, arch and vaults. These elements helped in lightening the loads that the Roman structures carried resulting to a strong and stable structure. Concrete was first created through building a form and later pouring in alternate layers of rocks, Roman casement, gravel or bricks. As each of the layers was poured and spread, the ...

Psychological analysis by Erikson indicated that children are born with a brain that is in the tabula rasa status. That is, they do not know anything. Practically, their brains are like a brand new book with so many blank pages. However, the experiences that they face in life act as the writings which fill the book. This is the reason as to why it is believed that children’s brain development is greatly affected by the environment, besides the genetic information of the child. In other words, the aspect of nature and nurture seems to play a major role in ensuring child ...

Introduction

This research paper compares and contrasts the views of professionals with respect to fibromyalgia; whether it is of psychological or physical nature / origin. Having conducted the following research and studied the views of others, especially those who we would all hope should know – the medical professionals, the view of this researcher is that fibromyalgia is more psychological in nature, even though that opinion is changed considerably from the view that was almost universally held in less enlightened times, when referring to a condition as having psychological causes was interpreted as implying the person was suffering from a mental illness, which ...

Creativity is the ability to come up with something original or ability of a person to create new novel and useful product. In life, some people are more creative than others are. Several approaches can be used to understand the issue of creativity and its effect on individual development. The four identified dimensions of creativity include; place, person, product, and process. Different theorists have defined creativity as complex issue with different dimensions. Neuro-plasticity refers to the ability and the capacity of the brain to react to the changes that are taking place within the environment. The brain can reorganize ...

Chapter 1: Learning Objectives

- Define development, focusing on three elements of its scientific study. Development is the scientific study of people’s lifespan changes, that is, from conception (womb) to death (tomb). It focuses on the systematic changes that occur over time among all individuals, and which explain continuities and discontinuities in life. - List and describe the basic steps of the scientific method. - Posing of the problem is done based on prior research, theory or observation. - Formulating of a hypothesis refers to an educated prediction, which can be verified or tested. - Testing of the ...

Abstract

The hippocampus is a part of the limbic system found in the temporal lobe. Hippocampal neurogenesis, the ability of the hippocampus to generate/produce new neurons all through to adulthood, has been linked to emotion moderation, spatial navigation, learning, memory, and cognitive function. These functions are usually impaired in depression and anxiety and hence the speculations that hippocampal neurogenesis plays a critical role in the etiology, pathophysiology and even the treatment depression and anxiety. The hippocampal neurogenesis hypothesis attempts to explain the role of hippocampal neurogenesis in the development of depression and anxiety based on findings from various studies. Findings that neurogenesis ...

Abstract

The cognitive functioning of human beings declines over time. There is evidence to support that this degeneration in cognition results from the gradual breakdown of biological factors and actually starts quite early in life. By the time a person reaches late adulthood, several biological changes lead to reduced cognitive capacity that are commonly identified as signs of ageing. The decline, however, varies from person to person. While some elders face minor challenges such as poor memory and lack of focus, others can suffer from sever ailments such as depression, Alzheimer’s syndrome, and dementia. The steady decline in cognitive ability ...

Motor learning is one of the subdisciplines of motor behavior, and its main aim is to understand how people acquire new motor skills. A lot of studies conducted by motor behaviorist research correct practice as one of the most important variables in learning motor skills, and one of the principles in motor learning states that correct practice improves performance and facilitates motor learning. However, new studies in the field were made possible by technology, and a lot of modern studies aim at researching the underlying mechanisms that make learning possible and the non-invasive neurological interventions that can be applied to ...

Skeletal muscles are complex and highly specialized group of cells that are not isomorphic but can be categorized in a heterogeneous group with different qualities. This heterogeneity of the skeletal muscles is important because ensures different sets of functions that skeletal muscles perform in the human body. This heterogeneity also enables a significant ability of the human organism to adapt to different conditions in life (Pette and Staron 2000). In addition of this heterogeneity, skeletal muscles also posses the ability of plasticity. This means that muscle cells can evolve and adapt to different stimuli and change their characteristics (Tavi and Westerblad ...

The Relationship of Thinking to SLA

Outline for Question #1 (Summarize and refute 3 arguments that indicate cognition as impeding SLA)

I. Introduction

a. Examples of Non-cognitive learning skills (motivation, self-efficacy, self-regulated learning, and others). b. Debate of no cognition vs. cognition in SLA c. Briefly introduce three arguments that oppose thinking

II. First argument: over-analysis a. “When teaching in an EFL context, speaking practice is the quickest and most effective way to learn a language (Berlitz, as cited in Aubrey, 2009, pp. 35-36). b. This means that second language learners learn faster when they just go ahead and speak, without thinking ...

Physical Anthropology is described as one of the branches of anthropology that specifically deals with the aspect of evolutionary biology, genetics, physical variation, classification and human development .

1. PALEOANTHROPOLOGY - is one of the subjects under physical anthropology that focuses on the study of fossil records to unlock the secrets of the puzzle that is human evolution.

2. NEUROANTHROPOLOGY - is a subject in physical anthropology that talks about the evolutionary process and transformation of the brain and how it influences human evolutionary behavior. It’s also known as the link between anthropology and neuroscience that tackles the subject of ...

Patients with Post-Stroke Hemiparetic Upper Limb

Abstract The US and Europe are both experiencing the coming of age of an elderly population which is prone to strokes and will need health care focused on post-stroke therapies. The most promising therapies are robot-assisted motion exercises coupled with Non-invasive Brain Simulations (NBS) such as Transcranial Magnetic Simulation (TMS). At this time the most attractive combination for both effective and affordable therapy is the use of simply designed, easily manipulated robot systems coupled with TMS. Since 2003 the area of neurorehabilitation has been growing with many effective and exciting designs in robotics. It hasn’t been very ...

Introduction

Learning and memory constitute a very important aspect of person’s life. They determine the kind of life a person has to live. However, because it is the brain which initiate these processes, then it means that learning and memory is just but a function of the state of the brain. In other words, if the brain were normal, then the learning process would take place normally. Hence, alteration of the normal state of the brain may result in alteration of the learning process (MacLeod, 2010, p.227). Although several researches concerning the brain have been done, no specific is meant to ...

Mind and Body Connection in Learning

Wolfe, (2010), defines learning as the process of developing new knowledge or performing new behaviours. The process not only takes place in a classroom but throughout an individual’s life time. Therefore the process is of essence in humans and it is especially used by professionals such as politicians, advertisers, and employers to influence consumers, voters, and workers. Learning process is very close to memory—storage of information in the brain—and therefore the process shows positive signs of mental and intellectual development. It is for this reason that this paper will show the link between mind and body in ...

Introduction

Learning and memory constitute a very important aspect of person’s life. They determine the kind of life a person has to live. However, because it is the brain which initiate these processes, then it means that learning and memory is just but a function of the state of the brain. In other words, if the brain is normal, then the learning process would take place normally. Hence, alteration of the normal state of the brain may result in alteration of the learning process. Although several researches concerning the brain have been done, there is no specific research that is meant ...

Introduction

The modern era is becoming so demanding to the human being and hence man has been working tirelessly in trying to come up with ways of doing things faster, efficiently and accurately. Development of man like-machine is one of the technological advancement that has resulted from such efforts. It involves the application of the concept of Pattern recognition in designing a machine that can emulate the various action of human being. Pattern recognition is a concept whereby machine is designed in a manner whereby it can act according to certain pattern this concept was established when the mechanism of human brain became ...