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Some Recent Advances in Neural Plasticity:

Excerpt from a report by Dr. Timothy M. Barth, Texas Christian University (text highlights by Whole Mind Success)

Does the Brain Control Behavior or Does Behavior Control the Brain?

Consider the following scenario. Al and Pete die at about the same age and leave their brains to science. They were roughly of the same height and weight. When the two brains are compared, it is discovered that Al has a heavier brain with a thicker neocortex.

What is a possible reason for this difference?

You may be surprised to find out that the differences in brain weight and cortical thickness are probably due to the growth of dendrites and increased number of glia in Al's brain. It is almost certainly not due to a larger number of neurons. Moreover, the differences in brain size are likely due to individual differences in their environment.

That the morphology of neurons and number of glia have the potential for change is not a new concept. In fact, experiments done in the 1960s and 70s by Rosenzweig and colleagues suggested that being reared in an enriched environment can lead to differences like those described in the scenario with Al and Pete (Bennett, Diamond, Kretch, & Rosenzweig, 1964; Diamond et al., 1966; Diamond, Lindner, & Raymond, 1967; Globus, Rosenzweig, Bennett, & Diamond, 1973; Rosenzweig, Bennett, & Diamond, 1972a; 1972b; Rosenzweig, Kretch, Bennett, & Zolman, 1962).

More recent studies indicate that a relatively short period of exposure (i.e., 4 days) to the enriched environment may be sufficient to produce some of these morphological changes (Wallace, Killman, Withers, & Greenough, 1992).

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