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Click the link below for tips on brain health.

Reference: (Chudler, n.d.)

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Brain Fitness - Your Guide to Good Brain Health
You are born with just about all the neurons (nerve cells) that your brain will ever have* . Damaged brains are NOT easy to fix. Here are some suggestions for good brain health.

1. Wear your seat belt!

In a car, truck or airplane, your seat belt will help protect your head and brain from injury. Motor vehicle accidents are by far the greatest causes of brain injuries, accounting for 37-50% of all brain injuries.

(Statistic from Amer. J. of Diseases of Children, Vol. 144, pages 627-646, 1990 and Brain Injury Association USA)

2. Wear your helmet!

Whether you are biking, skating or skateboarding, your helmet will protect your head if you fall. Make sure that your helmet meets or exceeds the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and Snell Memorial Foundation standards for safety.

Head injury is the most common cause of death in bicycle crashes accounting for 62% of all bicycle-related deaths. (Statistic from Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 44, No. RR-1, pages 1-17, 1995)

More information on bicycle injury.

3. Stay away from illegal drugs!

Drugs alter brain function - no question about that. Although damage done by some drugs can be reversed, some drugs may change brain function permanently. Why take the chance?

4. Know the risks involved with sports!

This applies mainly to boxing, football and the martial arts. However, even soccer, climbing, horseback riding, diving and skiing have risks. Always wear your safety equipment properly and be in good physical condition for your sport.

In the United States in 1987 and 1988, 92,763 emergency room visits were made for injuries related to horseback riding. 18.9% of these visits were made due to injuries to the head and neck. (Statistic from Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 39, no. 20, pages 329-332, 1990)

Did you know?
Each year there are about 300,000 brain concussions that occur during sports activities. This statistic from the Center for Disease Control.

5. Look before you leap!

I know it sounds impossible, but people DO dive into swimming pools without water. Dive only in the deep end of the pool and make sure that the water in the lake and at the beach is deep enough to dive in head first. Also, be aware of any objects, such as large rocks, that may be hidden under the water.

There are up to 1,000 spinal cord injuries each year in the United States when people dive into swimming pools or other bodies of water - (Statistic from Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 37, no. 30, pages 453-454, 1988)

6. Look both ways before crossing the street!

I know that you have heard this one before, but accidents do happen and you can't be wearing your helmet all the time.

7. Stay away from guns!

I don't think I have to explain this one.

Firearms were the second leading cause of injury-related deaths in 2002. A total of 30,242 firearm-related deaths were reported in the United States in 2002. (Statistic from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

8. Make sure you have a "good" surface around your playground equipment!

Just in case you fall off of a climber, a soft impact-absorbing surface will cushion your drop.

In the United States from 1983-1987, 66.5% of the school playground-related injuries involved the head and neck.(Statistic from Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 37, no. 41, pages 629-632, 1988)

National Program for Playground Safety

9. Eat right!

Your brain needs energy to work its best.

10. Dispose of chemicals properly!

Many chemicals, such as pesticides and cleaners, contain neurotoxins that can kill nerve cells and damage nerves. These dangerous chemicals can be found in your home or at places of work. Dispose of these materials properly!

Did you know?
Each year in the United States, there are about 52,000 deaths caused by traumatic brain injury. This statistic from the Center for Disease Control.

*Note: Other data suggest that new neurons DO grow in the brain after birth. This has been demonstrated in rats, tree shrews, marmosets, monkeys and humans.

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Brain Fitness - Your Guide to Good Brain Health You are born with just about all the neurons (nerve cells) that your brain will ever have* . Damaged brains are NOT easy to fix. Here are some suggestions for good brain health. 1. Wear your seat belt!

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Reference: (Prasad, 2019)

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REQUIRES ENERGY:
Computers and brains both need energy. Your brain gets its energy in the form of glucose from the food you eat. Your diet also provides essential materials, such as vitamins and minerals, for proper brain function. Unlike a computer, your brain has no off switch. Even when you are asleep, your brain is active.

MEMORY STORAGE:
Both can store memories, and both computers and brains can be modified to perform new tasks. The brain undergoes continual modification and can learn new things. The brain can sometimes rewire itself when necessary! For example, after some kinds of brain injuries, undamaged brain tissue can take over functions previously performed by the injured area.

NOTE:
Unfortunately, brains are not as easy to repair. They are fragile and there are no replacement parts to fix damaged brain tissue (Chudler, 2001).

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Trick question! On most typical schooldays, students use both sides of the brain.

The LEFT hemisphere tends to process information in parts, in a sequence, and using language and text representations.

The RIGHT hemisphere tends to process information as a whole, in random order, and within a spatial context (Jensen, 2005).

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What part of your brain are you using when you perform different actions? 

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What part of your brain are you using when you perform different actions? 

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Click the link below for more details.
Reference: (Chudler, 1996)

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you are here: home > explore > functional divisions

Functional Divisions of the Cerebral Cortex

The cerebral cortex is responsible for many "higher-order" functions like language and information processing. Language centers are usually found only in the left cerebral hemisphere. For more information on language and differences between the right and left cerebral hemisphere, read about split brain experiments.

Cortical Area Function

Prefrontal Cortex

Problem Solving, Emotion, Complex Thought

Motor Association Cortex

Coordination of complex movement

Primary Motor Cortex

Initiation of voluntary movement

Primary Somatosensory Cortex

Receives tactile information from the body

Sensory Association Area

Processing of multisensory information

Visual Association Area

Complex processing of visual information

Visual Cortex

Detection of simple visual stimuli

Wernicke's Area
Language comprehension

Auditory Association Area

Complex processing of auditory information

Auditory Cortex

Detection of sound quality (loudness, tone)

Broca's Area
Speech production and articulation

Broca's Area

Wernicke's Area

Images courtesy of Slice of Life.

Copyright © 1996-2017, Eric H. Chudler All Rights Reserved.

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you are here: home > explore > functional divisions The cerebral cortex is responsible for many "higher-order" functions like language and information processing. Language centers are usually found only in the left cerebral hemisphere. For more information on language and differences between the right and left cerebral hemisphere, read about split brain experiments.

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What happens in your brain when you learn something new?

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What happens in your brain when you learn something new?

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Recent research has discovered that the brain never stops changing.
When learning occurs, the internal structure of the neurons undergo a change, and there is an increase in the number of synapses between neurons (Durbach, 2000 as cited in Hoiland, n.d.).

Initially, newly learned data are "stored" in short-term memory, which is a temporary ability to recall a few pieces of information. After a period of time, information may be moved into a more permanent type of memory, long-term memory, which is the result of anatomical or biochemical changes that occur in the brain (Tortora and Grabowski, 1996, as cited in Hoiland, n.d.).

The original processing takes place at lightning speed, but the subsequent stages and storage process can take hours, days, or even weeks (Jensen, 2005, p.16).

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Learning is optimized when you are in the right state of mind. A clear-thinking, level headed frame of mind is a good state for learning. In this state of mind, you learn and recall more than when you’re depressed, tired, or angry (Jensen, 2005, p.19).

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Chudler, E. (n.d.). Brain fitness - Your guide to good brain health. Retrieved from
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/brainfit.html

Chudler, E. (1996-2017). Functional divisions of the cerebral cortex. Retrieved from
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/functional.html

Chudler, E. (2001, March). A computer in your head?. Retrieved from http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/computer.html

Durbach, D. (2000). The Brain explained. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Hoiland, E. (n.d.). Brain plasticity: What is it? Learning and memory. Retrieved from http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/plast.html

Jensen, E. (2005). Teaching with the brain in mind (2nd ed.). Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Prasad, M. (2019, May 3). Fixed vs. growth mindset [Image]. Retrieved from https://www.thebeone.com/post/fixed-vs-growth-mindset

Sentis. (2012, November 6). Neuroplasticity [Video]. YouTube.

Tortora, G. & Grabowski, S. (1996). Principles of anatomy and physiology. (8th ed.). New York: HarperCollins College Publishers.

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"The most amazing new discovery about the brain might be that human beings have the capacity and the choice to be able to change our own brains" (Jensen, 2005, p. 10).

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"The most amazing new discovery about the brain might be that human beings have the capacity and the choice to be able to change our own brains" (Jensen, 2005, p. 10).

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Stress can inhibit brain growth; exercise can encourage it!

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Long lasting functional changes in the brain occur when we learn new things or memorize new information. These changes in neural connections are what we call neuroplasticity.

Genetics are not the only factor in determining brain function; the brain is also shaped by the characteristics of a person's environment and by the actions of that same person (Hoiland, n.d.).

Watch the video below to learn how you can rewire your own brain!

Reference: (Sentis, 2012)

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By the time an infant is two or three years old it has twice the number of brain synapses as the average adult. As we age, old connections are deleted through a process called synaptic pruning.

Experience determines which connections will be strengthened and which will be pruned; connections that have been activated most frequently are preserved. Ineffective or weak connections are "pruned" in much the same way a gardener would prune a tree or bush, giving the plant the desired shape (Hoiland, n.d.).

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7 - 9 HOURS OF SLEEP NEEDED (for adolescents)

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7 - 9 HOURS OF SLEEP NEEDED (for adolescents)

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As a rule, adolescents need more sleep—seven to nine hours a night. During sleep the brain is massively reorganizing, pruning synapses and organizing newly stored experiences (Jensen, 2005, p.32).

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ADDICTION:
The greatest risk for alcohol and tobacco addiction occurs between the ages of 12 and 19. The teen brain is more sensitive to the pleasurable effects of nicotine and alcohol and less sensitive to the adverse effects (Jensen, 2005, p.32).

Chronic alcohol use can:

Damage the frontal lobes of the brain

Cause an overall reduction in brain size and increase in the size of the ventricles

Lead to alcoholism (addiction to alcohol) and result in tolerance to the effects of alcohol and variety of health problems

Cause a vitamin deficiency. Because the digestion system of alcoholics is unable to absorb vitamin B-1 (thiamine), a syndrome known as "Wernicke's Encephalopathy" may develop. This syndrome is characterized by impaired memory, confusion and lack of coordination. Further deficiencies of thiamine can lead to "Korsakoff's Syndrome." This disorder is characterized by amnesia, apathy and disorientation. Widespread disease of the brain is a feature of both Wernicke's and Korsakoff's Syndromes.

(Chudler, 1996)