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“Written on the [brain] is a secret code only visible in certain lights: the accumulations of a lifetime gather there. In places the palimpsest is so heavily worked that the letters feel like Braille.” (1)

In this paper, I would like to explore the origin of the writing on the human brain from a neurobiological perspective.  Neurobiology can provide us with information about the material nature of the brain.  After developing an understanding of the brain, I would like to consider the implications for learning and teaching. 

Jonah Lehrer, in Proust was a Neuroscientist, suggests that Marcel Proust, in his
writing, predicted the, “instability and inaccuracy of [long-term] memory…” [1]. Before
the dawn of the 21st century, neuroscience suggested that memory, valuable pieces of
information, were archived in a structure in the brain, such as the lateral and basal nuclei
of the amygdala.  In 2000, research on rats with fear conditioning and a protein inhibitor
showed that the act of remembrance (reactivation) in fact changed the molecular
underpinnings of the memory by making the memory ‘labile’ once again [2].  Therefore,
new protein synthesis at the synapse was needed to ‘reconsolidate’ the information to

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                                                            The Perception of Pain

            I have never met anyone who has not experienced pain, either physical or emotional.  However, while pain is indeed universal, it is also highly individualized.  While this individualized perception of physical pain makes some sense, it is harder to grasp the relationship between the emotional pain that a person experiences and the physical symptoms that the body produces in response to that emotional pain. This relationship is further complicated by the fact that these physical responses to emotional pain are highly individualized.  Looking at the perception and interpretation of pain, both physical and emotional, helps to understand the degree to which each nervous system is unique as well as the interconnectedness between the body and the mind.      

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Two-year-olds Tatiana and Krista Hogan are craniopagus conjoined twins. They are one of only 6 sets of twins in the world who were born conjoined at the head. Only 2% of conjoined twin births are craniopagus (1). Because the craniopagus twinning is so rare, there is a limited supply of observations that have been made about their condition. There is also a general lack of research looking at the condition of being a conjoined twin. Conjoined twinning presents profound physical differences. The physical immobility, health risks, and unconventional lifestyle that result from conjoined twinning motivate parents and doctors to separate twins if possible, and as early as possible.

Nano-Neurobiology and Axon Regeneration 

Sandra Gandarez
Neurobiology and Behavior
April 14, 2008
     
      Exploring the subjectivity of certain aspects of neurobiology using the definition of unconscious as an example. 
     

Bailey Baumann
Web Paper #2
Professor Grobstein

“What do you mean, I can’t walk!” Two Theories on Anosognosia for Hemiplegia