plasticity

• P: kempermann suggested that an enriched environment could alter the number of neurons in the brain

  E: they found evidence of an increased number of new neurons in the brains of rats housed in complex environments compared to rats housed in lab cages. rats housed in complex environments showed an increase in neurons in the hippocampus

  L: this shows clear evidence of the brain's ability to change as a result of experience
• P: maguire, in a study of london taxi drivers, discovered that changes in the brain could be detected as a result of their extensive experience of spatial navigation

  E: using MRI, researchers calculated the amount of grey matter in brains of taxi drivers and a set of control participants. the posterior hippocampi of taxi drivers were larger relative to those of control participants and posterior hippocampal volume was positively correlated with the amount of time they spent as a taxi driver
• link for maguire

  L: this not only shows that hippocampal volume was greater in those individuals with job related experience of spatial navigation, but also that the highest levels of plasticity were evident in those with more extensive experience