Comments on: Neuroplasticity is a dirty word

By: christina

christina — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 02:09:47 +0000

Well, with all the nonsensical jargon that pours form here and there in the world of verbal and literary correctness and exactitude…..I hide quite happily under my neuroplasticity umbrella.

By: neurotic ape

neurotic ape — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 17:00:14 +0000

Tod, years ago while attending a community college I did volunteer work helping a stroke victim. What was being done on a daily basis was four volunteers were moving Dannys limbs in a prearranged pattern. Danny had no ability to move his limbs on his own. The thinking was that by moving his limbs for him his brain would relearn how to move his limbs. The thought at the time was not to rebuild the damaged part of the brain but to train other areas of the brain to take over these functions. I don’t know if this will help you in your situation, but I thought that I would tell you about it in case you or your therapist was unaware of this kind of work.

By: Sue

Sue — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:34:04 +0000

I think what’s missing in this article is the basic understanding of differing philosophies regarding the nature of consciousness – brain state or mind state, how “mind state” or “free-will” or if there is “free-will” at all, might effect brain state. For instance, comparing Cartesian materialism with Epiphenominalism. This point has been entirely overlooked. : (

By: Neurotic ape

Neurotic ape — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 09:09:22 +0000

Although I agree that a lot of people use terminology like this to make themselves sound more intelligent or to give their argument more credibility I don’t believe that we should throw out the word because of its misuse. If we started to do that then our language would be very sparse indeed. There are many situations where usage of this term is appropriate and valuable. Yes it is a generalization as you have pointed out, but that is not a bad thing in and of itself.

By: Joseph

Joseph — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 22:23:50 +0000

Quote Vaughanbell: “Neuroplasticity is common in popular culture at this point in time because mentioning the brain makes a claim about human nature seem more scientific, even if it is irrelevant (a tendency called ‘neuroessentialism‘)

Clearly this is rubbish and every time you hear anyone, scientist or journalist, refer to neuroplasticity, ask yourself what specifically they are talking about.”

Could you give us some examples where popular culture uses the word “neuroplasticity” just to seem more scientific?

By: Neurotic Ape

Neurotic Ape — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 21:15:57 +0000

Thank you for this article. You seem to lay out a number of brain functions quite well. I am a bit concerned about the grammar though.
As a visual artist who focuses on op art I find neuroplasticity to be an exciting field to understanding ourselves. I start with the basic premise that everything affects everything. Therefore if the brain is in a constant state of change that change is related to what we experience. What I attempt to do with my art is to control in certain ways what the viewer is experiencing, therefore affecting their neural wiring in a number of ways.
In this sense I take some umbrage with your statement that we would be just as well off if we didn’t have the word.
I find that understanding certain processes of my brain at a technical level greatly assists me in how I experience my life. I fully accept that at some level certain individuals in a society always had some perception of this. In fact the Philosophical Implications attached to this are well known and highly regarded.

By: Taylor

Taylor — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:59:48 +0000

*was already proven

By: Taylor

Taylor — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:58:49 +0000

Thanks for the interesting article! However, I believe you are being too harsh about who uses the word “neuroplasticity” and when it is used. Perhaps as a scholar, yes, it is too general and was already been proven a long time ago. But, I am a college student who has just been introduced to what it really means and how it applies to stroke victims, people with learning disabilities etc. So, please try to keep in mind that not everyone who reads your posts is a professor studying in this field.

Also, the word is so general because there is still so much to learn from this phenomena. Neuroplasticity is still relevant today, regardless of how long ago it was discovered. I mean, people are still re-translating and analyzing Homer, Vergil and Sophocles despite how many millions of times their works have been translated since they were written so long ago. Overall though , I thank you for your enlightening post.

By: Greg

Greg — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 00:00:12 +0000

If in fact what the article says is true, I wouldn’t recommend posting it on Wikipedia since Wikipedia is not a reliable source of information. So much so that college students are not allowed to use Wikipedia for any level of research. The site is editable, which makes it vulnerable to false or fabricated information.

By: tod

tod — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 13:22:33 +0000

i am just a stroke victim with spasticity who can’t get a straight answer from any of my doctors. it was my physical therapist who told me why my hamstring was suddenly “tight or tightening” so much. i need to know what therapies, exercises, i can do to attack this condition. does spasticity go away? why didn’t this happen when i had the first two strokes in nov. 2011? after the first two i walked out of the hospital on my own, it was after the third that this developed. WILL SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!
todgreene@yahoo.com or 646-330-1404 will weight training reduce or eliminate it? (i was a bodybuilder) i want to go back to the gym. i want to get well or as well as i can. i have been out of work 7 months just started back last week. i am still having trouble with stairs
ANY DIRECTION ADVICE SUGGESTIONS WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. thank you all