Sensory Based Learning
Recent studies at the intersection of neuroscience and cognition have shown strong correlations between bodily movement, or dance, and brain development (Borhan et al. 2018). In a 2015 Harvard Mahoney Neuroscience Institute article entitled Dancing and the Brain, Scott Edwards outlines the parts of the brain that contribute to dance learning and performance:
Studies using PET imaging have identified regions of the brain that contribute to dance learning and performance. These regions include the motor cortex, somatosensory cortex, basal ganglia, and cerebellum. The motor cortex is involved in the planning, control, and execution of voluntary movement. The somatosensory cortex, located in the mid-region of the brain, is responsible for motor control and also plays a role in eye-hand coordination. The basal ganglia, a group of structures deep in the brain, work with other brain regions to smoothly coordinate movement, while the cerebellum integrates input from the brain and spinal cord and helps in the planning of fine and complex motor actions. (Edwards 2015)
Not only does dancing activate parts of the brain, bodily movement actually builds brains, too. As affirmed in Rodolfo Llinás’s 2001 book I of the Vortex, Llinás asserts that the nervous system evolved to allow active movement in animals, movement that keeps them alive by enabling them to anticipate the consequences of their movements. The implications of this research offer an argument in favor of the efficacy of movement-based learning modalities like Project Pulse, if movement in fact predicates brain development, and thus cognition (Llinás 2008).
Further studies have discovered that dancing is associated with a reduced risk of dementia (Verghese et al. 2003), and that synchronizing music and movement (dance) constitutes a “pleasure double-play” where music stimulates the brain’s reward centers and dance activates its sensory and motor circuits (Krakauer 2008). It has also been shown that dancing releases mood boosting endorphins and aids in the development of social interactions (Redcay and Warnell 2018).
Recent studies on mirror neurons reveal that identical sets of neurons can be activated in an individual who is simply witnessing another person performing a movement as the one actually engaged in the action or expression, functionally building empathy (Berrol 2006). Essentially, watching, or witnessing dance is a way to learn dance beyond doing dance. In our workshop, practitioners do the pulse choreography and also watch their teacher and watch each other perform the pulse movements. Theoretically, watching, as well as doing, stimulates learning. We can take this one step farther if we imagine feeling the pulse with our fingertips as a process of seeing the pulse choreography. In other words, pulse palpation becomes a process of image association, or drawing connections between the fingertip sensation and a moving image (the pulse choreography). In a clinical setting, when “watching” or palpating the pulse movement of a patient, a practitioner who has engaged in Project Pulse training can theoretically become more effective in drawing connections between the image (choreography) and the sensation of the pulse in a patient, augmenting their ability to identify what the pulse is.
The brain creates new neural pathways and modifies existing ones in response to behavioral, environmental, and neural changes. This process of neuroplasticity, also known as brain plasticity, continues throughout our lives, involves many processes and is influenced by new experiences.
Until recently, scientists believed that brain development came to a halt during adulthood. But researchers now know that our brains change constantly throughout our lives, forming new pathways to adjust to our environment and actions. For example, neuroplasticity allows the brain to compensate for injury and disease.
Understanding how brain plasticity works can help us attain our own cognitive goals as well as improve the ways experts treat and support people with neurological and behavioral health problems.
How Do Our Brains Change?
Neuroplasticity would not be possible without the malleable traits of neurons. Neurons are what cause the brain to change and the entire body to function effectively. Neurons are the longest-living cells in our bodies and are responsible for carrying information throughout the brain and then on to the muscles and organs of the body.
Our brains have the extraordinary capacity to change both structurally and functionally. Structural plasticity involves our brains changing its physical structure as we learn new things or form new memories. Functional plasticity is the brain’s ability to move functions from a damaged area of the brain to other undamaged areas.
How Do Neurons Communicate?
A neuron generates electrical charges as it signals from other neurons. Synapses, the tiny gaps where chemicals called neurotransmitters are released to transfer information from one cell to another, must be reinforced to remain active. The more synaptic pathways are used, the stronger the communication between neurons.
As we adapt to new environments, our brains dispose of unused or unnecessary neural connections while strengthening and preserving those that are used frequently. This activity is called synaptic pruning. For the brain to operate efficiently, synaptic pruning must maintain a proper balance. Researchers suggest that imbalanced brain pruning could be linked to some psychiatric and neurodegenerative issues. If not enough pruning occurs, the brain remains hyperconnected, which studies observe occurs in many cases of autism. Conversely, too much pruning disrupts communication between neurons, an abnormality found in Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia.
How Do Neurons Grow and Repair Themselves?
The human brain has billions of neurons, some of which can than live more 100 years in humans. Unused neurons grow weak and die through a process called apoptosis, but can be regenerated by neurogenesis, the creation of new brain cells. With the support of other types of brain cells called glial, neurons can constantly repair, remodel and regenerate themselves.
How Can You Rewire Your Brain?
Early childhood is the most critical time for learning. Though brain plasticity happens throughout our lives, children have a greater ability to learn and retain information. At birth, infants have approximately 2,500 synapses in the brain. From infancy to age 3, a child’s brain produces 15,000 synapses. Throughout adolescence, neurons weaken, reducing synapses by 50%.
How can we build and maintain those connections that are relevant during early childhood and even later into adulthood? Neuroplasticity involves a “fire together, wire together” principle: If certain neurons keep firing at the same time, eventually they’ll develop a physical connection and become physically associated. This experience-dependent plasticity means if you practice something consistently, such as meditating, exercising or learning how to play an instrument, you’re likely to alter your brain to associate the relevant parts of its structure. Whether you are a child, adolescent or older adult, actions and thoughts (both positive and negative) that you repeat can form new neural pathways.
