 |
Black belts' white matter shows how a powerful punch comes from the brain
August 15, 2012Brain scans have revealed distinctive features in the brain structure of karate experts, which could be linked to their ability to punch powerfully from close range. Researchers from Imperial College London and UCL (University College London) found that differences in the structure of white matter - the connections between brain regions - were correlated with how black belts and novices performed in a test of punching ability.
Karate experts are able to generate extremely powerful forces with their punches, but how they do this is not fully understood. Previous studies have found that the force generated in a karate punch is not determined by muscular strength, suggesting that factors related to the control of muscle movement by the brain might be important.
The study, published in the journal Cerebral Cortex, looked for differences in brain structure between 12 karate practitioners with a black belt rank and an average of 13.8 years' karate experience, and 12 control subjects of similar age who exercised regularly but did not have any martial arts experience.
The researchers tested how powerfully the subjects could punch, but to make useful comparisons with the punching of novices they restricted the task to punching from short range - a distance of 5 centimetres. The subjects wore infrared markers on their arms and torso to capture the speed of their movements.
As expected, the karate group punched harder. The power of their punches seemed to be down to timing: the force they generated correlated with how well the movement of their wrists and shoulders were synchronised.
Brain scans showed that the microscopic structure in certain regions of the brain differed between the two groups. Each brain region is composed of grey matter, consisting of the main bodies of nerve cells, and white matter, which is mainly made up of bundles of fibres that carry signals from one region to another. The scans used in this study, called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), detected structural differences in the white matter of parts of the brain called the cerebellum and the primary motor cortex, which are known to be involved in controlling movement.
The differences measured by DTI in the cerebellum correlated with the synchronicity of the subjects' wrist and shoulder movements when punching. The DTI signal also correlated with the age at which karate experts began training and their total experience of the discipline. These findings suggest that the structural differences in the brain are related to the black belts' punching ability.
"Most research on how the brain controls movement has been based on examining how diseases can impair motor skills," said Dr Ed Roberts, from the Department of Medicine at Imperial College London, who led the study. "We took a different approach, by looking at what enables experts to perform better than novices in tests of physical skill.
"The karate black belts were able to repeatedly coordinate their punching action with a level of coordination that novices can't produce. We think that ability might be related to fine tuning of neural connections in the cerebellum, allowing them to synchronise their arm and trunk movements very accurately.
"We're only just beginning to understand the relationship between brain structure and behaviour, but our findings are consistent with earlier research showing that the cerebellum plays a critical role in our ability to produce complex, coordinated movements.
"There are several factors that can affect the DTI signal, so we can't say exactly what features of the white matter these differences correspond to. Further studies using more advanced techniques will give us a clearer picture."
The study was supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC), the Wellcome Trust, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and University College London.
Imperial College London
Related White Matter Current Events and White Matter News Articles
Do you obsess over your appearance? Your brain might be wired abnormally
Body dysmorphic disorder is a disabling but often misunderstood psychiatric condition in which people perceive themselves to be disfigured and ugly, even though they look normal to others.
Aerobic exercise may protect cognitive abilities of heavy drinkers, says CU-Boulder study
Aerobic exercise may help prevent and perhaps even reverse some of the brain damage associated with heavy alcohol consumption, according to a new University of Colorado Boulder study.
Personalized brain mapping technique preserves function following brain tumor surgery
Neurosurgeons can visualize important pathways in the brain using an imaging technique called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), to better adapt brain tumor surgeries and preserve language, visual and motor function while removing cancerous tissue.
Researchers discover new clues about how amyotrophic lateral sclerosis develops
Johns Hopkins scientists say they have evidence from animal studies that a type of central nervous system cell other than motor neurons plays a fundamental role in the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal degenerative disease.
MRI shows brain abnormalities in migraine patients
A new study suggests that migraines are related to brain abnormalities present at birth and others that develop over time.
Multiple Sclerosis research: the thalamus moves into the spotlight
A growing body of research by multiple sclerosis (MS) investigators at the University at Buffalo and international partners is providing powerful new evidence that the brain's gray matter reflects important changes in the disease that could allow clinicians to diagnose earlier and to better monitor and predict how the disease will progress.
Improved Detection of Frontotemporal Degeneration May Aid Clinical Trial Efforts
A series of studies demonstrate improved detection of the second most common form of dementia, providing diagnostic specificity that clears the way for refined clinical trials testing targeted treatments.
Computer Model May Help Athletes and Soldiers Avoid Brain Damage and Concussions
Concussions can occur in sports and in combat, but health experts do not know precisely which jolts, collisions and awkward head movements during these activities pose the greatest risks to the brain.
Single concussion may cause lasting brain damage
A single concussion may cause lasting structural damage to the brain, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology.
Schizophrenia: A disorder of neurodevelopment and accelerated aging?
Many lines of evidence indicate that schizophrenia is a disorder of neurodevelopment. For example, genes implicated in the heritable risk for schizophrenia are also implicated in the development of nerve cells and their connections.
More White Matter Current Events and White Matter News Articles
 |
What's the Matter with White People?: Finding Our Way in the Next America by Joan Walsh (Author) A CLEAR-EYED, COGENT CLARION CALL FOR ENDING THE DIVISIVE CLASS WARS THAT THREATEN THE AMERICAN MIDDLE-CLASS DREAM In What’s the Matter with White People? Walsh argues that the biggest divide in America today is based not on party or ideology but on two competing explanations for why middle-class stability has been shaken since the 1970s. One side sees an America that has spent the last forty years bankrupting the country by providing benefits for the underachieving, the immoral, and the undeserving—no matter the cost to the majority of Americans. The other side sees an America that has spent the last forty years catering to the wealthy while allowing only a nominal measure of progress for the downtrodden. Using her extended Irish-Catholic working-class family as a case in point and... |
 |
MRI Atlas of Human White Matter, Second Edition by Kenichi Oishi (Author), Andreia V. Faria (Author), Peter C M van Zijl (Author), Susumu Mori (Author) MRI Atlas of Human White Matter remains the only atlas to provide detailed anatomy of human brain white matter. Knowledge of this anatomy via diffusion tensor imaging (DTI )greatly enhances our understanding of brain function and neural connectivity. These advances promise to be particularly helpful with neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer's. The second edition offers an introduction to and description of the methodology, the 3D anatomy of individual tracts, and a series of color-coded orientation maps to delineate white matter anatomy in a slice-by-slice manner. Improvements over the 1st edition include: full segmentation of up to 176 regions of the brain, added definitions of gray matter to further understanding between white and gray matter structures, and the addition of... |
 |
Rebuilt: Awakening the Faithful, Reaching the Lost, and Making Church Matter by Michael White (Author), Tom Corcoran (Author) Drawing on the wisdom gleaned from thriving mega-churches and innovative business leaders while anchoring their vision in the Eucharistic center of Catholic faith, Fr. Michael White and lay associate Tom Corcoran present the compelling and inspiring story to how they brought their parish back to life.Rebuilt is a story of stopping everything and changing focus. When their parish reached a breaking point, Fr. Michael White and lay associate Tom Corcoran asked themselves how they could make the Church matter to Catholics, and they realized the answer was at the heart of the Gospel. Their faithful response not only tripled their weekend mass attendance, but also yielded increased giving, flourishing ministries, and a vibrant, solidly Catholic spiritual revival. White and Corcoran invite all... |
 |
Serious Times: Making Your Life Matter in an Urgent Day by James Emery White (Author) A 2005 Evangelical Christian Publishing Association Gold Medallion finalist. How can we make our lives matter? John Adams and Thomas Jefferson lived in serious times. And, because they chose to live serious lives, they turned the course of history. As the modern era transitions into postmodern turbulence, we, too, find ourselves in serious times. How can we make a difference in the world around us? How can we be an influence for Christ? Most important, how can we make our lives matter? There is a a great movement of God set loose in the world. In this book, James Emery White explores what it means to be at the front lines of what God is doing. When serious times are met with serious lives, the kingdom of God is advanced. Come and... |
 |
White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness by Ruth Frankenberg (Author) Traditional debates concerning racially hierarchical societies have tended to focus on the experience of being black. White Women, Race Matters breaks with this tradition by focusing on the particular ecperiences of white women in a racially hierarchical society. By considering the ways in which their experience not only contributes to but challenges the reproduction of racism, the work offers a rigorous examination of existing methodologies, practices and assumptions concerning racism and gender relations. Supported by extracts from in-depth life history interviews, White Women, Race Matters provides valuable course material. |
 |
What They Don't Teach You at Film School: 161 Strategies For Making Your Own Movies No Matter What by Camille Landau (Author), Tiare White (Author) Two filmmakers who've beaten the system give the real dope on what it takes to get your movie madeDo you have to go to film school to get your movies made No, say two young entrepreneurs who survived the grind. Here they offer 140 strategies for making movies no matter what. Amateurs as well as seasoned veterans can pick up this entertaining and incredibly useful guide in any place--at any point of crisis--and find tactics that work. Whether it's raising money or cutting your budget; dealing with angry landlords or angry cops; or jump-starting the production or stalling it while you finish the script, these strategies are delivered with funny, illustrative anecdotes from the authors' experiences and from veteran filmmakers eager to share their stories. Irreverent, invaluable, and a lot... |
 |
Sticking with Your Teen: How to Keep from Coming Unglued No Matter What by Joe White (Author), Lissa Halls Johnson (Author) Is there a chasm growing between you and your teen? Whether your adolescent is a major prodigal or a minor problem, don't give up! Your relationship is everything, and it's never too late to start mending it. In Sticking with Your Teen, you'll take an honest look at the way you parent. You'll discover creative, schedule-friendly ways to get closer to your son or daughter. You'll see why teens turn distant and defiant and receive the encouragement and hope every parent needs to draw closer to his or her adolescent. |
 |
A Matter of Character: Inside the White House of George W. Bush by Ronald Kessler (Author) More than seventy-five books attacking George W. Bush have been published so far. Now, finally, there's a book that sets the record straight against a backdrop of media bias. And it's not by a conservative idealogue but by an award-winning independent reporter who set out to find the real President Bush behind the two-dimensional public image. Ronald Kessler was granted unique access to the West Wing and interviewed the key players of the Bush administration-from Condoleezza Rice to Karl Rove to the president himself. Kessler also interviewed Bush's close friends, college roommates, and former aides. His surprising conclusion: George W. Bush isn't the most articulate or scholarly president in history, but he scores very high on the factors that count most: character and leadership.... |
 |
White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son by Tim Wise (Author) With a new preface and updated chapters, White Like Me is one-part memoir, one-part polemical essay collection. It is a personal examination of the way in which racial privilege shapes the daily lives of white Americans in every realm: employment, education, housing, criminal justice, and elsewhere. Using stories from his own life, Tim Wise demonstrates the ways in which racism not only burdens people of color, but also benefits, in relative terms, those who are white like him.” He discusses how racial privilege can harm whites in the long run and make progressive social change less likely. He explores the ways in which whites can challenge their unjust privileges, and explains in clear and convincing language why it is in the best interest of whites themselves to do so. Using... |
 |
Gender Matters: Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Making of the New South by LeeAnn Whites (Author) What role did gender play in the secession crisis? How did it affect the loyalties of the civilian population during the Civil War? In what ways did it influence the formation of the Ku Klux Klan? How did it affect labor conflict in the postwar textile industry? Why was the first woman U.S. senator from the South? What role did sexuality and gender play in the explosion of racial violence in the late nineteenth century? These questions and many others concerning the critical role that gender played in the major events of the nineteenth-century South and the nation more generally are addressed in this fascinating collection of essays by renowned historian LeeAnn Whites. Together these pieces argue that gender matters not only in the lives of individuals, but also along racial and class... |
| © 2013 BrightSurf.com |