Articles tagged with Motor Learning
Researchers found that motor areas of the brain are activated in a fashion similar to actual movement when watching someone else perform a task with the intention of later replicating it. This discovery may prove important in improving rehabilitation for individuals suffering from brain or bodily injury.
A study published in NeuroImage found that alcohol selectively suppresses cognitive activity in the frontal and posterior parietal brain regions, leading to poor coordination. This suppression is due to impaired feedback processing in brain areas critical for updating mental models for motor action.
Researchers identified two critical molecular events: PICK1's role in removing AMPA receptors and phosphorylation's effect on the receptor. These findings provide new understanding of long-term depression and its connection to motor learning, such as the vestibulo-ocular reflex.
Blindfolded subjects improved in recognizing trained movement patterns without visual stimulation. Skilled performers showed greater accuracy due to more precise motor programs supporting visual recognition. The study demonstrates a direct link between learned motor skills and visual action perception.
Researchers found that human subjects learned different levels of a video game in just 20 minutes, adapting to varying environmental difficulties. The study showed that people can rapidly reshape their learning process to best learn new movements.
Fragile X syndrome is caused by a defect in the Fmr1 gene, which produces a nonfunctioning protein. Researchers found that mice lacking this gene only in specific neurons showed deficits in a motor learning task. The study also revealed abnormalities in signaling connections and dendrites of Purkinje cells in the cerebellum.
Researchers found that subjects who watched a video of someone learning to navigate a robotic device improved their own performance when faced with similar challenges. However, the benefits of observation were diminished when performing unrelated arm movements during observation.
Neurobiologists studying finch brains found a crucial learning circuit that generates trial and error necessary for mastering sophisticated motor skills. The region, LMAN, tunes song variations by introducing different pitches and frequencies, allowing birds to improvise and learn.
By studying how monkeys track a visual target, researchers have gained new insights into the brain's strategies for measuring time. The findings indicate that the brain measures time by assessing the duration of a process and computing the distance an object has moved.
Researchers recorded neuronal activity in primary motor cortex and dorsolateral striatum of mice during different phases of motor-skill learning. They found that cortico-striatal neural circuits undergo substantial changes, differing between fast and slow learning phases.
Researchers found that individuals who slept for 12 hours showed significant improvement in motor skills, with an average 20% increase in performance. This is due to the brain's ability to consolidate learning during Stage 2 non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep.
Researchers found that power naps of 30 minutes or more can prevent burnout and improve performance on tasks, with longer naps boosting performance even after waking. This is due to slow wave sleep, which refreses neural networks involved in the task, allowing for enhanced learning and restoration of perceptual performance.
Researchers found that learning new motor skills does not occur in the cerebellum, but rather in other parts of the brain. The cerebellum does influence changes in performance, however.
New research reveals that brain activity associated with performing motor skills is separate from the process of learning those skills. The study, conducted by Dr. James Ashe and colleagues, used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect brain activity in the cerebellum during performance of learned motor skills.
A new study by Brown University researchers provides evidence that learning uses LTP to produce changes in the connections between brain cells, necessary for acquiring and storing new information. The study also validates a theory proposing that synapses are constantly modifying and closely related to LTP.
Researchers at Texas A&M University have made groundbreaking discoveries about spinal cord plasticity, which enables the spinal cord to learn and adapt without brain input. This breakthrough could potentially lead to greater chances of recovery for victims of spinal cord injuries.
Researchers found strong neurological activity in zebra finch brain region involved in singing during sleep, suggesting a role in consolidating learned songs. The finding runs counter to the motor theory, proposing that birds subconsciously mimic sounds they hear while awake.
Researchers used PET images of people tracing maze patterns to find distinct brain areas active during learning and skilled performance. The brain's 'right premotor cortex' and 'left cerebellum' are active early on, while the 'supplementary motor area' takes over after practice.
Researchers found that motor skills are most vulnerable to impairment during the first 6 hours after learning, shifting to more stable neural pathways after 5-6 hours. This discovery has implications for skills training in educational and industrial settings.
The study reveals that higher brain structures directly control the abstract information in a bird's song, while lower brain centers manage individual notes. Researchers hope to gain insight into how learning influences brain activity patterns.