Anatomy » Thinking Critically

How to live with half a brain

allejam — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 01:24:43 +0000

It is really crazy how the brain can work even with only half a brain. It makes sense though because you can take out or replace other organs like spleen or others that we have two of. They can work with this disability just the same and still function fully. I find it astonishing that a half brain can perform as well as it does with its disability. It would seem as if the spinal fluid would disrupt or alter the brains ability to think or cause some other alteration. Or does the spinal fluid affect the brain at all? It says in this link that Hydrocephalus can occur when there is an increase fluid pressure in the brain. So that is one way it can affect the brain. Nowadays, it says that only 1-2% of patients die when they have the surgery, so this mortality rate is somewhat low.

Switching Brains

adajron — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:53:52 +0000

The movie about the brain astonished me. There were some thing that I already knew about the brain, but a lot of it was quite new to me. One of the topics that I found interesting was “The Brain after a Stroke.” I knew that the two halves of the brain had different thinking processes, but seeing how it works through an actual person was kind of weird but yet amazing. I found it interesting how she had a tumor in the left side of her brain, causing her to loose her abilities to continue being a doctor. However, after time, she learned how to use the right hemisphere of her brain, which helped her take better use of her artistic skills. It surprised how she actually became an amazing artist, after being such a stupendous doctor-to-be. One question that I want to know is how much does it take for one person to be able to “master” both halves of their brain. In this article the brain uses 20% of a person’s energy.

Music of the Mind

myersop — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:53:27 +0000

Of the seven topics present, the one that interested me the most was the aging brain, despite its being the one that has the least pertinence to me right now. The teen brain was more relevant, but also more well-known – I had heard most of the facts about frontal development and the amygdala at least five times. That one can keep their mid intact through the mastery of new skills was new and interesting information. I also found it interesting that there is a limit on the time for requiring a sense, because of the brain’s ability to process, and that one can not only survive but recover completely from the removal of half of their brain.

Back to the aging brain: although the aged brain is slightly slower and harder to train, it is actually better at complex reasoning and empathy. (According to NPR, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124118077)

You are welcome to take half of my brain!

rittjas — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:52:36 +0000

Watching this movie, I couldn’t help but be in utter amazement. I never imagined you could do much to the brain to alter it to help you. Or that you could have such enhancements to allow you to function more properly. The movie was incredible. All the patients who had problems had surgeries or other medical ways to help them. I didn’t think you could “cure” things so easily and relieve people somewhat of their medical conditions. The subject that interested me the most is the child who got half of her brain removed. She functioned well and stopped having seizures so bad. I was so interested because I didn’t know you could remove part of someone’s brain and be able to function normally. I always believed that when you got part of your brain removed or “damaged” that you would have mental conditions. I never knew you could remove part of your brain and be able to function “better.” The fact that this girl was walking after surgery amazed me! I didn’t think she’d be able to do anything with a missing brain. I was proven wrong. I learned the different functions of each side of the brain. I never really thought about it like that our brain functioned like that. I knew some parts were in different parts of the brains, but never knew how well you could function missing part of the brain. It surprised me when the man at the end of the movie couldn’t talk, but he could use his brain to be able to function through the computer and be able to have the clicker point out his emotions he was feeling. I was surprised that someone with so much damage could function the way he did or that there was a way that could allow him to function better. One question that makes me wonder is that, are there major consequences of removing half or your brain? On this website I found that the only major consequence is that if part of the brain is left. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=strange-but-true-when-half-brain-better-than-whole
” The strength of anatomical hemispherectomies, a specialty of Hopkins, lies in the fact that “leaving even a little bit of brain behind can lead seizures to return,”" But other then that, there are no major consequences of removing half of the brain, in most cases for seizure victims, it is best to remove half of the brain. ” nother study found that children that underwent hemispherectomies often improved academically once their seizures stopped.” That’s amazing to think that some people could think better with half of their brain missing. Who would have known.

Change of Mind

florsha — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:51:53 +0000

The brain movie was unbelievable. It’s hard to believe that the brain can function even with problems. The story that interested me the most was the one about the woman who had a stroke. She had to re-learn how to do really simple things, but what really amazed me was her change of career, her thoughts about everything. She went from academics to being artistic. I found this site that talks about the effect of a stroke on different parts of the brain. Survivors of the right-hemisphere stroke might have trouble calculating distance, which can lead to a fall. They may not be able to do the most simplest things such as picking up an object. Survivors of the left-hemisphere stroke might develop aphasia – term used to describe speech and language problems. People who go through the cerebellar stroke may develop abnormal reflexes. Survivors of a brain stem stroke may get paralyzed on one or both sides.

The Intense Human Brain

kellang — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:51:13 +0000

The human brain is amazingly adaptable. It has the ability to come back from seemingly life-ending injuries. This movie showed us shocking stories of children and people who were able to overcome disabilities and injuries. Their brains overcompensated for its injured, or in some cases, entirely missing, sections.

One thing that I found very interesting was the woman who had schizophrenia. I feel like I didn’t completely understand her illness, or how it began. How does she function daily? Does it come in waves or is it constantly there? She mentioned that she hears voices that sound like they are coming from inside her head and around her brain, not from somewhere in the room. She also seemed completely clear and responsive during the interviewers conversation with her. The video mentioned that she first had symptoms while serving in the Navy. Could her condition be connected to her line of work at all? I researched more about the causes of schizophrenia, and found that some causes are conditions in one’s early environment, neurobiology, drugs, genetics, and psychological and social processes. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schizophrenia) I also found that people with schizophrenia will live about 10 to 15 years less than those without the disorder, and that they have a 5% higher suicide rate.

Big on Brains

mapiorl — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:50:23 +0000

The resilience and plasticity of the brain was very interesting to watch. How the brain moves and one half can work without the other is so amazing. It seemed like Jodie never had a problem with her brain in the first place. It adapted and the brain took control. What caught my attention was that during the movie, they mentioned that the perception of the whole world could change because of this. Since there are two sides, one controlling the creativity and the other reasoning, the half brain would drastically change how a person thinks. How would their creativity change if they were forced to use the half that controlled reasoning. How would it be the other way around? I learned that Rasmussen’s encephalitis or Sturge-Weber syndrome the most common in damaging the brain and causing epilepsy, which in severe forms, can result to the person needing hemispherectomy. Here is the site that more information can be found in: http://www.webmd.com/epilepsy/functional-hemispherectomy

The Brain’s Amazing Abilities!

sisostep — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:49:48 +0000

The movie was pretty fascinating. I learned a lot of things regarding how differently brains can function, its mysterious abilities, and the technology we make that results from inspiration, enabling us to communicate with the brain. One topic that amazed me was the Teen Brain vs Adult Brain where it showed the child prodigy. I could not believe a 10 year old student had graduated from college. It’s like saying my little sister had suddenly advanced 7 years ahead of me! I think it’s because he has better memory capacity than the norm or he has process memory info faster.

I wonder, do prodigies contain something that the average person’s brain does not? When I searched it up, some theories that came up included the strong link it may have with disorders. Scientists suggest that the way the brain develops also affects intelligence. In a similar way, heredity may play an important role because the physical structures of the brain can become an inherited trait.

http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2007/09/newtons-childre.html

Boom Pow! How the brain works NOW!

nolakei — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:49:04 +0000

The movie we watched about the brain was very interesting. It is just so amazing how one thing can do so much. the most amazing thing i thought, was how even by taking out half of a brain, the girl was still able to function and build connections that were missing. Next it is crazy how the brain can be able to control a computer using the mind. I still wonder how come more people can’t become genius’s. This article I found at sciencefocus.com says that a genius’s brain has a higher concentration of filled with long and short connections, giving more processing power for the brain in the frontal lobe.

http://sciencefocus.com/feature/tech/whats-inside-brain-genius

What Augie Jewel’s twin sister taught us . . .

roemwil — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:47:44 +0000

The video about the brain taught us many things about the human brain. The most amazing being that our wonderful brain can function and adapt, even if half of it is removed!!!!! I think that that’s crazy! The way our bodies can compensate and function even without some of the most vital of organs. It is truly amazing. And doesn’t little Jodie Miller look just like Augustus Jewel?!?!?!?