THE TEENAGE BRAIN IN SEARCH OF ITSELF
AN INTERNET SEARCH FOR THE ADOLESCENT BRAIN
Adapted from:
Londonderry High School
The Brain—is wider than the Sky—
For—put them side by side—
The one the other will contain
With ease—and You—beside—
The Brain is deeper than the sea—
For—hold them—Blue to Blue—
The one the other will absorb—
As Sponges—Buckets—do—
The Brain is just the weight of God—
For—Heft them—Pound for Pound—
And they will differ—if they do—
As Syllable from Sound—
Emily Dickinson
Is it possible that everything one is, does, and experiences is a function of the brain, just as Emily
Dickinson suggested nearly one hundred and fifty years ago? Could it be that one is who one is because of
what one's brain is? And that becoming something different means changing the brain? If so, what are the
implications of this? Do we lose something, or is the brain actually big enough, as Dickinson suggested, to
contain everything? If so, what might we be able to do that has never before been possible? What are the
risks, the gains, the new landscapes which would be opened to explore? Can you achieve your childhood
dreams?
Introduction:
Have you ever thought any of the following? Why don’t my parents understand me? Why don’t my teachers
understand me? Why do I seem to think differently than my peers? Am I crazy? What is happening? Is
alcohol really that bad for me? What does alcohol do to my brain? Do girls get intoxicated more quickly
than boys? Will drinking coffee sober me up? How about if I eat before I drink? Why do some people get
mean when they drink while others get sleepy and others die?
Objective:
Using the internet, worksheets, class notes, labs and activities you will develop your own portfolio on topics
in neuroscience. It is an inquiry –based search that requires you to create your own drawing and tables.
You will also be answering questions as you explore topics related to neurobiology. Some items will require
you to collaborate with others. At the completion of the project, you will have compiled a resource
document that is a personal learning tool and acquired a background on the topic that will help answer
some of the questions posed in the introduction. It is a process of taking ownership in what you learn.
TOPIC SEQUENCE
A. The Big Picture: A look at your brain and its parts
B. Close Up Picture: “You’ve got a lot of nerve!” - The neuron and neurotransmitters
C. Getting the Picture: Technology used to “see” the brain. “What happened to Phinneas
Gage?”
D. How is your brain changing?
E. Where in your brain are the changes happening?
F. What might these changes mean in terms of how you think, learn, and behave?
“If the human brain were so simple that we could understand it, we would be so simple that we couldn’t.”
Emerson m. Pugh
A. The Big Picture
A look at your brain and its parts:
Click on the URL below. Read “The Central Nervous System”. Answer the
questions on your answer document.
following
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/nsdivide.html
1a. How many parts make up the central nervous system?
2a. How much does an adult brain weigh?
3a. How many nerve cells are there in the brain?
4a. Are there any other special cells in the brain?
5a. What are they?
Click below to learn more about your brain and it’s parts.
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/
B. A Close Up Picture: “You’ve got a lot of nerve!” - The neuron and neurotransmitters
Click on the link below and scroll down to the paragraph that begins with Neurons. Read about neurons
and glial cells.
http://www.mind.ilstu.edu/curriculum/neurons_intro/neurons_intro.php?modGUI=232&compGUI=1826&item
GUI=3155
1b. What is a neuron?
2b. What does it do?
3b. About how many neurons are there in the human brain?
4b. Are neurons the only kind of cell in the brain?
5b. Give an example of another cell in the brain and explain what it does.
The brain is a monstrous, beautiful mess. Its billions of nerve cells - called neurons - lie in a tangled
web that displays cognitive powers far exceeding any of the silicon machines we have built to
mimic it. William F. Allman
Structure of the Neuron
Examine the different types of neurons in the diagram of drawing by Cajal further down on the above site.
6b. Do all neurons look the same?
7b. Generally, there are 3 types of neurons. What are they and what do they do?
Neurotransmitters:
Click on the link below. Read about the synapse and it’s parts.
http://thebrain.mcgill.ca/flash/i/i_01/i_01_m/i_01_m_ana/i_01_m_ana.html#2
Click on the link neurotransmitters
8b. According to this site, how many molecules meet the criteria for being a neurotransmitter?
C. Getting the Picture – A number of ways of “seeing” your brain
Aristotle (from De motu animalium, 4th century B.C.)
The seat of the soul and the control of voluntary movement - in fact, of nervous functions in
general, - are to be sought in the heart. The brain is an organ of minor importance.
Click on the following link.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/scanning/index.html
1c. List 5 technologies used to scan the brain. Include their acronyms.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/scanning/eeg.html
Click on the EEG arrow. Read about EEGs and answer the following questions.
2c. Who was the first person to use this kind of technology?
3c. Where and when did he do this?
4c. Are images of the brain “seen” with this technology?
5c. What are researchers actually observing?
6c. What is the disadvantage of using this method for observing the brain?
Select the Scan type CAT
7c. When was this technology developed?
8c. This technology creates 3-dimensional images from what kind of 2-dimensional
imaging technology?
9c. What can CAT scans detect?
Select the Scan type PET
10c. When was this technology developed?
11c. What advantage does this technology have over earlier techniques for observing
the brain?
Select the Scan type MRI
12c. What element in the body is affected by the magnets in the MRI machine?
13c. After the atoms return to their natural alignment having released their energy,
what instrument is used to produce the image?
14c. What advantage does the MRI scan have over the PET scan for the subject?
Select the Scan type MEG
15c. What does MEG detect from the brain?
16c. What is the name of the sensitive instrument that detects the brain’s magnetic
field?
17c. Although expensive and heavy, what can it do that makes it an important brain
scanning method?
D. How is your brain changing?
Click on the following link and read the first 3 paragraphs of Teen Brain: Still Under Construction
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/the-teen-brain-still-under-construction/index.shtml
After reading this part of the article, answer the following questions.
1d. What do scientists mean by the principle of “use-it-or-lose-it? When talking
about how neurons connect?
2d. What is gray matter? (For more information select use your book.)
3d. What is a possible explanation for increased growth of gray matter in early
puberty (age 11 to 12)?
4d. What technology is used by neuroscientists to observe the growth and pruning in
the teenage brain?
Click on the following link.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/work/adolescent.html
Scroll down to Changes in the Prefrontal Cortex and read this section which is part of an interview with Dr. Jay
Giedd, whose research using MRI technology revealed an extensive amount of information on the developing
teenage brain.
4e. Identify 3 functions of the prefrontal cortex.
5e. Identify 3 functions that improve as the teenage brain matures.
6e. Why is pruning synapses and losing gray matter important for brain development?
E. What might these changes mean in terms of how you think, learn, and your behavior?
View a video clip from “Inside the Teenage Brain”. Click on the following link.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/view/
Watch video clip 4: “You Just Don’t Understand.”
Watch video clip 5: “Mood Swings.”
1f. What might these changes mean in terms of how you think, learn, and your behavior?
Answer ALL of the following questions based on the information you learned about the Nervous System.
Why don’t my parents understand me?
Why don’t my teachers understand me?
Why do I seem to think differently than my peers?
Am I crazy?
What is happening?
Is alcohol really that bad for me?
What does alcohol do to my brain?
Do girls get intoxicated more quickly than boys?
Will drinking coffee sober me up?
How about if I eat before I drink?
Why do some people get mean when they drink while others get sleepy and others die?