NEWS ARTICLE: Forgotten But Not Gone: How the Brain Re-Learns
JOURNAL ARTICLE: Experience Leaves a Lasting Structural Trace In cortical Circuits
Summary
1) What specific claim(s) does the news article make about the study? That is, what did the news article say was discovered? For each claim,
indicate if the original paper actually makes that claim.
1st Claim- learning process stay put, even when they are no longer required. Thereactivation of this temporarily inactivated "stock of contacts"enables a faster learning of things forgotten. In this way, specific structuralmodifications may serve to store information about past experiences and therebyendow the cortex with an improved ability to adapt to similar experiences inthe future.
-yes, original paperactually makes this claim
2-there are indeedconsiderable differences in the number of new cell contacts made - depending onwhether a piece of information is new or is being learned second time around.
-yes, original paperactually makes this claim
2) Most technical papers have a "Conclusions" section (often labeled as such). Find this section. Are the items which the original authors
highlighted as conclusions of their study discussed in the news article? Indicate "yes" or "no", giving your evidence.
Yes, spines hold history ofexperience and embody history of previous adaptations by circuits (cortical).Certain structures store information about past experiences and adapt whensimilar experiences occur in the future.
3) Most technical papers will describe the uncertainty around their conclusions and discoveries, often discussed in a section labeled "Discussion."
Does the original paper describe the degree of confidence the scientists have in their discoveries? If so, describe this, and indicate whether
or not the news article also discusses the degree of uncertainty.
It is unclear whetherstructural changes of spines can outlast the original experience and therebyprovide a basis for long-term information storage.
-The News article does notdiscuss this degree of uncertainty.
4) It is the job of the news reporter to make whatever item they are reporting on relevant to some larger issue or set of issues; in contrast,
a technical paper is often much more focused and may not deal with broader implications of the work. Do you find examples of the reporter
discussing "broader implications" not present in the original paper? If so, describe them. Additionally, if so, indicate whether you (as a
reader) can see that this broader implication actually does follow from the conclusions of the study.
The news article’s main point is that it is easier to re-learn something that wasforgotten than learn something completely new.
For example when you are studying for a test, it is better to be exposed to theinformation more often than just one time.
5) In some technical paper the original scientists might describes previous contradictory work of previous research (often in the "Introduction"),
which they presumably consider their new work has overturned. If so, does the news article reflect that this study has resulted in the
rejection of a previous hypothesis?
-Nothere was no reference to previous research
6) Journalists very often couch science news items as "debates between equal sides", even if the weight of the evidence is not equal. Does the
news article discuss alternative hypotheses that are not mentioned in the original paper? If so, does the news article give a measure of what
degree of evidential support exists for either of the alternative models?
-Nothere was not an alternative hypotheses mentioned in the original or newsarticle.