I have been interested in how the brain works (and how that affects teaching and learning) for a long time. In 2003, my then teen-aged son Cory and I read and discussed Jeffery Hawkins’ On Intelligence. (Both Cory and I attribute this experience as one of the reasons he is a taking a biochemistry degree with a concentration in neuroscience at Grinnell College.) I have also written about my interest here on this blog in an article that had an example of how it use it to motivate students.
The TED Talk below, by Allan Jones, about how scientists are actually mapping the brain is notable for a number of reasons:
- It clarified for me how brain fMRIs work
- The video and visuals are compelling
- I loved seeing the scientists actually working in the lab
- And there is a funny bit about how they actually collect the brains