The Brain that Changes Itself

When I turned on my computer the other day, a notification greeted me to update my software. I clicked " okay " and marveled at the computer's capacity to improve itself. An hour or so later, my computer had improved its programs to run faster, cleaned up its layout to appear more modern, and deleted several useless programs. On many occasions, the brain has been compared to a computer in its vast functionality. Norman Doidge, MD, a psychoanalyst and researcher at Columbia University and psychiatrist at the University of Toronto, discusses in his novel, " The Brain that Changes Itself " (ISBN-10: 0143113100, Penguin Books reprint edition December 2007) the brain's ability to improve or " update " from a previous level of functioning is no exception to the brain/computer comparison. The novel is available for $11.51 on Amazon.com. Neuroplasticity, as Doidge explores throughout his novel, is the brain's capability to, " update, " itself, or, a phenomenon in which, " one part [of the brain] fails, another can often substitute; that if brain cells die, they can at times be replaced, " (Doidge, xix) as is often the case in certain birth defects or accidents. For example, Doidge introduces his readers to a woman named Michelle who lives with only the right hemisphere of her brain. Doidge explains that Michelle was born without the left hemisphere, and her right hemisphere " took over " (Doidge, 259) for essential functions of the left hemisphere, such as speech and language. This " takeover " likely occurred during Michelle's childhood because the brain shows the most plasticity in early years of life. Although healthy tissue can naturally compensate for deficits, the process can be initiated with certain thoughts and actions depending on the individual's specific issue. Through exploring the brain's, " plastic, " or dynamic capabilities, Doidge brilliantly depicts neuro-plasticians' research, including his own, to highlight the future of neuroplas-ticity-based treatments that utilize the thoughts and actions of individuals. Research on neuroplasticity challenges the previous dogma of the brain, which argued that the brain consisted of localized regions hardwired to perform a specific function. Doidge illustrates the research of neuroplastician Michael Merzenich, whose research fundamentally depicts the dynamic properties of the brain. In his experiment, Merzenich compared the brain map, or the processing area for specific sensory or motor functions, of a monkey normally moving his fingers to a monkey moving fingers …