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Exploring the Mind: Seven Studies

Brain Plasticity

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The Neurology Behind It In addition to the differing rates of language acquisition, the brains of child savants actually have significant differences from adult savants. In an experiment conducted by Neva M. Corrigan et. al in 2012, it was found that there were reduced amounts of GABA neurotransmitters and GABA receptors, as well as abnormalities in "brain chemistry and brain morphometry" (Corrigan 2012) in early development and when compared to the normal control group. The researchers then concluded that these differences were one of the causes for special skills that savants acquire starting at such an early age. From the results of this experiment, it can also be implied that as autistic individuals grow, their brains adapt and change so that once they reach adulthood, they would be able to perform at the relatively same functionality as a typical adult. This also illustrates the extent of the brain's plasiticity and how it has allowed all individuals to grow into beings capable of anything. In Stephen's case, he was able to express personal attachment, specifically with an artistic caretaker named Margaret, and other forms of more sophisticated and developed communication.
   However, as an autistic savant, Stephen still experiences certain limitations. Sacks describes a study conducted by Kurt Goldstein and his colleagues, which was focused on a savant boy referred to as L., who had "remarkable musical, mathemtical, and memorial talents" (227). The main conclusion that was produced from this study was that the brain acted independently. While in normal individuals the brain would typically piece together these independent networks in the brain into one fluid connection, in autistic savants, some of these independent networks would not be able to work with one another to create a continuous thought. For L., this meant that his linguistic perspective was unable to collaborate with a symbolic or figurative interpretation, resulting in "his inability to register or absorb anything of the socio-cultural and interhuman matrix around him" (Sacks 228). Furthermore, in
his book The Tell-Tale Brain, V.S. Ramachandran also recognizes a separate "social intelligence" that is distinguished from "general intelligence", which was initially suggested by psychologist Nick Humphrey and David Premack (138-9). Extending even further on this idea, Ramachandran narrows down the exact neurological reasoning behind the symptoms of autism: mirror neurons. Heobserved that mirror neurons were responsible for the lack of "empathy, intention-reading, mimicry, pretend play, and language learning" seen in autistic children. Therefore, when these particular mirror neurons relating to autism are dysfunctional, it becomes clearer that social and rational intelligence are distinguishable.
   This exact situation parallels Stephen's perspective on the world. To Stephen, the objects, scenes, and people he drew and saw meant nothing to him. He built no personal connections and to him, they were all merely empty shapes. Sacks also provides further insight on how Stephen may view the world in that “He had virtually no understanding of or interest in the use of language. Other people held no apparent meaning for him except to fulfill some immediate, unspoken need; he used them as objects” (197). Additionally, he lacks empathy, or the ability to relate to another individual's perspective, which also supports Ramachandran's explanation. Stephen's viewpoint establishes objectification, with the complete absence of any figurative or abstract meaning, as the dominating perspective.
   Ultimately, the brain's plasticity serves as an advantage in that it provides the opportunity for individuals to adapt and grow, but the brain's interconnectedness of independent connections, when severed or broken, can also create an anchor that takes away part of one's character.

- Alexia Kim