Laura Schwecher of the Times writes about a recent study linking meditation with "a thicker cerebral cortex and more gray matter - i.e., the parts of the brain linked to memory, attention span, decision making and learning." All of these higher processes can also generally be thought of as aspects absolutely fundamental to the growth and/or gain of wisdom. Wisdom requires a vast library of memories to work with, a large attention span and learning ability with which to perform extremely complex metacognitive processes, and a keen or sharp ability to make decisions. This decision making must work with a robust communication network, one with efficiently placed synapses and without an excess of extraneous, ill-linked cells. And Schwecher goes on to say that some scientists argue "devoting complete attention to one specific object or thought [as in meditation] actually alters our neural networks." Perhaps meditating causes a "pruning" of our neural networks, ridding itself of excess neural connections and creating new ones in more efficient or optimal patterns.
It is well known that as we develop from child to adulthood our brains undergo a massive pruning, or reduction of synapses by the millions. This symbolizes our maturation: we slowly become more apt at facing harder life decisions and are better able to apply complex information to concepts already in our mind as our brain weeds out those problematic synapses that get in the way of efficient metacognitive processing. I argue that meditation not only speeds this process up by weeding, but also reopens the door to some of the plasticity seen in childhood, though in a more abstract manner. In the weeding process in meditation, structural changes are made to make the mind better suited for memory, learning, attention, and decision making. In childhood, our brains slowly rewire themselves to be able to better process what is around them in the everyday environment, from how one should talk to adults versus those in similar age groups, to the kinds of things one should and shouldn't eat. Meditation, on the other hand, rewires our brains to be able to better handle new situations the moment they're thrown at us.
So, meditating a few times week or better, daily, potentially holds the key to being able to better handle the instances of daily life. Larger attention span and learning from all events encountered enable complex metacognitive processing, linking these events to past and potential future events, allowing for a higher probability of making optimal decisions rapidly. Therefore, beginning meditation in youth may allow for you to be just as wise, just as able to see connections and come up with clever solutions, as your somehow-still-walking biology professor.
References
[1] http://healthland.time.com/2012/08/10/can-meditation-make-you-smarter/
[2] Hall, Steven. Wisdom. New York: Random House, 2010. Print.
[3] Luders, Eileen, Christi Clark, et al. "Neuroimage." Neuroimage. 57.4 (2011): n. page. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.
I think that it is really interesting to learn about the importance of single focused attention on neural networks and the possibility of pruning. The activation of the pre-frontal cortex during focused attention, which is where much of our higher processing in the brain occurs,helps to make sense as to why meditation could help in nurturing the attributes of wisdom.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I always underestimate the importance of spending a little time alone. Recently, in several of my classes the benefits of introspection and meditation have been made salient. The idea that meditation is beneficial in developing wisdom is new to me, but it makes sense. Also, your argument that meditation may redevelop some of the plasticity seen in childhood is compelling. It would be interesting to see if successful meditation activates the brains "default" mode similarly to the way sleep does. This could be more evidence supporting the idea that meditation, like sleep and dreaming, helps us reorganize our thoughts, and in turn develop wisdom.
ReplyDeleteI found this article very interesting. I supposed that it is not a surprise that meditation would be beneficial to higher-cognitive functions, but I guess what I found really interesting is the role that it plays in neural pruning even in childhood development. I wonder if the practice of mediation allows one to reduce their stress and anxiety levels, thus allowing their cognitive functions to perform more efficiently. This would also explain why those that meditate are often able to see the big picture in circumstances and not easy get derailed with every twist and turn of life. Perhaps, focusing the brain's center of attention and reducing all the other many distractions of life, allows the neural functions of the brain to perform crucial actions for its own wellbeing and development. Being that there are many types of meditation, I would love to see if researchers will begin looking at these varieties of practices and seeing which ones are most beneficial to the brain's neural pruning.
ReplyDeleteThis article does a nice job of relating greatly to the material we're learning class about attention and cognitive control. Also, the central points of the article hold some practical value as well. Overall, this was a very interesting article, especially the effects that meditation can have on pruning and weeding as we grow older and mature.
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