A function of structure?
Our good Dr. Berry is reported to have said (or written) that
Different kinds of experiences lead to different brain structures
which, at least within the context of an examination of today's natives, gives
an awful lot of credit to what are usually viewed as mere ephemeral bits. Perhaps
it's a classic case of mind over matter - tiny digital bits actually change the
structure of the brain! Judging from the fact that, following Prensky, so many
posters seem to have enjoyed quoting this statement, it would seem that they truly
identify with it - perhaps even understand it.
Personally, such an understanding doesn't come to me quite that easily. I have
no problem with the idea that different experiences might change the ways in which
the brain functions, but bringing about a change in structure seems to be going
a bit too far. Structure is a very tangible concept. It suggests bricks
and mortar - just the kind of stuff that bits aren't. Couldn't Dr. Berry have
chosen to say something like "different kinds of experiences lead to different
wirings in the brain"? As far as metaphors go, wiring would seem to more
accurately fit the picture we have in our minds of the way the brain works. Wires
are also stuff, but they can more readily be moved or rerouted. Rewiring, after
all, demands very little physical intervention. We might refer to the metaphor
of the brain as a system of wires as a soft metaphor - one that lets the physical
structure of the brain stay in place, while still bringing about a change in the
way it functions. Were Dr. Berry to claim that a rewiring, rather than
a restructuring was taking place, I doubt that I'd feel compelled to devote
a couple of paragraphs to arguing with that claim. Evolution, at least in our
species, runs its course over a very long period of time. To suggest that structural
change can take place within one generation, and solely
because of digitality, even if the intent is only metaphoric, just doesn't
seem right.
Go to: Dr. Who?, or
Go to: Can we every feel at home?, or
Go to: Carrying cognitive baggage from the old
country