Neuroscience
From the NIH on the 18th of May:
NIH Study Tracks Brain Development in Some 500 Children across U.S.
First Report Looks at Intelligence, Behaviors from Ages 6-18
Children appear to approach adult levels of performance on many basic cognitive and motor skills by age 11 or 12, according to a new study coordinated by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The NIH Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Study of Normal Brain Development is tracking brain and behavioral development in about 500 healthy American children, from birth to age 18. A report published online today by the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society contains the first glimpse of behavioral data — covering IQ, motor dexterity, language, computation, and social skills — collected from children ages 6 to 18.
The study "will provide researchers with a reference point for how the normal brain develops, so that they can better understand what goes wrong in children who have brain abnormalities caused by genetic disease, prenatal exposure to alcohol or drugs, or other factors," said lead author Deborah Waber, Ph.D., an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School.
Some of the behavioral data validate trends seen in other studies; for example, they show that family income has an impact on a child's IQ and social behaviors. But the lack of evidence for dramatic cognitive growth during adolescence was a surprise.
The long-term goal of the study team is to link these behavioral data to MRI scans of the children's brains. Together, the two data sets will allow researchers to view how the brain grows and reorganizes itself throughout childhood, and to explore the meaning of the structural changes they see.
[ ... Read the full press release ... ]
- Why Season Of Birth Is Related To Childhood Intelligence
Countless studies have found that children’s intelligence appears to be related to the time of year they were born in. Some investigators have argued this is because seasonally varying environmental factors like temperature and infections can affect...
- Reading To Babies Gives Them A Head-start
Toddlers read to daily by their mothers from an early age have bigger vocabularies and superior cognitive skills. Helen Raikes and colleagues asked 2,581 mothers from poor families enrolled on the Early Head Start programme in America how often they read...
- Neuropsychology Abstract Of The Day: Developmental Deprivation And The Cerebellum
Bauer PM, Hanson JL, Pierson RK, Davidson RJ, & Pollak SD. (2009). Cerebellar Volume and Cognitive Functioning in Children Who Experienced Early Deprivation. Biological Psychiatry. 2009 Aug 4. [Epub ahead of print] University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison,...
- Abstract Of The Day: Neuropsychology Assessment In Outcome From Extremely Low Birth Weight (elbw)
Mikkola K, Ritari N, Tommiska V, Salokorpi T, Lehtonen L, Tammela O, Paakkonen L, Olsen P, Korkman M, & Fellman V. Neurodevelopmental outcome at 5 years of age of a national cohort of extremely low birth weight infants who were born in 1996-1997. Pediatrics....
- Research Assistant Position In The Child & Family Development Lab!
Research Assistant Opportunity Maryland Child and Family Development Laboratory Faculty Member: Jude Cassidy, Ph.D. The Maryland Child and Family Development Laboratory has specialized positions available for students who are interested in studying child...
Neuroscience
NIH Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Study of Normal Brain Development
From the NIH on the 18th of May:
NIH Study Tracks Brain Development in Some 500 Children across U.S.
First Report Looks at Intelligence, Behaviors from Ages 6-18
Children appear to approach adult levels of performance on many basic cognitive and motor skills by age 11 or 12, according to a new study coordinated by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The NIH Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Study of Normal Brain Development is tracking brain and behavioral development in about 500 healthy American children, from birth to age 18. A report published online today by the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society contains the first glimpse of behavioral data — covering IQ, motor dexterity, language, computation, and social skills — collected from children ages 6 to 18.
The study "will provide researchers with a reference point for how the normal brain develops, so that they can better understand what goes wrong in children who have brain abnormalities caused by genetic disease, prenatal exposure to alcohol or drugs, or other factors," said lead author Deborah Waber, Ph.D., an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School.
Some of the behavioral data validate trends seen in other studies; for example, they show that family income has an impact on a child's IQ and social behaviors. But the lack of evidence for dramatic cognitive growth during adolescence was a surprise.
The long-term goal of the study team is to link these behavioral data to MRI scans of the children's brains. Together, the two data sets will allow researchers to view how the brain grows and reorganizes itself throughout childhood, and to explore the meaning of the structural changes they see.
[ ... Read the full press release ... ]
- Why Season Of Birth Is Related To Childhood Intelligence
Countless studies have found that children’s intelligence appears to be related to the time of year they were born in. Some investigators have argued this is because seasonally varying environmental factors like temperature and infections can affect...
- Reading To Babies Gives Them A Head-start
Toddlers read to daily by their mothers from an early age have bigger vocabularies and superior cognitive skills. Helen Raikes and colleagues asked 2,581 mothers from poor families enrolled on the Early Head Start programme in America how often they read...
- Neuropsychology Abstract Of The Day: Developmental Deprivation And The Cerebellum
Bauer PM, Hanson JL, Pierson RK, Davidson RJ, & Pollak SD. (2009). Cerebellar Volume and Cognitive Functioning in Children Who Experienced Early Deprivation. Biological Psychiatry. 2009 Aug 4. [Epub ahead of print] University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison,...
- Abstract Of The Day: Neuropsychology Assessment In Outcome From Extremely Low Birth Weight (elbw)
Mikkola K, Ritari N, Tommiska V, Salokorpi T, Lehtonen L, Tammela O, Paakkonen L, Olsen P, Korkman M, & Fellman V. Neurodevelopmental outcome at 5 years of age of a national cohort of extremely low birth weight infants who were born in 1996-1997. Pediatrics....
- Research Assistant Position In The Child & Family Development Lab!
Research Assistant Opportunity Maryland Child and Family Development Laboratory Faculty Member: Jude Cassidy, Ph.D. The Maryland Child and Family Development Laboratory has specialized positions available for students who are interested in studying child...