Abstract

May reviews structural plasticity in the adult brain — learning and experience can change grey and white matter, not only synaptic weights.

May, A. (2011). Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 15(10), 475–482. DOI

Key findings

  • Adult rewiring — Structural change continues beyond childhood — training and experience leave anatomical traces.
  • Mechanism map — Synaptic, cellular, and network-level plasticity interact — one mechanism does not explain all change.

Application

When you treat capacity as frozen after youth — adult brains still reshape structure with sustained use. See Neuroplasticity.