Summary video for Module 1

Although living brains are pretty complex, this week we’ve used metaphor and analogy and zombies to help simplify matters. In essence, people have two fundamentally different modes of thinking that, for the purpose of this course, we’ve labeled focused and diffuse. We used a simple pinball analogy to help us understand the differences between the modes. The focused mode has tight spacing for the rubber bumpers which seems to, in some sense, help keep your thoughts concentrated. The diffuse mode, on the other hand, has more widely spaced bumpers that allow for more broad ranging ways of thinking. The focused mode is centered more in the prefrontal cortex, and it often seems to involve thinking about things you’re somewhat familiar with. For example, if you’re familiar with multiplication and you’re trying to solve a multiplication problem or you’re trying to find a word that rhymes with another word. You’re probably stepping along the somewhat familiar pathways of the focused mode. But if you’re trying to solve or figure out something new, it often cries out for the more broad ranging perspectives of the diffuse mode. This mode, as it turns out, is representative of the brain’s many neural resting states. Creative thinkers throughout history, whatever their discipline, have found ways to access the diffuse mode, often more directly and quickly. But we all access this mode quite naturally when we do things like go for a walk or take a shower or even just drift off to sleep. When we find ourselves stuck on a problem, or even if we’re unsure of a situation in the course of living our daily life, it’s often a good idea, once you’ve focused directly on the situation, to let things settle back, and take a bit more time. That way, more neural processing can take place, often below conscious awareness in the diffuse mode. The thing is, it often takes time for neural processing to take place, and time as well to build the new neural structures that allow us to learn something new. This is why tackling procrastination is so very important. The easiest way to tackle procrastination is to use the Pomodoro Technique. That brief 25 minute stretch of focused concentration, followed by a bit of mental relaxation. It’s through practice and repetition that we can help enhance and strengthen the neural structures we’re building as we’re learning something new. Practice and repetition is particularly important for more abstract topics. Memory, of course, is an important aspect of learning. There are four slots in our working memory. Things can fall out of those slots unless we keep repeating them to hold them in mind. In that sense, working memory is like a not very good blackboard. Long term memory, on the other hand, is like a storage warehouse. If you practiced and repeated something well enough to get it into long term memory, you can usually call it up later if you need it, although you may need an occasional bit of repetition to freshen the memory up. It’s never a good idea to cram your learning by repeating things many times all in one day. Because that’s like trying to build muscle by lifting weights all in one day. There’s no time for solid structures to grow. We’ve also learned of the importance of sleep in washing away the toxins that develop during our day’s activities. You want to avoid taking tests or doing anything difficult with little sleep the night before, because it’s like trying to think with poison on the brain. And just as importantly, exercise is surprisingly valuable in helping improve both our memory and our ability to learn. We’ve had a lot of fun while learning this week, I’ll bet you’ll find next week’s material to be even more exciting. I’m Barbara Oakley, thanks for learning how to learn.