Lecture Notes: Neuroscience and Society - From Birth to Two: Prepping For Life

Introduction

• Speaker: Mark Frankel from AAAS
  • Program: Scientific Responsibility, Human Rights, and Law
  • Focus: Ethics, law, human rights, and issues related to advances in science and technology.
• Event: Second in a series called "Neuroscience and Society"
• Topic: From Birth to Two: Prepping For Life
• Partnership: AAAS and the Dana Foundation
  • Upcoming sessions:
    • September: Mental health across the age spectrum
    • Final session: Genius and creativity
• Toddlers Creed by Burton White: Humorous exploration of toddler mentality

Speaker 1: Dr. Pat Levitt

• Title: Simms/Mann Chair in Developmental Neurogenetics
• Affiliation: Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Keck School of Medicine
• Topic: Factors influencing postnatal infant development
• Key Concepts:
  • Misconceptions:
    • Children are not "sponges."
    • 80% of brain development by age three is a myth.
  • Core story of development:
    • Development is the foundation of prosperous communities.
    • Brains are built over time, from bottom-up.
    • Genes and experience together build brains.
    • Toxic stress damages brain architecture.

Brain Development and Experience

• Neural Connections:
  • Synapse formation: 700 synapses per second by age two.
  • Myelination: Critical for information processing efficiency.
• Impact of Experience:
  • Positive and negative experiences shape brain architecture.
  • Example: Auditory map influenced by frequency exposure in rats.
• Resilience:
  • Built through a combination of genes and environment.
  • Skillsets in emotional and cognitive development are intertwined.

Speaker 2: Dr. Lisa Shulman

• Title: Associate Professor of Pediatrics
• Affiliation: Albert Einstein College of Medicine
• Focus: Developmental milestones from birth to two years
• Motor Milestones:
  • Head control by 4 months
  • Sitting by 9 months
  • Walking by 18 months
• Communication Milestones:
  • Social awareness, attention to language, and communicative efforts.
  • Pointing by 14 months
  • Word combinations by 24 months
• Concerns:
  • Delays can signal health issues or developmental disorders (e.g., autism).

Speaker 3: Dr. Lisa Freund

• Title: Chief of Child Development and Behavior Branch
• Affiliation: NICHD
• Topic: NICHD research priorities for birth to two years
• Research Focus:
  • Newborn screening
  • Brain development and connectivity
  • Parenting and healthy brain development
  • Early predictors of autism spectrum disorders
  • Effects of adversity and toxic stress
• NICHD Resources:
  • Data on neuroimaging
  • Developmental data repositories
  • Focus on intervention and understanding developmental trajectories

Q&A Highlights

• Impact of Technology:
  • Limited learning from devices before age two unless accompanied by parental interaction.
• Bilingual Development:
  • No negative impact on cognitive development; potential benefits in executive function.
• Parental Anxiety:
  • Importance of balanced interaction; serve and return interaction is key.
• Memory Formation:
  • Sensory memory and early experiences shape brain architecture.
• Research and Community Feedback:
  • NICHD incorporates community insights and advances in technology in setting research priorities.