Synaptic efficacy theory explains how experience individuates each brain
Evidence
If a synapse belongs to a circuit in frequent use, it tends to grow in volume, its permeability increases, and its efficacy increases. Inversely, a little-used synapse tends to become less efficacious. The theory of synaptic efficacy thus allows us to explain the gradual molding of a brain under the influence of individual experience, to the point of making it possible for us, in principle, to account for the individual characteristics and particularities of each brain. We are dealing here with a mechanism of individuation that makes each brain a unique object despite its adherence to a common model. — Catherine Malabou, What Should We Do with Our Brain?, 44
Categorization
Category: Causal Relationships
- DEFINE: Grounds the plasticity mechanism in concrete synaptic biology — how use physically grows synapses.