Insight and Analysis
Written by Jessie Graf
Have you ever wondered how a solution just magically popped into your head? Or have you ever wondered how your brain could connect the dots to come to a solution? You are not alone! These are the two ways to come to a solution when presented with a problem: insight and analysis, respectively.
Insight is referring to the "A-Ha!" moment where the solution just comes to you. Analysis refers to the thought process of working through the problem. Dr. Carola Salvi gave a talk on insight and the various brain regions working during this way of thinking. She also discussed accuracy, how thought changes when the participant is under pressure, and the differences between the sexes in analytical and insight thinking.
On the other hand, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University studied what happens when individuals tried to solve a math problem, a more analytical way of problem solving. They were able to look at the different brain structures activated over the course of the participant solving the math problem via fMRI imaging. Looking at this data, they found out that there are four stages to problem solving: encoding, planning, solving, and responding. Each stage of problem solving corresponded to different regions in the brain being activated for varying periods of time.
Both of these studies can be useful for future experimentation. I think it would be interesting to see if diseases that affect memory, such as Dementia, affect one way of thinking more than the other.
Carey, Benedict. "What Your Brain Looks Like When It Solves a Math Problem." The New York Times, The New York Times, 20 Jan. 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/29/science/brain-scans-math.html.
Insight is referring to the "A-Ha!" moment where the solution just comes to you. Analysis refers to the thought process of working through the problem. Dr. Carola Salvi gave a talk on insight and the various brain regions working during this way of thinking. She also discussed accuracy, how thought changes when the participant is under pressure, and the differences between the sexes in analytical and insight thinking.
On the other hand, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University studied what happens when individuals tried to solve a math problem, a more analytical way of problem solving. They were able to look at the different brain structures activated over the course of the participant solving the math problem via fMRI imaging. Looking at this data, they found out that there are four stages to problem solving: encoding, planning, solving, and responding. Each stage of problem solving corresponded to different regions in the brain being activated for varying periods of time.
Both of these studies can be useful for future experimentation. I think it would be interesting to see if diseases that affect memory, such as Dementia, affect one way of thinking more than the other.
Carey, Benedict. "What Your Brain Looks Like When It Solves a Math Problem." The New York Times, The New York Times, 20 Jan. 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/29/science/brain-scans-math.html.
No comments:
Post a Comment