Selling Beauty: How Neuroaesthetics and the Evaluation of Beauty Play a Role in Neuromarketing

Have you ever bought something on the internet just because it was aesthetically pleasing, and wondered why you paid $100 for a vase you never needed in the first place? 

Your brain is the culprit. 

Neuroaesthetics has become increasingly studied in the realm of cognitive neuroscience, and has become a hot topic of discussion, particularly with regard to the objectivity of beauty. 

The objectivity in beauty, as discussed in the article “Is Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder or an Objective Truth? A Neuroscientific Answer”, is largely due to the processing fluency theory, which states that “the easier it is for a perceiver to process the properties of a stimulus, the greater its aesthetic response will be” (Aleem et al.). If you had to choose between a car with asymmetrical angles and a noisy multi-colored pattern on the exterior, or a sleek, minimal, and streamlined design of another, which one would you purchase? Or for instance, why are butterfly wings so exquisitely beautiful? Objectively, it is due to the fluency of the symmetrical pattern on its wings. 

As one can tell, this knowledge regarding the aspects of objectivity of what an individual or a group of people would consider as aesthetically pleasing is immensely lucrative, and propelled research in businesses’ most crucial question: what drives consumers to choose one product over the other (and also how can that be effectively monetized)? Neuroaesthetics play a profound role in consumer neuroscience, where it is an essential component of advertisements, logos, etc., and its connection to the realm of neuromarketing was thoroughly analyzed in the article “Consumer Behavior Through the Eyes of Neurophysiological Measures: State-of-the-Art and Future Trends”  (Cherubino et al.). These advertisements, which overwhelm individuals daily through all forms of media, are “deconstructed by the brain into their constituent elements,” which consist of values of processing fluency like shape and color (Cherubino et al.). At the very essence of it, marketers have the tools and ability to infiltrate our brain and encode their product design or brand into both short-term and long-term processes so that we will be more compelled to purchase their product. Why does this happen so prevalently? Because the products are made to look so good that we - biologically and psychologically - cannot refuse. This mechanism of “aesthetic appraisal” is taken advantage of by companies to design products that appeal to us from an evolutionary standpoint, as symmetric and balance are facets of processing fluency that also arise from the same mechanisms as survival and learning (Aleem et al.).

Now this is not to say that understanding the theory of processing fluency is a definitive guarantee to selling a product to all consumers one hundred percent of the time. Understanding what makes a product “beautiful” is not that simple, as the individual consumer and their specific community plays a significant role in aesthetic learning. While we may see products that stimulate reward-based circuitries in our brain, we still rely on our individual motivational states to make the best choice for ourselves (Aleem et al.). The environment and culture we each are raised in affect our views of what we personally appreciate as aesthetically beautiful. This process of evaluating an object and making a decision about it based on our environment and personal experiences is noted as “mental workload” in Cherubion’s article. In her group’s analysis, characteristic EEG spectra demonstrated that human performance in decision-making decreases when mental workload is too high or too low (this differs person to person), which fortunately for companies and unfortunately for the wallets of consumers is a tailored aspect of both neuromarketing and in measuring indices of cognitive engagement when consumers are making a decision about a product. 

If the notion that people “buy with the heart and justify with the mind” rings true, then it is to the benefit of advertisers to utilize neuromarketing strategies and appeal to individual motivational states and logical reasoning (Cherubino et al.). 

As artists learn to improve their art by understanding the dynamics of the audience’s cognitive processes, companies on social media too can learn to tailor strategies via media - specifically social media - to appeal to an audience and sell their product. Therefore, the next time we scroll through Instagram and have the urge to purchase that sleek, aesthetically pleasing vase that we never needed, we need to remind ourselves that this is precisely how the advertisers on the other side of the screen expected us to appraise the beauty of their product.

Sources:

1. Aleem, Hassan, et al. “Is Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder or an Objective Truth? A Neuroscientific Answer.” Springer Series on Bio- and Neurosystems Mobile Brain-Body Imaging and the Neuroscience of Art, Innovation and Creativity, 2019, pp. 101–110., doi:10.1007/978-3-030-24326-5_11. 

2. Cherubino, Patrizia, et al. “Consumer Behaviour through the Eyes of Neurophysiological Measures: State-of-the-Art and Future Trends.” Computational Intelligence and Neuroscience, Hindawi, 18 Sept. 2019, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6766676/. 

Beauty is in the Eye of the Media

Over the years there has been a cultural norm for what is socially considered beautiful. These norms have always been expressed through traditional forms of media such as magazines, tv shows and models making it prominent and evident what physical look is accepted as beautiful during that time period. Where do these beauty standards come from? What is the reasoning for why we believe certain things to be beautiful and some things to be displeasing to the eye? Well, in the article “Is Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder or an Objective Truth? A Neuroscientific Answer” by Norberto M. Grzywacz et al., they are able to answer these questions as they examine both objectivity and subjectivity of beauty with neuroscience to gather new information that would conclude that, “both are reflections of utilitarian brain mechanisms” in which both processes work internally (Grzywacz et al., 2019).  They used the processing fluency theory to analyze objectivity in beauty. This theory suggests "the easier it is for a perceiver to process the properties of a stimulus, the greater it's aesthetic response will be"(Grzwacz et al., 2019). By using this theory with Early Renaissance Portraits, they could measure symmetry, balance, and complexity, and find results consistent with the theory that are specific qualities that result in a more scientific standard for beautiful (Grzwacz et al., 2019).

Dr. Grzwacz and his colleagues then looked at the differences due to resulting individuality of "certain aesthetic variables", which they studied through individuals learning and motivation which creates the subjectivity of beauty, and individuals having distinct portions of the "neuroaesthetic space". This research led them to the relationship of appraisal being tied to learning of values from experience (Grzywacz et al., 2019).  Their discussion mentioned that "taken together with evidence from neuroimaging studies" their results showed "the process underlying objective and subjective aesthetics are no different from the mechanisms of appraisal" meaning that objectivity and subjectivity of beauty were within the perceiver's brain (Grzywacz et al., 2019). While both internal to the perceiver, objectivity is dependent on underlying brain mechanisms and therefore more "rigid and universal", while subjectivity was based on reinforcement learning and therefore more "flexible and individualized" (Grzywacz et al., 2019). With results from Dr. Grzywacz and his colleagues, we can see that there is a more complex, combination of why we think certain things are beautiful and could warrant further thought in other fundamental brain processes such as memory and emotion that can affect our perception of beauty.

In today’s world immersed in more technology and social media than ever before, beauty standards and social norms are taken to new extremes and are affecting young adults and developing generations. These effects are harming their perception of beauty because of the way online social media interacts with the psychological factors to impact appearance concerns and body image disturbances (Mills et al., 2017). And while there has always been beauty portrayed in forms of traditional media such as magazines, online social media has become a new level of subjectivity of what should be considered beautiful or not (Mills et al., 2017). This is what Jennifer S. Mills, Amy Shannon, and Jacqueline Hogue tackle in their article “Beauty, Body Image, and the Media”. As mentioned above scientific work has concluded that the way we perceive beauty is a combination of an objective truth and individual experience, but what does beauty represent when there are mass media all pushing the same beauty standards? Mills et al. says, “Mass media plays a critical role in people’s self-image by informing and reflecting what people consider to be beautiful or attractive” (Mills et al., 2017). In a time when influence and subjectivity is stronger than ever this can heavily impact what is considered beautiful and can mentally affect individuals who apart of this culture.

In Jennifer S. Mills et al. research they investigate the effects of idealized media images on body images. In doing this, they found that “women’s body image was significantly more negative after viewing thin media images , as compared to after viewing control images or images of averaged-sized or plus-sized models, and that this effect was moderate in size (Mills et al., 2017). And that the association between exposure to idealized body images in the media and body dissatisfaction holds true for both men and women, but slightly stronger in women than men (Mills et al., 2017). They also found that further the messages that accompany idealized body images commonly found in the media make a difference in terms of how people feel about their bodies after looking at them (Mills et al., 2017). One of the biggest effects of the medias portrayal of an unobtainable perfection is eating disorders and this is most often predicted from dissatisfaction (Mills et al., 2017). From this research they found that even when we comprehend that most of the time photos are heavily altered and edited it does not stop women from wanting to achieve those beauty standards (Mills et al., 2017). Another key finding from their study was that in fact, “people who are unhappy with their appearance turn to media that feature thin, beautiful models, possible for advice or information, or to see advertised products aimed at bringing aspects of one’s appearance closer to the perceived ideal” (Mills et al., 2017). With all of these findings one of the most important parts of their study was the examination of social (online) media influence on body image. They said, “Contemporary media platforms are changing how people internalize beauty ideals, how they try to control how other people see them and how they get feedback from others about how they look” (Mills et al., 2017). These social media sights are not like traditional forms of media such as tv, movies and magazines because social media is “actively” engaging the users (Mills et al., 2017). By allowing these platforms to bring forth communication and connections there is many people who alter photos which may “masquerade as promoting body positivity and esteem—as particularly risky behaviors in terms of body image and self-esteem” (Mills et al., 2017). Mills and her colleagues research is crucial considering there were no advances in this field of internet exposure on perceptions of beauty and body image 5 years ago (from 2016) and as we learn more about the effects that social media is creating in a technology dependent culture, it will lead to some tough questions in order to learn how to fix this social dilemma for the sake of individuals mental and physical health.

With the information from Grzywacz et al. and Mills et al. it raises some important questions surrounding the perception of beauty and the way this could be changed by such an immersive platform such as social media. According to Grzywacz et al. work, they reveal a combination between natural and objective truth, and individual and subjective experiences that make up one’s perception of beauty. But, with a fast growing presence of social media that presents further implication from the traditional media, this can alter ones perception of beauty, mental health and physical health by not only subjecting them to cultural standards but overwhelming and emotionally overtaking young minds looking to fit into an unobtainable culture of beauty.

Citations 

Grzywacz, N.M., Pombo, M., Correa-Herran, I.,& Aleem, H. (2019). Is Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder or an Objective Truth? A Neuroscientific Answer. Mobile Brain-Body Imaging and the Neuroscience of Art, Innovation and Creativity. Springer Series on Bio- and Neurosystems, 10. pp. 101-110. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24326- 5_11

Jennifer S. Mills, Amy Shannon and Jacqueline Hogue (October 25th 2017). Beauty, Body Image, and the Media, Perception of Beauty, Martha Peaslee Levine, IntechOpen, DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.68944. Available from: https://www.intechopen.com/books/perception-of-beauty/beauty-body-image-and-the-media

Non-Invasive Electrical Stimulation Treatment for Spinal Cord Injury Patients and its Effect on Recovery Time Lauren Wehausen Spinal cord injuries can be severe and life-altering. Such injuries can leave patients paralyzed or partially paralyzed. Such trauma is typically treated through invasive techniques such as surgery, as well as with medications. The problem with such techniques is that they pose risk for the patient—such invasive procedures can cause more damage, death, and do not specifically target the motor-control injury. New research has begun with non-invasive techniques – through electrical stimulation – that can help restore/improve patients’ impaired mobility. In the research article “Corticospinal-motor neuronal plasticity promotes exercise-mediated recovery with humans with spinal cord injury” researcher Dr. Monica Perez explores how using non-invasive electrical stimulation at spinal synapses, in conjunction with exercise [therapy], quickens the recovery rate for spinal injury patients. (As compared to those doing exercise alone). Corticospinal-motor neuronal stimulation (PCMS) and sham-PCMS, the non-invasive stimulation and the placebo treatment, were paired with exercise as the plan of treatment for twenty-five individuals, all with chronic incomplete injuries to the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spinal cord. Thirteen other individuals with similar spinal-cord injuries were tested in a PCMS-alone, to compare the results between the two. All thirty-eight individuals were randomly assigned to one of the three groups. The three groups, exercise paired with PCMS, exercise paired with sham-PCMS, and PCMS alone, each completed ten sessions of their designated treatment. During the sessions, muscle stimulation was measured with MEP, motor evoked potentials, each around 50% of the MEP-max amplitude. EMG activity was used to record maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). For both the PCMS-with-exercise and PCMS-alone groups, MEP and MVC both increased; however, in the sham-PCMS group, no significant change was observed. Six months post-experiment, particpants were invited back to be reassessed. Upon reassessment, Perez found that the results remained the same for both groups that received PCMS treatment but that performance decreased in the sham-PCMS (control) group. This study exemplifies the potential that non-invasive stimulation has for spinal-injury patients when paired with exercise. This method was successful in terms of increased motor control performance. In a similar experiment, Freyvert et al., studied cervical electrical stimulation with and without combination with monoaminergic buspirone on upper limb function in patients with motor complete injury. In this study, upper limb function was assessed by measuring handgrip force, controlled hand contraction, and dexterity of six patients with spinal cord injuries at C5 or higher. Particpants were told that they would either receive oral buspirone, a neurotransmitter involved in locomotor function, or a placebo (in conjunction with the electrical stimulation). Electrical stimulation was conducted with electrodes placed on the dorsal side of the neck on the C5 vertebra. Performance was measured during nine maximum-handgrip strength tests; EMG was used to record the data. The mean grip strength across all six participants improved after each wave of treatment. This study indicates that a combination of stimulation and pharmacological treatment increases motor functionality in upper limbs Both studies used non-invasive stimulation of the spinal cord, albeit at different areas, to enhance or regain motor functionality. In Dr. Perez’s study, PCMS proved to enhance the recovery time in patients with spinal cord injuries, during the study and six-months post-experiment. Similarly, in the study by Freyvert et al., patients expressed increased volitional motor hand function ability post-electrical stimulation treatment. These two studies leave further research to be conducted on the extent of this treatment’s success. Non-invasive, spinal cord electrical stimulation treatment may have future use in the treatments of spinal cord injury patients and those suffering from other neural, motor-debilitating diseases. Citations Freyvert, Y., Yong, N.A., Morikawa, E. et al. Engaging cervical spinal circuitry with non- invasive spinal stimulation and buspirone to restore hand function in chronic motor complete patients. Sci Rep 8, 15546 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33123-5 Hang Jin Jo, Monica A Perez, Corticospinal-motor neuronal plasticity promotes exercise- mediated recovery in humans with spinal cord injury, Brain, Volume 143, Issue 5, May 2020, Pages 1368–1382, https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awaa052

The Complex Etiology of Obesity and its Relationship to Cognitive Disorders

     Over the past 30 years, the United States has witnessed a substantial rise in the prevalence of obesity, amongst all population demographics. Many have attempted to tie this upsurge in cases as an indication of a failure in character or the lack of self-agency. These claims, however, are unsubstantiated. New research points to more nuanced molecular and neurobiological mechanisms, as well as environmental influences being responsible for the sudden rise in obesity rates.

     A research team lead by Dr. Jennifer Beshel recently published the short article “A Leptin Analog Locally Produced in the Brain Acts via a Conserved Neural Circuit to Modulate Obesity-Linked Behaviors in Drosophila”, published in Cell Metabolism, where they discuss their findings of a homologous leptin pathway, in drosophila, to that found in mammals. More specifically the researchers characterize the relationship between the drosophila leptin analog, unpaired 1 (upd1), and the drosophila leptin receptor homolog, domeless receptors, as well as the NPY+ neuron homolog, NPF+ neurons. This pathway, as observed in mammals, involves the release of upd1 from adipose/upd1+ cells in the brain (as encoded by the OB gene), which can then bind onto and activate leptin receptors. This activates a signaling cascade that involves the dimerization of the leptin receptors, subsequent activation of JAK 2, phosphorylation of tyrosine residues on the cytoplasmic domain of the leptin receptor, which then allows STATs to bind, be phosphorylated to form a homodimer, and translocate to the nucleus where they will act as transcription factors to ultimately inhibit the activity of these NPY+ neurons, and as a result, inhibit feeding behaviors. This pathway is conserved in drosophila, so in an attempt to better understand how leptin could potentially affect obesity-related behavior, in humans, Beshel and her team produced a brain-specific knockout of upd1, to observe their behavior. What they noted in these knockout models was an increase in reactivity to odor cues, an increase in feeding, and a significant increase in weight, as compared to their wild-type counterparts. These same knockouts were then given a diet rich in fats and sugars and researchers observed that the flies became very large, very quickly. While upd1 knockout explains the weight increasing behavior, in the lab flies, this does not explain the sudden prevalence of obesity in humans. While some obesity cases (~5%) can be attributed to genetic mutations of the Ob/Db gene, most do not. This proves that disturbances in the upd1-NPF axis can lead to increased sensitivity to adverse, weight gaining environmental stressors, implying that this could potentially be the case in mammalian systems as well. It should be noted that in Beshel’s research she states that only knockout of upd1 in neurons increases weight gaining behavior, not upd1 knockout in adipocytes.

    With a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind the leptin pathway, as well as its delicate homeostasis with environmental factors, we can fully appreciate the ease in which an organism can succumb to obesity and its damaging effects. As it so happens a recent study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, “Patterns of Regional Cerebral Blood Flow as a Function of Obesity in Adults” highlights some of these catastrophic consequences. Daniel G. Amen et al. wanted to justify the claim that midlife obesity is a risk factor for the development of Alzheimer’s (AD). While the causes of AD are still being debated on, it is commonly known that AD is associated with the degeneration of several key cerebral areas such as the parietal/temporal lobes, hippocampus, posterior cingulate, and precuneus. Amen et al. proposed an experiment, in which they utilized brain SPECT imaging with technetium-99m hexamethyl propylene amine oxime to measure cerebral profusion of the previously stated brain areas, among underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese patients. What they observed was that in all measured brain regions there was a decrease in perfusion as the weight category increased, while no regions showed elevated perfusion to be associated with elevated BMI. Furthermore, we should note that many of the research participants that were classified as obese also had psychiatric comorbidities; however, associated, partial correlation analyses illustrated that the presence of psychiatric disorders did not change the significant relationship between weight and cerebral perfusion. This is extremely noteworthy, as the results potentially allude to a relationship between the level of adipose tissue and potential development of AD, which is further explained by several molecular mechanisms, such as a neuroinflammation pathway involving the TREM-2 receptor. 

    Both Beshel et al. and Amen et al. aimed to gain a better understating of the sources of obesity and its consequences, respectfully. It should be noted that in Beshel’s research she discusses how the leptin receptor belongs to the IL-6 family. IL-6 has several isoforms, in which the soluble factor plays a crucial role in inflammation. It’s worth discussing that obesity is characterized as a state of systemic inflammation, relating to Amen’s discussion of the hypoperfusion of cerebral pathways that contain TREM-2 expressing cells, which inhibit inflammation. Could these two concepts be associated and potentially play a role in the associated markers of obesity, besides excessive adipose deposits? Whether or not this could be possible, both researchers have highlighted the complicated and dangerous nature of obesity. Further calling to attention the need for immediate action to reduce obesity rates to prevent increased biological sensitivity to obesity causing factors and by proxy associated cognitive disorders.

Cerebral Organoids – Future Key to Treating Difficult Brain Diseases?

             Many diseases affect the human body, particularly the human brain. Some of these brain diseases are especially hard to understand, diagnose, and treat, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, and different brain tumors to name a few. Then enters cerebral, or neural organoids. Cerebral organoids are “human-induced pluripotent stem-cell” (Logan et al., 2020) derived three-dimensional organized tissues grown in vivo in cultures that resemble brain-like areas in a developing human brain. These cerebral organoids can be the key to helping scientists and doctors learn the mechanisms of different diseases, as well as different ways to treat these major brain diseases. 

            In the paper, “Dynamic Characterization of Structural, Molecular and Electrophysiological Phenotypes of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cerebral Organoids, and Comparison with Fetal and Adult Gene Profiles”, Thiago Azura and colleagues show how cerebral organoids function and display various features that are seen in the human brain. In the paper, they found that cerebral organoids display electrophysiological properties and electrical activity as seen in human brains. They also display heterogeneous gene and protein expression for different neural type markers, smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells, and synapses (which display neurotransmitter vesicles and post-synaptic neurotransmitter communication). They also found channel currents, such as NMDA, glutamate, and other receptors, and found gene profiles closely related to signaling pathways and electrophysiological pathways in the brain. These features could be the key to using cerebral organoids as brain models to help understand and combat diseases. With further bioengineering of cerebral organoids, even more features could be found in these organoids so that they are our closest biological model to the real human brain (without using the brain itself). Cerebral organoids were found to be closely related to the brain of fetuses, though, not adult human brains, which pose an issue in using them to understand diseases that affect adults. However, with the ever-evolving biotechnological field, cerebral organoids may soon be able to resemble adult brains and have almost all of the features of a human brain. These organoids could then be used to treat difficult brain diseases, such as glioblastomas. 

            In the article, “Brain tumor organoids may be key to time-sensitive treatments for glioblastomas”, from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, doctors and scientists look to treat glioblastoma multiforme, one of the common and more aggressive brain cancers, which are often very difficult to treat (treatments now only slow the rate of tumor growth but does not completely remove the tumor and cancer from the brain). The lab at UPenn School of Medicine used the mapping of cerebral organoids and formed brain tumor cerebral organoids in vivo from the glioblastoma cells and tissues of glioblastoma patients, with the hopes of understanding the key features of individual patient’s diseases. These organoids can be grown to resemble the genetic composition, cell heterogeneity, and structure of glioblastomas in patients, which could then be used to understand them better and find better ways to treat the disease. The organoids are promising because they do not take long to grow in the lab, which helps with cancer treatment progressing faster. In the most recent study in the lab, they found that they grew glioblastoma organoids at a 91.4 percent success rate within two weeks. They also found that the organoids retain most of the features from the original tumors. When transplanted into the mouse brain, the glioblastoma organoids functioned as they would in human brains, invading the brain tissue surrounding the rapid infiltrating cancer cells. They also found promises in CAR T therapies by testing them on the mouse subjects. These results all highlight the hope that glioblastoma organoids can be used to create effective personalized treatments for glioblastoma patients.

            Cerebral organoids at the moment, as shown by Azura et. al, closely relate and resemble the fetal human brain, and in the future could soon be resembling adult brains. Azura and colleagues also display that cerebral organoids show key features found in the human brain, such as electrical activity and certain gene profiles, and these features give hope that with further development, cerebral organoids could soon be used to understand debilitating brain diseases. Future more-developed cerebral organoids could also help to develop effective treatments for these diseases through clinical trials and further experiments. Even now, cerebral organoids are showing promise in treating brain cancers, as shown through the experiments done by the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where they are developing and growing cerebral organoids to understand glioblastomas.  With the increasing evolution of biotechnology and increasing knowledge found to develop these mini-brains, cerebral organoids could be used as models to understand and treat any type of difficult brain disease in the future. 

 

 

References

Logan, Sarah, et al. “Dynamic Characterization of Structural, Molecular, and Electrophysiological Phenotypes of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cerebral Organoids, and Comparison with Fetal and Adult Gene Profiles.” Cells, vol. 9, no. 5, 2020, p. 1301., doi:10.3390/cells9051301. 

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. “Brain Tumor Organoids May Be Key to Time-Sensitive Treatments for Glioblastomas.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 26 Dec. 2019, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/12/191226151741.htm. 

Improved Motor Function via Non-Invasive Stimulation of the Spinal Cord

Injuries to the spinal cord are severe and can leave its victims physically impaired. In the past, these injuries have been treated through surgeries or medications. These methods are either invasive and risky or are temporary solutions that do not directly address the limited motor control resulting from the injury. However, recent studies have shown that non-invasive stimulation of the spinal cord can improve motor function in patients suffering from spinal cord injury. 

In the article “Corticospinal-motor neuronal plasticity promotes exercise-mediated recovery with humans with spinal cord injury,” Dr. Perez observed how the recovery rate when exercise is paired with non-invasive stimulation at spinal synapses compares to the rate with normal exercise in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). Non-invasive stimulation was performed through paired corticospinal-motor neural stimulation (PCMS) in individuals with injuries to the cervical, thoracic, or lumbar regions of the spinal cord. A total of 38 individuals with SCI participated in this subject and were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. Exercise paired with PCMS was the treatment method for the first group, exercise paired with sham-PCMS for the second, and only PCMS for the third. Each of these groups completed ten sessions using their designated treatment method with muscle stimulation being measured through motor evoked potentials (MEP). Each muscle tested was stimulated to approximately 50% of the MEP-max amplitude, and the level of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) was measured via EMG activity. Results showed that MEP and MVC both increased in the PCMS paired with exercise and the PCMS only groups while the sham-PCMS group did not display a change in MEP or MVC. The participants in each group were then reassessed after six months. The performance of the participants in the PCMS paired with exercise and the PCMS only groups remained the same, whereas the sham-PCMS group decreased in performance. 

In her study, Dr. Perez showed that non-invasive stimulation combined with exercise is a viable method for promoting recovery in patients with SCI. The article “Spinal direct current stimulation (tsDCS) in hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSP): A sham-controlled crossover study” by Dr. Adrolino et. al mentions a similar study in which non-invasive stimulation through transcutaneous spinal direct current stimulation (tsDCS) was used to reduce spasticity in individuals with HSP. Eleven participants with HSP were divided into two groups: one would be receiving anodal tsDCS while the other would be receiving sham-tsDCS (the control group). The researchers measured the differences in performance between the groups using MEP, H-reflex, F-waves, Ashworth scale (measures spasticity), the Five Minutes Walking Test, and the Spastic Paraplegia Rating Scale (SPRS). In both of the groups, the H-reflex, F-waves, and MEP remained constant and there was no difference observed with the Five Minutes Walking Test and SPRS. However, there was a notable decrease in the score on the Ashworth scale for the anodal tsDCS group. Therefore, it was concluded that anodal tsDCS is an effective technique in decreasing spasticity and allowing for less constricted movements in HSP patients. 

The two studies utilized different methods of non-invasive stimulation of the spinal cord to improve motor function. Dr. Perez was able to determine that PCMS was effective in increasing the recovery rate for patients with SCI based on the observations of improved motor functionality immediately after treatment and after the six months follow-up assessment. Dr. Adrolino was able to prove that tsDCS can significantly decrease spasticity in HSP patients, which can also be applied to patients with SCI or other neurodegenerative diseases that impair movement. With the findings presented in these studies and many other studies alike, non-invasive stimulation can advance and become even more successful in the treatment of motor-impaired individuals.  

Citations

Perez, Monica A., and Hang Jin Jo. “Corticospinal-Motor Neuronal Plasticity Promotes Exercise-Mediated Recovery in Humans with Spinal Cord Injury.” Brain, vol. 143, no. 5, 2020, pp. 1368–1382., doi:10.1093/brain/awaa052. 

Ardolino, Gianluca, et al. “Spinal Direct Current Stimulation (TsDCS) in Hereditary Spastic Paraplegias (HSP): A Sham-Controlled Crossover Study.” The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, 2018, pp. 1–8., doi:10.1080/10790268.2018.1543926. 

 

Online Learning and Effectiveness

  The worldwide pandemic and national crisis at hand has forced schools all across the country to completely transition over to remote learning. Considering this has been going on for 8 months now, and it doesn’t seem like there is any clear end, or switch back to relative normalcy, in sight, it is an environment students and teachers everywhere are learning to adapt to more every day. 

The journal article entitled “Learning math by hand: The neural effects of gesture-based instruction in 8 year old children” looks at the effect of producing gesture and how that facilitates learning in young children. Wakefield et al examined the effectiveness of motor-based learning by comparing active speech and gesture learning method to a passive speech-alone method. fMRI was used to measure neural patterns between the two groups of children, and they ultimately discovered children that employed speech and gesture method showed increased activation in several more neural areas than speech-alone. Multiple previous literature supports the hypothesis that activation in motor areas by some stimulus show increased effects in learning and memory than passive forms of learning.

Given these findings, I wondered how this would translate towards today’s world, and the current state of national education, mainly, remote learning. A NPR article published on October 9, 2020, takes a look at the massive drop in public school enrollment, particularly in kindergarten and pre-k classes. A sample taken resulted in a 16% drop from the previous year. Less well off areas already get less funding from their property taxes so when their main source of income, state aid on a per-student basis, is being reduced, this may hold severe consequences for an already-inequitable system. With public school enrollment dropping, it begs the question, where are these children going and why are they dropping? 

NPR takes a look at Jessica Diaz in Tampa, Florida and how her family is dealing. "I don't think [virtual school] is a sustainable option for our family at this point," she told NPR. "For all of the burden of constant emailing, changes in schedules, assignments and submissions, etc., we feel the content of the education that is being delivered is far below our girls' capabilities and not worth the trouble at this point." She went on to say she plans to pull her kids out and start homeschooling instead.

All things considered, it can be reasonably concluded that children are insufficiently getting the education through a screen compared to in person classes. If enrollment continues to drop, and parents look to other means of education instead, it could hold major implications for the public school system.

Works Cited

Kamenetz, Anya, et al. “Enrollment Is Dropping In Public Schools Around the Country.” NPR, NPR, 9 Oct. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/10/09/920316481/enrollment-is-dropping-in-public-schools-around-the-country.

Wakefield, Elizabeth M., et al. “Learning Math by Hand: The Neural Effects of Gesture-Based Instruction in 8-Year-Old Children.” Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics. The Psychonomic Society, Inc, 2019.