Neuroplasticity and Experience

Two recent reviews, published in The Journal of Neuroscience and Nature Neuroscience, describe a new type of neuroplasticity that helps our brains learn from a single experience over the course of just a few seconds.

This mechanism, which they call “behavioral timescale synaptic plasticity,” or BTSP, manifests as an electrical charge that impacts multiple neurons simultaneously. This allows the brain to quickly learn something new after just one occurrence, which is distinct from other neuroplasticity mechanisms that reshape the brain after multiple encounters with the same experience.

Synaptic plasticity is a relatively new concept, but is now broadly accepted by the neurological community. And it says, in essence, that the connections between our neurons can change over time, which is why someone who loses an arm or whose eyesight deteriorates can compensate for those bodily and sensory changes, their brains rewiring to account for their adjusted physical capability and visual input. It’s also why we can continue to change as people well into adulthood.