Brain Processing

While researching brain processing, I found a few good sources relevant to the topics of interest. One of the sources focuses on functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI) and the other was an article by Bertil Osterberg called The Information Processing Mechanism of the Brain.

The page on the FMRI breaks down the process to a basic level. It covers what it is, common uses, benefits and risks, and how the procedure is performed. This source can be used as a quick reference because of the efficient way it is organized.

Bertil Osterberg’s article describes “the physical reality of how mental objects, such as perceptions, inner visions, thoughts and feelings exist in the brain in the form of patterns of neural activity.” He attempts to identify the interconnections that make the pathways possible. One area of note was his section on the structure of information in the brain. He explains that different features of an object are located in different parts of the cortex. This really blew my mind. This was a great article, which I’ll definitely have to re-read a couple of times in order to understand each section.

Some interesting ISD/learning theory blogs

Today, I found some interesting ISD/learning theory blogs.

LearnLets is a blog ran by Clark Quinn and has the tagline “Learnings about Learning.” On his learning blog, Clark covers many categories including design, games, meta-learning, mobile, social, strategy, just to name a few. I found one of his blogs, “The Grail of Effective and Engaging Learning Experiences,” interesting enough to post a comment. I never do that, and guess what, it felt great. He discusses several elements that contribute to engagement and offers up some very innovative ideas.

Educational Theory and Practice is a blog with the tagline of “Random musings by people who think about educational psychology and the practice of instructional design.” Stuart T. Haines is the blog owner and has blog entries going back to 2005. He is a professor at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. Stuart covers a large range of topics. From embracing mobile technology to social learning and diffusion of knowledge. He provides spot-on references and naturally applies learning theories/concepts into each of his blog entries.

Online Learning and Distance Education Resources is a blog moderated by research associate, Tony Bates. One thing I find interesting is that Tony has been writing a textbook through his blog, dedicating each blog entry that correlates to a chapter of his “virtual” book. This is actually a neat process, because visitors to his site can watch his book come together and access the knowledge within the book at no cost. This is a novel idea and it seems to be working out for him. Chapter 12.2, “The development and training of teachers and instructors in a digital age” is interesting.

I couldn’t really rank these blogs on helpfulness. They all brought a unique strength to the focus of learning which ultimately helps everyone out. I can see myself utilizing all of these blogs in the future as a way to promote discussion and debate.