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To: Godel
By 24 weeks, every neuron that the unborn child will ever have is present in the brain.

Wrong. The brain continues to grow new cells at a very high rate (100,000 per day? forgive my imprecision, as it has been 12 years since last I studied this particular topic) for several years after birth. A second process, synaptic pruning and reinforcement, kicks in at around two years and continues at a brisk clip until the age of five.

This statement of yours is false. The information disproving it has been readily available to the lay public for some thirty years. That you could make such an evidently false and self-serving claim once leads me to question the validity of anything else you say in the same vein or topic. I begin to see a need to unpack my developmental biology texts from storage and see where else you might have erred in support of your creed.

342 posted on 11/12/2002 10:16:46 PM PST by demosthenes the elder
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To: demosthenes the elder; Godel
I begin to see a need to unpack my developmental biology texts from storage and see where else you might have erred in support of your creed.

So do I.

Prenatally, a trillion or so neurons are hanging about. That's whittled down to about 100 billion at birth. From then on its differentiation for a bit and then the inevitable downhill slide.

Until all that's left is hubris and condescension.

350 posted on 11/12/2002 11:42:37 PM PST by jwalsh07
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To: demosthenes the elder
This statement of yours is false. The information disproving it has been readily available to the lay public for some thirty years. That you could make such an evidently false and self-serving claim once leads me to question the validity of anything else you say in the same vein or topic. I begin to see a need to unpack my developmental biology texts from storage and see where else you might have erred in support of your creed.

"At the end of the second trimester, many organs are quite well developed. And a major milestone is reached in brain development, in that all the neurons are now in place. No more will be produced int he individual's lifetime. However, glial cells, which support and feed the neurons, continue to increase at a rapid rate throughout the remaining months of pregnancy, as well as after birth (Nowakowski, 1987)"

pg. 106, "Infants and Children: Prenatal Through Middle Childhood", by Laura E. Berk, Copyright 1999 Allyn & Bacon

This is the textbook from my University class on Childhood development. These are facts. Ask yourself, why you become so hostile and are so unwilling to accept the facts when they are presented to you.

A second process, synaptic pruning and reinforcement, kicks in at around two years and continues at a brisk clip until the age of five.

Yes, this is all part of neuroplasticity. But are you even reading what you just typed? It's called synaptic pruning, meaning that the synapses, or connections between the neurons are reduced or rerouted. Alternatively, new synaptic connections between neurons can be made. But no new neurons are being created. If you can't tell the difference between something as basic as neurons, glial cells, and synapses, I have serious doubts about your expertise on this subject.

The ball is in your court now. I stated facts, you stooped to calling me a liar and impugning my character. It is now your obligation to cite some facts supporting your position, untenable as it is.

Start unpacking, I've got more textbooks too.

357 posted on 11/13/2002 12:17:32 AM PST by Godel
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