Seminar 17: Presentation Day 7

The three presentations of this week taught me many new aspects of development that I had never really considered a part of developmental psychology. I was very interested in Sandra's very technical presentation on the economics that are necessary to assist in human development. It is surprising that the economics of and funding that aids the system is discussed very little in the courses that I have taken. I guess it is largely because we only discuss the ideal settings of psychology and not the feasibility necessarily. Although this course did touch on many aspects of psychological development that I had not discussed in previous classes; for this, I am very grateful.

I also enjoyed Simmy's online presentation concerning full- day kindergarten. I thought that her overview of the background material was well researched. I agree that class size is very important in the learning environment, especially the fact that today, several different grades can be packed into one classroom. At least in kindergarten, we should strive to have the smallest class sizes to ensure proper care and attention to every student in these critical years. I also see a great benefit in the full-day kindergarten program as depicted in the presentation. Although it is significantly more expensive, investing money in early education will allow for better outcome overall because it teaches kids necessary skills at a critical period and it can help find specific learning disabilities early. I can understand why some parents might want to have their kids at home for half the day but I think that for the majority of people and especially the disadvantaged, the child will learn significantly more in the proper classroom setting from skilled educators. I was very surprised to hear the issue around summer breaks in her presentation. I would never have imagined that a break could have such a significant determent on a child's learning. I don't really see why that time can't be used by the parents to teach their children to avoid this issue.I found this interesting article on how parents can help ready their children for kindergarten:
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Kindergarten_Readiness_Over_the/

Although I did watch Jelena's presentation on Baby Einstein, in looking back at my blogs I realize that I may not have commented on it directly (this most probably was because I have done so much research on Baby Einstein that I'm not sure I can say any more). I went back and watched her presentation again and I will comment on it here. I must admit that I did not learn a significant amount of new material from this presentation due to the fact that I know most of the articles she quoted very extensively. I did enjoy a couple of the newer studies that she mention i.e. Simpson (2007) and their findings that some aspects can be taught to children via videos. Overall, I thought that her presentation was a pretty good overview of Baby Einstein Corp., the videos and their effects.

Going back to this week's presentations, I was shocked to listen to the presentation on residential schools. I am so shocked because I had never heard about this issue before. I was never taught this in my school and I guess this is because it is not a proud moment in our countries history. I really can't imagine that such things were still taking place during my lifetime. I have come to realize that atrocities of these sorts are occuring all around us all the time, sometimes right in our own country. It is therefore very important to educate oursevlves and try our best to prevent these heinous acts from reoccurring.

The third presentation of the day on Discovery Learning was well assembled and clear, although I must admit that I do not agree with this specific form of learning. As we discussed in our small group discussion, I see Discovery Learning as an interesting way to teach imagination, but ineffective in teaching children specific skills or facts. I foresee a lot of "no that is wrong" being spoken from the teacher which in truth is just a waste of time. If teaching imagination and creativity to students then it is great, otherwise I don't really understand how one can teach even rudimentary physics to a grad-school class which was given as an example in the presentation. Currently, I am taking a physics course at YorkU and I am even having trouble understanding some of the simple concepts even when they are spelled out in the plainest English. To me it seems ridiculous trying to allow student in grade 3 to discover what magnetism is, never mind some of Einstein's theories. In conclusion, I see discovery learning as an interesting way to teach specific creative skills but a wholly ineffective method to teach advanced concepts.

I also wanted to say thank you to Dr. McNelles for such a wonderful class. Every week I looked forward to coming and learning with you and the class. I will miss our Monday classes. Best of luck in the future and I hope we meet up again soon. If you happen to be coming to Poster Day, I'll be at number 55 in the BBCS section. Hope to see you there.

Seminar 16: Presentation Day 6

The presentations from this week's class were very intriguing because they covered very different topics that had not been touched upon by others in the class. I enjoyed the presentation on the pragmatics of speech. I found it very interesting to learn about the components of speech and to learn its importance in the early life and growing up of children. One does not usually analyze the importance of speech as it comes so natural to us; it however is critical in the proper development of humans and many other animals.

Although other animals do not specifically use speech, they have other methods by which they communicate. After learning about the any complexities of phonemes and speech sounds, I realized how much has to go right for speech to be learnt and understood. It truly is amazing that any baby can adapt and pick up the language skills and speech sounds that surround him/her. The interplay between neurons and the neuronal pruning that has to take place in order for speech to be properly learnt is remarkable; if it were not known, I am sure that science would deem it as an impossibility. It is amazing that we have evolved to become such social creatures and it is evident in how important social communication is in our daily lives and overall success.

At the same time, however, this week's presentation on Autism examined an issue that is becoming increasingly more prevalent, especially amongst middle aged mothers. Having worked with children with Autism Spectrum Disorders on a weekly basis for six years, I know the difficulties involved. We only stay with the children for 3 hours, but it amazing how much attention each child requires. I can only imagine the difficulties that the parents have to go through every day. It is a constant struggle and it unfortunately is becoming increasingly more prevalent. I really appreciated the teaching tools that were brought in to class to show us a window into how she works with these children. The new treatment options truly amaze me, because I have personally seen some of the successes. It is amazing how resilient both the parents and patients themselves can be in fighting the disorder. I foresee many advancements in autism research, I only hope that it can be distributed and funded by the government soon enough to help young children with autism in their early stages of development.

Seminar 15: Presentation Day 5

In listening to Sarena's presentation on active listening, I agree that it is a much better way of teaching than the conventional passive learning that is widespread throughout the school system. I can understand why passive learning may have caught on in the school system and especially in a university setting. It, however, seems to be common knowledge that this type of learning most definitely is not the most effective way of learning.

It has been known for many years that learning occurs best when things are learnt by using different modalities, i.e. write, say, hear, etc. When learning actively, one must use the different learning modalities which will allow for better comprehension of the material. Less rote memory skills need to be utilized as the knowledge becomes ingrained in the student. I once had a very long conversation with a teach who both taught and did extensive research on the Montessori school system. She began too explain to me the way the school worked and the way that the children learn. It appears that in this system, children become very good active learners, which most definitely gives them a great head-start in life. It also is much more tailored to the individual needs of the child, which makes it easier on the child to do better in school and feel no competition with the other children in his/her class. The only significant issue that I can foresee with this style of learning is that these children are wholly unprepared for the style of teaching at most universities. If they do not want to attain advanced degrees than it shouldn't be a problem, but the massive change from all active to all passive learning can be very difficult or even impossible for the individual to succeed. I think that in the future, all schools should strive to invest their time properly and take the time to allow our children to actively learn in the classroom.

I also found Marcia's presentation on neglect and child abuse to be very interesting. Having 6 nieces and nephews, it was hard for me to read and acknowledge how bad some parents are to their children. The prevalence rates were much higher than I expected and I see it as being despicable for a parent to hurt their child. I think that the violence is largely caused by the fact that the parent's parents probably treated them the same way. Education is desperately needed for these parents and the many people of our society to stop violence against children. Kids need to know that there are people that they can talk to in the case that they need help; our school systems may be failing us in this highly significant aspect of growing up.

Seminar 14: Presentation Day 4

This week's two presentations were interesting. The Baby Einstein presentation touched on a lot of aspects that had been covered by several colleagues, but added some new points that added and extended to the findings. Although the presenter argued that Ms. Aigner Clark had good intentions, I find it very difficult to alleviate her of all the responsibility. When someone is making a product for any group of people, it is important to ensure that the product does in fact do what it was intended to do. This must apply even more so when the population in question is young children and mothers who are desperate to find a solution to their constant stress. The Baby Einstein seems like a 'gift' for most of these moms. In the past several weeks, I have met several more mothers, some of whom are pediatricians and they have expressed how much they love the Baby Einstein DVD's and citing that they have at least 10-15 of the videos at home. It irks me to find out that if the American Academy of Pediatrics' message isn't even being heard by the pediatricians, then who is listening. Are recommendations being made and falling on deaf ears? What is the point of doing all this great research on television and very young children if not even the most qualified doctors in the field don't follow it. The fact is that Baby Einstein is simply too easy. It alleviates parents of their responsibilities and makes them feel good that their kids might be learning. In terms of child rearing, our society needs to make a serious paradigm shift. We need to all start realizing that the 'easy way' is more often than not, the wrong way! I think this change needs to start with authority figures, psychologists, doctors, politicians, people that have the power to change the way society works. I know that the change will take a long time, but we have to start slowly by convincing parents that they themselves may in fact know the best way to rear their children.

Here we see the fall-out from the Baby Einstein campaign for the refund: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/education/10baby.html

It's scary what some companys will do to try and clear their name.

Seminar 13: Presentation Day 3

I really enjoyed the presentations from today's class. These presenters integrated a very different approach to the assignment and managed to teach the class several important developmental concepts. I really enjoyed learning about the 'inquiry based learning' technique and theory by Kelly. This is a topic that everyone thinks they know about, although in truth, few know the real details and processes that are often at work in this learning style. I like how she got us involved in the topic by asking us to build the tower. It was interesting to try and solve the best problem on our feet in a short time span. Inquiry based learning truly seems like the optimal way to teach children (and even adults). As a child, I recall learning the most when I was challenged to think by myself. I know that even today, I learn the most when the content is being taught hands-on and I can manipulate things with my hands. I believe that the more connections that we can make while learning, the higher the amount of knowledge that is retained. This seems to be confirmed by multisensory studies that have shown that auditory and visual coupling of information causes greater retention and ultimate learning.

I also really enjoyed Salva's presentation and the way she analyzed how research is translated and put into practice in average peoples everyday lives. It seems that there is a serious issue in translating research in that there is a significant delay. I would estimate that the delay varies greatly, but even a couple of months can be highly valuable, especially in the developing fetus or infant. I know that some research takes many years to reach the public sphere. This is a major problem. I think that the government or universities need to figure out a better system by which the general public can access the information as it is released. So few individuals read the scientific journals and even if they do, it is so complicated that they probably don't even understand it. Amazing research is being conducted worldwide and even right here at YorkU, but I am saddened that the general public do not have easy access to the advances that are being discovered on a daily basis.

Seminar 12: Presentation Day 2

This week, I presented my topic on 'The Video Deficit Effect'. I must admit that prior to starting the research for my presentation, I was unsure if there was enough data on the topic for a 45 minute presentation. This is because the phenomenon is so new and having only been discovered by Anderson & Pempek in 2005. Once I began my research, I was happily surprised to find that there were several articles that alluded to the Video Deficit, approximately 20. These articles used different research techniques and they all discovered the same effect. I was shocked to learn that this effect had been validated so many times! Initially, I thought that in theory, the Deficit sounded interesting, but I had no idea that there actually existed solid evidence to prove the theory. Even with all these validations, it is still important to realize that the Theory is still in its infancy and needs more research to determine all its intricacies.

In researching the presentation, I was very surprised to find how striking the results are. At the same time, I am shocked to see that none of these results have been transmitted to the general public. It seems that there exists a great disconnect between research findings and their application in general society. This most definitely is one of the biggest problems in research today. I believe that a major change in society needs to occur to permit the utilization of the groundbreaking research. Even my sister who is a physician and my cousin who is a recent pediatrician graduate, had no knowledge of any of the Baby Einstein findings.

I had a lot of fun doing my presentation and I couldn't believe the results that came out from the video vs. live person experiment that I conducted during my presentation. I analyzed the data in SPSS afterwards and put the results below. It seems that there actually is a significant effect of the video deficit, even though the group was significantly older than the group that it had been witnessed in previously. Perhaps this should be looked into and researched further.

Statistics

Video Live Person

N Valid 10 10

Missing 0 0

Mean 4.20 5.70

Std. Error of Mean .611 .616

Median 4.00 6.50

Mode 2a 7

Std. Deviation 1.932 1.947

Variance 3.733 3.789

Skewness .111 -1.846

Std. Error of Skewness .687 .687

Kurtosis -1.751 3.427

Std. Error of Kurtosis 1.334 1.334

Range 5 6

Minimum 2 1

Maximum 7 7

Sum 42 57

a. Multiple modes exist. The smallest value is shown

Video

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid 2 3 30.0 30.0 30.0

3 1 10.0 10.0 40.0

4 2 20.0 20.0 60.0

6 3 30.0 30.0 90.0

7 1 10.0 10.0 100.0

Total 10 100.0 100.0

Live Person

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent

Valid 1 1 10.0 10.0 10.0

4 1 10.0 10.0 20.0

5 1 10.0 10.0 30.0

6 2 20.0 20.0 50.0

7 5 50.0 50.0 100.0

Total 10 100.0 100.0

Seminar 11: Presentation Day 1

I really enjoyed this weeks presentations. I was very impressed by many of the speakers and I am happy to say that I learnt several new things. I especially enjoyed the presentation on the kindergarten school programs. I really didn't know very much about way that kindergartens worked in Canada and I was very surprised to learn about all the different program that are available in other countries and other provinces. I was very surprised to learn that the kindergarten programs in Ontario are quite bad in comparison to other kindergarten programs in Canada and worldwide.

I also enjoyed the Baby Einstein presentation and I felt like I learnt new material even though I did my project on Baby Einstein as well. I enjoyed the interactive activity as it made the class think on their feet and really got everyone involved. I liked how she focused on the specific aspects of one particular video, the Baby Wordsworth as I only researched the original edition for my paper. Her general overview of TV watching was very interesting as well as the specific aspects she mentioned about the pros and cons of Baby Einstein. I found the findings about the coviewing to be very interesting. Although coviewing may in fact increase the infants attentiveness and facilitate learning, I am highly skeptical that this is even possible. Only in very highly controlled environments where researchers force the parents to coview will there even be a chance that they will sit and watch the entire program. It is apparent that from many parent testimonials that their main reason for allowing their baby to watch the program is that it is both educational and an electronic babysitter. Although the latter is definitely true, the educational claims have been debunked several times over. I can only hope that parents will not submit to the claims and instead spend meaningful time with their children instead of forcing them to watch TV.

Seminar 10 - Dec. 7, 2009

In terms of studies on romantic relationships of individuals in high school I find that in looking back to my own experiences, I see so much possibility for error that I would hesitate to generalize the assumptions amongst this population. Take the article we read by Connolly and McIssac as an example. Of all available students to participate in the study, 74% took part and contributed data. That is a drop-out rate of 26% which in terms of a high school setting is a significant number considering that so many different social groups exist with vastly different relational experiences, it is quite possible that entire groups were not taken into account. The study also combined the data on the students from grades 9 to 12. These years in a person's life have been proven to be the years where the most change occurs to all aspects of personality and character. From personal experience, I know that the person I was when I entered high school and the person I was when I left were radically different. The maturity level (or so I hope) of teens as they go through high school changes dramatically which could lead to significant errors if all the students' data from all the grades were considered the same. It is likely that even the concept of a romantic relationship changed from year to year and even the 'fit' and criteria for need also changed. I believe that it would be very interesting if the researchers could analyze the data within each grade and determine the differences that they hold on a romantic relationship and the varying needs and desires. If a longitudinal approach were used I think the overall data would be much clearer and give a more accurate sense of how the individual changes throughout the high school years. Overall, I think that the article was well written and provided new insight into a field that will need much more research to fully understand.

Seminar 9 - Nov. 30, 2009

I really enjoyed the presentation that was given by Dr. Stieben. I am so appreciative of the fact that I have been given the privilege to hear such interesting professors speak so passionately about their revolutionary research. I am always fascinated by the field of neuroscience simply because of the endless possibilities that it holds for the future of medicine. The brain truly is the final frontier, one that I believe will take many decades to figure out. Although so much research has been done, it still amazes me that we know so very little about the brain and its functioning.

I was very interested in the specific Dir/Floortime Therapy that Dr. Stieben used in his lab specifically for children with autism. I was surprised to hear that he also used this type of therapy in his own children, I guess it demonstrates his belief in the value of the therapy. I think the concept being the therapy is quite solid, although the fact that it can train children to act and think a certain way may turn out to have serious implications. I asked a similar question in class, but my wonder is how far can this kind of therapy go. Assuming that it is successful in retraining and shaping children's behaviours, couldn't this be taken significantly too far rather easily? I can foresee parents or schools or communities taking advantage of this therapy to breed children with specific qualities and attributes. I realize that this may seem far fetched, but I always take caution when I hear about studies that have the ability to wholly change ways of thinking and feeling. On the other hand, I am not sure if as a parent we really act as anything but a teacher to our children? Perhaps the Dir/Floortime Therapy is just one of the better and more effective ways in which we can teach our children.

Having worked extensively with children with autism, I was very happy to hear the progress that Dr. Stieben and his lab members have made. In all the time I have worked with these kids, the one adjective that comes into my mind to describe the experience is frustration. I myself was not frustrated, but I witnessed these amazing and smart little kids trapped inside their unstoppable mannerisms and movements. For me, the hardest thing to grasp in working with the kids was that there was so little inconsistency between the weeks. One week the child would be fine and functioning and the next week it would be the complete opposite. It seems that kids with autism focus significantly more on little things and have a hard time suppressing or forgetting these insignificant occurrences. I recall on numerous occasions that a simple sneeze might cause the whole room to become chaotic. I would be very interested to learn the Dir/Floortime approach and perhaps utilize some of the methods in my work.

Seminar 8 - Nov. 23, 2009

I see bullying as one of the biggest issues of our school system nowadays. The number of things that are associated with bullying, being from peer pressure to violence and even suicide, it is disheartening that schools aren't taking it so seriously. I speak from personal experience.

As a child coming from Montreal in grade 3 to elementary school in Toronto, I most definitely did not fit in. I did try my best, but the atmospheres of the two schools were so very different that I had a very difficult time adjusting. The kids in my grade did not seem to make it any easier for me. I was the 'new kid' around and being very shy, a perfect target for bullies. As I can recall, there were only a couple of serious instances of physical bullying, most was of the relational bullying that we spoke of in this week's class. I can attest only anecdotally that my experience of relational bullying most definitely was as bad as the physical, corroborating the article's findings. On my parents request, I went and visited the principal of the school to discuss the issue. I went both because I had an issue and because I truly wanted to stop all the unnecessary torment that so many of my classmates were also enduring on a daily basis.

I recall the day vividly when I went to the principal's office. I remember her saying "We have no bullying in this school". At that age, I really didn't know what to say. I was lucky because I had one great friend and a really great family that I relied on immensely. In retrospect, I admit that I very upset by the ignorance of the school's administration. To this day I still recall all the names, faces and even some of the insults that the bullies in my school used. I am happy to hear from this week's articles that the issue is being brought into the forefront and that things are being done to avoid the cruelty that comes with bullying. In watching my nieces and nephews grow up I will try and do my best to give them the tools to be strong and not allow themselves to be affected by bullying.

Seminar 7 - Nov. 16, 2009

I was very intrigued by the review article by Meltzoff, Kuhl, Movellan and Sejnowski (2009) about the 'New Science of Learning'. I have studied learning theory in many psychology courses although I admit that I never realized the complexities that learning entails. Also, I much appreciated the focus on differences that humans have versus other animals in the animal kingdom. Overall, I was very impressed and learned a significant amount of new information from the article.

In reflecting on the ideas presented in the article, I believe that I have a new appreciation for the amount of 'things that have to go right' in a child. In that, I mean that it is truly remarkable that a child can be born helpless and then over the course of just a couple of months learn and master so many different skills. I think we take for granted the magnitude of changes that occur in children during this critical time period. As described in the article, to this day we have yet to create a computer model that is even capable of speech. Computers today can perform calculations ad infinitum, yet they truly are not even close to the amazing developmental processes that the human body and mind achieve.

Today my niece, Rachel, came over to play with us. She is just about 10 months and it really is amazing watching her. The only word that I think truly epitomizes her attributes and mannerisms is that of a 'sponge'. A sponge in the sense that she just takes absolutely everything in. Watching her look at faces studying us as if we were so complicated. It seems that she is just learning and learning. As further described in the articles, the neuroplasticity that the brain has and the capacities of change are astonishing. Whenever I look at her, I see a little person that simply never stops learning. For me, the absolute worst scene to watch is her father or mother harshly scold one of her older siblings for doing something. The terror that she has in her eyes as she gazes directly at her father or mother is unbelievable. She can so easily understand that something very bad is happening and soon enough, the event may become 'normal' and she won't cry as much anymore. For me, I see this as a true shame. I would never want my young child to have to witness that. I guess there is a difficult balance that needs to be achieved to raise a child.

I firmly believe that the hardest thing that we as humans do in our lives is raising children. I am disconcerted that so few parents take the privilege of raising children seriously enough. I really believe that it is the duty of a parent to research and be up to date and give everything to their children. A sponge can only absorb as much as you allow it to; I can only hope that more parents will view their children as a gift that must be nurtured and held in the highest levels of importance in their lives. I think we have to further advocate and teach parents the importance of learning to their kids; perhaps this may spark a learning revolution?

Supplement to Seminar 6 Post

This is incredible. Real Superhumans

Here's the YouTube series 1 to 10.

Seminar 6 - Nov. 9, 2009

This week's topic on neuroscience is by far one of my absolute favourites. I have always been fascinated by the inner workings of the brain. The concept that such a simple mushy collection of specialized cells can control and affect so much, I find astounding. The research by Dr. Doidge on brain neuroplasticity is no exception. It further depicts the capabilities that we possess in controlling and proactively changing the way we think, feel and act. I feel that his revolutionary methods and the field in general will discover more and more unbelievable feats that we humans are capable of performing. It is shocking that only a couple of decades ago, we viewed the brain as a wholly non-malleable, stationary device.

I visited the show BODYWORLDS 3 last week at the Ontario Science Centre, I recall watching most of the visitors walk right past the brain section, with only a couple of people taking a quick glance. Why? Because, in truth, it did not appear so exciting. It was a round convoluted pinkish mass of... not too much. I remember just staring at the beautiful sulci and gyri, and the cerebellar hemispheres and the layers of cortex. Almost every part of the body is so easy to understand, the stomach has gastric juices, breaks down food with enzymes and acids and then sends it off for further processing; the intestines, slightly more complex, but still merely an absorption system with mesentery around to transport the nutrients and fluids to other parts of the body. The brain, however, is absolutely indecipherable. For as long as I stared at it, I think more questions arose than answers. Simply axons that interconnect to produce consciousness and control more things than I can even imagine. For the past three years, I have taken courses that focus on the brain and on human vision, and I still have so little idea on the workings of our minds. Although there are so many incredibly smart individuals working of deciphering the brain including some at the pinnacle of their respective fields (many were shown in the film, ie. V. S. Ramachandran) we still know so little. I can only anticipate the wonders that we will discover in the future.

In terms of the mirror neurons that were discussed in class, I see this as a very interesting addition to the way we view the brain. The debate as to whether humans are born with such a system or if it develops as we grow seems to be one that may go unsolved for quite some time. Until we can replicate even a single neuronal circuit, it seems likely that we continue to fruitlessly debate.

I also find the concept of synesthesia to be of particular interest, the idea that senses can be integrated is most literally inconceivable to any non-synesthete.

When I was a kid I remember dreaming of one day having superpowers, in my opinion the field of brain research and most especially neuroplasticity may in fact discover human abilities that we once considered to be 'super human'.

Seminar 5 - Nov. 2, 2009

This week's discussion concerning Hurricane Katrina, youth anxiety and perceived attachment was very interesting. The conditions that were present seemed to be absolutely perfect for the administration of such a study. I, however, was unsure as to exactly how the study met legal consent requirements. It seems that some rules may have been broken, which in my opinion is slightly unnerving. Although the final results proved to be beneficial, its usage undermines the consent process. I understand that this simply could be due to different restrictions in the US, but then perhaps the APA should reevaluate some of these standards.

In terms of the study itself, I was surprised to discover that the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and the Children's Report of Parent Behavior Inventory (CRPBI) were only administered pre Katrina. I see no reason as to why these measures couldn't be utilized a second time. Although it can easily be contended that attachment patterns remain stable across most normal children's lives, this situation is anything but normal. The situation in New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina most definitely could have influenced the parenting styles and attachment patterns of the parents. Not administering these measures assumes that the parents' mental states remained wholly unchanged after the hurricane. This most definitely is untrue considering the fact that many of the parents did experience psychological distress, psychopathologies and specifically PTSD as are discussed in the introduction of the paper [see Scaramella, Sohr-Preston, Callahan, & Mirabile (2008) and Scheeringa & Zeahah (2008)]. Had the researchers included these measures, I believe that they would have acquired significantly more compelling results. The results may have turned out to be completely contrary to their original findings, but either way this study would have demonstrated the effects of a hurricane on youth anxiety. At the present formulation, I feel that the study contains this error which may limit its overall generalizability into theoretical parent attachment models.

Supplement to Seminar 4 Post

This doesn't relate exactly to the course material, but I really found this interesting. It's a brand name marketed placebo drug for children. Simply based on the effectiveness of placebo studies.

Seminar 4 - Oct. 26, 2009

Of all the articles that we read this week, I was most intrigued by 'The Influence of Natural Variations in Maternal Care on Play Fighting in the Rat' by Parent and Meaney. The findings were quite remarkable in many respects. Mostly, it gave me new insight into the cognitive capacities of rats that I had not known prior. I was surprised to find out that rats share so many emotional characteristics with humans. I would be very interested to see further studies that could tease out and uncover the correlations between the 'low LG' and 'high LG' females. In all the graphs presented, there is a clear demarcation and consistent trend within the female subgrouping. I was surprised and impressed to see how accurately this study depicted the highly valid results of the gender differences amongst the rat populations studied.

My only issue, as I presented in class and as discussed in the audio podcast, is the issue of generalizability of the animal model to the human model. I most definitely see the advantage of studies between animals and humans due to their many similarities. I, however, do not think that the correlations are as direct as some might assume. Just in examining cortical structure and the immense amount of differences that are apparent between human and rat behaviours, it is difficult to predict the exact mechanism by which 'anogenital licking' in rats can be generalized to a behaviour in humans. It appears that there may be tens of different behaviours in humans that can correspond to the rat licking behaviour. Perhaps in the future, a meta-analysis could be performed to determine which form of human behaviour most closely mimics the behaviours of rats. This type of study might unveil the characteristics that we have in common with our ancient evolutionary ancestry. I feel that these types of studies could most definitely benefit society as a whole in the coming decades if we could adequately correlate animal behaviour to our own.

Seminar 3 - Oct. 19, 2009

For me, this week's seminar truly stirred some feelings of doubt initially. Being on a path to pursue a career in medicine (MD), I was apprehensive about the lecture by Dr. Doran. I must admit, I was pleasantly surprised with here knowledge and depth in which she knew her material. Due to the ever-present stigma of Western medicine vs. Eastern medicine, I have always believed there was something strange about the field of naturopathy. Dr. Doran really changed my viewpoint on this matter entirely. I have come to realize that doctors in this country truly focus on treating the illness, while a naturopath attempts to treat the person. Her calmness and interpersonal skills seem like they are the proper way that medicine should be addressed.

The only aspect that I am still highly sceptical about is the home birthing issue. I agree that the hospital is a difficult environment for a baby and that some of their practises (ie. epidural) may not be wholly conducive to health. (It's amazing how I just assumed that epidural's were safe, I never even considered the implications on oxytocin levels and it speeding up the process unnecessarily). My fear is of home births. I have spoken to my cousin who is a pediatrician and she has consistently told me that 'home births are great, until you have a problem'. Although she stated that the midwives only take on 'low-risk' pregnancies, a large percentage of the risk in pregnancy begins at labour. With no advanced lifesaving tools at their disposal, in the event of a mishap, what can the midwife do? I remain unconvinced of the benefits of home birthing. I condone a natural birth at a hospital without an epidural, I just feel that risking both the mother's and baby's life even if the risk is small is not worth taking. Today we have the means of saving premature babies that would never have survived 30 years ago. I can't imagine the feeling of knowing that a baby's life could have been saved if the mother had delivered in a hospital rather than at home.

I have come to accept that the best way to treat a patient is to take a holistic approach. We must combine all methods that strive to attain optimal health and recovery to the patient. Medicine in North America most definitely could learn a few things from Dr. Doran.

Another Supplement to Post 2

This is really interesting. Who knew licorice could be harmful? Who knows what things we will discover to be harmful in the future.

Here is the link to the article:
Licorice and Placenta

Supplement to Seminar 2 Post

I wonder if this has any relation to the cancer that we studied in class:

Mother can pass on cancer in womb

Seminar 2 - Oct. 5 2009

The movie “The Miracle of Life” exposed some hidden aspects of human development and the proliferation of cells that I had never seen before. It is one thing to learn about human body and its functions and it entirely another to see it in the raw. I found the journey from egg to foetus to be incredible. It is simply astonishing to realize how many things have to go right to form a healthy baby. We so often learn about the things that can go wrong that we don’t realize how many things almost always go right. The effects of the mother and the prenatal environment are so much more influential than I could ever have imagined.

After the seminar, I had a meal with my family in which I shared some of the findings that we had read about. I spoke with my sister, a family physician and my cousin, a paediatric fellow at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. I began describing all the complications and risk factors that can be induced by the habits and complications during foetal development and even more surprisingly in the delivery room. I had figured that my educated family members who specialized in this field would be well versed in these issues. I was wholly shocked when they began saying that I must have misread the information. They had never heard of any of the issues and links that were drawn between birth weight and disease and also the link between obstetrical complications and delinquency. It seemed to them to be two wholly separate issues entirely. I guess this error stems from the medical field’s focus on the Biomedical Model, while psychology is more properly integrated into the Biopsychosocial Model; allowing for biological, psychological and social aspects to be the components of a person’s overall health. I was slightly jolted to think that I want to go into the field of medicine and yet there is so much that they do not cover and simply ignore. I wonder if I will be able to integrate theses others portions of health in my practise as a physician to treat my patients entirely and offer them the most options that are available. I feel that it will be a struggle to provide such a service. I am looking forward to our seminar with Dr. Doran to see her view of health and wellness. Perhaps I will gain insight into how to practise and integrate her ideas of healing into my future endeavours.