Anything Goes

So this time around I'm going to pick a topic from Psych Central that peaks my interest and talk about it. Of the current events I saw, the most interesting to me was an article stating that research has shown that early music training actually changes the anatomy of the brain. As a music student, I certainly find this fascinating. To me music is a form of expression that can reach across cultures and into the hearts of many people, but obviously it does some other good stuff too. When you think about it, music is ingrained in every human being. The first sounds we hear in the womb are the rhythmic beats of our mother's heart. What makes music so integral and beneficial to humans? When you really think about it, music is just a bunch of waves vibrating through the air, so why does it help us the way it does?

Well, these questions might be interesting and thought provoking, but the article actually talks about making music, not hearing it, so I'm going to stop digressing and talk about the point of the article then expand more on my thoughts about it and music in general. To give a general summary of the article I'm going to rip a quote straight from it:

"A comparison of the participants [of the experiment] revealed that those who began their training before the age of 7 tended to have a thicker cortex — the outer layer of the brain — in areas linked to auditory processing and self-awareness, the researchers reported."

The article also stated that musical training could be used as a therapeutic tool. I could understand how this works because being an instrument player takes quite a bit of coordination between the tactile and cognitive aspects of making music. I would also like to point out that this theory of using music in therapy has been used many times before. In fact a choir group on America's Got Talent  was comprised of military wives who would sing for veterans who sustained mental disabilities in the line of duty. You can check out one of their performances below.

I also found an article on the BBC website that explains the Mozart Effect. This ties back into what I talked about earlier in the blog concerning the innateness of music in the human mind.And when you think about it, plenty of animals love music. Whether it be birds or crickets, sound and it's organization is so vital to the functioning of life as we know it. That's just really cool to me. I could rant about that some more... But I kinda have other homework to get to. On that note, here's a video with some cows who like music!

Fun Fact Link - ...I don't have "fun" facts this time around, but you can have the links I used!
                         Psych Central and BBC's Mozart Effect

Random Tidbit (just cuz):

Get it? Because Pavlov and the dogs and the bells? It's funny!