Modulation of motor performance and motor learning by transcranial direct current stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Reis, Janine; Fritsch, Brita

2011-12-01

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has shown preliminary success in improving motor performance and motor learning in healthy individuals, and restitution of motor deficits in stroke patients. This brief review highlights some recent work. Within the past years, behavioural studies have confirmed and specified the timing and polarity specific effects of tDCS on motor skill learning and motor adaptation. There is strong evidence that timely co-application of (hand/arm) training and anodal tDCS to the contralateral M1 can improve motor learning. Improvements in motor function as measured by clinical scores have been described for combined tDCS and training in stroke patients. For this purpose, electrode montages have been modified with respect to interhemispheric imbalance after brain injury. Cathodal tDCS applied to the unlesioned M1 or bihemispheric M1 stimulation appears to be well tolerated and useful to induce improvements in motor function. Mechanistic studies in humans and animals are discussed with regard to physiological motor learning. tDCS is well tolerated, easy to use and capable of inducing lasting improvements in motor function. This method holds promise for the rehabilitation of motor disabilities, although acute studies in patients with brain injury are so far lacking.

Learning without knowing: subliminal visual feedback facilitates ballistic motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Leukel, Christian; Nielsen, Jens Bo

by subconscious (subliminal) augmented visual feedback on motor performance. To test this, 45 subjects participated in the experiment, which involved learning of a ballistic task. The task was to execute simple ankle plantar flexion movements as quickly as possible within 200 ms and to continuously improve...... by the learner, indeed facilitated ballistic motor learning. This effect likely relates to multiple (conscious versus unconscious) processing of visual feedback and to the specific neural circuitries involved in optimization of ballistic motor performance.......). It is a well- described phenomenon that we may respond to features of our surroundings without being aware of them. It is also a well-known principle, that learning is reinforced by augmented feedback on motor performance. In the present experiment we hypothesized that motor learning may be facilitated...

Enhanced Multisensory Integration and Motor Reactivation after Active Motor Learning of Audiovisual Associations

Science.gov (United States)

Butler, Andrew J.; James, Thomas W.; James, Karin Harman

2011-01-01

Everyday experience affords us many opportunities to learn about objects through multiple senses using physical interaction. Previous work has shown that active motor learning of unisensory items enhances memory and leads to the involvement of motor systems during subsequent perception. However, the impact of active motor learning on subsequent…

Neuronal mechanisms of motor learning and motor memory consolidation in healthy old adults

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berghuis, K. M. M.; Veldman, M. P.; Solnik, S.; Koch, G.; Zijdewind, I.; Hortobagyi, T.

It is controversial whether or not old adults are capable of learning new motor skills and consolidate the performance gains into motor memory in the offline period. The underlying neuronal mechanisms are equally unclear. We determined the magnitude of motor learning and motor memory consolidation

Movement Sonification: Audiovisual benefits on motor learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weber Andreas

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Processes of motor control and learning in sports as well as in motor rehabilitation are based on perceptual functions and emergent motor representations. Here a new method of movement sonification is described which is designed to tune in more comprehensively the auditory system into motor perception to enhance motor learning. Usually silent features of the cyclic movement pattern "indoor rowing" are sonified in real time to make them additionally available to the auditory system when executing the movement. Via real time sonification movement perception can be enhanced in terms of temporal precision and multi-channel integration. But beside the contribution of a single perceptual channel to motor perception and motor representation also mechanisms of multisensory integration can be addressed, if movement sonification is configured adequately: Multimodal motor representations consisting of at least visual, auditory and proprioceptive components - can be shaped subtly resulting in more precise motor control and enhanced motor learning.

Learning Visual Basic NET

CERN Document Server

Liberty, Jesse

2009-01-01

Learning Visual Basic .NET is a complete introduction to VB.NET and object-oriented programming. By using hundreds of examples, this book demonstrates how to develop various kinds of applications--including those that work with databases--and web services. Learning Visual Basic .NET will help you build a solid foundation in .NET.

Motor cortex is required for learning but not for executing a motor skill.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawai, Risa; Markman, Timothy; Poddar, Rajesh; Ko, Raymond; Fantana, Antoniu L; Dhawale, Ashesh K; Kampff, Adam R; Ölveczky, Bence P

2015-05-06

Motor cortex is widely believed to underlie the acquisition and execution of motor skills, but its contributions to these processes are not fully understood. One reason is that studies on motor skills often conflate motor cortex's established role in dexterous control with roles in learning and producing task-specific motor sequences. To dissociate these aspects, we developed a motor task for rats that trains spatiotemporally precise movement patterns without requirements for dexterity. Remarkably, motor cortex lesions had no discernible effect on the acquired skills, which were expressed in their distinct pre-lesion forms on the very first day of post-lesion training. Motor cortex lesions prior to training, however, rendered rats unable to acquire the stereotyped motor sequences required for the task. These results suggest a remarkable capacity of subcortical motor circuits to execute learned skills and a previously unappreciated role for motor cortex in "tutoring" these circuits during learning. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Auditory and motor imagery modulate learning in music performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Rachel M; Palmer, Caroline

2013-01-01

Skilled performers such as athletes or musicians can improve their performance by imagining the actions or sensory outcomes associated with their skill. Performers vary widely in their auditory and motor imagery abilities, and these individual differences influence sensorimotor learning. It is unknown whether imagery abilities influence both memory encoding and retrieval. We examined how auditory and motor imagery abilities influence musicians' encoding (during Learning, as they practiced novel melodies), and retrieval (during Recall of those melodies). Pianists learned melodies by listening without performing (auditory learning) or performing without sound (motor learning); following Learning, pianists performed the melodies from memory with auditory feedback (Recall). During either Learning (Experiment 1) or Recall (Experiment 2), pianists experienced either auditory interference, motor interference, or no interference. Pitch accuracy (percentage of correct pitches produced) and temporal regularity (variability of quarter-note interonset intervals) were measured at Recall. Independent tests measured auditory and motor imagery skills. Pianists' pitch accuracy was higher following auditory learning than following motor learning and lower in motor interference conditions (Experiments 1 and 2). Both auditory and motor imagery skills improved pitch accuracy overall. Auditory imagery skills modulated pitch accuracy encoding (Experiment 1): Higher auditory imagery skill corresponded to higher pitch accuracy following auditory learning with auditory or motor interference, and following motor learning with motor or no interference. These findings suggest that auditory imagery abilities decrease vulnerability to interference and compensate for missing auditory feedback at encoding. Auditory imagery skills also influenced temporal regularity at retrieval (Experiment 2): Higher auditory imagery skill predicted greater temporal regularity during Recall in the presence of

Auditory and motor imagery modulate learning in music performance

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Rachel M.; Palmer, Caroline

2013-01-01

Skilled performers such as athletes or musicians can improve their performance by imagining the actions or sensory outcomes associated with their skill. Performers vary widely in their auditory and motor imagery abilities, and these individual differences influence sensorimotor learning. It is unknown whether imagery abilities influence both memory encoding and retrieval. We examined how auditory and motor imagery abilities influence musicians' encoding (during Learning, as they practiced novel melodies), and retrieval (during Recall of those melodies). Pianists learned melodies by listening without performing (auditory learning) or performing without sound (motor learning); following Learning, pianists performed the melodies from memory with auditory feedback (Recall). During either Learning (Experiment 1) or Recall (Experiment 2), pianists experienced either auditory interference, motor interference, or no interference. Pitch accuracy (percentage of correct pitches produced) and temporal regularity (variability of quarter-note interonset intervals) were measured at Recall. Independent tests measured auditory and motor imagery skills. Pianists' pitch accuracy was higher following auditory learning than following motor learning and lower in motor interference conditions (Experiments 1 and 2). Both auditory and motor imagery skills improved pitch accuracy overall. Auditory imagery skills modulated pitch accuracy encoding (Experiment 1): Higher auditory imagery skill corresponded to higher pitch accuracy following auditory learning with auditory or motor interference, and following motor learning with motor or no interference. These findings suggest that auditory imagery abilities decrease vulnerability to interference and compensate for missing auditory feedback at encoding. Auditory imagery skills also influenced temporal regularity at retrieval (Experiment 2): Higher auditory imagery skill predicted greater temporal regularity during Recall in the presence of

Auditory and motor imagery modulate learning in music performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel M. Brown

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Skilled performers such as athletes or musicians can improve their performance by imagining the actions or sensory outcomes associated with their skill. Performers vary widely in their auditory and motor imagery abilities, and these individual differences influence sensorimotor learning. It is unknown whether imagery abilities influence both memory encoding and retrieval. We examined how auditory and motor imagery abilities influence musicians’ encoding (during Learning, as they practiced novel melodies, and retrieval (during Recall of those melodies. Pianists learned melodies by listening without performing (auditory learning or performing without sound (motor learning; following Learning, pianists performed the melodies from memory with auditory feedback (Recall. During either Learning (Experiment 1 or Recall (Experiment 2, pianists experienced either auditory interference, motor interference, or no interference. Pitch accuracy (percentage of correct pitches produced and temporal regularity (variability of quarter-note interonset intervals were measured at Recall. Independent tests measured auditory and motor imagery skills. Pianists’ pitch accuracy was higher following auditory learning than following motor learning and lower in motor interference conditions (Experiments 1 and 2. Both auditory and motor imagery skills improved pitch accuracy overall. Auditory imagery skills modulated pitch accuracy encoding (Experiment 1: Higher auditory imagery skill corresponded to higher pitch accuracy following auditory learning with auditory or motor interference, and following motor learning with motor or no interference. These findings suggest that auditory imagery abilities decrease vulnerability to interference and compensate for missing auditory feedback at encoding. Auditory imagery skills also influenced temporal regularity at retrieval (Experiment 2: Higher auditory imagery skill predicted greater temporal regularity during Recall in the

Unilateral implicit motor learning deficit in developmental dyslexia.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yang; Hong-Yan, Bi

2011-02-01

It has been suggested that developmental dyslexia involves various literacy, sensory, motor skill, and processing speed deficits. Some recent studies have shown that individuals with developmental dyslexia exhibit implicit motor learning deficits, which may be related to cerebellar functioning. However, previous studies on implicit motor learning in developmental dyslexics have produced conflicting results. Findings from cerebellar lesion patients have shown that patients' implicit motor learning performance varied when different hands were used to complete tasks. This suggests that dyslexia may have different effects on implicit motor learning between the two hands if cerebellar dysfunction is involved. To specify this question, we used a one-handed version of a serial reaction time task to compare the performance of 27 Chinese children with developmental dyslexics with another 27 age-matched children without reading difficulties. All the subjects were students from two primary schools, Grades 4 to 6. The results showed that children with developmental dyslexic responded more slowly than nondyslexic children, and exhibited no implicit motor learning in the condition of left-hand response. In contrast, there was no significant difference in reaction time between two groups of children when they used the right hand to respond. This finding indicates that children with developmental dyslexia exhibited normal motor skill and implicit motor learning ability provided the right hand was used. Taken together, these results suggested that Chinese children with developmental dyslexia exhibit unilateral deficits in motor skill and implicit motor learning in the left hand. Our findings lend partial support to the cerebellar deficit theory of developmental dyslexia.

Psychosocial modulators of motor learning in Parkinson’s disease

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Petra eZemankova

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Using the remarkable overlap between brain circuits affected in Parkinson’s disease (PD and those underlying motor sequence learning, we may improve the effectiveness of motor rehabilitation interventions by identifying motor learning facilitators in PD. For instance, additional sensory stimulation and task cueing enhanced motor learning in people with PD, whereas exercising using musical rhythms or console computer games improved gait and balance, and reduced some motor symptoms, in addition to increasing task enjoyment. Yet, despite these advances, important knowledge gaps remain. Most studies investigating motor learning in PD used laboratory-specific tasks and equipment, with little resemblance to real life situations. Thus, it is unknown whether similar results could be achieved in more ecological setups and whether individual’s task engagement could further improve motor learning capacity. Moreover, the role of social interaction in motor skill learning process has not yet been investigated in PD and the role of mind-set and self-regulatory mechanisms have been sporadically examined. Here we review evidence suggesting that these psychosocial factors may be important modulators of motor learning in PD. We propose their incorporation in future research, given that it could lead to development of improved non-pharmacological interventions aimed to preserve or restore motor function in PD.

THE EFFECT OF BASIC MOTOR ABILITIES ON DRIBBLING SPEED AND PRECISION IN SOCCER GAME

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ismail Selimović

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Effects of basic motor skills on situational-motor abilities for speed dribble and ball control precision assessment in soccer game at boys aged 12-14 years were analyzed with regression analysis. For this purpose, 17 variables for basic motor parameters were selected, as well as three situational tests. In every example of the regression analysis results, the results obtained showed confirmation of the hypothesis of significant effects of the morphological characteristics on the results in analyzed situational- motor tests.

Changes of motor-cortical oscillations associated with motor learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Pollok, B; Latz, D; Krause, V; Butz, M; Schnitzler, A

2014-09-05

Motor learning results from practice but also between practice sessions. After skill acquisition early consolidation results in less interference with other motor tasks and even improved performance of the newly learned skill. A specific significance of the primary motor cortex (M1) for early consolidation has been suggested. Since synchronized oscillatory activity is assumed to facilitate neuronal plasticity, we here investigate alterations of motor-cortical oscillations by means of event-related desynchronization (ERD) at alpha (8-12 Hz) and beta (13-30 Hz) frequencies in healthy humans. Neuromagnetic activity was recorded using a 306-channel whole-head magnetoencephalography (MEG) system. ERD was investigated in 15 subjects during training on a serial reaction time task and 10 min after initial training. The data were compared with performance during a randomly varying sequence serving as control condition. The data reveal a stepwise decline of alpha-band ERD associated with faster reaction times replicating previous findings. The amount of beta-band suppression was significantly correlated with reduction of reaction times. While changes of alpha power have been related to lower cognitive control after initial skill acquisition, the present data suggest that the amount of beta suppression represents a neurophysiological marker of early cortical reorganization associated with motor learning. Copyright © 2014 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Functional connectivity between somatosensory and motor brain areas predicts individual differences in motor learning by observing.

Science.gov (United States)

McGregor, Heather R; Gribble, Paul L

2017-08-01

Action observation can facilitate the acquisition of novel motor skills; however, there is considerable individual variability in the extent to which observation promotes motor learning. Here we tested the hypothesis that individual differences in brain function or structure can predict subsequent observation-related gains in motor learning. Subjects underwent an anatomical MRI scan and resting-state fMRI scans to assess preobservation gray matter volume and preobservation resting-state functional connectivity (FC), respectively. On the following day, subjects observed a video of a tutor adapting her reaches to a novel force field. After observation, subjects performed reaches in a force field as a behavioral assessment of gains in motor learning resulting from observation. We found that individual differences in resting-state FC, but not gray matter volume, predicted postobservation gains in motor learning. Preobservation resting-state FC between left primary somatosensory cortex and bilateral dorsal premotor cortex, primary motor cortex, and primary somatosensory cortex and left superior parietal lobule was positively correlated with behavioral measures of postobservation motor learning. Sensory-motor resting-state FC can thus predict the extent to which observation will promote subsequent motor learning. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We show that individual differences in preobservation brain function can predict subsequent observation-related gains in motor learning. Preobservation resting-state functional connectivity within a sensory-motor network may be used as a biomarker for the extent to which observation promotes motor learning. This kind of information may be useful if observation is to be used as a way to boost neuroplasticity and sensory-motor recovery for patients undergoing rehabilitation for diseases that impair movement such as stroke. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Development of Servo Motor Trainer for Basic Control System in Laboratory of Electrical Engineering Control System Faculty of Engineering Universitas Negeri Surabaya

Science.gov (United States)

Endryansyah; Wanarti Rusimamto, Puput; Ridianto, Adam; Sugiarto, Hariyadi

2018-04-01

In the Department of Electrical Engineering FT Unesa, there are 3 majors: S1 Electrical Engineering Education, S1 Electrical Engineering, and D3 Electrical Engineering. Courses the Basic System Settings go to in the curriculum of the three programs. Team lecturer college of basic system settings seek learning innovation, focused on the development of trainer to student practicum at the laboratory of systems control. Trainer developed is a servo motor along with the lab module that contains a wide variety of theories about the servo motor and guide the practicum. This research type is development research using methods Research & development (R & D). In which the steps are applied in this study is as follows: pay attention to the potential and existing problems, gather information and study the literature, design the product, validate the design, revise the design, a limited trial. The results of the validation of learning device in the form of modules and trainer obtained as follows: score validation of learning device is 3,64; score validation lab module Servo Motor is 3,47; and questionnaire responses of students is 3,73. The result of the whole validation value is located in the interval >of 3.25 s/d 4 with the category of “Very Valid”, so it can be concluded that all instruments have a level of validity “Very Valid” and worthy of use for further learning.

10 CFR 431.385 - Cessation of distribution of a basic model of an electric motor.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... basic model of an electric motor. (a) In the event that a model of an electric motor is determined non... a model of an electric motor to be in noncompliance, then the manufacturer or private labeler shall... 10 Energy 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Cessation of distribution of a basic model of an electric...

Learning new gait patterns: Exploratory muscle activity during motor learning is not predicted by motor modules

Science.gov (United States)

Ranganathan, Rajiv; Krishnan, Chandramouli; Dhaher, Yasin Y.; Rymer, William Z.

2018-01-01

The motor module hypothesis in motor control proposes that the nervous system can simplify the problem of controlling a large number of muscles in human movement by grouping muscles into a smaller number of modules. Here, we tested one prediction of the modular organization hypothesis by examining whether there is preferential exploration along these motor modules during the learning of a new gait pattern. Healthy college-aged participants learned a new gait pattern which required increased hip and knee flexion during the swing phase while walking in a lower-extremity robot (Lokomat). The new gait pattern was displayed as a foot trajectory in the sagittal plane and participants attempted to match their foot trajectory to this template. We recorded EMG from 8 lower-extremity muscles and we extracted motor modules during both baseline walking and target-tracking using non-negative matrix factorization (NMF). Results showed increased trajectory variability in the first block of learning, indicating that participants were engaged in exploratory behavior. Critically, when we examined the muscle activity during this exploratory phase, we found that the composition of motor modules changed significantly within the first few strides of attempting the new gait pattern. The lack of persistence of the motor modules under even short time scales suggests that motor modules extracted during locomotion may be more indicative of correlated muscle activity induced by the task constraints of walking, rather than reflecting a modular control strategy. PMID:26916510

THE EFFECT OF BASIC MOTOR ABILITIES ON DRIBBLING SPEED AND PRECISION IN SOCCER GAME

OpenAIRE

Ismail Selimović; Mehmeti Ejup

2011-01-01

Effects of basic motor skills on situational-motor abilities for speed dribble and ball control precision assessment in soccer game at boys aged 12-14 years were analyzed with regression analysis. For this purpose, 17 variables for basic motor parameters were selected, as well as three situational tests. In every example of the regression analysis results, the results obtained showed confirmation of the hypothesis of significant effects of the morphological characteristics on the results in a...

Interference in motor learning - is motor interference sensory?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Jesper Lundbye; Petersen, Tue Hvass; Rothwell, John C

mechanisms determine whether or not interference occurs. We hypothesised that interference requires the same neural circuits to be engaged in the two tasks and provoke competing processes of synaptic plasticity. To test this, subjects learned a ballistic ankle plantarflexion task. Early motor memory...... was disrupted by subsequent learning of a precision tracking task with the same agonist muscle group, but not by learning involving antagonist muscles or by voluntary agonist contractions that did not require learning. If the competing task was learned with the same agonist muscle group 4 hours following...

Motor learning as a criterion for evaluating coordination motor abilities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boraczynski Tomasz

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study was to evaluate the ability of motor learning based on objective, metric criteria, in terms of pedagogical process aimed at improving the accuracy of hits a golf ball to the target. A group of 77 students of physical education participated in the study. Within 8 months there were performed 11 measurement sessions. In each session, subjects performed 10 hits a golf ball to the target from a distance of 9 m. Accuracy of hits was recorded. Effect of motor learning has been demonstrated in the progress of 10 consecutive hits a golf ball to the target in each session (operational control; in the dynamics of performance improvement between sessions (current control; as well as in the total result of eight-month experiment (stage control. There were developed norms for quantitative and qualitative assessment of accuracy of hits a golf ball to the target. Developed quantitative and qualitative criteria for assessing the speed of motor learning in various conditions of the educational process creates the possibility of organization the operational, current and stage control of the level of human coordination motor abilities, as required by leading process.

Cerebellar motor learning versus cerebellar motor timing: the climbing fibre story

Science.gov (United States)

Llinás, Rodolfo R

2011-01-01

Abstract Theories concerning the role of the climbing fibre system in motor learning, as opposed to those addressing the olivocerebellar system in the organization of motor timing, are briefly contrasted. The electrophysiological basis for the motor timing hypothesis in relation to the olivocerebellar system is treated in detail. PMID:21486816

Concurrent TMS to the primary motor cortex augments slow motor learning

Science.gov (United States)

Narayana, Shalini; Zhang, Wei; Rogers, William; Strickland, Casey; Franklin, Crystal; Lancaster, Jack L.; Fox, Peter T.

2013-01-01

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has shown promise as a treatment tool, with one FDA approved use. While TMS alone is able to up- (or down-) regulate a targeted neural system, we argue that TMS applied as an adjuvant is more effective for repetitive physical, behavioral and cognitive therapies, that is, therapies which are designed to alter the network properties of neural systems through Hebbian learning. We tested this hypothesis in the context of a slow motor learning paradigm. Healthy right-handed individuals were assigned to receive 5 Hz TMS (TMS group) or sham TMS (sham group) to the right primary motor cortex (M1) as they performed daily motor practice of a digit sequence task with their non-dominant hand for 4 weeks. Resting cerebral blood flow (CBF) was measured by H215O PET at baseline and after 4 weeks of practice. Sequence performance was measured daily as the number of correct sequences performed, and modeled using a hyperbolic function. Sequence performance increased significantly at 4 weeks relative to baseline in both groups. The TMS group had a significant additional improvement in performance, specifically, in the rate of skill acquisition. In both groups, an improvement in sequence timing and transfer of skills to non-trained motor domains was also found. Compared to the sham group, the TMS group demonstrated increases in resting CBF specifically in regions known to mediate skill learning namely, the M1, cingulate cortex, putamen, hippocampus, and cerebellum. These results indicate that TMS applied concomitantly augments behavioral effects of motor practice, with corresponding neural plasticity in motor sequence learning network. These findings are the first demonstration of the behavioral and neural enhancing effects of TMS on slow motor practice and have direct application in neurorehabilitation where TMS could be applied in conjunction with physical therapy. PMID:23867557

Motor contingency learning and infants with Spina Bifida.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Heather B; Barnes, Marcia A; Landry, Susan H; Swank, Paul; Fletcher, Jack M; Huang, Furong

2013-02-01

Infants with Spina Bifida (SB) were compared to typically developing infants (TD) using a conjugate reinforcement paradigm at 6 months-of-age (n = 98) to evaluate learning, and retention of a sensory-motor contingency. Analyses evaluated infant arm-waving rates at baseline (wrist not tethered to mobile), during acquisition of the sensory-motor contingency (wrist tethered), and immediately after the acquisition phase and then after a delay (wrist not tethered), controlling for arm reaching ability, gestational age, and socioeconomic status. Although both groups responded to the contingency with increased arm-waving from baseline to acquisition, 15% to 29% fewer infants with SB than TD were found to learn the contingency depending on the criterion used to determine contingency learning. In addition, infants with SB who had learned the contingency had more difficulty retaining the contingency over time when sensory feedback was absent. The findings suggest that infants with SB do not learn motor contingencies as easily or at the same rate as TD infants, and are more likely to decrease motor responses when sensory feedback is absent. Results are discussed with reference to research on contingency learning in infants with and without neurodevelopmental disorders, and with reference to motor learning in school-age children with SB.

Motor Learning as Young Gymnast's Talent Indicator.

Science.gov (United States)

di Cagno, Alessandra; Battaglia, Claudia; Fiorilli, Giovanni; Piazza, Marina; Giombini, Arrigo; Fagnani, Federica; Borrione, Paolo; Calcagno, Giuseppe; Pigozzi, Fabio

2014-12-01

Talent identification plans are designed to select young athletes with the ability to achieve future success in sports. The aim of the study was to verify the predictive value of coordination and precision in skill acquisition during motor learning, as indicators of talent. One hundred gymnasts, both cadets (aged 11.5 ± 0.5 yr.) and juniors (aged 13.3 ± 0.5 years), competing at the national level, were enrolled in the study. The assessment of motor coordination involved three tests of the validated Hirtz's battery (1985), and motor skill learning involved four technical tests, specific of rhythmic gymnastics. All the tests were correlated with ranking and performance scores reached by each gymnast in the 2011, 2012, and 2013 National Championships. Coordination tests were significantly correlated to 2013 Championships scores (p talent identification and selection procedures it is better to include the evaluation of coordination and motor learning ability.Motor learning assessment concerns performance improvement and the ability to develop it, rather than evaluating the athlete's current performance.In this manner talent identification processes should be focused on the future performance capabilities of athletes.

THE EFFECTS OF BASIC MOTOR ABILITIES ON DRIBBLING RESULTS IN SOCCER

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ismail Selimović

2011-03-01

Full Text Available This study was conducted on a sample of 100 boys aged 12-14 years, members of Sarajevo soccer school teams; FK "ŽELJEZNIČAR", FK "SARAJEVO", FK "NOVI GRAD" and FK "BOSNA". As a predictive variable system, the 17 variables of basic motor skills were applied, and criteria variable was the level of motor control knowledge of ball dribble in football. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of multiple and partial basic motor abilities on the ball dribbling results. Results of regression analysis showed that the significance of mutual influence and prediction criteria system was p <0.01. Variables for general endurance assessment and variable for agility assessment showed statistically significant positive partial correlation coefficients. The explosive strength assessment variable had a statistically significant partial correlation coefficient, but a statistically significant negative partial correlation coefficient was noticed with the flexibility assessment variable

Evaluation of motor development in children with learning disabilities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Josiane Medina-Papst

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to determine whether children with learning disabilities present any impairment in the components of motor development. Thirty children (21 boys and 9 girls, aged 8 to 10 years, with learning difficulties in school were studied. The Motor Development Scale was used to evaluate the development of the children in terms of fine motor control, gross motor control, balance, body scheme, spatial organization, and temporal organization. A deficit in the development of the body scheme component was observed for all three age groups, as well as a delayed motor development in terms of balance and gross motor control. No significant differences in general motor age were observed between (age groups. In conclusion, the children studied, especially older ones, presented motor deficits in most of the components evaluated. The inclusion of tasks that assist in the development of motor components, in addition to regular school tasks, is recommended to improve the process of learning in these children..

Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to the Primary Motor Cortex Interferes with Motor Learning by Observing

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Liana E.; Wilson, Elizabeth T.; Gribble, Paul L.

2009-01-01

Neural representations of novel motor skills can be acquired through visual observation. We used repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to test the idea that this "motor learning by observing" is based on engagement of neural processes for learning in the primary motor cortex (M1). Human subjects who observed another person learning…

Motor sequence learning-induced neural efficiency in functional brain connectivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Karim, Helmet T; Huppert, Theodore J; Erickson, Kirk I; Wollam, Mariegold E; Sparto, Patrick J; Sejdić, Ervin; VanSwearingen, Jessie M

2017-02-15

Previous studies have shown the functional neural circuitry differences before and after an explicitly learned motor sequence task, but have not assessed these changes during the process of motor skill learning. Functional magnetic resonance imaging activity was measured while participants (n=13) were asked to tap their fingers to visually presented sequences in blocks that were either the same sequence repeated (learning block) or random sequences (control block). Motor learning was associated with a decrease in brain activity during learning compared to control. Lower brain activation was noted in the posterior parietal association area and bilateral thalamus during the later periods of learning (not during the control). Compared to the control condition, we found the task-related motor learning was associated with decreased connectivity between the putamen and left inferior frontal gyrus and left middle cingulate brain regions. Motor learning was associated with changes in network activity, spatial extent, and connectivity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

RELATIONS BETWEEN BASIC MOTOR ABILITIES AND SPECIFIC PRECISENESS OF FOOTBALLERS AGED 10-12

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Miroslav Smajić

2007-05-01

Full Text Available According to the research on the sample of 256 footballers aged 10-12 and the battery including 20 tests for evaluation of the basic motor abilities and the battery of 24 tests for evaluation of specifi c preciseness, and as per canonic-correlation analysis, a general conclusion can be reached that the boys were rather different in their basic motor abilities. The differences were especially high in explosive strength, coordination, aerobic endurance and balance. One could also conclude that the sample treated in this manner (10-12 years of age is very heterogeneous with respect to basic motor abilities. The subjects showed the highest homogeneity in the tests of specifi c preciseness. They also achieved particularly good results in the tests of vertical target hitting by leg and head. Considering the relations of the basic motor abilities and specifi c preciseness, it was concluded that the structure-based basic motor-canonic factor might be interpreted as FACTOR OF SPEED ENDURANCE AND EXPLOSIVE STRENGTH, whereas structurebased canonic factor of specifi c preciseness might be interpreted as the FACTOR OF SPECIFIC PRECISENESS OF VERTICAL TARGET HITTING BY LEG AND HEAD. The structure of the relations of the fi rst pair of canonic factors indicates that footballers with lower speed endurance and lower explosive strength achieved poorer results in the tests of specifi c preciseness of vertical target hitting by leg and head, and vice versa. Structure of the relations of the second canonic factor indicates quite clearly that the footballers with lower repetitive strength achieved lower results in the tests of specifi c preciseness of horizontal and vertical target by leg and head in a newly created situation. Here of course, the opposite was true, i.e. footballers with higher repetitive strength were better in these tests too.

Neural substrates underlying stimulation-enhanced motor skill learning after stroke.

Science.gov (United States)

Lefebvre, Stéphanie; Dricot, Laurence; Laloux, Patrice; Gradkowski, Wojciech; Desfontaines, Philippe; Evrard, Frédéric; Peeters, André; Jamart, Jacques; Vandermeeren, Yves

2015-01-01

Motor skill learning is one of the key components of motor function recovery after stroke, especially recovery driven by neurorehabilitation. Transcranial direct current stimulation can enhance neurorehabilitation and motor skill learning in stroke patients. However, the neural mechanisms underlying the retention of stimulation-enhanced motor skill learning involving a paretic upper limb have not been resolved. These neural substrates were explored by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging. Nineteen chronic hemiparetic stroke patients participated in a double-blind, cross-over randomized, sham-controlled experiment with two series. Each series consisted of two sessions: (i) an intervention session during which dual transcranial direct current stimulation or sham was applied during motor skill learning with the paretic upper limb; and (ii) an imaging session 1 week later, during which the patients performed the learned motor skill. The motor skill learning task, called the 'circuit game', involves a speed/accuracy trade-off and consists of moving a pointer controlled by a computer mouse along a complex circuit as quickly and accurately as possible. Relative to the sham series, dual transcranial direct current stimulation applied bilaterally over the primary motor cortex during motor skill learning with the paretic upper limb resulted in (i) enhanced online motor skill learning; (ii) enhanced 1-week retention; and (iii) superior transfer of performance improvement to an untrained task. The 1-week retention's enhancement driven by the intervention was associated with a trend towards normalization of the brain activation pattern during performance of the learned motor skill relative to the sham series. A similar trend towards normalization relative to sham was observed during performance of a simple, untrained task without a speed/accuracy constraint, despite a lack of behavioural difference between the dual transcranial direct current stimulation and sham

Motor learning and working memory in children born preterm: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Jongbloed-Pereboom, Marjolein; Janssen, Anjo J W M; Steenbergen, Bert; Nijhuis-van der Sanden, Maria W G

2012-04-01

Children born preterm have a higher risk for developing motor, cognitive, and behavioral problems. Motor problems can occur in combination with working memory problems, and working memory is important for explicit learning of motor skills. The relation between motor learning and working memory has never been reviewed. The goal of this review was to provide an overview of motor learning, visual working memory and the role of working memory on motor learning in preterm children. A systematic review conducted in four databases identified 38 relevant articles, which were evaluated for methodological quality. Only 4 of 38 articles discussed motor learning in preterm children. Thirty-four studies reported on visual working memory; preterm birth affected performance on visual working memory tests. Information regarding motor learning and the role of working memory on the different components of motor learning was not available. Future research should address this issue. Insight in the relation between motor learning and visual working memory may contribute to the development of evidence based intervention programs for children born preterm. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cross-limb Interference during motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauber, Benedikt; Jensen, Jesper Lundbye; Keller, Martin

2013-01-01

It is well known that following skill learning, improvements in motor performance may transfer to the untrained contralateral limb. It is also well known that retention of a newly learned task A can be degraded when learning a competing task B that takes place directly after learning A. Here we...

Aging increases the susceptibility to motor memory interference and reduces off-line gains in motor skill learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roig, Marc; Ritterband-Rosenbaum, Anina; Jensen, Jesper Lundbye

2014-01-01

Declines in the ability to learn motor skills in older adults are commonly attributed to deficits in the encoding of sensorimotor information during motor practice. We investigated whether aging also impairs motor memory consolidation by assessing the susceptibility to memory interference and off...... greater susceptibility to memory interference and no off-line gains in motor skill learning. Performing B produced memory interference and reduced off-line gains only in the older group. However, older adults also showed deficits in memory consolidation independent of the interfering effects of B. Age......-related declines in motor skill learning are not produced exclusively by deficits in the encoding of sensorimotor information during practice. Aging also increases the susceptibility to memory interference and reduces off-line gains in motor skill learning after practice....

Functional aging impairs the role of feedback in motor learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yu; Cao, Chunmei; Yan, Jin H

2013-10-01

Optimal motor skill acquisition frequently requires augmented feedback or knowledge of results (KR). However, the effect of functional declines on the benefits of KR remains to be determined. The objective of this research was to examine how cognitive and motor deficits of older adults influence the use of KR for motor skill learning. A total of 57 older adults (mean 73.1 years; SD 4.2) received both cognitive and eye-hand coordination assessments, whereas 55 young controls (mean 25.8 years; SD 3.8) took only the eye-hand coordination test. All young and older participants learned a time-constrained arm movement through KR in three pre-KR and post-KR intervals. In the subsequent no-KR skill retests, absolute and variable time errors were not significantly reduced for the older learners who had KR during skill practice, especially for those with cognitive and motor dysfunctions. The finding suggests that KR results in no measureable improvement for older adults with cognitive and motor functional deficiencies. More importantly, for the older adults, longer post-KR intervals showed greater detrimental effects on feedback-based motor learning than shorter pauses after KR delivery. The findings support the hypothesis about the effects of cognitive and motor deficits on KR in motor skill learning of older adults. The dynamics of cognitive and motor aging, external feedback and internal control mechanisms collectively explain the deterioration in the sensory-motor learning of older adults. The theoretical implications and practical relevance of functional aging for motor skill learning are discussed. © 2013 Japan Geriatrics Society.

Responsiveness of the Test of Basic Motor Skills of Children with Down Syndrome

Science.gov (United States)

van den Heuvel, Marieke E.; de Jong, Inge; Lauteslager, Peter E. M.; Volman, M. J. M.

2009-01-01

The aim of this study was to examine the responsiveness of the Test of Basic Motor Skills for Children with Down Syndrome (BMS). Forty-one children with Down Syndrome, 3 to 36 months of age, participated in the study. Gross motor skills were assessed three times using the BMS and the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) before and after a baseline…

The Effects of Basketball Basic Skills Training on Gross Motor Skills Development of Female Children

Science.gov (United States)

Bayazit, Betul

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of basketball basic skills training on gross motor skills development of female children in Turkey. For that purpose, 40 female children took part in the study voluntarily. Basketball basic skills test was used to improve the gross motor skills of the female children in the study. Also,…

Interference in ballistic motor learning: specificity and role of sensory error signals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Petersen, Tue Hvass; Rothwell, John C

2011-01-01

Humans are capable of learning numerous motor skills, but newly acquired skills may be abolished by subsequent learning. Here we ask what factors determine whether interference occurs in motor learning. We speculated that interference requires competing processes of synaptic plasticity in overlap......Humans are capable of learning numerous motor skills, but newly acquired skills may be abolished by subsequent learning. Here we ask what factors determine whether interference occurs in motor learning. We speculated that interference requires competing processes of synaptic plasticity...... in overlapping circuits and predicted specificity. To test this, subjects learned a ballistic motor task. Interference was observed following subsequent learning of an accuracy-tracking task, but only if the competing task involved the same muscles and movement direction. Interference was not observed from a non......-learning task suggesting that interference requires competing learning. Subsequent learning of the competing task 4 h after initial learning did not cause interference suggesting disruption of early motor memory consolidation as one possible mechanism underlying interference. Repeated transcranial magnetic...

Changes in visual and sensory-motor resting-state functional connectivity support motor learning by observing

Science.gov (United States)

McGregor, Heather R.

2015-01-01

Motor learning occurs not only through direct first-hand experience but also through observation (Mattar AA, Gribble PL. Neuron 46: 153–160, 2005). When observing the actions of others, we activate many of the same brain regions involved in performing those actions ourselves (Malfait N, Valyear KF, Culham JC, Anton JL, Brown LE, Gribble PL. J Cogn Neurosci 22: 1493–1503, 2010). Links between neural systems for vision and action have been reported in neurophysiological (Strafella AP, Paus T. Neuroreport 11: 2289–2292, 2000; Watkins KE, Strafella AP, Paus T. Neuropsychologia 41: 989–994, 2003), brain imaging (Buccino G, Binkofski F, Fink GR, Fadiga L, Fogassi L, Gallese V, Seitz RJ, Zilles K, Rizzolatti G, Freund HJ. Eur J Neurosci 13: 400–404, 2001; Iacoboni M, Woods RP, Brass M, Bekkering H, Mazziotta JC, Rizzolatti G. Science 286: 2526–2528, 1999), and eye tracking (Flanagan JR, Johansson RS. Nature 424: 769–771, 2003) studies. Here we used a force field learning paradigm coupled with resting-state fMRI to investigate the brain areas involved in motor learning by observing. We examined changes in resting-state functional connectivity (FC) after an observational learning task and found a network consisting of V5/MT, cerebellum, and primary motor and somatosensory cortices in which changes in FC were correlated with the amount of motor learning achieved through observation, as assessed behaviorally after resting-state fMRI scans. The observed FC changes in this network are not due to visual attention to motion or observation of movement errors but rather are specifically linked to motor learning. These results support the idea that brain networks linking action observation and motor control also facilitate motor learning. PMID:25995349

Changes in visual and sensory-motor resting-state functional connectivity support motor learning by observing.

Science.gov (United States)

McGregor, Heather R; Gribble, Paul L

2015-07-01

Motor learning occurs not only through direct first-hand experience but also through observation (Mattar AA, Gribble PL. Neuron 46: 153-160, 2005). When observing the actions of others, we activate many of the same brain regions involved in performing those actions ourselves (Malfait N, Valyear KF, Culham JC, Anton JL, Brown LE, Gribble PL. J Cogn Neurosci 22: 1493-1503, 2010). Links between neural systems for vision and action have been reported in neurophysiological (Strafella AP, Paus T. Neuroreport 11: 2289-2292, 2000; Watkins KE, Strafella AP, Paus T. Neuropsychologia 41: 989-994, 2003), brain imaging (Buccino G, Binkofski F, Fink GR, Fadiga L, Fogassi L, Gallese V, Seitz RJ, Zilles K, Rizzolatti G, Freund HJ. Eur J Neurosci 13: 400-404, 2001; Iacoboni M, Woods RP, Brass M, Bekkering H, Mazziotta JC, Rizzolatti G. Science 286: 2526-2528, 1999), and eye tracking (Flanagan JR, Johansson RS. Nature 424: 769-771, 2003) studies. Here we used a force field learning paradigm coupled with resting-state fMRI to investigate the brain areas involved in motor learning by observing. We examined changes in resting-state functional connectivity (FC) after an observational learning task and found a network consisting of V5/MT, cerebellum, and primary motor and somatosensory cortices in which changes in FC were correlated with the amount of motor learning achieved through observation, as assessed behaviorally after resting-state fMRI scans. The observed FC changes in this network are not due to visual attention to motion or observation of movement errors but rather are specifically linked to motor learning. These results support the idea that brain networks linking action observation and motor control also facilitate motor learning. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Motor imagery learning modulates functional connectivity of multiple brain systems in resting state.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hang; Long, Zhiying; Ge, Ruiyang; Xu, Lele; Jin, Zhen; Yao, Li; Liu, Yijun

2014-01-01

Learning motor skills involves subsequent modulation of resting-state functional connectivity in the sensory-motor system. This idea was mostly derived from the investigations on motor execution learning which mainly recruits the processing of sensory-motor information. Behavioral evidences demonstrated that motor skills in our daily lives could be learned through imagery procedures. However, it remains unclear whether the modulation of resting-state functional connectivity also exists in the sensory-motor system after motor imagery learning. We performed a fMRI investigation on motor imagery learning from resting state. Based on previous studies, we identified eight sensory and cognitive resting-state networks (RSNs) corresponding to the brain systems and further explored the functional connectivity of these RSNs through the assessments, connectivity and network strengths before and after the two-week consecutive learning. Two intriguing results were revealed: (1) The sensory RSNs, specifically sensory-motor and lateral visual networks exhibited greater connectivity strengths in precuneus and fusiform gyrus after learning; (2) Decreased network strength induced by learning was proved in the default mode network, a cognitive RSN. These results indicated that resting-state functional connectivity could be modulated by motor imagery learning in multiple brain systems, and such modulation displayed in the sensory-motor, visual and default brain systems may be associated with the establishment of motor schema and the regulation of introspective thought. These findings further revealed the neural substrates underlying motor skill learning and potentially provided new insights into the therapeutic benefits of motor imagery learning.

Does transcranial direct current stimulation affect the learning of a fine sequential hand motor skill with motor imagery?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sobierajewicz, Jagna; Jaskowski, Wojciech; van der Lubbe, Robert Henricus Johannes

2017-01-01

Learning a fine sequential hand motor skill, comparable to playing the piano or learning to type, improves not only due to physical practice, but also due to motor imagery. Previous studies revealed that transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and motor imagery independently affect motor

Region and task-specific activation of Arc in primary motor cortex of rats following motor skill learning.

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Hosp, J A; Mann, S; Wegenast-Braun, B M; Calhoun, M E; Luft, A R

2013-10-10

Motor learning requires protein synthesis within the primary motor cortex (M1). Here, we show that the immediate early gene Arc/Arg3.1 is specifically induced in M1 by learning a motor skill. Arc mRNA was quantified using a fluorescent in situ hybridization assay in adult Long-Evans rats learning a skilled reaching task (SRT), in rats performing reaching-like forelimb movement without learning (ACT) and in rats that were trained in the operant but not the motor elements of the task (controls). Apart from M1, Arc expression was assessed within the rostral motor area (RMA), primary somatosensory cortex (S1), striatum (ST) and cerebellum. In SRT animals, Arc mRNA levels in M1 contralateral to the trained limb were 31% higher than ipsilateral (pmotor skill learning in rats. Copyright © 2013 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sleep benefits consolidation of visuo-motor adaptation learning in older adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Mantua, Janna; Baran, Bengi; Spencer, Rebecca M C

2016-02-01

Sleep is beneficial for performance across a range of memory tasks in young adults, but whether memories are similarly consolidated in older adults is less clear. Performance benefits have been observed following sleep in older adults for declarative learning tasks, but this benefit may be reduced for non-declarative, motor skill learning tasks. To date, studies of sleep-dependent consolidation of motor learning in older adults are limited to motor sequence tasks. To examine whether reduced sleep-dependent consolidation in older adults is generalizable to other forms of motor skill learning, we examined performance changes over intervals of sleep and wake in young (n = 62) and older adults (n = 61) using a mirror-tracing task, which assesses visuo-motor adaptation learning. Participants learned the task either in the morning or in evening, and performance was assessed following a 12-h interval containing overnight sleep or daytime wake. Contrary to our prediction, both young adults and older adults exhibited sleep-dependent gains in visuo-motor adaptation. There was a correlation between performance improvement over sleep and percent of the night in non-REM stage 2 sleep. These results indicate that motor skill consolidation remains intact with increasing age although this relationship may be limited to specific forms of motor skill learning.

Motor Imagery Learning Modulates Functional Connectivity of Multiple Brain Systems in Resting State

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hang; Long, Zhiying; Ge, Ruiyang; Xu, Lele; Jin, Zhen; Yao, Li; Liu, Yijun

2014-01-01

Background Learning motor skills involves subsequent modulation of resting-state functional connectivity in the sensory-motor system. This idea was mostly derived from the investigations on motor execution learning which mainly recruits the processing of sensory-motor information. Behavioral evidences demonstrated that motor skills in our daily lives could be learned through imagery procedures. However, it remains unclear whether the modulation of resting-state functional connectivity also exists in the sensory-motor system after motor imagery learning. Methodology/Principal Findings We performed a fMRI investigation on motor imagery learning from resting state. Based on previous studies, we identified eight sensory and cognitive resting-state networks (RSNs) corresponding to the brain systems and further explored the functional connectivity of these RSNs through the assessments, connectivity and network strengths before and after the two-week consecutive learning. Two intriguing results were revealed: (1) The sensory RSNs, specifically sensory-motor and lateral visual networks exhibited greater connectivity strengths in precuneus and fusiform gyrus after learning; (2) Decreased network strength induced by learning was proved in the default mode network, a cognitive RSN. Conclusions/Significance These results indicated that resting-state functional connectivity could be modulated by motor imagery learning in multiple brain systems, and such modulation displayed in the sensory-motor, visual and default brain systems may be associated with the establishment of motor schema and the regulation of introspective thought. These findings further revealed the neural substrates underlying motor skill learning and potentially provided new insights into the therapeutic benefits of motor imagery learning. PMID:24465577

The influence of motor imagery on the learning of a fine hand motor skill

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sobierajewicz, Jagna; Przekoracka-Krawczyk, Anna; Jaśkowski, Wojciech; Verwey, Willem B.; van der Lubbe, Rob

2017-01-01

Motor imagery has been argued to affect the acquisition of motor skills. The present study examined the specificity of motor imagery on the learning of a fine hand motor skill by employing a modified discrete sequence production task: the Go/NoGo DSP task. After an informative cue, a response

Action observation versus motor imagery in learning a complex motor task: a short review of literature and a kinematics study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gatti, R; Tettamanti, A; Gough, P M; Riboldi, E; Marinoni, L; Buccino, G

2013-04-12

Both motor imagery and action observation have been shown to play a role in learning or re-learning complex motor tasks. According to a well accepted view they share a common neurophysiological basis in the mirror neuron system. Neurons within this system discharge when individuals perform a specific action and when they look at another individual performing the same or a motorically related action. In the present paper, after a short review of literature on the role of action observation and motor imagery in motor learning, we report the results of a kinematics study where we directly compared motor imagery and action observation in learning a novel complex motor task. This involved movement of the right hand and foot in the same angular direction (in-phase movement), while at the same time moving the left hand and foot in an opposite angular direction (anti-phase movement), all at a frequency of 1Hz. Motor learning was assessed through kinematics recording of wrists and ankles. The results showed that action observation is better than motor imagery as a strategy for learning a novel complex motor task, at least in the fast early phase of motor learning. We forward that these results may have important implications in educational activities, sport training and neurorehabilitation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multiple systems for motor skill learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Dav; Ivry, Richard B

2010-07-01

Motor learning is a ubiquitous feature of human competence. This review focuses on two particular classes of model tasks for studying skill acquisition. The serial reaction time (SRT) task is used to probe how people learn sequences of actions, while adaptation in the context of visuomotor or force field perturbations serves to illustrate how preexisting movements are recalibrated in novel environments. These tasks highlight important issues regarding the representational changes that occur during the course of motor learning. One important theme is that distinct mechanisms vary in their information processing costs during learning and performance. Fast learning processes may require few trials to produce large changes in performance but impose demands on cognitive resources. Slower processes are limited in their ability to integrate complex information but minimally demanding in terms of attention or processing resources. The representations derived from fast systems may be accessible to conscious processing and provide a relatively greater measure of flexibility, while the representations derived from slower systems are more inflexible and automatic in their behavior. In exploring these issues, we focus on how multiple neural systems may interact and compete during the acquisition and consolidation of new behaviors. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. This article is categorized under: Psychology > Motor Skill and Performance. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Parallel Alterations of Functional Connectivity during Execution and Imagination after Motor Imagery Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Rushao; Hui, Mingqi; Long, Zhiying; Zhao, Xiaojie; Yao, Li

2012-01-01

Background Neural substrates underlying motor learning have been widely investigated with neuroimaging technologies. Investigations have illustrated the critical regions of motor learning and further revealed parallel alterations of functional activation during imagination and execution after learning. However, little is known about the functional connectivity associated with motor learning, especially motor imagery learning, although benefits from functional connectivity analysis attract more attention to the related explorations. We explored whether motor imagery (MI) and motor execution (ME) shared parallel alterations of functional connectivity after MI learning. Methodology/Principal Findings Graph theory analysis, which is widely used in functional connectivity exploration, was performed on the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data of MI and ME tasks before and after 14 days of consecutive MI learning. The control group had no learning. Two measures, connectivity degree and interregional connectivity, were calculated and further assessed at a statistical level. Two interesting results were obtained: (1) The connectivity degree of the right posterior parietal lobe decreased in both MI and ME tasks after MI learning in the experimental group; (2) The parallel alterations of interregional connectivity related to the right posterior parietal lobe occurred in the supplementary motor area for both tasks. Conclusions/Significance These computational results may provide the following insights: (1) The establishment of motor schema through MI learning may induce the significant decrease of connectivity degree in the posterior parietal lobe; (2) The decreased interregional connectivity between the supplementary motor area and the right posterior parietal lobe in post-test implicates the dissociation between motor learning and task performing. These findings and explanations further revealed the neural substrates underpinning MI learning and supported that

Dissociable effects of practice variability on learning motor and timing skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Caramiaux, Baptiste; Bevilacqua, Frédéric; Wanderley, Marcelo M; Palmer, Caroline

2018-01-01

Motor skill acquisition inherently depends on the way one practices the motor task. The amount of motor task variability during practice has been shown to foster transfer of the learned skill to other similar motor tasks. In addition, variability in a learning schedule, in which a task and its variations are interweaved during practice, has been shown to help the transfer of learning in motor skill acquisition. However, there is little evidence on how motor task variations and variability schedules during practice act on the acquisition of complex motor skills such as music performance, in which a performer learns both the right movements (motor skill) and the right time to perform them (timing skill). This study investigated the impact of rate (tempo) variability and the schedule of tempo change during practice on timing and motor skill acquisition. Complete novices, with no musical training, practiced a simple musical sequence on a piano keyboard at different rates. Each novice was assigned to one of four learning conditions designed to manipulate the amount of tempo variability across trials (large or small tempo set) and the schedule of tempo change (randomized or non-randomized order) during practice. At test, the novices performed the same musical sequence at a familiar tempo and at novel tempi (testing tempo transfer), as well as two novel (but related) sequences at a familiar tempo (testing spatial transfer). We found that practice conditions had little effect on learning and transfer performance of timing skill. Interestingly, practice conditions influenced motor skill learning (reduction of movement variability): lower temporal variability during practice facilitated transfer to new tempi and new sequences; non-randomized learning schedule improved transfer to new tempi and new sequences. Tempo (rate) and the sequence difficulty (spatial manipulation) affected performance variability in both timing and movement. These findings suggest that there is a

Principle and Basic Characteristics of a Hybrid Variable-Magnetic-Force Motor

Science.gov (United States)

Sakai, Kazuto; Kuramochi, Satoru

Reduction in the power consumed by motors is important for energy saving in the case of electrical appliances and electric vehicles (EVs). The motors used for operating these devices operate at variable speeds. Further, the motors operate with a small load in the stationary mode and a large load in the starting mode. A permanent magnet motor can be operated at the rated power with a high efficiency. However, the efficiency is low at a small load or at a high speed because the large constant magnetic force results in substantial core loss. Furthermore, the flux-weakening current that decreases the voltage at a high speed leads to significant copper loss and core loss. Therefore, we have developed a new technique for controlling the magnetic force of a permanent magnet on the basis of the load or speed of the motor. In this paper, we propose a novel motor that can vary the magnetic flux of a permanent magnet and clarify the principle and basic characteristics of the motor. The new motor has a permanent magnet that is magnetized by the magnetizing coil of the stator. The analysis results show that the magnetic flux linkage of the motor can be changed from 37% to 100% that a high torque can be produced.

DIAGNOSING OF BASIC AND SPECIFIC MOTORIC CAPABILITIES AT THE YOUTH OF THE BASKETBALL SCHOOL

OpenAIRE

Florian Miftari; Hasim Rushiti; Bahri Gjinovci

2015-01-01

In general the problematic of diagnosing basic and specific motor movement information of the basketball game in found in the works of a considerable number of world authors. In this work a youth population of an age group between 13-14 years old will be treated. The total number of participants is defined to an amount of 100 of young basketball players, members of two different basketball academies. In this experiment, the subjects will conduct tests in 5 basic motor skills variables such as...

Cross-limb interference during motor learning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benedikt Lauber

Full Text Available It is well known that following skill learning, improvements in motor performance may transfer to the untrained contralateral limb. It is also well known that retention of a newly learned task A can be degraded when learning a competing task B that takes place directly after learning A. Here we investigate if this interference effect can also be observed in the limb contralateral to the trained one. Therefore, five different groups practiced a ballistic finger flexion task followed by an interfering visuomotor accuracy task with the same limb. Performance in the ballistic task was tested before the training, after the training and in an immediate retention test after the practice of the interference task for both the trained and the untrained hand. After training, subjects showed not only significant learning and interference effects for the trained limb but also for the contralateral untrained limb. Importantly, the interference effect in the untrained limb was dependent on the level of skill acquisition in the interfering motor task. These behavioural results of the untrained limb were accompanied by training specific changes in corticospinal excitability, which increased for the hemisphere ipsilateral to the trained hand following ballistic training and decreased during accuracy training of the ipsilateral hand. The results demonstrate that contralateral interference effects may occur, and that interference depends on the level of skill acquisition in the interfering motor task. This finding might be particularly relevant for rehabilitation.

MOTOR STRUCTURE AND BASIC MOVEMENT COMPETENCES IN EARLY CHILD DEVELOPMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rado Pišot

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Motor development consists of dynamic and continuous development in motor behaviour and is reflected in motor competences (on the locomotive, manipulative and postural level and motor abilities (coordination, strength, speed, balance, flexibility, precision and endurance. This is a complex process in which a child acquires motor abilities and knowledge in interaction with inherited and environmental factors. A sample of 603 boys and girls, of which 263 were aged five (age deviation +/- 3 days; 18,5 ± 3,1kg body weight; 109,4 ± 4,3 cm body height and 340 were aged six and a half (age deviation +/- 3 days; 23, 7 ± 4, 3 kg body weight; 121 ± 4,8 cm body height, were involved in this study after written consent was obtained from their parents. The children's motor structure was established through the application of 28 tests that had been verified on the Slovene population and established as adequate for the study of motor abilities in the sample children. The factor analysis was applied to uncover the latent structure of motor space, and PB (Štalec Momirović criteria were used to establish the number of significant basic components. The analysis of the motor space structure revealed certain particularities for each age period. In the sample of 5 year old children, the use of PB criterion revealed four latent motor dimensions, in 6.5 year old children, the latent motor space structure was described with four (boys and five (girls factors. Despite the existence of gender differences in motor space structure and certain particularities in each age period mostly related to the factors which influence movement coordination, several very similar dimensions were discovered in both sexes.

Untrivial Pursuit: Measuring Motor Procedures Learning in Children with Autism.

Science.gov (United States)

Sparaci, Laura; Formica, Domenico; Lasorsa, Francesca Romana; Mazzone, Luigi; Valeri, Giovanni; Vicari, Stefano

2015-08-01

Numerous studies have underscored prevalence of motor impairments in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but only few of them have analyzed motor strategies exploited by ASD children when learning a new motor procedure. To evaluate motor procedure learning and performance strategies in both ASD and typically developing (TD) children, we built a virtual pursuit rotor (VPR) task, requiring tracking a moving target on a computer screen using a digitalized pen and tablet. Procedural learning was measured as increased time on target (TT) across blocks of trials on the same day and consolidation was assessed after a 24-hour rest. The program and the experimental setting (evaluated in a first experiment considering two groups of TD children) allowed also measures of continuous time on target (CTT), distance from target (DT) and distance from path (DP), as well as 2D reconstructions of children's trajectories. Results showed that the VPR was harder for children with ASD than for TD controls matched for chronological age and intelligence quotient, but both groups displayed comparable motor procedure learning (i.e., similarly incremented their TT). However, closer analysis of CTT, DT, and DP as well as 2D trajectories, showed different motor performance strategies in ASD, highlighting difficulties in overall actions planning. Data underscore the need for deeper investigations of motor strategies exploited by children with ASD when learning a new motor procedure. © 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Multidisciplinary Views on Applying Explicit and Implicit Motor Learning in Practice: An International Survey.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melanie Kleynen

Full Text Available A variety of options and techniques for causing implicit and explicit motor learning have been described in the literature. The aim of the current paper was to provide clearer guidance for practitioners on how to apply motor learning in practice by exploring experts' opinions and experiences, using the distinction between implicit and explicit motor learning as a conceptual departure point.A survey was designed to collect and aggregate informed opinions and experiences from 40 international respondents who had demonstrable expertise related to motor learning in practice and/or research. The survey was administered through an online survey tool and addressed potential options and learning strategies for applying implicit and explicit motor learning. Responses were analysed in terms of consensus (≥ 70% and trends (≥ 50%. A summary figure was developed to illustrate a taxonomy of the different learning strategies and options indicated by the experts in the survey.Answers of experts were widely distributed. No consensus was found regarding the application of implicit and explicit motor learning. Some trends were identified: Explicit motor learning can be promoted by using instructions and various types of feedback, but when promoting implicit motor learning, instructions and feedback should be restricted. Further, for implicit motor learning, an external focus of attention should be considered, as well as practicing the entire skill. Experts agreed on three factors that influence motor learning choices: the learner's abilities, the type of task, and the stage of motor learning (94.5%; n = 34/36. Most experts agreed with the summary figure (64.7%; n = 22/34.The results provide an overview of possible ways to cause implicit or explicit motor learning, signposting examples from practice and factors that influence day-to-day motor learning decisions.

Emergence of Virtual Reality as a Tool for Upper Limb Rehabilitation: Incorporation of Motor Control and Motor Learning Principles

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Weiss, Patrice L.; Keshner, Emily A.

2015-01-01

The primary focus of rehabilitation for individuals with loss of upper limb movement as a result of acquired brain injury is the relearning of specific motor skills and daily tasks. This relearning is essential because the loss of upper limb movement often results in a reduced quality of life. Although rehabilitation strives to take advantage of neuroplastic processes during recovery, results of traditional approaches to upper limb rehabilitation have not entirely met this goal. In contrast, enriched training tasks, simulated with a wide range of low- to high-end virtual reality–based simulations, can be used to provide meaningful, repetitive practice together with salient feedback, thereby maximizing neuroplastic processes via motor learning and motor recovery. Such enriched virtual environments have the potential to optimize motor learning by manipulating practice conditions that explicitly engage motivational, cognitive, motor control, and sensory feedback–based learning mechanisms. The objectives of this article are to review motor control and motor learning principles, to discuss how they can be exploited by virtual reality training environments, and to provide evidence concerning current applications for upper limb motor recovery. The limitations of the current technologies with respect to their effectiveness and transfer of learning to daily life tasks also are discussed. PMID:25212522

Refinement of learned skilled movement representation in motor cortex deep output layer

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Qian; Ko, Ho; Qian, Zhong-Ming; Yan, Leo Y. C.; Chan, Danny C. W.; Arbuthnott, Gordon; Ke, Ya; Yung, Wing-Ho

2017-01-01

The mechanisms underlying the emergence of learned motor skill representation in primary motor cortex (M1) are not well understood. Specifically, how motor representation in the deep output layer 5b (L5b) is shaped by motor learning remains virtually unknown. In rats undergoing motor skill training, we detect a subpopulation of task-recruited L5b neurons that not only become more movement-encoding, but their activities are also more structured and temporally aligned to motor execution with a timescale of refinement in tens-of-milliseconds. Field potentials evoked at L5b in vivo exhibit persistent long-term potentiation (LTP) that parallels motor performance. Intracortical dopamine denervation impairs motor learning, and disrupts the LTP profile as well as the emergent neurodynamical properties of task-recruited L5b neurons. Thus, dopamine-dependent recruitment of L5b neuronal ensembles via synaptic reorganization may allow the motor cortex to generate more temporally structured, movement-encoding output signal from M1 to downstream circuitry that drives increased uniformity and precision of movement during motor learning. PMID:28598433

Motor learning and working memory in children born preterm: a systematic review.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jongbloed-Pereboom, M.; Janssen, A.J.W.M.; Steenbergen, B.; Nijhuis-Van der Sanden, M.W.G.

2012-01-01

Children born preterm have a higher risk for developing motor, cognitive, and behavioral problems. Motor problems can occur in combination with working memory problems, and working memory is important for explicit learning of motor skills. The relation between motor learning and working memory has

Motor learning and working memory in children born preterm: A systematic review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jongbloed-Pereboom, M.; Janssen, A.J.W.M.; Steenbergen, B.; Nijhuis-Van der Sanden, M.W.G.

2012-01-01

Children born preterm have a higher risk for developing motor, cognitive, and behavioral problems. Motor problems can occur in combination with working memory problems, and working memory is important for explicit learning of motor skills. The relation between motor learning and working memory has

Interference in Ballistic Motor Learning: Specificity and Role of Sensory Error Signals

Science.gov (United States)

Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Petersen, Tue Hvass; Rothwell, John C.; Nielsen, Jens Bo

2011-01-01

Humans are capable of learning numerous motor skills, but newly acquired skills may be abolished by subsequent learning. Here we ask what factors determine whether interference occurs in motor learning. We speculated that interference requires competing processes of synaptic plasticity in overlapping circuits and predicted specificity. To test this, subjects learned a ballistic motor task. Interference was observed following subsequent learning of an accuracy-tracking task, but only if the competing task involved the same muscles and movement direction. Interference was not observed from a non-learning task suggesting that interference requires competing learning. Subsequent learning of the competing task 4 h after initial learning did not cause interference suggesting disruption of early motor memory consolidation as one possible mechanism underlying interference. Repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of corticospinal motor output at intensities below movement threshold did not cause interference, whereas suprathreshold rTMS evoking motor responses and (re)afferent activation did. Finally, the experiments revealed that suprathreshold repetitive electrical stimulation of the agonist (but not antagonist) peripheral nerve caused interference. The present study is, to our knowledge, the first to demonstrate that peripheral nerve stimulation may cause interference. The finding underscores the importance of sensory feedback as error signals in motor learning. We conclude that interference requires competing plasticity in overlapping circuits. Interference is remarkably specific for circuits involved in a specific movement and it may relate to sensory error signals. PMID:21408054

Motor skill learning, retention, and control deficits in Parkinson's disease.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisa Katharina Pendt

Full Text Available Parkinson's disease, which affects the basal ganglia, is known to lead to various impairments of motor control. Since the basal ganglia have also been shown to be involved in learning processes, motor learning has frequently been investigated in this group of patients. However, results are still inconsistent, mainly due to skill levels and time scales of testing. To bridge across the time scale problem, the present study examined de novo skill learning over a long series of practice sessions that comprised early and late learning stages as well as retention. 19 non-demented, medicated, mild to moderate patients with Parkinson's disease and 19 healthy age and gender matched participants practiced a novel throwing task over five days in a virtual environment where timing of release was a critical element. Six patients and seven control participants came to an additional long-term retention testing after seven to nine months. Changes in task performance were analyzed by a method that differentiates between three components of motor learning prominent in different stages of learning: Tolerance, Noise and Covariation. In addition, kinematic analysis related the influence of skill levels as affected by the specific motor control deficits in Parkinson patients to the process of learning. As a result, patients showed similar learning in early and late stages compared to the control subjects. Differences occurred in short-term retention tests; patients' performance constantly decreased after breaks arising from poorer release timing. However, patients were able to overcome the initial timing problems within the course of each practice session and could further improve their throwing performance. Thus, results demonstrate the intact ability to learn a novel motor skill in non-demented, medicated patients with Parkinson's disease and indicate confounding effects of motor control deficits on retention performance.

Theories and control models and motor learning: clinical applications in neuro-rehabilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cano-de-la-Cuerda, R; Molero-Sánchez, A; Carratalá-Tejada, M; Alguacil-Diego, I M; Molina-Rueda, F; Miangolarra-Page, J C; Torricelli, D

2015-01-01

In recent decades there has been a special interest in theories that could explain the regulation of motor control, and their applications. These theories are often based on models of brain function, philosophically reflecting different criteria on how movement is controlled by the brain, each being emphasised in different neural components of the movement. The concept of motor learning, regarded as the set of internal processes associated with practice and experience that produce relatively permanent changes in the ability to produce motor activities through a specific skill, is also relevant in the context of neuroscience. Thus, both motor control and learning are seen as key fields of study for health professionals in the field of neuro-rehabilitation. The major theories of motor control are described, which include, motor programming theory, systems theory, the theory of dynamic action, and the theory of parallel distributed processing, as well as the factors that influence motor learning and its applications in neuro-rehabilitation. At present there is no consensus on which theory or model defines the regulations to explain motor control. Theories of motor learning should be the basis for motor rehabilitation. The new research should apply the knowledge generated in the fields of control and motor learning in neuro-rehabilitation. Copyright © 2011 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

DISTURBANCE OF NORMAL MOTOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIRST YEAR OF LIFE

OpenAIRE

Lidija Dimitrijević; Hristina Čolović

2005-01-01

The adoption of the basic motor skills in the first year of life (postural head control, lateral transfers into a lying position, sitting, standing, walking, crawling, grasping...) goes on quite spontaneously. A child learns all the motor actions by itself and that is why it is not necessary to “teach” a child to seat, grasp, stand, walk... Teaching a child the basic motor skills stands for a rough, unnecessary and undesirable involvement into spontaneous motor development, and, due to this, ...

STRUCTURE OF BASIC MOTOR ABILITIES OF FOOTBALL PLAYERS AT THE AGE OF 10-12

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miroslav Smajić

2008-08-01

Full Text Available Based on a research carried out on the sample of 256 football players at the age of 10-12, using a 20-test battery for evaluation of basic motor abilities, and according to factor analysis, it may generally be concluded that five latent dimensions of structure of basic motor abilities have been isolated, which have been named as: FACTOR OF SPEED-POWER STAMINA, FACTOR OF SPEED OF ALTERNATIVE MOVEMENTS OF LOWER EXTREMITIES AND REPETITIVE STRENGTH OF ARMS, SHOULDERS AND STOMACH MUSCLES, FACTOR OF SUPPLENESS, FACTOR OF STATIC BALANCE, FACTOR OF DYNAMIC BALANCE AND AGILITY

PKC in motorneurons underlies self-learning, a form of motor learning in Drosophila

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julien Colomb

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Tethering a fly for stationary flight allows for exquisite control of its sensory input, such as visual or olfactory stimuli or a punishing infrared laser beam. A torque meter measures the turning attempts of the tethered fly around its vertical body axis. By punishing, say, left turning attempts (in a homogeneous environment, one can train a fly to restrict its behaviour to right turning attempts. It was recently discovered that this form of operant conditioning (called operant self-learning, may constitute a form of motor learning in Drosophila. Previous work had shown that Protein Kinase C (PKC and the transcription factor dFoxP were specifically involved in self-learning, but not in other forms of learning. These molecules are specifically involved in various forms of motor learning in other animals, such as compulsive biting in Aplysia, song-learning in birds, procedural learning in mice or language acquisition in humans. Here we describe our efforts to decipher which PKC gene is involved in self-learning in Drosophila. We also provide evidence that motorneurons may be one part of the neuronal network modified during self-learning experiments. The collected evidence is reminiscent of one of the simplest, clinically relevant forms of motor learning in humans, operant reflex conditioning, which also relies on motorneuron plasticity.

Individual differences in implicit motor learning: task specificity in sensorimotor adaptation and sequence learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Stark-Inbar, Alit; Raza, Meher; Taylor, Jordan A; Ivry, Richard B

2017-01-01

In standard taxonomies, motor skills are typically treated as representative of implicit or procedural memory. We examined two emblematic tasks of implicit motor learning, sensorimotor adaptation and sequence learning, asking whether individual differences in learning are correlated between these tasks, as well as how individual differences within each task are related to different performance variables. As a prerequisite, it was essential to establish the reliability of learning measures for each task. Participants were tested twice on a visuomotor adaptation task and on a sequence learning task, either the serial reaction time task or the alternating reaction time task. Learning was evident in all tasks at the group level and reliable at the individual level in visuomotor adaptation and the alternating reaction time task but not in the serial reaction time task. Performance variability was predictive of learning in both domains, yet the relationship was in the opposite direction for adaptation and sequence learning. For the former, faster learning was associated with lower variability, consistent with models of sensorimotor adaptation in which learning rates are sensitive to noise. For the latter, greater learning was associated with higher variability and slower reaction times, factors that may facilitate the spread of activation required to form predictive, sequential associations. Interestingly, learning measures of the different tasks were not correlated. Together, these results oppose a shared process for implicit learning in sensorimotor adaptation and sequence learning and provide insight into the factors that account for individual differences in learning within each task domain. We investigated individual differences in the ability to implicitly learn motor skills. As a prerequisite, we assessed whether individual differences were reliable across test sessions. We found that two commonly used tasks of implicit learning, visuomotor adaptation and the

The Knockout of Secretin in Cerebellar Purkinje Cells Impairs Mouse Motor Coordination and Motor Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Li; Chung, Sookja Kim; Chow, Billy Kwok Chong

2014-01-01

Secretin (SCT) was first considered to be a gut hormone regulating gastrointestinal functions when discovered. Recently, however, central actions of SCT have drawn intense research interest and are supported by the broad distribution of SCT in specific neuronal populations and by in vivo physiological studies regarding its role in water homeostasis and food intake. The direct action of SCT on a central neuron was first discovered in cerebellar Purkinje cells in which SCT from cerebellar Purkinje cells was found to potentiate GABAergic inhibitory transmission from presynaptic basket cells. Because Purkinje neurons have a major role in motor coordination and learning functions, we hypothesize a behavioral modulatory function for SCT. In this study, we successfully generated a mouse model in which the SCT gene was deleted specifically in Purkinje cells. This mouse line was tested together with SCT knockout and SCT receptor knockout mice in a full battery of behavioral tasks. We found that the knockout of SCT in Purkinje neurons did not affect general motor ability or the anxiety level in open field tests. However, knockout mice did exhibit impairments in neuromuscular strength, motor coordination, and motor learning abilities, as shown by wire hanging, vertical climbing, and rotarod tests. In addition, SCT knockout in Purkinje cells possibly led to the delayed development of motor neurons, as supported by the later occurrence of key neural reflexes. In summary, our data suggest a role in motor coordination and motor learning for SCT expressed in cerebellar Purkinje cells. PMID:24356714

Cortical ensemble activity increasingly predicts behaviour outcomes during learning of a motor task

Science.gov (United States)

Laubach, Mark; Wessberg, Johan; Nicolelis, Miguel A. L.

2000-06-01

When an animal learns to make movements in response to different stimuli, changes in activity in the motor cortex seem to accompany and underlie this learning. The precise nature of modifications in cortical motor areas during the initial stages of motor learning, however, is largely unknown. Here we address this issue by chronically recording from neuronal ensembles located in the rat motor cortex, throughout the period required for rats to learn a reaction-time task. Motor learning was demonstrated by a decrease in the variance of the rats' reaction times and an increase in the time the animals were able to wait for a trigger stimulus. These behavioural changes were correlated with a significant increase in our ability to predict the correct or incorrect outcome of single trials based on three measures of neuronal ensemble activity: average firing rate, temporal patterns of firing, and correlated firing. This increase in prediction indicates that an association between sensory cues and movement emerged in the motor cortex as the task was learned. Such modifications in cortical ensemble activity may be critical for the initial learning of motor tasks.

Consolidating the effects of waking and sleep on motor-sequence learning.

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Brawn, Timothy P; Fenn, Kimberly M; Nusbaum, Howard C; Margoliash, Daniel

2010-10-20

Sleep is widely believed to play a critical role in memory consolidation. Sleep-dependent consolidation has been studied extensively in humans using an explicit motor-sequence learning paradigm. In this task, performance has been reported to remain stable across wakefulness and improve significantly after sleep, making motor-sequence learning the definitive example of sleep-dependent enhancement. Recent work, however, has shown that enhancement disappears when the task is modified to reduce task-related inhibition that develops over a training session, thus questioning whether sleep actively consolidates motor learning. Here we use the same motor-sequence task to demonstrate sleep-dependent consolidation for motor-sequence learning and explain the discrepancies in results across studies. We show that when training begins in the morning, motor-sequence performance deteriorates across wakefulness and recovers after sleep, whereas performance remains stable across both sleep and subsequent waking with evening training. This pattern of results challenges an influential model of memory consolidation defined by a time-dependent stabilization phase and a sleep-dependent enhancement phase. Moreover, the present results support a new account of the behavioral effects of waking and sleep on explicit motor-sequence learning that is consistent across a wide range of tasks. These observations indicate that current theories of memory consolidation that have been formulated to explain sleep-dependent performance enhancements are insufficient to explain the range of behavioral changes associated with sleep.

A Combination of Machine Learning and Cerebellar-like Neural Networks for the Motor Control and Motor Learning of the Fable Modular Robot

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baira Ojeda, Ismael; Tolu, Silvia; Pacheco, Moises

2017-01-01

We scaled up a bio-inspired control architecture for the motor control and motor learning of a real modular robot. In our approach, the Locally Weighted Projection Regression algorithm (LWPR) and a cerebellar microcircuit coexist, in the form of a Unit Learning Machine. The LWPR algorithm optimizes...... the input space and learns the internal model of a single robot module to command the robot to follow a desired trajectory with its end-effector. The cerebellar-like microcircuit refines the LWPR output delivering corrective commands. We contrasted distinct cerebellar-like circuits including analytical...

Value learning through reinforcement : The basics of dopamine and reinforcement learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Daw, N.D.; Tobler, P.N.; Glimcher, P.W.; Fehr, E.

2013-01-01

This chapter provides an overview of reinforcement learning and temporal difference learning and relates these topics to the firing properties of midbrain dopamine neurons. First, we review the RescorlaWagner learning rule and basic learning phenomena, such as blocking, which the rule explains. Then

Temperature dependency in motor skill learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Immink, Maarten A; Wright, David L; Barnes, William S

2012-01-01

The present study investigated the role of temperature as a contextual condition for motor skill learning. Precision grip task training occurred while forearm cutaneous temperature was either heated (40-45 °C) or cooled (10-15 °C). At test, temperature was either reinstated or changed. Performance was comparable between training conditions while at test, temperature changes decreased accuracy, especially after hot training conditions. After cold training, temperature change deficits were only evident when concurrent force feedback was presented. These findings are the first evidence of localized temperature dependency in motor skill learning in humans. Results are not entirely accounted for by a context-dependent memory explanation and appear to represent an interaction of neuromuscular and sensory processes with the temperature present during training and test.

Motor Learning as Young Gymnast’s Talent Indicator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alessandra di Cagno

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Talent identification plans are designed to select young athletes with the ability to achieve future success in sports. The aim of the study was to verify the predictive value of coordination and precision in skill acquisition during motor learning, as indicators of talent. One hundred gymnasts, both cadets (aged 11.5 ± 0.5 yr. and juniors (aged 13.3 ± 0.5 years, competing at the national level, were enrolled in the study. The assessment of motor coordination involved three tests of the validated Hirtz’s battery (1985, and motor skill learning involved four technical tests, specific of rhythmic gymnastics. All the tests were correlated with ranking and performance scores reached by each gymnast in the 2011, 2012, and 2013 National Championships. Coordination tests were significantly correlated to 2013 Championships scores (p < 0.01 and ranking (p < 0.05 of elite cadet athletes. Precision, in skill acquisition test results, was positively and significantly associated with scores in 2013 (adj. R2 = 0.26, p < 0.01. Gymnasts with the best results in coordination and motor learning tests went on to achieve better competition results in three- year time.

The role of plastic changes in the motor cortex and spinal cord for motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Jens Bo; Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper

2010-01-01

Adaptive changes of the efficacy of neural circuitries at different sites of the central nervous system is the basis of acquisition of new motor skills. Non-invasive human imaging and electrophysiological experiments have demonstrated that the primary motor cortex and spinal cord circuitries...... are key players in the early stages of skill acquisition and consolidation of motor learning. Expansion of the cortical representation of the trained muscles, changes in corticomuscular coupling and changes in stretch reflex activity are thus all markers of neuroplastic changes accompanying early skill...... acquisition. We have shown in recent experiments that sensory feedback from the active muscles play a surprisingly specific role at this stage of learning. Following motor skill training, repeated activation of sensory afferents from the muscle that has been involved in a previous training session, interfered...

The many facets of motor learning and their relevance for Parkinson's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Marinelli, Lucio; Quartarone, Angelo; Hallett, Mark; Frazzitta, Giuseppe; Ghilardi, Maria Felice

2017-07-01

The final goal of motor learning, a complex process that includes both implicit and explicit (or declarative) components, is the optimization and automatization of motor skills. Motor learning involves different neural networks and neurotransmitters systems depending on the type of task and on the stage of learning. After the first phase of acquisition, a motor skill goes through consolidation (i.e., becoming resistant to interference) and retention, processes in which sleep and long-term potentiation seem to play important roles. The studies of motor learning in Parkinson's disease have yielded controversial results that likely stem from the use of different experimental paradigms. When a task's characteristics, instructions, context, learning phase and type of measures are taken into consideration, it is apparent that, in general, only learning that relies on attentional resources and cognitive strategies is affected by PD, in agreement with the finding of a fronto-striatal deficit in this disease. Levodopa administration does not seem to reverse the learning deficits in PD, while deep brain stimulation of either globus pallidus or subthalamic nucleus appears to be beneficial. Finally and most importantly, patients with PD often show a decrease in retention of newly learned skill, a problem that is present even in the early stages of the disease. A thorough dissection and understanding of the processes involved in motor learning is warranted to provide solid bases for effective medical, surgical and rehabilitative approaches in PD. Copyright © 2017 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. All rights reserved.

Synchrony and motor mimicking in chimpanzee observational learning

Science.gov (United States)

Fuhrmann, Delia; Ravignani, Andrea; Marshall-Pescini, Sarah; Whiten, Andrew

2014-01-01

Cumulative tool-based culture underwrote our species' evolutionary success, and tool-based nut-cracking is one of the strongest candidates for cultural transmission in our closest relatives, chimpanzees. However the social learning processes that may explain both the similarities and differences between the species remain unclear. A previous study of nut-cracking by initially naïve chimpanzees suggested that a learning chimpanzee holding no hammer nevertheless replicated hammering actions it witnessed. This observation has potentially important implications for the nature of the social learning processes and underlying motor coding involved. In the present study, model and observer actions were quantified frame-by-frame and analysed with stringent statistical methods, demonstrating synchrony between the observer's and model's movements, cross-correlation of these movements above chance level and a unidirectional transmission process from model to observer. These results provide the first quantitative evidence for motor mimicking underlain by motor coding in apes, with implications for mirror neuron function. PMID:24923651

Synchrony and motor mimicking in chimpanzee observational learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuhrmann, Delia; Ravignani, Andrea; Marshall-Pescini, Sarah; Whiten, Andrew

2014-06-13

Cumulative tool-based culture underwrote our species' evolutionary success, and tool-based nut-cracking is one of the strongest candidates for cultural transmission in our closest relatives, chimpanzees. However the social learning processes that may explain both the similarities and differences between the species remain unclear. A previous study of nut-cracking by initially naïve chimpanzees suggested that a learning chimpanzee holding no hammer nevertheless replicated hammering actions it witnessed. This observation has potentially important implications for the nature of the social learning processes and underlying motor coding involved. In the present study, model and observer actions were quantified frame-by-frame and analysed with stringent statistical methods, demonstrating synchrony between the observer's and model's movements, cross-correlation of these movements above chance level and a unidirectional transmission process from model to observer. These results provide the first quantitative evidence for motor mimicking underlain by motor coding in apes, with implications for mirror neuron function.

Rehearsal strategies during motor-sequence learning in old age : Execution vs motor imagery

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stoter, Arjan J. R.; Scherder, Erik J. A.; Kamsma, Yvo P. T.; Mulder, Theo

Motor imagery and action-based rehearsal were compared during motor sequence-learning by young adults (M = 25 yr., SD = 3) and aged adults (M = 63 yr., SD = 7). General accuracy of aged adults was lower than that of young adults (F-1,F-28 = 7.37, p = .01) even though working-memory capacity was

Workplace Basics: The Skills Employers Want.

Science.gov (United States)

Carnevale, Anthony P.; And Others

1989-01-01

Identifies the basic skills needed by workers to function in today's high technology workplace. Examines ways of training employees in learning and communication skills, adaptability, personal management, group effectiveness, and organizational leadership. Describes the eight-step training approach used by Mazda Motor Manufacturing Corporation.…

Learning motor skills from algorithms to robot experiments

CERN Document Server

Kober, Jens

2014-01-01

This book presents the state of the art in reinforcement learning applied to robotics both in terms of novel algorithms and applications. It discusses recent approaches that allow robots to learn motor skills and presents tasks that need to take into account the dynamic behavior of the robot and its environment, where a kinematic movement plan is not sufficient. The book illustrates a method that learns to generalize parameterized motor plans which is obtained by imitation or reinforcement learning, by adapting a small set of global parameters, and appropriate kernel-based reinforcement learning algorithms. The presented applications explore highly dynamic tasks and exhibit a very efficient learning process. All proposed approaches have been extensively validated with benchmarks tasks, in simulation, and on real robots. These tasks correspond to sports and games but the presented techniques are also applicable to more mundane household tasks. The book is based on the first author’s doctoral thesis, which wo...

Motor learning in childhood reveals distinct mechanisms for memory retention and re-learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Musselman, Kristin E; Roemmich, Ryan T; Garrett, Ben; Bastian, Amy J

2016-05-01

Adults can easily learn and access multiple versions of the same motor skill adapted for different conditions (e.g., walking in water, sand, snow). Following even a single session of adaptation, adults exhibit clear day-to-day retention and faster re-learning of the adapted pattern. Here, we studied the retention and re-learning of an adapted walking pattern in children aged 6-17 yr. We found that all children, regardless of age, showed adult-like patterns of retention of the adapted walking pattern. In contrast, children under 12 yr of age did not re-learn faster on the next day after washout had occurred-they behaved as if they had never adapted their walking before. Re-learning could be improved in younger children when the adaptation time on day 1 was increased to allow more practice at the plateau of the adapted pattern, but never to adult-like levels. These results show that the ability to store a separate, adapted version of the same general motor pattern does not fully develop until adolescence, and furthermore, that the mechanisms underlying the retention and rapid re-learning of adapted motor patterns are distinct. © 2016 Musselman et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.

Spatial Learning: Conditions and Basic Effects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Victoria D. Chamizo

2002-01-01

Full Text Available A growing body of evidence suggests that the spatial and the temporal domains seem to share the same or similar conditions, basic effects, and mechanisms. The blocking, unblocking and overshadowing experiments (and also those of latent inhibition and perceptual learning reviewed by Prados and Redhead in this issue show that to exclude associative learning as a basic mechanism responsible for spatial learning is quite inappropriate. All these results, especially those obtained with strictly spatial tasks, seem inconsistent with O’Keefe and Nadel’s account of true spatial learning or locale learning. Their theory claims that this kind of learning is fundamentally different and develops with total independence from other ways of learning (like classical and instrumental conditioning -taxon learning. In fact, the results reviewed can be explained appealing on to a sophisticated guidance system, like for example the one proposed by Leonard and McNaughton (1990; see also McNaughton and cols, 1996. Such a system would allow that an animal generates new space information: given the distance and address from of A to B and from A to C, being able to infer the distance and the address from B to C, even when C is invisible from B (see Chapuis and Varlet, 1987 -the contribution by McLaren in this issue constitutes a good example of a sophisticated guidance system.

Primary motor and premotor cortex in implicit sequence learning--evidence for competition between implicit and explicit human motor memory systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Kantak, Shailesh S; Mummidisetty, Chaithanya K; Stinear, James W

2012-09-01

Implicit and explicit memory systems for motor skills compete with each other during and after motor practice. Primary motor cortex (M1) is known to be engaged during implicit motor learning, while dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) is critical for explicit learning. To elucidate the neural substrates underlying the interaction between implicit and explicit memory systems, adults underwent a randomized crossover experiment of anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (AtDCS) applied over M1, PMd or sham stimulation during implicit motor sequence (serial reaction time task, SRTT) practice. We hypothesized that M1-AtDCS during practice will enhance online performance and offline learning of the implicit motor sequence. In contrast, we also hypothesized that PMd-AtDCS will attenuate performance and retention of the implicit motor sequence. Implicit sequence performance was assessed at baseline, at the end of acquisition (EoA), and 24 h after practice (retention test, RET). M1-AtDCS during practice significantly improved practice performance and supported offline stabilization compared with Sham tDCS. Performance change from EoA to RET revealed that PMd-AtDCS during practice attenuated offline stabilization compared with M1-AtDCS and sham stimulation. The results support the role of M1 in implementing online performance gains and offline stabilization for implicit motor sequence learning. In contrast, enhancing the activity within explicit motor memory network nodes such as the PMd during practice may be detrimental to offline stabilization of the learned implicit motor sequence. These results support the notion of competition between implicit and explicit motor memory systems and identify underlying neural substrates that are engaged in this competition. © 2012 The Authors. European Journal of Neuroscience © 2012 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Learning-performance distinction and memory processes for motor skills: a focused review and perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Kantak, Shailesh S; Winstein, Carolee J

2012-03-01

Behavioral research in cognitive psychology provides evidence for an important distinction between immediate performance that accompanies practice and long-term performance that reflects the relative permanence in the capability for the practiced skill (i.e. learning). This learning-performance distinction is strikingly evident when challenging practice conditions may impair practice performance, but enhance long-term retention of motor skills. A review of motor learning studies with a specific focus on comparing differences in performance between that at the end of practice and at delayed retention suggests that the delayed retention or transfer performance is a better indicator of motor learning than the performance at (or end of) practice. This provides objective evidence for the learning-performance distinction. This behavioral evidence coupled with an understanding of the motor memory processes of encoding, consolidation and retrieval may provide insight into the putative mechanism that implements the learning-performance distinction. Here, we propose a simplistic empirically-based framework--motor behavior-memory framework--that integrates the temporal evolution of motor memory processes with the time course of practice and delayed retention frequently used in behavioral motor learning paradigms. In the context of the proposed framework, recent research has used noninvasive brain stimulation to decipher the role of each motor memory process, and specific cortical brain regions engaged in motor performance and learning. Such findings provide beginning insights into the relationship between the time course of practice-induced performance changes and motor memory processes. This in turn has promising implications for future research and practical applications. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reversal of long-term potentiation-like plasticity processes after motor learning disrupts skill retention.

Science.gov (United States)

Cantarero, Gabriela; Lloyd, Ashley; Celnik, Pablo

2013-07-31

Plasticity of synaptic connections in the primary motor cortex (M1) is thought to play an essential role in learning and memory. Human and animal studies have shown that motor learning results in long-term potentiation (LTP)-like plasticity processes, namely potentiation of M1 and a temporary occlusion of additional LTP-like plasticity. Moreover, biochemical processes essential for LTP are also crucial for certain types of motor learning and memory. Thus, it has been speculated that the occlusion of LTP-like plasticity after learning, indicative of how much LTP was used to learn, is essential for retention. Here we provide supporting evidence of it in humans. Induction of LTP-like plasticity can be abolished using a depotentiation protocol (DePo) consisting of brief continuous theta burst stimulation. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation to assess whether application of DePo over M1 after motor learning affected (1) occlusion of LTP-like plasticity and (2) retention of motor skill learning. We found that the magnitude of motor memory retention is proportional to the magnitude of occlusion of LTP-like plasticity. Moreover, DePo stimulation over M1, but not over a control site, reversed the occlusion of LTP-like plasticity induced by motor learning and disrupted skill retention relative to control subjects. Altogether, these results provide evidence of a link between occlusion of LTP-like plasticity and retention and that this measure could be used as a biomarker to predict retention. Importantly, attempts to reverse the occlusion of LTP-like plasticity after motor learning comes with the cost of reducing retention of motor learning.

Development and Validation of a Survey Instrument for Detecting Basic Motor Competencies in Elementary School Children

Science.gov (United States)

Scheuer, Claude; Bund, Andreas; Becker, Werner; Herrmann, Christian

2017-01-01

Basic motor competencies (in German: Motorische Basiskompetenzen; MOBAK) are motor performance dispositions formulated as minimum standards that empower children to participate in the culture of human movement. In opposition to movement-specific and process-oriented fundamental movement skills assessing the quality of movement execution, basic…

Motor Skill Learning in Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gabbard, Carl P.

The purpose of this article is to briefly describe schema theory and indicate its relevance to early childhood development, with specific reference to children's acquisition of motor skills. Schema theory proposes an explanation of how individuals learn and perform a seemingly endless variety of movements. According to Schmidt (1975), goal…

Learning basic programming using CLIS through gamification

Science.gov (United States)

Prabawa, H. W.; Sutarno, H.; Kusnendar, J.; Rahmah, F.

2018-05-01

The difficulty of understanding programming concept is a major problem in basic programming lessons. Based on the results of preliminary studies, 60% of students reveal the monotonous of learning process caused by the limited number of media. Children Learning in Science (CLIS) method was chosen as solution because CLIS has facilitated students’ initial knowledge to be optimized into conceptual knowledge. Technological involvement in CLIS (gamification) helped students to understand basic programming concept. This research developed a media using CLIS method with gamification elements to increase the excitement of learning process. This research declared that multimedia is considered good by students, especially regarding the mechanical aspects of multimedia, multimedia elements and aspects of multimedia information structure. Multimedia gamification learning with the CLIS model showed increased number of students’ concept understanding.

Sub-processes of motor learning revealed by a robotic manipulandum for rodents.

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Lambercy, O; Schubring-Giese, M; Vigaru, B; Gassert, R; Luft, A R; Hosp, J A

2015-02-01

Rodent models are widely used to investigate neural changes in response to motor learning. Usually, the behavioral readout of motor learning tasks used for this purpose is restricted to a binary measure of performance (i.e. "successful" movement vs. "failure"). Thus, the assignability of research in rodents to concepts gained in human research - implying diverse internal models that constitute motor learning - is still limited. To solve this problem, we recently introduced a three-degree-of-freedom robotic platform designed for rats (the ETH-Pattus) that combines an accurate behavioral readout (in the form of kinematics) with the possibility to invasively assess learning related changes within the brain (e.g. by performing immunohistochemistry or electrophysiology in acute slice preparations). Here, we validate this platform as a tool to study motor learning by establishing two forelimb-reaching paradigms that differ in degree of skill. Both conditions can be precisely differentiated in terms of their temporal pattern and performance levels. Based on behavioral data, we hypothesize the presence of several sub-processes contributing to motor learning. These share close similarities with concepts gained in humans or primates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Motor Speech Sequence Learning in Adults Who Stutter

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Mahsa Aghazamani

2018-04-01

Conclusion The results of this study showed that PWS show improvement in accuracy, reaction time and sequence duration variables from day 1 to day 3. Also, PWS show more substantial number of errors compared to PNS, but this difference was not significant between the two groups. Similar results were obtained for the reaction time. Results of this study demonstrated that PWS show slower sequence duration compared to PNS. Some studies suggested that this could be because people who stutter use a control strategy to reduce the number of errors, although many studies suggested that this may indicate motor learning. According to speech motor skills hypothesis, it can be concluded that people who stutter have limitations in motor speech learning abilities. The findings of the present study could have clinical implication for the treatment of stuttering.

Motor sequence learning occurs despite disrupted visual and proprioceptive feedback

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Boyd Lara A

2008-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent work has demonstrated the importance of proprioception for the development of internal representations of the forces encountered during a task. Evidence also exists for a significant role for proprioception in the execution of sequential movements. However, little work has explored the role of proprioceptive sensation during the learning of continuous movement sequences. Here, we report that the repeated segment of a continuous tracking task can be learned despite peripherally altered arm proprioception and severely restricted visual feedback regarding motor output. Methods Healthy adults practiced a continuous tracking task over 2 days. Half of the participants experienced vibration that altered proprioception of shoulder flexion/extension of the active tracking arm (experimental condition and half experienced vibration of the passive resting arm (control condition. Visual feedback was restricted for all participants. Retention testing was conducted on a separate day to assess motor learning. Results Regardless of vibration condition, participants learned the repeated segment demonstrated by significant improvements in accuracy for tracking repeated as compared to random continuous movement sequences. Conclusion These results suggest that with practice, participants were able to use residual afferent information to overcome initial interference of tracking ability related to altered proprioception and restricted visual feedback to learn a continuous motor sequence. Motor learning occurred despite an initial interference of tracking noted during acquisition practice.

Interference in ballistic motor learning - is motor interference really sensory?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Petersen, Tue Hvass; Rothwell, John C

Skill gained after a short period of practice in one motor task can be abolished if a second task is learned shortly afterwards. We hypothesised that interference requires the same circuits to be engaged in the two tasks and provoke competing processes of synaptic plasticity. To test this, subjects...

The Errors of Our Ways: Understanding Error Representations in Cerebellar-Dependent Motor Learning.

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Popa, Laurentiu S; Streng, Martha L; Hewitt, Angela L; Ebner, Timothy J

2016-04-01

The cerebellum is essential for error-driven motor learning and is strongly implicated in detecting and correcting for motor errors. Therefore, elucidating how motor errors are represented in the cerebellum is essential in understanding cerebellar function, in general, and its role in motor learning, in particular. This review examines how motor errors are encoded in the cerebellar cortex in the context of a forward internal model that generates predictions about the upcoming movement and drives learning and adaptation. In this framework, sensory prediction errors, defined as the discrepancy between the predicted consequences of motor commands and the sensory feedback, are crucial for both on-line movement control and motor learning. While many studies support the dominant view that motor errors are encoded in the complex spike discharge of Purkinje cells, others have failed to relate complex spike activity with errors. Given these limitations, we review recent findings in the monkey showing that complex spike modulation is not necessarily required for motor learning or for simple spike adaptation. Also, new results demonstrate that the simple spike discharge provides continuous error signals that both lead and lag the actual movements in time, suggesting errors are encoded as both an internal prediction of motor commands and the actual sensory feedback. These dual error representations have opposing effects on simple spike discharge, consistent with the signals needed to generate sensory prediction errors used to update a forward internal model.

Context-dependent memory decay is evidence of effort minimization in motor learning: a computational study.

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Takiyama, Ken

2015-01-01

Recent theoretical models suggest that motor learning includes at least two processes: error minimization and memory decay. While learning a novel movement, a motor memory of the movement is gradually formed to minimize the movement error between the desired and actual movements in each training trial, but the memory is slightly forgotten in each trial. The learning effects of error minimization trained with a certain movement are partially available in other non-trained movements, and this transfer of the learning effect can be reproduced by certain theoretical frameworks. Although most theoretical frameworks have assumed that a motor memory trained with a certain movement decays at the same speed during performing the trained movement as non-trained movements, a recent study reported that the motor memory decays faster during performing the trained movement than non-trained movements, i.e., the decay rate of motor memory is movement or context dependent. Although motor learning has been successfully modeled based on an optimization framework, e.g., movement error minimization, the type of optimization that can lead to context-dependent memory decay is unclear. Thus, context-dependent memory decay raises the question of what is optimized in motor learning. To reproduce context-dependent memory decay, I extend a motor primitive framework. Specifically, I introduce motor effort optimization into the framework because some previous studies have reported the existence of effort optimization in motor learning processes and no conventional motor primitive model has yet considered the optimization. Here, I analytically and numerically revealed that context-dependent decay is a result of motor effort optimization. My analyses suggest that context-dependent decay is not merely memory decay but is evidence of motor effort optimization in motor learning.

Context-dependent memory decay is evidence of effort minimization in motor learning: A computational study

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Ken eTakiyama

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Recent theoretical models suggest that motor learning includes at least two processes: error minimization and memory decay. While learning a novel movement, a motor memory of the movement is gradually formed to minimize the movement error between the desired and actual movements in each training trial, but the memory is slightly forgotten in each trial. The learning effects of error minimization trained with a certain movement are partially available in other non-trained movements, and this transfer of the learning effect can be reproduced by certain theoretical frameworks. Although most theoretical frameworks have assumed that a motor memory trained with a certain movement decays at the same speed during performing the trained movement as non-trained movements, a recent study reported that the motor memory decays faster during performing the trained movement than non-trained movements, i.e., the decay rate of motor memory is movement or context dependent. Although motor learning has been successfully modeled based on an optimization framework, e.g., movement error minimization, the type of optimization that can lead to context-dependent memory decay is unclear. Thus, context-dependent memory decay raises the question of what is optimized in motor learning. To reproduce context-dependent memory decay, I extend a motor primitive framework. Specifically, I introduce motor effort optimization into the framework because some previous studies have reported the existence of effort optimization in motor learning processes and no conventional motor primitive model has yet considered the optimization. Here, I analytically and numerically revealed that context-dependent decay is a result of motor effort optimization. My analyses suggest that context-dependent decay is not merely memory decay but is evidence of motor effort optimization in motor learning.

Gene Expression Changes in the Motor Cortex Mediating Motor Skill Learning

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Cheung, Vincent C. K.; DeBoer, Caroline; Hanson, Elizabeth; Tunesi, Marta; D'Onofrio, Mara; Arisi, Ivan; Brandi, Rossella; Cattaneo, Antonino; Goosens, Ki A.

2013-01-01

The primary motor cortex (M1) supports motor skill learning, yet little is known about the genes that contribute to motor cortical plasticity. Such knowledge could identify candidate molecules whose targeting might enable a new understanding of motor cortical functions, and provide new drug targets for the treatment of diseases which impair motor function, such as ischemic stroke. Here, we assess changes in the motor-cortical transcriptome across different stages of motor skill acquisition. Adult rats were trained on a gradually acquired appetitive reach and grasp task that required different strategies for successful pellet retrieval, or a sham version of the task in which the rats received pellet reward without needing to develop the reach and grasp skill. Tissue was harvested from the forelimb motor-cortical area either before training commenced, prior to the initial rise in task performance, or at peak performance. Differential classes of gene expression were observed at the time point immediately preceding motor task improvement. Functional clustering revealed that gene expression changes were related to the synapse, development, intracellular signaling, and the fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family, with many modulated genes known to regulate synaptic plasticity, synaptogenesis, and cytoskeletal dynamics. The modulated expression of synaptic genes likely reflects ongoing network reorganization from commencement of training till the point of task improvement, suggesting that motor performance improves only after sufficient modifications in the cortical circuitry have accumulated. The regulated FGF-related genes may together contribute to M1 remodeling through their roles in synaptic growth and maturation. PMID:23637843

Enhanced motor learning following task-concurrent dual transcranial direct current stimulation.

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Sophia Karok

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS of the primary motor cortex (M1 has beneficial effects on motor performance and motor learning in healthy subjects and is emerging as a promising tool for motor neurorehabilitation. Applying tDCS concurrently with a motor task has recently been found to be more effective than applying stimulation before the motor task. This study extends this finding to examine whether such task-concurrent stimulation further enhances motor learning on a dual M1 montage. METHOD: Twenty healthy, right-handed subjects received anodal tDCS to the right M1, dual tDCS (anodal current over right M1 and cathodal over left M1 and sham tDCS in a repeated-measures design. Stimulation was applied for 10 mins at 1.5 mA during an explicit motor learning task. Response times (RT and accuracy were measured at baseline, during, directly after and 15 mins after stimulation. Motor cortical excitability was recorded from both hemispheres before and after stimulation using single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation. RESULTS: Task-concurrent stimulation with a dual M1 montage significantly reduced RTs by 23% as early as with the onset of stimulation (p<0.01 with this effect increasing to 30% at the final measurement. Polarity-specific changes in cortical excitability were observed with MEPs significantly reduced by 12% in the left M1 and increased by 69% in the right M1. CONCLUSION: Performance improvement occurred earliest in the dual M1 condition with a stable and lasting effect. Unilateral anodal stimulation resulted only in trendwise improvement when compared to sham. Therefore, task-concurrent dual M1 stimulation is most suited for obtaining the desired neuromodulatory effects of tDCS in explicit motor learning.

The Integration of Environmental Education in Science Materials by Using "MOTORIC" Learning Model

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Sukarjita, I. Wayan; Ardi, Muhammad; Rachman, Abdul; Supu, Amiruddin; Dirawan, Gufran Darma

2015-01-01

The research of the integration of Environmental Education in science subject matter by application of "MOTORIC" Learning models has carried out on Junior High School Kupang Nusa Tenggara Timur Indonesia. "MOTORIC" learning model is an Environmental Education (EE) learning model that collaborate three learning approach i.e.…

Children show limited movement repertoire when learning a novel motor skill.

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Lee, Mei-Hua; Farshchiansadegh, Ali; Ranganathan, Rajiv

2017-09-27

Examining age differences in motor learning using real-world tasks is often problematic due to task novelty and biomechanical confounds. Here, we investigated how children and adults acquire a novel motor skill in a virtual environment. Participants of three different age groups (9-year-olds, 12-year-olds, and adults) learned to use their upper body movements to control a cursor on a computer screen. Results showed that 9-year-old and 12-year-old children showed poorer ability to control the cursor at the end of practice. Critically, when we investigated the movement coordination, we found that the lower task performance of children was associated with limited exploration of their movement repertoire. These results reveal the critical role of motor exploration in understanding developmental differences in motor learning. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Multiple systems for motor skill learning

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Clark, Dav; Ivry, Richard B.

2010-01-01

Motor learning is a ubiquitous feature of human competence. This review focuses on two particular classes of model tasks for studying skill acquisition. The serial reaction time (SRT) task is used to probe how people learn sequences of actions, while adaptation in the context of visuomotor or force field perturbations serves to illustrate how preexisting movements are recalibrated in novel environments. These tasks highlight important issues regarding the representational changes that occur d...

Studies in Motor Behavior: 75 Years of Research in Motor Development, Learning, and Control

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Ulrich, Beverly D.; Reeve, T. Gilmour

2005-01-01

Research focused on human motor development, learning, and control has been a prominent feature in the Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport (RQES) since it was first published in 1930. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the papers in the RQES that demonstrate the journal's contributions to the study of motor development,…

Specific Deficit in Implicit Motor Sequence Learning following Spinal Cord Injury.

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Ayala Bloch

Full Text Available Physical and psychosocial rehabilitation following spinal cord injury (SCI leans heavily on learning and practicing new skills. However, despite research relating motor sequence learning to spinal cord activity and clinical observations of impeded skill-learning after SCI, implicit procedural learning following spinal cord damage has not been examined.To test the hypothesis that spinal cord injury (SCI in the absence of concomitant brain injury is associated with a specific implicit motor sequence learning deficit that cannot be explained by depression or impairments in other cognitive measures.Ten participants with SCI in T1-T11, unharmed upper limb motor and sensory functioning, and no concomitant brain injury were compared to ten matched control participants on measures derived from the serial reaction time (SRT task, which was used to assess implicit motor sequence learning. Explicit generation of the SRT sequence, depression, and additional measures of learning, memory, and intelligence were included to explore the source and specificity of potential learning deficits.There was no between-group difference in baseline reaction time, indicating that potential differences between the learning curves of the two groups could not be attributed to an overall reduction in response speed in the SCI group. Unlike controls, the SCI group showed no decline in reaction time over the first six blocks of the SRT task and no advantage for the initially presented sequence over the novel interference sequence. Meanwhile, no group differences were found in explicit learning, depression, or any additional cognitive measures.The dissociation between impaired implicit learning and intact declarative memory represents novel empirical evidence of a specific implicit procedural learning deficit following SCI, with broad implications for rehabilitation and adjustment.

Rapid motor learning in the translational vestibulo-ocular reflex

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Zhou, Wu; Weldon, Patrick; Tang, Bingfeng; King, W. M.; Shelhamer, M. J. (Principal Investigator)

2003-01-01

Motor learning was induced in the translational vestibulo-ocular reflex (TVOR) when monkeys were repeatedly subjected to a brief (0.5 sec) head translation while they tried to maintain binocular fixation on a visual target for juice rewards. If the target was world-fixed, the initial eye speed of the TVOR gradually increased; if the target was head-fixed, the initial eye speed of the TVOR gradually decreased. The rate of learning acquisition was very rapid, with a time constant of approximately 100 trials, which was equivalent to or=1 d without any reinforcement, indicating induction of long-term synaptic plasticity. Although the learning generalized to targets with different viewing distances and to head translations with different accelerations, it was highly specific for the particular combination of head motion and evoked eye movement associated with the training. For example, it was specific to the modality of the stimulus (translation vs rotation) and the direction of the evoked eye movement in the training. Furthermore, when one eye was aligned with the heading direction so that it remained motionless during training, learning was not expressed in this eye, but only in the other nonaligned eye. These specificities show that the learning sites are neither in the sensory nor the motor limb of the reflex but in the sensory-motor transformation stage of the reflex. The dependence of the learning on both head motion and evoked eye movement suggests that Hebbian learning may be one of the underlying cellular mechanisms.

Long lasting structural changes in primary motor cortex after motor skill learning: a behavioural and stereological study

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PAOLA MORALES

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Many motor skills, once acquired, are stored over a long time period, probably sustained by permanent neuronal changes. Thus, in this paper we have investigated with quantitative stereology the generation and persistence of neuronal density changes in primary motor cortex (MI following motor skill learning (skilled reaching task. Rats were trained a lateralised reaching task during an "early" (22-31 days oíd or "late" (362-371 days oíd postnatal period. The trained and corresponding control rats were sacrificed at day 372, immediately after the behavioural testing. The "early" trained group preserved the learned skilled reaching task when tested at day 372, without requiring any additional training. The "late" trained group showed a similar capacity to that of the "early" trained group for learning the skilled reaching task. All trained animáis ("early" and "late" trained groups showed a significant Ínter hemispheric decrease of neuronal density in the corresponding motor forelimb representation área of MI (cortical layers II-III

Using Mobile Devices for Motor-Learning Laboratory Exercises

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Hill, Kory

2014-01-01

When teaching motor-learning concepts, laboratory experiments can be valuable tools for promoting learning. In certain circumstances, traditional laboratory exercises are often impractical due to facilities, time, or cost. Inexpensive or free applications (apps) that run on mobile devices can serve as useful alternatives. This article details…

Motor-enriched learning activities can improve mathematical performance in preadolescent children

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beck, Mikkel Malling; Lind, Rune Rasmussen; Geertsen, Svend Sparre

2016-01-01

Objective: An emerging field of research indicates that physical activity can benefit cognitive functions and academic achievements in children. However, less is known about how academic achievements can benefit from specific types of motor activities (e.g., fine and gross) integrated into learning......-enriched mathematical teaching in Danish preadolescent children (n = 165, age = 7.5 ± 0.02 years). Three groups were included: a control group (CON), which received non-motor enriched conventional mathematical teaching, a fine motor math group (FMM) and a gross motor math group (GMM), which received mathematical.......73 correct answers (p = 0.04) and FMM 2.14 ± 0.72 correct answers (p = 0.008). These effects were not observed in low math-performers. The effects were partly accounted for by visuo-spatial short-term memory and gross motor skills. Conclusion: The study demonstrates that motor enriched learning activities...

DIAGNOSING OF BASIC AND SPECIFIC MOTORIC CAPABILITIES AT THE YOUTH OF THE BASKETBALL SCHOOL

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Florian Miftari

2015-05-01

Full Text Available In general the problematic of diagnosing basic and specific motor movement information of the basketball game in found in the works of a considerable number of world authors. In this work a youth population of an age group between 13-14 years old will be treated. The total number of participants is defined to an amount of 100 of young basketball players, members of two different basketball academies. In this experiment, the subjects will conduct tests in 5 basic motor skills variables such as: 1. Steady Jump in length, 2 steady jump in height 3.20 meters run from a steady start, 4. Medicine Ball Throw and 5. Agility Test. While from specific motor movement skills are included: 1.20 Meters run with ball, 2. Basketball shooting for 30 seconds round-trip,3. Anaerobic durability with and without ball (kamikaze 4. Intensive Basketball shots-Change of direction and 5. Basketball shots from five positions. Subject to the number of subjects that will be treated in this study, their age and the amount of variables tested, the main objectives of this study, will be limited to achieving the goals. On the basis of test results, it can be concluded that there are no significant differences in the basic motor parameters between the two groups G1 and G2, mostly due to systematic practice effects rather than academy belonging itself.In the other hand, differences between the two groups in the specific basketball motor skills can be clearly identified, in typical basketball movement situations.In addition, comparing the test results of the individuals tested for the purpose if this diagnosis, a much more advanced level of motor skills compared to the normal population of the same group age that don’t engage in basketball activities can be identified. This experimental study carried out in the youth in the age group of 13(-+ 6 months years old that continuously in a systematic manner attend basketball academies in two different basketball schools, with

Substance P signalling in primary motor cortex facilitates motor learning in rats.

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Benjamin Hertler

Full Text Available Among the genes that are up-regulated in response to a reaching training in rats, Tachykinin 1 (Tac1-a gene that encodes the neuropeptide Substance P (Sub P-shows an especially strong expression. Using Real-Time RT-PCR, a detailed time-course of Tac1 expression could be defined: a significant peak occurs 7 hours after training ended at the first and second training session, whereas no up-regulation could be detected at a later time-point (sixth training session. To assess the physiological role of Sub P during movement acquisition, microinjections into the primary motor cortex (M1 contralateral to the trained paw were performed. When Sub P was injected before the first three sessions of a reaching training, effectiveness of motor learning became significantly increased. Injections at a time-point when rats already knew the task (i.e. training session ten and eleven had no effect on reaching performance. Sub P injections did not influence the improvement of performance within a single training session, but retention of performance between sessions became strengthened at a very early stage (i.e. between baseline-training and first training session. Thus, Sub P facilitates motor learning in the very early phase of skill acquisition by supporting memory consolidation. In line with these findings, learning related expression of the precursor Tac1 occurs at early but not at later time-points during reaching training.

Substance P signalling in primary motor cortex facilitates motor learning in rats.

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Hertler, Benjamin; Hosp, Jonas Aurel; Blanco, Manuel Buitrago; Luft, Andreas Rüdiger

2017-01-01

Among the genes that are up-regulated in response to a reaching training in rats, Tachykinin 1 (Tac1)-a gene that encodes the neuropeptide Substance P (Sub P)-shows an especially strong expression. Using Real-Time RT-PCR, a detailed time-course of Tac1 expression could be defined: a significant peak occurs 7 hours after training ended at the first and second training session, whereas no up-regulation could be detected at a later time-point (sixth training session). To assess the physiological role of Sub P during movement acquisition, microinjections into the primary motor cortex (M1) contralateral to the trained paw were performed. When Sub P was injected before the first three sessions of a reaching training, effectiveness of motor learning became significantly increased. Injections at a time-point when rats already knew the task (i.e. training session ten and eleven) had no effect on reaching performance. Sub P injections did not influence the improvement of performance within a single training session, but retention of performance between sessions became strengthened at a very early stage (i.e. between baseline-training and first training session). Thus, Sub P facilitates motor learning in the very early phase of skill acquisition by supporting memory consolidation. In line with these findings, learning related expression of the precursor Tac1 occurs at early but not at later time-points during reaching training.

Rancang Bangun Graphical User Interface Untuk Pergerakan Motor Servo menggunakan Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Express

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Anggoro S Pramudyo

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Zaman sekarang ini teknologi sedang berkembang pesat dan robot-robot dirancang untuk dapat membantu pekerjaan dan tugas-tugas manusia. Motor servo merupakan salah satu jenis dari motor DC dan banyak diaplikasikan pada dunia robotik maupun peralatan lain, contohnya motor servo yang digunakan untuk robot berkaki. Dalam penggunaannya motor servo dapat bergerak karena ada sinyal yang dibangkitkan melalui sinyal PWM. Sinyal yang dihasilkan akan membentuk sudut sesuai nilai yang diberikan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk membuat perangkat lunak GUI untuk membuat pergerakan motor servo menggunakan Microsoft Visual Basic dengan bantuan database menggunakan Microsoft Access. Pergerakan motor servo dapat bergerak secara sekuen dan real time menggunakan GUI yang dihubungkan dengan Arduino mega 2560. Parameter yang terdapat di dalam database juga bisa langsung di-export menjadi file Arduino. Hasil penelitian ini GUI yang telah dibuat dapat menggerakkan motor servo secara lancar melalui komunikasi serial ketika baudrate diatur pada kecepatan 9600 bps. GUI yang dibuat juga menghasilkan sudut untuk motor servo yaitu dari 00 sampai 1800 secara tepat dan akurat, sehingga mempercepat waktu dalam  menentukan sudut untuk pergerakan motor servo yang akan digunakan.

Development of a Portable Motor Learning Laboratory (PoMLab).

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Takiyama, Ken; Shinya, Masahiro

2016-01-01

Most motor learning experiments have been conducted in a laboratory setting. In this type of setting, a huge and expensive manipulandum is frequently used, requiring a large budget and wide open space. Subjects also need to travel to the laboratory, which is a burden for them. This burden is particularly severe for patients with neurological disorders. Here, we describe the development of a novel application based on Unity3D and smart devices, e.g., smartphones or tablet devices, that can be used to conduct motor learning experiments at any time and in any place, without requiring a large budget and wide open space and without the burden of travel on subjects. We refer to our application as POrtable Motor learning LABoratory, or PoMLab. PoMLab is a multiplatform application that is available and sharable for free. We investigated whether PoMLab could be an alternative to the laboratory setting using a visuomotor rotation paradigm that causes sensory prediction error, enabling the investigation of how subjects minimize the error. In the first experiment, subjects could adapt to a constant visuomotor rotation that was abruptly applied at a specific trial. The learning curve for the first experiment could be modeled well using a state space model, a mathematical model that describes the motor leaning process. In the second experiment, subjects could adapt to a visuomotor rotation that gradually increased each trial. The subjects adapted to the gradually increasing visuomotor rotation without being aware of the visuomotor rotation. These experimental results have been reported for conventional experiments conducted in a laboratory setting, and our PoMLab application could reproduce these results. PoMLab can thus be considered an alternative to the laboratory setting. We also conducted follow-up experiments in university physical education classes. A state space model that was fit to the data obtained in the laboratory experiments could predict the learning curves

Development of a Portable Motor Learning Laboratory (PoMLab.

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Ken Takiyama

Full Text Available Most motor learning experiments have been conducted in a laboratory setting. In this type of setting, a huge and expensive manipulandum is frequently used, requiring a large budget and wide open space. Subjects also need to travel to the laboratory, which is a burden for them. This burden is particularly severe for patients with neurological disorders. Here, we describe the development of a novel application based on Unity3D and smart devices, e.g., smartphones or tablet devices, that can be used to conduct motor learning experiments at any time and in any place, without requiring a large budget and wide open space and without the burden of travel on subjects. We refer to our application as POrtable Motor learning LABoratory, or PoMLab. PoMLab is a multiplatform application that is available and sharable for free. We investigated whether PoMLab could be an alternative to the laboratory setting using a visuomotor rotation paradigm that causes sensory prediction error, enabling the investigation of how subjects minimize the error. In the first experiment, subjects could adapt to a constant visuomotor rotation that was abruptly applied at a specific trial. The learning curve for the first experiment could be modeled well using a state space model, a mathematical model that describes the motor leaning process. In the second experiment, subjects could adapt to a visuomotor rotation that gradually increased each trial. The subjects adapted to the gradually increasing visuomotor rotation without being aware of the visuomotor rotation. These experimental results have been reported for conventional experiments conducted in a laboratory setting, and our PoMLab application could reproduce these results. PoMLab can thus be considered an alternative to the laboratory setting. We also conducted follow-up experiments in university physical education classes. A state space model that was fit to the data obtained in the laboratory experiments could predict the

Exploration of joint redundancy but not task space variability facilitates supervised motor learning.

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Singh, Puneet; Jana, Sumitash; Ghosal, Ashitava; Murthy, Aditya

2016-12-13

The number of joints and muscles in a human arm is more than what is required for reaching to a desired point in 3D space. Although previous studies have emphasized how such redundancy and the associated flexibility may play an important role in path planning, control of noise, and optimization of motion, whether and how redundancy might promote motor learning has not been investigated. In this work, we quantify redundancy space and investigate its significance and effect on motor learning. We propose that a larger redundancy space leads to faster learning across subjects. We observed this pattern in subjects learning novel kinematics (visuomotor adaptation) and dynamics (force-field adaptation). Interestingly, we also observed differences in the redundancy space between the dominant hand and nondominant hand that explained differences in the learning of dynamics. Taken together, these results provide support for the hypothesis that redundancy aids in motor learning and that the redundant component of motor variability is not noise.

Tissue Plasminogen Activator Induction in Purkinje Neurons After Cerebellar Motor Learning

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Seeds, Nicholas W.; Williams, Brian L.; Bickford, Paula C.

1995-12-01

The cerebellar cortex is implicated in the learning of complex motor skills. This learning may require synaptic remodeling of Purkinje cell inputs. An extracellular serine protease, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), is involved in remodeling various nonneural tissues and is associated with developing and regenerating neurons. In situ hybridization showed that expression of tPA messenger RNA was increased in the Purkinje neurons of rats within an hour of their being trained for a complex motor task. Antibody to tPA also showed the induction of tPA protein associated with cerebellar Purkinje cells. Thus, the induction of tPA during motor learning may play a role in activity-dependent synaptic plasticity.

Children benefit differently from night- and day-time sleep in motor learning.

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Yan, Jin H

2017-08-01

Motor skill acquisition occurs while practicing (on-line) and when asleep or awake (off-line). However, developmental questions still remain about whether children of various ages benefit similarly or differentially from night- and day-time sleeping. The likely circadian effects (time-of-day) and the possible between-test-interference (order effects) associated with children's off-line motor learning are currently unknown. Therefore, this study examines the contributions of over-night sleeping and mid-day napping to procedural skill learning. One hundred and eight children were instructed to practice a finger sequence task using computer keyboards. After an equivalent 11-h interval in one of the three states (sleep, nap, wakefulness), children performed the same sequence in retention tests and a novel sequence in transfer tests. Changes in the movement time and sequence accuracy were evaluated between ages (6-7, 8-9, 10-11years) during practice, and from skill training to retrievals across three states. Results suggest that night-time sleeping and day-time napping improved the tapping speed, especially for the 6-year-olds. The circadian factor did not affect off-line motor learning in children. The interference between the two counter-balanced retrieval tests was not found for the off-line motor learning. This research offers possible evidence about the age-related motor learning characteristics in children and a potential means for enhancing developmental motor skills. The dynamics between age, experience, memory formation, and the theoretical implications of motor skill acquisition are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Motor performance and learning difficulties in schoolchildren aged 7 to 10 years old

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J. Silva

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The general objective of this study was to evaluate the motor performance of children with and without learning difficulty indicatives. Took part in the study 406 students aged 7 to 10 years old, being 231 girls (56.9% and 175 (43.1% boys enrolled in a municipal public school in São José, Santa Catarina, Brazil. The indicative of learning difficulties was verified through the TDE, while motor performance was evaluated with the MABC. Boys without learning difficulties had better performance in the majority of the abilities evaluated, beyond an association between the indicative of motor problems with learning difficulties towards writing, arithmetic, reading, and in general. On the other hand, female students of the sample with and without any indicative of learning difficulties did not differentiate themselves as to motor abilities evaluated, with an association merely between the indicative of motor problems and reading problems. Based on the differences identified between girls and boys, results call attention to the need for future research in this area, considering gender as a differential variable in this relationship.

Learning trajectories for speech motor performance in children with specific language impairment.

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Richtsmeier, Peter T; Goffman, Lisa

2015-01-01

Children with specific language impairment (SLI) often perform below expected levels, including on tests of motor skill and in learning tasks, particularly procedural learning. In this experiment we examined the possibility that children with SLI might also have a motor learning deficit. Twelve children with SLI and thirteen children with typical development (TD) produced complex nonwords in an imitation task. Productions were collected across three blocks, with the first and second blocks on the same day and the third block one week later. Children's lip movements while producing the nonwords were recorded using an Optotrak camera system. Movements were then analyzed for production duration and stability. Movement analyses indicated that both groups of children produced shorter productions in later blocks (corroborated by an acoustic analysis), and the rate of change was comparable for the TD and SLI groups. A nonsignificant trend for more stable productions was also observed in both groups. SLI is regularly accompanied by a motor deficit, and this study does not dispute that. However, children with SLI learned to make more efficient productions at a rate similar to their peers with TD, revealing some modification of the motor deficit associated with SLI. The reader will learn about deficits commonly associated with specific language impairment (SLI) that often occur alongside the hallmark language deficit. The authors present an experiment showing that children with SLI improved speech motor performance at a similar rate compared to typically developing children. The implication is that speech motor learning is not impaired in children with SLI. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning from sensory and reward prediction errors during motor adaptation.

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Izawa, Jun; Shadmehr, Reza

2011-03-01

Voluntary motor commands produce two kinds of consequences. Initially, a sensory consequence is observed in terms of activity in our primary sensory organs (e.g., vision, proprioception). Subsequently, the brain evaluates the sensory feedback and produces a subjective measure of utility or usefulness of the motor commands (e.g., reward). As a result, comparisons between predicted and observed consequences of motor commands produce two forms of prediction error. How do these errors contribute to changes in motor commands? Here, we considered a reach adaptation protocol and found that when high quality sensory feedback was available, adaptation of motor commands was driven almost exclusively by sensory prediction errors. This form of learning had a distinct signature: as motor commands adapted, the subjects altered their predictions regarding sensory consequences of motor commands, and generalized this learning broadly to neighboring motor commands. In contrast, as the quality of the sensory feedback degraded, adaptation of motor commands became more dependent on reward prediction errors. Reward prediction errors produced comparable changes in the motor commands, but produced no change in the predicted sensory consequences of motor commands, and generalized only locally. Because we found that there was a within subject correlation between generalization patterns and sensory remapping, it is plausible that during adaptation an individual's relative reliance on sensory vs. reward prediction errors could be inferred. We suggest that while motor commands change because of sensory and reward prediction errors, only sensory prediction errors produce a change in the neural system that predicts sensory consequences of motor commands.

Statistical learning methods: Basics, control and performance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zimmermann, J. [Max-Planck-Institut fuer Physik, Foehringer Ring 6, 80805 Munich (Germany)]. E-mail: zimmerm@mppmu.mpg.de

2006-04-01

The basics of statistical learning are reviewed with a special emphasis on general principles and problems for all different types of learning methods. Different aspects of controlling these methods in a physically adequate way will be discussed. All principles and guidelines will be exercised on examples for statistical learning methods in high energy and astrophysics. These examples prove in addition that statistical learning methods very often lead to a remarkable performance gain compared to the competing classical algorithms.

Statistical learning methods: Basics, control and performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zimmermann, J.

2006-01-01

The basics of statistical learning are reviewed with a special emphasis on general principles and problems for all different types of learning methods. Different aspects of controlling these methods in a physically adequate way will be discussed. All principles and guidelines will be exercised on examples for statistical learning methods in high energy and astrophysics. These examples prove in addition that statistical learning methods very often lead to a remarkable performance gain compared to the competing classical algorithms

Dopaminergic mesocortical projections to M1: role in motor learning and motor cortex plasticity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonas Aurel Hosp

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Although the architecture of a dopaminergic (DA system within the primary motorcortex (M1 was well characterized anatomically, its functional significance remainedobscure for a long time. Recent studies in rats revealed that the integrity ofdopaminergic fibers in M1 is a prerequisite for successful acquisition of motor skills.This essential contribution of DA for motor learning is plausible as it modulates M1circuitry at multiple levels thereby promoting plastic changes that are required forinformation storage: at the network level, DA increases cortical excitability andenhances the stability of motor maps. At the cellular level, DA induces the expressionof learning related genes via the transcription factor c-fos. At the level of synapses,DA is required for the formation of long-term potentiation (LTP, a mechanism thatlikely is a fingerprint of a motor memory trace within M1. Dopaminergic fibersinnervating M1 originate within the midbrain, precisely the ventral tegmental area(VTA and the medial portion of substantia nigra (SN. Thus, they could be part of themeso-cortico-limibic pathway – a network that provides information about saliencyand motivational value of an external stimulus and is commonly referred as

The relationship between gross motor skills and academic achievement in children with learning disabilities.

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Westendorp, Marieke; Hartman, Esther; Houwen, Suzanne; Smith, Joanne; Visscher, Chris

2011-01-01

The present study compared the gross motor skills of 7- to 12-year-old children with learning disabilities (n = 104) with those of age-matched typically developing children (n = 104) using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. Additionally, the specific relationships between subsets of gross motor skills and academic performance in reading, spelling, and mathematics were examined in children with learning disabilities. As expected, the children with learning disabilities scored poorer on both the locomotor and object-control subtests than their typically developing peers. Furthermore, in children with learning disabilities a specific relationship was observed between reading and locomotor skills and a trend was found for a relationship between mathematics and object-control skills: the larger children's learning lag, the poorer their motor skill scores. This study stresses the importance of specific interventions facilitating both motor and academic abilities. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Practice makes imperfect: restorative effects of sleep on motor learning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bhavin R Sheth

Full Text Available Emerging evidence suggests that sleep plays a key role in procedural learning, particularly in the continued development of motor skill learning following initial acquisition. We argue that a detailed examination of the time course of performance across sleep on the finger-tapping task, established as the paradigm for studying the effect of sleep on motor learning, will help distinguish a restorative role of sleep in motor skill learning from a proactive one. Healthy subjects rehearsed for 12 trials and, following a night of sleep, were tested. Early training rapidly improved speed as well as accuracy on pre-sleep training. Additional rehearsal caused a marked slow-down in further improvement or partial reversal in performance to observed levels below theoretical upper limits derived on the basis of early pre-sleep rehearsal. This decrement in learning efficacy does not occur always, but if and only if it does, overnight sleep has an effect in fully or partly restoring the efficacy and actual performance to the optimal theoretically achieveable level. Our findings re-interpret the sleep-dependent memory enhancement in motor learning reported in the literature as a restoration of fatigued circuitry specialized for the skill. In providing restitution to the fatigued brain, sleep eliminates the rehearsal-induced synaptic fatigue of the circuitry specialized for the task and restores the benefit of early pre-sleep rehearsal. The present findings lend support to the notion that latent sleep-dependent enhancement of performance is a behavioral expression of the brain's restitution in sleep.

Task-specific effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on motor learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cinthia Maria Saucedo Marquez

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS is a relatively new non-invasive brain stimulation technique that modulates neural processes. When applied to the human primary motor cortex (M1, tDCS has beneficial effects on motor skill learning and consolidation in healthy controls and in patients. However, it remains unclear whether tDCS improves motor learning in a general manner or whether these effects depend on which motor task is acquired. Here we compare whether the effect of tDCS differs when the same individual acquires (1 a Sequential Finger Tapping Task (SEQTAP and (2 a Visual Isometric Pinch Force Task (FORCE. Both tasks have been shown to be sensitive to tDCS applied over M1, however, the underlying processes mediating learning and memory formation might benefit differently from anodal-tDCS. Thirty healthy subjects were randomly assigned to an anodal-tDCS group or sham-group. Using a double-blind, sham-controlled cross-over design, tDCS was applied over M1 while subjects acquired each of the motor tasks over 3 consecutive days, with the order being randomized across subjects. We found that anodal-tDCS affected each task differently: The SEQTAP task benefited from anodal-tDCS during learning, whereas the FORCE task showed improvements only at retention. These findings suggest that anodal tDCS applied over M1 appears to have a task-dependent effect on learning and memory formation.

The roles of the olivocerebellar pathway in motor learning and motor control. A consensus paper

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Lang, Eric J.; Apps, Richard; Bengtsson, Fredrik; Cerminara, Nadia L.; De Zeeuw, Chris I.; Ebner, Timothy J.; Heck, Detlef H.; Jaeger, Dieter; Jörntell, Henrik; Kawato, Mitsuo; Otis, Thomas S.; Ozyildirim, Ozgecan; Popa, Laurentiu S.; Reeves, Alexander M.B.; Schweighofer, Nicolas; Sugihara, Izumi; Xiao, Jianqiang

2016-01-01

For many decades the predominant view in the cerebellar field has been that the olivocerebellar system's primary function is to induce plasticity in the cerebellar cortex, specifically, at the parallel fiber-Purkinje cell synapse. However, it has also long been proposed that the olivocerebellar system participates directly in motor control by helping to shape ongoing motor commands being issued by the cerebellum. Evidence consistent with both hypotheses exists; however, they are often investigated as mutually exclusive alternatives. In contrast, here we take the perspective that the olivocerebellar system can contribute to both the motor learning and motor control functions of the cerebellum, and might also play a role in development. We then consider the potential problems and benefits of its having multiple functions. Moreover, we discuss how its distinctive characteristics (e.g., low firing rates, synchronization, variable complex spike waveform) make it more or less suitable for one or the other of these functions, and why its having a dual role makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. We did not attempt to reach a consensus on the specific role(s) the olivocerebellar system plays in different types of movements, as that will ultimately be determined experimentally; however, collectively, the various contributions highlight the flexibility of the olivocerebellar system, and thereby suggest it has the potential to act in both the motor learning and motor control functions of the cerebellum. PMID:27193702

Generalization of perceptual and motor learning: a causal link with memory encoding and consolidation?

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Censor, N

2013-10-10

In both perceptual and motor learning, numerous studies have shown specificity of learning to the trained eye or hand and to the physical features of the task. However, generalization of learning is possible in both perceptual and motor domains. Here, I review evidence for perceptual and motor learning generalization, suggesting that generalization patterns are affected by the way in which the original memory is encoded and consolidated. Generalization may be facilitated during fast learning, with possible engagement of higher-order brain areas recurrently interacting with the primary visual or motor cortices encoding the stimuli or movements' memories. Such generalization may be supported by sleep, involving functional interactions between low and higher-order brain areas. Repeated exposure to the task may alter generalization patterns of learning and overall offline learning. Development of unifying frameworks across learning modalities and better understanding of the conditions under which learning can generalize may enable to gain insight regarding the neural mechanisms underlying procedural learning and have useful clinical implications. Copyright © 2013 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Gross Motor Skills of Children with Mild Learning Disabilities

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Nonis, Karen P.; Jernice, Tan Sing Yee

2014-01-01

Many international studies have examined the gross motor skills of children studying in special schools while local studies of such nature are limited. This study investigated the gross motor skills of children with Mild Learning Disabilities (MLD; n = 14, M age = 8.93 years, SD = 0.33) with the Test of Gross Motor Development-2 (TGMD-2, Ulrich,…

Behavioural and neural basis of anomalous motor learning in children with autism.

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Marko, Mollie K; Crocetti, Deana; Hulst, Thomas; Donchin, Opher; Shadmehr, Reza; Mostofsky, Stewart H

2015-03-01

Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disorder characterized by deficits in social and communication skills and repetitive and stereotyped interests and behaviours. Although not part of the diagnostic criteria, individuals with autism experience a host of motor impairments, potentially due to abnormalities in how they learn motor control throughout development. Here, we used behavioural techniques to quantify motor learning in autism spectrum disorder, and structural brain imaging to investigate the neural basis of that learning in the cerebellum. Twenty children with autism spectrum disorder and 20 typically developing control subjects, aged 8-12, made reaching movements while holding the handle of a robotic manipulandum. In random trials the reach was perturbed, resulting in errors that were sensed through vision and proprioception. The brain learned from these errors and altered the motor commands on the subsequent reach. We measured learning from error as a function of the sensory modality of that error, and found that children with autism spectrum disorder outperformed typically developing children when learning from errors that were sensed through proprioception, but underperformed typically developing children when learning from errors that were sensed through vision. Previous work had shown that this learning depends on the integrity of a region in the anterior cerebellum. Here we found that the anterior cerebellum, extending into lobule VI, and parts of lobule VIII were smaller than normal in children with autism spectrum disorder, with a volume that was predicted by the pattern of learning from visual and proprioceptive errors. We suggest that the abnormal patterns of motor learning in children with autism spectrum disorder, showing an increased sensitivity to proprioceptive error and a decreased sensitivity to visual error, may be associated with abnormalities in the cerebellum. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf

Neutralization of Nogo-A Enhances Synaptic Plasticity in the Rodent Motor Cortex and Improves Motor Learning in Vivo

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Weinmann, Oliver; Kellner, Yves; Yu, Xinzhu; Vicente, Raul; Gullo, Miriam; Kasper, Hansjörg; Lussi, Karin; Ristic, Zorica; Luft, Andreas R.; Rioult-Pedotti, Mengia; Zuo, Yi; Zagrebelsky, Marta; Schwab, Martin E.

2014-01-01

The membrane protein Nogo-A is known as an inhibitor of axonal outgrowth and regeneration in the CNS. However, its physiological functions in the normal adult CNS remain incompletely understood. Here, we investigated the role of Nogo-A in cortical synaptic plasticity and motor learning in the uninjured adult rodent motor cortex. Nogo-A and its receptor NgR1 are present at cortical synapses. Acute treatment of slices with function-blocking antibodies (Abs) against Nogo-A or against NgR1 increased long-term potentiation (LTP) induced by stimulation of layer 2/3 horizontal fibers. Furthermore, anti-Nogo-A Ab treatment increased LTP saturation levels, whereas long-term depression remained unchanged, thus leading to an enlarged synaptic modification range. In vivo, intrathecal application of Nogo-A-blocking Abs resulted in a higher dendritic spine density at cortical pyramidal neurons due to an increase in spine formation as revealed by in vivo two-photon microscopy. To investigate whether these changes in synaptic plasticity correlate with motor learning, we trained rats to learn a skilled forelimb-reaching task while receiving anti-Nogo-A Abs. Learning of this cortically controlled precision movement was improved upon anti-Nogo-A Ab treatment. Our results identify Nogo-A as an influential molecular modulator of synaptic plasticity and as a regulator for learning of skilled movements in the motor cortex. PMID:24966370

Basic safety principles: Lessons learned

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erp, J.B. van

1997-01-01

The presentation reviews the following issues: basic safety principles and lessons learned; some conclusions from the Kemeny report on the accident at TMI; some recommendations from the Kemeny report on the accident at TMI; conclusions and recommendations from the Rogovin report on the accident on TMI; instrumentation deficiencies (from Rogovin report)

Basic safety principles: Lessons learned

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Erp, J.B. van [Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)

1997-09-01

The presentation reviews the following issues: basic safety principles and lessons learned; some conclusions from the Kemeny report on the accident at TMI; some recommendations from the Kemeny report on the accident at TMI; conclusions and recommendations from the Rogovin report on the accident on TMI; instrumentation deficiencies (from Rogovin report).

Resting-state Functional Connectivity is an Age-dependent Predictor of Motor Learning Abilities.

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Mary, Alison; Wens, Vincent; Op de Beeck, Marc; Leproult, Rachel; De Tiège, Xavier; Peigneux, Philippe

2017-10-01

This magnetoencephalography study investigates how ageing modulates the relationship between pre-learning resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) and subsequent learning. Neuromagnetic resting-state activity was recorded 5 min before motor sequence learning in 14 young (19-30 years) and 14 old (66-70 years) participants. We used a seed-based beta-band power envelope correlation approach to estimate rsFC maps, with the seed located in the right primary sensorimotor cortex. In each age group, the relation between individual rsFC and learning performance was investigated using Pearson's correlation analyses. Our results show that rsFC is predictive of subsequent motor sequence learning but involves different cross-network interactions in the two age groups. In young adults, decreased coupling between the sensorimotor network and the cortico-striato-cerebellar network is associated with better motor learning, whereas a similar relation is found in old adults between the sensorimotor, the dorsal-attentional and the DMNs. Additionally, age-related correlational differences were found in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, known to subtend attentional and controlled processes. These findings suggest that motor skill learning depends-in an age-dependent manner-on subtle interactions between resting-state networks subtending motor activity on the one hand, and controlled and attentional processes on the other hand. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Can a single session of motor imagery promote motor learning of locomotion in older adults? A randomized controlled trial

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Nicholson VP

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Vaughan P Nicholson,1 Justin WL Keogh,2–4 Nancy L Low Choy1 1School of Physiotherapy, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; 2Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Bond University, Robina, QLD, Australia; 3Human Potential Centre, AUT University, Auckland, New Zealand; 4Cluster for Health Improvement, Faculty of Science, Health, Education and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Sunshine Coast, QLD, Australia Purpose: To investigate the influence of a single session of locomotor-based motor imagery training on motor learning and physical performance. Patients and methods: Thirty independent adults aged >65 years took part in the randomized controlled trial. The study was conducted within an exercise science laboratory. Participants were randomly divided into three groups following baseline locomotor testing: motor imagery training, physical training, and control groups. The motor imagery training group completed 20 imagined repetitions of a locomotor task, the physical training group completed 20 physical repetitions of a locomotor task, and the control group spent 25 minutes playing mentally stimulating games on an iPad. Imagined and physical performance times were measured for each training repetition. Gait speed (preferred and fast, timed-up-and-go, gait variability and the time to complete an obstacle course were completed before and after the single training session. Results: Motor learning occurred in both the motor imagery training and physical training groups. Motor imagery training led to refinements in motor planning resulting in imagined movements better matching the physically performed movement at the end of training. Motor imagery and physical training also promoted improvements in some locomotion outcomes as demonstrated by medium to large effect size improvements after training for fast gait speed and timed-up-and-go. There were no training effects on gait variability. Conclusion: A single session

Fast But Fleeting: Adaptive Motor Learning Processes Associated with Aging and Cognitive Decline

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Trewartha, Kevin M.; Garcia, Angeles; Wolpert, Daniel M.

2014-01-01

Motor learning has been shown to depend on multiple interacting learning processes. For example, learning to adapt when moving grasped objects with novel dynamics involves a fast process that adapts and decays quickly—and that has been linked to explicit memory—and a slower process that adapts and decays more gradually. Each process is characterized by a learning rate that controls how strongly motor memory is updated based on experienced errors and a retention factor determining the movement-to-movement decay in motor memory. Here we examined whether fast and slow motor learning processes involved in learning novel dynamics differ between younger and older adults. In addition, we investigated how age-related decline in explicit memory performance influences learning and retention parameters. Although the groups adapted equally well, they did so with markedly different underlying processes. Whereas the groups had similar fast processes, they had different slow processes. Specifically, the older adults exhibited decreased retention in their slow process compared with younger adults. Within the older group, who exhibited considerable variation in explicit memory performance, we found that poor explicit memory was associated with reduced retention in the fast process, as well as the slow process. These findings suggest that explicit memory resources are a determining factor in impairments in the both the fast and slow processes for motor learning but that aging effects on the slow process are independent of explicit memory declines. PMID:25274819

Fast but fleeting: adaptive motor learning processes associated with aging and cognitive decline.

Science.gov (United States)

Trewartha, Kevin M; Garcia, Angeles; Wolpert, Daniel M; Flanagan, J Randall

2014-10-01

Motor learning has been shown to depend on multiple interacting learning processes. For example, learning to adapt when moving grasped objects with novel dynamics involves a fast process that adapts and decays quickly-and that has been linked to explicit memory-and a slower process that adapts and decays more gradually. Each process is characterized by a learning rate that controls how strongly motor memory is updated based on experienced errors and a retention factor determining the movement-to-movement decay in motor memory. Here we examined whether fast and slow motor learning processes involved in learning novel dynamics differ between younger and older adults. In addition, we investigated how age-related decline in explicit memory performance influences learning and retention parameters. Although the groups adapted equally well, they did so with markedly different underlying processes. Whereas the groups had similar fast processes, they had different slow processes. Specifically, the older adults exhibited decreased retention in their slow process compared with younger adults. Within the older group, who exhibited considerable variation in explicit memory performance, we found that poor explicit memory was associated with reduced retention in the fast process, as well as the slow process. These findings suggest that explicit memory resources are a determining factor in impairments in the both the fast and slow processes for motor learning but that aging effects on the slow process are independent of explicit memory declines. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3413411-11$15.00/0.

A Deep Learning Approach for Fault Diagnosis of Induction Motors in Manufacturing

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Shao, Si-Yu; Sun, Wen-Jun; Yan, Ru-Qiang; Wang, Peng; Gao, Robert X.

2017-11-01

Extracting features from original signals is a key procedure for traditional fault diagnosis of induction motors, as it directly influences the performance of fault recognition. However, high quality features need expert knowledge and human intervention. In this paper, a deep learning approach based on deep belief networks (DBN) is developed to learn features from frequency distribution of vibration signals with the purpose of characterizing working status of induction motors. It combines feature extraction procedure with classification task together to achieve automated and intelligent fault diagnosis. The DBN model is built by stacking multiple-units of restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM), and is trained using layer-by-layer pre-training algorithm. Compared with traditional diagnostic approaches where feature extraction is needed, the presented approach has the ability of learning hierarchical representations, which are suitable for fault classification, directly from frequency distribution of the measurement data. The structure of the DBN model is investigated as the scale and depth of the DBN architecture directly affect its classification performance. Experimental study conducted on a machine fault simulator verifies the effectiveness of the deep learning approach for fault diagnosis of induction motors. This research proposes an intelligent diagnosis method for induction motor which utilizes deep learning model to automatically learn features from sensor data and realize working status recognition.

Preparing medical students for future learning using basic science instruction.

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Mylopoulos, Maria; Woods, Nicole

2014-07-01

The construct of 'preparation for future learning' (PFL) is understood as the ability to learn new information from available resources, relate new learning to past experiences and demonstrate innovation and flexibility in problem solving. Preparation for future learning has been proposed as a key competence of adaptive expertise. There is a need for educators to ensure that opportunities are provided for students to develop PFL ability and that assessments accurately measure the development of this form of competence. The objective of this research was to compare the relative impacts of basic science instruction and clinically focused instruction on performance on a PFL assessment (PFLA). This study employed a 'double transfer' design. Fifty-one pre-clerkship students were randomly assigned to either basic science instruction or clinically focused instruction to learn four categories of disease. After completing an initial assessment on the learned material, all participants received clinically focused instruction for four novel diseases and completed a PFLA. The data from the initial assessment and the PFLA were submitted to independent-sample t-tests. Mean ± standard deviation [SD] scores on the diagnostic cases in the initial assessment were similar for participants in the basic science (0.65 ± 0.11) and clinical learning (0.62 ± 0.11) conditions. The difference was not significant (t[42] = 0.90, p = 0.37, d = 0.27). Analysis of the diagnostic cases on the PFLA revealed significantly higher mean ± SD scores for participants in the basic science learning condition (0.72 ± 0.14) compared with those in the clinical learning condition (0.63 ± 0.15) (t[42] = 2.02, p = 0.05, d = 0.62). Our results show that the inclusion of basic science instruction enhanced the learning of novel related content. We discuss this finding within the broader context of research on basic science instruction, development of adaptive expertise and assessment

Motor proficiency in normal children and with learning difficulty: a comparative and correlational study based on the motor proficiency test of Bruininks-Oseretsky

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nilson Roberto Moreira

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this investigation is to verify the difference between children with learning disabilities and children without learning disabilities through motor proficiency test of Bruininks and Ozeretsky (1978. The sample was constituted by 30 children, with 8-year average age, 15 males and 15 females, subdivided into two groups of 15 children from both sexes: children without learning disabilities attending 3rd grade and children with learning disabilities attending 2nd grade having failed a term once. All of them came from a middle class background, according to Grafar scale (adapted by Fonseca, 1991. All children presenting any other disabilities were excluded from the sample. Intelligence factor “G” was controlled by using a percentile, higher or equal to 50 (middle and high level, measured by Raven’s (1974 progressive combinations test. In motor proficiency, children with learning disabilities showed significant differences when compared with normal children of the same age, in all components of global, composed and fine motricity. The tests administered showed a strong correlation between the variables of the motor proficiency components. The results lead to the conclusion that there were significant differences in motor proficiency between normal children and children with learning disabilities, who showed specific motor difficulties evincing a more vulnerable motor profile and not the presence of neurological dysfunction signs.

Does Narrative Feedback Enhance Children's Motor Learning in a Virtual Environment?

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Levac, Danielle E; Lu, Amy S

2018-04-30

Augmented feedback has motivational and informational functions in motor learning, and is a key feature of practice in a virtual environment (VE). This study evaluated the impact of narrative (story-based) feedback as compared to standard feedback during practice of a novel task in a VE on typically developing children's motor learning, motivation and engagement. Thirty-eight children practiced navigating through a virtual path, receiving narrative or non-narrative feedback following each trial. All participants improved their performance on retention but not transfer, with no significant differences between groups. Self-reported engagement was associated with acquisition, retention and transfer for both groups. A narrative approach to feedback delivery did not offer an additive benefit; additional affective advantages of augmented feedback for motor learning in VEs should be explored.

DISTURBANCE OF NORMAL MOTOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIRST YEAR OF LIFE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lidija Dimitrijević

2005-07-01

Full Text Available The adoption of the basic motor skills in the first year of life (postural head control, lateral transfers into a lying position, sitting, standing, walking, crawling, grasping... goes on quite spontaneously. A child learns all the motor actions by itself and that is why it is not necessary to “teach” a child to seat, grasp, stand, walk... Teaching a child the basic motor skills stands for a rough, unnecessary and undesirable involvement into spontaneous motor development, and, due to this, the normal adoption of motor skills is slowed down. For the normal motor development, children do not need helping devices (baby buggy, baby jump.... Helping devices suppress in children their natural urge to walk, complicate its development and may have harmful effects like equinus feet, deformed feet and spine and so on.

Changes in corticospinal drive to spinal motoneurones following visuo-motor skill learning in humans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perez, Monica A.; Jensen, Jesper Lundbye; Nielsen, Jens Bo

2006-01-01

learning. Here we investigated the effect of visuo-motor skill training involving the ankle muscles on the coupling between electroencephalographic (EEG) activity recorded from the motor cortex (Cz) and electromyographic (EMG) activity recorded from the left tibialis anterior (TA) muscle in 11 volunteers...... between cortex and muscle as part of the motor learning process....

Sleep and memory consolidation: motor performance and proactive interference effects in sequence learning.

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Borragán, Guillermo; Urbain, Charline; Schmitz, Rémy; Mary, Alison; Peigneux, Philippe

2015-04-01

That post-training sleep supports the consolidation of sequential motor skills remains debated. Performance improvement and sensitivity to proactive interference are both putative measures of long-term memory consolidation. We tested sleep-dependent memory consolidation for visuo-motor sequence learning using a proactive interference paradigm. Thirty-three young adults were trained on sequence A on Day 1, then had Regular Sleep (RS) or were Sleep Deprived (SD) on the night after learning. After two recovery nights, they were tested on the same sequence A, then had to learn a novel, potentially competing sequence B. We hypothesized that proactive interference effects on sequence B due to the prior learning of sequence A would be higher in the RS condition, considering that proactive interference is an indirect marker of the robustness of sequence A, which should be better consolidated over post-training sleep. Results highlighted sleep-dependent improvement for sequence A, with faster RTs overnight for RS participants only. Moreover, the beneficial impact of sleep was specific to the consolidation of motor but not sequential skills. Proactive interference effects on learning a new material at Day 4 were similar between RS and SD participants. These results suggest that post-training sleep contributes to optimizing motor but not sequential components of performance in visuo-motor sequence learning. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

High variability impairs motor learning regardless of whether it affects task performance.

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Cardis, Marco; Casadio, Maura; Ranganathan, Rajiv

2018-01-01

Motor variability plays an important role in motor learning, although the exact mechanisms of how variability affects learning are not well understood. Recent evidence suggests that motor variability may have different effects on learning in redundant tasks, depending on whether it is present in the task space (where it affects task performance) or in the null space (where it has no effect on task performance). We examined the effect of directly introducing null and task space variability using a manipulandum during the learning of a motor task. Participants learned a bimanual shuffleboard task for 2 days, where their goal was to slide a virtual puck as close as possible toward a target. Critically, the distance traveled by the puck was determined by the sum of the left- and right-hand velocities, which meant that there was redundancy in the task. Participants were divided into five groups, based on both the dimension in which the variability was introduced and the amount of variability that was introduced during training. Results showed that although all groups were able to reduce error with practice, learning was affected more by the amount of variability introduced rather than the dimension in which variability was introduced. Specifically, groups with higher movement variability during practice showed larger errors at the end of practice compared with groups that had low variability during learning. These results suggest that although introducing variability can increase exploration of new solutions, this may adversely affect the ability to retain the learned solution. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We examined the role of introducing variability during motor learning in a redundant task. The presence of redundancy allows variability to be introduced in different dimensions: the task space (where it affects task performance) or the null space (where it does not affect task performance). We found that introducing variability affected learning adversely, but the amount of

Application of stepping motor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-10-01

This book is divided into three parts, which is about practical using of stepping motor. The first part has six chapters. The contents of the first part are about stepping motor, classification of stepping motor, basic theory og stepping motor, characteristic and basic words, types and characteristic of stepping motor in hybrid type and basic control of stepping motor. The second part deals with application of stepping motor with hardware of stepping motor control, stepping motor control by microcomputer and software of stepping motor control. The last part mentions choice of stepping motor system, examples of stepping motor, measurement of stepping motor and practical cases of application of stepping motor.

Implicit motor sequence learning and working memory performance changes across the adult life span

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Sarah Nadine Meissner

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Although implicit motor sequence learning is rather well understood in young adults, effects of aging on this kind of learning are controversial. There is first evidence that working memory (WM might play a role in implicit motor sequence learning in young adults as well as in adults above the age of 65. However the knowledge about the development of these processes across the adult life span is rather limited. As the average age of our population continues to rise, a better understanding of age-related changes in motor sequence learning and potentially mediating cognitive processes takes on increasing significance. Therefore, we investigated aging effects on implicit motor sequence learning and WM. Sixty adults (18-71 years completed verbal and visuospatial n-back tasks and were trained on a serial reaction time task. Randomly varying trials served as control condition. To further assess consolidation indicated by off-line improvement and reduced susceptibility to interference, reaction times (RTs were determined 1 h after initial learning. Young and older but not middle-aged adults showed motor sequence learning. Nine out of 20 older adults (compared to one young/one middle-aged exhibited some evidence of sequence awareness. After 1 h, young and middle-aged adults showed off-line improvement. However, RT facilitation was not specific to sequence trials. Importantly, susceptibility to interference was reduced in young and older adults indicating the occurrence of consolidation. Although WM performance declined in older participants when load was high, it was not significantly related to sequence learning. The data reveal a decline in motor sequence learning in middle-aged but not in older adults. The use of explicit learning strategies in older adults might account for the latter result.

THE TRANSFORMATIONAL PROCESSES INVOLVING MOTOR SKILLS THAT OCCUR UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF BASIC PRELIMINARY TRAINING IN YOUNG HANDBALL PLAYERS

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Markovic Sasa

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The population from which we extracted a sample of 76 subjects consisted of elementary school students in Kursumlija, all male, aged 12-13, who were divided into a sub-sample consisting of 38 young handball players who took part in the training sessions of a school of handball and another sub-sample consisting of 38 non-athletes, who only took part in their regular physical education classes. The aim of the research was to determine the transformation processes involving motor skills, which occur under the influence of basic preliminary training in young handball players. The subject matter of the study was to examine whether a statistically significant increase in the level of motor skills would occur under the influence of physical exercise as part of basic preliminary training in the final as compared to the initial state. Six motor tests which define the dimensions of explosive and repetitive strength were used. The results of the research indicate that significant transformational processes involving the motor skills of young handball players occurred in the final as compared to the initial measuring, under the influence of basic preliminary training.

Gender Expression and Homophobia: A Motor Development and Learning Perspective

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Garcia, Clersida

2011-01-01

Homosexuality and homophobia are rarely discussed in schools, yet they are relevant in motor-development and motor-learning settings because people hold gender-stereotyped beliefs about movement and about lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered individuals. This article addresses homophobia and related stereotypes in physical education settings…

Dual-tDCS Enhances Online Motor Skill Learning and Long-Term Retention in Chronic Stroke Patients

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Lefebvre, S.; Laloux, P.; Peeters, A.; Desfontaines, P.; Jamart, J.; Vandermeeren, Y.

2013-01-01

Background: Since motor learning is a key component for stroke recovery, enhancing motor skill learning is a crucial challenge for neurorehabilitation. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a promising approach for improving motor learning. The aim of this trial was to test the hypothesis that dual-tDCS applied bilaterally over the primary motor cortices (M1) improves online motor skill learning with the paretic hand and its long-term retention. Methods: Eighteen chronic stroke patients participated in a randomized, cross-over, placebo-controlled, double bind trial. During separate sessions, dual-tDCS or sham dual-tDCS was applied over 30 min while stroke patients learned a complex visuomotor skill with the paretic hand: using a computer mouse to move a pointer along a complex circuit as quickly and accurately as possible. A learning index involving the evolution of the speed/accuracy trade-off was calculated. Performance of the motor skill was measured at baseline, after intervention and 1 week later. Results: After sham dual-tDCS, eight patients showed performance worsening. In contrast, dual-tDCS enhanced the amount and speed of online motor skill learning compared to sham (p dual-tDCS (n = 10) than after sham (n = 3). More importantly, 1 week later, online enhancement under dual-tDCS had translated into superior long-term retention (+44%) compared to sham (+4%). The improvement generalized to a new untrained circuit and to digital dexterity. Conclusion: A single-session of dual-tDCS, applied while stroke patients trained with the paretic hand significantly enhanced online motor skill learning both quantitatively and qualitatively, leading to successful long-term retention and generalization. The combination of motor skill learning and dual-tDCS is promising for improving post-stroke neurorehabilitation. PMID:23316151

Task-irrelevant auditory feedback facilitates motor performance in musicians

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Virginia eConde

2012-05-01

Full Text Available An efficient and fast auditory–motor network is a basic resource for trained musicians due to the importance of motor anticipation of sound production in musical performance. When playing an instrument, motor performance always goes along with the production of sounds and the integration between both modalities plays an essential role in the course of musical training. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of task-irrelevant auditory feedback during motor performance in musicians using a serial reaction time task (SRTT. Our hypothesis was that musicians, due to their extensive auditory–motor practice routine during musical training, have a superior performance and learning capabilities when receiving auditory feedback during SRTT relative to musicians performing the SRTT without any auditory feedback. Here we provide novel evidence that task-irrelevant auditory feedback is capable to reinforce SRTT performance but not learning, a finding that might provide further insight into auditory-motor integration in musicians on a behavioral level.

Blueprint for Incorporating Service Learning: A Basic, Developmental, K-12 Service Learning Typology

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Terry, Alice W.; Bohnenberger, Jann E.

2004-01-01

Citing the need for a basic, K-12 developmental framework for service learning, this article describes such a model. This model, an inclusive typology of service learning, distinguishes three levels of service learning: Community Service, Community Exploration, and Community Action. The authors correlate this typology to Piaget's cognitive…

Altered synaptic plasticity in Tourette's syndrome and its relationship to motor skill learning.

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Valerie Cathérine Brandt

Full Text Available Gilles de la Tourette syndrome is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by motor and phonic tics that can be considered motor responses to preceding inner urges. It has been shown that Tourette patients have inferior performance in some motor learning tasks and reduced synaptic plasticity induced by transcranial magnetic stimulation. However, it has not been investigated whether altered synaptic plasticity is directly linked to impaired motor skill acquisition in Tourette patients. In this study, cortical plasticity was assessed by measuring motor-evoked potentials before and after paired associative stimulation in 14 Tourette patients (13 male; age 18-39 and 15 healthy controls (12 male; age 18-33. Tic and urge severity were assessed using the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale and the Premonitory Urges for Tics Scale. Motor learning was assessed 45 minutes after inducing synaptic plasticity and 9 months later, using the rotary pursuit task. On average, long-term potentiation-like effects in response to the paired associative stimulation were present in healthy controls but not in patients. In Tourette patients, long-term potentiation-like effects were associated with more and long-term depression-like effects with less severe urges and tics. While motor learning did not differ between patients and healthy controls 45 minutes after inducing synaptic plasticity, the learning curve of the healthy controls started at a significantly higher level than the Tourette patients' 9 months later. Induced synaptic plasticity correlated positively with motor skills in healthy controls 9 months later. The present study confirms previously found long-term improvement in motor performance after paired associative stimulation in healthy controls but not in Tourette patients. Tourette patients did not show long-term potentiation in response to PAS and also showed reduced levels of motor skill consolidation after 9 months compared to healthy controls. Moreover

Fast social-like learning of complex behaviors based on motor motifs

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Calvo Tapia, Carlos; Tyukin, Ivan Y.; Makarov, Valeri A.

2018-05-01

Social learning is widely observed in many species. Less experienced agents copy successful behaviors exhibited by more experienced individuals. Nevertheless, the dynamical mechanisms behind this process remain largely unknown. Here we assume that a complex behavior can be decomposed into a sequence of n motor motifs. Then a neural network capable of activating motor motifs in a given sequence can drive an agent. To account for (n -1 )! possible sequences of motifs in a neural network, we employ the winnerless competition approach. We then consider a teacher-learner situation: one agent exhibits a complex movement, while another one aims at mimicking the teacher's behavior. Despite the huge variety of possible motif sequences we show that the learner, equipped with the provided learning model, can rewire "on the fly" its synaptic couplings in no more than (n -1 ) learning cycles and converge exponentially to the durations of the teacher's motifs. We validate the learning model on mobile robots. Experimental results show that the learner is indeed capable of copying the teacher's behavior composed of six motor motifs in a few learning cycles. The reported mechanism of learning is general and can be used for replicating different functions, including, for example, sound patterns or speech.

Is Motor Learning Mediated by tDCS Intensity?

OpenAIRE

Cuypers, Koen; Leenus, Daphnie J. F.; van den Berg, Femke E.; Nitsche, Michael A.; Thijs, Herbert; Wenderoth, Nicole; Meesen, Raf L. J.

2013-01-01

Although tDCS has been shown to improve motor learning, previous studies reported rather small effects. Since physiological effects of tDCS depend on intensity, the present study evaluated this parameter in order to enhance the effect of tDCS on skill acquisition. The effect of different stimulation intensities of anodal tDCS (atDCS) was investigated in a double blind, sham controlled crossover design. In each condition, thirteen healthy subjects were instructed to perform a unimanual motor (...

Effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on motor learning in healthy individuals: a systematic review

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Águida Foerster

Full Text Available Introduction Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS has been used to modify cortical excitability and promote motor learning. Objective To systematically review published data to investigate the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on motor learning in healthy individuals. Methods Randomized or quasi-randomized studies that evaluated the tDCS effects on motor learning were included and the risk of bias was examined by Cochrane Collaboration’s tool. The following electronic databases were used: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, LILACS, CINAHL with no language restriction. Results It was found 160 studies; after reading the title and abstract, 17 of those were selected, but just 4 were included. All studies involved healthy, right-handed adults. All studies assessed motor learning by the Jebsen Taylor Test or by the Serial Finger Tapping Task (SFTT. Almost all studies were randomized and all were blinding for participants. Some studies presented differences at SFTT protocol. Conclusion The result is insufficient to draw conclusions if tDCS influences the motor learning. Furthermore, there was significant heterogeneity of the stimulation parameters used. Further researches are needed to investigate the parameters that are more important for motor learning improvement and measure whether the effects are long-lasting or limited in time.

Brain activation in motor sequence learning is related to the level of native cortical excitability.

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Silke Lissek

Full Text Available Cortical excitability may be subject to changes through training and learning. Motor training can increase cortical excitability in motor cortex, and facilitation of motor cortical excitability has been shown to be positively correlated with improvements in performance in simple motor tasks. Thus cortical excitability may tentatively be considered as a marker of learning and use-dependent plasticity. Previous studies focused on changes in cortical excitability brought about by learning processes, however, the relation between native levels of cortical excitability on the one hand and brain activation and behavioral parameters on the other is as yet unknown. In the present study we investigated the role of differential native motor cortical excitability for learning a motor sequencing task with regard to post-training changes in excitability, behavioral performance and involvement of brain regions. Our motor task required our participants to reproduce and improvise over a pre-learned motor sequence. Over both task conditions, participants with low cortical excitability (CElo showed significantly higher BOLD activation in task-relevant brain regions than participants with high cortical excitability (CEhi. In contrast, CElo and CEhi groups did not exhibit differences in percentage of correct responses and improvisation level. Moreover, cortical excitability did not change significantly after learning and training in either group, with the exception of a significant decrease in facilitatory excitability in the CEhi group. The present data suggest that the native, unmanipulated level of cortical excitability is related to brain activation intensity, but not to performance quality. The higher BOLD mean signal intensity during the motor task might reflect a compensatory mechanism in CElo participants.

Cognitive ability predicts motor learning on a virtual reality game in patients with TBI.

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O'Neil, Rochelle L; Skeel, Reid L; Ustinova, Ksenia I

2013-01-01

Virtual reality games and simulations have been utilized successfully for motor rehabilitation of individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Little is known, however, how TBI-related cognitive decline affects learning of motor tasks in virtual environments. To fill this gap, we examined learning within a virtual reality game involving various reaching motions in 14 patients with TBI and 15 healthy individuals with different cognitive abilities. All participants practiced ten 90-second gaming trials to assess various aspects of motor learning. Cognitive abilities were assessed with a battery of tests including measures of memory, executive functioning, and visuospatial ability. Overall, participants with TBI showed both reduced performance and a slower learning rate in the virtual reality game compared to healthy individuals. Numerous correlations between overall performance and several of the cognitive ability domains were revealed for both the patient and control groups, with the best predictor being overall cognitive ability. The results may provide a starting point for rehabilitation programs regarding which cognitive domains interact with motor learning.

Changes in Cerebral Hemodynamics during Complex Motor Learning by Character Entry into Touch-Screen Terminals.

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Akira Sagari

Full Text Available Studies of cerebral hemodynamics during motor learning have mostly focused on neurorehabilitation interventions and their effectiveness. However, only a few imaging studies of motor learning and the underlying complex cognitive processes have been performed.We measured cerebral hemodynamics using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS in relation to acquisition patterns of motor skills in healthy subjects using character entry into a touch-screen terminal. Twenty healthy, right-handed subjects who had no previous experience with character entry using a touch-screen terminal participated in this study. They were asked to enter the characters of a randomly formed Japanese syllabary into the touch-screen terminal. All subjects performed the task with their right thumb for 15 s alternating with 25 s of rest for 30 repetitions. Performance was calculated by subtracting the number of incorrect answers from the number of correct answers, and gains in motor skills were evaluated according to the changes in performance across cycles. Behavioral and oxygenated hemoglobin concentration changes across task cycles were analyzed using Spearman's rank correlations.Performance correlated positively with task cycle, thus confirming motor learning. Hemodynamic activation over the left sensorimotor cortex (SMC showed a positive correlation with task cycle, whereas activations over the right prefrontal cortex (PFC and supplementary motor area (SMA showed negative correlations.We suggest that increases in finger momentum with motor learning are reflected in the activity of the left SMC. We further speculate that the right PFC and SMA were activated during the early phases of motor learning, and that this activity was attenuated with learning progress.

The Influence of Guided Error-Based Learning on Motor Skills Self-Efficacy and Achievement.

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Chien, Kuei-Pin; Chen, Sufen

2018-01-01

The authors investigated the role of errors in motor skills teaching, specifically the influence of errors on skills self-efficacy and achievement. The participants were 75 undergraduate students enrolled in pétanque courses. The experimental group (guided error-based learning, n = 37) received a 6-week period of instruction based on the students' errors, whereas the control group (correct motion instruction, n = 38) received a 6-week period of instruction emphasizing correct motor skills. The experimental group had significantly higher scores in motor skills self-efficacy and outcomes than did the control group. Novices' errors reflect their schema in motor skills learning, which provides a basis for instructors to implement student-centered instruction and to facilitate the learning process. Guided error-based learning can effectively enhance beginners' skills self-efficacy and achievement in precision sports such as pétanque.

Quantitative differences in motor abilities and basic anthropometrics characteristics of boys and girls from fourth grade of primary school

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Buišić Svetlana

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In order to determine the quantitative differences in motor abilities and basic anthropometric characteristics by gender, we were testing 123 students of the primary school (fourth grade, 10,5 years old. Testing was applied technique of research. Two basic anthropometric measures and 14 motor tests were selected for measuring instruments. Using canonical discriminant analysis leads to results which indicate the presence of statistically significant quantitative differences in motor abilities of boys and girls but not in the anthropometric chararacteristics. Boys were in almost all motor variables statistically significantly better, except in variables for evaluation of flexibility which is more expressed by girls, but in the anthropometric characteristics there is no statistically significant differences relating to gender. Based on research results it is deduced that we need to differentiate primary students of the fourth grade by gender, because of the different levels of motor skills. Fourth grade students do not only need different approach to the work, they also need more frequent physical activity which is indispensable for development and growth.

The Effect of Haptic Guidance on Learning a Hybrid Rhythmic-Discrete Motor Task.

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Marchal-Crespo, Laura; Bannwart, Mathias; Riener, Robert; Vallery, Heike

2015-01-01

Bouncing a ball with a racket is a hybrid rhythmic-discrete motor task, combining continuous rhythmic racket movements with discrete impact events. Rhythmicity is exceptionally important in motor learning, because it underlies fundamental movements such as walking. Studies suggested that rhythmic and discrete movements are governed by different control mechanisms at different levels of the Central Nervous System. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of fixed/fading haptic guidance on learning to bounce a ball to a desired apex in virtual reality with varying gravity. Changing gravity changes dominance of rhythmic versus discrete control: The higher the value of gravity, the more rhythmic the task; lower values reduce the bouncing frequency and increase dwell times, eventually leading to a repetitive discrete task that requires initiation and termination, resembling target-oriented reaching. Although motor learning in the ball-bouncing task with varying gravity has been studied, the effect of haptic guidance on learning such a hybrid rhythmic-discrete motor task has not been addressed. We performed an experiment with thirty healthy subjects and found that the most effective training condition depended on the degree of rhythmicity: Haptic guidance seems to hamper learning of continuous rhythmic tasks, but it seems to promote learning for repetitive tasks that resemble discrete movements.

Human θ burst stimulation enhances subsequent motor learning and increases performance variability.

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Teo, James T H; Swayne, Orlando B C; Cheeran, Binith; Greenwood, Richard J; Rothwell, John C

2011-07-01

Intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) transiently increases motor cortex excitability in healthy humans by a process thought to involve synaptic long-term potentiation (LTP), and this is enhanced by nicotine. Acquisition of a ballistic motor task is likewise accompanied by increased excitability and presumed intracortical LTP. Here, we test how iTBS and nicotine influences subsequent motor learning. Ten healthy subjects participated in a double-blinded placebo-controlled trial testing the effects of iTBS and nicotine. iTBS alone increased the rate of learning but this increase was blocked by nicotine. We then investigated factors other than synaptic strengthening that may play a role. Behavioral analysis and modeling suggested that iTBS increased performance variability, which correlated with learning outcome. A control experiment confirmed the increase in motor output variability by showing that iTBS increased the dispersion of involuntary transcranial magnetic stimulation-evoked thumb movements. We suggest that in addition to the effect on synaptic plasticity, iTBS may have facilitated performance by increasing motor output variability; nicotine negated this effect on variability perhaps via increasing the signal-to-noise ratio in cerebral cortex.

Motor Tics, Tourette Syndrome, and Learning Disabilities.

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Lerer, Robert J.

1987-01-01

Complex motor tics associated with vocal tics indicate a high likelihood of Tourette syndrome; children with this syndrome may also have learning disabilities and attentional disorders. Individuals may be treated with stimulant drugs which may precipitate or exacerbate tics. Pharmacotherapy is available for management of tics and attentional…

Self-Controlled Practice Enhances Motor Learning in Introverts and Extroverts

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Kaefer, Angélica; Chiviacowsky, Suzete; Meira, Cassio de Miranda, Jr.; Tani, Go

2014-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of self-controlled feedback on the learning of a sequential-timing motor task in introverts and extroverts. Method: Fifty-six university students were selected by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. They practiced a motor task consisting of pressing computer keyboard keys…

Modeling speech imitation and ecological learning of auditory-motor maps

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Claudia eCanevari

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Classical models of speech consider an antero-posterior distinction between perceptive and productive functions. However, the selective alteration of neural activity in speech motor centers, via transcranial magnetic stimulation, was shown to affect speech discrimination. On the automatic speech recognition (ASR side, the recognition systems have classically relied solely on acoustic data, achieving rather good performance in optimal listening conditions. The main limitations of current ASR are mainly evident in the realistic use of such systems. These limitations can be partly reduced by using normalization strategies that minimize inter-speaker variability by either explicitly removing speakers’ peculiarities or adapting different speakers to a reference model. In this paper we aim at modeling a motor-based imitation learning mechanism in ASR. We tested the utility of a speaker normalization strategy that uses motor representations of speech and compare it with strategies that ignore the motor domain. Specifically, we first trained a regressor through state-of-the-art machine learning techniques to build an auditory-motor mapping, in a sense mimicking a human learner that tries to reproduce utterances produced by other speakers. This auditory-motor mapping maps the speech acoustics of a speaker into the motor plans of a reference speaker. Since, during recognition, only speech acoustics are available, the mapping is necessary to recover motor information. Subsequently, in a phone classification task, we tested the system on either one of the speakers that was used during training or a new one. Results show that in both cases the motor-based speaker normalization strategy almost always outperforms all other strategies where only acoustics is taken into account.

Perceptual-motor skill learning in Gilles de la Tourette syndrome. Evidence for multiple procedural learning and memory systems.

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Marsh, Rachel; Alexander, Gerianne M; Packard, Mark G; Zhu, Hongtu; Peterson, Bradley S

2005-01-01

Procedural learning and memory systems likely comprise several skills that are differentially affected by various illnesses of the central nervous system, suggesting their relative functional independence and reliance on differing neural circuits. Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) is a movement disorder that involves disturbances in the structure and function of the striatum and related circuitry. Recent studies suggest that patients with GTS are impaired in performance of a probabilistic classification task that putatively involves the acquisition of stimulus-response (S-R)-based habits. Assessing the learning of perceptual-motor skills and probabilistic classification in the same samples of GTS and healthy control subjects may help to determine whether these various forms of procedural (habit) learning rely on the same or differing neuroanatomical substrates and whether those substrates are differentially affected in persons with GTS. Therefore, we assessed perceptual-motor skill learning using the pursuit-rotor and mirror tracing tasks in 50 patients with GTS and 55 control subjects who had previously been compared at learning a task of probabilistic classifications. The GTS subjects did not differ from the control subjects in performance of either the pursuit rotor or mirror-tracing tasks, although they were significantly impaired in the acquisition of a probabilistic classification task. In addition, learning on the perceptual-motor tasks was not correlated with habit learning on the classification task in either the GTS or healthy control subjects. These findings suggest that the differing forms of procedural learning are dissociable both functionally and neuroanatomically. The specific deficits in the probabilistic classification form of habit learning in persons with GTS are likely to be a consequence of disturbances in specific corticostriatal circuits, but not the same circuits that subserve the perceptual-motor form of habit learning.

Not all choices are created equal: Task-relevant choices enhance motor learning compared to task-irrelevant choices.

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Carter, Michael J; Ste-Marie, Diane M

2017-12-01

Lewthwaite et al. (2015) reported that the learning benefits of exercising choice (i.e., their self-controlled condition) are not restricted to task-relevant features (e.g., feedback). They found that choosing one's golf ball color (Exp. 1) or choosing which of two tasks to perform at a later time plus which of two artworks to hang (Exp. 2) resulted in better retention than did being denied these same choices (i.e., yoked condition). The researchers concluded that the learning benefits derived from choice, whether irrelevant or relevant to the to-be-learned task, are predominantly motivational because choice is intrinsically rewarding and satisfies basic psychological needs. However, the absence of a group that made task-relevant choices and the lack of psychological measures significantly weakened their conclusions. Here, we investigated how task-relevant and task-irrelevant choices affect motor-skill learning. Participants practiced a spatiotemporal motor task in either a task-relevant group (choice over feedback schedule), a task-irrelevant group (choice over the color of an arm-wrap plus game selection), or a no-choice group. The results showed significantly greater learning in the task-relevant group than in both the task-irrelevant and no-choice groups, who did not differ significantly. Critically, these learning differences were not attributed to differences in perceptions of competence or autonomy, but instead to superior error-estimation abilities. These results challenge the perspective that motivational influences are the root cause of self-controlled learning advantages. Instead, the findings add to the growing evidence highlighting that the informational value gained from task-relevant choices makes a greater relative contribution to these advantages than motivational influences do.

Motor learning characterization in people with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review

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Íbis Ariana Peña de Moraes

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD is a neurodevelopmental disorder primarily characterized by deficits in social interaction, communication and implicit skill learning. OBJECTIVE: To analyse the results of research on "motor learning" and the means used for measuring "autistic disorder". METHODS: A systematic literature search was done using Medline/PubMed, Web of Science, BVS (virtual health library, and PsycINFO. We included articles that contained the keywords "autism" and "motor learning". The variables considered were the methodological aspects; results presented, and the methodological quality of the studies. RESULTS: A total of 42 studies were identified; 33 articles were excluded because they did not meet the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted from nine eligible studies and summarized. CONCLUSION: We concluded that although individuals with ASD showed performance difficulties in different memory and motor learning tasks, acquisition of skills still takes place in this population; however, this skill acquisition is related to heterogeneous events, occurring without the awareness of the individual.

Motor learning characterization in people with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review.

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de Moraes, Íbis Ariana Peña; Massetti, Thais; Crocetta, Tânia Brusque; da Silva, Talita Dias; de Menezes, Lilian Del Ciello; Monteiro, Carlos Bandeira de Mello; Magalhães, Fernando Henrique

2017-01-01

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder primarily characterized by deficits in social interaction, communication and implicit skill learning. To analyse the results of research on "motor learning" and the means used for measuring "autistic disorder". A systematic literature search was done using Medline/PubMed, Web of Science, BVS (virtual health library), and PsycINFO. We included articles that contained the keywords "autism" and "motor learning". The variables considered were the methodological aspects; results presented, and the methodological quality of the studies. A total of 42 studies were identified; 33 articles were excluded because they did not meet the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted from nine eligible studies and summarized. We concluded that although individuals with ASD showed performance difficulties in different memory and motor learning tasks, acquisition of skills still takes place in this population; however, this skill acquisition is related to heterogeneous events, occurring without the awareness of the individual.

The Neural Feedback Response to Error As a Teaching Signal for the Motor Learning System

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Shadmehr, Reza

2016-01-01

When we experience an error during a movement, we update our motor commands to partially correct for this error on the next trial. How does experience of error produce the improvement in the subsequent motor commands? During the course of an erroneous reaching movement, proprioceptive and visual sensory pathways not only sense the error, but also engage feedback mechanisms, resulting in corrective motor responses that continue until the hand arrives at its goal. One possibility is that this feedback response is co-opted by the learning system and used as a template to improve performance on the next attempt. Here we used electromyography (EMG) to compare neural correlates of learning and feedback to test the hypothesis that the feedback response to error acts as a template for learning. We designed a task in which mixtures of error-clamp and force-field perturbation trials were used to deconstruct EMG time courses into error-feedback and learning components. We observed that the error-feedback response was composed of excitation of some muscles, and inhibition of others, producing a complex activation/deactivation pattern during the reach. Despite this complexity, across muscles the learning response was consistently a scaled version of the error-feedback response, but shifted 125 ms earlier in time. Across people, individuals who produced a greater feedback response to error, also learned more from error. This suggests that the feedback response to error serves as a teaching signal for the brain. Individuals who learn faster have a better teacher in their feedback control system. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Our sensory organs transduce errors in behavior. To improve performance, we must generate better motor commands. How does the nervous system transform an error in sensory coordinates into better motor commands in muscle coordinates? Here we show that when an error occurs during a movement, the reflexes transform the sensory representation of error into motor

Consensus: "Can tDCS and TMS enhance motor learning and memory formation?"

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Reis, Janine; Robertson, Edwin; Krakauer, John W; Rothwell, John; Marshall, Lisa; Gerloff, Christian; Wassermann, Eric; Pascual-Leone, Alvaro; Hummel, Friedhelm; Celnik, Pablo A; Classen, Joseph; Floel, Agnes; Ziemann, Ulf; Paulus, Walter; Siebner, Hartwig R; Born, Jan; Cohen, Leonardo G

2008-10-01

Noninvasive brain stimulation has developed as a promising tool for cognitive neuroscientists. Transcranial magnetic (TMS) and direct current (tDCS) stimulation allow researchers to purposefully enhance or decrease excitability in focal areas of the brain. The purpose of this paper is to review information on the use of TMS and tDCS as research tools to facilitate motor memory formation, motor performance and motor learning in healthy volunteers. Studies implemented so far have mostly focused on the ability of TMS and tDCS to elicit relatively short lasting motor improvements and the mechanisms underlying these changes have been only partially investigated. Despite limitations including the scarcity of data, work that has been already accomplished raises the exciting hypothesis that currently available noninvasive transcranial stimulation techniques could modulate motor learning and memory formation in healthy humans and potentially in patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Optimizing performance through intrinsic motivation and attention for learning: The OPTIMAL theory of motor learning.

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Wulf, Gabriele; Lewthwaite, Rebecca

2016-10-01

Effective motor performance is important for surviving and thriving, and skilled movement is critical in many activities. Much theorizing over the past few decades has focused on how certain practice conditions affect the processing of task-related information to affect learning. Yet, existing theoretical perspectives do not accommodate significant recent lines of evidence demonstrating motivational and attentional effects on performance and learning. These include research on (a) conditions that enhance expectancies for future performance, (b) variables that influence learners' autonomy, and (c) an external focus of attention on the intended movement effect. We propose the OPTIMAL (Optimizing Performance through Intrinsic Motivation and Attention for Learning) theory of motor learning. We suggest that motivational and attentional factors contribute to performance and learning by strengthening the coupling of goals to actions. We provide explanations for the performance and learning advantages of these variables on psychological and neuroscientific grounds. We describe a plausible mechanism for expectancy effects rooted in responses of dopamine to the anticipation of positive experience and temporally associated with skill practice. Learner autonomy acts perhaps largely through an enhanced expectancy pathway. Furthermore, we consider the influence of an external focus for the establishment of efficient functional connections across brain networks that subserve skilled movement. We speculate that enhanced expectancies and an external focus propel performers' cognitive and motor systems in productive "forward" directions and prevent "backsliding" into self- and non-task focused states. Expected success presumably breeds further success and helps consolidate memories. We discuss practical implications and future research directions.

Task-specificity of unilateral anodal and dual-M1 tDCS effects on motor learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Karok, Sophia; Fletcher, David; Witney, Alice G

2017-01-08

Task-specific effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on motor learning were investigated in 30 healthy participants. In a sham-controlled, mixed design, participants trained on 3 different motor tasks (Purdue Pegboard Test, Visuomotor Grip Force Tracking Task and Visuomotor Wrist Rotation Speed Control Task) over 3 consecutive days while receiving either unilateral anodal over the right primary motor cortex (M1), dual-M1 or sham stimulation. Retention sessions were administered 7 and 28 days after the end of training. In the Purdue Pegboard Test, both anodal and dual-M1 stimulation reduced average completion time approximately equally, an improvement driven by online learning effects and maintained for about 1 week. The Visuomotor Grip Force Tracking Task and the Visuomotor Wrist Rotation Speed Control Task were associated with an advantage of dual-M1 tDCS in consolidation processes both between training sessions and when testing at long-term retention; both were maintained for at least 1 month. This study demonstrates that M1-tDCS enhances and sustains motor learning with different electrode montages. Stimulation-induced effects emerged at different learning phases across the tasks, which strongly suggests that the influence of tDCS on motor learning is dynamic with respect to the functional recruitment of the distributed motor system at the time of stimulation. Divergent findings regarding M1-tDCS effects on motor learning may partially be ascribed to task-specific consequences and the effects of offline consolidation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Successful Transfer of a Motor Learning Strategy to a Novel Sport.

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Kearney, Philip E; Judge, Phil

2017-10-01

This study investigated whether secondary school students who were taught a motor learning strategy could transfer their knowledge of the strategy to learning a novel task. Twenty adolescents were randomly allocated to a strategy or control group. The strategy group was taught Singer's five-step learning strategy, while the control group received information on the evolution and biomechanics of the basketball free throw. Both groups received three 1-hour practice sessions on a modified basketball shooting task. After one month, participants were introduced to the transfer task, golf putting. Performance accuracy was recorded for all tasks, and participants completed questionnaires regarding strategy use during practice. Participants taught the five-step learning strategy successfully recalled and applied it after a 1-month interval, and they demonstrated superior performance on both acquisition and transfer tasks, relative to the control group. Physical education teachers and coaches should consider using this learning strategy to enhance the learning of closed motor skills.

A Combination of Machine Learning and Cerebellar Models for the Motor Control and Learning of a Modular Robot

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baira Ojeda, Ismael; Tolu, Silvia; Pacheco, Moises

2017-01-01

We scaled up a bio-inspired control architecture for the motor control and motor learning of a real modular robot. In our approach, the Locally Weighted Projection Regression algorithm (LWPR) and a cerebellar microcircuit coexist, forming a Unit Learning Machine. The LWPR optimizes the input space...... and learns the internal model of a single robot module to command the robot to follow a desired trajectory with its end-effector. The cerebellar microcircuit refines the LWPR output delivering corrective commands. We contrasted distinct cerebellar circuits including analytical models and spiking models...

Progressive practice promotes motor learning and repeated transient increases in corticospinal excitability across multiple days

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Lasse; Madsen, Mads Alexander Just; Bojsen-Møller, Emil

2018-01-01

Background: A session of motor skill learning is accompanied by transient increases in corticospinal excitability (CSE), which are thought to reflect acute changes in neuronal connectivity associated with improvements in sensorimotor performance. Factors influencing changes in excitability...... and motor skill with continued practice remain however to be elucidated. Objective/Hypothesis: Here we investigate the hypothesis that progressive motor practice during consecutive days can induce repeated transient increases in corticospinal excitability and promote motor skill learning. Methods: Changes...... in motor performance and CSE were assessed during 4 consecutive days of skill learning and 8 days after the last practice session. CSE was assessed as area under recruitment curves (RC) using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Two groups of participants (n = 12) practiced a visuomotor tracking...

Multidisciplinary Views on Applying Explicit and Implicit Motor Learning in Practice : an International Survey

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sascha Rasquin; Michel Bleijlevens; Jos Halfens; Mark Wilson; Rich Masters; Anna Beurskens; Melanie Kleynen; Monique Lexis; Susy Braun

2015-01-01

Background A variety of options and techniques for causing implicit and explicit motor learning have been described in the literature. The aim of the current paper was to provide clearer guidance for practitioners on how to apply motor learning in practice by exploring experts’ opinions and

Basal ganglia-dependent processes in recalling learned visual-motor adaptations.

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Bédard, Patrick; Sanes, Jerome N

2011-03-01

Humans learn and remember motor skills to permit adaptation to a changing environment. During adaptation, the brain develops new sensory-motor relationships that become stored in an internal model (IM) that may be retained for extended periods. How the brain learns new IMs and transforms them into long-term memory remains incompletely understood since prior work has mostly focused on the learning process. A current model suggests that basal ganglia, cerebellum, and their neocortical targets actively participate in forming new IMs but that a cerebellar cortical network would mediate automatization. However, a recent study (Marinelli et al. 2009) reported that patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), who have basal ganglia dysfunction, had similar adaptation rates as controls but demonstrated no savings at recall tests (24 and 48 h). Here, we assessed whether a longer training session, a feature known to increase long-term retention of IM in healthy individuals, could allow PD patients to demonstrate savings. We recruited PD patients and age-matched healthy adults and used a visual-motor adaptation paradigm similar to the study by Marinelli et al. (2009), doubling the number of training trials and assessed recall after a short and a 24-h delay. We hypothesized that a longer training session would allow PD patients to develop an enhanced representation of the IM as demonstrated by savings at the recall tests. Our results showed that PD patients had similar adaptation rates as controls but did not demonstrate savings at both recall tests. We interpret these results as evidence that fronto-striatal networks have involvement in the early to late phase of motor memory formation, but not during initial learning.

Distinct cerebellar engrams in short-term and long-term motor learning.

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Wang, Wen; Nakadate, Kazuhiko; Masugi-Tokita, Miwako; Shutoh, Fumihiro; Aziz, Wajeeha; Tarusawa, Etsuko; Lorincz, Andrea; Molnár, Elek; Kesaf, Sebnem; Li, Yun-Qing; Fukazawa, Yugo; Nagao, Soichi; Shigemoto, Ryuichi

2014-01-07

Cerebellar motor learning is suggested to be caused by long-term plasticity of excitatory parallel fiber-Purkinje cell (PF-PC) synapses associated with changes in the number of synaptic AMPA-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs). However, whether the AMPARs decrease or increase in individual PF-PC synapses occurs in physiological motor learning and accounts for memory that lasts over days remains elusive. We combined quantitative SDS-digested freeze-fracture replica labeling for AMPAR and physical dissector electron microscopy with a simple model of cerebellar motor learning, adaptation of horizontal optokinetic response (HOKR) in mouse. After 1-h training of HOKR, short-term adaptation (STA) was accompanied with transient decrease in AMPARs by 28% in target PF-PC synapses. STA was well correlated with AMPAR decrease in individual animals and both STA and AMPAR decrease recovered to basal levels within 24 h. Surprisingly, long-term adaptation (LTA) after five consecutive daily trainings of 1-h HOKR did not alter the number of AMPARs in PF-PC synapses but caused gradual and persistent synapse elimination by 45%, with corresponding PC spine loss by the fifth training day. Furthermore, recovery of LTA after 2 wk was well correlated with increase of PF-PC synapses to the control level. Our findings indicate that the AMPARs decrease in PF-PC synapses and the elimination of these synapses are in vivo engrams in short- and long-term motor learning, respectively, showing a unique type of synaptic plasticity that may contribute to memory consolidation.

Motor imagery training promotes motor learning in adolescents with cerebral palsy: comparison between left and right hemiparesis.

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Cabral-Sequeira, Audrey Sartori; Coelho, Daniel Boari; Teixeira, Luis Augusto

2016-06-01

This experiment was designed to evaluate the effects of pure motor imagery training (MIT) and its combination with physical practice on learning an aiming task with the more affected arm in adolescents suffering from cerebral palsy. Effect of MIT was evaluated as a function of side of hemiparesis. The experiment was accomplished by 11- to 16-year-old participants (M = 13.58 years), who suffered left (n = 16) or right (n = 15) mild hemiparesis. They were exposed to pure MIT (day 1) followed by physical practice (day 2) on an aiming task demanding movement accuracy and speed. Posttraining movement kinematics of the group receiving MIT were compared with movement kinematics of the control group after receiving recreational activities (day 1) and physical practice (day 2). Kinematic analysis showed that MIT led to decreased movement time and straighter hand displacements to the target. Performance achievements from MIT were increased with further physical practice, leading to enhanced effects on motor learning. Retention evaluation indicated that performance improvement from pure MIT and its combination with physical practice were stable over time. Performance achievements were equivalent between adolescents with either right or left hemiparesis, suggesting similar capacity between these groups to achieve performance improvement from pure imagery training and from its association with physical practice. Our results suggest that motor imagery training is a procedure potentially useful to increase motor learning achievements in individuals suffering from cerebral palsy.

Specialized motor-driven dusp1 expression in the song systems of multiple lineages of vocal learning birds.

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Haruhito Horita

Full Text Available Mechanisms for the evolution of convergent behavioral traits are largely unknown. Vocal learning is one such trait that evolved multiple times and is necessary in humans for the acquisition of spoken language. Among birds, vocal learning is evolved in songbirds, parrots, and hummingbirds. Each time similar forebrain song nuclei specialized for vocal learning and production have evolved. This finding led to the hypothesis that the behavioral and neuroanatomical convergences for vocal learning could be associated with molecular convergence. We previously found that the neural activity-induced gene dual specificity phosphatase 1 (dusp1 was up-regulated in non-vocal circuits, specifically in sensory-input neurons of the thalamus and telencephalon; however, dusp1 was not up-regulated in higher order sensory neurons or motor circuits. Here we show that song motor nuclei are an exception to this pattern. The song nuclei of species from all known vocal learning avian lineages showed motor-driven up-regulation of dusp1 expression induced by singing. There was no detectable motor-driven dusp1 expression throughout the rest of the forebrain after non-vocal motor performance. This pattern contrasts with expression of the commonly studied activity-induced gene egr1, which shows motor-driven expression in song nuclei induced by singing, but also motor-driven expression in adjacent brain regions after non-vocal motor behaviors. In the vocal non-learning avian species, we found no detectable vocalizing-driven dusp1 expression in the forebrain. These findings suggest that independent evolutions of neural systems for vocal learning were accompanied by selection for specialized motor-driven expression of the dusp1 gene in those circuits. This specialized expression of dusp1 could potentially lead to differential regulation of dusp1-modulated molecular cascades in vocal learning circuits.

KINAESTHETIC LEARNING STYLE AND ITS USAGE IN LEARNING PROCESS IN BASIC SCHOOL

OpenAIRE

Jonāne, Lolita

2018-01-01

The aim of the research is to explore the possibilities and methodological solutions of using kinaesthetic teaching style in the teaching/learning process in basic school and its impact on pupil involvement in learning activities and attainment of goals. Qualitative  and quantitative methods  - experienced teacher’s survey and student-trainee survey  after observation and analysys of lessons at school are used during the study. It is concluded that: 1)the kinesthetic style of learning involve...

The Influence of E-learning Characteristics and Basic Ict Competencies to Actual USAge of E-learning: a Path Diagram Model

OpenAIRE

Suarta, I Made; Suwintana, I Ketut

2015-01-01

In this paper, the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) is extent with two external stimulus namely e-learning characteristics and basic ICT (Information and Communication Technology) competencies. The purpose of this study are (1) finding relationship between e-learning characteristics and lecturers' basic ICT competencies with the perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of e-learning; and (2) determining the effect of e-learning characteristics and lecturer basic ICT competencies to the...

Probabilistic Motor Sequence Yields Greater Offline and Less Online Learning than Fixed Sequence.

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Du, Yue; Prashad, Shikha; Schoenbrun, Ilana; Clark, Jane E

2016-01-01

It is well acknowledged that motor sequences can be learned quickly through online learning. Subsequently, the initial acquisition of a motor sequence is boosted or consolidated by offline learning. However, little is known whether offline learning can drive the fast learning of motor sequences (i.e., initial sequence learning in the first training session). To examine offline learning in the fast learning stage, we asked four groups of young adults to perform the serial reaction time (SRT) task with either a fixed or probabilistic sequence and with or without preliminary knowledge (PK) of the presence of a sequence. The sequence and PK were manipulated to emphasize either procedural (probabilistic sequence; no preliminary knowledge (NPK)) or declarative (fixed sequence; with PK) memory that were found to either facilitate or inhibit offline learning. In the SRT task, there were six learning blocks with a 2 min break between each consecutive block. Throughout the session, stimuli followed the same fixed or probabilistic pattern except in Block 5, in which stimuli appeared in a random order. We found that PK facilitated the learning of a fixed sequence, but not a probabilistic sequence. In addition to overall learning measured by the mean reaction time (RT), we examined the progressive changes in RT within and between blocks (i.e., online and offline learning, respectively). It was found that the two groups who performed the fixed sequence, regardless of PK, showed greater online learning than the other two groups who performed the probabilistic sequence. The groups who performed the probabilistic sequence, regardless of PK, did not display online learning, as indicated by a decline in performance within the learning blocks. However, they did demonstrate remarkably greater offline improvement in RT, which suggests that they are learning the probabilistic sequence offline. These results suggest that in the SRT task, the fast acquisition of a motor sequence is driven

Cooperation Not Competition: Bihemispheric tDCS and fMRI Show Role for Ipsilateral Hemisphere in Motor Learning.

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Waters, Sheena; Wiestler, Tobias; Diedrichsen, Jörn

2017-08-02

What is the role of ipsilateral motor and premotor areas in motor learning? One view is that ipsilateral activity suppresses contralateral motor cortex and, accordingly, that inhibiting ipsilateral regions can improve motor learning. Alternatively, the ipsilateral motor cortex may play an active role in the control and/or learning of unilateral hand movements. We approached this question by applying double-blind bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over both contralateral and ipsilateral motor cortex in a between-group design during 4 d of unimanual explicit sequence training in human participants. Independently of whether the anode was placed over contralateral or ipsilateral motor cortex, bihemispheric stimulation yielded substantial performance gains relative to unihemispheric or sham stimulation. This performance advantage appeared to be supported by plastic changes in both hemispheres. First, we found that behavioral advantages generalized strongly to the untrained hand, suggesting that tDCS strengthened effector-independent representations. Second, functional imaging during speed-matched execution of trained sequences conducted 48 h after training revealed sustained, polarity-independent increases in activity in both motor cortices relative to the sham group. These results suggest a cooperative rather than competitive interaction of the two motor cortices during skill learning and suggest that bihemispheric brain stimulation during unimanual skill learning may be beneficial because it harnesses plasticity in the ipsilateral hemisphere. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Many neurorehabilitation approaches are based on the idea that is beneficial to boost excitability in the contralateral hemisphere while attenuating that of the ipsilateral cortex to reduce interhemispheric inhibition. We observed that bihemispheric transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) with the excitatory anode either over contralateral or ipsilateral motor cortex

Inter-individual differences in audio-motor learning of piano melodies and white matter fiber tract architecture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Engel, Annerose; Hijmans, Brenda S.; Cerliani, Leonardo; Bangert, Marc; Nanetti, Luca; Keller, Peter E.; Keysers, Christian

Humans vary substantially in their ability to learn new motor skills. Here, we examined inter-individual differences in learning to play the piano, with the goal of identifying relations to structural properties of white matter fiber tracts relevant to audio-motor learning. Non-musicians (n = 18)

Effects of acute sleep deprivation on motor and reversal learning in mice.

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Varga, Andrew W; Kang, Mihwa; Ramesh, Priyanka V; Klann, Eric

2014-10-01

Sleep supports the formation of a variety of declarative and non-declarative memories, and sleep deprivation often impairs these types of memories. In human subjects, natural sleep either during a nap or overnight leads to long-lasting improvements in visuomotor and fine motor tasks, but rodent models recapitulating these findings have been scarce. Here we present evidence that 5h of acute sleep deprivation impairs mouse skilled reach learning compared to a matched period of ad libitum sleep. In sleeping mice, the duration of total sleep time during the 5h of sleep opportunity or during the first bout of sleep did not correlate with ultimate gain in motor performance. In addition, we observed that reversal learning during the skilled reaching task was also affected by sleep deprivation. Consistent with this observation, 5h of sleep deprivation also impaired reversal learning in the water-based Y-maze. In conclusion, acute sleep deprivation negatively impacts subsequent motor and reversal learning and memory. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enhancement of motor learning by focal intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) of either the primary motor (M1) or somatosensory area (S1) in healthy human subjects.

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Platz, Thomas; Adler-Wiebe, Marija; Roschka, Sybille; Lotze, Martin

2018-01-01

Motor rehabilitation after brain damage relies on motor re-learning as induced by specific training. Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) can alter cortical excitability and thereby has a potential to enhance subsequent training-induced learning. Knowledge about any priming effects of NIBS on motor learning in healthy subjects can help to design targeted therapeutic applications in brain-damaged subjects. To examine whether complex motor learning in healthy subjects can be enhanced by intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) to primary motor or sensory cortical areas. Eighteen young healthy subjects trained eight different arm motor tasks (arm ability training, AAT) once a day for 5 days using their left non-dominant arm. Except for day 1 (baseline), training was performed after applying an excitatory form of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (iTBS) to either (I) right M1 or (II) S1, or (III) sham stimulation to the right M1. Subjects were randomly assigned to conditions I, II, or III. A principal component analysis of the motor behaviour data suggested eight independent motor abilities corresponding to the 8 trained tasks. AAT induced substantial motor learning across abilities with generalisation to a non-trained test of finger dexterity (Nine-Hole-Peg-Test, NHPT). Participants receiving iTBS (to either M1 or S1) showed better performance with the AAT tasks over the period of training compared to sham stimulation as well as a bigger improvement with the generalisation task (NHPT) for the trained left hand after training completion. Priming with an excitatory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation as iTBS of either M1 or S1 can enhance motor learning across different sensorimotor abilities.

Effect of Error Augmentation on Brain Activation and Motor Learning of a Complex Locomotor Task

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Marchal-Crespo

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Up to date, the functional gains obtained after robot-aided gait rehabilitation training are limited. Error augmenting strategies have a great potential to enhance motor learning of simple motor tasks. However, little is known about the effect of these error modulating strategies on complex tasks, such as relearning to walk after a neurologic accident. Additionally, neuroimaging evaluation of brain regions involved in learning processes could provide valuable information on behavioral outcomes. We investigated the effect of robotic training strategies that augment errors—error amplification and random force disturbance—and training without perturbations on brain activation and motor learning of a complex locomotor task. Thirty-four healthy subjects performed the experiment with a robotic stepper (MARCOS in a 1.5 T MR scanner. The task consisted in tracking a Lissajous figure presented on a display by coordinating the legs in a gait-like movement pattern. Behavioral results showed that training without perturbations enhanced motor learning in initially less skilled subjects, while error amplification benefited better-skilled subjects. Training with error amplification, however, hampered transfer of learning. Randomly disturbing forces induced learning and promoted transfer in all subjects, probably because the unexpected forces increased subjects' attention. Functional MRI revealed main effects of training strategy and skill level during training. A main effect of training strategy was seen in brain regions typically associated with motor control and learning, such as, the basal ganglia, cerebellum, intraparietal sulcus, and angular gyrus. Especially, random disturbance and no perturbation lead to stronger brain activation in similar brain regions than error amplification. Skill-level related effects were observed in the IPS, in parts of the superior parietal lobe (SPL, i.e., precuneus, and temporal cortex. These neuroimaging findings

[Memory transfer in cerebellar motor learning].

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Nagao, Soichi

2012-01-01

Most of our motor skills are acquired through learning. Experiments of gain adaptation of ocular reflexes have consistently suggested that the memory of adaptation is initially formed in the cerebellar cortex, and is transferred to the cerebellar (vestibular) nuclei for consolidation to long-term memory after repetitions of training. We have recently developed a new system to evaluate the motor learning in human subjects using prism adaptation of hand reaching movement, by referring to the prism adaptation of dart throwing of Martin et al. (1996). In our system, the subject views the small target presented in the touch-panel screen, and touches it with his/her finger without direct visual feedback. After 15-30 trials of touching wearing prisms, an adaptation occurs in healthy subjects: they became able to touch the target correctly. Meanwhile, such an adaptation was impaired in patients of cerebellar disease. We have proposed a model of human prism adaptation that the memory of adaptation is initially encoded in the cerebellar cortex, and is later transferred to the cerebellar nuclei after repetitions of training. The memory in the cerebellar cortex may be formed and extinguished independently of the memory maintained in the cerebellar nuclei, and these two memories work cooperatively.

Relationships between academic performance, SES school type and perceptual-motor skills in first grade South African learners: NW-CHILD study.

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Pienaar, A E; Barhorst, R; Twisk, J W R

2014-05-01

Perceptual-motor skills contribute to a variety of basic learning skills associated with normal academic success. This study aimed to determine the relationship between academic performance and perceptual-motor skills in first grade South African learners and whether low SES (socio-economic status) school type plays a role in such a relationship. This cross-sectional study of the baseline measurements of the NW-CHILD longitudinal study included a stratified random sample of first grade learners (n = 812; 418 boys and 394 boys), with a mean age of 6.78 years ± 0.49 living in the North West Province (NW) of South Africa. The Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration-4 (VMI) was used to assess visual-motor integration, visual perception and hand control while the Bruininks Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, short form (BOT2-SF) assessed overall motor proficiency. Academic performance in math, reading and writing was assessed with the Mastery of Basic Learning Areas Questionnaire. Linear mixed models analysis was performed with spss to determine possible differences between the different VMI and BOT2-SF standard scores in different math, reading and writing mastery categories ranging from no mastery to outstanding mastery. A multinomial multilevel logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between a clustered score of academic performance and the different determinants. A strong relationship was established between academic performance and VMI, visual perception, hand control and motor proficiency with a significant relationship between a clustered academic performance score, visual-motor integration and visual perception. A negative association was established between low SES school types on academic performance, with a common perceptual motor foundation shared by all basic learning areas. Visual-motor integration, visual perception, hand control and motor proficiency are closely related to basic academic skills

On the optimal degree of fluctuations in practice for motor learning.

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Hossner, Ernst-Joachim; Käch, Boris; Enz, Jonas

2016-06-01

In human movement science, it is widely accepted that random practice generally enhances complex motor-skill learning compared to repetitive practice. In two experiments, a particular variability-related concept is put to empirical test, namely the concept of differencial learning (DL), which assumes (i) that learners should not be distracted from task-space exploration by corrections, and (ii) that learning is facilitated by large inter-trial fluctuations. In both experiments, the advantage of DL over repetitive learning was not statistically significant. Moreover, learning was more pronounced when participants either received corrections in addition to DL (Exp. 1) or practiced in an order in which differences between consecutive trials were relatively small (Exp. 2). These findings suggest that the positive DL effects reported in literature cannot be attributed to the reduction of feedback or to the increase of inter-trial fluctuations. These results are discussed in the light of the structural-learning approach and the two-state model of motor learning in which structure-related learning effects are distinguished from the capability to adapt to current changes. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Behind Mathematical Learning Disabilities: What about Visual Perception and Motor Skills?

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Pieters, Stefanie; Desoete, Annemie; Roeyers, Herbert; Vanderswalmen, Ruth; Van Waelvelde, Hilde

2012-01-01

In a sample of 39 children with mathematical learning disabilities (MLD) and 106 typically developing controls belonging to three control groups of three different ages, we found that visual perception, motor skills and visual-motor integration explained a substantial proportion of the variance in either number fact retrieval or procedural…

[Use of nondeclarative and automatic memory processes in motor learning: how to mitigate the effects of aging].

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Chauvel, Guillaume; Maquestiaux, François; Didierjean, André; Joubert, Sven; Dieudonné, Bénédicte; Verny, Marc

2011-12-01

Does normal aging inexorably lead to diminished motor learning abilities? This article provides an overview of the literature on the question, with particular emphasis on the functional dissociation between two sets of memory processes: declarative, effortful processes, and non-declarative, automatic processes. There is abundant evidence suggesting that aging does impair learning when past memories of former actions are required (episodic memory) and recollected through controlled processing (working memory). However, other studies have shown that aging does not impair learning when motor actions are performed non verbally and automatically (tapping procedural memory). These findings led us to hypothesize that one can minimize the impact of aging on the ability to learn new motor actions by favouring procedural learning. Recent data validating this hypothesis are presented. Our findings underline the importance of developing new motor learning strategies, which "bypass" declarative, effortful memory processes.

Differencial training facilitates early consolidation in motor learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana Henz

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Current research demonstrates increased learning rates in differencial learning (DL compared to repetitive training. To date, little is known on the underlying neurophysiological processes in DL that contribute to superior performance over repetitive practice. In the present study, we measured electroencephalographic (EEG brain activation patterns after DL and repetitive badminton serve training. Twenty-four semi-professional badminton players performed badminton serves in a DL and repetitive training schedule in a within-subjects design. EEG activity was recorded from nineteen electrodes according to the 10-20 system before and immediately after each 20-minute exercise. Increased theta activity was obtained in contralateral parieto-occipital regions after DL. Further, increased posterior alpha activity was obtained in DL compared to repetitive training. Results indicate different underlying neuronal processes in DL and repetitive training with a higher involvement of parieto-occipital areas in DL. We argue that DL facilitates early consolidation in motor learning indicated by post-training increases in theta and alpha activity. Further, brain activation patterns indicate somatosensory working memory processes where attentional resources are allocated in processing of somatosensory information in DL. Reinforcing a somatosensory memory trace might explain increased motor learning rates in DL. Finally, this memory trace is more stable against interference from internal and external disturbances that afford executively controlled processing such as attentional processes.

Motor Sequence Learning Performance in Parkinson's Disease Patients Depends on the Stage of Disease

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Stephan, Marianne A.; Meier, Beat; Zaugg, Sabine Weber; Kaelin-Lang, Alain

2011-01-01

It is still unclear, whether patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) are impaired in the incidental learning of different motor sequences in short succession, although such a deficit might greatly impact their daily life. The aim of this study was thus to clarify the relation between disease parameters of PD and incidental motor learning of two…

Cerebellar plasticity and motor learning deficits in a copy-number variation mouse model of autism.

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Piochon, Claire; Kloth, Alexander D; Grasselli, Giorgio; Titley, Heather K; Nakayama, Hisako; Hashimoto, Kouichi; Wan, Vivian; Simmons, Dana H; Eissa, Tahra; Nakatani, Jin; Cherskov, Adriana; Miyazaki, Taisuke; Watanabe, Masahiko; Takumi, Toru; Kano, Masanobu; Wang, Samuel S-H; Hansel, Christian

2014-11-24

A common feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the impairment of motor control and learning, occurring in a majority of children with autism, consistent with perturbation in cerebellar function. Here we report alterations in motor behaviour and cerebellar synaptic plasticity in a mouse model (patDp/+) for the human 15q11-13 duplication, one of the most frequently observed genetic aberrations in autism. These mice show ASD-resembling social behaviour deficits. We find that in patDp/+ mice delay eyeblink conditioning--a form of cerebellum-dependent motor learning--is impaired, and observe deregulation of a putative cellular mechanism for motor learning, long-term depression (LTD) at parallel fibre-Purkinje cell synapses. Moreover, developmental elimination of surplus climbing fibres--a model for activity-dependent synaptic pruning--is impaired. These findings point to deficits in synaptic plasticity and pruning as potential causes for motor problems and abnormal circuit development in autism.

Assessment of Teaching and Learning Styles in Practical Motor ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... of Teaching and Learning Styles in Practical Motor Vehicle Mechanics Work At ... Board should organize workshop for its teachers in technical colleges on the ... students to participate actively in any activities when teaching practical skills.

Focus of Attention in Children's Motor Learning: Examining the Role of Age and Working Memory.

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Brocken, J E A; Kal, E C; van der Kamp, J

2016-01-01

The authors investigated the relative effectiveness of different attentional focus instructions on motor learning in primary school children. In addition, we explored whether the effect of attentional focus on motor learning was influenced by children's age and verbal working memory capacity. Novice 8-9-year old children (n = 30) and 11-12-year-old children (n = 30) practiced a golf putting task. For each age group, half the participants received instructions to focus (internally) on the swing of their arm, while the other half was instructed to focus (externally) on the swing of the club. Children's verbal working memory capacity was assessed with the Automated Working Memory Assessment. Consistent with many reports on adult's motor learning, children in the external groups demonstrated greater improvements in putting accuracy than children who practiced with an internal focus. This effect was similar across age groups. Verbal working memory capacity was not found to be predictive of motor learning, neither for children in the internal focus groups nor for children in the external focus groups. In conclusion, primary school children's motor learning is enhanced by external focus instructions compared to internal focus instructions. The purported modulatory roles of children's working memory, attentional capacity, or focus preferences require further investigation.

Engaging Environments Enhance Motor Skill Learning in a Computer Gaming Task.

Science.gov (United States)

Lohse, Keith R; Boyd, Lara A; Hodges, Nicola J

2016-01-01

Engagement during practice can motivate a learner to practice more, hence having indirect effects on learning through increased practice. However, it is not known whether engagement can also have a direct effect on learning when the amount of practice is held constant. To address this question, 40 participants played a video game that contained an embedded repeated sequence component, under either highly engaging conditions (the game group) or mechanically identical but less engaging conditions (the sterile group). The game environment facilitated retention over a 1-week interval. Specifically, the game group improved in both speed and accuracy for random and repeated trials, suggesting a general motor-related improvement, rather than a specific influence of engagement on implicit sequence learning. These data provide initial evidence that increased engagement during practice has a direct effect on generalized learning, improving retention and transfer of a complex motor skill.

Does Sleep Facilitate the Consolidation of Allocentric or Egocentric Representations of Implicitly Learned Visual-Motor Sequence Learning?

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Viczko, Jeremy; Sergeeva, Valya; Ray, Laura B.; Owen, Adrian M.; Fogel, Stuart M.

2018-01-01

Sleep facilitates the consolidation (i.e., enhancement) of simple, explicit (i.e., conscious) motor sequence learning (MSL). MSL can be dissociated into egocentric (i.e., motor) or allocentric (i.e., spatial) frames of reference. The consolidation of the allocentric memory representation is sleep-dependent, whereas the egocentric consolidation…

CEREBELLUM: LINKS BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT, DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS AND MOTOR LEARNING

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Mario U Manto

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The study of the links and interactions between development and motor learning has noticeable implications for the understanding and management of neurodevelopmental disorders. This is particularly relevant for the cerebellum which is critical for sensorimotor learning. The olivocerebellar pathway is a key pathway contributing to learning of motor skills. Its developmental maturation and remodelling are being unravelled. Advances in genetics have led to major improvements in our appraisal of the genes involved in cerebellar development, especially studies in mutant mice. Cerebellar neurogenesis is compartmentalized in relationship with neurotransmitter fate. The Engrailed-2 gene is a major actor of the specification of cerebellar cell types and late embryogenic morphogenesis. Math1, expressed by the rhombic lip (RL, is required for the genesis of glutamatergic neurons. Mutants deficient for the transcription factor Ptf1a display a lack of Purkinje cells and gabaergic interneurons. Rora gene contributes to the developmental signalling between granule cells and Purkinje neurons. The expression profile of SHH (Sonic hedgehog in postnatal stages determines the final size/shape of the cerebellum. Genes affecting the development impact upon the physiological properties of the cerebellar circuits. For instance, receptors are developmentally regulated and their action interferes directly with developmental processes. Another field of research which is expanding relates to very preterm neonates. They are at risk for cerebellar lesions, which may themselves impair the developmental events. Very preterm neonates often show sensori-motor deficits, highlighting another major link between impaired development and learning deficiencies. Pathways playing a critical role in cerebellar development are likely to become therapeutical targets for several neurodevelopmental disorders.

Biomechanical procedure to assess sleep restriction on motor control and learning.

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Umemura, G S; Noriega, C L; Soares, D F; Forner-Cordero, A

2017-07-01

The analysis of sleep quality during long periods and its impact on motor control and learning performance are crucial aspects for human health. The aim of this study is to analyze effects of chronic sleep restriction on motor performance. It is intended to establish motor control indicators in sleep quality analysis. A wearable actigraphy that records accelerometry, ambient light, and body temperature was used to monitor the sleep habits of 12 healthy subjects for two weeks before performing motor control and learning tests. The day of the motor test, the subjects filled two questionnaires about the quality of sleep (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index - PSQI) and sleepiness (Epworth Sleepiness Scale - ESS). Afterwards they performed a coincident timing task that consisted of hitting a virtual target falling on the screen with the hand. An elbow flexion in the horizontal plane had to be performed on the correct time to reach the real target on a table at the same time as the virtual target on the screen. The subjects performed three sets of acquisition and transfer blocks of the coincident timing task. The subjects were clustered in two groups based on the PSQI and ESS scores. Actigraphy and motor control parameters (L5, correct responses, time variance) were compared between groups and experimental sets. The group with better sleep parameters did show a constant performance across blocks of task acquisition while the bad sleeper group improved from the first to the second acquisition block. Despite of this improvement, their performance is not better than the one of the good sleepers group. Although the number of subjects is low and it should be increased, these results indicate that the subjects with better sleep converged rapidly to a high level of performance, while the worse sleepers needed more trials to learn the task and their performance was not superior to the other group.

Unifying practice schedules in the timescales of motor learning and performance.

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Verhoeven, F Martijn; Newell, Karl M

2018-06-01

In this article, we elaborate from a multiple time scales model of motor learning to examine the independent and integrated effects of massed and distributed practice schedules within- and between-sessions on the persistent (learning) and transient (warm-up, fatigue) processes of performance change. The timescales framework reveals the influence of practice distribution on four learning-related processes: the persistent processes of learning and forgetting, and the transient processes of warm-up decrement and fatigue. The superposition of the different processes of practice leads to a unified set of effects for massed and distributed practice within- and between-sessions in learning motor tasks. This analysis of the interaction between the duration of the interval of practice trials or sessions and parameters of the introduced time scale model captures the unified influence of the between trial and session scheduling of practice on learning and performance. It provides a starting point for new theoretically based hypotheses, and the scheduling of practice that minimizes the negative effects of warm-up decrement, fatigue and forgetting while exploiting the positive effects of learning and retention. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A School-Based Movement Programme for Children with Motor Learning Difficulty

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Mannisto, Juha-Pekka; Cantell, Marja; Huovinen, Tommi; Kooistra, Libbe; Larkin, Dawne

2006-01-01

The study investigated the effectiveness of a school-based movement programme for a population of 5 to 7 year old children. Performance profiles on the Movement ABC were used to classify the children and to assess skill changes over time. Children were assigned to four different groups: motor learning difficulty (n = 10), borderline motor learning…

A Preliminary Comparison of Motor Learning Across Different Non-invasive Brain Stimulation Paradigms Shows No Consistent Modulations

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Virginia Lopez-Alonso

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS has been widely explored as a way to safely modulate brain activity and alter human performance for nearly three decades. Research using NIBS has grown exponentially within the last decade with promising results across a variety of clinical and healthy populations. However, recent work has shown high inter-individual variability and a lack of reproducibility of previous results. Here, we conducted a small preliminary study to explore the effects of three of the most commonly used excitatory NIBS paradigms over the primary motor cortex (M1 on motor learning (Sequential Visuomotor Isometric Pinch Force Tracking Task and secondarily relate changes in motor learning to changes in cortical excitability (MEP amplitude and SICI. We compared anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS, paired associative stimulation (PAS25, and intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS, along with a sham tDCS control condition. Stimulation was applied prior to motor learning. Participants (n = 28 were randomized into one of the four groups and were trained on a skilled motor task. Motor learning was measured immediately after training (online, 1 day after training (consolidation, and 1 week after training (retention. We did not find consistent differential effects on motor learning or cortical excitability across groups. Within the boundaries of our small sample sizes, we then assessed effect sizes across the NIBS groups that could help power future studies. These results, which require replication with larger samples, are consistent with previous reports of small and variable effect sizes of these interventions on motor learning.

A Preliminary Comparison of Motor Learning Across Different Non-invasive Brain Stimulation Paradigms Shows No Consistent Modulations

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Lopez-Alonso, Virginia; Liew, Sook-Lei; Fernández del Olmo, Miguel; Cheeran, Binith; Sandrini, Marco; Abe, Mitsunari; Cohen, Leonardo G.

2018-01-01

Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) has been widely explored as a way to safely modulate brain activity and alter human performance for nearly three decades. Research using NIBS has grown exponentially within the last decade with promising results across a variety of clinical and healthy populations. However, recent work has shown high inter-individual variability and a lack of reproducibility of previous results. Here, we conducted a small preliminary study to explore the effects of three of the most commonly used excitatory NIBS paradigms over the primary motor cortex (M1) on motor learning (Sequential Visuomotor Isometric Pinch Force Tracking Task) and secondarily relate changes in motor learning to changes in cortical excitability (MEP amplitude and SICI). We compared anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), paired associative stimulation (PAS25), and intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS), along with a sham tDCS control condition. Stimulation was applied prior to motor learning. Participants (n = 28) were randomized into one of the four groups and were trained on a skilled motor task. Motor learning was measured immediately after training (online), 1 day after training (consolidation), and 1 week after training (retention). We did not find consistent differential effects on motor learning or cortical excitability across groups. Within the boundaries of our small sample sizes, we then assessed effect sizes across the NIBS groups that could help power future studies. These results, which require replication with larger samples, are consistent with previous reports of small and variable effect sizes of these interventions on motor learning. PMID:29740271

Motor skill learning and offline-changes in TGA patients with acute hippocampal CA1 lesions.

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Döhring, Juliane; Stoldt, Anne; Witt, Karsten; Schönfeld, Robby; Deuschl, Günther; Born, Jan; Bartsch, Thorsten

2017-04-01

Learning and the formation of memory are reflected in various memory systems in the human brain such as the hippocampus based declarative memory system and the striatum-cortex based system involved in motor sequence learning. It is a matter of debate how both memory systems interact in humans during learning and consolidation and how this interaction is influenced by sleep. We studied the effect of an acute dysfunction of hippocampal CA1 neurons on the acquisition (on-line condition) and off-line changes of a motor skill in patients with a transient global amnesia (TGA). Sixteen patients (68 ± 4.4 yrs) were studied in the acute phase and during follow-up using a declarative and procedural test, and were compared to controls. Acute TGA patients displayed profound deficits in all declarative memory functions. During the acute amnestic phase, patients were able to acquire the motor skill task reflected by increasing finger tapping speed across the on-line condition, albeit to a lesser degree than during follow-up or compared to controls. Retrieval two days later indicated a greater off-line gain in motor speed in patients than controls. Moreover, this gain in motor skill performance was negatively correlated to the declarative learning deficit. Our results suggest a differential interaction between procedural and declarative memory systems during acquisition and consolidation of motor sequences in older humans. During acquisition, hippocampal dysfunction attenuates fast learning and thus unmasks the slow and rigid learning curve of striatum-based procedural learning. The stronger gains in the post-consolidation condition in motor skill in CA1 lesioned patients indicate a facilitated consolidation process probably occurring during sleep, and suggest a competitive interaction between the memory systems. These findings might be a reflection of network reorganization and plasticity in older humans and in the presence of CA1 hippocampal pathology. Copyright © 2016

Reinforcement learning of targeted movement in a spiking neuronal model of motor cortex.

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George L Chadderdon

Full Text Available Sensorimotor control has traditionally been considered from a control theory perspective, without relation to neurobiology. In contrast, here we utilized a spiking-neuron model of motor cortex and trained it to perform a simple movement task, which consisted of rotating a single-joint "forearm" to a target. Learning was based on a reinforcement mechanism analogous to that of the dopamine system. This provided a global reward or punishment signal in response to decreasing or increasing distance from hand to target, respectively. Output was partially driven by Poisson motor babbling, creating stochastic movements that could then be shaped by learning. The virtual forearm consisted of a single segment rotated around an elbow joint, controlled by flexor and extensor muscles. The model consisted of 144 excitatory and 64 inhibitory event-based neurons, each with AMPA, NMDA, and GABA synapses. Proprioceptive cell input to this model encoded the 2 muscle lengths. Plasticity was only enabled in feedforward connections between input and output excitatory units, using spike-timing-dependent eligibility traces for synaptic credit or blame assignment. Learning resulted from a global 3-valued signal: reward (+1, no learning (0, or punishment (-1, corresponding to phasic increases, lack of change, or phasic decreases of dopaminergic cell firing, respectively. Successful learning only occurred when both reward and punishment were enabled. In this case, 5 target angles were learned successfully within 180 s of simulation time, with a median error of 8 degrees. Motor babbling allowed exploratory learning, but decreased the stability of the learned behavior, since the hand continued moving after reaching the target. Our model demonstrated that a global reinforcement signal, coupled with eligibility traces for synaptic plasticity, can train a spiking sensorimotor network to perform goal-directed motor behavior.

Reinforcement learning of targeted movement in a spiking neuronal model of motor cortex.

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Chadderdon, George L; Neymotin, Samuel A; Kerr, Cliff C; Lytton, William W

2012-01-01

Sensorimotor control has traditionally been considered from a control theory perspective, without relation to neurobiology. In contrast, here we utilized a spiking-neuron model of motor cortex and trained it to perform a simple movement task, which consisted of rotating a single-joint "forearm" to a target. Learning was based on a reinforcement mechanism analogous to that of the dopamine system. This provided a global reward or punishment signal in response to decreasing or increasing distance from hand to target, respectively. Output was partially driven by Poisson motor babbling, creating stochastic movements that could then be shaped by learning. The virtual forearm consisted of a single segment rotated around an elbow joint, controlled by flexor and extensor muscles. The model consisted of 144 excitatory and 64 inhibitory event-based neurons, each with AMPA, NMDA, and GABA synapses. Proprioceptive cell input to this model encoded the 2 muscle lengths. Plasticity was only enabled in feedforward connections between input and output excitatory units, using spike-timing-dependent eligibility traces for synaptic credit or blame assignment. Learning resulted from a global 3-valued signal: reward (+1), no learning (0), or punishment (-1), corresponding to phasic increases, lack of change, or phasic decreases of dopaminergic cell firing, respectively. Successful learning only occurred when both reward and punishment were enabled. In this case, 5 target angles were learned successfully within 180 s of simulation time, with a median error of 8 degrees. Motor babbling allowed exploratory learning, but decreased the stability of the learned behavior, since the hand continued moving after reaching the target. Our model demonstrated that a global reinforcement signal, coupled with eligibility traces for synaptic plasticity, can train a spiking sensorimotor network to perform goal-directed motor behavior.

Motor learning induces plastic changes in Purkinje cell dendritic spines in the rat cerebellum.

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González-Tapia, D; González-Ramírez, M M; Vázquez-Hernández, N; González-Burgos, I

2017-12-14

The paramedian lobule of the cerebellum is involved in learning to correctly perform motor skills through practice. Dendritic spines are dynamic structures that regulate excitatory synaptic stimulation. We studied plastic changes occurring in the dendritic spines of Purkinje cells from the paramedian lobule of rats during motor learning. Adult male rats were trained over a 6-day period using an acrobatic motor learning paradigm; the density and type of dendritic spines were determined every day during the study period using a modified version of the Golgi method. The learning curve reflected a considerable decrease in the number of errors made by rats as the training period progressed. We observed more dendritic spines on days 2 and 6, particularly more thin spines on days 1, 3, and 6, fewer mushroom spines on day 3, fewer stubby spines on day 1, and more thick spines on days 4 and 6. The initial stage of motor learning may be associated with fast processing of the underlying synaptic information combined with an apparent "silencing" of memory consolidation processes, based on the regulation of the neuronal excitability. Copyright © 2017 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Intact Acquisition and Short-Term Retention of Non-Motor Procedural Learning in Parkinson's Disease.

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Muriel T N Panouillères

Full Text Available Procedural learning is a form of memory where people implicitly acquire a skill through repeated practice. People with Parkinson's disease (PD have been found to acquire motor adaptation, a form of motor procedural learning, similarly to healthy older adults but they have deficits in long-term retention. A similar pattern of normal learning on initial exposure with a deficit in retention seen on subsequent days has also been seen in mirror-reading, a form of non-motor procedural learning. It is a well-studied fact that disrupting sleep will impair the consolidation of procedural memories. Given the prevalence of sleep disturbances in PD, the lack of retention on following days seen in these studies could simply be a side effect of this well-known symptom of PD. Because of this, we wondered whether people with PD would present with deficits in the short-term retention of a non-motor procedural learning task, when the test of retention was done the same day as the initial exposure. The aim of the present study was then to investigate acquisition and retention in the immediate short term of cognitive procedural learning using the mirror-reading task in people with PD. This task involved two conditions: one where triads of mirror-inverted words were always new that allowed assessing the learning of mirror-reading skill and another one where some of the triads were presented repeatedly during the experiment that allowed assessing the word-specific learning. People with PD both ON and OFF their normal medication were compared to healthy older adults and young adults. Participants were re-tested 50 minutes break after initial exposure to probe for short-term retention. The results of this study show that all groups of participants acquired and retained the two skills (mirror-reading and word-specific similarly. These results suggest that neither healthy ageing nor the degeneration within the basal ganglia that occurs in PD does affect the mechanisms

Motor learning in animal models of Parkinson's disease: Aberrant synaptic plasticity in the motor cortex.

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Xu, Tonghui; Wang, Shaofang; Lalchandani, Rupa R; Ding, Jun B

2017-04-01

In Parkinson's disease (PD), dopamine depletion causes major changes in the brain, resulting in the typical cardinal motor features of the disease. PD neuropathology has been restricted to postmortem examinations, which are limited to only a single time of PD progression. Models of PD in which dopamine tone in the brain is chemically or physically disrupted are valuable tools in understanding the mechanisms of the disease. The basal ganglia have been well studied in the context of PD, and circuit changes in response to dopamine loss have been linked to the motor dysfunctions in PD. However, the etiology of the cognitive dysfunctions that are comorbid in PD patients has remained unclear until now. In this article, we review recent studies exploring how dopamine depletion affects the motor cortex at the synaptic level. In particular, we highlight our recent findings on abnormal spine dynamics in the motor cortex of PD mouse models through in vivo time-lapse imaging and motor skill behavior assays. In combination with previous studies, a role of the motor cortex in skill learning and the impairment of this ability with the loss of dopamine are becoming more apparent. Taken together, we conclude with a discussion on the potential role for the motor cortex in PD, with the possibility of targeting the motor cortex for future PD therapeutics. © 2017 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society. © 2017 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

Haptic Human-Human Interaction Through a Compliant Connection Does Not Improve Motor Learning in a Force Field

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Beckers, Niek; Keemink, Arvid; van Asseldonk, Edwin; van der Kooij, Herman; Prattichizzo, Domenico; Shinoda, Hiroyuki; Tan, Hong Z.; Ruffaldi, Emanuele; Frisoli, Antonio

2018-01-01

Humans have a natural ability to haptically interact with other humans, for instance during physically assisting a child to learn how to ride a bicycle. A recent study has shown that haptic human-human interaction can improve individual motor performance and motor learning rate while learning to

Development of Young Adults' Fine Motor Skills when Learning to Play Percussion Instruments

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Gzibovskis, Talis; Marnauza, Mara

2012-01-01

When playing percussion instruments, the main activity is done with the help of a motion or motor skills; to perform it, developed fine motor skills are necessary: the speed and precision of fingers, hands and palms. The aim of the research was to study and test the development of young adults' fine motor skills while learning to play percussion…

Upper Extremity Motor Learning among Individuals with Parkinson's Disease: A Meta-Analysis Evaluating Movement Time in Simple Tasks

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K. Felix

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Motor learning has been found to occur in the rehabilitation of individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD. Through repetitive structured practice of motor tasks, individuals show improved performance, confirming that motor learning has probably taken place. Although a number of studies have been completed evaluating motor learning in people with PD, the sample sizes were small and the improvements were variable. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to determine the ability of people with PD to learn motor tasks. Studies which measured movement time in upper extremity reaching tasks and met the inclusion criteria were included in the analysis. Results of the meta-analysis indicated that people with PD and neurologically healthy controls both demonstrated motor learning, characterized by a decrease in movement time during upper extremity movements. Movement time improvements were greater in the control group than in individuals with PD. These results support the findings that the practice of upper extremity reaching tasks is beneficial in reducing movement time in persons with PD and has important implications for rehabilitation.

Implicit sequence-specific motor learning after sub-cortical stroke is associated with increased prefrontal brain activations: An fMRI study

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Meehan, Sean K.; Randhawa, Bubblepreet; Wessel, Brenda; Boyd, Lara A.

2010-01-01

Implicit motor learning is preserved after stroke, but how the brain compensates for damage to facilitate learning is unclear. We used a random effects analysis to determine how stroke alters patterns of brain activity during implicit sequence-specific motor learning as compared to general improvements in motor control. Nine healthy participants and 9 individuals with chronic, right focal sub-cortical stroke performed a continuous joystick-based tracking task during an initial fMRI session, over 5 days of practice, and a retention test during a separate fMRI session. Sequence-specific implicit motor learning was differentiated from general improvements in motor control by comparing tracking performance on a novel, repeated tracking sequences during early practice and again at the retention test. Both groups demonstrated implicit sequence-specific motor learning at the retention test, yet substantial differences were apparent. At retention, healthy control participants demonstrated increased BOLD response in left dorsal premotor cortex (BA 6) but decreased BOLD response left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC; BA 9) during repeated sequence tracking. In contrast, at retention individuals with stroke did not show this reduction in DLPFC during repeated tracking. Instead implicit sequence-specific motor learning and general improvements in motor control were associated with increased BOLD response in the left middle frontal gyrus BA 8, regardless of sequence type after stroke. These data emphasize the potential importance of a prefrontal-based attentional network for implicit motor learning after stroke. The present study is the first to highlight the importance of the prefrontal cortex for implicit sequence-specific motor learning after stroke. PMID:20725908

The relationship between gross motor skills and academic achievement in children with learning disabilities

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Westendorp, Marieke; Hartman, Esther; Houwen, Suzanne; Smith, Joanne; Visscher, Chris

2011-01-01

The present study compared the gross motor skills of 7- to 12-year-old children with learning disabilities (n = 104) with those of age-matched typically developing children (n = 104) using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. Additionally, the specific relationships between subsets of gross motor

Relationships between academic performance, SES school type and perceptual-motor skills in first grade South African learners: NW-CHILD study

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Pienaar, A.E.; Barhorst, R.; Twisk, J.W.R.

2014-01-01

Background: Perceptual-motor skills contribute to a variety of basic learning skills associated with normal academic success. This study aimed to determine the relationship between academic performance and perceptual-motor skills in first grade South African learners and whether low SES

Attentional Focus in Motor Learning, the Feldenkrais Method, and Mindful Movement.

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Mattes, Josef

2016-08-01

The present paper discusses attentional focus in motor learning and performance from the point of view of mindful movement practices, taking as a starting point the Feldenkrais method. It is argued that earlier criticism of the Feldenkrais method (and thereby implicitly of mindful movement practices more generally) because of allegedly inappropriate attentional focus turns out to be unfounded in light of recent developments in the study of motor learning and performance. Conversely, the examples of the Feldenkrais method and Ki-Aikido are used to illustrate how both Western and Eastern (martial arts derived) mindful movement practices might benefit sports psychology. © The Author(s) 2016.

Synergetic motor control paradigm for optimizing energy efficiency of multijoint reaching via tacit learning.

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Hayashibe, Mitsuhiro; Shimoda, Shingo

2014-01-01

A human motor system can improve its behavior toward optimal movement. The skeletal system has more degrees of freedom than the task dimensions, which incurs an ill-posed problem. The multijoint system involves complex interaction torques between joints. To produce optimal motion in terms of energy consumption, the so-called cost function based optimization has been commonly used in previous works.Even if it is a fact that an optimal motor pattern is employed phenomenologically, there is no evidence that shows the existence of a physiological process that is similar to such a mathematical optimization in our central nervous system.In this study, we aim to find a more primitive computational mechanism with a modular configuration to realize adaptability and optimality without prior knowledge of system dynamics.We propose a novel motor control paradigm based on tacit learning with task space feedback. The motor command accumulation during repetitive environmental interactions, play a major role in the learning process. It is applied to a vertical cyclic reaching which involves complex interaction torques.We evaluated whether the proposed paradigm can learn how to optimize solutions with a 3-joint, planar biomechanical model. The results demonstrate that the proposed method was valid for acquiring motor synergy and resulted in energy efficient solutions for different load conditions. The case in feedback control is largely affected by the interaction torques. In contrast, the trajectory is corrected over time with tacit learning toward optimal solutions.Energy efficient solutions were obtained by the emergence of motor synergy. During learning, the contribution from feedforward controller is augmented and the one from the feedback controller is significantly minimized down to 12% for no load at hand, 16% for a 0.5 kg load condition.The proposed paradigm could provide an optimization process in redundant system with dynamic-model-free and cost-function-free approach.

Synergetic motor control paradigm for optimizing energy efficiency of multijoint reaching via tacit learning

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Hayashibe, Mitsuhiro; Shimoda, Shingo

2014-01-01

A human motor system can improve its behavior toward optimal movement. The skeletal system has more degrees of freedom than the task dimensions, which incurs an ill-posed problem. The multijoint system involves complex interaction torques between joints. To produce optimal motion in terms of energy consumption, the so-called cost function based optimization has been commonly used in previous works.Even if it is a fact that an optimal motor pattern is employed phenomenologically, there is no evidence that shows the existence of a physiological process that is similar to such a mathematical optimization in our central nervous system.In this study, we aim to find a more primitive computational mechanism with a modular configuration to realize adaptability and optimality without prior knowledge of system dynamics.We propose a novel motor control paradigm based on tacit learning with task space feedback. The motor command accumulation during repetitive environmental interactions, play a major role in the learning process. It is applied to a vertical cyclic reaching which involves complex interaction torques.We evaluated whether the proposed paradigm can learn how to optimize solutions with a 3-joint, planar biomechanical model. The results demonstrate that the proposed method was valid for acquiring motor synergy and resulted in energy efficient solutions for different load conditions. The case in feedback control is largely affected by the interaction torques. In contrast, the trajectory is corrected over time with tacit learning toward optimal solutions.Energy efficient solutions were obtained by the emergence of motor synergy. During learning, the contribution from feedforward controller is augmented and the one from the feedback controller is significantly minimized down to 12% for no load at hand, 16% for a 0.5 kg load condition.The proposed paradigm could provide an optimization process in redundant system with dynamic-model-free and cost-function-free approach

Towards Machine Learning of Motor Skills

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Peters, Jan; Schaal, Stefan; Schölkopf, Bernhard

Autonomous robots that can adapt to novel situations has been a long standing vision of robotics, artificial intelligence, and cognitive sciences. Early approaches to this goal during the heydays of artificial intelligence research in the late 1980s, however, made it clear that an approach purely based on reasoning or human insights would not be able to model all the perceptuomotor tasks that a robot should fulfill. Instead, new hope was put in the growing wake of machine learning that promised fully adaptive control algorithms which learn both by observation and trial-and-error. However, to date, learning techniques have yet to fulfill this promise as only few methods manage to scale into the high-dimensional domains of manipulator robotics, or even the new upcoming trend of humanoid robotics, and usually scaling was only achieved in precisely pre-structured domains. In this paper, we investigate the ingredients for a general approach to motor skill learning in order to get one step closer towards human-like performance. For doing so, we study two major components for such an approach, i.e., firstly, a theoretically well-founded general approach to representing the required control structures for task representation and execution and, secondly, appropriate learning algorithms which can be applied in this setting.

Should Rehabilitation Specialists Use External Focus Instructions When Motor Learning Is Fostered? A Systematic Review

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Tanja H. Kakebeeke

2013-06-01

Full Text Available According to the Constrained Action Hypothesis, motor learning is believed to be more efficient when an external focus (EF of motor control is given to the performer instead of an internal focus (IF of motor control. This systematic review investigated whether findings of studies focusing on the Constrained Action Hypothesis may be transferred to rehabilitation settings by assessing the methodological quality and risk of bias (ROB of available randomized controlled trials (RCTs. Of the 18 selected reports representing 20 RCTs, the methodological quality was rather low, and the majority of the reports appeared to have a high ROB. The 18 reports included 68 patients tested in a rehabilitation setting and 725 healthy participants. The time scale of the motor learning processes presented in the selected articles was heterogenic. The results of this systematic review indicate that the assumption that an external focus of control is to be preferred during motor learning processes is not sufficiently substantiated. The level of available evidence is not large enough to warrant transfer to patient populations (including children and the elderly and raises doubts about research with healthy individuals. This implies that based on the methodology used so far, there seems to be insufficient evidence for the superiority of an external focus of control, neither in healthy individuals nor in clinical populations. The relationship between EF instructions and motor learning research and its effect in both patient rehabilitation settings and healthy populations requires further exploration. Future adequately powered studies with low ROB and with rehabilitation populations that are followed over extended time periods should, therefore, be performed to substantiate or refute the assumption of the superiority of an EF in motor learning.

Effects of visual feedback-induced variability on motor learning of handrim wheelchair propulsion.

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Leving, Marika T; Vegter, Riemer J K; Hartog, Johanneke; Lamoth, Claudine J C; de Groot, Sonja; van der Woude, Lucas H V

2015-01-01

It has been suggested that a higher intra-individual variability benefits the motor learning of wheelchair propulsion. The present study evaluated whether feedback-induced variability on wheelchair propulsion technique variables would also enhance the motor learning process. Learning was operationalized as an improvement in mechanical efficiency and propulsion technique, which are thought to be closely related during the learning process. 17 Participants received visual feedback-based practice (feedback group) and 15 participants received regular practice (natural learning group). Both groups received equal practice dose of 80 min, over 3 weeks, at 0.24 W/kg at a treadmill speed of 1.11 m/s. To compare both groups the pre- and post-test were performed without feedback. The feedback group received real-time visual feedback on seven propulsion variables with instruction to manipulate the presented variable to achieve the highest possible variability (1st 4-min block) and optimize it in the prescribed direction (2nd 4-min block). To increase motor exploration the participants were unaware of the exact variable they received feedback on. Energy consumption and the propulsion technique variables with their respective coefficient of variation were calculated to evaluate the amount of intra-individual variability. The feedback group, which practiced with higher intra-individual variability, improved the propulsion technique between pre- and post-test to the same extent as the natural learning group. Mechanical efficiency improved between pre- and post-test in the natural learning group but remained unchanged in the feedback group. These results suggest that feedback-induced variability inhibited the improvement in mechanical efficiency. Moreover, since both groups improved propulsion technique but only the natural learning group improved mechanical efficiency, it can be concluded that the improvement in mechanical efficiency and propulsion technique do not always appear

Effects of visual feedback-induced variability on motor learning of handrim wheelchair propulsion.

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Marika T Leving

Full Text Available It has been suggested that a higher intra-individual variability benefits the motor learning of wheelchair propulsion. The present study evaluated whether feedback-induced variability on wheelchair propulsion technique variables would also enhance the motor learning process. Learning was operationalized as an improvement in mechanical efficiency and propulsion technique, which are thought to be closely related during the learning process.17 Participants received visual feedback-based practice (feedback group and 15 participants received regular practice (natural learning group. Both groups received equal practice dose of 80 min, over 3 weeks, at 0.24 W/kg at a treadmill speed of 1.11 m/s. To compare both groups the pre- and post-test were performed without feedback. The feedback group received real-time visual feedback on seven propulsion variables with instruction to manipulate the presented variable to achieve the highest possible variability (1st 4-min block and optimize it in the prescribed direction (2nd 4-min block. To increase motor exploration the participants were unaware of the exact variable they received feedback on. Energy consumption and the propulsion technique variables with their respective coefficient of variation were calculated to evaluate the amount of intra-individual variability.The feedback group, which practiced with higher intra-individual variability, improved the propulsion technique between pre- and post-test to the same extent as the natural learning group. Mechanical efficiency improved between pre- and post-test in the natural learning group but remained unchanged in the feedback group.These results suggest that feedback-induced variability inhibited the improvement in mechanical efficiency. Moreover, since both groups improved propulsion technique but only the natural learning group improved mechanical efficiency, it can be concluded that the improvement in mechanical efficiency and propulsion technique do not

Toward Personalized Vibrotactile Support When Learning Motor Skills

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Olga C. Santos

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Personal tracking technologies allow sensing of the physical activity carried out by people. Data flows collected with these sensors are calling for big data techniques to support data collection, integration and analysis, aimed to provide personalized support when learning motor skills through varied multisensorial feedback. In particular, this paper focuses on vibrotactile feedback as it can take advantage of the haptic sense when supporting the physical interaction to be learnt. Despite each user having different needs, when providing this vibrotactile support, personalization issues are hardly taken into account, but the same response is delivered to each and every user of the system. The challenge here is how to design vibrotactile user interfaces for adaptive learning of motor skills. TORMES methodology is proposed to facilitate the elicitation of this personalized support. The resulting systems are expected to dynamically adapt to each individual user’s needs by monitoring, comparing and, when appropriate, correcting in a personalized way how the user should move when practicing a predefined movement, for instance, when performing a sport technique or playing a musical instrument.

Basic life support and children with profound and multiple learning disabilities.

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Cash, Stefan; Shinnick-Page, Andrea

2008-10-01

Nurses and other carers of people with learning disabilities must be able to manage choking events and perform basic life support effectively. UK guidelines for assessment of airway obstruction and for resuscitation do not take account of the specific needs of people with profound multiple learning disability. For example, they fail to account for inhibited gag and coughing reflexes, limited body movements or chest deformity. There are no national guidelines to assist in clinical decisions and training for nurses and carers. Basic life support training for students of learning disability nursing at Birmingham City University is supplemented to address these issues. The authors ask whether such training should be provided for all nurses including those caring for children and young people. They also invite comment and discussion on questions related to chest compression and training in basic life support for a person in a seated position.

Context-dependent memory decay is evidence of effort minimization in motor learning: a computational study

OpenAIRE

Takiyama, Ken

2015-01-01

Recent theoretical models suggest that motor learning includes at least two processes: error minimization and memory decay. While learning a novel movement, a motor memory of the movement is gradually formed to minimize the movement error between the desired and actual movements in each training trial, but the memory is slightly forgotten in each trial. The learning effects of error minimization trained with a certain movement are partially available in other non-trained movements, and this t...

Motor-Enriched Learning Activities Can Improve Mathematical Performance in Preadolescent Children

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Beck, Mikkel M.; Lind, Rune R.; Geertsen, Svend S.; Ritz, Christian; Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper; Wienecke, Jacob

2016-01-01

Objective: An emerging field of research indicates that physical activity can benefit cognitive functions and academic achievements in children. However, less is known about how academic achievements can benefit from specific types of motor activities (e.g., fine and gross) integrated into learning activities. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate whether fine or gross motor activity integrated into math lessons (i.e., motor-enrichment) could improve children's mathematical performance. Methods: A 6-week within school cluster-randomized intervention study investigated the effects of motor-enriched mathematical teaching in Danish preadolescent children (n = 165, age = 7.5 ± 0.02 years). Three groups were included: a control group (CON), which received non-motor enriched conventional mathematical teaching, a fine motor math group (FMM) and a gross motor math group (GMM), which received mathematical teaching enriched with fine and gross motor activity, respectively. The children were tested before (T0), immediately after (T1) and 8 weeks after the intervention (T2). A standardized mathematical test (50 tasks) was used to evaluate mathematical performance. Furthermore, it was investigated whether motor-enriched math was accompanied by different effects in low and normal math performers. Additionally, the study investigated the potential contribution of cognitive functions and motor skills on mathematical performance. Results: All groups improved their mathematical performance from T0 to T1. However, from T0 to T1, the improvement was significantly greater in GMM compared to FMM (1.87 ± 0.71 correct answers) (p = 0.02). At T2 no significant differences in mathematical performance were observed. A subgroup analysis revealed that normal math-performers benefitted from GMM compared to both CON 1.78 ± 0.73 correct answers (p = 0.04) and FMM 2.14 ± 0.72 correct answers (p = 0.008). These effects were not observed in low math-performers. The effects were partly

The Effects of Coordination and Movement Education on Pre School Children's Basic Motor Skills Improvement

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Altinkök, Mustafa

2016-01-01

This research was conducted for the purpose of analyzing the effect of the movement education program through a 12-week-coordination on the development of basic motor movements of pre-school children. A total of 78 students of pre-school period, 38 of whom were in the experimental group and 40 of whom were in the control group, were incorporated…

Variability and practice load in motor learning. [Variabilidad y carga de práctica en el aprendizaje motor].

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Francisco Javier Moreno

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Previous studies have pointed out the convenience of taking the characteristics of the skill to be learned and the intrinsic characteristics of the learners into account when designing practice tasks. Nevertheless, few studies have manipulated the amount of variable practice. The ability to adapt, as an inherent feature of biological systems, can be an adequate framework to explain and predict motor learning processes. This paper is based on adaption processes explained under the theory of allostasis and the general adaption syndrome and shares the background of the Dynamic Systems Theory, to propose the concept of practice load as a useful tool to quantify variability of practice in motor learning. From this standpoint, the conditions of variable practice are reviewed to be a stimulus in an adequate magnitude and direction to take the learner to a higher level of performance and hence to optimize motor learning. Resumen Muchos autores han recomendado la conveniencia de ajustar los niveles de práctica variable teniendo en cuenta las características de la tarea y la variabilidad intrínseca que muestra el aprendiz en la ejecución de la habilidad. Sin embargo, no son numerosos los trabajos que han manipulado varios niveles de cantidad de variabilidad al practicar. La capacidad de adaptación, como rasgo de los sistemas biológicos puede resultar un marco adecuado para afrontar esta cuestión. En este trabajo, apoyado en los procesos de adaptación explicados bajo las teorías de alostasis y el síndrome general de adaptación (GAS, y bajo presupuestos compartidos por la Teoría General de Sistemas Dinámicos, propondrá el concepto de carga de práctica como una herramienta para cuantificar la práctica en el aprendizaje motor. Bajo esta perspectiva se revisan las condiciones en las que la práctica en variabilidad debe modularse, para suponer una estimulación que facilite al aprendiz una adaptación a un nivel de rendimiento superior y con

Neurotoxicity induced by alkyl nitrites: Impairment in learning/memory and motor coordination.

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Cha, Hye Jin; Kim, Yun Ji; Jeon, Seo Young; Kim, Young-Hoon; Shin, Jisoon; Yun, Jaesuk; Han, Kyoungmoon; Park, Hye-Kyung; Kim, Hyung Soo

2016-04-21

Although alkyl nitrites are used as recreational drugs, there is only little research data regarding their effects on the central nervous system including their neurotoxicity. This study investigated the neurotoxicity of three representative alkyl nitrites (isobutyl nitrite, isoamyl nitrite, and butyl nitrite), and whether it affected learning/memory function and motor coordination in rodents. Morris water maze test was performed in mice after administrating the mice with varying doses of the substances in two different injection schedules of memory acquisition and memory retention. A rota-rod test was then performed in rats. All tested alkyl nitrites lowered the rodents' capacity for learning and memory, as assessed by both the acquisition and retention tests. The results of the rota-rod test showed that isobutyl nitrite in particular impaired motor coordination in chronically treated rats. The mice chronically injected with isoamyl nitrite also showed impaired function, while butyl nitrite had no significant effect. The results of the water maze test suggest that alkyl nitrites may impair learning and memory. Additionally, isoamyl nitrite affected the rodents' motor coordination ability. Collectively, our findings suggest that alkyl nitrites may induce neurotoxicity, especially on the aspect of learning and memory function. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Acoustic noise improves motor learning in spontaneously hypertensive rats, a rat model of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

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Söderlund, Göran B W; Eckernäs, Daniel; Holmblad, Olof; Bergquist, Filip

2015-03-01

The spontaneously hypertensive (SH) rat model of ADHD displays impaired motor learning. We used this characteristic to study if the recently described acoustic noise benefit in learning in children with ADHD is also observed in the SH rat model. SH rats and a Wistar control strain were trained in skilled reach and rotarod running under either ambient noise or in 75 dBA white noise. In other animals the effect of methylphenidate (MPH) on motor learning was assessed with the same paradigms. To determine if acoustic noise influenced spontaneous motor activity, the effect of acoustic noise was also determined in the open field activity paradigm. We confirm impaired motor learning in the SH rat compared to Wistar SCA controls. Acoustic noise restored motor learning in SH rats learning the Montoya reach test and the rotarod test, but had no influence on learning in Wistar rats. Noise had no effect on open field activity in SH rats, but increased corner time in Wistar. MPH completely restored rotarod learning and performance but did not improve skilled reach in the SH rat. It is suggested that the acoustic noise benefit previously reported in children with ADHD is shared by the SH rat model of ADHD, and the effect is in the same range as that of stimulant treatment. Acoustic noise may be useful as a non-pharmacological alternative to stimulant medication in the treatment of ADHD. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Construction of scientific knowledge in motor learning: history and perspectives

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Cláudio Márcio Oliveira

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The present work aims to inquire the construction of scientific knowledge in the motor learning area. A necessary historical retrospective on this study field considers the epistemology of Francis Bacon, Karl Popper, Paul Feyerabend and Thomas Kuhn. Bacon and Popper’s conceptions show to be inadequate to explain the scientific progress of motor learning. Feyerabend’s ideas are also inadequate as they lack coherency, even though in some aspects they are adequate. The Kuhnian approach, however, seems more satisfactory, particularly with regard to the notion of “crisis of paradigm” between the ecological approach and the information-processing approach. A critique is offered from human and social sciences perspective. This leads us to reflect on the possible growth of a new paradigm and consider scientific practice as a social practice.

Motor learning in healthy humans is associated to gray matter changes: a tensor-based morphometry study.

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Filippi, Massimo; Ceccarelli, Antonia; Pagani, Elisabetta; Gatti, Roberto; Rossi, Alice; Stefanelli, Laura; Falini, Andrea; Comi, Giancarlo; Rocca, Maria Assunta

2010-04-15

We used tensor-based morphometry (TBM) to: 1) map gray matter (GM) volume changes associated with motor learning in young healthy individuals; 2) evaluate if GM changes persist three months after cessation of motor training; and 3) assess whether the use of different schemes of motor training during the learning phase could lead to volume modifications of specific GM structures. From 31 healthy subjects, motor functional assessment and brain 3D T1-weighted sequence were obtained: before motor training (time 0), at the end of training (two weeks) (time 2), and three months later (time 3). Fifteen subjects (group A) were trained with goal-directed motor sequences, and 16 (group B) with non purposeful motor actions of the right hand. At time 1 vs. time 0, the whole sample of subjects had GM volume increase in regions of the temporo-occipital lobes, inferior parietal lobule (IPL) and middle frontal gyrus, while at time 2 vs. time 1, an increased GM volume in the middle temporal gyrus was seen. At time 1 vs. time 0, compared to group B, group A had a GM volume increase of the hippocampi, while the opposite comparison showed greater GM volume increase in the IPL and insula in group B vs. group A. Motor learning results in structural GM changes of different brain areas which are part of specific neuronal networks and tend to persist after training is stopped. The scheme applied during the learning phase influences the pattern of such structural changes.

Motor learning in healthy humans is associated to gray matter changes: a tensor-based morphometry study.

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Massimo Filippi

Full Text Available We used tensor-based morphometry (TBM to: 1 map gray matter (GM volume changes associated with motor learning in young healthy individuals; 2 evaluate if GM changes persist three months after cessation of motor training; and 3 assess whether the use of different schemes of motor training during the learning phase could lead to volume modifications of specific GM structures. From 31 healthy subjects, motor functional assessment and brain 3D T1-weighted sequence were obtained: before motor training (time 0, at the end of training (two weeks (time 2, and three months later (time 3. Fifteen subjects (group A were trained with goal-directed motor sequences, and 16 (group B with non purposeful motor actions of the right hand. At time 1 vs. time 0, the whole sample of subjects had GM volume increase in regions of the temporo-occipital lobes, inferior parietal lobule (IPL and middle frontal gyrus, while at time 2 vs. time 1, an increased GM volume in the middle temporal gyrus was seen. At time 1 vs. time 0, compared to group B, group A had a GM volume increase of the hippocampi, while the opposite comparison showed greater GM volume increase in the IPL and insula in group B vs. group A. Motor learning results in structural GM changes of different brain areas which are part of specific neuronal networks and tend to persist after training is stopped. The scheme applied during the learning phase influences the pattern of such structural changes.

Working Memory Capacity Limits Motor Learning When Implementing Multiple Instructions

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Tim Buszard

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Although it is generally accepted that certain practice conditions can place large demands on working memory (WM when performing and learning a motor skill, the influence that WM capacity has on the acquisition of motor skills remains unsubstantiated. This study examined the role of WM capacity in a motor skill practice context that promoted WM involvement through the provision of explicit instructions. A cohort of 90 children aged 8 to 10 years were assessed on measures of WM capacity and attention. Children who scored in the lowest and highest thirds on the WM tasks were allocated to lower WM capacity (n = 24 and higher WM capacity (n = 24 groups, respectively. The remaining 42 participants did not participate in the motor task. The motor task required children to practice basketball shooting for 240 trials in blocks of 20 shots, with pre- and post-tests occurring before and after the intervention. A retention test was administered 1 week after the post-test. Prior to every practice block, children were provided with five explicit instructions that were specific to the technique of shooting a basketball. Results revealed that the higher WM capacity group displayed consistent improvements from pre- to post-test and through to the retention test, while the opposite effect occurred in the lower WM capacity group. This implies that the explicit instructions had a negative influence on learning by the lower WM capacity children. Results are discussed in relation to strategy selection for dealing with instructions and the role of attention control.

Reliability of the Motor Learning Strategy Rating Instrument for Children and Youth with Acquired Brain Injury

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Kamath, Trishna; Pfeifer, Megan; Banerjee-Guenette, Priyanka; Hunter, Theresa; Ito, Julia; Salbach, Nancy M.; Wright, Virginia; Levac, Danielle

2012-01-01

Purpose: To evaluate reliability and feasibility of the Motor Learning Strategy Rating Instrument (MLSRI) in children with acquired brain injury (ABI). The MLSRI quantifies the extent to which motor learning strategies (MLS) are used within physiotherapy (PT) interventions. Methods: PT sessions conducted by ABI team physiotherapists with a…

No association of the BDNF val66met polymorphism with implicit associative vocabulary and motor learning.

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Nils Freundlieb

Full Text Available Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF has been suggested to play a major role in plasticity, neurogenesis and learning in the adult brain. The BDNF gene contains a common val66met polymorphism associated with decreased activity-dependent excretion of BDNF and a potential influence on behaviour, more specifically, on motor learning. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of the BDNF val66met polymorphism on short-term implicit associative learning and whether its influence is cognitive domain-specific (motor vs. language. A sample of 38 young healthy participants was genotyped, screened for background and neuropsychological differences, and tested with two associative implicit learning paradigms in two different cognitive domains, i.e., motor and vocabulary learning. Subjects performed the serial reaction time task (SRTT to determine implicit motor learning and a recently established associative vocabulary learning task (AVL for implicit learning of action and object words. To determine the influence of the BDNF polymorphism on domain-specific implicit learning, behavioural improvements in the two tasks were compared between val/val (n = 22 and met carriers (val/met: n = 15 and met/met: n = 1. There was no evidence for an impact of the BDNF val66met polymorphism on the behavioural outcome in implicit short-term learning paradigms in young healthy subjects. Whether this polymorphism plays a relevant role in long-term training paradigms or in subjects with impaired neuronal plasticity or reduced learning capacity, such as aged individuals, demented patients or patients with brain lesions, has to be determined in future studies.

Emergence of motor synergy in vertical reaching task via tacit learning.

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Hayashibe, Mitsuhiro; Shimoda, Shingo

2013-01-01

The dynamics of multijoint limbs often causes complex dynamic interaction torques which are the inertial effect of other joints motion. It is known that Cerebellum takes important role in a motor learning by developing the internal model. In this paper, we propose a novel computational control paradigm in vertical reaching task which involves the management of interaction torques and gravitational effect. The obtained results demonstrate that the proposed method is valid for acquiring motor synergy in the system with actuation redundancy and resulted in the energy efficient solutions. It is highlighted that the tacit learning in vertical reaching task can bring computational adaptability and optimality with model-free and cost-function-free approach differently from previous studies.

The Relationship between Gross Motor Skills and Academic Achievement in Children with Learning Disabilities

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Westendorp, Marieke; Hartman, Esther; Houwen, Suzanne; Smith, Joanne; Visscher, Chris

2011-01-01

The present study compared the gross motor skills of 7- to 12-year-old children with learning disabilities (n = 104) with those of age-matched typically developing children (n = 104) using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. Additionally, the specific relationships between subsets of gross motor skills and academic performance in reading,…

Low-Back Pain Patients Learn to Adapt Motor Behavior with Adverse Secondary Consequences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Dieën, Jaap H.; Flor, Herta; Hodges, Paul W.

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT: We hypothesize that changes in motor behavior in individuals with low-back pain are adaptations aimed at minimizing the real or perceived risk of further pain. Through reinforcement learning, pain and subsequent adaptions result in less dynamic motor behavior, leading to increased loading

A neural network-based exploratory learning and motor planning system for co-robots

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Byron V Galbraith

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Collaborative robots, or co-robots, are semi-autonomous robotic agents designed to work alongside humans in shared workspaces. To be effective, co-robots require the ability to respond and adapt to dynamic scenarios encountered in natural environments. One way to achieve this is through exploratory learning, or learning by doing, an unsupervised method in which co-robots are able to build an internal model for motor planning and coordination based on real-time sensory inputs. In this paper, we present an adaptive neural network-based system for co-robot control that employs exploratory learning to achieve the coordinated motor planning needed to navigate toward, reach for, and grasp distant objects. To validate this system we used the 11-degrees-of-freedom RoPro Calliope mobile robot. Through motor babbling of its wheels and arm, the Calliope learned how to relate visual and proprioceptive information to achieve hand-eye-body coordination. By continually evaluating sensory inputs and externally provided goal directives, the Calliope was then able to autonomously select the appropriate wheel and joint velocities needed to perform its assigned task, such as following a moving target or retrieving an indicated object.

A neural network-based exploratory learning and motor planning system for co-robots.

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Galbraith, Byron V; Guenther, Frank H; Versace, Massimiliano

2015-01-01

Collaborative robots, or co-robots, are semi-autonomous robotic agents designed to work alongside humans in shared workspaces. To be effective, co-robots require the ability to respond and adapt to dynamic scenarios encountered in natural environments. One way to achieve this is through exploratory learning, or "learning by doing," an unsupervised method in which co-robots are able to build an internal model for motor planning and coordination based on real-time sensory inputs. In this paper, we present an adaptive neural network-based system for co-robot control that employs exploratory learning to achieve the coordinated motor planning needed to navigate toward, reach for, and grasp distant objects. To validate this system we used the 11-degrees-of-freedom RoPro Calliope mobile robot. Through motor babbling of its wheels and arm, the Calliope learned how to relate visual and proprioceptive information to achieve hand-eye-body coordination. By continually evaluating sensory inputs and externally provided goal directives, the Calliope was then able to autonomously select the appropriate wheel and joint velocities needed to perform its assigned task, such as following a moving target or retrieving an indicated object.

Age-related changes in consolidation of perceptual and muscle-based learning of motor skills

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Rebecca M. C. Spencer

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Improvements in motor sequence learning come about via goal-based learning of the sequence of visual stimuli and muscle-based learning of the sequence of movement responses. In young adults, consolidation of goal-based learning is observed after intervals of sleep but not following wake, whereas consolidation of muscle-based learning is greater following intervals with wake compared to sleep. While the benefit of sleep on motor sequence learning has been shown to decline with age, how sleep contributes to consolidation of goal-based versus muscle-based learning in older adults has not been disentangled. We trained young (n=62 and older (n=50 adults on a motor sequence learning task and re-tested learning following 12 hr intervals containing overnight sleep or daytime wake. To probe consolidation of goal-based learning of the sequence, half of the participants were re-tested in a configuration in which the stimulus sequence was the same but, due to a shift in stimulus-response mapping, the movement response sequence differed. To probe consolidation of muscle-based learning, the remaining participants were tested in a configuration in which the stimulus sequence was novel, but now the sequence of movements used for responding was unchanged. In young adults, there was a significant condition (goal-based v. muscle-based learning by interval (sleep v. wake interaction, F(1,58=6.58, p=.013: Goal-based learning tended to be greater following sleep compared to wake, t(29=1.47, p=.072. Conversely, muscle-based learning was greater following wake than sleep, t(29=2.11, p=.021. Unlike young adults, this interaction was not significant in older adults, F(1,46=.04, p=.84, nor was there a main effect of interval, F(1,46=1.14, p=.29. Thus, older adults do not preferentially consolidate sequence learning over wake or sleep.

Endurance exercise as an endogenous neuro-enhancement strategy to facilitate motor learning

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Marco eTaubert

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Endurance exercise improves cardiovascular and musculoskeletal function and may also increase the information processing capacities of the brain. Animal and human research from the past decade demonstrated widespread exercise effects on brain structure and function at the systems-, cellular- and molecular level of brain organization. These neurobiological mechanisms may explain the well-established positive influence of exercise on performance in various behavioural domains but also its contribution to improved skill learning and neuroplasticity. With respect to the latter, only few empirical and theoretical studies are available to date. The aim of this review is (i to summarize the existing neurobiological and behavioural evidence arguing for endurance exercise-induced improvements in motor learning and (ii to develop hypotheses about the mechanistic link between exercise and improved learning. We identify major knowledge gaps that need to be addressed by future research projects to advance our understanding of how exercise should be organized to optimize motor learning.

Stages in learning motor synergies: a view based on the equilibrium-point hypothesis.

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Latash, Mark L

2010-10-01

This review describes a novel view on stages in motor learning based on recent developments of the notion of synergies, the uncontrolled manifold hypothesis, and the equilibrium-point hypothesis (referent configuration) that allow to merge these notions into a single scheme of motor control. The principle of abundance and the principle of minimal final action form the foundation for analyses of natural motor actions performed by redundant sets of elements. Two main stages of motor learning are introduced corresponding to (1) discovery and strengthening of motor synergies stabilizing salient performance variable(s) and (2) their weakening when other aspects of motor performance are optimized. The first stage may be viewed as consisting of two steps, the elaboration of an adequate referent configuration trajectory and the elaboration of multi-joint (multi-muscle) synergies stabilizing the referent configuration trajectory. Both steps are expected to lead to more variance in the space of elemental variables that is compatible with a desired time profile of the salient performance variable ("good variability"). Adjusting control to other aspects of performance during the second stage (for example, esthetics, energy expenditure, time, fatigue, etc.) may lead to a drop in the "good variability". Experimental support for the suggested scheme is reviewed. Copyright © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How do we learn to "kill" in volleyball?: The role of working memory capacity and expertise in volleyball motor learning.

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Bisagno, Elisa; Morra, Sergio

2018-03-01

This study examines young volleyball players' learning of increasingly complex attack gestures. The main purpose of the study was to examine the predictive role of a cognitive variable, working memory capacity (or "M capacity"), in the acquisition and development of motor skills in a structured sport. Pascual-Leone's theory of constructive operators (TCO) was used as a framework; it defines working memory capacity as the maximum number of schemes that can be simultaneously activated by attentional resources. The role of expertise in motor learning was also considered. The expertise of each athlete was assessed in terms of years of practice and number of training sessions per week. The participants were 120 volleyball players, aged between 6 and 26 years, who performed both working memory tests and practical tests of volleyball involving the execution of the "third touch" by means of technical gestures of varying difficulty. We proposed a task analysis of these different gestures framed within the TCO. The results pointed to a very clear dissociation. On the one hand, M capacity was the best predictor of correct motor performance, and a specific capacity threshold was found for learning each attack gesture. On the other hand, experience was the key for the precision of the athletic gestures. This evidence could underline the existence of two different cognitive mechanisms in motor learning. The first one, relying on attentional resources, is required to learn a gesture. The second one, based on repeated experience, leads to its automatization. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Effectiveness of Learning Model of Basic Education with Character-Based at Universitas Muslim Indonesia

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Rosmiati, Rosmiati; Mahmud, Alimuddin; Talib, Syamsul B.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the basic education learning model with character-based through learning in the Universitas Muslim Indonesia. In addition, the research specifically examines the character of discipline, curiosity and responsibility. The specific target is to produce a basic education learning model…

The Effects of Collectivism-Individualism on the Cooperative Learning of Motor Skill

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Luo, Yi; Sun, Yan; Strobel, Johannes

2013-01-01

This study examined how cultural background (collectivism vs. individualism) affects motor skill learning in a dyadic cooperative learning environment. The research context of this study was Nintendo™ Wii Tennis. Twenty college students from a Midwestern university participated in the study, among whom half were from an individualistic culture…

RATING CHANGES INTRODUCED IN SOME CHARACTERISTIC MORPHOLOGICAL AND BASIC-SPECIFIC MOTOR SKILLS TO YOUNG ACTIVE AND INACTIVE BASKETBALL PLAYERS

OpenAIRE

Qazim Elshani; Hazir Salihu

2016-01-01

The experiment deals with young people aged 13-14 years, male. Basketball team active and inactive, active group in addition to regular classes; they also practice basketball in clubs within the city. The experiment contains a total of eight morphological variables; five variables are the basic motor tests, while three tests of motor skills, situational. In this research, it applied test method T-group basketball between active and inactive, and morphological variables of specific movement sk...

A Model for the Transfer of Perceptual-Motor Skill Learning in Human Behaviors

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Rosalie, Simon M.; Muller, Sean

2012-01-01

This paper presents a preliminary model that outlines the mechanisms underlying the transfer of perceptual-motor skill learning in sport and everyday tasks. Perceptual-motor behavior is motivated by performance demands and evolves over time to increase the probability of success through adaptation. Performance demands at the time of an event…

The contribution of nocturnal sleep to the consolidation of motor skill learning in healthy ageing and Parkinson's disease.

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Terpening, Zoe; Naismith, Sharon; Melehan, Kerri; Gittins, Catherine; Bolitho, Sam; Lewis, Simon J G

2013-08-01

The benefits of sleep for the consolidation of procedural motor skills are less robust in older adults, although the precise reasons for this remain unclear. To date, even less is known about these processes in older adults with neurodegenerative diseases, particularly those which impact on motor functioning. While sleep disturbance and motor symptoms are frequent disabling features of Parkinson's disease, no known studies have directly probed sleep-dependent memory consolidation for motor skill learning in Parkinson's disease. Forty patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (age = 63.7 years ± 7.7; disease duration 4.1 years ± 4.4) completed a motor skill learning task pre- and post-sleep and were compared to 20 age- and sex-matched controls recruited from the community. Polysomnography was undertaken during the post-training night and measures of sleep architecture were derived. Parkinson's disease patients did not demonstrate any apparent deficits in within-session learning and overnight stabilization compared to controls, with both groups failing to demonstrate offline improvements in performance (i.e. memory consolidation). In controls, longer duration in slow wave sleep was associated with improved next-day session learning (P = 0.007). However, in Parkinson's disease, no relationships between sleep parameters and learning measures were found. Slow wave sleep microarchitecture and the use of dopaminergic medications may contribute to impaired sleep-dependent multi-session acquisition of motor skill learning in Parkinson's disease. © 2013 European Sleep Research Society.

Sleep parameters, functional status and time post-stroke are associated with off-line motor skill learning in people with chronic stroke

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Catherine eSiengsukon

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Background: Mounting evidence demonstrates that individuals with stroke benefit from sleep to enhance learning of a motor task. While stage NREM2 sleep and REM sleep have been associated with off-line motor skill learning in neurologically-intact individuals, it remains unknown which sleep parameters or specific sleep stages are associated with off-line motor skill learning in individuals with stroke. Methods: Twenty individuals with chronic stroke (> 6 months following stroke and 10 neurologically slept for three consecutive nights in a sleep laboratory with polysomnography. Participants practiced a tracking task the morning before the third night and underwent a retention test the morning following the third night. Off-line learning on the tracking task was assessed. Pearson’s correlations assessed for associations between the magnitude of off-line learning and sleep variables, age, upper extremity motor function, stroke severity, depression and time since stroke occurrence.Results: Individuals with stroke performed with significantly less error on the tracking task following a night of sleep (p=.006 while the control participants did not (p=.816. Increased sleep efficiency (r= -.285, less time spent in stage NREM3 sleep (r=.260, and more time spent in stage REM sleep (r= -.266 was weakly-to-moderately associated with increased magnitude of off-line motor learning. Furthermore, higher upper-extremity motor function (r = -.400, lower stroke severity (r = .360, and less time since stroke occurrence (r=.311 were moderately associated with increased magnitude of off-line motor learning. Conclusion: This study is the first study to provide insight into which sleep stages and individual characteristics may be associated with off-line learning in people with stroke. Future work should continue to understand which factors or combination of factors promote off-line motor learning in people with neurologic injury to best promote motor recovery in

Acquisition and improvement of human motor skills: Learning through observation and practice

Science.gov (United States)

Iba, Wayne

1991-01-01

Skilled movement is an integral part of the human existence. A better understanding of motor skills and their development is a prerequisite to the construction of truly flexible intelligent agents. We present MAEANDER, a computational model of human motor behavior, that uniformly addresses both the acquisition of skills through observation and the improvement of skills through practice. MAEANDER consists of a sensory-effector interface, a memory of movements, and a set of performance and learning mechanisms that let it recognize and generate motor skills. The system initially acquires such skills by observing movements performed by another agent and constructing a concept hierarchy. Given a stored motor skill in memory, MAEANDER will cause an effector to behave appropriately. All learning involves changing the hierarchical memory of skill concepts to more closely correspond to either observed experience or to desired behaviors. We evaluated MAEANDER empirically with respect to how well it acquires and improves both artificial movement types and handwritten script letters from the alphabet. We also evaluate MAEANDER as a psychological model by comparing its behavior to robust phenomena in humans and by considering the richness of the predictions it makes.

Cluster analysis of activity-time series in motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Balslev, Daniela; Nielsen, Finn Årup; Frutiger, Sally A.

2002-01-01

Neuroimaging studies of learning focus on brain areas where the activity changes as a function of time. To circumvent the difficult problem of model selection, we used a data-driven analytic tool, cluster analysis, which extracts representative temporal and spatial patterns from the voxel...... practice-related activity in a fronto-parieto-cerebellar network, in agreement with previous studies of motor learning. These voxels were separated from a group of voxels showing an unspecific time-effect and another group of voxels, whose activation was an artifact from smoothing. Hum. Brain Mapping 15...

5 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over the ipsilesional sensory cortex enhances motor learning after stroke

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Sonia M Brodie

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Sensory feedback is critical for motor learning, and thus to neurorehabilitation after stroke. Whether enhancing sensory feedback by applying excitatory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS over the ipsilesional primary sensory cortex (IL-S1 might enhance motor learning in chronic stroke has yet to be investigated. The present study investigated the effects of 5 Hz rTMS over IL-S1 paired with skilled motor practice on motor learning, hemiparetic cutaneous somatosensation, and motor function. Individuals with unilateral chronic stroke were pseudo-randomly divided into either Active or Sham 5 Hz rTMS groups (n=11/group. Following stimulation, both groups practiced a Serial Tracking Task (STT with the hemiparetic arm; this was repeated for 5 days. Performance on the STT was quantified by response time, peak velocity, and cumulative distance tracked at baseline, during the 5 days of practice, and at a no-rTMS retention test. Cutaneous somatosensation was measured using two-point discrimination. Standardized sensorimotor tests were performed to assess whether the effects might generalize to impact hemiparetic arm function. The active 5Hz rTMS + training group demonstrated significantly greater improvements in STT performance [response time (F1,286.04=13.016, p< 0.0005, peak velocity (F1,285.95=4.111, p=0.044, and cumulative distance (F1,285.92=4.076, p=0.044] and cutaneous somatosensation (F1,21.15=8.793, p=0.007 across all sessions compared to the sham rTMS + training group. Measures of upper extremity motor function were not significantly different for either group. Our preliminary results suggest that, when paired with motor practice, 5Hz rTMS over IL-S1 enhances motor learning related change in individuals with chronic stroke, potentially as a consequence of improved cutaneous somatosensation, however no improvement in general upper extremity function was observed.

Force and complexity of tongue task training influences behavioral measures of motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kothari, Mohit; Svensson, Peter; Huo, Xueliang

2012-01-01

Relearning of motor skills is important in neurorehabilitation. We investigated the improvement of training success during simple tongue protrusion (two force levels) and a more complex tongue-training paradigm using the Tongue Drive System (TDS). We also compared subject-based reports of fun, pain...... training influences behavioral aspects of tongue motor learning....

Basic Burns Management E-Learning: A New Teaching Tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Egro, Francesco M

Burns teaching is organized only in a few medical schools in the United Kingdom. An e-learning tutorial was developed with the objective of incorporating burns teaching within the medical school curriculum. A 33-webpage e-learning was created, covering topics such as local and general response to burns, assessment of burns, first aid, primary and secondary survey, and referral guidelines. Medical student satisfaction was then evaluated using a 12-question feedback survey rated based on a Likert scale from 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good). The 12-question survey was completed by a total of 18 medical students ranging from second to fourth years (second = 17%, third = 22%, fourth = 61%). While only a couple of students had received prior burns teaching, 50% of the cohort had an interest to pursue surgery as a career. The majority of students (72%) would be interested to have an e-learning module on basic burns management in their medical curriculum. The means of all domains specific to the e-learning were rated as "good" or "very good." Students' rating for ease of use was 87%, usefulness was 88%, relevance to the medical curriculum was 90%, clarity and quality of content were 78% and 83%, respectively, design was 79%, and the overall satisfaction with this e-learning was 87%. The "Basic Burns Management" e-learning tutorial can provide an efficient and effective means of information delivery to medical students and junior doctors, allowing easy and fast incorporation of burns teaching within the medical curriculum and in other medical teaching settings.

Occupational Therapy Interventions Effect on Visual-Motor Skills in Children with Learning Disorders

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Batoul Mandani

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Objective: Visual-motor skill is a part of visual perception which can integrate visual processing skills to fine movements. Visual-motor dysfunction is often to cause problems in copying and writing. The purpose of this study is investigation of occupational therapy interventions effect on the visual-motor skill in children with learning disorders. Materials & Methods: In this interventional and experimental study, 23 students with learning disorders (2nd, 3rd, 4th grade were selected and they were divided (through Randomized Block Method into two groups, 11 persons as intervention group and the others as the control group (12 people. Both groups were administered the “Test of Visual-Motor Skills- Revised” (TVMS-R. Then case group received occupational therapy interventions for 16 sessions and two groups were administered by TVMS-R again. Data was analyzed by using paired T-test and independent T-test. Results: Total mark of TVMS-R demonstrated statistically significant difference in visual-motor skills between case and control groups (P<0/001. This test has 8 categories. Total mark of 1, 3,4,6,8 categories demonstrated that occupational therapy had significant effect on visual analysis skills (P<0/005. Total mark of 2, 5, 7 categories demonstrated that occupational therapy had significant effect on visual-spatial skills (P<0/001. Conclusion: Occupational therapy interventions had significant effect on the visual-motor skills and its items (visual-spatial, visual analysis, visual-motor integration and eye fixation skills.

Implicit perceptual-motor skill learning in mild cognitive impairment and Parkinson's disease.

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Gobel, Eric W; Blomeke, Kelsey; Zadikoff, Cindy; Simuni, Tanya; Weintraub, Sandra; Reber, Paul J

2013-05-01

Implicit skill learning is hypothesized to depend on nondeclarative memory that operates independent of the medial temporal lobe (MTL) memory system and instead depends on cortico striatal circuits between the basal ganglia and cortical areas supporting motor function and planning. Research with the Serial Reaction Time (SRT) task suggests that patients with memory disorders due to MTL damage exhibit normal implicit sequence learning. However, reports of intact learning rely on observations of no group differences, leading to speculation as to whether implicit sequence learning is fully intact in these patients. Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) often exhibit impaired sequence learning, but this impairment is not universally observed. Implicit perceptual-motor sequence learning was examined using the Serial Interception Sequence Learning (SISL) task in patients with amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI; n = 11) and patients with PD (n = 15). Sequence learning in SISL is resistant to explicit learning and individually adapted task difficulty controls for baseline performance differences. Patients with MCI exhibited robust sequence learning, equivalent to healthy older adults (n = 20), supporting the hypothesis that the MTL does not contribute to learning in this task. In contrast, the majority of patients with PD exhibited no sequence-specific learning in spite of matched overall task performance. Two patients with PD exhibited performance indicative of an explicit compensatory strategy suggesting that impaired implicit learning may lead to greater reliance on explicit memory in some individuals. The differences in learning between patient groups provides strong evidence in favor of implicit sequence learning depending solely on intact basal ganglia function with no contribution from the MTL memory system.

Early Boost and Slow Consolidation in Motor Skill Learning

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Hotermans, Christophe; Peigneux, Philippe; de Noordhout, Alain Maertens; Moonen, Gustave; Maquet, Pierre

2006-01-01

Motor skill learning is a dynamic process that continues covertly after training has ended and eventually leads to delayed increments in performance. Current theories suggest that this off-line improvement takes time and appears only after several hours. Here we show an early transient and short-lived boost in performance, emerging as early as…

APRENDIZAJE MOTOR Y SÍNDROME GENERAL DE ADAPTACIÓN

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F. J. Moreno

2010-09-01

vehicle of learning, but it must be applied with the enough amount of load to produce an adaptation to a new level of performance. The principles of sport training are presented related to motor learning topics. Common principles are proposed to explain the learning of motor skills, regardless of the level of complexity, and level of the performer, and providing basic criteria that should help to design learning tasks.
Key Words:  Motor learning, adaptation, complex systems, training, motor skills.

Cerebellar Plasticity and Motor Learning Deficits in a Copy Number Variation Mouse Model of Autism

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Piochon, Claire; Kloth, Alexander D; Grasselli, Giorgio; Titley, Heather K; Nakayama, Hisako; Hashimoto, Kouichi; Wan, Vivian; Simmons, Dana H; Eissa, Tahra; Nakatani, Jin; Cherskov, Adriana; Miyazaki, Taisuke; Watanabe, Masahiko; Takumi, Toru; Kano, Masanobu; Wang, Samuel S-H; Hansel, Christian

2014-01-01

A common feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the impairment of motor control and learning, occurring in a majority of children with autism, consistent with perturbation in cerebellar function. Here we report alterations in motor behavior and cerebellar synaptic plasticity in a mouse model (patDp/+) for the human 15q11-13 duplication, one of the most frequently observed genetic aberrations in autism. These mice show ASD-resembling social behavior deficits. We find that in patDp/+ mice delay eyeblink conditioning—a form of cerebellum-dependent motor learning—is impaired, and observe deregulation of a putative cellular mechanism for motor learning, long-term depression (LTD) at parallel fiber-Purkinje cell synapses. Moreover, developmental elimination of surplus climbing fibers—a model for activity-dependent synaptic pruning—is impaired. These findings point to deficits in synaptic plasticity and pruning as potential causes for motor problems and abnormal circuit development in autism. PMID:25418414

Reductive and Emergent Views on Motor Learning in Rehabilitation Practice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Dijk, Ludger; van der Sluis, Corry; Bongers, Raoul M.

2017-01-01

To allow different views on motor learning to inform rehabilitation research, the authors aimed to explicate a frequently missed yet fundamental difference in starting point of such views. By considering how rehabilitation in practice answers the question of what parts an activity consists of,

Planning-related motor processes underlie mental practice and imitation learning.

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Bach, Patric; Allami, Bassem Khalaf; Tucker, Mike; Ellis, Rob

2014-06-01

It is still controversial whether mental practice-the internal rehearsal of movements to improve later performance-relies on processes engaged during physical motor performance and, if so, which processes these are. We report data from 5 experiments, in which participants mentally practiced complex rhythms with either feet or hands while using the same or different body parts to respond to unrelated sounds. We found that responses were impaired for those body parts that were concurrently used in mental practice, suggesting a binding of body-part-specific motor processes to action plans. This result was found when participants mentally trained to memorize the rhythms, to merely improve their performance, when mental practice and execution directly followed one another and when separated by a different task. Finally, it was found irrespective of whether participants practiced on the basis of a symbolic rhythm description and when they practiced by watching somebody perform the rhythms (imitation learning). The effect was eliminated only when the requirement for mental practice was eliminated from the task while keeping visual stimulation identical. These data link mental practice not to execution but planning related motor processes and reveal that these planning processes underlie both mental practice and imitation learning. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Cathodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Over Left Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Area Promotes Implicit Motor Learning in a Golf Putting Task.

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Zhu, Frank F; Yeung, Andrew Y; Poolton, Jamie M; Lee, Tatia M C; Leung, Gilberto K K; Masters, Rich S W

2015-01-01

Implicit motor learning is characterized by low dependence on working memory and stable performance despite stress, fatigue, or multi-tasking. However, current paradigms for implicit motor learning are based on behavioral interventions that are often task-specific and limited when applied in practice. To investigate whether cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) area during motor learning suppressed working memory activity and reduced explicit verbal-analytical involvement in movement control, thereby promoting implicit motor learning. Twenty-seven healthy individuals practiced a golf putting task during a Training Phase while receiving either real cathodal tDCS stimulation over the left DLPFC area or sham stimulation. Their performance was assessed during a Test phase on another day. Verbal working memory capacity was assessed before and after the Training Phase, and before the Test Phase. Compared to sham stimulation, real stimulation suppressed verbal working memory activity after the Training Phase, but enhanced golf putting performance during the Training Phase and the Test Phase, especially when participants were required to multi-task. Cathodal tDCS over the left DLPFC may foster implicit motor learning and performance in complex real-life motor tasks that occur during sports, surgery or motor rehabilitation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Recent History of Effector Use Modulates Practice-Dependent Changes in Corticospinal Excitability but Not Motor Learning.

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Hussain, Sara J; Darling, Warren G; Cole, Kelly J

2016-01-01

The theory of homeostatic metaplasticity has significant implications for human motor cortical plasticity and motor learning. Previous work has shown that the extent of recent effector use before exogenously-induced plasticity can affect the direction, magnitude and variability of aftereffects. However, the impact of recent effector use on motor learning and practice-dependent plasticity is not known. We hypothesized that reducing effector use for 8 hours via hand/wrist immobilization would facilitate practice-dependent changes in corticospinal excitability and TMS-evoked thumb movement kinematics, while also promoting 24-hour retention of a ballistic motor skill. Subjects participated in a crossover study involving two conditions. During the immobilization condition, subjects wore a splint that restricted motion of the left hand and thumb for 8 hours. While wearing the splint, subjects were instructed to avoid using their left hand as much as possible. During the control condition, subjects did not wear a splint at any time nor were they instructed to avoid hand use. After either an 8 hour period of immobilization or normal hand use, we collected MEP and TMS-evoked thumb movement recruitment curves, and subjects practiced a ballistic motor skill involving rapid thumb extension. After motor practice, MEP and TMS-evoked thumb movement recruitment curves were re-tested. Retention of the motor skill was tested 30 minutes and 24 hours after motor practice. Reduced effector use did not impact pre-practice corticospinal excitability but did facilitate practice-dependent changes in corticospinal excitability, and this enhancement was specific to the trained muscle. In contrast, reducing effector use did not affect practice-dependent changes in TMS-evoked thumb movements nor did it promote acquisition or retention of the skill. Finally, we detected some associations between pre-practice excitability levels, plasticity effects and learning effects, but these did not reach

Effect Of Variable Practice On The Motor Learning Process In Manual Wheelchair Propulsion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leving, Marika T; Vegter, Riemer J K; de Groot, Sonja; van der Woude, Lucas H V

Handrim wheelchair propulsion is a cyclic skill that needs to be learned during rehabilitation. It has been suggested that a higher intra-individual variability benefits the motor learning process of wheelchair propulsion. PURPOSE: The goal of the current study was to determine the effect of

Implicit and explicit learning: applications from basic research to sports for individuals with impaired movement dynamics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steenbergen, B.; van der Kamp, J.; Verneau, M.M.N.; Jongbloed-Pereboom, M.; Masters, R.S.

2010-01-01

Purpose. Motor skills can be learned in an explicit or an implicit manner. Explicit learning places high demands on working memory capacity, but engagement of working memory is largely circumvented when skills are learned implicitly. We propose that individuals with impaired movement dynamics may

Implicit and explicit learning: applications from basic research to sports for individuals with impaired movement dynamics.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steenbergen, B.; Kamp, J. van der; Verneau, M.; Jongbloed-Pereboom, M.; Masters, R.S.

2010-01-01

PURPOSE: Motor skills can be learned in an explicit or an implicit manner. Explicit learning places high demands on working memory capacity, but engagement of working memory is largely circumvented when skills are learned implicitly. We propose that individuals with impaired movement dynamics may

Implicit and explicit learning: applications from basic research to sports for individuals with impaired movement dynamics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steenbergen, B.; Kamp, J. van der; Verneau, M.; Jongbloed-Pereboom, M.; Masters, R.S.W.

2010-01-01

Purpose - Motor skills can be learned in an explicit or an implicit manner. Explicit learning places high demands on working memory capacity, but engagement of working memory is largely circumvented when skills are learned implicitly. We propose that individuals with impaired movement dynamics may

Impaired Retention of Motor Learning of Writing Skills in Patients with Parkinson's Disease with Freezing of Gait.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elke Heremans

Full Text Available Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD and freezing of gait (FOG suffer from more impaired motor and cognitive functioning than their non-freezing counterparts. This underlies an even higher need for targeted rehabilitation programs in this group. However, so far it is unclear whether FOG affects the ability for consolidation and generalization of motor learning and thus the efficacy of rehabilitation.To investigate the hallmarks of motor learning in people with FOG compared to those without by comparing the effects of an intensive motor learning program to improve handwriting.Thirty five patients with PD, including 19 without and 16 with FOG received six weeks of handwriting training consisting of exercises provided on paper and on a touch-sensitive writing tablet. Writing training was based on single- and dual-task writing and was supported by means of visual target zones. To investigate automatization, generalization and retention of learning, writing performance was assessed before and after training in the presence and absence of cues and dual tasking and after a six-week retention period. Writing amplitude was measured as primary outcome measure and variability of writing and dual-task accuracy as secondary outcomes.Significant learning effects were present on all outcome measures in both groups, both for writing under single- and dual-task conditions. However, the gains in writing amplitude were not retained after a retention period of six weeks without training in the patient group without FOG. Furthermore, patients with FOG were highly dependent on the visual target zones, reflecting reduced generalization of learning in this group.Although short-term learning effects were present in both groups, generalization and retention of motor learning were specifically impaired in patients with PD and FOG. The results of this study underscore the importance of individualized rehabilitation protocols.

Impaired Retention of Motor Learning of Writing Skills in Patients with Parkinson's Disease with Freezing of Gait.

Science.gov (United States)

Heremans, Elke; Nackaerts, Evelien; Vervoort, Griet; Broeder, Sanne; Swinnen, Stephan P; Nieuwboer, Alice

2016-01-01

Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and freezing of gait (FOG) suffer from more impaired motor and cognitive functioning than their non-freezing counterparts. This underlies an even higher need for targeted rehabilitation programs in this group. However, so far it is unclear whether FOG affects the ability for consolidation and generalization of motor learning and thus the efficacy of rehabilitation. To investigate the hallmarks of motor learning in people with FOG compared to those without by comparing the effects of an intensive motor learning program to improve handwriting. Thirty five patients with PD, including 19 without and 16 with FOG received six weeks of handwriting training consisting of exercises provided on paper and on a touch-sensitive writing tablet. Writing training was based on single- and dual-task writing and was supported by means of visual target zones. To investigate automatization, generalization and retention of learning, writing performance was assessed before and after training in the presence and absence of cues and dual tasking and after a six-week retention period. Writing amplitude was measured as primary outcome measure and variability of writing and dual-task accuracy as secondary outcomes. Significant learning effects were present on all outcome measures in both groups, both for writing under single- and dual-task conditions. However, the gains in writing amplitude were not retained after a retention period of six weeks without training in the patient group without FOG. Furthermore, patients with FOG were highly dependent on the visual target zones, reflecting reduced generalization of learning in this group. Although short-term learning effects were present in both groups, generalization and retention of motor learning were specifically impaired in patients with PD and FOG. The results of this study underscore the importance of individualized rehabilitation protocols.

White matter microstructure changes induced by motor skill learning utilizing a body machine interface.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xue; Casadio, Maura; Weber, Kenneth A; Mussa-Ivaldi, Ferdinando A; Parrish, Todd B

2014-03-01

The purpose of this study is to identify white matter microstructure changes following bilateral upper extremity motor skill training to increase our understanding of learning-induced structural plasticity and enhance clinical strategies in physical rehabilitation. Eleven healthy subjects performed two visuo-spatial motor training tasks over 9 sessions (2-3 sessions per week). Subjects controlled a cursor with bilateral simultaneous movements of the shoulders and upper arms using a body machine interface. Before the start and within 2days of the completion of training, whole brain diffusion tensor MR imaging data were acquired. Motor training increased fractional anisotropy (FA) values in the posterior and anterior limbs of the internal capsule, the corona radiata, and the body of the corpus callosum by 4.19% on average indicating white matter microstructure changes induced by activity-dependent modulation of axon number, axon diameter, or myelin thickness. These changes may underlie the functional reorganization associated with motor skill learning. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Basic practical skills teaching and learning in undergraduate medical education - a review on methodological evidence.

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Vogel, Daniela; Harendza, Sigrid

2016-01-01

Practical skills are an essential part of physicians' daily routine. Nevertheless, medical graduates' performance of basic skills is often below the expected level. This review aims to identify and summarize teaching approaches of basic practical skills in undergraduate medical education which provide evidence with respect to effective students' learning of these skills. Basic practical skills were defined as basic physical examination skills, routine skills which get better with practice, and skills which are also performed by nurses. We searched PubMed with different terms describing these basic practical skills. In total, 3467 identified publications were screened and 205 articles were eventually reviewed for eligibility. 43 studies that included at least one basic practical skill, a comparison of two groups of undergraduate medical students and effects on students' performance were analyzed. Seven basic practical skills and 15 different teaching methods could be identified. The most consistent results with respect to effective teaching and acquisition of basic practical skills were found for structured skills training, feedback, and self-directed learning. Simulation was effective with specific teaching methods and in several studies no differences in teaching effects were detected between expert or peer instructors. Multimedia instruction, when used in the right setting, also showed beneficial effects for basic practical skills learning. A combination of voluntary or obligatory self-study with multimedia applications like video clips in combination with a structured program including the possibility for individual exercise with personal feedback by peers or teachers might provide a good learning opportunity for basic practical skills.

Language Learning Styles Used By Students Of Basic English Course (Bec) Pare

OpenAIRE

HIDAYAH, ULFA NURUL

2013-01-01

Learning styles are the important factors to help students to learn a second or foreign language. A learning habit of every individual is needed to support the student's learning to be more effective, for example by taking an English course. Learning styles can be classified into: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, tactile, group, and individual. This study is conducted to examine the language learning styles applied by the students of Basic English Course (BEC) in Pare, Kediri. This study applie...

Examining the Potential of Web-Based Multimedia to Support Complex Fine Motor Skill Learning: An Empirical Study

Science.gov (United States)

Papastergiou, Marina; Pollatou, Elisana; Theofylaktou, Ioannis; Karadimou, Konstantina

2014-01-01

Research on the utilization of the Web for complex fine motor skill learning that involves whole body movements is still scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the introduction of a multimedia web-based learning environment, which was targeted at a rhythmic gymnastics routine consisting of eight fine motor skills, into an…

Motor learning in a complex balance task and associated neuroplasticity: a comparison between endurance athletes and nonathletes.

Science.gov (United States)

Seidel, Oliver; Carius, Daniel; Kenville, Rouven; Ragert, Patrick

2017-09-01

Studies suggested that motor expertise is associated with functional and structural brain alterations, which positively affect sensorimotor performance and learning capabilities. The purpose of the present study was to unravel differences in motor skill learning and associated functional neuroplasticity between endurance athletes (EA) and nonathletes (NA). For this purpose, participants had to perform a multimodal balance task (MBT) training on 2 sessions, which were separated by 1 wk. Before and after MBT training, a static balance task (SBT) had to be performed. MBT-induced functional neuroplasticity and neuromuscular alterations were assessed by means of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and electromyography (EMG) during SBT performance. We hypothesized that EA would showed superior initial SBT performance and stronger MBT-induced improvements in SBT learning rates compared with NA. On a cortical level, we hypothesized that MBT training would lead to differential learning-dependent functional changes in motor-related brain regions [such as primary motor cortex (M1)] during SBT performance. In fact, EA showed superior initial SBT performance, whereas learning rates did not differ between groups. On a cortical level, fNIRS recordings (time × group interaction) revealed a stronger MBT-induced decrease in left M1 and inferior parietal lobe (IPL) for deoxygenated hemoglobin in EA. Even more interesting, learning rates were correlated with fNIRS changes in right M1/IPL. On the basis of these findings, we provide novel evidence for superior MBT training-induced functional neuroplasticity in highly trained athletes. Future studies should investigate these effects in different sports disciplines to strengthen previous work on experience-dependent neuroplasticity. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Motor expertise is associated with functional/structural brain plasticity. How such neuroplastic reorganization translates into altered motor learning processes remains elusive. We

Creating conditions for cooperative learning: Basic elements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ševkušić-Mandić Slavica G.

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Although a large number of research evidence speak out in favor of cooperative learning, its effectiveness in teaching does not depend only on teacher’s and students’ enthusiasm and willingness to work in such a manner. Creating cooperative situations in learning demands a serious preparation and engagement on the part of teacher who is structuring various aspects of work in the classroom. Although there exist a large number of models and techniques of cooperative learning, which vary in the way in which students work together, in the structure of learning tasks as well as in the degree to which cooperative efforts of students are coupled with competition among groups, some elements should be present in the structure of conditions irrespective of the type of group work in question. Potential effects of cooperation are not likely to emerge unless teachers apply five basic elements of cooperative structure: 1. structuring of the learning task and students’ positive interdependence, 2. individual responsibility, 3. upgrading of "face to face" interaction, 4. training of students’ social skills, and 5. evaluation of group processes. The paper discusses various strategies for establishing the mentioned elements and concrete examples for teaching practice are provided, which should be of assistance to teachers for as much successful cooperative learning application as possible in work with children.

Neurofeedback fMRI-mediated learning and consolidation of regional brain activation during motor imagery

Science.gov (United States)

Yoo, Seung-Schik; Lee, Jong-Hwan; O’Leary, Heather; Panych, Lawrence P.; Jolesz, Ferenc A.

2009-01-01

We report the long-term effect of real-time functional MRI (rtfMRI) training on voluntary regulation of the level of activation from a hand motor area. During the performance of a motor imagery task of a right hand, blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) signal originating from a primary motor area was presented back to the subject in real-time. Demographically matched individuals also received the same procedure without valid feedback information. Followed by the initial rtfMRI sessions, both groups underwent two-week long, daily-practice of the task. Off-line data analysis revealed that the individuals in the experimental group were able to increase the level of BOLD signal from the regulatory target to a greater degree compared to the control group. Furthermore, the learned level of activation was maintained after the two-week period, with the recruitment of additional neural circuitries such as the hippocampus and the limbo-thalamo-cortical pathway. The activation obtained from the control group, in the absence of proper feedback, was indifferent across the training conditions. The level of BOLD activity from the target regulatory region was positively correlated with a self evaluative score within the experimental group, while the majority of control subjects had difficulty adopting a strategy to attain the desired level of functional regulation. Our results suggest that rtfMRI helped individuals learn how to increase region-specific cortical activity associated with a motor imagery task, and the level of increased activation in motor areas was consolidated after the two-week self-practice period, with the involvement of neural circuitries implicated in motor skill learning. PMID:19526048

Visual-Motor Learning Using Haptic Devices: How Best to Train Surgeons?

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Oscar Giles

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Laparoscopic surgery has revolutionised medicine but requires surgeons to learn new visual-motor mappings. The optimal method for training surgeons is unknown. For instance, it may be easier to learn planar movements when training is constrained to a plane, since this forces the surgeon to develop an appropriate perceptual-motor map. In contrast, allowing the surgeon to move without constraints could improve performance because this provides greater experience of the control dynamics of the device. In order to test between these alternatives, we created an experimental tool that connected a commercially available robotic arm with specialised software that presents visual stimuli and objectively records kinematics. Participants were given the task of generating a series of aiming movements to move a visual cursor to a series of targets. The actions required movement along a horizontal plane, whereas the visual display was a screen positioned perpendicular to this plane (ie, vertically. One group (n=8 received training where the force field constrained their movement to the correct plane of action, whilst a second group (n=8 trained without constraints. On test trials (after training the unconstrained group showed better performance, as indexed by reduced movement duration and reduced path length. These results show that participants who explored the entire action space had an advantage, which highlights the importance of experiencing the full dynamics of a control device and the action space when learning a new visual-motor mapping.

Learning-induced Dependence of Neuronal Activity in Primary Motor Cortex on Motor Task Condition.

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, X; Shimansky, Y; He, Jiping

2005-01-01

A brain-computer interface (BCI) system such as a cortically controlled robotic arm must have a capacity of adjusting its function to a specific environmental condition. We studied this capacity in non-human primates based on chronic multi-electrode recording from the primary motor cortex of a monkey during the animal's performance of a center-out 3D reaching task and adaptation to external force perturbations. The main condition-related feature of motor cortical activity observed before the onset of force perturbation was a phasic raise of activity immediately before the perturbation onset. This feature was observed during a series of perturbation trials, but were absent under no perturbations. After adaptation has been completed, it usually was taking the subject only one trial to recognize a change in the condition to switch the neuronal activity accordingly. These condition-dependent features of neuronal activity can be used by a BCI for recognizing a change in the environmental condition and making corresponding adjustments, which requires that the BCI-based control system possess such advanced properties of the neural motor control system as capacity to learn and adapt.

Impact of online visual feedback on motor acquisition and retention when learning to reach in a force field.

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Batcho, C S; Gagné, M; Bouyer, L J; Roy, J S; Mercier, C

2016-11-19

When subjects learn a novel motor task, several sources of feedback (proprioceptive, visual or auditory) contribute to the performance. Over the past few years, several studies have investigated the role of visual feedback in motor learning, yet evidence remains conflicting. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the role of online visual feedback (VFb) on the acquisition and retention stages of motor learning associated with training in a reaching task. Thirty healthy subjects made ballistic reaching movements with their dominant arm toward two targets, on 2 consecutive days using a robotized exoskeleton (KINARM). They were randomly assigned to a group with (VFb) or without (NoVFb) VFb of index position during movement. On day 1, the task was performed before (baseline) and during the application of a velocity-dependent resistive force field (adaptation). To assess retention, participants repeated the task with the force field on day 2. Motor learning was characterized by: (1) the final endpoint error (movement accuracy) and (2) the initial angle (iANG) of deviation (motor planning). Even though both groups showed motor adaptation, the NoVFb-group exhibited slower learning and higher final endpoint error than the VFb-group. In some condition, subjects trained without visual feedback used more curved initial trajectories to anticipate for the perturbation. This observation suggests that learning to reach targets in a velocity-dependent resistive force field is possible even when feedback is limited. However, the absence of VFb leads to different strategies that were only apparent when reaching toward the most challenging target. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

A Literature Review on Observational Learning for Medical Motor Skills and Anesthesia Teaching

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Cordovani, Ligia; Cordovani, Daniel

2016-01-01

Motor skill practice is very important to improve performance of medical procedures and could be enhanced by observational practice. Observational learning could be particularly important in the medical field considering that patients' safety prevails over students' training. The mechanism of observational learning is based on the mirror neuron…

Adult Basic Skills Instructor Training and Experiential Learning Theory.

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Marlowe, Mike; And Others

1991-01-01

Competency-based training workshops based on Kolb's experiential learning theory were held for North Carolina adult basic education teachers; 251 attended 1-day sessions and 91 a week-long summer institute. Topics included interpersonal communication, reading, numeracy, language arts, math, assessment, and program evaluation. (SK)

The timing and importance of motor skills course in knee arthroscopy training.

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Çetinkaya, Engin; Çift, Hakan; Aybar, Ahmet; Erçin, Ersin; Güler, Gamze Babür; Poyanlı, Oğuz

2017-07-01

The aim of this prospective study is to evaluate the impact of the simulation training program in learning duration of arthroscopic motor skills. Furthermore, we investigated the difference between junior and experienced residents in the improvement of arthroscopic motor skills duration. We established 2 study groups according to participants' year of experience in orthopedic residency with junior group residents with three years or less than three years experience as group 1 and experienced group with over 3 years of experience as group 2. We calculated duration change of motor skill test results for each participant before and after the course. The tools used were; auto scoring mirror tracer(ASMT), 0'Conner the tweezer dexterity test(OCTDT), etch-a-sketch with overlay(ESOT), purdue the pegboard test(PPT), two-arm coordination test(TACT) and grooved pegboard test(GPT) which were all produced by Lafayette firm. These instruments were used to practice and measure the basic motor skills. All post-course test durations for participants decreased significantly when compared to pre-course. We calculated percentage change of motor skill test results for each participant before and after the course. All motor skill test percentage changes were similar between two groups. In comparison of participants according to their experiences, results revealed that there was no difference in test results of experienced and junior surgeons. Both groups had provided equal improvement in terms of motor skills. As our results revealed, residents will be able to act with a strong motivation to learn applications through basic arthroscopic information gained in early period of orthopedic training and will make more successful applications of real patients. Copyright © 2017 Turkish Association of Orthopaedics and Traumatology. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Variable training does not lead to better motor learning compared to repetitive training in children with DCD when exposed to video games

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bonney, E.; Jelsma, Lemke; Ferguson, F; Smits-Engelsman, B.C.M.

Background Little is known about the influence of practice schedules on motor learning and skills transfer in children with and without developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Understanding how practice schedules affect motor learning is necessary for motor skills development and rehabilitation.

The impact of cerebellar transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on learning fine-motor sequences.

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Shimizu, Renee E; Wu, Allan D; Samra, Jasmine K; Knowlton, Barbara J

2017-01-05

The cerebellum has been shown to be important for skill learning, including the learning of motor sequences. We investigated whether cerebellar transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) would enhance learning of fine motor sequences. Because the ability to generalize or transfer to novel task variations or circumstances is a crucial goal of real world training, we also examined the effect of tDCS on performance of novel sequences after training. In Study 1, participants received either anodal, cathodal or sham stimulation while simultaneously practising three eight-element key press sequences in a non-repeating, interleaved order. Immediately after sequence practice with concurrent tDCS, a transfer session was given in which participants practised three interleaved novel sequences. No stimulation was given during transfer. An inhibitory effect of cathodal tDCS was found during practice, such that the rate of learning was slowed in comparison to the anodal and sham groups. In Study 2, participants received anodal or sham stimulation and a 24 h delay was added between the practice and transfer sessions to reduce mental fatigue. Although this consolidation period benefitted subsequent transfer for both tDCS groups, anodal tDCS enhanced transfer performance. Together, these studies demonstrate polarity-specific effects on fine motor sequence learning and generalization.This article is part of the themed issue 'New frontiers for statistical learning in the cognitive sciences'. © 2016 The Author(s).

Modified Delphi Investigation of Motor Development and Learning in Physical Education Teacher Education

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Ross, Susan; Metcalf, Amanda; Bulger, Sean M.; Housner, Lynn D.

2014-01-01

Purpose: As the scope of motor development and learning knowledge has successfully broadened over the years, there is an increased need to identify the content and learning experiences that are essential in preparing preservice physical educators. The purpose of this study was to generate expert consensus regarding the most critical motor…

Speech Motor Sequence Learning: Acquisition and Retention in Parkinson Disease and Normal Aging

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Whitfield, Jason A.; Goberman, Alexander M.

2017-01-01

Purpose: The aim of the current investigation was to examine speech motor sequence learning in neurologically healthy younger adults, neurologically healthy older adults, and individuals with Parkinson disease (PD) over a 2-day period. Method: A sequential nonword repetition task was used to examine learning over 2 days. Participants practiced a…

The influence of errors during practice on motor learning in young individuals with cerebral palsy.

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van Abswoude, Femke; Santos-Vieira, Beatriz; van der Kamp, John; Steenbergen, Bert

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of errors during practice on motor skill learning in young individuals with cerebral palsy (CP). Minimizing errors has been validated in typically developing children and children with intellectual disabilities as a method for implicit learning, because it reduces working memory involvement during learning. The present study assessed whether a practice protocol that aims at minimizing errors can induce implicit learning in young individuals with CP as well. Accordingly, we hypothesized that reducing errors during practice would lead to enhanced learning and a decrease in the dependency of performance on working memory. Young individuals with CP practiced an aiming task following either an error-minimizing (N=20) or an error-strewn (N=18) practice protocol. Aiming accuracy was assessed in pre-, post- and retention test. Dual task performance was assessed to establish dependency on working memory. The two practice protocols did not invoke different amounts or types of learning in the participants with CP. Yet, participants improved aiming accuracy and showed stable motor performance after learning, irrespective of the protocol they followed. Across groups the number of errors made during practice was related to the amount of learning, and the degree of conscious monitoring of the movement. Only participants with relatively good working memory capacity and a poor initial performance showed a rudimentary form of (most likely, explicit) learning. These new findings on the effect of the amount of practice errors on motor learning in children of CP are important for designing interventions for children and adolescents with CP. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Oral motor deficits in speech-impaired children with autism

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Belmonte, Matthew K.; Saxena-Chandhok, Tanushree; Cherian, Ruth; Muneer, Reema; George, Lisa; Karanth, Prathibha

2013-01-01

Absence of communicative speech in autism has been presumed to reflect a fundamental deficit in the use of language, but at least in a subpopulation may instead stem from motor and oral motor issues. Clinical reports of disparity between receptive vs. expressive speech/language abilities reinforce this hypothesis. Our early-intervention clinic develops skills prerequisite to learning and communication, including sitting, attending, and pointing or reference, in children below 6 years of age. In a cohort of 31 children, gross and fine motor skills and activities of daily living as well as receptive and expressive speech were assessed at intake and after 6 and 10 months of intervention. Oral motor skills were evaluated separately within the first 5 months of the child's enrolment in the intervention programme and again at 10 months of intervention. Assessment used a clinician-rated structured report, normed against samples of 360 (for motor and speech skills) and 90 (for oral motor skills) typically developing children matched for age, cultural environment and socio-economic status. In the full sample, oral and other motor skills correlated with receptive and expressive language both in terms of pre-intervention measures and in terms of learning rates during the intervention. A motor-impaired group comprising a third of the sample was discriminated by an uneven profile of skills with oral motor and expressive language deficits out of proportion to the receptive language deficit. This group learnt language more slowly, and ended intervention lagging in oral motor skills. In individuals incapable of the degree of motor sequencing and timing necessary for speech movements, receptive language may outstrip expressive speech. Our data suggest that autistic motor difficulties could range from more basic skills such as pointing to more refined skills such as articulation, and need to be assessed and addressed across this entire range in each individual. PMID:23847480

Oral Motor Deficits in Speech-Impaired Children with Autism

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Matthew K Belmonte

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Absence of communicative speech in autism has been presumed to reflect a fundamental deficit in the use of language, but at least in a subpopulation may instead stem from motor and oral motor issues. Clinical reports of disparity between receptive versus expressive speech / language abilities reinforce this hypothesis. Our early-intervention clinic develops skills prerequisite to learning and communication, including sitting, attending, and pointing or reference, in children below 6 years of age. In a cohort of 31 children, gross and fine motor skills and activities of daily living as well as receptive and expressive speech were assessed at intake and after 6 and 10 months of intervention. Oral motor skills were evaluated separately within the first 5 months of the child's enrolment in the intervention programme and again at 10 months of intervention. Assessment used a clinician-rated structured report, normed against samples of 360 (for motor and speech skills and 90 (for oral motor skills typically developing children matched for age, cultural environment and socio-economic status. In the full sample, oral and other motor skills correlated with receptive and expressive language both in terms of pre-intervention measures and in terms of learning rates during the intervention. A motor-impaired group comprising a third of the sample was discriminated by an uneven profile of skills with oral motor and expressive language deficits out of proportion to the receptive language deficit. This group learnt language more slowly, and ended intervention lagging in oral motor skills. In individuals incapable of the degree of motor sequencing and timing necessary for speech movements, receptive language may outstrip expressive speech. Our data suggest that autistic motor difficulties could range from more basic skills such as pointing to more refined skills such as articulation, and need to be assessed and addressed across this entire range in each individual.

Promoting Therapists? Use of Motor Learning Strategies within Virtual Reality-Based Stroke Rehabilitation

OpenAIRE

Levac, Danielle E.; Glegg, Stephanie M. N.; Sveistrup, Heidi; Colquhoun, Heather; Miller, Patricia; Finestone, Hillel; DePaul, Vincent; Harris, Jocelyn E.; Velikonja, Diana

2016-01-01

Purpose Therapists use motor learning strategies (MLSs) to structure practice conditions within stroke rehabilitation. Virtual reality (VR)-based rehabilitation is an MLS-oriented stroke intervention, yet little support exists to assist therapists in integrating MLSs with VR system use. Method A pre-post design evaluated a knowledge translation (KT) intervention incorporating interactive e-learning and practice, in which 11 therapists learned how to integrate MLSs within VR-based therapy. Sel...

Maximization of learning speed in the motor cortex due to neuronal redundancy.

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Ken Takiyama

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Many redundancies play functional roles in motor control and motor learning. For example, kinematic and muscle redundancies contribute to stabilizing posture and impedance control, respectively. Another redundancy is the number of neurons themselves; there are overwhelmingly more neurons than muscles, and many combinations of neural activation can generate identical muscle activity. The functional roles of this neuronal redundancy remains unknown. Analysis of a redundant neural network model makes it possible to investigate these functional roles while varying the number of model neurons and holding constant the number of output units. Our analysis reveals that learning speed reaches its maximum value if and only if the model includes sufficient neuronal redundancy. This analytical result does not depend on whether the distribution of the preferred direction is uniform or a skewed bimodal, both of which have been reported in neurophysiological studies. Neuronal redundancy maximizes learning speed, even if the neural network model includes recurrent connections, a nonlinear activation function, or nonlinear muscle units. Furthermore, our results do not rely on the shape of the generalization function. The results of this study suggest that one of the functional roles of neuronal redundancy is to maximize learning speed.

[Motor capacities involved in the psychomotor skills of the cardiopulmonary resuscitation technique: recommendations for the teaching-learning process].

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Miyadahira, A M

2001-12-01

It is a bibliographic study about the identification of the motor capacities involved in the psychomotor skills of the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) which aims to obtain subsidies to the planning of the teaching-learning process of this skill. It was found that: the motor capacities involved in the psychomotor skill of the CPR technique are predominantly cognitive and motor, involving 9 perceptive-motor capacities and 8 physical proficiency capacities. The CPR technique is a psychomotor skill classified as open, done in series and categorized as a thin and global skill and the teaching-learning process of the CPR technique has an elevated degree of complexity.

Motor Skill Learning Is Associated with Phase-Dependent Modifications in the Striatal cAMP/PKA/DARPP-32 Signaling Pathway in Rodents.

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Yu Qian

Full Text Available Abundant evidence points to a key role of dopamine in motor skill learning, although the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms are still poorly understood. Here, we used a skilled-reaching paradigm to first examine changes in the expression of the plasticity-related gene Arc to map activity in cortico-striatal circuitry during different phases of motor skill learning in young animals. In the early phase, Arc mRNA was significantly induced in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC, cingulate cortex, primary motor cortex, and striatum. In the late phase, expression of Arc did not change in most regions, except in the mPFC and dorsal striatum. In the second series of experiments, we studied the learning-induced changes in the phosphorylation state of dopamine and cAMP-regulated phosphoprotein, 32k Da (DARPP-32. Western blot analysis of the phosphorylation state of DARPP-32 and its downstream target cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB in the striatum revealed that the early, but not late, phase of motor skill learning was associated with increased levels of phospho-Thr34-DARPP-32 and phospho-Ser133-CREB. Finally, we used the DARPP-32 knock-in mice with a point mutation in the Thr34 regulatory site (i.e., protein kinase A site to test the significance of this pathway in motor skill learning. In accordance with our hypothesis, inhibition of DARPP-32 activity at the Thr34 regulatory site strongly attenuated the motor learning rate and skilled reaching performance of mice. These findings suggest that the cAMP/PKA/DARPP-32 signaling pathway is critically involved in the acquisition of novel motor skills, and also demonstrate a dynamic shift in the contribution of cortico-striatal circuitry during different phases of motor skill learning.

Basic life support: evaluation of learning using simulation and immediate feedback devices

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Lucia Tobase

2017-10-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: to evaluate students’ learning in an online course on basic life support with immediate feedback devices, during a simulation of care during cardiorespiratory arrest. Method: a quasi-experimental study, using a before-and-after design. An online course on basic life support was developed and administered to participants, as an educational intervention. Theoretical learning was evaluated by means of a pre- and post-test and, to verify the practice, simulation with immediate feedback devices was used. Results: there were 62 participants, 87% female, 90% in the first and second year of college, with a mean age of 21.47 (standard deviation 2.39. With a 95% confidence level, the mean scores in the pre-test were 6.4 (standard deviation 1.61, and 9.3 in the post-test (standard deviation 0.82, p <0.001; in practice, 9.1 (standard deviation 0.95 with performance equivalent to basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation, according to the feedback device; 43.7 (standard deviation 26.86 mean duration of the compression cycle by second of 20.5 (standard deviation 9.47; number of compressions 167.2 (standard deviation 57.06; depth of compressions of 48.1 millimeter (standard deviation 10.49; volume of ventilation 742.7 (standard deviation 301.12; flow fraction percentage of 40.3 (standard deviation 10.03. Conclusion: the online course contributed to learning of basic life support. In view of the need for technological innovations in teaching and systematization of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, simulation and feedback devices are resources that favor learning and performance awareness in performing the maneuvers.

Basic practical skills teaching and learning in undergraduate medical education – a review on methodological evidence

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Vogel, Daniela; Harendza, Sigrid

2016-01-01

Objective: Practical skills are an essential part of physicians’ daily routine. Nevertheless, medical graduates’ performance of basic skills is often below the expected level. This review aims to identify and summarize teaching approaches of basic practical skills in undergraduate medical education which provide evidence with respect to effective students’ learning of these skills. Methods: Basic practical skills were defined as basic physical examination skills, routine skills which get better with practice, and skills which are also performed by nurses. We searched PubMed with different terms describing these basic practical skills. In total, 3467 identified publications were screened and 205 articles were eventually reviewed for eligibility. Results: 43 studies that included at least one basic practical skill, a comparison of two groups of undergraduate medical students and effects on students’ performance were analyzed. Seven basic practical skills and 15 different teaching methods could be identified. The most consistent results with respect to effective teaching and acquisition of basic practical skills were found for structured skills training, feedback, and self-directed learning. Simulation was effective with specific teaching methods and in several studies no differences in teaching effects were detected between expert or peer instructors. Multimedia instruction, when used in the right setting, also showed beneficial effects for basic practical skills learning. Conclusion: A combination of voluntary or obligatory self-study with multimedia applications like video clips in combination with a structured program including the possibility for individual exercise with personal feedback by peers or teachers might provide a good learning opportunity for basic practical skills. PMID:27579364

Task Complexity Modulates Sleep-Related Offline Learning in Sequential Motor Skills

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Klaus Blischke

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Recently, a number of authors have advocated the introduction of gross motor tasks into research on sleep-related motor offline learning. Such tasks are often designed to be more complex than traditional key-pressing tasks. However, until now, little effort has been undertaken to scrutinize the role of task complexity in any systematic way. Therefore, the effect of task complexity on the consolidation of gross motor sequence memory was examined by our group in a series of three experiments. Criterion tasks always required participants to produce unrestrained arm movement sequences by successively fitting a small peg into target holes on a pegboard. The sequences always followed a certain spatial pattern in the horizontal plane. The targets were visualized prior to each transport movement on a computer screen. The tasks differed with respect to sequence length and structural complexity. In each experiment, half of the participants initially learned the task in the morning and were retested 12 h later following a wake retention interval. The other half of the subjects underwent practice in the evening and was retested 12 h later following a night of sleep. The dependent variables were the error rate and total sequence execution time (inverse to the sequence execution speed. Performance generally improved during acquisition. The error rate was always low and remained stable during retention. The sequence execution time significantly decreased again following sleep but not after waking when the sequence length was long and structural complexity was high. However, sleep-related offline improvements were absent when the sequence length was short or when subjects performed a highly regular movement pattern. It is assumed that the occurrence of sleep-related offline performance improvements in sequential motor tasks is associated with a sufficient amount of motor task complexity.

Active learning: views and actions of students and teachers in basic education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lunenberg, Mieke L.; Volman, Monique

1999-01-01

This article discusses how teachers and adult, female, immigrant students in basic education deal with active learning. The study orientations, mental models of learning and images of ideal students of the two groups are compared both with each other and with actual educational practice, in order to

The role of motor memory in action selection and procedural learning: insights from children with typical and atypical development.

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Tallet, Jessica; Albaret, Jean-Michel; Rivière, James

2015-01-01

Motor memory is the process by which humans can adopt both persistent and flexible motor behaviours. Persistence and flexibility can be assessed through the examination of the cooperation/competition between new and old motor routines in the motor memory repertoire. Two paradigms seem to be particularly relevant to examine this competition/cooperation. First, a manual search task for hidden objects, namely the C-not-B task, which allows examining how a motor routine may influence the selection of action in toddlers. The second paradigm is procedural learning, and more precisely the consolidation stage, which allows assessing how a previously learnt motor routine becomes resistant to subsequent programming or learning of a new - competitive - motor routine. The present article defends the idea that results of both paradigms give precious information to understand the evolution of motor routines in healthy children. Moreover, these findings echo some clinical observations in developmental neuropsychology, particularly in children with Developmental Coordination Disorder. Such studies suggest that the level of equilibrium between persistence and flexibility of motor routines is an index of the maturity of the motor system.

Error amplification to promote motor learning and motivation in therapy robotics.

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Shirzad, Navid; Van der Loos, H F Machiel

2012-01-01

To study the effects of different feedback error amplification methods on a subject's upper-limb motor learning and affect during a point-to-point reaching exercise, we developed a real-time controller for a robotic manipulandum. The reaching environment was visually distorted by implementing a thirty degrees rotation between the coordinate systems of the robot's end-effector and the visual display. Feedback error amplification was provided to subjects as they trained to learn reaching within the visually rotated environment. Error amplification was provided either visually or through both haptic and visual means, each method with two different amplification gains. Subjects' performance (i.e., trajectory error) and self-reports to a questionnaire were used to study the speed and amount of adaptation promoted by each error amplification method and subjects' emotional changes. We found that providing haptic and visual feedback promotes faster adaptation to the distortion and increases subjects' satisfaction with the task, leading to a higher level of attentiveness during the exercise. This finding can be used to design a novel exercise regimen, where alternating between error amplification methods is used to both increase a subject's motor learning and maintain a minimum level of motivational engagement in the exercise. In future experiments, we will test whether such exercise methods will lead to a faster learning time and greater motivation to pursue a therapy exercise regimen.

Deficit in implicit motor sequence learning among children and adolescents with spastic cerebral palsy.

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Gofer-Levi, Moran; Silberg, Tamar; Brezner, Amichai; Vakil, Eli

2013-11-01

Skill learning (SL) is learning as a result of repeated exposure and practice, which encompasses independent explicit (response to instructions) and implicit (response to hidden regularities) processes. Little is known about the effects of developmental disorders, such as Cerebral Palsy (CP), on the ability to acquire new skills. We compared performance of CP and typically developing (TD) children and adolescents in completing the serial reaction time (SRT) task, which is a motor sequence learning task, and examined the impact of various factors on this performance as indicative of the ability to acquire motor skills. While both groups improved in performance, participants with CP were significantly slower than TD controls and did not learn the implicit sequence. Our results indicate that SL in children and adolescents with CP is qualitatively and quantitatively different than that of their peers. Understanding the unique aspects of SL in children and adolescents with CP might help plan appropriate and efficient interventions. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Motor learning in Sport. A short stroll into a (unfamiliar world. [Aprendizaje motor en el deporte: Un corto paseo por un mundo (desconocido].

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Luis Miguel Ruiz

2015-01-01

Full Text Available It was in 1990 when Quest published an issue about “Usefulness of motor learning research for physical educators”. Several scholars tried to give an answer to this question, while motor learning researchers were in favour of this kind of scientific knowledge (Singer, 1990, Magill, 1990 pedagogues were more sceptical (Locke, 1990; Hoffman, 1990. Is it still a question that needs an answer? Does motor learning and expertise research useful for coaches and teachers? To quote J. von Uexkül “perhaps it would be a good idea to give a short stroll into the world of this (unfamiliar world”. Recently the philosophy of mind and philosophy of sport has begun to focus on sport expertise (Breivik, 2007; Moe, 2005. Today we are witnessing a change of the explanatory model of motor skill acquisition. Computational and computer metaphor is rejected and dynamic, sensorimotor, extended and enactive positions are the fashionable approaches (Araujo, 2013; Aviles et al., 2014; Clark and Chalmers, 2011; Davids, 2015; Froese and Di Paolo, 2011; Noë, 2010. In some cases these positions are coincidences but not in others. All of the researchers are agree upon the need to consider the mutuality of human beings and their surroundings. The computer metaphor, which at the time was the paradigm of any explanation, is now beginning to be seen as an overcome idea(Moe, 2005; Varela, Thompson and Rosch, 2005.

Effects of Bilateral Electrolytic Lesions of the Dorsomedial Striatum on Motor Behavior and Instrumental Learning in Rats

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Pamphyle Abedi Mukutenga

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The dorsal striatum plays an important role in the control of motor activity and learning processes within the basal ganglia circuitry. Furthermore, recent works have suggested functional differentiation between subregions of the dorsal striatum Methods: The present study examined the effects of bilateral electrolytic lesions of the dorsomedial striatum on motor behavior and learning ability in rats using a series of behavioral tests. 20 male wistar rats were used in the experiment and behavioral assessment were conducted using open field test, rotarod test and 8-arm radial maze. Results: In the open field test, rats with bilateral electrolytic lesions of the dorsomedial striatum showed a normal motor function in the horizontal locomotor activity, while in rearing activity they displayed a statistically significant motor impairment when compared to sham operated group. In the rotarod test, a deficit in motor coordination and acquisition of skilled behavior was observed in rats with bilateral electrolytic lesions of the dorsomedial striatum compared to sham. However, radial maze performance revealed similar capacity in the acquisition of learning task between experimental groups. Discussion: Our results support the premise of the existence of functional dissociation between the dorsomedial and the dorsolateral regions of the dorsal striatum. In addition, our data suggest that the associative dorsomedial striatum may be as critical in striatum-based motor control.

Learning tactile skills through curious exploration

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Leo ePape

2012-07-01

Full Text Available We present curiosity-driven, autonomous acquisition of tactile exploratory skills on a biomimetic robot finger equipped with an array of microelectromechanical touch sensors. Instead of building tailored algorithms for solving a specific tactile task, we employ a more general curiosity-driven reinforcement learning approach that autonomously learns a set of motor skills in absence of an explicit teacher signal. In this approach, the acquisition of skills is driven by the information content of the sensory input signals relative to a learner that aims at representing sensory inputs using fewer and fewer computational resources. We show that, from initially random exploration of its environment, the robotic system autonomously develops a small set of basic motor skills that lead to different kinds of tactile input. Next, the system learns how to exploit the learned motor skills to solve supervised texture classification tasks. Our approach demonstrates the feasibility of autonomous acquisition of tactile skills on physical robotic platforms through curiosity-driven reinforcement learning, overcomes typical difficulties of engineered solutions for active tactile exploration and underactuated control, and provides a basis for studying developmental learning through intrinsic motivation in robots.

Influence of visual observational conditions on tongue motor learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kothari, Mohit; Liu, Xuimei; Baad-Hansen, Lene

2016-01-01

To investigate the impact of visual observational conditions on performance during a standardized tongue-protrusion training (TPT) task and to evaluate subject-based reports of helpfulness, disturbance, pain, and fatigue due to the observational conditions on 0-10 numerical rating scales. Forty...... regarding the level of disturbance, pain or fatigue. Self-observation of tongue-training facilitated behavioral aspects of tongue motor learning compared with model-observation but not compared with control....

Compositional symbol grounding for motor patterns.

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Greco, Alberto; Caneva, Claudio

2010-01-01

We developed a new experimental and simulative paradigm to study the establishing of compositional grounded representations for motor patterns. Participants learned to associate non-sense arm motor patterns, performed in three different hand postures, with non-sense words. There were two group conditions: in the first (compositional), each pattern was associated with a two-word (verb-adverb) sentence; in the second (holistic), each same pattern was associated with a unique word. Two experiments were performed. In the first, motor pattern recognition and naming were tested in the two conditions. Results showed that verbal compositionality had no role in recognition and that the main source of confusability in this task came from discriminating hand postures. As the naming task resulted too difficult, some changes in the learning procedure were implemented in the second experiment. In this experiment, the compositional group achieved better results in naming motor patterns especially for patterns where hand postures discrimination was relevant. In order to ascertain the differential effect, upon this result, of memory load and of systematic grounding, neural network simulations were also made. After a basic simulation that worked as a good model of subjects performance, in following simulations the number of stimuli (motor patterns and words) was increased and the systematic association between words and patterns was disrupted, while keeping the same number of words and syntax. Results showed that in both conditions the advantage for the compositional condition significantly increased. These simulations showed that the advantage for this condition may be more related to the systematicity rather than to the mere informational gain. All results are discussed in connection to the possible support of the hypothesis of a compositional motor representation and toward a more precise explanation of the factors that make compositional representations working.

Compositional symbol grounding for motor patterns

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Alberto eGreco

2010-11-01

Full Text Available We developed a new experimental and simulative paradigm to study the establishing of compositional grounded representations for motor patterns. Participants learned to associate nonsense arm motor patterns, performed in three different hand postures, with nonsense words. There were two group conditions: in the first (compositional, each pattern was associated with a two-word (verb-adverb sentence; in the second (holistic, each same pattern was associated with a unique word. Two experiments were performed. In the first, motor pattern recognition and naming were tested in the two conditions. Results showed that verbal compositionality had no role in recognition and that the main source of confusability in this task came from discriminating hand postures. As the naming task resulted too difficult, some changes in the learning procedure were implemented in the second experiment. In this experiment, the compositional group achieved better results in naming motor patterns especially for patterns where hand postures discrimination was relevant. In order to ascertain the differential effect, upon this result, of memory load and of systematic grounding, neural network simulations were also made. After a basic simulation that worked as a good model of subjects performance, in following simulations the number of stimuli (motor patterns and words was increased and the systematic association between words and patterns was disrupted, while keeping the same number of words and syntax. Results showed that in both conditions the advantage for the compositional condition significantly increased. These simulations showed that the advantage for this condition may be more related to the systematicity rather than to the mere informational gain. All results are discussed in connection to the possible support of the hypothesis of a compositional motor representation and towards a more precise explanation of the factors that make compositional representations working.

Using virtual humans and computer animations to learn complex motor skills: a case study in karate

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Spanlang Bernhard

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Learning motor skills is a complex task involving a lot of cognitive issues. One of the main issues consists in retrieving the relevant information from the learning environment. In a traditional learning situation, a teacher gives oral explanations and performs actions to provide the learner with visual examples. Using virtual reality (VR as a tool for learning motor tasks is promising. However, it raises questions about the type of information this kind of environments can offer. In this paper, we propose to analyze the impact of virtual humans on the perception of the learners. As a case study, we propose to apply this research problem to karate gestures. The results of this study show no significant difference on the after training performance of learners confronted to three different learning environments (traditional group, video and VR.

Stabilization of dendritic spine clusters and hyperactive Ras-MAPK signaling predict enhanced motor learning in an autistic savant mouse model

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Ryan Thomas Ash

2014-03-01

Full Text Available That both prominent behavioral inflexibility and exceptional learning abilities are seen occasionally in autistic patients is a mystery. We hypothesize that these altered patterns of learning and memory can arise from a pathological imbalance between the stability and plasticity of internal neural representations. We evaluated this hypothesis in the mouse model of MECP2 duplication syndrome, which demonstrates enhanced motor learning, stereotyped behaviors, and social avoidance. Learning-associated structural plasticity was measured in the motor cortex of MECP2 duplication mice by 2-photon imaging (Fig. 1A. An increased stabilization rate of learning-associated dendritic spines was observed in mutants, and this correlated with rotarod performance. Analysis of the spatial distribution of stabilized spines revealed that the mutant’s increased spine stabilization was due to a specific increase in the stability of spines jointly formed in ~9-micron clusters. Clustered spine stabilization but not isolated spine stabilization predicted enhanced motor performance in MECP2 duplication mice (Fig. 1B. Biochemical assays of Ras-MAPK and mTOR pathway activation demonstrated profound hyperphosphorylation of MAPK in the motor cortex of MECP2 duplication mice with motor training (Fig. 1C. Taken together these data suggest that a pathological bias towards hyperstability of learning-associated dendritic spine clusters driven by hyperactive Ras-MAPK signaling could contribute to neurobehavioral phenotypes in this form of syndromic autism.

Using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation to study the underlying neural mechanisms of human motor learning and memory.

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Censor, Nitzan; Cohen, Leonardo G

2011-01-01

In the last two decades, there has been a rapid development in the research of the physiological brain mechanisms underlying human motor learning and memory. While conventional memory research performed on animal models uses intracellular recordings, microfusion of protein inhibitors to specific brain areas and direct induction of focal brain lesions, human research has so far utilized predominantly behavioural approaches and indirect measurements of neural activity. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a safe non-invasive brain stimulation technique, enables the study of the functional role of specific cortical areas by evaluating the behavioural consequences of selective modulation of activity (excitation or inhibition) on memory generation and consolidation, contributing to the understanding of the neural substrates of motor learning. Depending on the parameters of stimulation, rTMS can also facilitate learning processes, presumably through purposeful modulation of excitability in specific brain regions. rTMS has also been used to gain valuable knowledge regarding the timeline of motor memory formation, from initial encoding to stabilization and long-term retention. In this review, we summarize insights gained using rTMS on the physiological and neural mechanisms of human motor learning and memory. We conclude by suggesting possible future research directions, some with direct clinical implications.

MOTORIC STIMULATION RELATED TO FINE MOTORIC DEVELOPMENT ON CHILD

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Mira Triharini

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Motor developmental stimulation is an activity undertaken to stimulate the children basic skills and so they can grow and develop optimally. Children who obtain a direct stimulus will grow faster than who get less stimulus. Mother’s behavior of stimulation is very important for children, it is considering as the basic needs of children and it must be fulfilled. Providing good stimulation could optimize fine motor development in children. The purpose of this study was to analyze mother’s behavior about motor stimulation with fine motor development in toddler age 4-5 years old. Method: Design have been  used in this study was cross sectional. Population were mothers and their toddler in Group A of Dharma Wanita Persatuan Driyorejo Gresik Preschool. Sample were 51 respondents recruited by using purposive sampling technique according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. The independent variable was mother’s behavior about motor stimulation whereas dependent variable was fine motor development in toddler. The data were collected using questionnaire and conducting observation on fine motor development based on Denver Development Screening Test (DDST. Data then analyzed using Spearman Rho (r test to find relation between mother’s behaviors about stimulation motor on their toddler fine motor development. Result: Results  of this study showed that there were correlations between mother’s knowledge and fine motor development in toddler (p=0.000, between mother’s attitude and fine motor development in toddler (p=0.000, and between mother’s actions and fine motor development in toddler (p=0.000. Analysis: In sort study found that there were relation between fine motor development and mother’s behavior. Discussion: Therefore mother’s behavior needed to be improved. Further research about stimulation motor and fine motor development aspects in toddler is required.

Basic life support: evaluation of learning using simulation and immediate feedback devices1.

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Tobase, Lucia; Peres, Heloisa Helena Ciqueto; Tomazini, Edenir Aparecida Sartorelli; Teodoro, Simone Valentim; Ramos, Meire Bruna; Polastri, Thatiane Facholi

2017-10-30

to evaluate students' learning in an online course on basic life support with immediate feedback devices, during a simulation of care during cardiorespiratory arrest. a quasi-experimental study, using a before-and-after design. An online course on basic life support was developed and administered to participants, as an educational intervention. Theoretical learning was evaluated by means of a pre- and post-test and, to verify the practice, simulation with immediate feedback devices was used. there were 62 participants, 87% female, 90% in the first and second year of college, with a mean age of 21.47 (standard deviation 2.39). With a 95% confidence level, the mean scores in the pre-test were 6.4 (standard deviation 1.61), and 9.3 in the post-test (standard deviation 0.82, p basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation, according to the feedback device; 43.7 (standard deviation 26.86) mean duration of the compression cycle by second of 20.5 (standard deviation 9.47); number of compressions 167.2 (standard deviation 57.06); depth of compressions of 48.1 millimeter (standard deviation 10.49); volume of ventilation 742.7 (standard deviation 301.12); flow fraction percentage of 40.3 (standard deviation 10.03). the online course contributed to learning of basic life support. In view of the need for technological innovations in teaching and systematization of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, simulation and feedback devices are resources that favor learning and performance awareness in performing the maneuvers.

Two chronic motor training paradigms differentially influe nce acute instrume ntal learning in spinally transected rats

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Bigbee, Allison J.; Crown, Eric D.; Ferguson, Adam R.; Roy, Roland R.; Tillakaratne, Niranjala J.K.; Grau, James W.; Edgerton, V. Reggie

2008-01-01

The effect of two chronic motor training paradigms on the ability of the lumbar spinal cord to perform an acute instrumental learning task was examined in neonatally (postnatal day 5; P5) spinal cord transected (i.e., spinal) rats. At ∼P30, rats began either unipedal hindlimb stand training (Stand-Tr; 20-25 min/day, 5 days/wk), or bipedal hindlimb step training (Step-Tr; 20 min/day; 5 days/wk) for 7 wks. Non-trained spinal rats (Non-Tr) served as controls. After 7 wks all groups were tested on the flexor-biased instrumental learning paradigm. We hypothesized that 1) Step-Tr rats would exhibit an increased capacity to learn the flexor-biased task relative to Non-Tr subjects, as locomotion involves repetitive training of the tibialis anterior (TA), the ankle flexor whose activation is important for successful instrumental learning, and 2) Stand-Tr rats would exhibit a deficit in acute motor learning, as unipedal training activates the ipsilateral ankle extensors, but not flexors. Results showed no differences in acute learning potential between Non-Tr and Step-Tr rats, while the Stand-Tr group showed a reduced capacity to learn the acute task. Further investigation of the Stand-Tr group showed that, while both the ipsilateral and contralateral hindlimbs were significantly impaired in their acute learning potential, the contralateral, untrained hindlimbs exhibited significantly greater learning deficits. These results suggest that different types of chronic peripheral input may have a significant impact on the ability to learn a novel motor task, and demonstrate the potential for experience-dependent plasticity in the spinal cord in the absence of supraspinal connectivity. PMID:17434606

The advantage of flexible neuronal tunings in neural network models for motor learning

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Marongelli, Ellisha N.; Thoroughman, Kurt A.

2013-01-01

Human motor adaptation to novel environments is often modeled by a basis function network that transforms desired movement properties into estimated forces. This network employs a layer of nodes that have fixed broad tunings that generalize across the input domain. Learning is achieved by updating the weights of these nodes in response to training experience. This conventional model is unable to account for rapid flexibility observed in human spatial generalization during motor adaptation. Ho...

Improving the basic skills of teaching mathematics through learning with search-solve-create-share strategy

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Rahayu, D. V.; Kusumah, Y. S.; Darhim

2018-05-01

This study examined to see the improvement of prospective teachers’ basic skills of teaching mathematics through search-solve-create-share learning strategy based on overall and Mathematical Prior Knowledge (MPK) and interaction of both. Quasi experiments with the design of this experimental-non-equivalent control group design involved 67 students at the mathematics program of STKIP Garut. The instrument used in this study included pre-test and post-test. The result of this study showed that: (1) The improvement and achievement of the basic skills of teaching mathematics of the prospective teachers who get the learning of search-solve-create-share strategy is better than the improvement and achievement of the prospective teachers who get the conventional learning as a whole and based on MPK; (2) There is no interaction between the learning used and MPK on improving and achieving basic skills of teaching mathematics.

Motor-related signals in the auditory system for listening and learning.

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Schneider, David M; Mooney, Richard

2015-08-01

In the auditory system, corollary discharge signals are theorized to facilitate normal hearing and the learning of acoustic behaviors, including speech and music. Despite clear evidence of corollary discharge signals in the auditory cortex and their presumed importance for hearing and auditory-guided motor learning, the circuitry and function of corollary discharge signals in the auditory cortex are not well described. In this review, we focus on recent developments in the mouse and songbird that provide insights into the circuitry that transmits corollary discharge signals to the auditory system and the function of these signals in the context of hearing and vocal learning. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Principle and Basic Characteristics of Variable-Magnetic-Force Memory Motors

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Sakai, Kazuto; Yuki, Kazuaki; Hashiba, Yutaka; Takahashi, Norio; Yasui, Kazuya; Kovudhikulrungsri, Lilit

A reduction in the power consumed by motors is required for energy saving in the case of electrical appliances and electric vehicles (EV). The motors used for operating these apparatus operate at variable speeds. Further, the motors operate with small load in stationary mode and with large load in start-up mode. A permanent magnet motor can operate at the rated power with a high efficiency. However, the efficiency is lower at small load or high speed because the large constant magnetic force results in substantial core loss. Furthermore, the flux-weakening current that depresses voltage at high speed leads to significant copper loss. Therefore, we have developed a new technique for controlling the magnetic force of permanent magnet on the basis of the load or speed of the motor. In this paper, we propose the novel motor that can vary magnetic flux and we clarify the principle.

The effect of motor learning and fatigue on pre-activation of the lower extremity muscles during different jumps.

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Kamelska, Anna M; Kot, Bartosz

2017-09-22

The first step in identifying risk factors for injuries is to characterize the myoelectric activity of different muscles after ground contact, especially when fatigue is a limiting factor. This study aimed at: (a) recording the myoelectric activity of calf muscles after ground contact during different types of jumps and (b) investigating the effect of motor learning and fatigue on muscle pre-activation. Twenty four male students aged 24.3 ± 1.2 years old performed three different motor activities: (a) Jump from a box with counter landing (JCL) on 30x30 cm plate (b) Drop jump with bounce drop jump (BDJ) and (c) BDJ followed by a jump on 51-cm step. The surface EMG was used to examine the following muscles: m. tibialis anterior (TA), m. gastrocnemius medialis (GM), m. gastrocnemius lateralis (GL), and m. soleus (S). The measurements were taken during different jumps before and after motor learning and fatigue stimulus. There were significant differences in pre-activation for TA between JCL and BDJ followed by a jump under the influence of fatigue (p<0.05). The differences were observed also during BDJ between non-fatigued and fatigued conditions. There was a statistically significant difference for GL between BDJ pre- and post-movement motor learning and BDJ pre- and post-fatigue influence. Current results indicate that myoelectric activity of muscles during motor activities is different, and the effect of motor learning and fatigue was shown. Thus, it could be important in the injury prevention in sport.

Delayed benefit of naps on motor learning in preschool children.

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Desrochers, Phillip C; Kurdziel, Laura B F; Spencer, Rebecca M C

2016-03-01

Sleep benefits memory consolidation across a variety of domains in young adults. However, while declarative memories benefit from sleep in young children, such improvements are not consistently seen for procedural skill learning. Here we examined whether performance improvements on a procedural task, although not immediately observed, are evident after a longer delay when augmented by overnight sleep (24 h after learning). We trained 47 children, aged 33-71 months, on a serial reaction time task and, using a within-subject design, evaluated performance at three time points: immediately after learning, after a daytime nap (nap condition) or equivalent wake opportunity (wake condition), and 24 h after learning. Consistent with previous studies, performance improvements following the nap did not differ from performance improvements following an equivalent interval spent awake. However, significant benefits of the nap were found when performance was assessed 24 h after learning. This research demonstrates that motor skill learning is benefited by sleep, but that this benefit is only evident after an extended period of time.

Transfer Effect of Speech-sound Learning on Auditory-motor Processing of Perceived Vocal Pitch Errors.

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Chen, Zhaocong; Wong, Francis C K; Jones, Jeffery A; Li, Weifeng; Liu, Peng; Chen, Xi; Liu, Hanjun

2015-08-17

Speech perception and production are intimately linked. There is evidence that speech motor learning results in changes to auditory processing of speech. Whether speech motor control benefits from perceptual learning in speech, however, remains unclear. This event-related potential study investigated whether speech-sound learning can modulate the processing of feedback errors during vocal pitch regulation. Mandarin speakers were trained to perceive five Thai lexical tones while learning to associate pictures with spoken words over 5 days. Before and after training, participants produced sustained vowel sounds while they heard their vocal pitch feedback unexpectedly perturbed. As compared to the pre-training session, the magnitude of vocal compensation significantly decreased for the control group, but remained consistent for the trained group at the post-training session. However, the trained group had smaller and faster N1 responses to pitch perturbations and exhibited enhanced P2 responses that correlated significantly with their learning performance. These findings indicate that the cortical processing of vocal pitch regulation can be shaped by learning new speech-sound associations, suggesting that perceptual learning in speech can produce transfer effects to facilitating the neural mechanisms underlying the online monitoring of auditory feedback regarding vocal production.

The role of motor memory in action selection and procedural learning: insights from children with typical and atypical development

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Jessica Tallet

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Motor memory is the process by which humans can adopt both persistent and flexible motor behaviours. Persistence and flexibility can be assessed through the examination of the cooperation/competition between new and old motor routines in the motor memory repertoire. Two paradigms seem to be particularly relevant to examine this competition/cooperation. First, a manual search task for hidden objects, namely the C-not-B task, which allows examining how a motor routine may influence the selection of action in toddlers. The second paradigm is procedural learning, and more precisely the consolidation stage, which allows assessing how a previously learnt motor routine becomes resistant to subsequent programming or learning of a new – competitive – motor routine. The present article defends the idea that results of both paradigms give precious information to understand the evolution of motor routines in healthy children. Moreover, these findings echo some clinical observations in developmental neuropsychology, particularly in children with Developmental Coordination Disorder. Such studies suggest that the level of equilibrium between persistence and flexibility of motor routines is an index of the maturity of the motor system.

Effect of Auditory Constraints on Motor Learning Depends on Stage of Recovery Post Stroke

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Viswanath eAluru

2014-06-01

Full Text Available In order to develop evidence-based rehabilitation protocols post stroke, one must first reconcile the vast heterogeneity in the post-stroke population and develop protocols to facilitate motor learning in the various subgroups. The main purpose of this study is to show that auditory constraints interact with the stage of recovery post stroke to influence motor learning. We characterized the stages of upper limb recovery using task-based kinematic measures in twenty subjects with chronic hemiparesis, and used a bimanual wrist extension task using a custom-made wrist trainer to facilitate learning of wrist extension in the paretic hand under four auditory conditions: 1 without auditory cueing; 2 to non-musical happy sounds; 3 to self-selected music; and 4 to a metronome beat set at a comfortable tempo. Two bimanual trials (15 s each were followed by one unimanual trial with the paretic hand over six cycles under each condition. Clinical metrics, wrist and arm kinematics and electromyographic activity were recorded. Hierarchical cluster analysis with the Mahalanobis metric based on baseline speed and extent of wrist movement stratified subjects into three distinct groups which reflected their stage of recovery: spastic paresis, spastic co-contraction, and minimal paresis. In spastic paresis, the metronome beat increased wrist extension, but also increased muscle co-activation across the wrist. In contrast, in spastic co-contraction, no auditory stimulation increased wrist extension and reduced co-activation. In minimal paresis, wrist extension did not improve under any condition. The results suggest that auditory task constraints interact with stage of recovery during motor learning after stroke, perhaps due to recruitment of distinct neural substrates over the course of recovery. The findings advance our understanding of the mechanisms of progression of motor recovery and lay the foundation for personalized treatment algorithms post stroke.

Physiotherapists use a great variety of motor learning options in neurological rehabilitation, from which they choose through an iterative process: a retrospective think-aloud study.

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Kleynen, Melanie; Moser, Albine; Haarsma, Frederike A; Beurskens, Anna J; Braun, Susy M

2017-08-01

The goal of this study was to examine which motor learning options are applied by experienced physiotherapists in neurological rehabilitation, and how they choose between the different options. A descriptive qualitative approach was used. A purposive sample of five expert physiotherapists from the neurological ward of a rehabilitation center participated. Data were collected using nine videotaped therapy situations. During retrospective think-aloud interviews, the physiotherapists were instructed to constantly "think aloud" while they were watching their own videos. Five "operators" were identified: "act", "know", "observe", "assess" and "argue". The "act" operator consisted of 34 motor learning options, which were clustered into "instruction", "feedback" and "organization". The "know", "observe", "assess" and "argue" operators explained how therapists chose one of these options. The four operators seem to be interrelated and together lead to a decision to apply a particular motor learning option. Results show that the participating physiotherapists used a great variety of motor learning options in their treatment sessions. Further, the decision-making process with regard to these motor learning options was identified. Results may support future intervention studies that match the content and process of therapy in daily practice. The study should be repeated with other physiotherapists. Implications for Rehabilitation The study provided insight into the way experienced therapist handle the great variety of possible motor learning options, including concrete ideas on how to operationalize these options in specific situations. Despite differences in patients' abilities, it seems that therapists use the same underlying clinical reasoning process when choosing a particular motor learning option. Participating physiotherapists used more than the in guidelines suggested motor learning options and considered more than the suggested factors, hence adding practice based

Comparison of Auditory/Visual and Visual/Motor Practice on the Spelling Accuracy of Learning Disabled Children.

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Aleman, Cheryl; And Others

1990-01-01

Compares auditory/visual practice to visual/motor practice in spelling with seven elementary school learning-disabled students enrolled in a resource room setting. Finds that the auditory/visual practice was superior to the visual/motor practice on the weekly spelling performance for all seven students. (MG)

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ATTITUDES LEARNING AND ACHIEVEMENT OF INTEREST LEARNING WITH LEARNING THE BASICS OF COST OF DISCUSSION AUTOMOTIVE AUTOMOTIVE DEPARTMENT OF CLASS X SMK PIRI SLEMAN EVEN SEMESTER OF STUDY 2013/2014

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Deril Gusa Wijaya

2014-12-01

Based on the analysis of the results obtained the following results: (1 There is a positive and significant relationship between the attitude of Learning (X1 with Achievement Automotive Basics (Y; (2 There is a positive and significant relationship between Interests Learning (X2 with Achievement Automotive Basics (Y; (3 There is a positive and significant relationship Attitude Study (X1 and Interest in Learning (X2 with Achievement Automotive Basics (Y.

The influence of errors during practice on motor learning in young individuals with cerebral palsy

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Abswoude, F. van; Santos-Vieira, B.; Kamp, J. van der; Steenbergen, B.

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of errors during practice on motor skill learning in young individuals with cerebral palsy (CP). Minimizing errors has been validated in typically developing children and children with intellectual disabilities as a method for implicit learning,

Learning stage-dependent effect of M1 disruption on value-based motor decisions.

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Derosiere, Gerard; Vassiliadis, Pierre; Demaret, Sophie; Zénon, Alexandre; Duque, Julie

2017-11-15

The present study aimed at characterizing the impact of M1 disruption on the implementation of implicit value information in motor decisions, at both early stages (during reinforcement learning) and late stages (after consolidation) of action value encoding. Fifty subjects performed, over three consecutive days, a task that required them to select between two finger responses according to the color (instruction) and to the shape (implicit, undisclosed rule) of an imperative signal: considering the implicit rule in addition to the instruction allowed subjects to earn more money. We investigated the functional contribution of M1 to the implementation of the implicit rule in subjects' motor decisions. Continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) was applied over M1 either on Day 1 or on Day 3, producing a temporary lesion either during reinforcement learning (cTBS Learning group) or after consolidation of the implicit rule, during decision-making (cTBS Decision group), respectively. Interestingly, disrupting M1 activity on Day 1 improved the reliance on the implicit rule, plausibly because M1 cTBS increased dopamine release in the putamen in an indirect way. This finding corroborates the view that cTBS may affect activity in unstimulated areas, such as the basal ganglia. Notably, this effect was short-lasting; it did not persist overnight, suggesting that the functional integrity of M1 during learning is a prerequisite for the consolidation of implicit value information to occur. Besides, cTBS over M1 did not impact the use of the implicit rule when applied on Day 3, although it did so when applied on Day 2 in a recent study where the reliance on the implicit rule declined following cTBS (Derosiere et al., 2017). Overall, these findings indicate that the human M1 is functionally involved in the consolidation and implementation of implicit value information underlying motor decisions. However, M1 contribution seems to vanish as subjects become more experienced in using

Prefrontal control of cerebellum-dependent associative motor learning.

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Chen, Hao; Yang, Li; Xu, Yan; Wu, Guang-yan; Yao, Juan; Zhang, Jun; Zhu, Zhi-ru; Hu, Zhi-an; Sui, Jian-feng; Hu, Bo

2014-02-01

Behavioral studies have demonstrated that both medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and cerebellum play critical roles in trace eyeblink conditioning. However, little is known regarding the mechanism by which the two brain regions interact. By use of electrical stimulation of the caudal mPFC as a conditioned stimulus, we show evidence that persistent outputs from the mPFC to cerebellum are necessary and sufficient for the acquisition and expression of a trace conditioned response (CR)-like response. Specifically, the persistent outputs of caudal mPFC are relayed to the cerebellum via the rostral part of lateral pontine nuclei. Moreover, interfering with persistent activity by blockade of the muscarinic Ach receptor in the caudal mPFC impairs the expression of learned trace CRs. These results suggest an important way for the caudal mPFC to interact with the cerebellum during associative motor learning.

Does (Non-)Meaningful Sensori-Motor Engagement Promote Learning With Animated Physical Systems?

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Pouw, Wim T J L; Eielts, Charly; van Gog, Tamara; Zwaan, Rolf A.; Paas, Fred

2016-01-01

Previous research indicates that sensori-motor experience with physical systems can have a positive effect on learning. However, it is not clear whether this effect is caused by mere bodily engagement or the intrinsically meaningful information that such interaction affords in performing the

Online Learning Tools as Supplements for Basic and Clinical Science Education.

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Ellman, Matthew S; Schwartz, Michael L

2016-01-01

Undergraduate medical educators are increasingly incorporating online learning tools into basic and clinical science curricula. In this paper, we explore the diversity of online learning tools and consider the range of applications for these tools in classroom and bedside learning. Particular advantages of these tools are highlighted, such as delivering foundational knowledge as part of the "flipped classroom" pedagogy and for depicting unusual physical examination findings and advanced clinical communication skills. With accelerated use of online learning, educators and administrators need to consider pedagogic and practical challenges posed by integrating online learning into individual learning activities, courses, and curricula as a whole. We discuss strategies for faculty development and the role of school-wide resources for supporting and using online learning. Finally, we consider the role of online learning in interprofessional, integrated, and competency-based applications among other contemporary trends in medical education are considered.

Does provision of extrinsic feedback result in improved motor learning in the upper limb poststroke? A systematic review of the evidence.

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Subramanian, Sandeep K; Massie, Crystal L; Malcolm, Matthew P; Levin, Mindy F

2010-02-01

Recovery of the upper limb (UL) after a stroke occurs well into the chronic stage. Stroke survivors can benefit from adaptive plasticity to improve UL movement through motor relearning. The provision of feedback has been shown to decrease the use of compensatory UL movement patterns. However, the effectiveness of feedback in improving UL motor recovery after a stroke has not yet been systematically reviewed. The objective of this review was to systematically examine the role of extrinsic feedback on implicit motor learning after stroke, focusing on UL movement and functional recovery. The authors retrieved 9 studies that examined the role of feedback on UL motor recovery. Of these, 6 were randomized controlled trials (RCTs), 1 was a single-subject design, 1 was a pre-post design, and 1 was a cohort study. The studies were rated on the basis of Sackett's levels of evidence and PEDro (Physiotherapy Evidence Database) scores for RCTs. Levels of evidence were limited (level 2b) for UL motor learning of the less-affected extremity and strong (level 1a) for the more-affected extremity. The results suggest that people with stroke may be capable of using extrinsic feedback for implicit motor learning and improving UL motor recovery. Emergent questions regarding the advantages of using different media for feedback delivery and the optimal type and schedule of feedback to enhance motor learning in patient populations still need to be addressed.