We learn little from mistakes and a lot from successes. This is the conclusion of a study published in the latest issue of the journal Neuron , which reveals that brain cells involved in memory and learning have a more accurate response when the individual has a correct response .
To reach this conclusion, Earl K. Miller and his colleagues at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) took snapshots of the learning process in the brain of monkeys that showed how neurons change their response in real time based on information about of an action. When there is success, the cells adjust better to what the animal is learning, whereas after failure there is little change or improvement in behavior.
The objective of the research is to better understand neural mechanisms by relating information from the environment to the plasticity of neurons or, in other words, the ability to change the brain in response to experience.
