Introduction: Learn (03:24)

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Humans develop into sophisticated organisms capable of complex movement, memorization, and adaptation. New technology and science reveals the body's inner workings. Babies constantly learn and motor control is the first task mastered; movements are stored in the brain and become automatic.

Riding a Bike (07:27)

Donny MacAskill rides down rocky hills; balance, reaction, and coordination are utilized during physical activity. The body constantly absorbs information and receptors transmit data to the brain, creating a motor feedback loop. Repetition forms strong connections, imprinting motor skills; oligodendrocytes build myelin around utilized axons.

Attaining Language (03:49)

Infants and toddlers continuously make new neural connections; language is a unique human ability. Doctor Deb Roy rigs recording equipment to document his new baby's development.

Speech and Rhythm (05:21)

Doctor Reyna Gordon studies how preverbal babies respond to tunes and beats. Children excelling at music also efficiently master grammar; speech impairments are linked to rhythmic challenges. Movement classes and music lessons advance the expression of children with developmental language disorder.

Creating Memories (05:39)

Vocabulary grows with age; Akash Vukoti prepares for a spelling bee. Memorization is first aided by sensory information; learning a word's meaning stimulates other brain areas, strengthening connections and storage. See a computer simulation of memory formation; during sleep, the brain's resources are redirected to memory networks.

Recall (04:45)

Vukoti is the youngest to win the San Angelo Spelling Be. If he can reconstruct the memory map formed when learning a word, Vukoti can recall and spell it. Memories are stored in the cortex, but the hippocampus coordinates understanding.

Emotion and "Likes" (07:34)

Cooperation requires communication and empathy; core facial expressions convey happiness, anger, surprise, disgust, fear, and sadness. The brain responds differently to involuntary and conversational laughing, allowing mastery of social situations by adolescence. Teenagers are better at "fitting in" than other ages; Dr. Lauren Sherman discusses an MRI social media study.

Physical Memory (06:42)

Freya Christie pursues a professional tennis career. Daily practice exerts force with dramatic effects on the body; bones grow, thicken, and mineralize with repetitive use. Skeletal muscles are most adaptive.

Gene Adaptability (07:43)

Mark Benson discusses transitioning to Breckenridge conditions. Doctor Robert Roach studies the effects of oxygen and pressure loss on the body; a test subject suffers from hypoxia as blood saturation levels drop. Humans can permanently adapt to high altitudes; kidneys increase erythropoietin, stimulating production of extra red blood cells

Summary and Credits: Learn (01:41)

Summary and Credits: Learn