The A&P Professor: Flashcards: Hidden Powers

Monday, December 16, 2019

Flashcards: Hidden Powers | Episode 58

If you think you know flashcards, think again. Host Kevin Patton outlines the learning science behind flashcards, then shows how they can go way beyond simple memorization in the first of a multipart series on the hidden powers of flashcards. Updates in gene therapy to grow brain cells and smelling without olfactory bulbs.

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Memorization has gotten a bad rap recently. Lots of students, and even some educators, say that being able to reason is more important than knowing facts; and besides, why bother committing things to memory when you've got Google? My response to this - after I've finished inwardly groaning - is that of course reasoning is important, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't know facts as well. It's not like you have to choose between one or the other. Besides, facts give you a foundation on which to reason about things. (Stefanie Weisman)

Gene Therapy for Brain Cells

3 minutes
Using gene therapy techniques, biologists can insert the NeuroD1 gene into glial progenitor cells to form new neurons in damaged brains.

Gene Therapy Shows Promise Repairing Brain Tissue Damaged by Stroke (blog post) my-ap.us/2P8OgvN
A NeuroD1 AAV-Based Gene Therapy for Functional Brain Repair after Ischemic Injury through In Vivo Astrocyte-to-Neuron Conversion (journal article) my-ap.us/2YIyJGs
In vivo direct reprogramming of reactive glial cells into functional neurons after brain injury and in an Alzheimer's disease model. (research article) my-ap.us/2P8lYBA
Gene Therapy (tutorial from NIH National Human Genome Research Institute) my-ap.us/2sarwmd
Polydendrocytes (NG2 cells): multifunctional cells with lineage plasticity (review article) my-ap.us/344SPM9
Image: my-ap.us/2sarwmd (Courtesy: National Human Genome Research Institute)
Related episodes mentioned in this segment:

Something Smells Odd

3.5 minutes
It turns out that some women, especially left-handed women, can smell okay (good olfactory reception) even when they are missing both olfactory bulbs. Really. Listen to find out more!

Left-handed women's quirk over sense of smell (news item) https://my-ap.us/36kuhA8
Human Olfaction without Apparent Olfactory Bulbs (journal article) https://my-ap.us/2sXntdh
Related episode mentioned in this segment:
- The Case for Transparency | Episode 51
Image: my-ap.us/38y9IlD (Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator. (labeled by was_a_bee))

Introduction to Flashcards

12 minutes
A recent blog post from learning scientist Pooja Agarwal about flashcards got me thinking about how underappreciated this powerful study tool is. So off we go on a multi-part series (spanning more than one episode) we could call "Flashcards Unleashed." In this segment, some basics:

Language learning —There are 3,957 glossary entries in Kevin's 2-semester A&P textbook, but even trimming that down to 1,000 new terms, students have 35 new terms to master every week.
Leitner System and PALS: Patton's Adaptation of the Leitner System

Make flashcards more powerful with these 3 tips (blog post from the Retrieval Practice website) my-ap.us/2OZrWog
Leitner System (Wikipedia) my-ap.us/2RqpatV
PALS (described in Survival Guide for Anatomy & Physiology) lionden.com/tips-survival-guide.htm
Related episode mentioned in this segment:

Beginning Intermediate Flashcards

12 minutes
The next phase of learning about the hidden power of flashcards. In this segment:

Flashcards are just one tool in the A&P learning toolbox.
We compare prepared cards and handmade cards.
Kevin tells a story from the olden days (of course).
Flashcard basics and the concept of a personalized wiki of A&P information.
The role of pronunciation in learning new terms.
Word parts in flashcards.

Flashcard tips for students (Lion Den web page for A&P students, with a video, tips, links to sources, etc., that you can link to from inside your course) lionden.com/new_terms.htm
There'll be more about flashcards in the next episode (Episode 59)!

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