Introduction

Editing Exercise

First Draft

Peer Review

Article Summary

The Rewiring Abilities of the Brain 

The ability of the brain to function while missing crucial parts is a topic that is discussed heavily within the scientific community. The commonness of neurological degenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and dementia, has spurred this discussion. In “How the Brain Can Rewire Itself After Half of It Is Removed” by Knvul Sheikh, printed in The New York Times on November 19, 2019, the discussion is not only approached but also explained. Sheikh clearly explains the observations that doctors and patients have had regarding hemispherectomy, and the article excellently achieves her purpose of informing the public. The purpose of this literature review is to analyze Sheikh’s writing and its effectiveness. 

The article focuses on the life of Henry who was diagnosed with a rare neurological condition that brought on multiple seizures per day, causing one side of his brain to be extremely larger than the other side. He had to get a complete anatomical hemispherectomy at the age of 3. The effects of the procedure shocked neurologists because the brain should not work when half of it is missing. Recent studies found that the reason why the brain still works after such an intrusive procedure is that the brain rewires itself. New medical scans show that the brains of people who have had a hemisphere removed works the same as the ones of people who have not. It was found that the parts of the brain that are responsible for things like seeing, and speaking in double hemisphere brains now had to take on extra loads, in a single hemisphere brain. Meaning that these parts of the brain have more responsibilities, and therefore, need to multitask. The patients who receive anatomical hemispherectomies tend to regain all functions such as walking and communicating and be able to better function independently, as seen in Henry’s case. This procedure is a last resort, however, and doctors recommend it only after all other possible medical treatments. This is because of the extreme care that is needed in order to ensure that the procedure is done well and the extreme side effects, such as weakness in the limbs that are opposite to the side of the operation. There is a tremendous amount of relearning and rehabilitation needed in order to eventually dub one of these operations a success. 

Sheikh clearly portrays the effectiveness of the hemispherectomy of the brain, and the ability of the brain to recuperate after such a procedure. Sheikh described the evidence that was found very well in order to support the stance that she took in the article. However, she also portrayed any conflicting data in the form of a discussion of the risks. Her word choice shows that while she is writing her article in support of the operation she clearly understands the opposing side.  Overall, Sheikh took on a professional and unbiased tone throughout the entire article. The information that was introduced was direct and concise. It was clear that the primary audience of Sheikh were medical professionals. This was made obvious in the medical lingo that she used throughout the entire piece, however, the usage of common vernacular allows the article to be a source of information for a person with any education level. When maximum clarification was needed Sheikh directly quoted doctors in the piece rather than make a statement with an ambiguous interpretation. For example, she directly referenced a quote made by Dr.Gupta explaining the necessity of rehab after brain surgery. Overall, the dynamic nature of Sheik’s writing allows for a complete and thorough understanding of her subject of choice. 

References 

Knvul Sheikh, “How the Brain Can Rewire Itself After Half of It Is Removed”.The New York Times. 2019, November 19. [accessed 2020 Feb 10]. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/19/health/brain-removal-hemispherectomies-scans.html