These electrical pulses are communicated with other neurons through connections between them called synapses. Individual neurons have branching extensions known as dendrites that can receive thousands of electrical inputs from other cells. Dendrites transmit these inputs to the main body of the neuron, where it then integrates all these signals to generate its own electrical pulses.

It is the collective activity of these electrical pulses across specific groups of neurons that form the representations of different information and experiences within the brain.

For decades, neuroscientists have thought that the brain learns by changing how neurons are connected to one another. As new information and experiences alter how neurons communicate with each other and change their collective activity patterns, some synaptic connections are made stronger while others are made weaker. This process of synaptic plasticity is what produces representations of new information and experiences within your brain.

Our brain’s ability to absorb fresh information — whether that means mastering a new task at work, memorizing the refrain of a song, or navigating unfamiliar streets — depends on a remarkable talent for neural self‑reinvention.

Every time we practice something novel, millions of tiny contacts between nerve cells subtly adjust their strength and neurons use multiple mechanisms to store knowledge.

Some connections, called synapses, amplify their signals to stamp in crucial details; others turn down the volume to clear away noise. Collectively these shifts are known as synaptic plasticity and for decades neuroscientists have cataloged dozens of molecular pathways that can nudge a synapse up or down.