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Sunday, 17 November 2013

Adolescent & Adult Brain

 It has been said that an adult’s brain is matured one while an adolescent has an immature brain. The main difference between the two is that an adult brain has. During adolescence, the brain undergoes major alterations and modifications which involves the development of new associations between the nerve cells, in addition to the pruning of the existing synaptic acquaintances. These amendments influence the procedures involved in scheduling and decision making, impulse management, voluntary progress, memory, and speech construction, amid others. (Rubia et al., 2000) The adolescent brain is at a stage of immaturity and thus lacks the power of judgement. The major difference found between the two is the amount of gray and white matter of the brain. Adults have increased amount of white matter while the adolescent brain has gray matter which have started to reduce so that the white matter can be amplified.
The brain grows up during adolescence. During this occasion, gray matter which are the areas of the brain in charge for dealing out information and accumulating memories enlarges in size, predominantly in the anterior lobe of the brain, as a consequence of a boost in the quantity of synaptic connections among nerve cells. Around the teenage years, yet, a winnowing procedure begins in which associations that are not worn or reinforced start on to dry up or wither. When the white matter is in greater quantity the power to restrain impulsiveness is increased. The adults have an increased amount of white matter while the adolescents are at the stage in which the gray matter is  pruning. (Feldman, 2012, p.266)
The most detailed verification for the maturation progressions of the brain comes from magnetic resonance imaging revisions, which emphasize the varying arrangement of gray matter of the brain and the extent of myelination in adolescents and adults. Another chief dispute advanced is that adolescents rely extra heavily on  amygdale. It is an evolving grown-up area of the brain linked with the primal impulses of violence, anger and of fear . The adults do not rely upon it as much. This proposal seems reasonable, since the pre-frontal cortex, which act together with and in effect reins in the amygdala to irritability impulsiveness and gut response with interpretation, does not fully develop until the age of early 20’s.
It is for sure that every day many cases are settled and many of them are sentenced but due to their less age they are given the small and less punishment than the adults. It is totally wrong. According to many people’s opinions the teenagers should also have a same treatment as the adults are when they commit some crime. When teenagers are given shortened sentences than they are released and after some time they began to have a happy and peaceful life. This also gives the teenagers a second chance to commit a crime. If the adolescents commit big crimes like murder or any other crime than they should definitely be considered as the adults and the courts should give the same punishments as they gave to the adults.  (Teen Ink)
If we use logic then we can see it clearly that when the young men are committing the adult crime then it is a natural phenomenon that they should also be treated as the adult. Many people are against this opinion but I think that they should be treated strictly as if they were given the chance then it is a greater risk for the society. If they were then given the chance they will have an opinion that the law is taking them as an innocent people and they will continue with their crimes.
If we discuss it in detail, then this opinion may be changed. According to the crimes, the opinion may be changed. If the teenagers have committed the crime of lower degree or small crime then they may be given the excuse. If they have not committed a big crime or a sin that do not affect the society than they can be ignored or provided relief. Like in the under discussed paragraph the Supreme court has given few statements that tell us to treat juvenile not as adults.
If we see opinions than there are many cases in which the adolescents are given the relief. The United Nation convention on the rights of the child also suggests that the juvenile should be provided relief and they should not be strictly punished. As they are immature and they don’t know the social values so often they commit crimes unintentionally. They are weak in self control that's why they are not able to take control over themselves and in a result they commit crimes. That’s why they provided relief to the young people. (International Justice Project). The adolescents are less capable of their misconduct because of their immaturity. They should be treated likewise not like as the adults. (by procon.org)

Works Cited
1.      Rubia K, Overmeyer S, Taylor E, Brammer M, Williams SCR, Simmons A, Andrew C, Bullmore ET(2000). Functional frontalization with age: Mapping neurodevelopmental trajectories with MRI. Neuroscience Biobehavioral Review 24(1):13-19.
2.      Feldman ( 2012,) Physical development in adolescence.  P.266
3.       Teens Should Absolutely Be Tried as Adults When They Commit Adult Crimes. Teen Ink <http://teenink.com/opinion/social_issues_civics/article/162031/Teens-Should-Absolutely-Be-Tried-as-Adults-When-They-Commit-Adult-Crimes/>
4.      International Justice Project. <http://www.internationaljusticeproject.org/juvCSimmons.cfm>

5.      Roper v. Simmons - Death Penalty ProCon.org (2008) <http://deathpenalty.procon.org/sourcefiles/RopervSimmons.pdf>

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