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I Understood “Neurons That Fire Together...” by Turning Neurons Into Employees.

Transform a complex neuroscience idea into something familiar enough to understand, remember, and explain using an office analogy make the concept accessible to other instructional designers.

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  5. I Understood “Neurons That Fire Together...” by Turning Neurons Into Employees.

🧠 Earlier today, I shared a short animation explaining neurons using an office analogy.

For those who prefer something they can read, revisit, and save, I turned the same idea into a pdf.

It all started with a sentence from Clark Quinn's Learning Science:

"The neurons that fire together, wire together."

I'd repeated that phrase many times.

But I couldn't confidently explain what it actually meant.

So I challenged myself to translate it into a world I already understood.

An office.

What if neurons behaved like employees?
Some employees are actively working.
Others are inactive until they're needed.

Similarly, when we think, we activate networks of neurons to "go to work."
The more those same neurons work together...
The stronger the connections between them become.

That simple mental model completely changed how I understood learning.

So I turned it into this pdf visual to help other instructional designers move from complex → familiar.

📄 I've attached the PDF below.

I'd genuinely love to know:
Did this analogy make the concept easier to understand?

Feedback is always welcome.

Grateful for the shoulders we stand on.
Until I become a man on a mission... I won't stop studying.

Every day I learn something new.
Every day my perspective shifts.

Because it can't be about my pockets.
It has to be about people.

Day 26 of Instructional Design.

#InstructionalDesign#InstructionalDesigner#LearningAndDevelopment#LearningDesign#LearningExperienceDesign#LXD#Elearning#ELearningDesign#CurriculumDesign#CurriculumDeveloper#LearningJourney#Day1#Day2#LearningInPublic#BuildInPublic#SenseMakingNotes#MentalModels#TAWIQM

Where this comes from

  1. Learning Science by Clark Quinn — If you design learning, teach, or train people, you need to understand what is actually happening when someone learns. Learning happens at the neural level, but we design for it at the cognitive level. There’s a lot more in Clark Quinn’s book that I can’t share because of **intellectual property**. Get the book and experience the learning yourself. 📚You Would Love It!
  2. To Learn More Join the "Learning Development Accelerator" — Click the link to join the Amazing Learning Development Accelerator Group Where practice meets evidence

Download This PDF Graphic To Help Digest This Understanding

Understanding Neurons And How They Affect Learning Science.pdf · 45.5 MB

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