Novelty, Learning, and Dopamine

A February 2020 study (on mice) by the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, designed to look at associative learning, said,

“Previous work suggested that novelty might activate the dopamine system in the brain. Therefore we thought that dopamine activation might also promote associative learning."

"When mice smell a novel stimulus, they get very excited and start sniffing very rapidly. This natural, spontaneous behavior provides a great readout for novelty perception."

"When we specifically blocked dopamine activation by novel stimuli in only a few trials, learning was slowed down. On the other hand, stimulating dopamine neurons during the presentation of familiar stimuli accelerated learning."

Learning a new task? Better to learn three

A July 2019 study by the University of California found that, "… older adults can learn multiple new skills at the same time, and doing so may improve their cognitive functioning…" and, "The studies provide evidence that intense learning experiences akin to those faced by younger populations are possible in older populations, and may facilitate gains in cognitive abilities."