Maguire et al. (2000)

Maguire et al. (2000), also known as the London Taxicab Driver study, was a study that suggested that the hippocampus affects one's memory and spatial thinking ability.

Aim
To investigate whether spatial memory has an effect on the physical change of the Hippocampus, and its function in spatial memory.

Procedure

 * Participants were 16 mentally and physically healthy right handed male taxi drivers with at least 1.5 years of experience.
 * Age range from 32 to 62.
 * Controls were 50 mentally and physically healthy right handed male.
 * Age range and distribution was similar to the taxi drivers.
 * Participants and controls were scanned with the same MRI machine (structural MRI).
 * The amount and density of the grey matter in the hippocampus (which translates into the processors) was counted.

Results

 * Taxi drivers have a significantly larger hippocampus (limited to the posterior hippocampus bilaterally).
 * No difference in overall volume of Hippocampi.
 * The volume of the hippocampus correlates with the amount of time as a taxi driver.

Conclusion

 * MRI scanners can be used to detect active areas of the brain

Evaluation

 * Observing the concentration of deoxygenated haemoglobin is an accurate measure for brain activity.
 * Participants were only right-handed males, which means the study is not easily generalizable