11:05 am: This session has now concluded. That is the end of my blogging from the Sharp Brains summit. All the best, Peter. 11:04 am: Dr. Stern believes that improving executive functioning performance with training can increase cognitive reserve. Improving cognitive reserve may delay or reverse the effects of aging. 10:56 am: Now speaking is [...]

1:38 PM: That’s it for our live blog today- Peter Delahunt will start the live blogging tomorrow morning at 8 AM for Day 2 coverage.  We hope you enjoyed the live blog and that you’ll be back tomorrow! 1:35 PM: Elkhonon Goldberg is the Chief Scientific Advisor to SharpBrains. He begins by discussing the role [...]

The evidence in favor of brain training just keeps rolling in: even a small amount of brain training in brain fitness software like InSight or DriveSharp can cut the crash risk of older driver’s in half. Don’t believe me? Check at this recent study presented at this year’s annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board [...]

Studies have shown that nursing home residents in the United States and other industrialized countries have rates of vision problems that are 3 to 15 times higher than community-dwelling older adults. About one-third of these vision problems can be attributed to improperly prescribed glasses. Dr. Cynthia Owsley of the University of Alabama wondered if improving [...]

It turns out Posit Science doesn’t just help people recover from debilitating conditions, but actually has the potential to produce superhuman athletes. Take Dave Demko, the professional skiing competitor who has used our programs (along with rigorous physical exercise and training) to beat people more than half his age (just enter his name in the [...]

The holidays are rapidly approaching, and if you’re like me, you may still be struggling with deciding what ‘perfect gift’ you should give your mate or aunt or sister that could really mean something for them.  In the Land of Plenty, it is sometimes hard to determine what those individuals that we love can really [...]

Brain Fitness Fans: your holiday shopping just got a whole lot easier! I’ve compiled a gift guide of our favorite brain healthy products- so that this holiday season, you can give your friends and loved ones the gift of brain fitness at any price. If you have additional ideas or suggestions, please add them in [...]

I commute to work on my bicycle through downtown San Francisco every day rain or shine. It is more fun than sitting in a crowded bus or worse, driving in  rush hour traffic. However, riding a bike in the city can be dangerous. Drivers often fail to see me and pull out in front of [...]

A recent article on Science Daily talks about a new science publication by researchers from Florida State University who examined how technology is being used by senior citizens. The researchers refer to computer-based brain fitness programs and make the following statement:

“There is limited but encouraging evidence that these so-called brain fitness software packages make a difference in improving some basic skills, but so far there is little evidence that they improve older adults’ quality of life or ability to live independently. That should be the measure of success in evaluating these programs.”

The full article can be accessed here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091022153637.htm.

I was frustrated to read that these researchers were unaware of the growing body of research clearly illustrating that well-designed programs can have a large impact on daily living. In particular, the exercises contained in the Posit Science programs have been subjected to large controlled clinical trials and the results have been impressive.

In my view the most impressive outcome from a cognitive training study is the 51% reduction in at-fault crash rates found in the ACTIVE study. ACTIVE is an acronym for Advanced Cognitive Training in the Independent and Vital Elderly. It is the largest clinical trial to examine the effects of cognitive training with almost 3000 [...]