The brain fitness market has expanded rapidly in recent years, and there is now a large selection of computer and on-line brain training exercises to choose from. At one end of the spectrum are games that are purely for entertainment purposes. At the other end are exercises that have been scientifically validated in clinical trials. [...]

I just found out that more than half of babies born in developed countries today will live to be more than 100 years old. That’s a lot of centenarians. Apparently, with each passing year humankind (in rich countries, at least) gains an average of 3 months of extra life expectancy, thanks to medical advances. As [...]

Is there really anything more interesting to talk about than music? Personally, I can’t think of anything else I would rather occupy my thoughts and conversations with. That’s probably because for me, music connects to everything worth caring about in the first place: culture, technology, and language. Mark Richardson, one of my favorite modern writers [...]

Ed. note: Today we are pleased to present a guest post from Dr. G, aka M. A. Greenstein, Ph.D. Dr. G is an internationally recognized speaker, coach, and researcher of visual culture and neurosomatics.  Click on her name above for a full biography. With the ever increasing research buzz on brain fitness, and especially “novel” [...]

Depending on where you live, you may have seen our new commercial on TV. We are really proud of it- because it reminds people that among other benefits, Posit Science programs are clinically proven to help people improve their memory and auditory processing, cut crash risk in half, and protect health-related quality of life for [...]

It has become clear over the last few years that one of the many benefits of regular physical exercise is a better functioning brain. In a recent review paper Erickson and Kramer (2009) noted the following: People who exercise regularly have larger volumes of grey matter in important regions of the brain, including the prefrontal, [...]

About the Brain is a new section on the Posit Science website that’s chock-full of great information about the brain and brain fitness. You can choose from these areas of interest: Brain Facts helps you understand how your brain and brain plasticity work. It answers all kinds of questions, like “Are crosswords really good for [...]

At the Transportation Research Board annual meeting last year I attended a talk by Dr. Fredric Wolinsky of the University of Iowa. Along with his colleagues, he conducted an analysis of participants in the ACTIVE clinical trial, the largest study of cognitive training performed to date. He found that people who had done ten hours [...]

Recently, scientists at MIT tested a specially-designed nutritional drink to see whether it could improve cognitive function in patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease. (Here’s an article in CNN on the subject.) The drink includes three key nutrients: uridine, choline (part of the vitamin B family) and DHA (an omega-3 fatty acid). These are nutrients that [...]

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 [...]