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 [...]

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 [...]

Recently Alvaro Fernandez of SharpBrains interviewed Dr. Michael Merzenich about his thoughts on a variety of topics, from safe driving to personal brain trainers to lifelong cognitive vitality. They also discussed Dr. Merzenich’s vision of a future filled with personal brain trainers and and improved cognitive assessments. You can read the full article (and a [...]

Although there have been numerous small studies investigating the effects of Ginkgo Biloba on memory, they have generally have been small and followed participants for short periods of time. The results have been inconsistent and overall inconclusive. The GEM (Ginkgo Evaluation of Memory) study was set up to address these  inconsistent results. GEM is a [...]

If you ever get a chance to talk to Dr. Mike Merzenich, be assured he’ll fill you with a missionary’s zeal for brain fitness.  You’ll leave the conversation wondering why everyone isn’t taking advantage of their brains’ natural abilities to improve.  However, we know good habits aren’t embraced by our society overnight.  It’s taken decades [...]

I’m becoming a do-it-yourself (D.I.Y.) fan.  I make my own limoncello and bacon, keep a small flock of chickens, and do some gardening.  I’ve done bookbinding, have recently taken a letterpress printing class, and am now on the hunt for my own small press. If you’re wondering what this has to do with our brain [...]