Products FAQ

Product Overview
What products are available from Posit Science?
How do Posit Science products work to improve the brain?
What scientific evidence is there that Posit Science products work?
Who can benefit from using the products?
Do your programs work for people who have Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, or other cognitive conditions?
Why does Posit Science have more than one product for brain fitness?
Which product should I use? Should I use both products?
Why are the products computer-based?
What if I don’t have much computer experience?
How long do the programs take to complete?
What other products are you developing?
Is there a discount for non-profit and HUD communities?

Brain Fitness Program Classic
What is the Brain Fitness Program Classic?
What exercises does the Brain Fitness Program Classic include?
What are the benefits that I can get from using the Brain Fitness Program Classic?
What if I have hearing loss?
What if I have tinnitus?
What are the computer requirements for the Brain Fitness Program Classic?

InSight
What is InSight?
What is Cortex?
What is UFOV®?
What exercises does InSight include?
What are the benefits that I can get from using the program?
What if I wear glasses?
What are the computer requirements for InSight?

 

What products are available from Posit Science?
Posit Science currently has two brain fitness products available for purchase: the Posit Science® Brain Fitness Program Classic™, and Posit Science® Cortex™ with InSight™. The Brain Fitness Program helps you think faster, focus better, and remember more by targeting the brain’s auditory processing (listening). InSight does the same for the visual system (seeing).

How do Posit Science products work to improve the brain?
Posit Science products take a different approach to brain fitness than other companies. Our programs don’t just exercise directly; they also carefully target important roots of memory and thinking—the ability of the brain to absorb information from the senses. The quality with which your brain sees and hears has a direct relationship with how well you remember.

Think of our approach like the one a good gardener would use: We don’t just take care of the flowers and leaves (memory tasks). We understand that no matter how much you care for the flowers and leaves, the plant won’t be healthy unless its roots (sensory perception) are also cared for. Many other programs focus solely on the flowers, without tending to the roots. With such an approach, positive results will always be limited.

Read more about how our programs work.

What scientific evidence is there that Posit Science products work?
Numerous studies have shown that people who use Posit Science programs experience significant improvements in cognitive abilities. Results from some of these studies have been published in prestigious scientific journals, including Progress in Brain Research and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Read more about our results in our Studies & Results section.

Who can benefit from using the products?
We believe everyone who wants to keep their mind sharp and do something to improve their cognitive performance can benefit from our programs. In fact, a major clinical trial called the IMPACT study has shown that every adult can benefit from Posit Science programs regardless of age or other factors.

Read more about the IMPACT Study.

Do your programs work for people who have Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, or other cognitive conditions?
Preliminary study results demonstrate that the Brain Fitness Program Classic can help people with cognitive symptoms related to a number of conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, schizophrenia, chemobrain, and others. Larger trials are needed, but the results so far have been very promising.

Read more about the effectiveness of Posit Science programs for cognitive symptoms associated with these conditions.

Why does Posit Science have more than one product for brain fitness?
The brain is probably the most complex piece of machinery in the world. It has many diverse systems with unique exercise needs. To achieve widespread brain fitness, you must work out different areas of the brain. Part of the reason that Posit Science has a 40-person Scientific Advisory Board is that they each bring their specialized expertise to the team. Some advise us on the auditory system, some the visual system, some on the neuromodulatory system, and so on.

Which product should I use? Should I use both products?
It’s up to you. Each Posit Science program is effective on its own. However, the programs are designed to compliment each other. If you are mostly interested in improving your ability to keep up with speech, we recommend the Brain Fitness Program. If you are interested in activities that require visual capabilities—such as driving and many sports—InSight is the best choice. We believe that doing both will amplify positive effects and help you feel as sharp as possible.

Why are the products computer-based?
Improving brain health relies on substantial and precise practice. A tool that can deliver stimuli accurately, track performance gains and adjust task difficulties in accordance with each person’s progress is key to efficient training.

What if I don’t have much computer experience?
Hundreds of people who have used our programs in studies have never used a computer before. Our programs are designed to be used just by pointing and clicking—not much more difficult than using a television remote control.

How long do the programs take to complete?
Posit Science programs are designed to be easy-to-use and to fit into any lifestyle. Regular use can range from 15 minutes a day to as much time as you prefers. However, our science team has created recommended schedules to guide users and ensure that you experience the best program benefits. Both programs take about 40 hours to complete.

What other products are you developing?
Our scientists are working on programs for healthy aging in five broad areas: auditory processing (listening and communication), visual processing (seeing), executive function and associative processing (problem solving), motor control (hand movement) and vestibular processing (balance). Our first program—the Brain Fitness Program, now available—focuses on listening and communication. Cortex with InSight, also available, focuses on visual processing.

Is there a discount for non-profit and HUD communities?
Yes. We offer a 50% discount for non-profit or HUD communities who meet our criteria for serving low-income seniors. Please call 1-800-291-2826 for details.

What is the Brain Fitness Program Classic?
The Brain Fitness Program Classic is Posit Science’s first program for auditory processing (listening) and memory. The Brain Fitness Program Classic features six computer-based exercises that target different elements of listening. The exercises are scientifically designed to improve the quality and quantity of the information your brain absorbs from your ears. This results in faster auditory processing, an improvement in working memory, and increased production of chemicals in the brain that help it remember.

What exercises does the Brain Fitness Program Classic include?
The Brain Fitness Program Classic features six exercises that target the brain’s auditory processing (listening) abilities:

• High or Low? Encourages faster sound processing to help the brain respond to even the quickest speech.
• Tell Us Apart Gives the brain practice distinguishing similar sounds to help it interpret speech and store clear memories of it.
• Match It! Aims to improve the clarity of memory by sharpening the precision with which the brain processes sound.
• Sound Replay Pushes the brain to remember information in order, which affects the ability to engage in and remember conversation.
• Listen and Do Works out working memory, the short-term memory that is critical in almost all cognitive tasks related to thinking.
• Story Teller Promotes stronger memory for details to strengthen communication abilities.

What are the benefits that I can get from using the Brain Fitness Program Classic?
People who use the Brain Fitness Program Classic experience a wide variety of cognitive benefits and improvements in their everyday lives. In fact, a recent clinical trial called the IMPACT study found that people who used the Brain Fitness Program Classic ended up with an average increase of 131% in processing speed. Faster auditory processing helps people keep up with conversation, which in turn improves comprehension and memory. 90% of people in the IMPACT study who completed the program reached processing speeds typical of people under age 40. (No one in the study was under age 65.)

Brain Fitness Program Classic users also gained an average of 10 years improvement in memory, and three out of four people in the study reported benefits in their everyday lives such as being able to remember a shopping list without writing it down, hearing conversations more clearly in noisy restaurants, and feeling more confident and better about themselves overall.

What if I have hearing loss?
The Brain Fitness Program Classic can be used with hearing aids. If you can watch and listen to a television at a regular distance and at a reasonable volume, you will be able to use the program with no problems.

What if I have tinnitus?
If you have tinnitus you will still be able to use the program and will see results that are similar to the benefits that other users experience.

What are the computer requirements for the Brain Fitness Program Classic?
The Brain Fitness Program Classic is currently available for PC only. A Mac version is currently in development. Click here to sign up for our Mac waiting list.

The program requirements are:

• Windows Vista, XP or 2000 (no Windows ME)
• 1 GHz processor 256 MB RAM
• CD ROM or DVD drive
• Internet connection

What is InSight?
InSight is the second brain fitness program to be released by Posit Science. It is a program for visual processing and memory and features five computer-based exercises that target different visual processing tasks. The exercises are scientifically designed to speed up the brain’s visual processing abilities and improve visual memory, which results in improved visual working memory, better visual precision, and other cognitive improvements.

What is Cortex?
Posit Science® Cortex™ is our next generation exercise delivery system. It currently comes prepackaged with InSight. As Posit Science develops new exercises, assessments, and other content, you will be able to seamlessly add them to your Cortex system for a unified brain fitness experience. The Brain Fitness Program Classic was developed before Cortex, and is not compatible with the system. However, all future Posit Science products will be compatible with the Cortex system.

What is UFOV®?
UFOV is the area over which you can quickly and accurately see details without moving your eyes or head. It is also a visual training and assessment technology that has been investigated in dozens of published studies, many funded by the National Institutes of Health. Developed by Visual Awareness Inc., UFOV has been proven to increase driving skill and safety and reliably predict an individual’s risk of being involved in a traffic accident. UFOV training can also help people complete activities of daily living more quickly and accurately and help older adults maintain overall health-related quality of life.

In early 2008, Posit Science acquired Visual Awareness Inc and UFOV. UFOV is incorporated into the exercises featured in the InSight program.

Read more about UFOV.

What exercises does InSight include?
InSight features five exercises that target the brain’s visual processing (seeing) abilities:

• Sweep Seeker Asks you to respond to visual “sweeps” to speed up visual processing.
• Road Tour Improves your “useful field of view” (UFOV), the area over which you can quickly and accurately see details without moving your eyes or head.
• Bird Safari Exercises your visual precision by requiring you to locate specific birds in your peripheral vision after they flash very quickly on screen.
• Jewel Diver Works out your divided attention by asking you to track multiple jewels moving around the ocean.
• Master Gardener Directly targets visual working memory by having you remember and match similar pictures.

What are the benefits that I can get from using the program?
People who use InSight experience a wide variety of cognitive benefits and improvements in their everyday lives, including significantly improved driving skills and safety. Clinical trials have demonstrated that InSight increases visual processing speed by 300%, letting you react more quickly to what you see. InSight also increases useful field of view (UFOV)—the area over which you can take in visual information without moving your head or eyes—by an average of 200% and reduces dangerous driving maneuvers like unsafe lane changes by 38%.

InSight also enables people to complete activities of daily living, like balancing a checkbook, more quickly and accurately, and helps them to maintain health-related quality of life.

Read more about InSight benefits in our science Studies & Results section

What if I wear glasses?
You can still use InSight if you wear corrective lenses. If you can watch and listen to a television at a regular distance and at a reasonable volume, you will be able to use the program with no problems.

What are the computer requirements for InSight?
InSight is currently available for PC only. A Mac version is currently in development. Click here to sign up for our Mac waiting list.

The program requirements are:

• Windows XP with at least 512 MB RAM or Windows Vista with at least 1 GB (1000 MB) RAM
• 1 GHz or faster processor
• x24 CD ROM or DVD drive
• 1 GB free disk space
• Internet access