Brilliant Blog

A few quick updates: 

1)  Yesterday we had a fun webinar with John Medina, author of Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School.

You may enjoy checking out the slides we discussed.

2) Please remember that there is another webinar coming, next Tuesday. I hope you can join us!

Webinar: In “The Science and Practice of Brain Fitness,” I will provide an overview of the Brain 101, latest research findings and implications for how to improve brain health and performance based on my class at UC-Berkeley Lifelong Learning Institute and speaking engagements.
- Target audience: Anyone who wants to learn more about brain health and performance. This is designed to be not a technical session, but a fun, stimulating hour.
- Date and time: Tuesday June 10th, 2pm EDT/ 11am PDT
Register: Here

3) We often get asked "How do I evaluate whether any program is good for me or my clients, patients or residents?"

We typically start answering something like: Ask what cognitive skills you want trained. Some programs present the benefits in such a nebulous way that it is impossible to tell whether or not they will yield any results. The general wording "Brain training" itself is of limited benefit because such activities as gardening or learning a new language "train" the brain, too.

More at my Huffington Post article Brain Training: Fact or Fiction?.

Good night!

Press release: Here 

-- "Lumos Labs, developer of Lumosity.com, the leading web-based provider of scientifically-tested brain training games, today announced that it has raised $3 million of equity financing from Pequot Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners (NVP), and existing investors including Michael Dearing. The investor group brings expertise that will catalyze the ongoing development of Lumosity.com and support Lumos Labs’ mission to improve lives by enhancing brain fitness.

-- “Lumos Labs is at the center of a booming interest in cognitive exercise and the emerging science about the remarkable plasticity of the brain, said Amish Jani of Pequot Ventures. Lumosity.com has seen tremendous demand from users and partners alike by leveraging the power of the web to deliver a unique platform for brain fitness.

Great news for the sector. The more tools available for leading mentally stimulating lives, the better we will all be.

Lumosity.com (click Here to get a sense of their games) provides a great user experience at a reasonable cost. From an investor's perspective, we believe Lumos Labs is a very serious contender in the brain fitness space, and it has indeed been executing a very smart online strategy.

Now, I am not sure what "scientifically-tested brain training games" really means. While preparing our Brain Fitness Software Market Report we reviewed all published research on the efficacy behind different programs, and didn't find any for Lumosity (which has some very interesting internal, but not published, data).

We gave Lumosity a score of 2 ouf of 10 in Clinical Validation (with Nintendo Brain Age getting a score of 1, and NovaVision, cleared by the FDA for use with stroke/ TBI patients, getting a 5).

Consumers, educators and health professionals will be reading more and more about programs like Nintendo Brain Age, Posit Science, Dakim, Cogmed, Fast ForWord, MindFit, Lumosity, Happy Neuron, FitBrains, MyBrainTrainer, and more. The bad news is that it is difficult to separate marketing from scientific claims, and to understand which program, if any, may be a good complement to other healthy lifestyle choices.

The reality is that, in this emerging field, no single company or product has an overwhelming amount of efficacy research behind. There is no General Solution, but useful tools for specific groups of people with specific goals, and budgets. 

And, interestingly enough, one of the brain games that has recently shown very significant in a recently published scientific study (Can Intelligence Be Trained? Martin Buschkuehl shows how) is available for free: Here.

To help them navigate this process, we published the SharpBrains Checklist, based on dozens of interviews with scientists, experts and consumers:

10 Questions to Choose the Right Brain Fitness Program for You (and a brief explanation of why each question is important)

* 1. Are there scientists, ideally neuropsychologists, and a scientific advisory board behind the program? (Neuropsychologists specialize in measuring and understanding human cognition and brain structure and function.)

* 2. Are there published, peer-reviewed scientific papers in PubMed written by those scientists? How many?

PubMed is a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine that includes millions of citations science journals. If a scientist has not published a paper that appears in that database, he or she cannot make scientific claims.

* 3. What are the specific benefits claimed for using this program? What specific cognitive skill is the program training?

(Some programs present the benefits in such a nebulous way that it is impossible to tell if they will have any results or not..."brain training" itself is a limited benefit, because activities like gardening or learning a new language provide "brain training too"...you need to see something more specific, like what cognitive or emotional skill that program is aimed at)  

* 4. Does the program tell me what part of my brain or which cognitive skill I am exercising, and is there an independent assessment to measure my progress?

(The question is whether the improvement experienced in the program will transfer into real life. For that to happen we need assessments that are distinct from the exercises themselves.)

* 5. Is it a structured program with guidance on how many hours per week and days per week to use it?

(Cognitive training, or "Brain exercise", is not a magic pill. You have to do the exercises in order to benefit, so you need clarity on the effort required.)

* 6. Do the exercises vary and teach me something new?

(The only way to exercise important parts of our brain is by tackling novel challenges.)

* 7. Does the program challenge and motivate me, or does it feel like it would become easy once I learned it?

(Good brain exercise requires increasing levels of difficulty)

* 8. Does the program fit my personal goals?

(Each individual has different goals/ needs when it comes to brain health. For example, some want to manage anxiety, others to improve short-term memory...)

* 9. Does the program fit my lifestyle?

(Some brain exercise programs have great short-term results but are very intense. Others may be better over time)

* 10. Am I ready and willing to do the program, or would it be too stressful?

(Excess stress reduces, or may even inhibit, neurogenesis-the creation of new neurons-. So, it is important to make sure not to do things that stress us in unhealthy ways.)

We hope this information is useful. Feel free to share it!

For more information on each question and printable layouts, see:

	10 Questions to Choose the Right Brain Fitness Program for You Download
	10 Questions to Choose the Right Brain Fitness Program for You (bookmark size) Download

Adult Learning Disorders

Contemporary Issues

• Edited by Lorraine E. Wolf, Hope E. Schreiber, Jeanette Wasserstein

Recent advances in neuroimaging and genetics technologies have enhanced our understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders in adults. The authors in this volume not only discuss such advances as they apply to adults with learning disorders, but also address their translation into clinical practice.

One cluster of chapters addresses developmental concerns as children and adolescents with learning disorders approach young adulthood. Experts discuss dyslexia, language-based and writing disorders, perhaps the most widely studied group of learning disorders, from the point of view of neuroimaging and genetic underpinnings. Chapters on the neuroscience of nonverbal, math and executive function disorders are also included.

Clinically-oriented chapters with case studies, recommendations for accommodation, and considerations for evaluation follow. Study of specialized populations -- such as late high school students, college, medical and law students -- further demonstrate how our expanded knowledge base may be applicable to clinical practice. The heterogeneity of adults with learning disorders, the complexity of their clinical presentation and co-existing disorders are addressed from both a scientific and clinical point of view demonstrating how empirical research and clinical practice inform each other.

This volume will enhance the practice of clinicians and educators working with adults with neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as providing essential current information for researchers of adults with learning disorders.

ISBN: 9781841694191

Published June 02 2008 by Psychology Press.

Our Market Report has received some recent additional accolades: 

"This is the first clear, concise and comprehensive overview and analysis I have seen of the emerging Brain-Training marketplace. It is a great market research for every investor, entrepreneur, manager, researcher and others who seek an understanding of the subject. Personally, I was waiting such a review for quite a while. The SharpBrains staff, led by Alvaro Fernandez, really did a great job here."

-- Danny Dankner, CEO, Applied Cognitive Engineering (ACE).

"Neuroscience is at a crossroads, and The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2008 by SharpBrains, points the way forward. Our understanding of how the brain works is just beginning to yield real fruit in the form of products that truly improve the function of the brain. This reports gives anyone interested in how to understand which products are truly in a position to make a difference in brain function, and which markets will be interested and profitable for such products an invaluable guide. We found the analysis clear, precise, loaded with substantive insight. One would be foolhardy not to use this publication as the best guide to this market."

-- Dr. Arthur Lavin, Associate Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Case Medical School, and Medical Director of A Working Mind.

"As we begin the task of developing a Brain Fitness Center at our Sunrise Senior Living Community, this Brain Fitness Market Report is proving helpful in numerous ways to develop our “road map” to navigate through the maze of information, myths and confusion that exists as Brain Fitness. It has helped us define a Brain Fitness destination for our community.

• The accurate and unbiased information regarding the science behind “Brain Fitness” provides the foundation for educating our residents.
• The comparisons noting similarities, differences, formats and expectations of available programs assists us in choosing the program(s) that are best suited to the individual needs, interests and goals. It helps us stay within our budget to create a library of programs and a resource for assisting each resident in finding a program appropriate for him/her.
• The interviews with experts in the field of Brain Health are informative, yet easy to comprehend.
• The report goes beyond presenting basic information by exploring clinical applications for the present and future. It defines the potential applications for preventive health care. The interests, confusion, generalizations, misconceptions and expectations of consumers, educators, health care and insurance providers are addressed. It helps clarify the truths from the myths of brain fitness based on the most current research and knowledge.
• The software company profiles are clear and concise. The graphs throughout the report are easy to interpret.
• The specific checklist for selecting brain fitness software helps define the parameters and objectives of each program thereby providing excellent guidelines for matching the needs and expectations of the user to the appropriate program.

For any organization considering Brain Fitness Programs and wondering, “But where do we begin?”, and “How can we acquire expert advice and proceed to create a center that meets the needs of those interested in pursuing this activity?”, The State of The Brain Fitness Software Market 2008 report provides comprehensive and insightful answers and frameworks to make informed decisions."

-- Douglas C. Buttner, Executive Director, The Jefferson Sunrise Senior Living.

For more information, check out our Brain Fitness Software Market Report.

You can also view a PowerPoint presentation by clicking on State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2008.