Brilliant Blog

What's the ultimate "brain training"?

Learning.

We at SharpBrains love to learn, and to see others learn. That's why we hope you enjoy this essay by educator Laurie Bartels as much as we do.

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10 Brain Tips That Help Me Teach…and Learn

-- By Laurie Bartels

My natural rhythms are in cycle with the school calendar. January 1st takes a back seat to my new year, which gets ushered in with the month of September when there is crispness in the air that gradually shakes off the slower, more relaxed pace of summer.

Conveniently, my career in teaching meshes with my natural cyclical year. And as this year draws to a close, I am reenergized by the pace of summer, knowing that anything may pop in to my mind as I engage in activities not directly related to school. But before that happens, I’d like to reflect on this past year, in particular as it was my first year of blogging about the brain.

My interest in the brain stems from wanting to better understand both how to make school more palatable for students, and professional development more meaningful for faculty. To that end, I began my Neurons Firing blog in April, 2007, have been doing a lot of reading, and been attending workshops and conferences, including Learning & the Brain.

If you agree that our brains are designed for learning, then as educators it is incumbent upon us to be looking for ways to maximize the learning process for each of our students, as well as for ourselves. Some of what follows is simply common sense, but I’ve learned that all of it has a scientific basis in our brains.

1. Review and 2. Reflection are two means for thinking about what is being learned. Review can be done in the moments after a question is posed, a comment is made, a passage is read, an activity is done, or directions are given, providing ample time to think about what has taken place, process the information and respond accordingly. Review is also what should be done periodically over the course of the year, so that students have the opportunity to revisit, relearn, clarify and consolidate their learning to memory. Marilee Sprenger, based upon research by Jeb Schenck, notes that “spacing reviews throughout the learning and increasing the time between them gradually allows long-term networks to be strengthened... the timing between repeated reviews can significantly affect how much information is retained.”

Reflection encompasses not only a response to actual material but also thinking about how one learns. It is 3. Metacognition, and with each iteration you learn more about yourself as a learner. We empower our students and ourselves when we take the time for reflection, because the more we understand about how we each learn, the better we can become at learning. According to Sprenger, “Metacognition involves two phases. The first is knowledge about cognition or thinking about our thinking. The second is monitoring and regulating cognitive processes.”

For me, blogging has been a continual process of review and reflection. In the course of over 170 posts to date, I continually revisit topics, make connections, and write about my own course of learning. As teachers, ideally we should be reviewing and reflecting on lessons, course materials, and interactions with students, both as a means of improving them as well as learning from what worked or did not work.

4. Sleep is another way to consolidate learning, which is one reason getting a full night of uninterrupted sleep is important. Of course, doing so also helps us the next day to have more energy and patience, which then helps us with our attention control. In fact, couple sufficient sleep with waking up to a healthy breakfast, and you are prepared to tackle the day.

Proper 5. Nutrition keeps our systems functioning closer to their peak by stabilizing various levels of hormones and chemicals. All of this holds equally true for students as well as teachers!

We all have our own life stories, and being exposed to something new tends to stick better if we have something else to associate it with or if it is sufficiently unusual that it stands out on its own. Taking advantage of student 6. Prior Knowledge probably requires minimal effort on the part of the teacher, but yields big returns by engaging student interest as students consider new information as it pertains to them and their experiences. This, in turn, can 7. Engage Emotions, which is the largest hook into learning. We all tend to remember things that get our blood boiling for better or for worse. The parts of the brain engaged in emotions include the small yet mighty amygdala, the hippocampus and the hypothalamus.

“The amygdala deals with our emotions, helps process our memories, and gets totally absorbed in managing our response to fear and stress. Combined, these are biggies, so the hippocampus and hypothalamus chime in with some assistance. The hippocampus handles factual information, while the hypothalamus monitors how your body is doing internally and directs the pituitary gland to release hormones on the basis of functions such as body temperature, appetite, and sexual functioning.”

8. Novelty is another big hook. As information presentation blends between teachers or stays the same by one teacher, it becomes difficult to see patterns and students may tune out the “sameness”. But change it up a bit, introduce something radically different or in a radically different manner, and all of a sudden it is like a quick-pick-me-up in the middle of a lesson, a “brain snack”. Students refocus their attention, and it can even enliven your presentation and wake you up! One way to incorporate novelty is to add some 9. Movement to reenergize the body and brain cells. Movement can shake the sillies out or wake up sluggish bodies and brains; it can be an antidote to the time of day or the climate. Movement is also a close relative of 10. Exercise, and it has been shown that exercise is especially helpful in keeping our adult brains healthy, so remember to participate in that movement with your students (and they will probably consider your participation a bit novel!).

Novelty and movement can also effectively be used to assist kids with sharpening control of their executive function, which is managed by the frontal lobes in the neocortex. Executive function is how we control our attention, create plans, and carry out those plans. Too often in school, kids are required to “sit still” and “quiet down”, yet these are the very basics of being a kid! Consider harnessing that natural kid energy to help students manage their own functioning. Indeed, in a recent Newsweek article, Wray Herbert notes that an executive function curriculum has emerged to help students manage “effortful control and cognitive focus but also working memory and mental flexibility–the ability to adjust to change, to think outside the box.”My next post will share some of the many resources I have found to be particularly useful, including the Learning & the Brain conference, which is a “must attend” if you can swing it!

Laurie Bartels writes the Neurons Firing blog to create for herself the "the graduate course I’d love to take if it existed as a program". She is the K-8 Computer Coordinator and Technology Training Coordinator at Rye Country Day School in Rye, New York. She is also the organizer of Digital Wave annual summer professional development, and a frequent attendee of Learning & The Brain conferences.

We are fans of the Brain Science Podcast series hosted by Ginger Campbell, so are pleased to announce that Dr. Campbell will start offering to SharpBrains readers, periodically, the highlights of her most interesting podcasts. Below, her first post. Enjoy!

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In a recent interview on the Brain Science Podcast, Dr. John Medina, author of Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School shared some of the practical implications of recent neuroscience research.

We talked about the importance of exercise and sleep and we discussed why appreciating how our memory and attention systems really work could change how we run schools, businesses, and even our daily lives.

For example, while adequate sleep is generally acknowledged to be essential to optimal mental function, many people are chronically sleep deprived. Dr. Medina advises that the first thing an individual should do is determine their own sleep style. While people who naturally arise early and go to bed early ("larks") tend to perform well in the traditional education setting, those whose natural cycle is to rise late and stay up late (what Medina calls "late chronotypes" or "night owls") tend to accumulate a huge sleep deficit that impairs their performance. Dr. Medina argues that schools and businesses could run more efficiently if people's schedules were better matched to their natural rhythms. He advises people who are home schooling their children to determine their child's natural cycle since home schooling provides greater flexibility than the traditional school schedule.

Listen to John Medina's interview

Dr. Medina's Brain Rules goes into 12 principles that anyone can apply in their daily lives. You can hear the rest of Dr. Medina's interview on Episode 37 of the Brain Science Podcast and in iTunes™.

Ginger Campbell, MD graduated from the University of Alabama School of Medicine. She also has a Master's Degree in Biomedical Engineering and spent several years teaching at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. Dr. Campbell has been practicing emergency medicine since 1992. She started the Brain Science Podcast in 2006. Her goal is to help general audiences understand how recent discoveries in neuroscience are unraveling the mysteries of how our brains make us who we are. 

Here you are have the twice-a-month newsletter with our most popular blog posts. Please remember that you can subscribe to receive this Newsletter by email, simply by submitting your email at the top of this page.

News

CNN: Aging boomers fuel 'brain fitness' explosion: An excellent article via Associated Press exploring why the brain fitness market passed a tipping point in 2007 and predicting future trends building on our market report.

Brain Age: Great Game, Wrong Concept: One reason why we believe the field will keep growing is because we are seeing more tools available than ever before to assess and train a variety of cognitive skills. The bad news (is this really news?) is that we shouldn't be expecting magic pills and that "brain age" is a fiction.

Why a Walking Book Club?

Art Kramer on Why We Need Walking Book Clubs: Neuroscientist Art Kramer, in perhaps the most fascinating interview we have had so far, would like everyone to combine both physical and mental stimulation along with social interactions, suggesting, "Why not take a good walk with friends to discuss a book?". He also previews highly thought-provoking research. If you can only read one article in this newsletter, read this.

Physical Exercise and Brain Health: Dr. Pascale Michelon reviews the scientific literature on the benefits of physical exercise on cognitive health, and finds many. She adds that "the effects of cognitive and fitness training may be additive."

Ideas for the Book Club

A Multi-Pronged Approach to Brain Health: Try eating food with one chop stick. It is possible, for certain types of food. But probably not the best approach. Dr. Larry McCleary explains in The Brain Trust Program that physical and mental exercise, as important as they are, are not the only factors to consider to nourish our brains.

Why Smart Brains Make Stupid Decisions: In his recently released book Sway, Ori Brafman explains why "we have a tendency to think that our decisions are rational, when in fact, different sways may have informed the decision" and, more intriguingly, why Harvard Business School students paid $204 for a twenty-dollar bill. (Ori, who attended Stanford, may be biased.)

Brain Teaser

Consider Linda, a 31-year-old woman, single and bright. As a student, she was deeply concerned with discrimination and social justice and also participated in anti-nuclear protests. Which is more probable? (a) Linda is today a bank teller; (b) Linda is a bank teller and active in the feminist movement. Check here for the answer. 

Enjoy the week...and, perhaps, ask yourself, "Who will I invite to a Walking Book Club?"

Consider Linda, a 31-year-old woman, single and bright. As a student, she was deeply concerned with discrimination and social justice and also participated in anti-nuclear protests.

Which is more probable? (a) Linda is today a bank teller; (b) Linda is a bank teller and active in the feminist movement.

Quick, what's your answer?

If you answered (b), you are wrong.  At least you are in good company (that's what I answered the first time I saw this teaser in one of my Stanford Organizational Behavior classes).

It is more probable that Linda is a bank teller, which is a whole category, that she is both a bank teller AND active in the feminist movement, which is a subset of that category.

A recent Wall Street Journal article explains the phenomenon:

Free to Choose, But Often Wrong:

"When psychologists Daniel Kahneman and the late Amos Tversky conducted an experimental survey in the early 1980s asking people to answer this simple question, they discovered, to their surprise, that most respondents picked "b," even though this was the narrower choice and hence the less likely one. It seems that saliency – in this case, Linda's passionate political profile – trumps logic."

Related reading:

- Why Smart Brains Make Stupid Decisions

- Brain Teasers

Try eating food with one chop stick. 

It is possible, for certain types of food. But probably not the best approach.

Let's now talk brain health.

Dr. Larry McCleary is a former acting Chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Denver Children's Hospital, and author of the The Brain Trust Program (Perigee Trade, 2007). He agreed to help us answer an important, yet often neglected, question: Given That We Are Our Brains, How do We Nourish Them?

Alvaro: Dr. McCleary, Why did a former neurosurgeon such as yourself develop an interest in brain health public education?

Dr. McCleary: For two reasons ... I am a Boomer and am trying to maximize my own brain health. Also, there is much exciting research documenting how we can be proactive in this regard. This information needs to be disseminated and I would like to help in this process.

And what is the single most important brain-related idea or concept that you would like every person in the planet to fully understand?

The most important take home message about brain health is that we now know that no matter what your brain status or age, there is much you can do to significantly improve brain function and slow brain aging. Based on emerging information, what is especially nice is the fact that unlike many things in life our brain health is largely under own control.

What are the most important elements to nourish our brains as we age?

I approach this question much like an athlete prepares for competition. They utilize a holistic approach. This is also what a healthy brain requires. It should not be surprising that "what is good for the body is good for the brain." That is how our bodies and brains evolved.

Hence what I believe are valuable components of a well-rounded approach to brain health involve:

A) Appropriate nutrition.

The major fuel the brain consumes is glucose. The earliest sign of impending dementia and Alzheimer disease (AD) is a decrement in the ability of the brain to use glucose efficiently. Based on this observation, some neuroscientists are referring to AD as Type 3 diabetes because of the inability to appropriately use glucose in that disorder. This makes sense because people with diabetes have a four-fold increase in AD.

The brain is a fatty organ. The most important fats are those in the nerve cell membranes whose presence keeps them flexible. These are the long chain omega 3 fatty acid molecules found in fatty, cold-water fish and arachidonic acid (a long chain omega 6 fatty acid). These are both delicate fats and as such can oxidize easily (meaning they can become rancid).

Thus, we should include additional dietary components that provide free radical fighting activity to protect them against oxidation. Based on these observations, I recommend a diet containing fatty fish, veggies and salads, non-starchy fruits (like berries) - that are high in free radical fighting compounds - and nuts. Addition of specific nutritional supplements may be helpful for the elderly, those under chronic stress, in the context of medications that lower critical nutrient levels in the body, or when dietary quality varies.

B) Stimulating brain activity

To increase neuroplasticity (the continual ability of the brain to "rewire" itself) and neurogenesis (the formation of new nerve cells), brain stimulation is vital. All types count including school work, occupational endeavors, leisure activities and formal brain training. The key in any activity is to include novelty (to encourage thinking outside the box), challenge and variety.

C) Physical activity

Exercise delivers additional blood and oxygen to the brain. Yet, it does so much more. It actually causes alterations in the nerve cells. They produce more neurotrophins, which are compounds that increase the formation of new nerve cells and enhance their connectivity. They also make the neurons we have more resistant to the aging process. Cross train your brain by starting with a good aerobic program and mix in resistance (weight training) exercise and speed and agility components such as jumping rope, playing ping-pong, gymnastics and various balance drills.

D) Stress reduction

Chronic, unremitting stress kills neurons. This is especially detrimental to memory function. So include a component of stress reduction in your approach to optimal brain health and make sure to get plenty of sleep.

E) Be Aware of Side effects of medications

There are medications that lower the level of important brain nutrients in the body such as B vitamins and coenzyme Q10. Check with your doctor to screen for these. There are also many common medicines (many OTC) that have anti-cholinergic activities. These can impair the function of one of the most important memory neurotransmitters in the brain -acetylcholine.

Finally, what brain health-related information or practices would you suggest other doctors and health professionals pay more attention to, both for themselves and the patients they see?

They should counsel their patients on tips for brain health such as those listed above in much the same way they discuss cardiac risk factors and how to address them. I would like to see physicians encourage their patients to avoid high-fructose corn syrup because it has recently been shown to be associated with increased brain atrophy.

Dr. McCleary, many thanks for your great insights.

My pleasure!

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For more information

- The Brain Trust Program (Perigee Trade, 2007).

- Evolution and Brain Health, an article by Dr. McCleary.

Enjoy the weekend...always a good time to nourish our brains.

Can exercise make you smarter? It can.

Is it the only thing that can? Keep reading...

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Physical Exercise and Brain Health

- By Dr. Pascale Michelon

Have you heard of or read John Ratey's book “Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and The Brain”? According to Harvard Psychiatry Professor John Ratey nothing beats exercise for promoting brain heath.

I am sure you have also heard that exercising your mind promotes brain health.

What is the connection between physical and mental exercises? Do they have additive effects on brain health? Are they redundant?

Let’s start by reviewing what we know about the effects of physical exercise on the brain.

The effect of physical exercise on cognitive performance

Early studies compared groups of people who exercised to groups of people who did not exercise much. Results showed that people who exercised usually had better performance in a range of cognitive tasks compared to non-exercisers.

Laurin and colleagues (2001) even suggested that moderate and high levels of physical activity were associated with lower risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias.

The problem with these studies is that the exercisers and the non-exercisers may differ on other factors than just exercise. The advantage that exerciser show may not come from exercising but from other factors such as more resources, better brain health to start with, better diet, etc.

The solution to this problem is to randomly assigned people to either an aerobic training group or a control group. If the exerciser group and the non-exerciser group are very similar to start with and if the exerciser group shows less decline or better performance over time than the non-exerciser group, then one can conclude that physical exercise is beneficial for brain health.

In 2003, Colcombe and Kramer, analyzed the results of 18 scientific studies published between 2000 and 2001 that were conducted in the way described above.

The results of this meta-analysis clearly showed that fitness training increases cognitive performance in healthy adults between the ages of 55 and 80.

Another meta-analysis published in 2004 by Heyn and colleagues shows similar beneficial effects of fitness training on people over 65 years old who had cognitive impairment or dementia.

What is the effect of fitness training on the brain itself?

Research with animals has shown that in mice, increased aerobic fitness (running) can increase the number of new cells formed in the hippocampus (the hippocampus is crucial for learning and memory). Increased exercise also has a beneficial effect on mice’s vascular system.

Only one study has used brain imaging to look at the effect of fitness on the human brain. In 2006, Colcombe and colleagues randomly assigned 59 older adults to either a cardiovascular exercise group, or a nonaerobic exercise control group (stretching and toning exercise). Participants exercised 3h per week for 6 months. Colcombe et al. scanned the participants’ brains before and after the training period.

After 6 months, the brain volume of the aerobic exercising group increased in several areas compared to the other group. Volume increase occurred principally in frontal and temporal areas of the brain involved in executive control and memory processes. The authors do not know what underlying cellular changes might have caused these volume changes. However they suspect, based on animal research, that volume changes may be due to an increased number of blood vessels and an increased number of connections between neurons.

How does physical exercise compare to mental exercise?

Very few studies have tried to compare the effect of physical exercise and mental exercise on cognitive performance.

When looking at each domain of research one notices the following differences:

- The effects of cognitive or mental exercise on performance seem to be very task specific, that is trained tasks benefit from training but the benefits do not transfer very well to tasks in which one was not trained.

- The effects of physical exercise on performance seem broader. However they do not generalize to all tasks. They benefit mostly tasks that involve executive-control components (that is, tasks that require planning, working memory, multitasking, resistance to distraction).

To my knowledge only one study tried to directly compare cognitive and fitness training:

Fabre and colleagues, in 1999, randomly assigned subjects to 4 groups: an aerobic training group (walking or running for 2 h per week for 2 months), a memory training group (one 90 min session a week for 2 months), a combined aerobic and mental training group, or a control group (no training).

Results showed that compared to the control group, the memory performance of all 3 groups increased. The combined group showed greater increase than the other 2 training groups.

This suggests that the effects of cognitive and fitness training may be additive… However this study involved only 8 participants per group! More research is clearly needed before anything can be safely concluded.

In the meantime let’s play it safe and combine fitness and cognitive training for better brain health…!

References

 •    Colcombe, S. & Kramer, A. F. (2003). Fitness effects on the cognitive function of older adults: A meta-analytic study. Psychological Science, 14(2), 125-130.

•    Colcombe, S. J., Erickson, K. I., Scalf, P. E., Kim, J. S., Prakash, R., McAuley, E., Elavsky, S., Marquez, D. X., Hu, L., & Kramer, A. F. (2006). Aerobic exercise training increases brain volume in aging humans. Journal of Gerontology, 61A(11), 1166-1170.

•    Fabre, C., Msse-Biron, J., Chamari, K., Varray, A., Mucci, P., & Prefaut, C. (1999). Evaluation of quality of life in elderly healthy subjects after aerobic and/or mental training. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 28, 9-22.

•    Heyn P.; Abreu B. C.; Ottenbacher K. J. (2004). The effects of exercise training on elderly persons with cognitive impairment and dementia: a meta-analysis. Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation, 85(10), 1694-704.

•    Laurin, D., Verreault, R., Lindsay, J., MacPherson, K., & Rockwood, K. (2001). Physical activity and risk of cognitive impairment and dementia in elderly persons. Archives of Neurology, 58(3), 498-504.
 

--- This article was written by Pascale Michelon, Ph. D., for SharpBrains.com. Dr. Michelon, Copyright 2008. Dr. Michelon has a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology and is a Research Scientist at Washington University in Saint Louis, in the Psychology Department. She conducted several research projects to understand how the brain makes use of visual information and memorizes facts. She is now an Adjunct Faculty at Washington University, and teaches Memory Workshops in numerous retirement communities in the St Louis area.

Dr. Arthur Kramer is a Professor in the University of Illinois Department of Psychology, the Campus Neuroscience Program, the Beckman Institute, and the Director of the Biomedical Imaging Center at the University of Illinois.

I am honored to interview him today.

Dr. Kramer, thank you for your time. Let’s start by trying to clarify some existing misconceptions and controversies. Based on what we know today, and your recent Nature piece (Note: referenced below), what are the 2-3 key lifestyle habits would you suggest to a person who wants to delay Alzheimer’s symptoms and improve overall brain health?

First, Be Active. Do physical exercise. Aerobic exercise, 30 to 60 minutes per day 3 days per week, has been shown to have an impact in a variety of experiments. And you don’t need to do something strenuous: even walking has shown that effect. There are many open questions in terms of specific types of exercise, duration, magnitude of effect…but, as we wrote in our recent Nature Reviews Neuroscience article, there is little doubt that leading a sedentary life is bad for our cognitive health. Cardiovascular exercise seems to have a positive effect.

Second, Maintain Lifelong Intellectual Engagement. There is abundant prospective observational research showing that doing more mentally stimulating activities reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer’s symptoms.

Let me add, given all media hype, that no “brain game” in particular has been shown to have a long-term impact on Alzheimer’s or the maintenance of cognition across extended periods of time. It is too early for that-and consumers should be aware of that fact. It is true that some companies are being more science-based than others but, in my view, the consumer-oriented field is growing faster than the research is.

Ideally, combine both physical and mental stimulation along with social interactions. Why not take a good walk with friends to discuss a book? We lead very busy lives, so the more integrated and interesting activities are, the more likely we will do them.

Great concept: a walking book club! Now, part of the confusion we observe is due to the search of “magic solutions” that work for everyone and everything. We prefer to talk about several pillars of brain health, and different priorities for different individuals. Can you elaborate on what interventions seem to have a positive effect on specific cognitive abilities and individuals?

Perhaps one day we will be able to recommend specific interventions for individuals based on genetic testing, for example, but we don’t have a clue today. We are only beginning to understand how the environment interacts with our genome.

But I agree on the premise that there probably won’t be a general solution that solves all cognitive problems, but we need a multitude of approaches. And we can’t forget, for example, the cognitive benefits from smoking cessation, sleep, pharmacological interventions, nutrition, social engagement.

Physical exercise tends to have rather broad effects on different forms of perception and cognition, as seen in the Colcombe and Kramer, 2003, meta-analysis published in Psychological Science (Note: referenced below).

Cognitive training also works for a multitude of perceptual and cognitive domains – but has shown little transfer beyond trained tasks.

No single type of intervention is sufficient. Today there is no clear research on how those different lifestyle factors may interact. The National Institute on Aging is starting to sponsor research to address precisely that.

Earlier you said that no brain software in particular has been shown to maintain cognition across extended periods of time. Now, didn’t the ACTIVE trial (Note: referenced below) 5-year results show how cognitive training (computerized or not) can result in pretty durable results? For context, are there comparable controlled studies to ACTIVE where 10 or so hours of physical exercise today can result in measurable (yet, incomplete) cognitive benefits 5 years from now?

Actually we don’t yet now whether the task performance is retained more than a couple of years. It seems unlikely that this would be the case with the relatively little training (e.g. 10 hours in the ACTIVE study) that has been provided in training studies thus far.

On whether there are controlled studies similar to ACTIVE that have measured the long-term cognitive benefits of physical exercise, not that I know of.

To wrap up this part of the conversation, what's in your mind the best way to explain the relative benefits of physical vs. cognitive exercise? From a fundamental point of view, it seems clear that physical exercise can help enhance neurogenesis (Note: the creation of new neurons), yet learning/ cognitive exercise contributes to the survival of those neurons by strengthening synapses, so I see more how those two "pillars" are complimentary than "one or the other".

I agree. Given what we know today I would recommend both intellectual engagement and physical exercise. However, we do know, from a multitude of animal studies, that physical exercise has a multitude of effects on brains beyond neurogenesis, including increases in various neurotransmitters, nerve grown factors, and angiogenesis (the formation of new blood vessels).

Tell us more about your work with cognitive training for older adults.

We have now a study in press where we evaluate the effect of a commercially available strategy videogame on older adults’ cognition.

Let me first give some context. It seems clear that, as we age, our so-called crystallized abilities remain pretty stable, whereas the so-called fluid abilities decline. One particular set of fluid abilities are called executive functions, which deal with executive control, planning, dealing with ambiguity, prioritizing, multi-tasking. These skills are crucial to maintain independent living.

In this study, we examined whether playing strategy-based video game can train those executive functions and improve them. We showed that playing a strategy-based videogame (Rise of Nations Gold Edition) can result in not only becoming a better videogame player but it transferred to untrained executive functions. We saw a significant improvement in task switching, working memory, visual short-term memory, and mental rotation. And some, but more limited, benefits in inhibition and reasoning.

I can share a few details on the study: the average age was 69 years, and the experiment required around 23 hours of training time. We only included individuals who had played videogames 0 hours/ week for the last 2 years.

That last criteria is interesting. We typically say that good “brain exercise” requires novelty, variety and challenge. So, if you take adults who are 69-years-old and haven’t played a videogame in 2 years, how do you know if the benefit comes from the particular videogame they played vs. just the value of dealing with a new and complex task?

That’s a great question. The reality is that we don’t know, since we had a “waiting list” control group. In the future perhaps we should compare different videogames or other mentally stimulating activities against each other and see what method is the most efficient. Perhaps the National Institutes on Health may be interested in funding such research.

In any case, your study reinforces an important point: older brains can, and do, learn new skills.

Yes. The rate of learning by older adults may be slower, and they may benefit from more explicit instruction and technology training, but, as a society, it is a massive waste of talent not to ensure older adults remain active and productive.

Another recent study we conducted, this one still under review, is titled Experience-Based Mitigation of Age-Related Performance Declines: Evidence from Air Traffic Control. It deals with the question: “Can Age Itself Be an Obstacle for someone to perform as an Air Controller? And the Answer is: age itself, within the age range that we studied, is not an obstacle. Our results suggest that, given substantial accumulated experience, older adults can be quite capable of performing at high levels of proficiency on fast-paced demanding real-world tasks.

Now, the field of computerized cognitive training has potential in a variety of applications beyond “healthy aging”. You are obviously familiar with Daniel Gopher’s work training military pilots using Space Fortress. Is your lab doing something in that cognitive enhancement direction?

Yes, I have been involved in that area of work since the late 70s, when I helped design the protocols for Space Fortress. Which provides indeed a very interesting example of real-life transfer: pilots do seem to fly better as measured by real-life instruments.

Our lab is now embarking on a 5-year study for the Navy to explore ways to capitalize emerging research on brain plasticity to enhance training and performance. MIT and my lab will analyze the best training procedures to increase the efficiency and efficacy of training of individual and team performance skills, particularly those skills requiring high levels of flexibility. The results from this study will be in the public domain, so I hope they contribute to the maturity of the field at large.

That’s an important point. What does the field of cognitive fitness at large need to mature and become more mainstream?

We need more research. But not any kind of research. What we need is a kind of independent “Seal of Approval” based on independent clinical trials. Most published research of cognitive training interventions is sponsored and/ or conducted by the companies themselves. We need independent, objective and clear standards of excellence.

The Department of Education maintains a What Works Clearinghouse to review existing evidence behind programs that make education-related claims. Perhaps we need a similar approach for programs making cognitive claims with adults. We also see a need for more solid and widely-available cognitive assessments, to have better baselines and independent measures of cognitive abilities.

Good news there: the NIH is preparing an “NIH Toolbox” to provide valid, reliable instruments to researchers and clinicians, to solve the problem that exists today, namely, the lack of uniformity among many measures used. The initiative was launched in 2006, and it is a 5-year effort, so we’ll need to wait to see results.

Dr. Kramer, many thanks for your time and work. My apologies for having you stay by your desk during this interview. Next time I am in Illinois, I will invite you to a walking interview.

Excellent idea! The pleasure has been mine. Let me thank you as well, for the very important work you are doing.

References

Willis SL, Tennstedt SL, Marsiske M, et al. Long-term effects of cognitive training on everyday functional outcomes in older adults. JAMA. 2006;296:2805-14.

Stanley Colcombe, Arthur F. Kramer (2003). Fitness effects on the cognitive function of older adults: A Meta-Analytic study. Psychological Science 14 (2) , 125–130.

Charles H. Hillman, Kirk I. Erickson & Arthur F. Kramer Be smart, exercise your heart: exercise effects on brain and cognition. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 9, 58-65.

Related Interviews

- Cognitive Simulations for Peak Performance- with Dr. Daniel Gopher

- Improving Driving Skills, and the ACTIVE trials- with Dr. Jerri Edwards

- Build Your Cognitive Reserve- with Dr. Yaakov Stern

A few colleagues referred me over the weekend to a very nice article at business publication Portfolio.

While the article does an excellent job at introducing the reader to the concept and promise of computerized cognitive assessments, it also contributes to the mythology of "Brain Age".

Let's first take a look at the article How Smart Are You: The business of assessing cognition and memory is moving from testing brain-impaired patients to assessing healthy peoples' brains online.

A couple of quotes: 

- "Cognitive Drug Research is one a handful of businesses, most of them outside of the U.S., that work with pharmaceutical companies to test how new drugs for everything from nicotine addiction to Alzheimer’s disease affect the mind’s ability to remember things, make decisions, and analyze information."

- "Cognitive tests have been around for a century as examinations taken with paper and pencil. In the 1970s and '80s the tests shifted to computers, Cognitive Drug Research founder Keith Wesnes says.

So far, so good. In fact, one of the key highlights from the market report we released in March was that "Large-scale, fully-automated cognitive assessments are being used in a growing number of clinical trials. This opens the way for the development of inexpensive consumer-facing, baseline cognitive assessments." And we profiled a few leading companies in the space: Brain Resource Company, Cognitive Drug Research, CNS Vital Signs and CogState.

Now, the article is accompanied by a 5-7 minute quick test that promises to give us our "Brain Age". And this doesn't come from Nintendo, but from Cognitive Drug Research, a respected science-based company.

You can check it out yourself: Take the Test

Why do I find this misleading? Because the concept of having a "brain age" is, itself, profoundly unscientific. It is one thing to have that concept popularized by a game developer such as Nintendo through its popular Brain Age/ Training Series, and another one to have it reinforced by companies that are developing and marketing science-based applications.

Another example: the radio ads for the PBS program titled Brain Fitness Program, where listeners of all ages get the impression (as many friends and colleagues have reported) that, should they buy the Posit Science Brain Fitness Program, they can expect their brains "rejuvenated" by 10 years. This, I hear often, must be true, coming from PBS.

Unfortunately, it isn't. And it isn't because the claim is founded on the same faulty premise of having a "brain age".

What is going on?

First, the good news. Today we know today that the brain retains lifelong plasticity (the ability to change itself through experience). Aging does not mean automatic decline.

Furthermore, we know that a variety of lifestyle factors, including physical and mental exercise, can influence how our mental abilities evolve as we age. We can delay or slow down age-related decline. Not only that, we can improve our abilities, and a number of computer-based programs have shown how they can help specific groups of people train and enhance specific cognitive skills. 

Now, what is important to recognize is that there is not one overall "brain age". We can view our brain functions or cognitive abilities as a variety of skills, some more perception-related, some more memory-related, some more language-related, some more visual, some more abstract-thinking and planning oriented. All science-based brain fitness products in the market today target specific cognitive skills. The research that has been published shows how specific brain functions can be improved. But there is no general "brain age" that can be measured or trained in a meaningful way.

Let's analyze the PBS Posit Science-related message: you can rejuvenate your brain by 10 years. What would this mean, were it to be true? perhaps that ALL cognitive abilities would go back to where they were 10 years before. and that this would happen for individuals of all ages: in our 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and so on. It would also mean that, given that rejuvenated "brain age", our risk of developing Alzheimer's symptoms would be adjusted to reflect our "new" brain age. And that the evolution of our cognitive abilities over the rest of our lives would reflect our new-found "brain age".

Has this been shown? Unfortunately, not. The "10 years" claim seems based on one published study, and several unpublished ones, where individuals with an average age of around 70 years take on a very intense auditory processing training program that enables them to improve related auditory cognitive skills by a significant percentage. Whereby, on average, and on those specific skills, they reach a level comparable to people 60 years old.

But this doesn't say anything about other cognitive skills. Or Alzheimer's related risks. Or the cognitive trajectories that will follow.

Just think about this: if, by attending an intensive tennis camp, you were able to serve at a level comparable to people 10 years younger than your age...would you say that your body is now 10 years younger? Probably not. You'd say that now you play tennis better. Which is a significant benefit in itself if that's what you are after.

I am aware that these distinctions, rooted in cognitive science, may not be as compelling as one that promises "you can reduce your brain age by 10 years". But it is important to invest in education for the public and health professionals to help the market mature in a rational way. Not to try to outcompete Nintendo.

In summary, the great news is that there are more tools available than ever before to assess and train a variety of cognitive skills, in what is still today a very small, but growing market. Nintendo, Posit Science, Cognitive Drug Research and others are offering valuable products and services.

The bad news (is this really news?) is that we shouldn't be expecting magic pills and that "brain age" is a fiction.

In case you wonder...I do have and enjoy my copy Nintendo Brain Age, and appreciate it as a stimulating game. I simply don't outsource my brain fitness to Dr. Kawashima.

Attention Digg users: this post is starting to climb in Digg, would you mind voting for it Here. Thank you very much!

Further reading:

- Neuroscience Interview Series

- It is Not Only Cars That Deserve Good Maintenance: Brain Care 101

- 10-Question Program Evaluation Checklist

A great new edition of this twice-a-month collection of best neuroscience and psychology blog posts. Enjoy!

Encephalon #48: The Usual Suspects, hosted by Neuroanthropology.

One of the best articles so far on the growing brain fitness market, by the Associated Press.

Click Here to check out story:

"This is not just a Nintendo-fueled fad," he says. "The brain fitness market passed a tipping point in 2007 thanks to the convergence of a very proactive boomer generation hitting their 60s."

Article: Here. Highly recommended. 

Now, as you read it, please remember the theme of our most recent newsletter: Emerging Tools, Not Magic Pills.

And, for all new readers who are joining us given the extra coverage (CNN, CBS, CHicago Tribune, dozens of other papers and websites), let me reprint now an article I wrote here in February:

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A spate of recent news coverage on brain fitness and "brain training" reflects a growing interest in natural, non-drug-based interventions to keep our brains sharp as we age. This interest is very timely, given the aging population, increasing Alzheimer's rates, and soaring health care costs that place more emphasis than ever on prevention and changing lifestyle.

This past Tuesday, the MIT Club of Northern California, the American Society on Aging, and SmartSilvers sponsored an event on The Emerging Brain Fitness Software Market: Building Better Brains to explore the realities and myths of this growing field. The panel was moderated by Zack Lynch, Executive Director of the Neurotechnology Industry Organization, and composed of a venture capitalist and 3 CEOs of program developers in the field. Before the panel, I had the chance to present an overview of the state of the Brain Fitness Software Market based on our upcoming report to be released on March 4th.

Why are we talking about this field at all? Well, for one, an increasing number of companies are achieving significant commercial success in packaging "brain exercise". An example is the line of Nintendo games, such as Brain Age and Brain Training, that have shipped over 15 million units worldwide despite limited scientific support, since 2005. What is less visible is that a number of companies and scientists are partnering to bring products to market with a more solid clinical validation. We estimate the US market was $225m in 2007 (growing from $100 in 2005). Wheras K12 Education used to be the major segment, adult consumers are responsible for most of that growth: we estimate the consumer segment grew from a few million in 2005 to $80 m in 2007.

These topics, and more, are covered in depth in our report "The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2008". Click Here for more information.