If you're reading this blog right now, your brain should be thanking you. Studies now suggest a link between spending time on the Internet and enhanced brain power.
According to an article on msnbc.com, a UCLA research team did a study with older adults who were not experienced Internet users. The researchers looked at participants' brain responses when they first began searching the Internet. The participants showed brain activity in the regions controlling language, reading, memory and visual abilities. After a week of looking things up at home, their second brain scan showed activation of these same regions, but there was also activity in the part of the brain known to be important in working memory and decision-making.
The researchers concluded that after Internet training at home, participants with little online experience displayed brain activation patterns very similar to those seen in the group of savvy Internet users.
"The results suggest that searching online may be a simple form of brain exercise that might be employed to enhance cognition in older adults," said Teena D. Moody, the study's first author and UCLA researcher.
The researchers think that when performing an online search, the brain must hold important information in working memory and also take away important points from competing graphics and words. This is an essential part of how doing Internet searches can be good for your brain.
So keep searching the Internet, learning new things, and of course, reading this blog!
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