U.S. boffins have found that searching the Internet keeps the mind sharp.
The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) study was published in the latest edition of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry which we get for the advertisements for colostomy bags.
It showed that Internet use stimulates brain activity in the elderly and middle-aged. The UCLA boffins found that searching the Web triggers key centers in the brain that control decision-making and complex reasoning and may help stimulate and possibly improve brain function. Dr Gary Small, the principal investigator of the study, said that emerging computerized technologies may have physiological effects and potential benefits for middle-aged and older adults.
Complex activity that keeps the mind engaged, such as crossword puzzles, may also help keep the brain ticking over. Study participants performed Web searches and book-reading tasks while undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to show how their brains were working.
Internet-savvy wrinklies registered a two-fold increase in brain activation during Web use when compared with those with little Internet experience.
The frontal, temporal and cingulate areas of the brain, which control decision-making and complex reasoning were also fired by Websearching.
The University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) study was published in the latest edition of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry which we get for the advertisements for colostomy bags.
It showed that Internet use stimulates brain activity in the elderly and middle-aged. The UCLA boffins found that searching the Web triggers key centers in the brain that control decision-making and complex reasoning and may help stimulate and possibly improve brain function. Dr Gary Small, the principal investigator of the study, said that emerging computerized technologies may have physiological effects and potential benefits for middle-aged and older adults.
Complex activity that keeps the mind engaged, such as crossword puzzles, may also help keep the brain ticking over. Study participants performed Web searches and book-reading tasks while undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to show how their brains were working.
Internet-savvy wrinklies registered a two-fold increase in brain activation during Web use when compared with those with little Internet experience.
The frontal, temporal and cingulate areas of the brain, which control decision-making and complex reasoning were also fired by Websearching.
Internet searching appears to engage a greater extent of neural circuitry that is not activated during reading - but only in those with prior Internet experience, said Small.
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