SharpBrains

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 News and Events

Exercise your brain in the Cognitive Age: The New York Times published two thought-provoking articles on brain and cognitive fitness, one of them featuring SharpBrains.

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Today I had a great conversation with Martin Buschkuehl, one of the University of Michigan’s Cognitive Neuroimaging Lab researchers  involved in the cognitive training study that has received much media attention (New York Times, Wired, Science News...) since late April, when the study was published at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Reference: Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., Jonides, J., & Perrig, W. J. (2008). Improving Fluid Intelligence With Training on Working Memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105(19), 6829-6833 (You can read it here, with subscription).

Before you keep reading, let me clarify a couple of terms:

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This week's editions of two excellent blog carnivals. Enjoy!

- Encephalon #45 - Life Is Good, Brains Are Better

- Grand Rounds 4:34 at the Health Business Blog

I have been travelling much over the last 2 weeks to speak at a number of conferences and universities. I promised I would be sharing some of the key highlights, but we have decided to do something better to do justice to the richness and complexity of the field we cover. We are going to launch an experiment: a Brain Fitness Webinar Series.

This inaugural Brain Fitness Webinar Series will consist of 3 free live sessions. The series covers the most fundamental advances in cognitive science and their implications for individuals, companies and organizations. And we are honored to have John Medina lead of the sessions!

Each event is independent, in topic and in registration process.

Webinar #1: In “The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market, 2008,” I will provide an overview of the science, market, and vendor landscape of the emerging brain fitness software market, based on our recent market report on this growing category.
- Target audience: Executives, professionals, investors, reporters and bloggers interested in learning more about the brain fitness market.
- More information: Market Report.
- Date and time: Tuesday May 27th, 2pm EDT/ 11am PDT
Register: Here

Webinar #2: In “Brain Rules for Thinking Smarter,” John Medina, developmental molecular biologist and author of Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Striving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School will emphasize the importance of physical exercise, stress management…and avoiding multitasking altogether.
- Target audience: Anyone who wants to learn more about brain health and performance.
- More information: The Science of Thinking Smarter, by John Medina.
- Date and time: Tuesday June 3rd, 2pm EDT/ 11am PDT
Register: Here

Webinar #3: 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 classes and speaking engagements.
- Target audience: Anyone who wants to learn more about brain health and performance
- Date and time: Tuesday June 10th, 2pm EDT/ 11am PDT
Register: Here

I hope you find this series stimulating. Just pick the event that sounds more relevant to your interests! 

What a beautiful display of creativity:

Physical Fitness 'Godfather' Jack LaLanne Turns to Brain Fitness, Becoming Ambassador for Dakim's [m] Power System

- Dakim, Inc., announced today that 93-year-young Jack LaLanne, the world's most iconic figure in health and fitness, has signed on as a "brain fitness motivational coach" on behalf of the company's [m]Power Cognitive Fitness System, joining the company's efforts to help seniors fight against dementia.

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Daniel Lende and Greg Downey run the though-provoking Neuroanthropology blog. Daniel also teaches a class at University of Notre Dame, and he asked his students to submit group-based blog posts in lieu of the traditional final essays. He explains more on Why A Final Essay When We Can Do This?.

Below you have a spectacular post written by 4 of his students. They show how brain imaging is starting to provide a window into the plasticity (glossary here) of our brains, and how our very own actions impact them. For good and for bad.

Understanding Brain Imaging

--- By Chris Dudley, Matt Gasperetti, Mikey Narvaez, and Sarah Walorski

Do you remember the anti-drug public service announcement from the 1980s that showed an egg frying in a hot pan which represented your brain on drugs?

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We recently prepared a Directory of Web Sites as part of our  Resources section. You will find some gems here, in a variety of areas:

>> The Dana Foundation offers several excellent online resources:

- Brainy Kids Online offers children, teens, parents and teachers links to games, labs, education resources and lesson plans.

- BrainWeb: general information about the brain and current brain research, as well as links to validated sites related to more than 25 brain disorders.

- Brain Resources for Seniors provides older adults and their caretakers with links to sites related to brain health, education and general information.

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(Hat tip: Boing Boing)

The CIA has posted the full text of one of its guidebooks, "Psychology of Intelligence Analysis", published in 1999 by the CIA's Center for the Study of Intelligence.

Haven't had time to play with it yet, but these quotes sound fascinating:

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Today I had a great conversation with Martin Buschkuehl, one of the U Michigan researchers involved in the cognitive training study that has received much media attention since early last week, when the study was published at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

I will publish the interview notes next week. For the moment, let me paraphrase his answer to the question: "Why are computerized programs like the one you used fundamentally different from, say, simply doing many crossword puzzles?".

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As you have probably noticed, a growing number of Expert Contributors are writing in our blog, so that we can collectively discuss the latest research and trends on cognitive and brain health, and the implications of brain research in general for our everyday lives. 

If you haven't done so already, make sure to subscribe to our newsletter (above) and our RSS feed (on the right).

Below you have the profiles of some of our Contributors and links to their best articles with us so far. Enjoy!

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