♦ nivek ♦ Posted September 7, 2007 Share Posted September 7, 2007 Top neuroscientist backs computer brain gamehttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...4AVCBQUIV0?xml= /news/2007/09/07/nmind107.xml By Roger Highfield, Science Editor Last Updated: 1:52am BST 07/09/2007 Baroness Greenfield, the well known neuroscientist and director of the Royal Institution, has joined the likes of Nicole Kidman and Chris Tarrant by putting her name to a computer game designed to train the brain. # Train your brain: Take the MindFit test At the House of Lords she helped to launch a new fitness routine to play on the insecurities of the masses - the brain workout - and described the results of a trial that suggests that it could help arrest the ageing of the body's most complex organ. Trial suggests MindFit improves brain functioning http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...07/nmind207.xml "You are your brain and it is vital your brain stays in the best possible working order", said Baroness Greenfield, who admitted she does not use "MindFit" herself. She stressed: "It is not a guarantee against getting Alzheimer's." Although her endorsement may raise the eyebrows of some of her academic peers, she said that "MindFit is proven to work in scientific trials". The MindFit research, presented earlier this year at the Eighth International Conference of Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease, is a double-blind clinical trial which suggests that computer-based training improves the brain functioning of the 50-plus population. A trial by Amos Korczyn and colleagues at Tel Aviv University demonstrates that a regular workout with MindFit significantly increases a range of brain abilities, including short-term memory and simple reaction time, which deteriorate with age. The two-year clinical trial assigned 121 volunteers, aged 50 years and over, to use either MindFit or a variety of popular computer games. MindFit users experienced significantly greater improvement than the others, and in a variety of ways such as short term memory (15pc improvement) and simple reaction time (19pc improvement). advertisement The MindFit group did better than those who played conventional computer games, such as Tetris. Unlike other computer brain training games, MindFit tailors exercises to an individual's changing needs. "It is designed around you," she said. Baroness Greenfield, who is a director of MindWeavers, continued: " As a population we are increasingly conscious of the benefits of physical exercise to our health. Our challenge is now to increase the amount of time spent on evidence-based methods of brain exercise to enhance the benefits that physical exercise may already offer to brain health". The MindFit game, which retails at £89.99, is licensed by MindWeavers, an Oxford University spin-out company, through collaboration with the makers CogniFit, based in Israel. MindWeavers' Chief Executive Officer, Mr Bruce Robinson, said: "MindFit raises the seriousness of the brain training craze and takes it to the next level." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LithaB Posted September 8, 2007 Share Posted September 8, 2007 I work out every morning with Spyder Solitaire myself. I do feel it gives my brain a kickstart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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