Teh interwebs can make u smart!

It’s true, using the internet can actually improve your brain function. At least this is the claim made by Dr. Gary Small, study author and professor of psychiatry at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA.

As the brain ages, a number of structural and functional changes occur, including atrophy, or decay, reductions in cell activity and increases in complex things like deposits of amyloid plaques and tau tangles, which can impact cognitive function.

Research has shown that mental stimulation similar to the stimulation that occurs in individuals who frequently use the Internet may affect the efficiency of cognitive processing and alter the way the brain encodes new information.

“We found that for older people with minimal experience, performing Internet searches for even a relatively short period of time can change brain activity patterns and enhance function,”

…

Additional studies will be needed to address the impact of the Internet on younger individuals and help identify aspects of online searching that generate the greatest levels of brain activation.

The findings were presented Oct. 19 at the meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in Chicago, Illinois.

Read the entire article…

I know they claim they need to do more studies to identify what specific online behaviour generates the greatest level of brain activation, but I can personally testify that since I started spending large amounts of time online searching for rilly good stuff 2 post @ my uther blog, mi brane haz got to b so ginormus, I haf to ask peeple 4 donashuns  so’s I can bi new hats to keep mi hed warm this winter.

Sum fokes say I just kneed reel help. Maybee, but I’d rather play games on Mr. Frac’s Blackberry or find gud thingz to eat & drink.

I hope that studey iz dun soon, so I can rite about it on mi blog and get famus and then get a book deel to make me rich cuz all theez thingz is costin me a forchun.

T-Y for reedin’ here.