Fast and Painless Way to Better Mental Arithmetic? Yes, There Might Actually Be a Way

May 16, 2013
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130516123912.htm

Summary
In a recent study, researchers have reported an improvement in mental math using brain stimulation. Scientists, including Roi Cohen Kadosh, applied a harmless form of brain stimulation to an area known to be important for math ability. With just five days of cognitive training and brain stimulation, they brought about long-lasting brain function improvements that held for around six months. This new method of stimulation, called transcranial random noise stimulation (TRNS), works, but the scientists have not exactly figured out how. They think it allows the brain to work more efficiently by firing neurons in a more synchronized manner. TRNS has been shown to improve mental arithmetic, which more than 20% of people struggle with. Cohen Kadosh thinks this work could help humans reach their math potential and beyond, as well as helping those with neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, or learning disabilities. Also, since math is a complex cognitive ability, they think they will be able to enhance simpler cognitive functions with this stimulation.

Connection
This article connects with our study of the nervous system. The brain, which is the core processing center of the nervous system, has different regions that specialize in different functions. The area stimulated in this experiment in important for performing mathematics. Also, we learned about neurons and how they are sent. The more frequent the neurons are fired, the stronger the effect will be on the brain's processing. TRNS may help in doing this.