09/30/08 Brain Gain

Stupid is as stupid does. Well not anymore Forrest! A recent study states that it just might be possible to train people to be more intelligent, expanding the brainpower they were born with. Scientists have always believed that a person's "fluid intelligence", the mental ability that allows us to solve new problems without having a relevant prior experience, is inherent and not receptive to learning. But researchers have uncovered a method which improves this skill and have the proven experiments to back it up. Reportedly the method revolves around carefully structured training with working memory, the kind that allows us to memorize a number or address just long enough to use it. This type of memory seems to rely on the same brain circuitry as fluid intelligence. Remember the children's game of Concentration? Using the same principle but on a more intricate and detailed level volunteers trained a half hour daily for ten to twenty days showing significant improvement by trainings end. How long the gains will last after training stops however is unknown. Perhaps the old adage "use it or lose it" applies.