Games, Puzzles & IQ Tests

New evidence towards the efficacy of brain fitness is now emerging from Australia where they just completed their Brain Fitness Pilot Program. Among their findings were:

Participants found improvements in their memory and were able to follow conversations better.
Brain has the ability to change in response to new learning.
Exercising the brain reduces the risk of More >

Here’s something interesting happening over in England. Apparently some BBC TV show with the tagline “Get ready to put science to the test” is launching what it claims will be the largest investigation into the efficacy of brain training with brain games. So far they have 25,000 people signed up for this experiment More >

An award acceptance speech with a long discussion of neurogenesis and neuroplasticity. Have a look if you want to learn a little more in-depth science about this process that is shaping your mind. Good to have a background in biology if you want to get too much out of it.

There is a lot of talk these days about using brain games to train your mind. With each passing month, another study is released touting the efficacy of brain training and further emphasizing the importance of brain fitness. Along with this swelling body of research has come an ever-growing number of brain fitness programs More >

The well-being of the mind can have a tremendous impact on the health of the body, so it is not surprising to see that the NIH recently found that people who engaged in brain exercise saved hundreds of dollars a year in heath-care costs. Yet another good reason to keep your brain fit. More >

Check out this in-depth review of the book entitled “The Brain That Changes Itself“. It looks to be full of anecdotes about people who have overcome seemingly impossible odds thanks to the magic of neuroplasticity. I love reading books like this as they are not only fascinating but also empowering, reminding me of More >

The following is a discussion of brain fitness, brain training and neuroscience between Dr Shlomo Breznitz of CogniFit and Alex Colket of PlayWithYourMind
Alex: In order to properly frame our conversation, can you start things off by taking a moment to explain neuroplasticity and briefly discuss the implications of this science for the emergent brain fitness More >

A new finding has been released from the ongoing Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study. Not surprisingly, participants who were engaged in some sort of brain training or cognitive exercise were 38% less likely to develop depression (according to the assessment of self-reports). This makes sense as brain exercise More >

Your mind is like a child, and you as its parent are in charge of its development and well-being. As with most parenting, some people do this well while others do it poorly. Because the brain is so powerful, it’s sometimes easy to step away from the wheel and cruise through life on auto-pilot, but More >

I just came across an excellent post with an ever-growing list of ways to strengthen your mind. It’s very thorough and has some unusual but excellent suggestions. Where applicable, it even provides links to places on the web where you can apply the tip in question.
Oh, and here is another similar list you More >

I figured it would be helpful for me from a business perspective, as well as for you for entertainment/enrichment purposes, to have a catalog of all the other websites offering brain fitness programs or some other collection of brain games/exercises. So I am setting off to compile such a list. At first, I More >

Top Highlights from The State of the Brain Fitness Software Market 2009 Report
1) Growth market: Consumers, seniors’ communities and insurance providers drove year on year sustained growth, from $225m in 2007 to $265m in 2008. Revenues may reach between $1 billion to $5 billion by 2015, depending on how important problems (Public Awareness, Navigating Claims, More >

For those of you who are interested in learning more about how online games can help strengthen your mind, here are a couple articles you might be interested in reading:
Video Games in Increasing Brain Power: a summary of the various mental faculties targeted by video games
Or, if you want something a little more in More >

The Brain Fitness industry is growing rapidly and gaining a lot of momentum, so it is no surprise to hear that there is now a conference on the subject. The Game for Health Conference will run June 11-12 and will feature a variety of different presentations on the various aspects of the industry, from More >

I was just reading this article entitled Brain Fitness Industry Growth Driven by Science which discusses the role of scientific studies in validating the efficacy of a brain fitness program. One researcher is quoted as saying “Consumers should look for products with published studies showing the product worked, and should be wary of general More >

Obviously, I strongly believe that brain games can be an invaluable tool in your quest for a healthier, stronger brain. However, exercising your mental functions with games is only part of the picture; there are a number of other valuable activities you should engage in that will help keep your mind sharp and fit. More >

While this seems a little odd, I must say that I like the idea. Exercising increases blood flow to the brain and increases mental functioning, so why not exercise your brain while exercising your body? Check out this post on the neuroactive bike

if you are truly interested in changing the way your mind works, there are few more effective tools than meditation. several different research studies have shown that this ancient practice can physically transform the structure of your brain and by extension your mental thought patterns. Effective meditation can unlearn bad habits while laying More >

this is hardly news of course, we’ve known for years that physical exercise improves mental functioning and slows down deterioration of the mind… but I would be remiss in promoting brain fitness but did not occasionally remind people this very important fact. Exercise regularly. Eat well. Be social. Explore hobbies. More >

Of course, not everyone believes in the merits of brain exercise, and there are a fair share of studies that have concluded that such programs have no measurable effect on mental fitness. The author of this article/study suggests that leading an active life can be just as effective, and seniors need not worry about More >

Looking for another source of information about the latest in brain games and mental fitness? Gary D has made a blog just for that purpose, appropriately titled Online Brain Games Blog. From Gary, on why he started the blog:
With so many people looking for ways to improve their brain function, the internet has More >

Research and Markets: The Size Of The US Brain Fitness Market Was $225m In 2007 – More Than Double What It Was In 2005 According To 2008 Report
1) 2007 was a seminal year for the US Brain Fitness software market, which reached $225 million in revenues – up from an estimated $100 million in 2005. More >

Look’s like people are catching on to the idea more and more that it’s important to keep your mind fit.
Many Web sites offer cognitive training exercises — some for free and others for a small fee. According to the senior vice president of lifestyle products, AARP’s gaming area is the most-visited part of aarp.org. Also, More >

Results of another study on Brain Fitness & Mental Workouts
Doctors say it’s not just repeating activities over and over again, like crossword puzzles. It’s doing something new, it’s doing something that really challenges that seems to make the difference.

Here is an article from Pakistan’s Mensa chapter on how to keep the brain fit, called “How to Improve Your Memory & Exercise Your Brain?” Here’s tip #2
2. Keep your brain active. The brain is not a muscle, but regularly “exercising” the brain actually does keep it growing and spurs the development of new More >

Here is a review on a new brain fitness game for the G1 (google’s mobile device). The application is called Brain Genius.

Brain Genius bills itself as a way to “train your brain,” and it does require a bit of a commitment. It tracks performance PEER1 Managed Hosting – free firewall and SAN Backup More >

Not surprisingly, brain games are poised to enter the corporate world. More and more businesses are realizing the value of providing brain training exercises to their employees to increase productivity and boost morale (fun & effective, what a great combination).
From an article I just read: “Have you caught the brain training bug yet? It’s More >

More brain games making their way into the main gaming market:
http://news.filefront.com/majesco-gives-gamers-mega-brain-boost/

Here’s an article from Boing-Boing about the emerging trend. More interesting even than the article are the comments left by users – it’s interesting to read everyone’s take on the issue, from people who are very enthusiastic to those who are incredulous about the idea of brain fitness…
http://www.boingboing.net/2007/10/15/mind-gyms-for-cognit.html

A recent study released suggests that playing the right sort of mind games can have a noticeable impact on spatial ability – in as few as 10 hours of play. Even better, this improvement lasted for at least 5 months after the initial game session. Apparently, this improvement was particularly striking when it More >

I came across this article from some news station about an insurance company that now recommends brain exercise for all its policy holders, and offers a program they can use. I realize that mental fitness is a rapidly growing “industry”, and as such it is popping up all over the place, but I had More >

Re: my last post on games as educational tools, here is a story about a Canadian doctor who is starting local educational programs centered around games. His latest one is called “Wordigy” (sounds like one of my games, right?). This guy seems to agree with the sentiment that games are good for your More >

This article presents findings from a recent panel discussion of educators in the Chicago area. The basic gist is that games have the capacity to play a large role in the future of education…

Brain games are a great way to get some mental exercise, but they have their limitations. If you are looking for a more interactive way to improve your mental abilities, this article recommends theater. Sounds like another fun way to sharpen your mind!

Memory games made the front page of Yahoo today under a section on Tips to Improve Memory. A related article presented the latest round of evidence suggesting that memory games can help maintain and improve your memory

A new study indicates that the number of people living with alzhemiers has gone up 10% in just the last 5 years.
read about the Alzheimer’s Epidemic
Although there is no definitive evidence that keeping your mind active can stave off Alzheimer’s, it is widely-accepted that playing games and keeping your mind exercised and challenged is beneficial More >

If you are interested in learning a little more about your brain, and how it works, there are a number of good blogs out there covering the exciting field of neuroscience. Granted, many of these prove difficult to understand without a strong science background, but some of them are well-suited for the casual, non-neuroscientist More >

Here is a recent article from Scientific American about a comparison study between regular video games and specific brain exercises. In the study, there were two different groups, one who played regular games (in this case, Tetris) and another that played games designed as part of a brain-training program. Although both groups showed More >

A new study from the University of Rochester suggests that playing video games can help visual percpetion.
From ScienceDaily.com:
“Researchers at the University of Rochester have shown that people who played action video games for a few hours a day over the course of a month improved by about 20 percent in their ability to identify letters More >

From About.com, “Top 10 Ways to Improve your Mental Fitness”
“1) Play Games
Games are a wonderful way to tease and challenge your brain. Suduko, crosswords and electronic games can all improve your brain’s speed and memory. These games rely on logic, word skills, math and more. These games are also fun. You’ll get benefit more by More >