Brain research based on magnetic resonance imaging and other technologies is showing " ----that you can get new connections in the brain (this last section added)


“We know now the new connections can be formed,” Rymer said. “It’s analogous to building muscle in the gym. But you have to do things you’re not used to doing.”

Adults tend to settle into routines in almost every aspect of their lives, she said, from jobs and friends to exercise routines and hobbies. They don’t embark on much new learning.

John Corbaley, who runs St. Luke’s Brain Fitness Center, said for many people at about age 25, after they complete their education and establish a daily work routine, the brain locks into “user mode.”

With less new learning, neuroconnectivity declines and so can memory and problem-solving skills.

Research shows certain activities can switch on the brain’s “acquisition mode.”They include:

•Going back to school

•Learning a new “active” sport

•Learning a language

•Neurotraining(clinically proven)

The gold standard for such training, Corbaley said, is software from Posit Science. The company provides the training program used at the center.


With auditory and visual cues, the computer program presents “games” and tests that get progressively more difficult and require participants to recognize “infinitesimally small differences in the stimuli,” Corbaley said.