美研究：網絡搜索鍛鍊大腦

Searching the Internet may help middle-aged and older adults keep their memories sharp, US researchers said on Tuesday.

Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles studied people doing Web searches while their brain activity was recorded with functional magnetic resonance imaging scans.

"What we saw was people who had Internet experience used more of their brain during the search," Dr. Gary Small, a UCLA expert on aging, said in a telephone interview.

"This suggests that just searching on the Internet may train the brain -- that it may keep it active and healthy," said Small, whose research appears in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Many studies have found that challenging mental activities such as puzzles can help preserve brain function, but few have looked at what role the Internet might play.

"This is the first time anyone has simulated an Internet search task while scanning the brain," Small said.

His team studied 24 normal volunteers between the ages of 55 and 76. Half were experienced at searching the Internet and the other half had no Web experience. Otherwise, the groups were similar in age, gender and education.

Both groups were asked to do Internet searches and book reading tasks while their brain activity was monitored.

"We found that in reading the book task, the visual cortex -- the part of the brain that controls reading and language -- was activated," Small said.

"In doing the Internet search task, there was much greater activity, but only in the Internet-savvy group."

He said it appears that people who are familiar with the Internet can engage in a much deeper level of brain activity.

"There is something about Internet searching where we can gauge it to a level that we find challenging," Small said.

In the aging brain, atrophy and reduced cell activity can take a toll on cognitive function. Activities that keep the brain engaged can preserve brain health and thinking ability.

Small thinks learning to do Internet searches may be one of those activities.

"It tells us we probably can teach an old brain new Internet tricks," he said.

美國研究人員於本週二稱，網絡搜索有助於中老年人保持良好的記憶。

加州大學洛杉磯分校的研究人員在讓研究對象進行網頁搜索的同時，採用“功能性核磁共振造影”來記錄他們的腦部活動信息。

人體衰老問題專家加里•斯莫爾博士在一次電話採訪中說：“我們發現，有網絡經驗的人在進行網絡搜索時腦部活動會增強。”

“這說明，網絡搜索能鍛鍊大腦——從而使其保持健康與活力。”這一研究結果已在《美國老年精神病學期刊》上發表。

此前有很多研究表明，一些智力挑戰遊戲如猜謎等可以保持大腦的活力，但很少有人注意到網絡發揮的作用。

斯莫爾表示：“這是首次在模擬互聯網搜索的同時進行腦部掃描。”

斯莫爾的研究小組對24位年齡在55歲至76歲之間的正常志願者進行了研究。其中一半的人能熟練地進行互聯網搜索，而另一半人則毫無網絡經驗。除此之外，兩組研究對象的年齡、性別和受教育程度都相近。

研究人員要求兩組研究對象進行網絡搜索和看書兩項任務，同時對他們的大腦活動進行監控。

斯莫爾說：“我們發現，研究對象在看書時，大腦的視覺皮層（控制閱讀和語言的部分）被‘激活’了。”

“但在進行網絡搜索時，僅有網絡經驗組成員的腦部區域活動大大增強。”

他說，這表明熟悉網絡搜索的人能進行更深層次的腦部活動。

斯莫爾說：“互聯網搜索過程中涉及到一些對我們的大腦具有挑戰性的東西。”

大腦老化過程中出現的大腦萎縮和腦細胞減少會影響人的認知能力，而使大腦處於忙碌狀態的活動則可以保持大腦的健康和思考能力。

斯莫爾認爲，學習網絡搜索可能就是這些活動的其中一種。

“這說明，我們可以教‘老腦筋’學一些網絡知識。”