Development and research is carried out by our team in Berlin with partners from Australia to Canada.

Already in 2013, NeuroNation was awarded the Leonardo Prize by the German Federal Ministry of Health and the AOK. . NeuroNation received the prize for its contribution to the advancement of the cognitive abilities and mental health indicators of its users.

Your brain is adaptable

While brain training is a very modern topic, physical fitness is already highly regarded in our society. For a long time now, there have been fitness studios aimed at people of all ages. It is a general consensus that physical exercise leads to a healthier, longer, and more fulfilling life. However, the situation is somewhat different with mental training. How to achieve optimal training here is the subject of current research. According to current knowledge, the brain reaches its highest level of comprehension and performance at the age of 16-25. From this age, mental fitness decreases. The good news is that you can actually do something to keep yourself fit because your brain is adaptable. Scientifically speaking, this adaptability is called “neuroplasticity”.

Targeting the right areas of the brain

Games and puzzles like Sudoku or crossword puzzles offer a simple way to stay mentally fit. But science already knows far more effective methods to increase mental fitness.
Modern brain training does not only activate a certain part of the brain like a crossword puzzle but many different areas, such as memory or attention. This can not only lead to a general improvement in performance in exercises, but also in everyday life. These so-called “transfer effects” can usually only be achieved with an adaptive and thoroughly developed training plan. The exercises of NeuroNation are based on the current state of research.

Personalized training

There are a number of points that good brain training must include in order to improve your everyday performance in the long term: Above all, your brain must neither be over- nor under-challenged, since in both cases your training success will fail. Thus, all NeuroNation exercises always begin simple and develop towards a higher complexity after a series of correct results. Maximum effectiveness is only achieved if you train at your personal performance limit. That is why the training is designed to start each day at your current appropriate level.

Frequency is key

As with any form of practice, consistency and continuity are the keys to success in the brain and mental training. “A rolling stone gathers no moss” is a well-known saying. That is why NeuroNation offers a large number of playful exercises. This variety is also important from a scientific point of view: If you constantly solve the same tasks (e.g. Sudoku), you will learn to perform them quickly but will strain your brain less and less over time.

In order for the brain to restructure itself, it constantly needs new challenges. And for additional motivation, you can even train together with friends or family. Brain training is suitable for people of almost any age.

Our effectiveness

A long-term study by MSH Medical School Hamburg and the University of Würzburg has shown that NeuroNation exercises performed from home, without instruction and supervision, are effective.

The researchers recruited participants via the internet and newspaper advertisements to a training study, in which the participants were to train on various NeuroNation exercises from the comfort of their own homes. The participants were divided into two groups: the training group practiced on NeuroNation memory exercises, whereas the control group practiced verbal knowledge. Altogether over 170 participants finished the study.

After only 21 training sessions, the training group improved memory and also other cognitive functions, such as processing speed.

Even more exciting are the everyday-life results. The training group also reported significantly less cognitive failures, like forgetting appointments, forgetting names, getting easily distracted, and difficulties in making decisions.

Leading scientist Prof. Dr. Tilo Strobach commented on the results:

“Since the participants were randomly assigned to the training and control groups, and since we also made sure that the performances of both groups were equal before training, we can conclude that the performance differences after training can be attributed to the training intervention.”

Our scientific partnerships

Cooperation with Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany)

Chemotherapy patients often complain about cognitive impairments after their treatment. Neuropsychological studies have confirmed this problem. NeuroNation is cooperating with the Clinic for Neurology at Charité – Universitätsmedizin in Berlin to study whether chemotherapy-related cognitive impairments can be reduced with brain training exercises from NeuroNation.

Study with Goethe University Frankfurt (Germany)

What effect does training various cognitive skills have on school performance in elementary school students? And which role do motivational factors play in the success of the training? In a study with Goethe University, researchers are studying whether a four-week training program with 21 training sessions involving working memory, inhibition, and cognitive flexibility tasks can improve children’s reading and math performance. Using playful elements such as a cover story, the effect of motivation on training and transfer success is also being studied.

Scientific study with the MSH Medical School Hamburg (Germany)

Brain training’s influence on various cognitive skills is currently being studied in collaboration with the MSH Medical School Hamburg under the direction of Professor Strobach. Further details will be released after the study is completed.

Study with Queen’s University (Canada)

Schizophrenia is a complex illness that can manifest in both positive and negative symptoms. For effective treatment, it is essential to understand which techniques and strategies will be most effective for patients. Scientists in the Centre for Neuroscience Studies and the Department of Psychology at Queen’s University in Canada are carrying out a study to determine how brain training should be implemented to create changes in EEG patterns. Patients with schizophrenia display typical EEG patterns when performing certain cognitive tasks. The study is researching whether it is more effective if training is carried out in multiple 2-minute sessions or as a single 10-minute session.

Study with University Hospital Cologne (Germany)

Parkinson’s disease is often accompanied by cognitive decline. In a study done in cooperation with the University Hospital in Cologne, patients who had not yet experienced any cognitive deficits received intense working memory training over the course of 5 weeks. The training aimed to stabilize their cognitive abilities in the long-term.

Study with Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences (Germany)

Demographic change and digitalization both mean that older professionals experience ever-greater cognitive challenges. Do older participants benefit from cognitive training in the same way that younger participants do? Are there differences in the types of tasks, or correlations to working time? In collaboration with students from Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences, Prof. Dr. Gerrit Hirschfeld, professor of quantitative methods, is attempting to answer these questions using selected data from the NeuroNation program.

Study with the University of Prague (Czech Republic)

A study conducted in collaboration with the University of Prague is trying to find out to what extent brain training can make a positive contribution to the treatment of anorexia nervosa. Anorexia is a psychiatric disorder that is characterized by a disturbed relationship to food consumption. In recent years, scientists’ interest has begun to focus on the neuronal roots of the illness. The study is being carried out in the Santa Corona Hospital in Pietra Ligure (Italy).

Study with Bielefeld University (Germany)

Ming-Yang (M.Sc.) is a doctoral student at Bielefeld University and is studying attention span in athletes. The scientist is particularly interested in finding out to what extent the attention spans of professional and amateur athletes differ. NeuroNation training is being used to observe these differences.

Study with the University of Applied Sciences in Bochum (Germany)

What effect does computer-based verbal fluency training have on verbal and executive function in the elderly? Bianca Spelter, a speech therapy student at the University of Applied Sciences in Bochum is investigating this question for her bachelor’s thesis using selected exercises from the NeuroNation program. Her work is being supervised by Prof. Dr. Sascha Sommer, dean of the applied health sciences department, whose work focuses on cognitive neuropsychology. Details.

Scientific study with the Hertie Institute in Tübingen (Germany)

What can people living with Parkinson’s disease achieve with brain training? This question is being researched by the working group for clinical neurodegeneration at the Hertie Institute in Tübingen under the direction of Prof. Dr. Berg. Alongside physical exercise, regular cognitive training is carried out using the NeuroNation app.

Scientific cooperation with a neurological therapy center

What type of brain training is most helpful for patients with neurological disorders or those who have suffered a stroke? Under the guidance of Doctor Wolfgang Klein, who is researching technological solutions as a part of neurorehabilitation within the scope of the EU project Rehab@Home, NeuroNation is exploring some innovative new approaches.

Rehabilitational use in cooperation with a health insurance provider

The health insurance provider Deutsche BKK makes it possible for their customers to use NeuroNation training in the course of their rehabilitation. Brain training plays an important role in rehabilitation after a stroke. Effectiveness is evaluated using tests before and after the training takes place.

Maintenance and improvement of cognitive fitness in the elderly

Studies show the importance of regular mental activity in advanced age. For this reason, the Bremer Heimstiftung, a foundation for seniors, makes use of the NeuroNation app in its nursing homes. Initial results show that brain training is extremely popular.

Scientific studies on working memory training

What effect does regular cognitive training with NeuroNation have on working memory? The division of experimental psychology and neuropsychology, under the direction of Professor Niedeggen, is attempting to answer this question. The results show that visual working memory, in particular, improved significantly.

Matriculation project on the effectiveness of brain training

In her matriculation project, high school student Ladina Meier of Bündner Kantonschule Chur compared the effectiveness of various types of brain training. She was supervised by Marcel Liechti. The results demonstrated the superiority of NeuroNation’s training.

The result: The kids’ attention span improved immediately after the session and showed significant lasting improvements in the overall performance after a 4-month training course.

Is brain training better than tutoring?

Over the course of four months, 200 participants performed a brain-training course three times a week. The results are promising: compared to an untrained control group, the children significantly improved their performance at school material. The scientists explain this finding with the Priming Effect.

In psychology, Priming is the activation of associations based on previous experience. In solving brain-training tasks, the kids reached a higher degree of concentration and were able to directly learn and retain new information.

Remarkable is the lasting effect of the brain boost. The analyzed effect is more significant compared to studies, which examined the impact of tutoring. These findings may indicate that brain training can improve children’s learning ability even better than tutoring.

Warm up the brain and stay on top

Learning from the study: Warm up your brain before cognitive tasks. In just 5 minutes, brain training prepares our brain for upcoming tasks and improves performance. Feel the study-proven effect and get your brain to the right temperature with NeuroNation brain training.

This winter has been hard on us and we could all use some sunshine to fill up our drained happiness reserves right about now. Luckily, even if the weather isn’t on our side, we can do something to increase our happiness. Today, we give you 11 simple and scientifically proven tricks that you can easily integrate into your everyday life to become happier each day:

1. Laugh: A study at the Mayo Clinic showed that laughter and giggles reduce stress. Positive effects are both short term (boost your mood, reduce tension) and long term (strengthen your immune system). Try it out and give us a big smile/giggle/laugh!

2. Put your happy music on: We all have a song that makes us happy whenever we listen to it. Recent research at the University of Missouri discovered that participants were able to improve their mood by listening to upbeat music and even boosted their overall happiness over a period of two weeks.

3. Go for a run: If you don’t like working out, this one probably isn’t for you. But you still should try to do physical exercise in any form when you’re feeling down, according to a study at Penn State University. When you exercise, your body releases endorphines, which have been known to be the “happiness” hormone in our body that makes us feel uplifted and euphoric.

4. Cuddle a puppy: If you’re looking for a reason to get a pet, look no further. Researcher at the Miami University found that spending time with a pet can significantly increase your emotional well-being and happiness. On top of that, pets can be a great source of emotional support for their owners. So really, there’s no excuse not to get one.

5. Volunteer: By helping others you not only make them feel better – you make yourself happier too. An extensive study at the University of Exeter Medical School proved that volunteering and helping others can lead to an increased well-being, lower depression, and even reduce our risk of dying!

6. Try meditation: By now, you have heard that meditation is good for your overall well-being. There are several studies that demonstrate meditation to raise your hapiness and health. A study at UCLA also revealed that meditation can increase your brain size, prevent brain cells from dying when you age, enable you to focus more deeply, and deal with stress better.

7. Think of happy memories: A study at the University of Southampton showed that just by thinking of happy memories in your past, you can strengthen your happiness levels and be more optimistic about the future. Being nostalgic never felt better!

8. A walk in the park: A study conducted at the University of Edinburgh found that we feel more at ease when we are surrounded by nature instead of an urban scenery. In the study, participants had to first walk on a noisy street and then in a quiet park. The results clearly showed their brain waves to be relaxed in the park, whereas the noisy street environment caused their stress levels to rise.

9. Take a vacation: Not only is a vacation a great way to distance yourself from your daily workload, a study conducted at the NHTV Breda University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands also examined what the mere anticipation of a vacation does to your mood. Turns out that by only looking forward to your next trip, you already increase your overall feeling of happiness – this effect can occur up to 8 weeks prior to your departure.

10. Get your sleep: As we all know, sleep is good for us. Experiments by psychologist David Dinges from the University of Pennsylvania showed that people who get their sleep are much happier than their crankier counterparts who don’t hit the sack timely. So turn off your smartphone, grab a good book and curl up in bed before switching off the lights and calling it a day.

11. Move closer to your workplace: Or get a job close to where you live. Either way, the important thing is you don’t spend an excessive amount of time commuting between the two. Commuting has negative consequences for your health, your phsychological well-being, and your happiness – as research at Umea University in Sweden has demonstrated. A long commute to and from work literally drains your energy, can lead to feeling lonely and depressed, and even puts a strain on your relationships.

Along with this metaphor, it has been thought that learning happens when the root of one tree and the trunk of another tree are active at the same time. The simultaneous activation is made possible by the branches that transfer the information from one tree to the next.

Our brain is 10 times more active than scientists could imagine

However, in a recently published study, a research group from the University of California could show, that information transfer through the branches is not as passive as has been previously thought. Rather, the branches have a very active role themselves in learning processes, such that they actively take part in computing and not just transferring signals. Therefore, they allow learning to take place without the “tree trunk” having to be active.

Why is this finding interesting and important? Firstly, the branches make up over 90 % of our brain tissue. With these new findings, it has become clear, that the most part of our brain, that was previously thought to just transfer information, actually acts as mini-computers constantly computing information. In other words, while previously information computation was thought to happen merely in each tree trunk, we now know that each branch of each tree does their own computations, multiplying the information processing potential of our brain.

Second, the calculation methods were different in the branches than in the trunk. While the trunk works rigidly like a digital computer that processes information in an “all-or-nothing” fashion (they either create a signal or not), the branches additionally perform analog computations, which scientists could not measure. Therefore, it is not just that the brain’s processing capacity is larger than previously thought, but also the flexibility of calculations is what our digital and analog computers can do combined.

These new findings have revolutionized our understanding of our own information processing system. Not only is it now possible to use these findings to improve computational technologies, as quantum computers, according to the new models from our brain, but the findings also open new doors into developing new treatments for neurological diseases.

Over 18 million brains are activated with NeuroNation personal brain coach

Science can show us, how the activity of our brain is processed and how we can benefit, but the first step is always to start activating our brains on a daily basis.

With NeuroNation in your hand, you can do it wherever you are, personalized just for your brain.

These findings are based on studies that have investigated cognitive performance between two days, with or without a good night’s sleep. Obviously, sleep-deprived individuals perform in tasks worse the next day than people who slept.

Several mechanisms have been found to contribute to the beneficial effects of sleep – such as the pruning and strengthening of the connections between neurons – but it has not been clear, whether several hours of nocturnal sleep is required or whether also daytime napping can have beneficial effects on cognition. A new Harvard study could recently provide insights.

Study shows: A nap keeps you sharp and healthy

In order to answer this question, researchers from the Harvard University and Harvard Medical School had participants perform a visual perception task in four 60-minute sessions. In the task, while they had to keep their eyes fixated on the center of the computer screen, other figures were presented in the periphery and the participants had to recognize what kind of figures they were.

After the second session, some of the participants were allowed to take a short nap of 30 to 60 minutes. While the participants who were not allowed to nap showed a linear performance decrease, the participants who took a short nap (30 minutes) stayed on the same performance level through sessions, and the participants who took a long nap (60 minutes) even improved their performance.

The results clearly showed the beneficial effect of a nap on cognitive performance and the general psychological well-being. On a smaller scale, they show that sleep, even in small amounts, increases learning and memory performance. On a larger scale, the authors conclude that results give important insights into the prevention of burnout symptoms.

This is because burnout has been described as “increased irritation and frustration” and “decreased effectiveness” after a prolonged cognitive effort. This feeling has been suggested to stem from fatigue in brain regions that are continuously engaged when the person is performing the same task. Sleeping gives these regions “a break” and a chance to restore their processing capacities. The study results again show that even a short period of sleeping – that is, taking a nap – has a great impact on the regeneration of the brain and consequently on improved cognitive performance and well-being.

Protect your Brain with NeuroNation

Sleeping is great for filling up your resources, but there is more to a fit and healthy brain. Exposure to burnout is highly correlated with our cognitive reserves. A study by Dr. Stefan Diestel from the University of Dortmund, Germany could show a 50% increased risk of stress-related diseases, f.i. burnout, for employees with non-trained cognitive reserves.

To help you get the right training, we collaborate with neuroscientists and psychologist and develop personalized courses, tailored to your unique skills and profile.

Keep yourself fit by creating a premium account today and start your first personalized course.

After training, participants showed improvements in both NeuroNation exercises used in training, as well as in tests that evaluated their working memory. The study demonstrated that improvements in cognitive performance – when training with NeuroNation – are transferable. This means that NeuroNation members can expect to experience their brain training benefits in other parts of their everyday lives as well, while training their brain with us [1].

NeuroNation has developed a course based on the collaboration with the Free University Berlin called MemoWork – which you can now find on our website.

What is working memory?

Your working memory is responsible for remembering and processing information. This is why it is so important in your everyday life – not only to remember our schedule and commitments, but also to solve complex problems quickly. Difficulties with your working memory become apparent when for example you tend to forget things you intended to remember. Or when you have to read a page three times to understand the content; forget what you came to the supermarket for; or daydream when you need to concentrate. As you can see, working memory is extremely important in your everyday life, so make sure to keep it active!

A stronger working memory saves you time and heartache. It helps you at school, at work, and on a day-to-day basis.

So more about the study…

The four week study was conducted with almost 30 participants who were divided into two groups; one trained their working memory using personalized NeuroNation brain training exercises which were designed to become more difficult and intense during training. The other group (the active control group) trained with exercises designed to strengthen the memory but not to improve working memory. This active control group trained with mnemonics exercises. Mnemonics are memory techniques which help people to remember information that would otherwise be difficult to recall. A well known mnemonic is the ’30days hath September’ song, often taught in schools to help young children remember how many days there are in each month. Other techniques involve for example simple memory games based on pattern recognition.

All participants regularly met in groups and discussed what the training and the exercises were about, and received tips on how to improve their performance.

By having the active control group train with memory techniques, researchers were able to see if these exercises also improved working memory performance, and whether learning memory techniques could be an alternative to computerized working memory training. Furthermore, researchers wanted to find out whether the Mnemonics group was better at long-term memory.

Before and after the four week training, participants were assessed using standardized neuropsychological tests.

What were the results?

The study showed that the experimental working memory group, those who trained their working memory with NeuroNation, was significantly better at mastering the untrained tests that challenged working memory at the end of the four weeks than the control group who trained with memory techniques.

In essence: memory techniques won’t help you get a better working memory, but you will see improvements using NeuroNation brain training.

Yet again: NeuroNation is shown to be effective

And NeuroNation doesn’t only help your memory. Studies show that brain training has transferrable benefits to other areas of your life, such as multi-tasking and remembering large volumes of information. 

MemoWork: The training for the study

Want the same results? We used the findings from this study to develop the ‘MemoWork’ course, which you can find on the NeuroNation website. Each of the exercises making up the course was based on the study described above, to provide you with the best possible training, and transferable benefits to your work and everyday life. ‘MemoWork’ is just one of many courses which we offer, based on the latest findings in Neuroscience and Cognitive Psychology. So give it a go today – and experience the difference it makes!

Scientists have of course for many years examined what makes a child prodigy. Two groups of scientists have formed from these studies, and both groups have developed their own theory.

What is a child prodigy?

A child prodigy is either highly intelligent or naturally talented in one or multiple fields. For example, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a child prodigy who started to compose music at the age of five. Scientists aren’t sure yet if being a child prodigy comes from their genetics or is simply formed through a good upbringing.

Nature versus Nurture

The first group of researchers believes that prodigies possess a gentic specialty, whereas the other group is of the opinion that it is due to their family environment and social background that these children become such geniuses. This nature versus nurture dilemma is exemplified by two famous prodigies: Carl Gauss, one of the most influential mathematicians in history, came from a humble upbringing, while Mozart, on the other hand, came from a priviledged background and was given early childhood private lessons, which might explain why he grew to greatness.

Intelligence, Working Memory or Perhaps Autism?

More recently, science has started to examine the factors that may lead to excellence. Could it be general intelligence, working memory (which is a part of intelligence), or a type of autism (Asperger’s syndrome)? Indeed, previous studies have found that individuals diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome are often highly talented. To examine the features of child prodigies, scientists Joanne Ruthsatz and Jourdan Urbach interviewed 8 child prodigies who excelled in art, math or music. To test intelligence, the children were given Stanford-Binet IQ tests [1].

A higher IQ

As expected, these genius children were found to have IQ scores greater than the general population – 128 compared to the population average of 100. One child was only slightly above the population average with a score of 108. Overall, it can be said that child prodigies are indeed intelligent, but not as intelligent as we would have expected. Furthermore, in terms of autism, the highly talented prodgies do not differ significantly from the rest of the population.

The Difference Lies in Working Memory

When analyzing the working memories of the prodigies, scientists came across an amazing result. Each of the eight prodigies had a working memory which put them in the top 1% of the population and each of them made it to the top 99th percentile in terms of working memory capacity.
Our working memory is important for a number of tasks in our everyday life – its main task is to memorize and store information and keep several pieces of information at once in our head. Learn new things, make logical decisions and recall pieces of information which we’ve stored away in our memories – all of these are tasks our working memory masters. A typical situation in which we need our working memory is when someone tells us a phone number but we don’t have anything to write it down on so we have to keep it in mind for a little while until we find a pen and a piece of paper. Our working memory capacities are highly correlated with our intelligence.

The good news: you can improve your working memory

While most of us are too old to become child prodigies, we can still improve our working memories through training. It has been shown that brain training, as offered by NeuroNation, can improve working memory performance permanently and significantly. In other words, the ability to learn is not set in stone, but can be improved by targeted training designed specifically for you.

NeuroNation brain exercises are based on the latest scientific findings to give you the best training you can find. It is designed to adapt to your personal needs and your individual performance. No other brain training company invests so much time in developing brain training with such strong scientific background. Research from the Free University Berlin, the Technical University Dortmund and Edith Cowan University in Australia make up the basis of our training. We are currently involved in several other collaborations to continuously improve our exercises so that you can enjoy the best brain training there is.

The amount of sleep we get and the quality of it is a central component in keeping us fit and healthy. Everyone who has experienced a bad night’s sleep knows that the sleep-deprived mood we are in the next day isn’t exactly pleasant [1].

On top of that, the long-term effects of sleep deficiency are just as bad for our health. Chronic insomnia can for example increase the risk of Alzheimer’s later in life. In the U.S., 40 million people are diagnosed each year with a chronic sleep disorder, and an additional 20 million individuals at some point will experience significant troubles sleeping, says the Centre of Disease Control and Prevention. We have looked at what studies say about why sleep is so important for us. Here is what we found:

Our sleep’s cleaning squad

When we sleep, our inner cleaning squad goes to work and removes all toxins that have accumulated in our brain throughout the day. The toxins are being transported out of our body through the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Particularly, substances such as amyloid, tau proteins, and other molecules – which can lead to Alzheimer’s if allowed to build up in the brain – are eliminated through the route of our CSF. In order for this cleaning process to be successful and rid our body of all waste substances, we need to get a sufficient amount of good quality sleep. So far, so good. But where does our sleeping position come in?

The position we sleep in

Dr. Helene Benveniste and her colleagues of Stony Brook University School of Medicine initiated a study to explore how the position we sleep in affects our brain and the process of ridding the body of metabolic waste [2]. Mice were used to examine the glymphatic pathway – the route which cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) filters through the body and is exchanged with interstitial fluid (ISF) to clear waste. During sleep, these glymphatic pathways are very active, ridding the body of toxins, such as amyloid, tau proteins, and other molecules.

These mice were put to sleep on their side, back, or stomachs using anesthesia, and their glymphatic pathways were then examined using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). As it turns out, the mice’s metabolic waste was cleared most efficiently when they were put to sleep on their side. This shows that sleeping on our side is the best way to stimulate our brain’s nightly detoxification process.

Tips for a healthy sleep

Apart from our sleeping position, there are a few easy things that can help us have a better and more relaxing sleep:

Stay away from your smart phone in bed: A study revealed that people who use their smart phones or tablets before going to sleep have a worse quality of sleep than people who do not use their smart phones before bed. The study found that the problem is in fact the light of the tablet or smart phone that negatively affects our sleep quality [3].

• Don’t drink alcohol before bed: Contrary to what we might think, alcohol can actually damage our sleep quality as it robs our body of REM sleep and other deeper stages of our sleep cycle that are responsible for ensuring that we wake up feeling rested.
• Regular exercise: Additionally to all other heath benefits we already know of, regular exercise also helps us sleep better, feel less depressed, and have more energy. If you find it difficult to exercise right before bed, try squeezing in a morning run or a lunchtime yoga class. It doesn’t matter when you exercise as long as you do it on a regular basis.
• Practice meditation:  Regular meditation is a powerful tool for insomniacs. The ‘why’ part is still largely unknown by scientists, but we do know that meditation sends signals to the sympathetic nervous system’s “fight or flight” response, commanding it to relax.
• 4-7-8 Method: According to Dr. Weil, this breathing technique can make a person fall asleep in less than one minute. We created an infographic about this trick to fall asleep.

A healthy brain makes sleep a priority

There are many ways to keep our brain in good shape – but sleep is one that comes naturally without any effort. Get a good night’s sleep, and try to optimize the quality of your slumber, to keep your brain healthy and decrease the risk of developing neurological diseases in later years.

Do you laugh with your mouth or your eyes? As strange as this question may sound, it does reveal whether your laugh is real or fake. What do your eyes have to do with your laugh, you wonder? Well, it is not only your mouth that shows a smile or a laugh, it is also your eyes. The French scientist Gauillaume Duchenne de Bologne (1806-1875) examined the human facial muscles during laughing.

While analysing which muscles are responsible for making us laugh, he came across two muscles: Musculus zygomaticus major, which controls the corners of our mouth and Musculus orbicularis oculi, which is responsible for the area around our eyes. However, there is a significant difference between these two: Musculus zygomaticus major can be controlled by us, whereas Musculus orbicularis oculi is completely out of reach of our deliberate control. 

The appeal of laughter

This means that only when a laugh is genuine, both muscles are activated. Only then do wrinkles appear around our eyes and the corners of our mouth go up. A fake laugh on the other hand can be recognized when only the corners of the mouth go up but the eyes remain the same. Next time you smile at someone, try to pay attention to the reaction you get back.

You will notice that most people will smile back at you. This also happens when you fake a smile. Even monkeys have the ability to put on a fake smiling face. It is believed that smiling and laughing are a sign of submission and can therefore defuse conflict. It is therefore a crucial part of our behaviour and is used in the most diverse situations of life. 

Laughter in science

A key component of making business is trust. You would probably agree that trusting in what a salesperson is saying to you is vital in making you buy their product. A team of scientists at the Max-Planck-Institute for Evolutionary Biology and the Toulouse School of Economics set out to further analyse this. They wanted to know how important laughter is for evaluating how trustworthy our conversation partners are. In their experiment, they had two people interact with each other.

The first agent received 4 Euro and was given the choice to either keep the money or confide it to the other person (here called fiduciary). If the first agent decided to give the money to the fiduciary, the amount was tripled immediately. The fiduciary then had the chance to decide what to do with the tripled amount of money. He could either give part of it back to the first person or keep the entire amount for himself.

Things could therefore go very well or very badly for the first agent: On the one hand, he is at risk of losing all of his money if he gives it away. On the other however, he also has the chance to get back more money than he initially gave away. Is it worth taking the risk? In order for the first agent to better evaluate the fiduciary, he was shown a short video of the latter introducing himself. The words used for the introdution were always the same; a prefabricated text composed by the scientists. 

The type of laughter is key

First, the scientists examined how the fiduciary was perceived. One factor here was to see how genuine his smile was believed to be and how trustworthy he seemed. The findings revealed that the more a fiduciary’s smile was perceived to be real, the more trustworthy he was believed to be by the first agent. Accordingly, in these cases, the first agent was much more willing to hand over their 4 Euro. And surprisingly, this strategy paid off: Those fiduciaries whose smile was perceived to be genuine, on average also transferred the money back to the first agent.
Science could therefore show that the human laughter has a special kind of status in our social interactions. No matter if we are talking to a friend, confiding in a family member, or making business with a partner – our laugh – both fake and real – is crucial in deciding what the outcome will be. 

Scientists are still figuring out many new things about the brain and how to improve our memory. We do know that a lot of people struggle to remember things, and in many different ways. Perhaps you’re forgetting appointments or answering your emails, or picking up the dry cleaning on your way home. Let’s take a look at what’s really going on in your brain, and see what memory games can help you train your brain to be a little better at remembering faces and names.

Fun Name Memory Game

A great way to break the ice is a fun name memory game in which a group has the chance to remember the names of all participants.

For the name memory game, the first person says their name and their favourite thing. The second person has to repeat the name and the thing of player one, and adds their name and favourite thing too. This continues and adds up until a player misses someone’s name or thing.

Through this memory game, people can learn the names of all players and also discover a bit about their interests, which helps with remembering and promotes social interaction.

Why you remember what you remember

According to a study from MIT, what you remember depends on how meaningful that memory is to you and if you can connect it to other knowledge or other memories [1]. If you can make a relation between a memory and something else, there is a larger chance that you will remember it later on. Like learning, memory is all about context.
That is why pattern recognition is so important. Essentially, the more connections a new memory has to memories which already exist, the more likely you will remember that information. The same goes for making new memories.

Memory games can help you

Many people have trouble remembering faces or names. Have you ever gone to a really important meeting and couldn’t remember someone’s name there? Or introduced two friends at a party and referred to one as a ‘he’ instead of saying their name? Remembering a person’s name is flattering and people appreciate it when you do, and that is why it is so important that you make up memory games to make sure that your memory will not fail.

Try to find an unusual feature – ears, hairline, forehead, eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth, chin, complexion, etc. and then create an association between that characteristic, the face, and the name in your mind. The association might link that person to someone else you know. Alternatively you could find a rhyme or image that fits with the name or the person’s appearance.

When you are first introduced to someone new, ask the other person to repeat their name or find a way to see it written. A business card, or adding the person on Facebook or LinkedIn always helps to improve the memory, especially if the technique involves using visual memory. If the name is unusual, you can be fairly sure they get asked by many people for more details on their names origin and spelling. Keep in mind that the more often you hear and see the name, the more likely it will sink in. After you say goodbye, review the name in your mind several times or write it down on a piece of paper. This will help you improve your memory, getting you ready for the next time you meet, so you will smile with relief when their name comes out of your mouth correctly.

Next steps

This memory game is both simple and beneficial.

If you actually want a real challenge for your memory, try NeuroNation’s “Path Finder”. This memory game is based on an exercise created by Professor Joni Homes of Cambridge University. The aim of this exercise is to go over your steps, record the information in the short memory and then recall back the steps taken. This exercise, together with other brain games of NeuroNation, will train your ability to recall back information from the short memory, like the names of people you just met. Remembering a new acquaintance’s name can earn you many points when it comes to business deals and establishing new friendships, so try these tips together with the Neuronation brain exercises today and see how they help you improve your memory.