Surfing the internet sharpens up the mind, according to new research.
Scientists have shown that web browsing excites the brains of middle aged and elderly people more than reading a book.

The study suggests that using Google and other internet search engines could exercise the mind in a similar way to crossword puzzles, sudokus and "brain training" computer games.

The findings come from a study of 24 volunteers aged 55 to 76 at the University of California, Los Angeles who were asked to either search the web or read while their brains were scanned using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Professor Gary Small, from the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behaviour at UCLA, said: "Our most striking finding was that internet searching appears to engage a greater extent of neural circuitry that is not activated during reading - but only in those with prior internet experience." [empasis mine]

Labels: Learning, Technology