Why Exercise Boosts Brainpower 331
aditi sends us a report from Reuters on research indicating that exercise boosts brainpower by building new brain cells in a brain region linked with memory and memory loss. Quoting: "Tests on mice showed they grew new brain cells in a brain region called the dentate gyrus, a part of the hippocampus that is known to be affected in the age-related memory decline that begins around age 30 for most humans. Researchers used magnetic resonance imaging scans to help document the process in mice — and then used MRIs to look at the brains of people before and after exercise. They found the same patterns, which suggests that people also grow new brain cells when they exercise."
Back to Locke (Score:4, Insightful)
The challenge for computer geeks: finding a way to merge exercise with mostly-sedentary hobbies and jobs. Perhaps it's a job for mobile computing: Set a tablet PC in front of a treadmill, and read Slashdot while running?
Re:Ya, I'm not so sure... (Score:1, Insightful)
No ONE reason exercise boosts brainpower (Score:1, Insightful)
The meditative state that many exercises induce are also beneficial.
Re:Ya, I'm not so sure... (Score:5, Insightful)
They're not "dumb", but they're also not necessarily the intellectual type. From what I've seen, the reason for that is that your intellectual spends too much time in an introverted state to worry about the world around them. Regular exercise is not engaging to their internal senses, so they tend to find it "boring". The more extroverted types get their engagement from the world around them, and thus find pleasure in physical activity.
Re:Ya, I'm not so sure... (Score:2, Insightful)
Next Week (Score:3, Insightful)
How do I know this?
Because 99% of the really smart people I've met in my life are big, fat, dope-smoking UNIX guys who think a treadmill is a place where corn is ground up to make tires.
Re:Next Week (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Back to Locke (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't get your opposition to using video games as an exercise tool. It seems to be more emotional than rational. Are you suggesting that there's somehow less value because you are exercising in a private place using technology?
Re:simultaneous death/regrowth? (Score:4, Insightful)
High performance sporting is not healthy. Repeat: NOT healthy. I've been training for marathons with an Olympic athlete who consistently runs 42K in under 2 hours 15 minutes. He needs to take a continuos stream of dietary supplements and run 25 kilometers daily, use special cushioning on all his footwear to compensate for the deformation that the impact of running produces, and keep an extremely strict dietary regimen, not to mention constant sports massages to keep himself from cramping as well as a myriad of other things.
Being a professional means pushing your body to extremes it was not meant to take. We're not built to run such distances at those speeds.
Remember though, that only applies to the 0.001% of the population that plays professionally and has masochistic tendencies. Your average slashdotter should get off its ass and at the very least walk a half hour daily. I know that ever since I started running in the morning my day feels much better than before, and indeed I do feel sharper.
Re:Ya, I'm not so sure... (Score:1, Insightful)
He was one of the smartest people I have known. He could recite long passages from Greek poetry (like the Illiad, etc.) from memory. The breadth of his knowledge has been an inspiration to everyone who knew him. Ignorance is a choice, as is physical weakness.
Re:Ya, I'm not so sure... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Back to Locke (Score:3, Insightful)
Skills may be a bonus, but I don't see them as earth-shattering things. Maybe you can run faster, or swim a little bit better. Its not going to help me in my everyday life. Maybe if there's an emergency. But I don't see it as a reason to put down other forms of exercise.
Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I think all this "OMG video games as exercise? WTF" reaction is more emotional than logical. People have no problems with people doing rowing machines, treadmills, or bicycling machines, but use a Wii to work out and suddenly you're lame. Thats not rational. It shouldn't matter how I get my exercise as long as I do.
Re:Next Week (Score:4, Insightful)
Funny, 99% of the really smart people I know play sports in some form or the other (adventure sports, martial arts, traditional sports, running etc) and don't really believe in sitting down and spending every waking hour doing something related to their area of expertise.
In fact, the *really* smart people I know tend to have a life (family, friends, sports, parties) and usually, it is the wannabes that I know who tend to fit the profile that you describe.
And I have found out that a combination of good workout and good diet often helps me concentrate better and sleep better.
For instance, cut yourself off from high sugar, caffeine and soda, eat salads and run 5 miles a day for a month and see how much your productivity increases. You'll find that you can do more, you sleep better and feel a lot healthier.
Besides, sports are a great way to get rid of your frustration. For instance, I do a lot of rock-climbing, and nothing to make you feel better than an eight hour straight climbing session out there.