| Best regards
| |
| | in their prefrontalcortex, and that means
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| Alvaro Fernandez
| |
| | more probabilities for loweracademic
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| Brain Training and Mind Games: Interview
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| | performance and crime. Though his
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| with Japanese Expert Go Hirano
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| | equipment wasnot verified, and he was
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| Today we are traveling to Japan to learn
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| | said to get confused about alphaand beta
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| about latestgaming trends there. Go
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| | wave of EEG, parents and education
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| Hirano is a Japanese executive
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| | authoritieslike municipal education
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| withexperience in neuroscience and
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| | committees loved his book andinvited him
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| gaming.
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| | for lectures and conferences. His new
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| Alvaro Fernandez (AF): Hirano-san, what
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| | book in
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| is the state of
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| | 2006 became the recommended book of the
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| Brain Fitness and Brain Training in
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| | year from the
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| Japan? what are themost popular programs
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| | National PTA Committee.
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| so far?
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| | The sales of software on home game
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| Go Hirano (GH): So far, the most popular
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| | machines have declinedfrom its peak of
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| application isanti-aging, and most
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| | 533 billion yen in 1997 to its 53%,
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| popular product is Dr. Kawashima'sbook of
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| | 315billion yen in 2005. Dr. Mori's book
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| calculations and oral reading for adults.
| |
| | and phenomena was thefinishing blow to
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| TV variety shows regularly come up with
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| | the industry, especially for kids' games.
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| Brain specials. Itis hardly deniable that
| |
| | Therefore game companies had to find new
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| brains enchant Japanese people. Welove
| |
| | targets who hadnever played game
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| brain training.
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| | machines, like middle-aged group
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| There were two times of "brain boom" in
| |
| | andwomen. Brain Age was preceded by a
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| the past and Brain
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| | Sega's game box that wasthe natural next
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| Imaging created a third one most
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| | step after the book from Dr. Kawashima
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| recently. Dr. Kawashimaclaimed
| |
| | Imentioned.
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| calculations and oral reading are good to
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| | For women, games on English training,
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| developkids' brains in the book for
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| | language support fortraveling, cooking,
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| children "Jibun no Nou wo
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| | common sense and etiquette areprovided.
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| Jibun de Sodateru (Develop your own
| |
| | These new sort of serious games not only
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| brain)" in 2001. In thebook, gaming was
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| | helpedthe handheld game machine stay
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| said to reduce prefrontal activation
| |
| | always out of stock andreach
|
| andhave bad or no benefit for kid's
| |
| | multi-million sales, but also
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| brain. He compared thefMRI image of
| |
| | successfully gave theimage that games
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| someone doing simple calculations and
| |
| | are, depending on the software, good
|
| playinggames, and apparently the image of
| |
| | forthe brain and education. Funny it is
|
| the former showed moreactivities. To see
| |
| | that the authoritybacking the campaign is
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| the activities inside the brain wasfresh
| |
| | the same Dr. Kawashima whooriginally
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| for people, but the methodology and logic
| |
| | recommended kids to calculate rather than
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| was notreviewed by any scientific
| |
| | toplay games for the benefit for brains.
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| publication. It was published bya company
| |
| | No wonder, authorities from the academic
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| that provides a franchised chain of
| |
| | and medicalsocieties of the neuroscience
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| learningclasses. The company maintained
| |
| | field started criticizingscientifically
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| books at bookstores tocreate a boom and
| |
| | unproven or no evidence-based
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| was very successful. Then they came
| |
| | products,books and opinion makers. This
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| upwith adult version of training book,
| |
| | year, neuroscienceresearchers started a
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| and sold more than 2million.
| |
| | group called "Nou wo Ikasu (Make thebest
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| Adults and senior people were seriously
| |
| | out of Neuroscience)" and have frequent
|
| did addition andsubtraction of 1 digit
| |
| | meetings ofresearchers where people can
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| numbers for countless timesbelieving it
| |
| | join.
|
| will maintain and even enhance
| |
| | However, adult consumers keep devouring
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| theirbrainpower.
| |
| | such games. Dentsu,the biggest
|
| This then became the basis for the
| |
| | advertising agency announced the No.1
|
| Nintendo Brain Age videogame. More
| |
| | Consumer-chosen Choice of the Product
|
| recently from him, cooking became good
| |
| | 2006 was gamesoftware and books for brain
|
| for brainsince cooking demands planning
| |
| | training. So far, apparentlythe demands
|
| and multiple tasks. Theydemand prefrontal
| |
| | went far out before the real neuroscience
|
| cortex activation, and he showed image
| |
| | comesto fill. Between the balance of body
|
| ofa brain when cooking. A gas company
| |
| | and brain, Japanesepeople are one of the
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| that wants to sell moregas ranges and
| |
| | extreme that is most brain-ismoriented,
|
| ovens helped sponsor the research.
| |
| | to the brain side, says Dr. Yoro.
|
| AF: we have heard there has been a
| |
| | AF: Hirano-san, many thanks for your
|
| backlash recently. Is itmore of a
| |
| | insights.
|
| scientific, or consumer one?
| |
| | GH: you are welcome.
|
| GH: Scientific for adults' games,
| |
| | Alvaro Fernandez is the CEO and
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| consumer for kids' ones.
| |
| | Co-Founder of
|
| In 2001, another researcher, Dr. Akio
| |
| | SharpBrains.com, which combines the
|
| Mori wrote an articlecalled "Gemu(=Game)
| |
| | latest science-basedinformation for Brain
|
| Nou(=Brain) no Kyofu (The Fear of Game
| |
| | Training with fun Brain Teasers, andhas
|
| Brain)". He created his own EEG machine
| |
| | been recognized by Scientific American
|
| and gathered thedata of people who
| |
| | Mind,
|
| frequently play games and people who
| |
| | MarketWatch, Forbes, and more. Alvaro
|
| donot. He found the "beta-wave" from
| |
| | holds MA in Educationand MBA from
|
| frequent game playersthat are "same as
| |
| | Stanford University, and teaches The
|
| senior people with dementia". That,
| |
| | Scienceof Brain Health at UC-Berkeley
|
| hesaid, is because of lack of activities
| |
| | Lifelong Learning Institute.
|
