Research reveals that adult learning accelerates by tuning to the rhythm of brain waves

According to the research team, adjusting the rate of information transmission to match the brain’s natural tempo improves the ability to assimilate and adapt to new information.

According to researchers at the University of Cambridge, these techniques may help maintain “neural plasticity” later in life and promote lifelong learning.

“Each brain has its own natural rhythm, generated by the oscillations of neurons working together,” said Professor Zoe Kurzi, senior author of the study at Cambridge University’s Department of Psychology. “We simulated these fluctuations, so the brain was attuned to itself and in the best condition to thrive.”

“Our brain plasticity is our ability to reconstruct and learn new things, continually building up previous patterns of neuronal interaction. It has the potential to enhance flexible learning throughout life,” Kourtzi said.

Findings published in the journal cerebral cortex, will be explored as part of the Lifelong Learning and Individual Cognitive Center. This is a collaboration between Cambridge and Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

Neuroscientists used head-mounted electroencephalograph (or EEG) sensors to measure electrical activity in the brains of 80 study participants, sampling brain wave rhythms.

The team measured alpha waves. The mid-range of the brainwave spectrum, this wave frequency tends to dominate when we are awake and relaxed.

Alpha waves vibrate between 8 and 12 hertz. A complete cycle every 85-125 milliseconds. However, every person has their own peak his alpha frequency within that range.

Scientists used these measurements to create optical “pulses.” That is, white squares flicker on a dark background at the same tempo as each person’s individual alpha waves.

Participants received 1.5-second individual pulses to keep their brains functioning in a natural rhythm. This is a technique called “entrainment”. visual confusion.

EEG cycles are made up of peaks and troughs. Some participants received pulses coinciding with wave peaks, others received pulses coinciding with troughs, and others received random cadences or cadences of the wrong rate (slightly faster or slower). I was there. Each participant repeated over 800 variations of the cognitive task, and neuroscientists measured how quickly people improved.

The learning rate of the group fixed to the correct rhythm was at least three times faster than all other groups. When participants returned the next day to complete another task, those who learned much faster under entrainment maintained higher performance levels.

Lead author Dr Elizabeth Michael, now in the Cognition and Neuroscience Unit at the University of Cambridge, said, “It was exciting to identify the specific conditions needed to achieve this impressive boost in learning. I did.”

“The intervention itself is very simple, just a momentary flickering of the screen, but with the right frequency and the right phasing it seems to have a strong and lasting effect.”

Importantly, the entrainment pulse must coincide with the EEG trough. Scientists believe this is the point in the cycle where neurons are in a state of “high receptivity.”

“We feel like we’re always on the lookout for the world, but in reality, our brains take quick snapshots and neurons communicate with each other to piece together information,” said the co-authors. Professor Victoria Leon of NTU and Cambridge Pediatrics said: .

“Our hypothesis is that matching information transmission to the optimal stage of the brainwaves allows us to capture the most information, because this is when our neurons are most excited. am.”

Previous research from Leong’s Baby-LINC lab has shown that the brain waves of mothers and babies are synchronized during communication. Leong believes the mechanism of this latest research is highly effective.

“We can tune our brains to the temporal stimuli of our environment, especially the communicative cues such as speech, gaze, and gestures that are naturally exchanged during interactions between parents and babies. We’re using a mechanism that makes it possible,” Leon said.

“When adults speak to young children, they adopt child-directed speech – a slow, exaggerated style of speaking. suggest that it may be a spontaneous way to support learning through

The researchers say that although the new study tested vision, these mechanisms are likely to be “domain-general.”

They argue that while the potential applications of electroencephalographic entrainment may sound like science fiction, they are becoming increasingly feasible. But now we have a simple headband system that makes it very easy to measure brain frequencies,” Kourtzi said.

“Currently, children do a lot of their learning in front of screens. You can imagine using

Other early applications of EEG entrainment to facilitate learning may include training in professions such as pilots and surgeons, where rapid learning and rapid decision-making are essential. “Virtual reality simulation is now an effective part of training for many professionals,” Kourtzi said.

“Implementing EEG-synchronized pulses in these virtual environments could help give new learners an edge or retrain them later.”