BOOK REVIEW: iBrain by Gary Small, M.D. and Gigi Vorgan

iBrain by Gary Small, M.D. and Gigi Vorgan

1^st Edition,   New York, N.Y. 2008

Collins Living, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

ISBN-13:978-0-06-134033-8

$24.95

iBrain is a fascinating foray into the world of neuroscience.  While it does deal with some very technical subjects, the authors manage to do so in a very "user friendly" and entertaining manner.  For instance, throughout the book, young people born into the "Digital Age" who have grown up with and are comfortable with technology are called "Digital Natives" while those of us who have had to learn to adapt to the digital age are referred to as "Digital Immigrants".

 The basic message  of the book is that while Digital Natives have gained amazing multitasking skills by the constant and adept use of technology, they have lost and/or suffered a lack of face to face people skills.  They don't tend to look people in the eye as much and often miss subtle body language cues.  Digital Immigrants on the other hand have the people skills, but lack the digital savvy and multitasking abilities of the Digital Natives.  The authors point out that there is not just a "generation gap" between the Immigrants and the Natives, but in fact a "brain gap". The Digital Native's brain is actually evolving differently than their parents' brains did.  For instance, parts of the brain that control empathy are not developing due to a lack of face to face interactions. But, average IQ scores are steadily increasing.

How many of us have Digital Natives in our homes?  You know the ones, they look like our children but they have cell phones permanently attached to their hands and can't stop texting even at the dinner table; or they download music while playing an online game and watching the new YouTube videos whenever there's a break in the action.  Studies have shown that video gaming can actually suppress frontal lobe activity.  That's the part of the brain that controls learning, memory, emotion and even impulse control. And that's not all, this constant multitasking leads to shorter attention spans and difficulty with traditional learning, ie., school and classroom learning.

There are so many things about technology that can rewire your brain, including "technobrain burnout".  That's pretty self explanatory.  I think we've all had that feeling of being completely washed out after a long session on the computer.  But, a chronic state of technobrain burnout can actually reshape your brain structure.

This book is completely filled with amazing information about the brain and how it is being changed by technology, for good and ill.  I absolutely devoured it.  I couldn't even  resist getting out my highlighter and postit flags.  In addition to the technical information, Dr. Small and Ms. Vorgan give practical advice on how to combat many of the problems we now face in this digital age, including technology addictions.  As they point out, anyone can become addicted; and there are now twelve step programs to help people overcome these addictions.

I found iBrain to be highly informative, interesting and entertaining.  While one would not suspect a book so filled with neuroscience to be such a comfortable read, I would recommend it to anyone interested in the changes this digital age has brought to us and especially our children. This is a must read whether you are a" Digital Immigrant" or "Digital Native.  There's so much to learn.

Other books by this husband and wife team include The Memory Bible, The Memory Prescription, and The Longevity Bible.

Here's a taste of some of the other facts you'll find in this book: A baby's brain can consume over 60% of the baby's entire caloric intake.  Most of the brain's synapses are formed in the first six months. The American Academy of Pediatricians recommends no TV or video for children under two. Scientists have pinpointed the area of the teenage brain that controls the tendency to selfishness and lack of empathy.  Too much digital exposure can keep this from developing into a normal adult brain pattern Thousands of car accidents in the US have been caused by teenagers texting while driving. Overall leisure reading by has decreased - Digital Natives say books make them feel isolated; they can't stay connected with their online friends Chronic video game players can develop "video game brain" which turns off the frontal lobes even after the person stops playing.

Laparoscopic surgeons who played video games at least three hours each a week made approximately 40% fewer errors than those who didn't play Video gaming can improve peripheral vision, pattern recognition; develop more systematic thinking and better executive skills 22% of American have never used the Internet or email and are not online Stanford University reports that 14% of those who use computers will neglect school, work, family, food, and sleep to stay online. The American Medical Association is considering whether video gaming and internet addictions should be considered official diagnostic categories. China has approximately 2,000,000 web addicted young people.  They have a boot camp that has successfully treated thousands. In 2006, Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation (owner of FOX Networks) bought MySpace for $580 million Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billiion.

© 2008 TSW