{"id":15269,"date":"2022-07-18T10:59:07","date_gmt":"2022-07-18T08:59:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/?p=15269"},"modified":"2022-07-18T10:59:07","modified_gmt":"2022-07-18T08:59:07","slug":"sleeping-serves-as-learning-time-for-our-brain-study-proves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/sleeping-serves-as-learning-time-for-our-brain-study-proves\/","title":{"rendered":"Sleeping Serves as Learning Time for Our Brain, Study Proves"},"content":{"rendered":"
If you thought sleeping was a waste of time, think again! A new study has just revealed that <\/span>sleeping helps the brain store useful information<\/b> by forming long-term memories.<\/span><\/p>\n More precisely, the study \u2014 published in the <\/span>Journal of Neuroscience <\/span><\/i>\u2014<\/span> describes <\/span>a unique phenomenon<\/b> during sleep known as <\/span>the replay effect<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n In essence, replay is a strategy our brain uses to consolidate information and turn short-term memory into long-term. Scientists believe this phenomenon helps mammals learn and perfect new tasks.<\/span><\/p>\n That said, it was only ever proven in lab animal experiments but never on humans.<\/span><\/p>\n For instance, this helps mice learn new maze paths, which can be observed by sophisticated monitoring devices that highlight specific brain patterns when they choose the correct route.<\/span><\/p>\n However, there\u2019s <\/span>an interesting medical application<\/b> for this, too. Namely, by learning more about this phenomenon, we can gain some much-needed insight that could help us develop assistive tools for people with paralysis.<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, a tetraplegic man (paralyzed from the neck down) at the Massachusetts General Hospital was given a memory computer game operated wirelessly via his brain activity. Sensors were placed in the part of the brain that controls hand movement to monitor progress.<\/span><\/p>\n During sleep, nothing short of a miracle happened \u2014 the brain cells acted as if they were still playing the game and repeated their previous communications. In other words,<\/span> the replay effect<\/b> was in full swing!<\/span><\/p>\n