App Detail » Brain Studio : Dual N-Back Exercise

App Description

Improve your memory and intelligence!
Brain Studio provides a way to do Dual n-back brain training exercise on iPhone/iPad.

What if a simple mental exercise could improve your memory and intelligence?
A recent study published in PNAS, an important scientific journal, shows that a memory task called dual n-back improves working memory (short term memory) and fluid intelligence. These findings are important because fluid intelligence was previously thought to be unchangeable.
Those findings have since been replicated twice with strongly positive results, and two more times in smaller studies with weaker, but still positive, results.

Brain Studio enables you to improve your working memory and fluid intelligence. The dual n-back task involves remembering a sequence of spoken letters and a sequence of positions of a square at the same time, and identifying when a letter or position matches the one that appeared n trials earlier.
Brain Studio can closely replicate the conditions of the original study.
In addition, it also includes optional extended game modes such as Triple N-Back and Arithmetic N-Back.
It also includes features such as statistics tracking, graphs and easy configurability.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that the dual n-back task also enhances focus and attention and may help improve the symptoms of ADHD/ADD.


What's the best way to benefit from Brain Studio?

The original scientific study on Dual N-Back shows a linear correlation between the participants' gain in measured fluid intelligence and time spent practicing Dual N-Back.
In other words, the more you practice, the more your memory and intelligence will improve.

Aim for 20 sessions per day (about 25 minutes), 4 or 5 times per week.
The "Sessions Today" indicator in the top right corner of Brain Studio represents a convenient way to keep track of your 20-session goal.
In the original study, participants showed up to 40% gains in measured fluid intelligence scores after 19 days of daily practice.

Intensive training every day may not be optimal because the brain needs time to learn, adapt and reconfigure itself.
A training schedule of 4-5 days per week seems to be the most efficient.

The hardest part might be maintaining your training schedule over time. Try pairing up with someone else who's interested in increasing their intelligence.
Contact each other to ensure you're both maintaining your schedules.

As mentioned previously, learning and practicing the Dual N-Back task at the limit of your ability is what increases your fluid intelligence.
Push your limits every day and try to reach the highest N-Back level possible. Some people can reach 6-, 7- or even 8-Back with regular practice,
while the maximum level achieved by anyone (that I know of) is 11-Back!

The following health tips will help you attain optimal mental performance and overall well-being:
1. Eat a balanced diet with plenty of nutrient-rich greens and other whole, unrefined foods.
2. Get plenty of sleep. Sufficient high-quality sleep is essential to the learning process and will aid your body's regenerative systems, as well as improving mood and focus.
3. Regular aerobic exercise has been shown to improve blood flow to the brain and stimulate neuron growth in the hippocampus, a brain structure vital to the formation of long-term memories.
4. Reduce stress in your life. Chronic stress causes elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol which has many negative effects.
5. Along with Dual N-Back, engage in a variety of mentally stimulating activities.

App Changes

• April 07, 2014 Initial release