February 2, 2010 – Times of awake rest, such as coffee breaks at work, would help the brain memorize the information it has just acquired, shows a small American study1.
So “your brain works for you when you rest,” says Lila Davachi, co-author of the study. To arrive at this finding, his team compared the brain activity of 16 volunteers before and during a viewing of images, then during the break that followed. The researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques.
Results: Areas that were very active during viewing remained very active during the break, whereas they were not before viewing. This indicates, say the researchers, that the brain is working to memorize the images while the person is resting.
In addition, according to their observations, the more similar brain activity remains between viewing and pausing, the better the participant does on a test of memorizing the images presented. It should be noted that none of the volunteers had been warned that they would be subjected to a memorization test. For the break, the only instruction was to stay awake and think about anything.
Brain specialists believe that long-term memory results from a restructuring of information between 2 regions of the brain: the hippocampus and the neocortex. The researchers of the present study conclude that, during the pauses, these 2 brain areas act in tandem to consolidate memory.
Marie-Hélène Croisetière – PasseportSanté.net
1. Tambini A, Ketz N, Davachi L. Enhanced Brain Correlations during Rest Are Related to Memory for Recent Experiences. Neuron, 2010 Jan 28.
