How can technology affect the brain?

Technology is gradually changing the way we live, learn and work. But on the other hand, technology has also been shown to alter our ability to concentrate and in some cases it weakens brain function. Here are 5 things you need to know about how technology affects the brain so that there are reasonable adjustments.

1. Overloading information makes it difficult to store information

Erik Fransén, professor of computer science at Sweden's KTH Royal Institute of Technology, said that even regular Internet use can make it difficult to store information in memory. According to Tony Schwartz, author of "The Way We're Working Isn't Working", most of us cannot effectively manage information overload. that we constantly explore.

2. Overloading information makes us lose sight of a broad view

John Edward Huth, professor of physics at Harvard Medical School (USA), said that the Internet (and its huge amount of information) could affect our perception more than we perceive. According to him, the over-reliance on technology makes us tend to separate each piece of information without putting them in the wider scope of awareness.

Typically, in an experiment, researchers gave two groups of volunteers a picture of a man and told a group that this person was called Baker, while telling the other group he was a bread maker. (also called baker). Then, when the photo of this person came out and asked the two groups to recall the related word, the researchers found that the team knew the character of the character better. The reason is that when thinking about a person who makes bread, related images (such as aprons, grills, breads) appear in their heads, while the name Baker only exists and is not associated with any other context.

Without proper adjustment, technology can "erode" brain function.(Photo: huffingtonpost.com)

3. Turn the Internet into an "external hard drive" of the brain

Research finds that when we know a certain digital device or device can help store information, we rarely remember it. The American Science newspaper recently likened to the Internet as an "external hard drive" of the brain, because social knowledge storage has now been entrusted to new digital tools.

According to experts, remembering is a social process, we remember something and share it with others and vice versa, others share with us what we forget. But the Internet is currently "taking over" that task. "The Internet changes everything. By being able to access the internet almost everywhere, many people choose to search for information by smartphone instead of asking friends" - the article said.

4. Technology distracting, difficult to form memory

Concentration is the key to forming lasting memories. When you just watch a movie while texting or surfing the web, you probably won't remember many details when a friend asked about the movie a few days later. "When lack of concentration, our memories form uncertain, so it is difficult to recall the information later" - Zaldy S. Tan of Israel's Deacons Medical Center said.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) last year found that a nerve circuit can help the brain create long-term memories and this circuit works more effectively when the brain actively takes notice of what they are we are looking. Many studies also show that when students do many tasks while doing homework, they understand and recall very little information.

5. Make young people lose their memory

Recent data show that so-called "old age moments" are increasingly popular among young people. The reason is that they depend too much on technology. A poll in the United States found that young people (18-34 years old) are easier to forget than middle-aged people (about 55 years old). For example, they may forget the date, forget where to store the keys and even forget to bathe more than the elderly. According to experts, increased stress can be a factor in these "implications". "Stress often leads to forgetfulness, depression and poor judgment. We find that the proportion of young people with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is increasing. The cause may be because they are often through contact with technology equipment and lack of sleep, leading to a state of forgetfulness "- therapist Patricia Gutentag said.