Larry began to experience symptoms in September of 2007, including fasciculations that became more and more severe, difficulty manipulating his fingers especially when it was cold, and trouble with fine motor skills for tasks such as buttoning his shirt, tying his shoes, or snapping his fingers.  After working as a steel fabricator and crane operator for 35 years, Larry attributed his symptoms to “arthritis.”  However, over the next 2  1/2 years it became gradually more difficult to lift heavy objects, to do intricate work with his fingers such as threading a needle, and it eventually became difficult to write.  By the middle of 2009,   Larry began to notice muscle atrophy in his hands and forearms.  In March 25, 2010, after several EMGs and MRIs, Larry was given the devastating diagnosis of ALS.  

By Scott Barry Kaufman | April 15, 2015

One minute we’re being told that brain training makes you smarter, and the next minute we’re told it’s all bogus. Confused? I don’t blame you. The research literature on brain training is confusing and even sometimes contradictory. This is the way of science. I believe, however, that there is hope in making sense of things if the field and the media can move beyond broad conclusions to look at more nuanced effects.

In his recent New Yorker piece, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Gareth Cook concluded that working memory training will not make you smarter. According to Gareth, “Playing the games makes you better at the game, in other words, but not at anything anyone might care about in real life.” But is this really the most informative conclusion we can draw from the data?

When she was just 15, Meg was involved in a devastating car accident where she sustained a traumatic brain injury. With shortened school days and impaired performance defining her new reality, Meg felt desperate to find a way to reclaim the life she once knew and to help others in her situation, leading her to begin a career as a physical therapy assistant at the very same clinic she completed her rehabilitation.  After just a week of treatment her movements developed fluidity and by the second week her ability to concentrate on the tone dramatically improved. Meg’s sense of balance and physical coordination returned to her by her sixth session. At 21 years old, Meg has done more than simply achieve her goal of regaining the life she thought she lost in her car accident- she’s been able to create a fuller, more satisfying life, one in which she helps others achieve the freedom of thought and movement she feared she lost forever.

 For older adults looking to sharpen their mental abilities, it might be time to log on to Facebook.

Preliminary research findings from the University of Arizona suggest that men and women older than 65 who learn to use Facebook could see a boost in cognitive function.  

A picture is worth a thousand words.  So, without further ado, below I unveil the following pictorial representation that captures, in my professional opinion, “what is happening under the hood” with Interactive Metronome (IM) technology, particularly as it relates to improved attention, focus, and thinking efficiency. 

Meet Lisa Poe from A Focused Brain in Mississippi, the February IM Provider of the Month. Lisa is an occupational therapist and has been an IM Provider since 2009 and an IM instructor since 2010. 

Find out what makes her such a great IM Provider and how she makes the most out of IM in her clinic!

I receive many interesting scientific articles on the importance of timing in the brain for cognitive, academic, and motor skills...so many it is hard to keep up.  There appears to be keen interest by researchers around the globe re:  the timing mechanisms of the brain and how better or worse timing influences a whole host of abilities in children and adults.  There are many studies exploring the differences between individuals who participate in musical training or synchronized metronome tapping and those that do not, in particular how they differ in academic performance & development.  In this recent study at Ben- Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), researchers concluded that 1st through 3rd grade students who clapped to songs demonstrated fewer developmental learning problems and were better integrated socially than children who did not. 

A few interesting video gems for your viewing.

First, forget multitasking and try mono-tasking.  Focus on just one thing...it may be beneficial.

Just in time for holiday shopping—some educational materials to help children learn more about their brains and brain fitness.

I believe that children should be taught, at an appropriate level with engaging media, to understand important concepts about their brains and learning. If you are a parent, educator, or therapist who wants to teach children information that will allow them to better understand themselves and empower their thinking (how they can control and modify their minds and behavior; a Growth Mindset), it is nice to know that a variety of groups have recently developed engaging books, videos and apps regarding the human brain and brain training or plasticity.  I recently discovered two sources of material that are worth attention.

The Adventures of Ned the Neuron is a free iPad app.  This well constructed app is 34 full color pages of material.  

As noted in the latest IM-HOME post, the annual IM conference was viewed as a huge success.  I was fortunate to be the invited keynote speaker.  The title of my address was “I think…therefore IM.”  As noted in the most recent IM-HOME post, the IM staff is busy editing the video of all presentations, including my address.  I am anxious for the final edited videos to be announced.

We want to say thank you to everyone that attended this year's IM Professional Conference. We had a great turn out and received RAVE reviews. This truly couldn't have been done without your support, so like we said in the opening remarks, give yourself a pat on the back and a round of applause! 

In early posts at the IM-HOME blog, I described the initial stages of my interest in the IM technology.  One of the primary keys to my interest was the stunning fact that IM has been reported to improve a variety of different human performance outcomes in vastly different domains.  These included stroke rehabilitation, golf swing, reading achievement, and ADHD.  I have written that for this to be plausible, IM must be impacting some form of brain-based domain-general (jack-of-all-trades) mechanism.  

I just learned that the following article is soon to be published (click here for journal info)

This is the second peer-reviewed article to demonstrate a significant positive impact of Interactive Metronome (IM) training on certain reading behaviors in a study with both experimental and control groups.  The other study was one I was involved with (Taub, McGrew, & Keith, 2007; the abstract is presented below).  You can access that complete 2007 manuscript at the Brain Clock blog.

In a couple of weeks I will be the keynote speaker at the annual Interactive Metronome Professional Conference in San Antonio, TX.  I will speak for approximately 1.5 hours and have much to share.  At this time I thought I would give a small preview (aka, a “tease”) of some of the content I will be presenting.  I have recorded a very brief video (6.5 minutes) where I explain some of the key concepts I will be describing (and expanding on) during my presentation.  I hope you enjoy.  This is a self-made video with an iPhone (on a tripod pointed at my computer as I go thru PowerPoint slides)—so be gentle.

Lights, camera, action! We want to make you the movie star in your very own IM Video clip!

You will have the opportunity to make your own commercial at the IM Professional Conference in San Antonio this October 26-28!  With websites, YouTube and social media sites it’s imperative to get yourself on the digital stream. We know that a production studio is expensive and creating your own video can come out like a Blair Witch production, so let the pros do it for you! 

 By Hannah Guzik 

Special to The Star 

Posted August 23, 2012 at 4:05 p.m.