I slammed the baby videos that are supposed to produce the next Einstein, questioning the effects of video images on the neurological development of infant brains. However, I have a completely different opinion on programs that are being developed for the older adult’s cognitive abilities as is discussed in this NYTimes article. Although the benefits have not been scientifically proven (yet),
recent research in neuroplasticity — the brain’s ability to change in response to information and new activities — shows that brain cells and new pathways continue to develop throughout life. A 2003 study found that people older than 75 who danced, read, or played board games or musical instruments faced a lower risk of dementia.
As I was conducting research with an elderly population for use in my dissertation, I had the fortune to meet a blind 97 year old woman who could run circles around me. Each night, as she waited to fall asleep in bed, she would perform complex multiplication formulas in her mind as a way of keeping her brain sharp! This was a person using common sense and so in touch with her mind and body that she knew what could benefit her mind.
An additional benefit for these programs is that they may serve as an engagement activity for those persons isolated at home - thus preventing mental deterioration from a lack of stimuli. For an elderly non-Internet user, the comfort with the computer the individual develops through using these programs could lead to a desire to jump online. Once online, these isolated people can have a whole new world open up to them. Online human contact can counter the physical isolation.