The brain has been the protagonist in recent decades, academics from all over the world and from different disciplines have invested a lot of time and money in research on this subject, but there is one particular topic that is of great interest: how people can make the most of their skills, how to rehabilitate them and even improve them. In this sense, one of the most innovative techniques is brain stimulation.
This technique involves inducing electrical currents in the brain to modify or stimulate the activity of certain areas, there are several types of stimulation, depending on the degree of invasion and the type of stimulus, among the main ones are:
- Brain stimulation is usually applied to compensate for or alleviate certain deficits or disorders related to brain activity.
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- The disorders for which it is used usually involve abnormal patterns of activity.
- Either by excess or by lack.
- Helps regulate neuron group activation patterns in specific areas.
For example, transcranial magnetic stimulation is often used to treat mood disorders (depression, bipolar disorder), post-traumatic stress disorder, neuropathic pain and even stuttering.
In addition, transcranial direct current electrical stimulation (tDCS) is applied to rehabilitate processes related to cognitive, motor and sensory abilities in people who have suffered stroke or dementia.
Researchers at the University of Sydney have made an almost sci-fi discovery of the latest brain stimulation technique: in their study, they presented a group of people with a problem of bringing together a group of points placed three to three by four lines.
This exercise, which may seem simple, presents great difficulty for most people, even after giving clues and facilitating certain steps, and the researchers observed that none of the participants managed to solve it.
However, after only 10 minutes of tDCS application, nearly half of them solved it without difficulty, and those who did not receive brain stimulation were unable to solve the problem.
So, we wonder, is it possible for this technique to do more than rehabilitate some changes, is it capable of improving human capabilities?
Researchers applied other transcranial electrical stimulation techniques, such as tACS, to study neural oscillations and brain functions, but also used this technique to apply small waves in specific areas related to motor functions, working memory, and perception areas.
Recently, a group of researchers from the University of North Carolina went further and studied the effect of brain stimulation on creativity, a skill of producing innovative ideas, as well as associating old concepts with new ones, and has also been linked to intelligence.
U. S. researchers conducted creativity testing on a group of people before and after the application of alternating current transcranial stimulation (tACS) and found that by increasing the power of alpha waves in the frontal cortex through transcranial stimulation, creativity also increased by 7. 4%.
Without a doubt, many researchers continue to study its use to improve cognitive abilities, there will probably be a time when we can improve our memory, our ability to make decisions or our attention through brain stimulation. The question is: would it be ethical?Would it make sense to apply brain stimulation just to be more creative?
However, there is still a long way to go to optimize the results of such interventions, on the other hand, when progress is aimed at improving certain pathologies, everyone wants science to move forward.