Optical illusion

optical illusion

What did you see in this picture?

Drive safe!!

'Talking on phone'..'texting while driving'... is dangerous and irresponsible behavior and it should be banned.  However, there are a significant number of accidents that occur where there is no device being used behind the wheel. 

Research about how the brain works and its impact in situations such as driving make it clear that brain performance is the biggest factor in driving safely. Whether it be responding to visual cues such as tracking multiple objects, widening peripheral view or maintaining a clear sight of what is straight ahead, it is the brain’s job to process and respond to the thousands of stimuli and information taken in every second. And according to our research on brain plasticity, the brain has the ability to rewire and therefore improve the cognitive functions that are essential for safe driving.

So many lives can be saved on the roads today if people would only pay attention to their real reason for being behind the wheel  to operate a motor vehicle while we help drivers deal with the multitude of distractions that get in their way of doing it safely.

- Team Shirsa

KIDS - TV, Video Games, and Attention:

A recent study in the journal Pediatrics extended the concern over the impact of the amount of time kids spend on video games in addition to television. Many studies had shown a link between time spent on television and difficulty focusing and paying attention in class.  This newer study tracked over 1,300 kids in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades for over a year and extended the association between time spent not just on television but also on video games and difficulty paying attention.  


The report’s conclusion is:
“Viewing television and playing video games each are associated with increased subsequent attention problems in childhood. It seems that a similar association among television, video games, and attention problems exists in late adolescence and early adulthood.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommendation is that children spend no more than 2 hours per day with television and video games combined.  The study found that the median exposure of these children was almost four hours and that there was as much of an impact on reported attention problems for television viewing as for video game playing.  

And the report went on to say:

“Those who exceeded the AAP-recommended amount of daily television and video game exposure were more likely to be above average in attention problems …”
Why might this be the case?  The brain becomes trained to expect the level of engagement and activity based on exposure to its environment.  Spending significant amounts of time interacting with content that moves at a pace faster than what a child would have in the classroom will make the class experience less interesting.

- Team Shirsa