Believe it or not, a new study published in the Current Biology journal posits that regular smartphone usage is changing our brains! Apparently, the constant touching of the fingertips to the surface of the smooth touchscreens on smartphones might make our brains more sensitive to touch. Other research suggests that gamers and musicians show similar types of brain adaptations.
Washington Post:
“Researchers used an electroencephalography (EEG) device to record the activity that occurred in the brain when people touched their thumbs, index and middle fingers to a mechanical object. They compared the brain recordings of smartphone users and regular cellphone users.
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Smartphone users showed enhanced brain activity when their thumbs, index and middle fingers were touched. And the more people used their smartphones, the more brain activity researchers observed when the thumb and index fingers were touched. Thumb use in particular resulted in increased or decreased brain activity if there was more or less cellphone use in a single day.
According to the study’s author, it suggests that the brain plasticity that is observed among people with “expert” skills, such musicians, can also be observed in people as a result of our day-to-day interactions with technology.”
Source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/12/24/thumbing-around-on-a-smartphone-makes-your-brain-more-sensitive-to-touch-study-says/