Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles studied people doing Web searches while their brain activity was recorded with functional¹ magnetic resonance² imaging scans.

"What we saw was people who had Internet experience used more of their brain during the search," Dr. Gary Small, a UCLA expert on aging, said in a telephone interview.

"This suggests that just searching on the Internet may train the brain -- that it may keep it active and healthy," said Small, whose research appears in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry³.

Many studies have found that challenging mental activities such as puzzles can help preserve brain function, but few have looked at what role the Internet might play.

"This is the first time anyone has simulated an Internet search task while scanning the brain," Small said.

His team studied 24 normal volunteers between the ages of 55 and 76. Half were experienced at searching the Internet and the other half had no Web experience. Otherwise, the groups were similar in age, gender⁴ and education.

Both groups were asked to do Internet searches and book reading tasks while their brain activity was monitored.

"We found that in reading the book task, the visual cortex -- the part of the brain that controls reading and language -- was activated," Small said.

"In doing the Internet search task, there was much greater activity, but only in the Internet-savvy group."

He said it appears that people who are familiar with the Internet can engage in a much deeper level of brain activity.

"There is something about Internet searching where we can gauge⁵ it to a level that we find challenging," Small said.

In the aging brain, atrophy⁶ and reduced cell activity can take a toll⁷ on cognitive⁸ function. Activities that keep the brain engaged can preserve brain health and thinking ability.

Small thinks learning to do Internet searches may be one of those activities.

"It tells us we probably can teach an old brain new Internet tricks," he said.

加州大学洛杉矶分校的研究人员在让研究对象进行网页搜索的同时，采用“功能性核磁共振造影”来记录他们的脑部活动信息。

人体衰老问题专家加里•斯莫尔博士在一次电话采访中说：“我们发现，有网络经验的人在进行网络搜索时脑部活动会增强。”

“这说明，网络搜索能锻炼大脑——从而使其保持健康与活力。”这一研究结果已在《美国老年精神病学期刊》上发表。

此前有很多研究表明，一些智力挑战游戏如猜谜等可以保持大脑的活力，但很少有人注意到网络发挥的作用。

斯莫尔表示：“这是首次在模拟互联网搜索的同时进行脑部扫描。”

斯莫尔的研究小组对24位年龄在55岁至76岁之间的正常志愿者进行了研究。其中一半的人能熟练地进行互联网搜索，而另一半人则毫无网络经验。除此之外，两组研究对象的年龄、性别和受教育程度都相近。

研究人员要求两组研究对象进行网络搜索和看书两项任务，同时对他们的大脑活动进行监控。

斯莫尔说：“我们发现，研究对象在看书时，大脑的视觉皮层（控制阅读和语言的部分）被‘激活’了。”

“但在进行网络搜索时，仅有网络经验组成员的脑部区域活动大大增强。”

他说，这表明熟悉网络搜索的人能进行更深层次的脑部活动。

斯莫尔说：“互联网搜索过程中涉及到一些对我们的大脑具有挑战性的东西。”

大脑老化过程中出现的大脑萎缩和脑细胞减少会影响人的认知能力，而使大脑处于忙碌状态的活动则可以保持大脑的健康和思考能力。

斯莫尔认为，学习网络搜索可能就是这些活动的其中一种。

“这说明，我们可以教‘老脑筋’学一些网络知识。”