New Software Can Increase Your IQ 20 Points in 20 Days
It was originally thought that your IQ was fixed upon reaching adulthood – that it was stuck in stone and there was nothing you could do to make yourself smarter. Scientists now understand that this is wrong and that you can in fact increase your IQ as an adult.
Scientists have now not only proven that you can make yourself cleverer – they have now developed a training program that is so effective it has been shown to raise your IQ by 20 points in just 20 days! Even better this training program can be done on your smartphone or computer and takes just 15-20 minutes. That is an average increase of over 2 points per hour!
What is most exciting is that the gains in IQ from the technique are permanent and stay with you for the rest of your life.
The technique to increase your IQ was pioneered at Cambridge University in 2008 and is called dual n-back training. It has since been studied at many other universities and refined.
(Click here to see what is commonly known as the best dual n back program.)
The basic premise is that you are shown a grid with 9 squares. Every few seconds one of the squares will light up and you hear a letter from the alphabet spoken out loud. You task is to press a button when you identify the position on the grid or letter that was spoken ‘N’ times ago. N simply represents a number which you decide on before you start the challenge i.e. N could be 2. It is called dual n-back rather then just ‘n-back’ because you are training 2 systems at the same time because the answer can either be a position on the grid or a letter (audio and visual).
A dual n-back grid.
Dual n-back is able to produce such amazing cognitive gains because it takes advantage of the fact that your brain is constantly adapting in order to cope with new stimuli, and it is constantly making new connections and re-wiring itself. Scientists call this phenomenon neuroplasticity.
Gain More Working memory
The reason dual n-back works is by drastically improving what scientists call your ‘working memory’. Working memory is needed to perform pretty much any task. It is a temporary store of information, shorter even than short term memory. It is used when you focus your attention. Working memory only stores data for a few seconds. It can be likened to a mental blackboard or scratch pad for your brain to write down any relevant information.
For example If you are trying to do mental math and you are asked to work out what percentage 56×270 would be of 178902, you have to keep all 3 figures in your mind at the same time. Most people find this hard to do without being able to write it down and work it out using 2 or more stages. However people that were born gifted with an excellent working memory would have no problem holding these 3 figures in their head at the same time.
The brain is often said to be like a computer and the metaphor is surprisingly accurate. In this case dual n-back training increases
your fluid intelligence, which can be likened to increasing the amount of RAM available to your brain. Fluid intelligence is actually what is measured on IQ tests.
Increase Your Willpower By Improving Executive Function
Along with improving your working memory, dual n-back has been shown to also have major positive effects on your brain’s executive functioning.
Your brain’s executive functions are used when you exert self control and willpower and give you the mental discipline required to focus your attention. Executive functioning is needed in order to plan a task and then finish it. It involves utilizing different parts on the brain in order to come together to complete a goal. Being able to intelligently manage your emotions and cope with negative emotions such as frustration is also controlled by your brains executive functions.
I really can’t overstate just how powerful this technology is… Because it can increase your IQ by 20 points in so short a time. Think about it, that is enough to take someone of average intelligence and turn them into someone above-averagely intelligent. And enough to turn someone who is already intelligent into well – awesome!
This new training program has caused such a stir among the personal development and brain hacking community that The Wall Street Journal has recently run an article on the efficacy of dual n back training.
The one downside to dual n-back is that it is boring and can be frustrating – despite that fact that is resembles a computer game. You will be so frustrated sometimes that you will want to hit the screen. When this happens it doesn’t matter though because you can feel safe and secure in the knowledge that every minute you spend playing you are making yourself smarter.
Note: Over the last few years I have tried and tested many dual n back programs and this one is my favorite. I think it is the best because they provide you with scientifically valid IQ tests that you can take both before and after training so you can see how many IQ points you have actually gained. (trust me it is an awesome feeling to see that you just gained permanent IQ points!)
Because this technique is scientifically proven to work it also guarantees that you will get at least a 10-20 point increase in IQ after 20 days or you get your money back.
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