Study: Mild Shocks To Brain Improve Math Skills

The Huffington Post (5/17, Underwood) reports that a new study “suggests that a gentle, painless electrical current applied to the brain can boost math performance for up to 6 months.” However, researchers don’t understand the process, and “there could be side effects.” Noting that electric impulses to the brain have shown other beneficial effects, the Post describes the new research, noting that it “showed that, when combined with training, electrical brain stimulation can make people better at very basic numerical tasks, such as judging which of two quantities is larger.”