The mind simulator: Upper alpha and enhanced mental rotation

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event The mind simulator: Upper alpha and enhanced mental rotation Miriam Reiner1, 2* 1 Technion, EDucation in Science and Technology, Israel 2 Stanford, biological science, United States One of the essential cognitive abilities in general for functioning and learning of science and technology in particular, is associated with imagery, and relates to predicting the position of a rotated object, i.e. imagining the act of rotation of an object, without actual rotation. This operation is known as mental rotation and it has been studied extensively over the years. The present study deals with electrical activity in the brain associated with mental rotation. More specifically we look at the neural correlates of mental rotation. We identify a potential neural model, and focus on the role of synchronized oscillations, then test the model with neurofeedback. Our purpose is to identify a mechanism and conditions to enhance performance of rotating bodies in imagination. Mental rotation is important for everyday spatial activities such as orientation in unfamiliar places or finding a route on a map, and has an important role in cognitive processes associated with learning – success in mathematics and physics is positively correlated with mental rotation skills (Delgado & Prieto, 2004). Literature indicates that brain waves in the frequency range of 10-12 Hz- Upper Alpha – are associated with mental rotation ability. Klimesch et al,.(2003) brought evidence that mental rotation can be enhanced with rapid-rate repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation. The core idea of magnetic stimulation is to induce electrical activity in the cortex by a short series of magnetic pulses in the Upper Alpha frequency band. Results show that this range of stimulation frequencies can improve mental rotation. Here we test changes in mental rotation, after raising the upper band of the spectrum of waves known as alpha. The EEG alpha frequency band is positively correlated with cognitive performance. Especially Upper Alpha (UA) is correlated with mental rotation (Gruzelier 2013a/b). The purpose of the study is to explore whether Upper Alpha is correlated with the rotational speed, which has not yet been studied in previous studies, that examined only the relationship between Upper alpha and accuracy in mental rotation. To increase the ecological validity, we introduce here three-dimensional objects, in contrast to previous studies that used two-dimensional shapes such as alphanumeric characters and simple three-dimensional shapes such as a series of connected cubes. The test is based on a well validated test (Shepard & Metzler, 1971 , Jansen-Osmann.P & Heil.M, 2007, Neubauer et al., 2010) Procedure The study involved 44 students who were divided into two groups, the experimental group and a control group. In the first stage both groups were subjected to a mental rotation test. The aim of the test is to assess the cognitive performance of mental rotation. In the second stage only the experimental group underwent a series of neurofeedback training in order to increase the intensity of upper alpha (UA). At the third stage both groups took a mental rotation test to assess if there is improvement in cognitive abilities of mental rotation (rotation speed and accuracy). Thus, we examined whether research subjects can be trained to increase the the power of UA with neurofeedback training (NF), and whether the subjects who increased UA, performed a faster and a significantly more accurate mental rotation than subjects who did not undergo NF training. We first identified individual alpha, (to avoid low validity due to interpersonal variance in the range of upper alpha) at P4 and Pz, and recorded a baseline from all 32 electrodes. The experiment lasted four consecutive days. On the first we measures individual upper alpha, ran a mental rotation test, and 8blocks of neurofeedback upper alpha, measuring the amplitude of upper alpha too. We repeated the latter two stages on the second third and foruth day, and ran a mental rotation test on the fourth day too. Results The results indicated that the power of the UA is positively correlated with the progression of training and it is evidence that subjects increased their alpha activity after NFT In addition, findings show that subjects who underwent neurofeedback training and increased the power of UA, performed the task of mental rotation faster than the subjects who did not undergo training and the experimental group was more accurate than the control group, but the difference in accuracy between the two groups was not significant . To summarize, neurofeedback processes induced upper alpha, and upper alpha is correlated with enhanced mental rotation. References