The new University of California research concludes that the web surfing and searching triggers certain key brain centers that largely control complex reasoning and decision making. 

Principal investigator of this interesting study, Dr. Gary Small, noted: “Our most striking finding is that searching on the internet appears to engage a greater extent of neural circuitry, which is not activated during reading, but only in those with prior Internet experience.” He is the director of Memory and Aging Research Center of UCLA.

The volunteers with prior experience of web registered a much increased brain activation compared to those with no or little Internet experience. People have to make decisions, according to the researchers, as what to click on to get more information on the Net. This engages many important cognitive circuits in our brain.

“A simple task like searching appears to increase brain circuitry in older adults, which demonstrates that our brains are quite sensitive and we can continue to learn even as we grow older,” Small added. He noted the minimal brain activation in the less experienced Net users might be owing to participants not grasping the strategies that were needed to engage in an Internet search successfully common while learning a new activity. “With more time spent on the Internet, they may well demonstrate the same brain activation patterns as observed in the more experienced group,” he stated.