Fun Experiments You Can Do on Your Brain
Want to do some fun experiments on your own brain? Don't worry,
these are ones you can try at home. Not only are they
perfectly safe, but they will also they will help you demonstrate
your own brainpower.
1. Activate Your Right Brain by Singing
You can rhyme more easily when singing, because you're working
from the part of the brain that recognizes patterns (usually
the right hemisphere). Try a fun singing experiment. Without
singing, make a rhyming poem about something that happened today.
Work on this for a minute or so, then try it again, but this
time sing the poem as you make it up.
You'll probably find that you can easily find rhyming words
when singing. You can also create a song in order to remember
things. Singing may also help activate your right-brain more
fully when you are working on a problem involving spatial reasoning.
This is speculative, but it can be a fun experiment to try.
2. Control Autonomic Functions
Pupils get bigger when it is darker, and also when you see
something you like. They even get larger if you just vividly
imagine something you like. Try an experiment right now. Look
in the mirror and watch your eyes as you imagine someone you
like, a favorite food, or anything you would like to see.
You'll see your pupils quickly grow in size. Try different
imagined scenes to see which work best. With practice, you can
consciously change your pupil size at will. You can look at a
light in the room to make your pupils smaller again. There are
ways to use this trick, but for our now, it is just a way to
show how you can consciously control what is normally an autonomic
body function. (There are ways to control your heart as well.)
3. Motivate Yourself
Ever feel unmotivated, or like your brain just won't wake
up? Try this simple experiment: talk about your plans, or anything
you are passionate about. When I'm stuck at the keyboard, unable
to write, I can talk about the next mountain I'm going to climb
here in Colorado, and suddenly I have the mental energy to get
back to writing.
Try this experiment with yourself. Try it on friends. When
they're in a bad mood, ask them to explain something to you that
they are passionate about. The excitement generated changes the
chemicals in the brain, and so changes one's state of mind. Experiment
to find topics that work best - for your friends and yourself
- and then remember them for future use.
4. Try Smart Postures
The position and use of your body affects your brainpower.
You can prove this to yourself with a simple experiment. The
first part (the control) involves doing math problems in your
head. However, do them while you are slouching and breathing
through your open mouth. See how quickly you can arrive at the
correct solutions.
Now try doing this mental math again while sitting up straight,
keeping your mouth closed and breathing deeply through your nose.
Most people will notice an immediate improvement in how well
their brain functions. Nose-breathing generally delivers more
oxygen to your system, including the brain, but why posture and
a closed mouth helps is not yet understood.
5. Pretend to Be Someone Else
We can partly reproduce the characteristics and even talents
of others by imitating them. This is something we often discover
as a child, and then forget. Pretending to be superman or another
hero really does give a child more courage temporarily.
To experiment with this as an adult, imagine you are Einstein
when you are working on a math or physics problem. Be your favorite
businessman when you are working on a business situation. The
key here is to think like that other person would, and even sit,
stand and move like they would. You may just be making these
things up, but it can still be a powerful way to access more
of your brainpower.
6. Learn to Concentrate
When it is hard to concentrate, it is often due to the thoughts
going on your head. These may be just below the level of consciousness,
and they suck away your ability to focus. Here is a technique
that you can experiment with to resolve these "mind irritants."
Stop and watch what is going on in your head. An appointment
you forgot to write down? An argument that wasn't finished? A
financial problem? With practice you'll find more and more things
that are quietly bothering you, just below consciousness.
Now do something with these thoughts, to let them go for the
moment. Put the appointment on the calendar, or quickly finish
that argument in your head. If an issue is not resolvable right
now, tell yourself clearly "There is nothing to do about
this until Friday." This categorization of bothersome thoughts
let's your mind drop them, and then better concentration is automatic.
Are they fun or just useful experiments? Either way, there
is no harm in trying them, and these simple exercises can show
you how to better use your brain.
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