Saturday, June 15, 2013

Neuroplasticity?



I'm sure I'm being overly cynical here, but I can't help wondering if the people who visit Lumosity to engage in Brain Training through the Science of Neuroplasticity aren't all going to end up drinking fruity liquid out of the same cauldron in some South American jungle a few years down the road.

I mean, am I the only person out there who thinks this has "cult" written all over it?  There's no suggestion in these ads that anything is being sold.  Just train your brain at Lumosity.com, for "free."  Well, sorry, but I'm way too bitter and suspicious to believe that ANYTHING is offered for "free."  So what's the price? Subliminal "buy this from companies sponsoring this site" messages implanted in your brain, courtesy the Science of Neuroplasticity?

And BTW, the look this woman gives us at the end, while cartoon lines seem to sprout out of her head-- yeah, this really makes me want to try this out, Lumosity.  Anyone up for 23andMe?
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5 comments:

  1. 1st Republic 14th StarJune 15, 2013 at 10:32 AM

    I wondered about Lumosity because I too believe that no one provides a service for free.

    As far as I can tell, something called the Human Cognition Project data mines the results from Lumosity. My guess is they use those results to tailor advertising or other attempts to influence behavior.

    Seems like our suspicions are well founded...

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  2. DreadedCandiru2June 16, 2013 at 10:50 AM

    Well, either we're going to be drinking store-brand Kool-Aid in Guyana or we're going to be administering personality tests for the Church of Happyology. (Hint: if you've got a personality, you fail. Just ask runaway success Tom "I'm not gay" Cruise.)

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  3. PahzJune 18, 2013 at 4:02 PM

    Okay, I've tried Luminosity. I take a lot of pain medication for a chronic pain problem that makes me get a little brain fog now and then. I figured, "What the hell, free is free..."

    Well, the "games" are somewhat annoying. I'm not sure if they worked or not, but the games do get more challenging as you get better at them.

    I can't tell if I'm remembering more things because of the games or if I'm just getting more sleep. I can tell you that my neural areas don't feel any more plastic than usual.

    And- the free part is free. You get a lot of emails offering deals to "unlock full access". A lot. Which is why I stopped going over to the site and have since unsubscribed. Every once in a while, I get that: "Where have you been?" and "We miss you!" email.

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  4. RogueFiccerJune 19, 2013 at 12:11 PM

    It's a yearly fee, according to someone who uses it, and I've heard it does work.

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    Replies
    1. John F JameleJune 19, 2013 at 12:18 PM

      I tried it myself a few times and I think my brain works gooder now than it did before, and the number of words I know has really gone up, and I just think more goodly and can talk more better than before I started doing this Lumosity stuff, I am happier now with my brain like this girl on the glowing screen thingee so two thumbs up Luminosity LOL!

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