Reading Changes Your Brain

We know that the Visitors are changing our brains. It turns out that the act of reading changes our brains too (but some types of reading are better than others).

When psychologists used brain scans to see what happens inside our heads when we read, they found that "readers mentally simulate each new situation encountered in a narrative." The brain weaves these situations together with experiences from its own life to carve out new neural pathways.

Studies have found that people who lose themselves in a book, especially a work of fiction, become more empathetic, more attuned to the feelings of others.

In the Guardian, Gail Rebuck writes that "recent scientific research has also found a dramatic fall in empathy among teenagers in advanced western cultures. We can’t yet be sure why this is happening, but the best hypothesis is that it is the result of their immersion in the internet and the quickfire virtual world it offers. So technology reveals that our brains are being changed by technology, and then offers a potential solution–the book.

"The research shows that if we stop reading, we will be different people: less intricate, less empathetic, less interesting. There can hardly be a better reason for fighting to protect the future of the book.

So if you want to change your brain, READ and MEDITATE. Here at unknowncountry.com, we think there’s a place for the "quickfire" world of the internet too, and if you agree, please make sure we’re still here tomorrow–and the ONLY way to do that is to subscribe today!