Brain Undergoes Changes While Reading
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Wavebreakmedia Ltd/Thinkstock(ATLANTA) — You might get more out of reading than you ever imagined.
Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta claim that the brain actually undergoes changes that can last for days afterwards as the result of a reading a novel.
They had a group of 21 undergraduate students read the same novel, Pompeii by Robert Harris, over the course of three weeks. After testing the students to ensure that they read required sections, the researchers conducted MRI scans of the brains in the non-reading state.
What Emory scientists found was heightened connectivity in the brain’s left temporal cortex, which is linked to receptivity for language, as well as more activity in the primary sensory motor region of the brain.
Neuroscientist Gregory Berns, lead author of the study, suggests readers also subconsciously relate to a novel’s characters.
“The neural changes that we found associated with physical sensation and movement systems suggest that reading a novel can transport you into the body of the protagonist,” Berns said.
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio