{"id":25277,"date":"2013-10-29T14:10:18","date_gmt":"2013-10-29T18:10:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=25277"},"modified":"2013-10-30T09:28:43","modified_gmt":"2013-10-30T13:28:43","slug":"jump-starter-kits-for-the-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2013\/10\/29\/jump-starter-kits-for-the-mind\/","title":{"rendered":"Jump-starter kits for the mind"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><strong>Excerpt<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Others seeking a cognitive edge are rushing to buy a ready-made version called\u00a0Foc.us, which costs $249. A sort of futuristic-looking headband with button-size electrodes,\u00a0Foc.us\u00a0is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and the London-based manufacturer does not make any medical claims. But fans posting on the\u00a0tDCS forum on Reddit\u00a0claim that the device improves reaction time, mood, computational ability and memory. . . .<\/p>\n<p>Low-level electrical stimulation is thought to lower the threshold at which neurons fire, priming the brain to learn and retain information. Delivering 0.1 percent of the charge used in\u00a0electroconvulsive therapy, which actually forces neurons to fire en masse, tDCS in clinical settings is generally recognized as safe.<\/p>\n<p>About 30 clinics offer the treatment in the United States for various brain and neurological disorders, usually in a\u00a0research context.\u00a0Itching\u00a0and redness under the electrodes are the most common side effects. Still, brain researchers warn that people who try experiments with homemade or Foc.us devices are risking injury.<\/p>\n<p>There is little data on the long-term use of tDCS, and some experts worry is that in addition to serious external burns, people who self-administer could permanently damage their brains, impairing cognitive and motor function in subtle and not-so-subtle ways.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat makes me very nervous about the Foc.us and homemade tDCS devices is the intensity and duration of current people are getting,\u201d said\u00a0<a title=\"Wright State article.\" href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2013\/09\/27\/wright-state-research-institute-hires-nationally-recognized-neuroscientist\/\">Dr. Michael Weisend<\/a>, a cognitive neuroscientist at\u00a0<a title=\"Institute website.\" href=\"http:\/\/wsri.wright.edu\/\">Wright State Research Institute<\/a>\u00a0in Beavercreek, Ohio, who conducts tDCS research for the\u00a0Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency\u00a0and the Air Force. \u201cWe have zero data on long-term use on anybody\u2019s brain, and I have scars to prove that you can burn yourself pretty badly with tDCS.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2013\/10\/29\/science\/jump-starter-kits-for-the-mind.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">NYTimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Excerpt Others seeking a cognitive edge are rushing to buy a ready-made version called\u00a0Foc.us, which costs $249. A sort of futuristic-looking headband with button-size electrodes,\u00a0Foc.us\u00a0is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and the London-based manufacturer does not make &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2013\/10\/29\/jump-starter-kits-for-the-mind\/\" class=\"morelink\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[714,730],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-for-the-media","category-wright-state-in-the-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25277"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25282,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25277\/revisions\/25282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}