Thanks. I guess I'm just lazy and hope to remember things better without any explicit drilling.
I do exercise (but I'm nearly completely sedentary every other day; it's probably better to even out the activity).
I remember reading in the past week that the way exercise improves brain function is not merely by improving oxygen supply to the brain, but in some other interesting, measurable ways (unfortunately, that's as much as I can remember, but it seems like this from Wikipedia at least covers the category:
There are several possibilities for why exercise is good for the brain: increasing the blood and oxygen flow to the brain increasing growth factors that help create new nerve cells[28] and promote synaptic plasticity[29] increasing chemicals in the brain that help cognition, such as dopamine, glutamate, norepinephrine, and serotonin[30] Physical activity is thought to have other beneficial effects related to cognition as it increases levels of nerve growth factors, which support the survival and growth of a number of neuronal cells.[31]
Exactly. Exercise is great stuff, particularly with the boost to neurogenesis!
Incidentally, the best forms of exercise (for this purpose) is activities which not only provide an intense cardiovascular workout but also rely on extensive motor coordination.
This thread is for the discussion of Less Wrong topics that have not appeared in recent posts. If a discussion gets unwieldy, celebrate by turning it into a top-level post.