{"id":5537,"date":"2020-07-14T10:00:34","date_gmt":"2020-07-14T10:00:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rbc.com\/en\/thought-leadership\/technology-is-disrupting-the-brain-heres-what-to-do-about-it\/"},"modified":"2020-07-14T10:00:34","modified_gmt":"2020-07-14T10:00:34","slug":"technology-is-disrupting-the-brain-heres-what-to-do-about-it","status":"publish","type":"rbc_tl","link":"https:\/\/www.rbc.com\/en\/thought-leadership\/disruptors\/technology-is-disrupting-the-brain-heres-what-to-do-about-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Technology is Disrupting the Brain. Here&#8217;s What To Do About It"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The COVID pandemic has locked down much of society and driven many of our activities online \u2013 working, shopping, entertaining, and catching up with friends and family.<\/p>\n<p><insert podcast><\/p>\n<p>And because technology has allowed us to carry on with as much of life as is possible, our dependency on it has only deepened. It\u2019s become a common pattern \u2013 glued to our screens for work all day, and then connecting with close ones through video conferencing in the evenings. Rinse, repeat.<\/p>\n<p>But what effect is all this technology having on us? In an RBC Disruptors conversation from June 2019, Dr. Murali Doraiswamy, a physician and brain scientist at Duke University, said that the human \u201cbrain is continuously adapting to new things we do in our lives and rewiring itself.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>In the age of Zoom meetings, the lessons and insights he shared are as relevant as ever.<\/p>\n<p>Read on \/ listen to learn how technology is changing the brain and mind \u2013 and what advice Dr. Doraiswamy has to share about keeping our brains balanced between our natural world and our digital one. <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" height=\"200px\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https:\/\/player.simplecast.com\/aa68cb8d-8c4f-4a04-94f1-0f54760269e5?dark=false\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Listen on <a href=\"https:\/\/link.chtbl.com\/WqJxzQiQ?sid=article_page\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Apple Podcasts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/link.chtbl.com\/4Os8MeK3?sid=article_page\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Google Podcasts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/link.chtbl.com\/QVwVVwQ1?sid=article_page\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Spotify<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/link.chtbl.com\/Gdvm1L5x?sid=article_page\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Simplecast<\/a><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>Technology is doing more than changing our world \u2013 it&#8217;s actually changing ourselves, too. How is all that time we spend on screens changing our brains?<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Murali Doraiswamy, a physician and brain scientist at Duke University, says there&#8217;s cause for concern: an estimated 8%-10% of people in North America show signs of a serious addiction to the Internet and gaming.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, he&#8217;s a techno-optimist. Thanks to its neuroplasticity, the human brain can rewire itself \u2013 it matches the tech that serves us. Going forward, we may become super good at typing, or mastering voice tech devices.<\/p>\n<p>The key is to balance our screen time and our time in the real world. Dr. Doraiswamy shared five things we can do today to keep our brains in prime operating condition.<\/p>\n<h4>1. Get Up From Your Desk<\/h4>\n<p>It&#8217;s a challenge in an era when everything seems urgent \u2013 but don&#8217;t sit in front of your computer for more than an hour at a time. It&#8217;s not good for your productivity. \u201cWe are so over-scheduled, we are constantly in a task-oriented mode,&#8221; Dr. Doraiswamy said. Get up and walk somewhere, go to a coffee shop. That break from emails and meetings will help to shift your brain from a task-orientated way of doing things to a more creative and productive mode.<\/p>\n<h4>2. Go for a Walk in Nature<\/h4>\n<p>Hands down, the best place to reset your brain is in nature. When you take a walk in nature, you&#8217;re combining the trance-like state that walking puts you in, with the sense of tranquility nature provides. This contemplative time activates the brain&#8217;s default mode network. This is the part of the brain that allows you to unlock solutions to deep problems, and inspires a sense of collective well-being in people. You just need to give it free time to do its job.<\/p>\n<h4>3. Meditate<\/h4>\n<p>Everyone should be meditating for a minimum of 20 minutes a day, preferably outdoors. Start with an app, if that helps. Like walking, meditating activates the brain&#8217;s default mode network. It&#8217;s good for your brain in the long-run, too \u2013 studies show novice meditators and expert meditators have different brains. The later have less age-relate shrinkage in their brains, and the parts of the brain involved in judgement and morality are more stimulated.<\/p>\n<h4>4. Have a Good Conversation Every Day<\/h4>\n<p>The number one predictor of how long you&#8217;ll live isn&#8217;t your blood pressure; it&#8217;s your social connections. Every day, have a deep, meaningful conversation with a friend \u2013 not over Skype, but in person. These deep personal connections are vital for physical and psychological well-being. \u201cDon&#8217;t mistake social media for what brings true meaning into your life,&#8221; Dr. Doraiswamy says.<\/p>\n<h4>5. Stop Checking Your Phone Before Bed<\/h4>\n<p>An hour before you go to bed, stop checking your phone. If you look at your phone just before going to sleep, your brain is still processing those last few emails for at least another 15-20 minutes. Early research also suggests that the blue light emitted by devices may interfere at night with our sleep cycles, meaning you&#8217;ll sleep better if those last few minutes of your day are spent with a book instead.<br \/>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Duke University brain scientist, Dr. Doraiswamy, shares five things we can do today to keep our brains in prime operating condition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":209,"featured_media":5538,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"disable_focal_point":true,"featured_image_focal_point":{"x":0.5,"y":0.5},"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"rbc_tl_category":[109,100],"rbc_tl_tag":[137,99,103],"class_list":["post-5537","rbc_tl","type-rbc_tl","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","rbc_tl_category-disruptors","rbc_tl_category-innovation","rbc_tl_tag-health","rbc_tl_tag-innovation","rbc_tl_tag-technology"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.7 (Yoast SEO v26.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Technology is Disrupting the Brain. Here&#039;s What To Do About It - RBC<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dr. Doraiswamy, Duke University scientist, joined RBC Disruptors to share 5 things to do today to keep our brain healthy from the affects of technology.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.rbc.com\/en\/thought-leadership\/disruptors\/technology-is-disrupting-the-brain-heres-what-to-do-about-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Technology is Disrupting the Brain. 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