Writing texts by hand, improves the brain, sharpens intellect and memory, helps to solve problems and find new ideas. Why is the handwriting useful and how to get all these benefits, we will tell you in this article.
What do you feel after spending a couple of hours writing a text, an article, a new chapter? If you feel relaxed, energized or even more inspired than at the beginning, you are not alone. Many people claim that writing affects how do they feel, how do they think and how do they look at different things. And the fact is that the writing of texts affects the brain much more than we believe. Let’s see how.
The hand-written letters perfectly develop memory
It turned out that on our choice between a notebook with a pen or laptop depends how fit will be our memory. The handwriting helps to memorize the content of lectures, and preparation of cheat sheets is an excellent method of preparing for a test, which is known to every schoolchild and student. The information we note using the keyboard, vanish from our brain faster than the one we recorded by hand.
It was shown by an experiment that was conducted on American students by two psychologists: Pam Mueller of Princeton University and Daniel Oppenheimer from the University of California. They asked participants to listen to the lecture and record its content in the way they prefer (about 50% of American students make notes on the computer). Then they analyzed the records and checked what was left in their memory.
It turned out that the notes made with the help of a computer were more detailed than the written by hand. But, curiously, students who wrote with a pen could easily restore the main idea of the lecture and the following conclusions from it. Students with laptops, despite their detailed records, memorized less. “Two groups showed different results: those who wrote by hand, recorded the most important theses, they had to comprehend what they have heard and analyze the information as it was received. Thanks to this, it was more strongly imprinted in their memory, ” the scientists wrote in the pages of the publication Psychological Science. It was experimentally proven, that laptop owners frequently wrote the lecture verbatim. However, such thoughtless copying does not develop memory, but rather leads to pain in the wrists.
The brain remains young for longer
In the process of writing, we involve different areas of the brain related to thinking, language, and working memory. If from time to time you have to write by hand, the brain receives additional training. Psychologists have already paid attention to the connection between the state of cognitive abilities and writing skills. “Comparing old handwritten diaries and new ones printed on the keyboard, we see a big difference in the ability to formulate the thoughts,” says neuroscientist Murali Doraiswamy, a professor at Duke University. “Today, when many people switched to the computers, training of hand-written skills can be a useful exercise for maintaining the sharpness of mind.”
How calligraphy affects the brain
As you know, our brain always works, no matter what do we do, the difference is only what its areas are involved in and to which of them the flow of blood is carried out at that moment. Everything in the brain is due to the establishment and breaking of neural connections, and in the process of writing, the morphogenesis of these connections goes faster, they become more. Blood circulation in different cases can increase up to two and a half times.
But the brain has an important feature – it works only on demand. If you run in the morning, then improve just the blood flow and condition in the motor areas that control your limbs. You will be a perfectly coordinated person because in those areas neurons will not perish. But in all others – will be.
The brain works by a simple scheme: what areas you load, there also flows the blood. Calligraphy involves such a number of neurons, which cannot be connected in any other way; therefore, such complicated forms of activity as calligraphy are extremely rare.
Not only separate areas of the brain and a higher number of neural connections begin to form, but also integration between its different regions. The center of the letter on a joint of several areas of the brain is associated with the coordination of the movement of hands on both sides, the movement of the eyes, neck, head. It performs an integrative function and plays an enormous role in the development and even recovery after neurotrauma.
How to improve memory with writing
After understanding how writing by hand helps us to remember information, each of us can make a plan for our daily memory training with a pen and a notebook.
1. Make several writing sessions. Repeating the process will help you remind information faster.
2. Notice the information more than one time. You can memorize 70% more if you record again and again for one day, while a constant re-reading of materials will increase your results by only 20%.
3. Practice writing in the most productive time. For example, early birds should do this from the very morning, when they are still full of energy.
4. Use memory cards, because they are very effective in remembering facts, or other alternative formats for marking information on paper.
5. Write down the information you have heard with your own words.
As we have seen from this article, the letter has a huge advantage over typing. It is worthy, not to neglect the handwriting, even if you are already an adult.
