Our Brain’s Development in a Technological World

The brain is composed of about 100 billion unconnected neurons when we are born. As we grow, our early experiences - hearing caregivers’ voices during infancy, solving simple puzzles, reading books before bedtime- determine the neurological connections and pathways that are formed. Neuroscientists believe the majority of essential brain development occurs in the initial years of a child’s life. However, cognitive growth takes place throughout our entire lives, including the loss of unused connections throughout adolescence or the creation of new neural connections in an adult brain when learning a new skill.

So, what happens to the brain throughout our lives when you replace tangible experiences with technological ones? When we switch physical books with Kindles and iPads? Or regularly multitask between responding to emails on the computer and texts on our smartphones? As computing becomes increasingly pervasive in our lives, we will discuss the possible benefits and potential detriments technology has on cognitive development.

Join us as the Mercury News science reporter Lisa Krieger leads a conversation with experts in neuroscience, education, and psychology to explore how the consumption of technology is impacting our brains.