Cramming for a geography test but can't remember the capital of South Dakota? Just buzz your way to better memory.
A new German study says people do better on memory tests if they're zapped with an electric current while sleeping.
A lead researcher tells HealthDay News:
"Students we tested were better at remembering a vocabulary list with oscillating electric stimulation. Between stimulation we observed increased slow oscillating activity, which is generated by the brain itself. This intensifies slow-wave sleep."
So maybe sleep makes you smart? Not exactly:
In cross-species studies, [a researcher] has also found there is no correlation between learning and the amount of sleep. "The animal that sleeps the most is the bat; the animal that sleeps the least is the elephant; I don't think that people think that bats are more intelligent than elephants," he said.
And no correlation between sleep and intelligence has been found in human studies, either, [the researcher] added.
