Training Your Brain with Online Games

Happy Neuron claims its games can help strengthen five major cognitive functions of the brain and ward off dementia.

There are a lot of worse things you could use the Internet for than playing games, but most of them still couldn’t be called “productive.” A company called Happy Neuron is trying to change that with a series of online games they claim can strengthen five major cognitive brain functions while you play.

According to the company,  which is headed by cognitive psychologist Dr. Michel Noir, simple calculations can help alleviate systems of dementia by activating large regions of the brain. The 25 games developed by Happy Neuron were designed to simulate those quick calculations.

“Baby boomers are entering a time in their lives where they are looking to stay strong both physically and mentally,” said Noir, in a statement. “After years of research, we developed our brain fitness programs to help with mental agility and are confident that our games provide the best cognitive exercises available online.”

Happy Neuron’s games claim to improve memory, attention, language, executive functions (like logic), as well as visual and spatial processing. A personal “coach” compares your progress to other players of the same age, gender and education level, as well as pointing out areas for improvement.

New players will get a seven-day free trial of Happy Neuron’s offerings, but after that they are accessible for a monthly fee of $9.95 or annual fee of $99.95.