Post Academic

In theory, a smartphone should turbo-charge your noggin. With a few fingertaps, you can access entire libraries of data. Yet you’re running a risk of relying too much on your phone. Since you can’t be on the phone at all times (see entry 1 and entry 2 of Post Academic’s Smartphone Survival Series), your brain needs to stay strong. Here’s how:

Unplug occasionally. You’ll strengthen your brain cells if you put your phone out of reach. Smartphones are so easy to use that this might seem bonkers. After all, they cut down on what you carry, and they reduce paper bulk. But you still want your brain to work independently of your gadget. Speaking of …

Image of an iPhone and an iPhone 3G by Dan Taylor from Wikimedia Commons under a Creative Commons license.

Try to remember stuff before turning to your smartphone. Give your brain a little more credit, and try to remember the name of a movie or a fun fact before your phone does. Matt Stewart, novelist and Friend of Post Academic, once wrote, “As for memorization–few like the act of doing it, but there’s nothing quite like knowing something in your head, having answers even out of cellphone coverage. Not to mention being able to survive a 12-hour Internet-free plane ride without freaking out. ”

I don’t know how effective it is to train your brain, but this little game can have an impact on whoever you’re talking to. It is far more impressive to students, bosses and colleagues if you remember information from memory than if you call it up from your phone. The more people grow dependent on their phones, the more brilliant you will look if you can keep data inside your head.