Minecraft Test Shows Beer Bad For Young Brain

Undergrads Amentha Rajagobal and Maya Sungupta-Murray have discovered that alcohol can have a significant impact on the developing brain - specifically, the hippocampus, which is responsible for spatial navigation and memory formation.

While it is well-known that alcohol can impact the functioning of the brain in adults for some time, there is not much information about its effects on young brains.

To test its impact The students enlisted undergraduate students who answered questions regarding their use of alcohol: when did they take their first drink, how often they drink, how often and so on.

Then they asked the students to play a game in which they had to remember the places where objects were located in Minecraft's world. Minecraft.

Researchers found that people who started drinking earlier in life had greater difficulty remembering the locations of objects than those who started drinking later in life.

"The frontal lobe and hippocampus continue to develop into our 20s," says Rajagobal. "They keep growing and changing in ways that the rest of the brain doesn't, which means they're more vulnerable to damage from things like drinking alcohol at a young age." just another wordpress site

The effects of this type of injuries, however, could go beyond the diminution of ability to navigate a video game or even walk down the street.

Sengupta Murray says that the hippocampus is responsible for forming memories. "Let's imagine you own a dog: you smell it and hear it, and you can feel it. The hippocampus connects all those sensations and helps form the memories of your dog.