The brain training app that changes your brain permanently
Biohacker Review of HighIQPro®: The best value Dual N-Back training software
I downloaded HighIQPro, installed and launched the application. I began the first N-back exercise (of course without reading any instructions!) and was immediately confused by a screen that a blinking red square sporadically appeared on. Not sure what to do I exited this game and went back to the main screen where I clicked the help icon.
This took me to a page on the HighIQPro website, that instructed me to first take an IQ test and a Jouve-Cerebrals Test of Induction (JCTI) fluid intelligence test. I took a free 40 minute IQ test through and scored 100. So as of May 1, 2012 I have a perfectly average IQ score for an American, I guess that makes me an ideal test subject for this case study. After the IQ test I was a little frazzled so I gave myself a night’s sleep before taking the JCTI test. I found the JCTI a little more challenging but ended up scoring 102, so I’m pretty damn average!
When you start playing the N-Back make sure you play just in visual mode, without the audio N-Back challenge, trust me it will be enough of a challenge for your spatial memory as a beginner.
Your first 5 minutes of playing is going to seem pretty pointless and probably a little frustrating. Quite simply you will suck at remembering where the little block was 2 or 3 movements back.
If you’re like me you will initially attempt to cheat by placing just looking 2 spots back and then seeing if it reappears where your eyes are looking on the screen. However, you’ll soon discover this doesn’t actually work because if you have your eyes locked on the screen where it was 2 movements back you aren’t really paying attention to where it is NOW. So you set yourself up for not knowing where it will be 2 movements from now. So don’t do that, instead focus your eyes on where it is NOW so you can really exercise your spatial memory.
At first the game is really boring and you will not score well but within your first few sessions you will score 90%-100% accuracy and a silly little congratulatory trumpeting sound plays. For some reason this really taps into the award/arousal system because it’s a real sense of accomplishment the first time it happens and well worth the few frustrating sessions you have to go through. The first time I scored 90% and got the congratulatory trumpet, I actually let out a hollar and triumphantly punched the air above my computer (something I do when I get excited, I make quite a scene at coffee shops sometimes!)
Update: I went off all smart drugs for 3 months while traveling abroad and I experienced a noticeable decrease in motivation and focus on getting things done. When HighIQPro rolled out it’s Android version I stepped up my Dual N-Back training regimen, I was consistently doing 20 minutes daily, 5 days a week. After I had gotten about 15 sessions into Dual N-Back training I could definitely detect a difference in my level of focus and commitment to getting work done. Not quite the same as doing 4–6 grams Nootropics a day but my productivity and imperviousness to distraction was definitely improved after making Dual N-Back training a regular part of my day.
More about Dual N-Back…
This software training is one of the most reliable tools that a lifehacker has to build a Limitless mind quickly and permanently
Just 20 days of training will increase your IQ by up to 20 points and noticeably increase your problem solving ability.
If we are going to use a computer a metaphor to describe the brain : which is a surprisingly accurate metaphor, what Dual N-Back training does is increase the amount of ‘RAM’ of our conscious minds. The scientific term for this is Fluid Intelligence and it is measured by Intelligence Quotient(IQ).
Those who spend up to 20 days training with Dual N-Back software frequently report an increase in Working Memory. Working memory is frequently alluded to as the ‘scratch pad’ of the mind, a temporary repository for your memories, experiences newly acquired skill sets and of course a place for brain storming and finding of solutions.
Dual N-Back training also improves Executive Functioning, in short the ability to concentrate, practice mental compartmentalization, and practice self control.
Scientific Credibility
HighIQPro® was developed by Mark Ashton Smith, Ph.D of:
In 2008 teams of psychologists, led by Dr. Dr. Susanne Jaeggi, from University of Michigan in the USA and University of Bern in Switzerland showed conclusively that Dual N-Back training increase IQ by up to 20 points in 20 days.
“Fluid intelligence (Gf) refers to the ability to reason and to solve new problems independently of previously acquired knowledge. …it allows us to adapt our thinking to a new cognitive problem or situation. Gf is critical for a wide variety of cognitive tasks, and it is considered one of the most important factors in learning.”
Dr. Susanne Jaeggi, cognitive neuroscientist, who published three major studies on Dual N-Back training
Dual N-Back Training Promotes Nueroplasticity
Add the Brain Training habit on Coach.me
