2009-05-14 07:01:21
LiveScience.com livescience Staff
livescience.com Wed May 13, 9:59 am ET
Got a tough problem to solve? Try daydreaming.
Contrary to the notion that daydreaming is a sign of laziness, letting the mind
wander can actually let the parts of the brain associated with problem-solving
become active, a new study finds.
Kalina Christoff of the University of British Columbia in Canada and her
colleagues placed study participants inside an fMRI scanner, where they
performed the simple routine task of pushing a button when numbers appear on a
screen. The researchers tracked subjects' attentiveness moment-to-moment
through brain scans, subjective reports from subjects and by tracking their
performance on the task.
Until now, scientists had thought that the brain's "default network," which is
linked to easy, routine mental activity, was the only part of the brain that
remains active when the mind wanders. But in the study subjects, the brain's
"executive network" - associated with high-level, complex problem-solving -
also lit up.
The less subjects were aware that their mind was wandering, the more both
networks were activated.
"This study shows our brains are very active when we daydream - much more
active than when we focus on routine tasks," Christoff said.
The findings, detailed in the May 11 issue of the journal Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences, suggest that daydreaming is an important
cognitive state where we may unconsciously turn our attention from immediate
tasks to sort through important problems in our lives.
"When you daydream, you may not be achieving your immediate goal - say reading
a book or paying attention in class - but your mind may be taking that time to
address more important questions in your life, such as advancing your career or
personal relationships," Christoff said.
That's particularly good news, because daydreaming can occupy as much as one
third of our waking lives, previous studies have found.