A Diagnostic Maze

A virtual maze has been designed which can predict who may develop Alzheimers.  The person who is being evaluated tries to navigate the maze while their brain is being scanned by an MRI.  How well they navigate through the portion of the mae which does not have the same visual clues as other areas is the indicator.  This is based off the research which discovered that the brain has grid cells which allows the individual to successfully navigate through space.

My husband jokes that I am navigationally challenged (rumors, I say!).  Perhaps I too should take this test.  But, what would the test reveal if the participant can't navigate the maze without gettion motion sick.  There is a reason why I had to stop playing video games with a first-person perspective.

It is interesting though to see such tools being developed.  Ten points to Griffindor for the test being effective and non-invasive.

Comments

Popular Posts