In 2021, Adrian Ward, a Texas McCombs assistant professor of marketing, got eye-opening results from his research. He found that in a world in which searching online is often faster than accessing our memory, we may know less but think we know more.
After his study was reported, Ward told UT Austin that he scaled back on Googling. Instead, when he’s looking for information, he often tries to test his memory.
When we immediately jump to Google, we “don’t do the remembering,” Ward said. “We’re not exercising those muscles.”
Add artificial intelligence (AI) to the mix, and Ward is helping Nature, a prestigious science magazine, investigate whether the Internet and AI are affecting human memory.
Separately, a new study supported by the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer’s Association highlights the importance of early educational opportunities as a potential strategy for reducing cognitive aging disparities.
Researchers found that improving high school education today could help protect an entire generation from memory issues as they age.
The study, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, builds on previous research that highlights the protective effects of education against cognitive impairment in later life.
It utilized data from surviving members of the High School and Beyond cohort, a national sample of over 27,000 Americans who were high school sophomores or seniors in 1980.
This unique dataset enabled researchers to investigate the relationship between early educational contexts, experiences, and cognitive functioning forty years later.
Key findings indicate that degree attainment does predict midlife cognitive functioning; however, much of this association can be attributed to students’ high school academic performance, as measured by test scores, grades, and course completion rates.
Additionally, high school contexts and learning opportunities significantly influence midlife cognition as they shape students’ academic performance.
Understanding the benefits of education for cognitive functioning later in life requires attention to broader educational processes and students’ performance beyond just degree attainment.
“We’ve discovered that it’s about the entire educational journey,” said John Robert Warren, co-lead author and a sociology professor at the University of Minnesota. “Schools differ in resources and academic environments, and students vary in what they learn and accomplish. These inequalities create ripple effects that influence cognitive health decades later.”
When discussing education, the quality of the high school experience—not just whether a student receives a diploma or attends college—has a significant impact on brain health in later years, according to lead author Chandra Muller, a sociology professor at the University of Texas.
Students who attend better-resourced schools and perform well academically tend to retain stronger cognitive skills as they age. Unfortunately, this crucial aspect is often overlooked when only considering degrees earned.
Co-led by researchers from the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Minnesota, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Columbia University, the study examined how high school contexts, opportunities, and outcomes influence cognitive functioning in midlife, even among individuals with identical educational backgrounds.
Other principal investigators included Eric Grodsky, a sociology professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as Jennifer Manly and Adam Brickman, neurology professors at Columbia University.
Collaborators also included Koit Hung and Michael J. Culbertson from the University of Texas and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Are the Internet and AI affecting our memory? @UTexasMcCombs expert @adrianfward helps @Nature find the answer: https://t.co/te5GCuYWNI
— UT Austin (@UTAustin) March 13, 2025
#DYK NIA funds several Individual Fellowship Awards for #researchers across various career stages? Learn about the awards available and apply by the April 8 deadline: https://t.co/yVM20SHhMy pic.twitter.com/rPamocf7a1
— The National Institute on Aging (NIA) (@NIHAging) March 18, 2025
As we continue #WomensHistoryMonth, we start by honoring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Throughout her life, Justice O’Connor stood as a trailblazer, both as the first woman on the Supreme Court and as an advocate and caregiver for her husband John, who lived with… pic.twitter.com/VRCWJoWfbG
— Alzheimer's Association (@alzassociation) March 10, 2025
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