In childhood, our brain absorbs new knowledge and skills like a sponge. Various studies have shown that children learn foreign languages faster than adults, and some abilities - like absolute hearing - are best learned from childhood.
But what if we can bring the adult mind back to this earlier porous state?
This is what is being investigated by Harvard Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology Takao Henshi, who is studying a drug that can radically make it easier for adults to learn new skills and knowledge - as if they were seven again.
Valproic acid is the key ingredient. It is commonly used to treat neurological dysfunctions like seizures and epilepsy, and some emotional disorders. But, according to Henshi, it can also help restore the plasticity of the adult brain.
In his new experiment, Henshi used valproic acid to give perfect hearing to a group of adult males between the ages of 18 and 27.
The people who participated in the experiment did not receive any musical education in childhood. After taking the medication, they were asked to complete online tasks to train their hearing, and at the end of the two-week period, they were tested for their ability to distinguish tones to see if the training had a greater effect than it usually has in people of this age.
According to the test data, the participants in the group recorded the development of perfect hearing - and this is a serious breakthrough, since, according to Dr. Henshi, there was no previously known case of adults gaining perfect hearing in history.
This is a remarkable result, and in theory it could help adults acquire new skills and talents later in their lives. Of course, you must first carefully examine the drug for side effects - especially at the cellular level.
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