Backpacking Makes You Smarter

Memory and attention improve after time spent in nature

At last, science yet again confirms something we've always intuitively known: Spending time outside and in nature can help boost your mental acuity. Plenty of hikers and outdoor enthusiasts can attest to this from personal experience, but a few late-to-the-game eggheads from the University of Michigan decided test and quantify it.

For the experiment, a group of volunteers completed a set of memory and attention tests, and then to take a walk either through downtown Ann Arbor (ugh) or a nature-filled park (wheee!). Then, they re-took the memory and attention tests. Surprise, surprise: Performance on the memory and attention tasks improved greatly for those who took a walk in the park, but did not improve for those who strolled downtown.

To further prove how Mother Nature can boost your cognition, the researchers found in a second experiment that people who re-tested after seeing just photos of nature improved their scores, while subjects who looked at cityscapes did not.

There you have it: If you've got taxing mental challenge looming on the horizon—the SATs or a particularly brutal crossword puzzle, say—you should take a hike first. Failing that, pick up and read a copy of BACKPACKER. You'll become an instant genius.

—Ted Alvarez

The Benefits of a Walk in the Park (MedLexicon)

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READERS COMMENTS

If being out in nature improves your memory, it hasn't stopped me from forgetting where I left my flashlight. I'm always loosing my flashlight, so in searching for additional lighting help I found a 'Cord Lock LED Light', that you can use with a hoodie, jacket, or sleeping bag. Since it attached to the hoodie or jacket, you don't loose it. I found a 1 pack on REI for 9.95, but found a 3 pack on http://www.gofastandlight.com for 19.95. The LED light has other attributes: it's got replaceable batteries; it's no throw away unit. It has three light/flashing modes, so you can choose the most efficient way to use your battery time (12 hrs high, 20 hrs low, 50 flashing)
Posted: Feb 10, 2009 expresso

any articles on the effects of high altitude hiking? I spend a lot of time up Kilimanjaro / Mt Meru and Mt Kenya and have heard that spending a lot of time at high altitude ain't so good on the grey matter... Still I'd rather forget to hang out the washing than spend my life working in an office.
Posted: Jan 07, 2009 Orca

Wtf is ann arbor? A shopping center or something?

If so, theres alot more distractions, more light's, sight's and sounds.

In nature theres generally very little but bush, open sky, clouds(if your lucky), maybe 1 person every day or 2(or none at all here). So all you have to focus on is the bush and surrounds. It's built into your brain that you remember things with no signs/details so you can go back if you get lost, etc.

How else did our ancient(1-2million years ago) ancestors stay alive if they couldnt remember where camp was?
Posted: Dec 30, 2008 Rob

I disagree. I know a lot of "homeless" people who are outside ALL YEAR ROUND and they are pretty darn stupid if you ask me. I think whoever wrote this is egotistical as is trying to convince people that they are smarter than the average bear. Go grab a picnic basket...
Posted: Dec 28, 2008 John Smith