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4 November 2010 Last updated at 16:01 GMT
Electric current to the brain 'boosts maths ability'
The BBC's Fergus Walsh applies an electric current to his brain
Applying a tiny electrical current to the brain could make you better at learning maths, according to Oxford University scientists.
They found that targeting a part of the brain called the parietal lobe improved the ability of volunteers to solve numerical problems.
They hope the discovery, reported in the journal Current Biology, could help people with dyscalculia, who may struggle with numbers.
Another expert said effects on other brain functions would have to be checked.
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“Start Quote
We are not advising people to go around giving themselves electric shocks”
End Quote Dr Cohen Kadosh
Some studies have suggested that up to one in five people have trouble with maths, affecting not just their ability to complete problems but also to manage everyday activities such as telling the time and managing money.
Neuroscientists believe that activity within the parietal lobe plays a crucial role in this ability, or the lack of it.
When magnetic fields were used in earlier research to disrupt electrical activity in this part of the brain, previously numerate volunteers temporarily developed discalculia, finding it much harder to solve maths problems.
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