Scientists have pointed out the dependence of the intensity of the brain on the frequency of blinking

Blinking is a reflex that a person performs effortlessly, like breathing. Although analyses of this phenomenon are often associated with vision, a new Concordia University study examines how blinking is related to cognitive functions such as filtering background noise to focus on trying to say something in a crowded room. This was reported on December 9 by Medical Xpress magazine.

The scientists described two experiments aimed at measuring changes in blinking frequency in response to various stimuli. Studies have shown that people blink less often when they make an effort to understand speech in a noisy environment. This suggests that the act of blinking reflects the mental strain associated with perception. The analysis also showed that the blinking patterns remained stable under different light conditions.

"We don't blink randomly. In fact, we systematically blink less often when we receive important information," said Penelope Kupal, the lead author of the study, a student with honors from the Laboratory of Hearing and Cognitive Functions.

During the study, 50 participants sat in a soundproof room, focusing on a cross on the screen. They listened to short sentences through headphones while the background noise level (signal-to-noise ratio) varied from quiet to loud. Using glasses to track eye movements, the researchers recorded every moment and its exact time.

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The results showed that the frequency of blinking decreased significantly when participants listened to the sentence, compared with the periods before and after. This effect was especially pronounced in the noisiest conditions, when speech was more difficult to understand.

In a subsequent experiment, the researchers tested the frequency of blinking at various levels of noise and light. The results showed a similar pattern, suggesting that cognitive requirements are the main factor, not the level of illumination.

"Our study suggests that blinking is associated with loss of information, both visual and auditory. This is probably why we suppress blinking when we receive important information. But for complete certainty, we need to accurately determine the time and nature of the loss of visual /auditory information during blinking," concluded study co—author, associate professor of Psychology Michael Desroches.

On December 8, Medical Xpress reported on the change in brain activity during the day. According to the publication, during the day the brain demonstrates deep restructuring, which is corrected during sleep. A co-author of the study from the University of Zurich, Konstantinos Kompotis, compared the behavior of the brain with urban infrastructure, noting that in different periods "traffic" is redistributed between networks depending on current tasks.

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