You can debate what “smarter” even means. In an age of proliferating amounts of information available to people at the touch of their computer key, people aren’t necessarily more intelligent. They don’t always think more critically or act reasonably.

One of the exciting frontiers in research these days is that of the human brain. Sharon Begley has summarized some of that research in popular form for her article “Buff Your Brain: Want to Be Smarter in Work, Love and Life?” in Newsweek (Jan. 9 and 16).
As Begley dug through the latest research in neurobiology and cognitive science, she writes, “one discovery from 2011 … stood out above all others: that IQ, long thought to be largely unchangeable after early childhood, can in fact be raised.” And the change can be up to 21 points in four years.

IQ, which is “measured by a battery of tests of working memory, spatial skills and pattern recognition, among others, captures a wide range of cognitive skills, from spatial to verbal to analytical and beyond,” writes Begley. Raising it 20 points is significant, says cognitive scientist Cathy Price of University College in London. This reveals the brain’s capacity to change—a property called neuroplasticity—and to create new neurons well into one’s 60s and 70s.

One finding of this research is that “refining your sensory-motor skills can bolster cognitive ones,” writes Begley. No one knows why, “but it may be that the two brain systems are more interconnected than we realize.” This means that learning to knit or juggle or listening to classical music may raise your IQ.

To raise it 20 points, however, requires “intensive training,” says neuroscientist Eric Kandel of Columbia University. There is no quick brain fix.

Nevertheless, while improving your brain takes work, there are some accessible ways to do it. For example, writes Begley, “walking 30 minutes a day five times a week stimulates production of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), a molecule that nurtures the creation of the new neurons and synapses that underlie learning.”

A midday nap can also raise your brain power. And if you don’t get a nap in, your brain will carve out its own downtime through brain activity that takes place when you’re daydreaming.

For other ways to improve one’s brain power, see the list below. Better yet, check out the full list in Newsweek of 31 ways, with explanations of each. Some will surprise you, such as “join a knitting circle” (#12), “play violent video­games” (#14), “write by hand” (#24) or “get out of town” (#31).

The strategy with the strongest evidence behind it, though, is #10: learn a second language. Begley explains that “the workout [the brain] gets in bilingualism carries over, buffing such IQ-building skills as problem solving and attention switching.” She adds that such a workout “seems to postpone dementia by five years.”
Being smarter is up to us. But it does require some work.