Neuroplasticity & Brain Training · by NACD
Your brain is not fixed. It was never fixed. And it never will be.
Bob Doman grew up with a gem his father gave him: you can change brains. His father, a physician who worked with brain-injured children, demonstrated this through his work decades before “neuroplasticity” entered the scientific vocabulary. When Bob went to college in 1965, he discovered that evidently no one else appeared to know that. Armed with this understanding, he looked at everything differently — and spent the next sixty years proving it.
What the Science Says
Neuroplasticity is now universally accepted in neuroscience. NACD understood it before it had a name.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to physically reorganize itself in response to targeted stimulation. Provide it with the right kind of input, at the right frequency, intensity, and duration, and you can physically transform its structure and function. Not metaphorically. Physically. At every age — from 3 to 103.
Within a year of creating NACD in 1979, Bob Doman had ten chapters across the United States and 500 children on his caseload — from brain-injured to typical. This created a living laboratory: hundreds of families applying techniques five days a week, providing immediate feedback on what worked and for whom. NACD could create a new technique and apply it to hundreds of clients who used it multiple times daily, learning quickly what produced results.
From this laboratory came the insight that what had been perceived as separate pieces — short-term memory, working memory, long-term memory, executive function — are all part of the brain’s ability to process information. Strengthen that processing capacity, and everything downstream improves. This is neuroplasticity in action. Simply Smarter delivers it in 79 adaptive exercises, 10–15 minutes a day.
Research confirms this: Brain imaging studies confirm measurable physical changes in the brain after cognitive training — in children, adults, and older adults alike. Neuroplasticity is one of the most well-established findings in modern neuroscience.
Neuroplasticity at Every Age
From 3 to 103 — the brain never stops being able to grow.
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In Children
The young brain is extraordinarily plastic. Kickstart begins at age 3 because the earlier you start, the further you can go.
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In Teens & Young Adults
Major brain development continues through the mid-20s. Bob’s first experiment was on himself in college — changing his digit spans and watching academic performance improve.
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In Adults
NACD discovered that parents using their children’s program reported rapid, exceptional results. As long as you’re breathing, neuroplasticity works.
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In Seniors
We typically start losing processing power after our 20s — but we don’t need to. The ACTIVE Study showed processing speed training benefits lasting 10 years in older adults.
Why Simply Smarter Harnesses Neuroplasticity Better
Not all brain activity triggers meaningful neuroplastic change.
Crossword puzzles exercise knowledge you already have. Casual brain games practice at your current level. Neither pushes the brain past its limits — which is where real change happens. Simply Smarter is adaptive: continuously adjusting difficulty to keep your brain in the growth zone.
This isn’t accidental — it’s the result of 45 years of clinical observation. Popular apps optimize for engagement. Simply Smarter optimizes for neuroplastic change.
Bob Doman on potential: “What develops changes and what changes can be developed. With the understanding of how to apply the key components of neuroplasticity, none of us are reaching our true, virtually unlimited potentials.”
Robert J. Doman Jr., Founder, NACD
Common Questions About Neuroplasticity
Your brain is ready to change. Give it the right challenge
79 activities. 10–15 minutes a day. Built on 45 years of clinical practice. Start your 14-day free trial today.