Thanks to Hilary Jones for pointing out Download Neuroscience Commentary FINAL (1)from the Teaching and Learning Research Project. Many of the leaders in the field have contributed to it, and it has some of the best diagrams of brain cells and connections that I've seen. The sections on the influence of caffeine (negative) and of sleep (positive) on brain functioning and learning are most informative, particularly the diagrams showing that, as we sleep, we appear to repeat the mental processes we were going through when awake, so in effect adding unconscious practice. The paper also notes, in the context of brain gym, that, while dehydration inhibits thinking, so does drinking water when one is not thirsty.
