Quitting maths at age 16 can affect teens' BRAINS

After years of wrestling with the complexities of algebra, fractions and mental arithmetic, some teenagers may be only too keen to dump maths at the earliest opportunity. But a new study suggests that quitting the subject at the age of 16 may have an adverse effect on brain development. Researchers led by the University of Oxford found that adolescents who stuck with maths in their A-levels had higher levels of a brain chemical important for memory, learning and problem-solving. They recruited 87 A-level students to take part in the study and, after scanning their brains, discovered that those who had continued with maths had higher levels of gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) in an area called the prefrontal cortex. The study also found that the students with more GABA were better at solving brain-teasing questions when tested around 19 months later.