『ローマ帝国衰亡史』の著者として有名な、イギリスの歴史家ギボンは「ローマ帝国がなぜ滅んだかを学ぶより、ローマ帝国があれほど長く続いた理由に注意を向けるべき」と語ったそうである。

これは人生研究にも当てはまる。

「最大瞬間風速を叩き出した後、あっという間に消えていく人を追いかけるより、長い人生を幸せに全うした人に関心を払うべき」

Reading paper books reduces unnecessary brain activity compared to reading e-books on digital screens, according to a paper released by a team of researchers including Kuniyoshi Sakai, a professor of language neuroscience at The University of Tokyo. The paper was published in the U.S. scientific journal “PLOS One.”

The team conducted a study on 25 undergraduate and graduate students from the university and other institutions from December 2023 to September 2024. The participants were divided into two groups: one that read the first half of a manga on paper and another that read the same part in an e-book edition on a tablet.

Both groups read the second half in the e-book edition under the same conditions while their brain activity was measured. Afterward, the participants were given multiple-choice questions with four options to assess their comprehension of the story and the team compared accuracy rates, response times and brain activity between the two groups.

The results showed no significant difference in accuracy rates between the two groups. However, for a set of questions that required respondents to read both the first and second parts to answer correctly, the group that read the first half on a tablet took longer to answer — specifically, an average of 1.28 seconds longer than expected.

The group that read the first half on a tablet showed brain activity not only in the left hemisphere, which governs language, but also in the right hemisphere, suggesting that reading on a tablet placed an additional burden on the brain compared to reading the paper book.

“With paper books, you can read at your own pace while digesting the content as you turn the pages. It seems this helps the brain use less energy and improves comprehension,” Sakai said.