No one can deny that one point or another he or she has desired a learning aid, a simple thing that can instantly enhance your acquisition and retention of information. Well, it turns out that there might in fact be such an aid, in the form of sounds called binaural beats.

The science behind binaural beats is not very complicated: using a pair of stereo headphones, two different frequencies are projected into your brain and interpreted as one joined frequency. This composite frequency allegedly goes on to help you concentrate, learn, remember, or think depending on the specific frequency being listened to. Binaural beats are therefore a type of brainwave entrainment, a process in which the natural wavelengths of the brain are trained or synchronized to fall into a specific type of brainwave that corresponds with a desired mental state (e.g. sleep, awareness, etc.). Brainwave entrainment is not limited to auditory stimuli; you can also train your brainwaves using visual cues such as periodic light flashes.

Even though we do not doubt the existence of the binaural beat phenomenon, a process that has been well scientifically documented, we do have reason to doubt what uses we can put these beats to. We have no sound evidence (no pun intended) to support the direct influence of binaural beats on learning and memory. Nevertheless, it has been proven that listening to binaural beats can in fact help achieve greater degrees of concentration and attention. It is also speculated that they can actually assist in entering meditative states. Therefore, we can say that binaural beats can help your brain to learn better inasmuch as concentration and meditation help you consolidate learning and memory.

Other claims about binaural beats are pretty ambitious when we think about them in more detail. There are reports that binaural beats can allegedly help you improve:

• DNA stimulation

• Self-hypnosis

• Weight Loss

• Public Speaking

• Impotency

• And many more

We currently need a lot more research to prove whether binaural beats can actually improve these things as well as your learning and memory.  But in either case, at least it does not hurt to listen along to them and enjoy some relaxation and added concentration.

For a sample of binaural beats, try Infinite Bliss or Dream Tunnel. You can also find great binaural beats on mobile app stores. Binaural Beats and iBrainWave are great examples of binaural beat apps you can find on iTunes.