It's tough enough finding sites that encourage you to strain your brain, so when I find such sites that, like Grey Matters, believe this should be fun, then you know I'm going to post them right away!

Our first stop is Gloo: the memory company. This is the site for an Australian company that focuses on improving memory. Like me, they have a passion for fun and mental improvement. On their site, you can find not only their services, but plenty of free stuff, as well! First, they're one of the sponsors of the World Memory Challenge, which I mentioned in this blog last December. They also feature a free newsletter called, “Splat!”. Many of the back issues are available on their site with a little hunting (including the editor's record-breaking Pi memorization), but you can also subscribe to the newsletter via e-mail. When you sign up this way, you get a free bonus, an article called, “How To Remember 'Whatshisname'”. It's a short but informative article on how to improve your memory for people's names. If you've ever had this trouble, sign up for the newsletter and get this article now! Take a look around at their other free goodies, as well.

Our other stop today is Braingle, a site so large, I'm not quite sure where to begin. This is a free membership community where you can join in with others who like to stretch their mental capacity. Braingle's 5 main sections are Brain Teasers, Mentalrobics, Games, Community and Store. The parts of the site that mainly captured my attention were the Mentalrobics articles, especially the memory articles, the flash card section and the puzzles. Their Java-based 15 puzzle is great for praticing the “40 30s 4 15” feat. Yes, of course they have Sudoku (Flash required), as well.

Have fun looking around these sites, and I'll be back on Pi Day!