Learning a second language can have a positive effect on the brain, even if it is ＿＿（36）＿＿ in adulthood, a study of 262 people tested either aged 11 or in their seventies suggests. The research ＿＿（37）＿＿ by Dr. Thomas Bak, from the centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh, between 2008 and 2010. All participants said they were able to communicate in at least one language ＿＿（38）＿＿ English. 195 learned the second language before the age of 18, and 65 learned it after that time. The findings indicate that those who spoke two or more languages had ＿＿（39）＿＿ better cognitive abilities compared to what would have been expected from their baseline test. Dr. Bak said the pattern they found was “meaningful” and the improvements in attention, focus and fluency could not be explained by original intelligence. ＿＿（40）＿＿, he admitted that this study also raised many questions, such as whether learning more than one language could also have the same positive effect on cognitive ageing and whether actively speaking a second language is better than just knowing how to speak it.