MIT researchers conducted a study using EEG brain scans to examine how ChatGPT usage affects cognitive function during essay writing tasks. The study found that students who relied on AI assistants showed weakened neural connectivity, impaired memory recall, and reduced sense of ownership over their work. Participants using ChatGPT were unable to quote from essays they had just written, while those using traditional methods or search engines maintained better cognitive engagement. The research suggests that AI dependency leads to cognitive offloading, where the brain adapts to rely on external tools at the expense of critical thinking and memory formation.