This jives with my own experience… that’s why I read nonfiction in my paperback/hardback rather than digital, even if I seldom annotate a text (more of a note-taker, concept guy with a pen and notebook). No doubt, librarians who promote manga reading in K-12 schools will love this 2026 research study.

It is probably information worth taking with a few grains of salt and worth waiting for further evidence…be sure to check the full study and see brain images.

By measuring localized brain blood flow via functional MRI (fMRI) scanners, investigators demonstrated that paper reading provides stable spatial and tactile cues that allow the brain to organize and retrieve complex story information with significantly less cognitive effort.

Read more.