"You don't get to be old bein' no fool. There's plenty of young wise men that's deader than a mutha---ker."
Posted on 05/22/2008 1:50:55 PM PDT by neverdem
When older people can no longer remember names at a cocktail party, they tend to think that their brainpower is declining. But a growing number of studies suggest that this assumption is often wrong.
Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit.
The studies are analyzed in a new edition of a neurology book, “Progress in Brain Research.”
Some brains do deteriorate with age. Alzheimer’s disease, for example, strikes 13 percent of Americans 65 and older. But for most aging adults, the authors say, much of what occurs is a gradually widening focus of attention that makes it more difficult to latch onto just one fact, like a name or a telephone number. Although that can be frustrating, it is often useful.
“It may be that distractibility is not, in fact, a bad thing,” said Shelley H. Carson, a psychology researcher at Harvard whose work was cited in the book. “It may increase the amount of information available to the conscious mind.”
For example, in studies where subjects are asked to read passages that are interrupted with unexpected words or phrases, adults 60 and older work much more slowly than college students. Although the students plow through the texts at a consistent speed regardless of what the out-of-place words mean, older people slow down even more when the words are related to the topic at hand. That indicates that they are not just stumbling over the extra information, but are taking it in and processing it.
When both groups were later asked questions for which the out-of-place words might be answers, the older adults responded much better than the students.
“For the young people, it’s as if the distraction never happened,”...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
AH HA!!! My theory has been validated. While observing my own brain’s function as I age, it occured to me that I wasn’t forgetting anything, but simply having drouble locating the data. It takes me longer to find it, but find it I eventually do. Usually about 2 minutes after I’ve looked like an idiot because I couldn’t think of my own telephone number.
We’re just like computers that try to run Photoshop, Poser and other big programs all at the same time...we need to upgrade our RAM. ;-)
drouble=trouble
They say we never use but a fraction of our brains. We shouldn’t have to add more RAM. There are some brain exercises that claim to increase your capacity to store information. I’m much too busy for upgrading.
This can’t be.
Young libs are smarter and wiser than anyone who ever lived; they’re even smarter than the whole of collective wisdom of anyone that ever lived before them.
Try system defrag, that might help. ;-P
does this have anything to do with McCain?
HaHa! I also have explained the problems of older folk’s memories is a case of information overload. That perhaps our brains have run out of available memory, like a computer.
From “Cheers”—Cliff Clavin to Norm:
“Well, ya see, Norm, it’s like this… A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it’s the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first.
This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members.
In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first.
In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine. That’s why you always feel smarter after a few beers.”
Or just reboot once in a while!
I have had the same belief since about age 50...14 years ago.
I know for sure my Father gets smarter the older I get.
Been there, done that.
My usual brain burp occurs during a voice mail; I realize, half way through the number I'm leaving, that it is the number I dialed, not the number I can be reached at. Did that just today.
I have never misplaced my keys or purse but my underwear now thats another story!
I'm 60 years old and I agree with you entirely.
I've resolved the issue though, after consulting tech support, I now Defrag my brain once a month...minimum.
"You don't get to be old bein' no fool. There's plenty of young wise men that's deader than a mutha---ker."
So...the information’s still there - it’s just that the search is timing out. Great.
I’m only 31. I shudder to think of how hard it’s going to be to locate data by the time I’m twice that...
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