A few days ago a friend
of mine asked me how best to remember names. Having faced the problem myself
(possibly, a familial trait) I could not think of a suitable answer
immediately. So, I did some thinking, reading and surfing and here are some
interesting facts, myths and food for thought.
By the time you are 65
years, your brain isn't what it used to be- you will start to notice the
signs: you forget people's names and you cannot remember where you left your
keys or mobile phone. Clearly not everyone ages in the same way
Reaction time is slower
and it takes us longer to learn new information. Sometimes it takes longer to
retrieve information, resulting in that tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon — where
you almost have that word or that thought. That's typical of the middle-age
brain.
There is a good reason
why our memories start to let us down. At this stage of life we are steadily
losing brain cells in critical areas such as the hippocampus - the area where
memories are processed. This is not too much of a problem at first; even in
old age the brain is flexible enough to compensate. At some point though,
losses start to make themselves felt. It's true that by midlife our brains
can show some fraying. Brain processing speed slows down. Faced with new
information, we often cannot master it as quickly as our younger peers. And
there's little question that our short-term memories suffer.
There are, however, some
brain functions which improve with age. We actually grow smarter in key areas
in middle age which, with longer life spans, now stretches from our mid 40s
to our mid to late 60s. In areas as diverse as vocabulary and inductive
reasoning, our brains function better than they did in our 20s. As we age, we
more easily get the "gist" of arguments. Even our judgment of
others improves. Often, we simply "know'' if someone — or some idea — is
to be trusted. We also get better at knowing what to ignore and when to hold
our tongues.
Fresh thinking about the
brain
An old myth in
neuroscience is that once a brain cell dies off you can't replace it. But
many studies have now shown, that there is, in fact, brain cell growth
throughout life. It continues to develop, and even continues to grow new
brain cells. So the brain can continue to learn throughout the middle age
years and beyond.
Plasticity of the brain
The brain can be changed
or moulded to suit the needs – the concept of "Plasticity" which
relates to changes by adding or removing connections, or adding cells.
Research has shown that in fact the brain never stops changing through
learning.
In a recent study
referred to as "your brain on Google," healthy, middle-aged
volunteers, all novices on the computer, were taught how to do a Google
search. They were told then to practise doing online searches for an hour a
day, for seven days. After the week's practice, the volunteers came back into
the lab and had their brains scanned while doing a Google search. The scans
revealed significant increases in brain activity in the areas that control
memory and decision-making.
The area of the brain
that showed the increases was the frontal lobe, the thinking brain,
especially in areas that control decision making and working memory. With
practice, a middle-age brain can very quickly alter its neuron-circuitry; can
strengthen the neuron circuits that control short-term memory and decision
making.
It is also known that
other areas of the brain also increase in size with usage. For example, the
finger area in the motor cortex in Braille readers and professional string
instrument players is more extensive than in a normal individual.
The ability of the brain
to change with learning is what is known as Neuro-plasticity.
Remembering names and
numbers
Let me now try to answer
the question I posed at the beginning – how to remember names and numbers.
Repeat it 7 seconds later
Train your mind
frequently by repeating to yourself anything you need to remember as quickly
as you learn it. This is very useful especially when remembering phone
numbers and dates. Repetition is a simple system on how to improve memory
power, but it works even for long term memory. Recall it after 7 seconds to
store it in memory.
Write it down
Let the paper remember
for you. The point is to have use of the information later, and if that's
more easily done by way of an "external memory device" like pen and
paper, why not take advantage of these tools? Also, writing things down is
another way to more strongly "fix" something in our minds.
Imagine the future use
If you think about how
you will use information, you're more likely to remember it. For example if
after learning a new algorithm in a math class you imagine using it during a
test, you'll probably remember it better - particularly when taking a test.
How to improve ‘brain
fitness’
Consider the brain a
muscle. Variety and curiosity is the basis. When anything you do becomes
second nature, you need to make a change. If you can do the crossword puzzle
in your sleep, it's time for you to move on to a new challenge in order to
get the best workout for your brain.
Brain aerobics
What exactly constitutes
a brain aerobic exercise? To qualify as a brain aerobic exercise, the
activity
- Needs to engage your
attention
- Must involve two or
more of your senses
- Must break a routine
activity in an unexpected, nontrivial way
Play games
Sudoku, crosswords
playing chess or bridge, dancing regularly and electronic games can all
improve your brain's speed and memory. These games rely on logic, word
skills, math and more. These games are also fun. You'll get benefit more by
doing these games a little bit every day -- spend 15 minutes or so, not
hours.
Meditation
Daily meditation is
perhaps the single greatest thing you can do for your mind/body health.
Meditation not only relaxes you, it gives your brain a workout. By creating a
different mental state, you engage your brain in new and interesting ways
while increasing your brain fitness.
Turn off your television
Television can stand in
the way of relationships, life and more. Turn off your TV and spend more time
living and exercising your mind and body.
Exercise your body to
exercise your brain
Physical exercise is
great brain exercise too. By moving your body, your brain has to learn new
muscle skills, estimate distance and practise balance. Choose a variety of
exercises to challenge your brain.
Read something different
Branch out from familiar
reading topics. If you usually read history books, try a contemporary novel.
Read foreign authors, the classics and random books.
Learn a new skill
Learning a new skill
works multiple areas of the brain. Your memory comes into play, you learn new
movements and you associate things differently. Learning a new language or
becoming computer literate is equally good. Reading Shakespeare, learning to
cook and building an airplane out of toothpicks all will challenge your brain
and give you something to think about.
Make simple changes
We love our routines. We
have hobbies and pastimes that we could do for hours on end. To really help
your brain stay young, challenge it. Change routes to your destinations, use
your opposite hand to open doors, and eat dessert, shave, and brush teeth,
texting, using the computer mouse. Writing with the other hand is a useful
way of using the non dominant hemisphere to do a component associated with
speech – usually located in the dominant hemisphere.
The brain is an organ
like no other. You can ‘exercise’ it in many different ways and this is the
best way to make the best use of it. Use it or lose it, is true of the brain;
importantly you can use it in many different ways.
Source: http://www.sundaytimes.lk/100822/Plus/plus_13.html
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