Mind Matters is edited by Jonah Lehrer, the science writer behind the blog The Frontal Cortex and the book Proust was a Neuroscientist.
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Age-related cognitive decline may be caused by a breakdown in connections between different brain systems.
Mind Matters is edited by Jonah Lehrer, the science writer behind the blog The Frontal Cortex and the book Proust was a Neuroscientist.
Donald Pfaff is the head of the Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior at The Rockefeller University. Nicholas D. Schiff is the Director of the Laboratory of Cognitive Neuromodulation at Weill-Cornell Medical School.
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3 Comments
Add CommentThis is an interesting topic to me as I have been retired for several years now. Not having to work, I find myself increasingly disengaged from the work a day world. This is a mixed blessing; I now have the freedom to pursue any number of activities that I didn't before. But I'm also aware of the allure of simply doing nothing, and unfortunately some of my contemporaries have fallen into that trap. The old phrase; "use it or lose it" would apply here. As a teenager I was reckless because I didn't fully grasp the concept of "cause & effect", now I might be careless because my mind is "preoccupied". Executives, and people that habitually think a lot, typically do well in their latter lives because they "keep the juices flowing" so to speak. This is only a subjective analysis; but maybe this study is not addressing the subject's cause for mental degradation rather than studying it's effect.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisInteresting,but it looks like old theories of stimulation vs.lack of it in the elderly. The deafult mode remind me of the computer "sleeping".
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYou are so right. Use it or lose it applies all through life. It's amazing how many more decisions one must make while working than when one has a "free" day off work. A nonworking person needs to challenge him or herself, or lose the abilities they once enjoyed.
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