Pragmatist
Pragmatist

Yes, I finally have high-speed internet.  What a couple days that was!!!  On top of that I had to fight the puter and PayPal to get to pay for my super-duper DearDiary.

After I read and mis-read the directions for installation, I get almost to the end, and hit the wrong key, sending me away, far away from the instructions.  Starting over wasn't so bad, because I could click "next" and not have to repeat the steps I'd already done correctly.  After a very fatiguing day, I finally called it quits, and determined to tackle the other problems another day.

And I couldn't get into my mail until I had everything correctly installed, and had to give up my answering machine phone for lack of a double phone jack to the wall.  Was the aggravation worth the $150 it would have cost to have an expert come in and do the job?  I'm still thinking, but...probably.

The problem of sudden screen freeze hasn't been solved.  I guess I need to call Nerd again, and another $100/hour for his expertise.  *sigh*

Leisure League luncheon was good, as usual, and the speaker was a person I'd heard two years earlier.  She calls her company Brain Gain.  After her lecture, she gave us a quiz, which follows.  And don't be embarrassed if you don't do well.  None of us did.  We have some notions about brains and learning that aren't true at all.  Without further ado.........

         Myths and Realities of Learning

True or False:

___F_ 1.   The larger one's head the more intelligent a person is.  Head size has nothing to do with brain power.

__T__ 2.   Compared to youth, 50+ learners on the whole usually require a longer time to perform learning tasks (aka "slowed speed of processing").

_T___3.   Our brain uses approximately 20% of our body's total energy and nutrition needs.  Actually, the brain uses 25% of the body's oxygen .

__F__4.   After about age 40-50, mental powers begin to decline.

__F__5.   A person is either a "left brained" or "right brained" person. We are mainly left or right brained.  It's not an either/or thing. 

__F__6.   Once your memory begins to "go," there is nothing you can do to get it back.  Alzheimer's can be brought on by depression, for instance.  There are many "tricks" to training memory.

__T__7.   The brains of men and women age at the same rate, and in the same way.  The way we use our brains is another matter. 

__F__8.   Creative ability cannot be developed in people of the age of 70.  Remember Grandma Moses?

__F__9.   Memory loss is a natural part of the aging process.  Nothing is ever lost.

__T__10.  Men have bigger brains than women, and use them differently. Men and women process information differently.  The corpus callosum (that connection between right and left brain) is decidedly thicker in women.  Story: What was the duty of Early Man?  Hunt and bring home the meat.  What was the duty of Early Woman?  Everything else!  We're hard wired for multi-tasking.

__F__11.  All 50+ learners have the same learning styles.  No more so that -50 learners have the same learning styles.  Age doesn't affect style.

__T__12.  Our brain cells begin to die soon after we are born.  Like everything else, cells start the cycle: new-age-die, renew, age-die,repeat cycle until die is the end of the cycle.

__F__13.  Dementia is a component of the "normal" aging process.

__F__14.  There is nothing you can do to slow the aging of the brain--it's just a natural part of growing old.  Keep the mind active, the body healthy.  Read, do puzzles, dance, exercise (Tai Chi is great for the aging body.  Playing bridge has been shown to be one of the very best mind enhancers!

__T__15.  Age in itself does little to affect a person's ability to learn.

And there you have it.  How did you do? 

Now for the right-left brain activity:

This is the left brain exercise:  You're planning a trip to Paris, and you're making a list of what you need to do/have/pack.  Think of the items you need to pack, but they all have to start with the letter C.  (I packed 12 items.)

This is the right brain exercise:  Draw a circle.  Draw an arrow pointing to the direction in which the face on the nickle points.  Where are the words In God We Trust?  Top or bottom of coin?  Now go get a nickle and check yourself.  Wait...get an old nickle and a new nickle, too.

Now, wasn't that fun?

Bless the day.