Friday, May 6, 2011

When Norma Roth, author of Aging Gracefully with Dignity, Integrity and Spunk Intact: Aging Defiantly, began to work on strategies for staying young in mind she began her own journey into a complex topic. The human mind is so amazing that scientist often ask themselves if the "any brain is capable of understanding itself."

Able to unlock the secrets of the universe, able to build complex machines such as the Space Shuttle which takes thousands of people to design and operate, able to love passionately, find faith in the unknowable, make a billion calculations ever day and see a brighter future are all part and parcel of something more beautiful and amazing than anything every created by Itself.

During her research, Norma Roth found an article the Live Science website by Jeanna Bryner, Greatest Mysteries: How Does the Brain Work?, which sheds light on the topic of the mind fathoming itself. It is reprinted in entirety below.

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With billions of neurons, each with thousands of connections, one's noggin is a complex, and yes congested, mental freeway. Neurologists and cognitive scientists nowadays are probing how the mind gives rise to thoughts, actions, emotions and ultimately consciousness.

The complex machine is difficult for even the brainiest of scientists to wrap their heads around. But the payoff for such an achievement could be huge.

"If we understand the brain, we will understand both its capacities and its limits for thought, emotions, reasoning, love and every other aspect of human life," said Norman Weinberger, a neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine.

Brain teasers



What makes the brain such a tough nut to crack?



According to Scott Huettel of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Duke University, the standard answer to this question goes something like: "The human brain is the most complex object in the known universe…complexity makes simple models impractical and accurate models impossible to comprehend."

While that stock answer is correct, Huettel said, it's incomplete. The real snag in brain science is one of navel gazing. Huettel and other neuroscientists can't step outside of their own brains (and experiences) when studying the brain itself.

"A more pernicious factor is that we all think we understand the brain—at least our own—through our experiences. But our own subjective experience is a very poor guide to how the brain works," Huettel told LiveScience.

"Whether the human brain can understand itself is one of the oldest philosophical questions," said Anders Garm of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, a biologist who studies jellyfish as models for human neural processing of visual information.



Mental mechanics



Scientists have made some progress in taking an objective, direct "look" at the human brain.



In recent years, brain-imaging techniques, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have allowed scientists to observe the brain in action and determine how groups of neurons function.

They have pinpointed hubs in the brain that are responsible for certain tasks, such as fleeing a dangerous situation, processing visual information, making those sweet dreams and storing long-term memories. But understanding the mechanics of how neuronal networks collaborate to allow such tasks has remained more elusive.

"We do not yet have a good way to study how groups of neurons form functional networks when we learn, remember, or do anything else, including seeing, hearing moving, loving," Weinberger said.

Plus these clusters of brain cells somehow give rise to more complex behaviors and emotions, such as altruism, sadness, empathy and anger.

Huettel and his colleagues used fMRIs to discover a region in the brain linked with altruistic behavior.

"Although understanding the function of this brain region may not necessarily identify what drives people like Mother Teresa," Huettel said, "it may give clues to the origins of important social behaviors like altruism."

Who am I?

The prized puzzle in brain research is arguably the idea of consciousness. When you look at a painting, for instance, you are aware of it and your mind processes its colors and shapes. At the same time, the visual impression could stir up emotions and thoughts. This subjective awareness and perception is consciousness.

Many scientists consider consciousness the delineation between humans and other animals.

So rather than cognitive processes directly leading to behaviors (unbeknownst to us), we are aware of the thinking. We even know that we know!

If this mind bender is ever solved, an equally perplexing question would arise, according to neuroscientists: Why? Why does awareness exist at all?

Ultimately, Weinberger said, "understanding the brain will enable us to understand what it truly is to be human."

Review of Norma Roth's book, Aging Gracefully With Dignity, Integrity & Spunk Intact: Aging Defiantly, by Bettie Corbin Tucker for Independent Professional Book Reviewers



As I read Aging Gracefully With Dignity, Integrity & Spunk Intact: Aging Defiantly by Norma Roth, I soon found myself reading the words as her cheerleader. More! I wanted to read more about the subject! The information she presents is a result of research, personal experiences, and the desire to help debunk many myths about aging that she considers to be "hogwash."

She refers to the aging population as the "Silver Generation," encouraging them to take charge of their lives by refusing to be controlled by exaggerated fears and negative thinking. Ms. Roth discusses how "that" generation can live productive, fulfilling lives into their seventies, eighties, and nineties. After all, they have a vast amount of knowledge, experience and expertise to draw from—a storage retrieval system. Her writing is full of wit and wisdom and describes "the art and not the agony of growing older."

Although I am a member of the Silver Generation, when I burn food that I am preparing, forget where I place an item, or ask myself why I've gone into a room to get an article, it is my opinion that, with aging, I am simply paying more attention to my own behavioral patterns, fearing that others may think I'm "losing it." But, if seniors think about it, most will admit that they did the same things in their earlier years—perhaps not as often but, nevertheless, they did them. The author reinforces this concept, telling our generation not to panic; she provides some simple suggestions to avoid such distractions and occurrences.

As far as absentmindedness, she turns a negative into a positive, citing Albert Einstein as an absentminded genius. Instead of being absentminded, she explains that our minds are full of things we have learned and not on matters of the moment. Rather than planning for when we are put out to pasture, we need to plan for life! One way to do that is to test the concept of a storage retrieval system.

The second part of the book discusses how to unleash this Personal Retrieval System by going on a treasure hunt within one's self. The journey will take readers down familiar paths as they access and retrieve stored information that can be utilized to live fuller and more productive lives. The author offers the Silver Generation some basic rules for success in harnessing the power of the brain to access this information. As I continued to read, I began thinking about the piano lessons that I had taken as a young child.

My sister, who also took lessons, became quite a musician; however, I quit after only a year. It was a decision I regretted in adulthood; therefore, a few days ago, I purchased some lesson books from our local music store and began practicing again. Little by little, what I learned as a child is coming back to me, and I now plan to build on that foundation. The author, obviously much more talented in this area than me, tells a similar story; this is what gave me the courage to try again.

If you think it is impossible to learn something new, Norma Roth says that such thinking is hogwash. (I love how she uses that word throughout her book.) Science suggests new brain cells might just be available for new learning. As we age, we must "use it or lose it." There are endless opportunities for the Silver Generation when members choose to empower themselves. Admittedly there may be physical challenges along the way, so it is very important not to cheat on nutrition, vitamins, or sleep.

Do you want to know how to deal with the "word supplier" and the "word corrector"? What about the finisher of sentences, or looks given that are meant to embarrass you? How do you handle a disrupter? The author addresses these situations and gives examples of appropriate responses to those who might try to intimidate you. Yesterday, I used one of those responses and found it very effective.

I cannot stress how important I think this book is to society as a whole. It is easy to understand and well written with some repetition for emphasis. Even those who are not presently part of the Silver Generation will, barring unfortunate circumstances, continue to age. This book will help prepare them for a long and fulfilling life. I give Aging Gracefully my highest recommendation and consider it a "must read."

Bettie Corbin Tucker

For Independent Professional Book Reviewers

www.bookreviewers.org

For media interviews contact Promotion in Motion at 323-461-3921 or brad@promotioninmotion.net

Directl link to the article on Live Science websit e

\http://www.livescience.com/4583-greatest-mysteries-brain-work.html