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102 of 105 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good news, that older and wiser thing turns out to be true, April 18, 2010
Here's news that should be good for all of us humans. As the years go by, and we work at what we do, we grow older and wiser.
Barbara Strauch has written a fascinating and readable book about how our minds age, and how we get better as we get older, a lot older. If you are in your fifties and feel that you know far more about what you are doing now, than you did twenty or even ten years ago, science bears you out. According to The Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain, we get smarter meaning that our judgment improves, our ability to see the big picture improves, our ability to read people improves. We become better managers, better parents, better leaders--even better air traffic controllers! We are more emotionally stable and often more creative.
What's interesting about this book is that its not a philosophical nor a political argument. It's a book based on scientific research. Strauch uses both people studies and research from neuroscientists, psychologists etc. to explain that our brains grow far more than we ever realized, into our 60s. While we lose one kind of brain cell, we increase others. And, studies of people in their 70s today indicate that people are smarter and more able to do things like solve puzzles than the people of the same age 15 years ago.
But this is not a book about how humanity is getting smarter, it's a book that looks into the human brain and how evolution has designed a middle-aged brain to be, in many ways, more able than the twenty-five year old version. Yes that twenty-five year old can keep from hitting the squirrel in the road more easily but life is more than reflexes. According to Strauch, humans are programmed to adjust to day to day annoyances, such as losing keys and forgetting names--just as we are programmed to grow wiser.
Strauch's clear explanations of the strengths of experienced people in their 50s (men and women continue to improve mentally through their 50s and into their 60s) combined with research debunking such myths as the "midlife crisis," and the "empty nest," make it clear that people who are older are often better equipped to handle the high stress of business today than their younger colleagues. It also means that those younger colleagues have a longer, and more productive future ahead than they may have expected.
The Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain is good news for everyone, including those in their twenties and thirties, who after all will be fifty one day. Its good news for the 50 year old who loses her keys and wonders if she's declining, and for the 35 year old who wonders if she will ever feel truly "grown-up." The answer from Strauch is yes. People feel better as they get older. They feel more in control and they feel grown-up and handle the stress of life. Not only is their judgment better, they actually feel more cheerful, and focus more on the positive than they did while young. This is not really such a surprise. When you first saw Sully, the airline pilot who performed the "Miracle on the Hudson, " were you really surprised to see his white hair?
Lastly Strauch talks about the concept of wisdom, a word that has been considered "squishy," but which is gaining more currency with scientists who study the brain chemistry of the middle-aged as well as the behavioral studies of groups of people over long periods of time (some over forty years.)
Most people want to believe that as they live, they learn. This book holds the evidence that if you work at something for thirty years, you get to know more than a lot of facts, you learn to put those facts together. That's good news for all of us.
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59 of 63 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Marveling at the middle-aged brain, April 17, 2010
It's not true! Your brain doesn't get weaker with middle age. In fact, much of it gets stronger! This book, written by New York Times science editor Barbara Strauch, explains the scientific basis behind this phenomenon. The hardback describes the latest research in an easy-to-follow and interesting way.
It makes sense that the brain's capacity for complex thought reaches its peak in middle age. That's the time of life when people need to be at their best in terms of productivity and reasoning. It's the ultimate age to juggle responsibilities.
The last sections of the book explain how tip-top brain function can be maintained, covering ideas as varied as solving crossword puzzles to learning how to play the piano. Just like with the body, the brain benefits from exercise.
I recommend this book for anyone interested in how the brain works, and how to maximize sharp thinking through middle age and beyond.
Here's the chapter list:
Introduction: The Changing Landscape of Middle Age
Part One: The Powers That Be
1. Am I Losing My Mind?
Sometimes, but the gains beat the losses
2. The Best Brains of Our Lives.
A bit slower, but so much better
3. A Brighter Pace.
I'm so glad I'm not young anymore
4. Experience. Judgement. Wisdom.
Do we really know what we're talking about?
5. The Middle in Motion
The midlife crisis conspiracy
Part Two: The Inner Workings
6. What Changes with Time
Glitches the brain learns to deal with
7. Two Brains Are Better Than One
Especially inside one head
8. Extra Brainpower
A reservoir tap when needed
Part Three: Healthier Brains
9. Keep Moving and Keep Your Wits
Exercise builds brains
10. Food for Thought
And a few other substances, as well
11. The Brain Gym
Toning up your circuits
Epilogue: A New Place for Better, Longer Lives
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50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Is a Must Read for Anyone With Angst About Their Brain Functions, April 20, 2010
I first heard about this book when the author, Barbara Strauch, was interviewed on NPR a few days ago. It might have been Diane Rehm. Or was it Terry Gross? Maybe All Things Considered, the one hosted by Neil--oops, Neil who? After all I've only been listening for years now.
Okay, my point is made. I think I no longer have a middle-aged brain/mind ('m almost 69). But when I read this book, I certainly found myself there and happily so, saying to myself that this could easily be about the early elderly-mind brain. Okay, so I admit that I failed on the math problem (page 12), but I would have failed that decades ago. I simply don't think that way. But verbally, hey, I'm fine. And when I teach my writing class at a local college, I can rattle off all types of information, putting those young minds to shame. But for the moment I still cannot remember the name of that host of All Things Considered. But that is now okay. And why? Because I read this wonderful, very readable book. As soon as I post this, it will come to me. But someone once wrote, "What's in a name?..." And, yes, I know who that someone is!
I probably would not be much concerned about the issue of forgetfulness except my domestic partner of many years is and undoubtedly with good reasons since his mother was the victim of Alzheimer's. He is certain he is well on the way himself. And now I am eager to hand this book over to him and ask if maybe he might be well within the norm, especially since we are both at a very high end of middle-age (that is called denial since we are at the low end of elderly-aged mind according to Ms. Strauch). There is plenty of research for those interested in "the facts." But it is not loaded on; instead it comes in bite-size portions along with the more personal stories that I easily related to. "Where did I put my glasses?" "What was it I needed to get to add to the salad here in the produce department?" "And what is Neil's last name? A? B? Oh, well, later."
I highly recommend this book, one I suspect I will be giving to others. I predict that groups of people will be reading this together and sharing their own insights, hopefully not focusing so much upon "senior moments" as upon why the middle-aged brain is actually a very functional organism, quite possibly in better shape than younger brains!
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