You’re Not Too Old to Learn That - NEUROSCIENCE

One day, our brains will not work the way they used to, we won’t be as “sharp” as we once were, we won’t be able to remember things as easily.

This is what’s been engrained in us. We’re even led to believe that we can’t learn new skills, or take in certain information such as language, past a certain age.

But, a new theory holds that it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, as adults, if we continue to learn the way we did as children, UCR psychology professor Rachel Wu asserts, we can redefine what it means to be an “aging” adult.

Wu has published “A Novel Theoretical Life Course Framework for Triggering Cognitive Development Across the Lifespan,” in the journal Human Development. In the paper, she redefines healthy cognitive aging as a result of learning strategies and habits that are developed throughout our life. These habits can either encourage or discourage cognitive development.

“We argue that across your lifespan, you go from ‘broad learning’ (learning many skills as an infant or child) to ‘specialized learning,’ (becoming an expert in a specific area) when you begin working, and that leads to cognitive decline initially in some unfamiliar situations, and eventually in both familiar and unfamiliar situations,” Wu said.

Read the paper:https://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/458720

Source:https://ucrtoday.ucr.edu/45473

Image:
Wu took up painting seven years ago. At first, she was told she was terrible (painting on left). But, after years of practicing and taking courses, she was told she was talented (painting on the right).

Source: Corina Marinescu