News
Aging & brain fitness
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there will be more people age 65 and older in the state of Florida in the year 2030 than under the age of 18. Good Day was joined by Dr.
Playing brain fitness games
You may not think twice about working out at the gym.
A Route To Safer Driving
Bob Parmacek, 78, was beginning to wonder if he was as sharp behind the wheel as he used to be.
"Night driving, particularly, bothered me a little bit," said Parmacek. "Before I started having a problem, I wanted to see what could be done."
Parmacek heard about a new brain-training computer software program called "DriveSharp," which claims to reduce crash risk for older drivers.
Could video games improve your driving skills?
Nobody is a perfect driver. But statistics show some motorists carry a greater risk of getting in an accident.
Young drivers are easily distracted and lack experience. Senior drivers start to lose physical abilities and mental speed. But now brain fitness computer programs are available to help sharpen skills.
Getting behind the wheel is something most of us don't think twice about. But the process of maneuvering through a maze of unpredictable traffic is really quite complicated. Just Ask Bob Parmacke. The 78-year-old has a good driving record.
Move Over, Sudoku?
Increasingly, neuroscientists, gerontologists and psychologists are gaining a greater appreciation for the brain’s neuroplasticity—that is, its ability to continuously adapt and rewire itself. The brain, we now know, creates new neurons and new connections (synapses) between neighboring neurons in response to stimulating or challenging experiences.
Can Training With Computer Games Keep You Driving Safer and Longer?
Recently, I needed a ride to the airport and my 78-year-old father agreed to drive me. It had been awhile since I’d been his passenger, and the experience proved a bit unsettling. We barely avoided a collision with another car entering the on-ramp, and then, for the next 25 miles, I clenched my teeth as he drifted and veered in and out of his lane.
My concern only grew after he dropped me off: Would he make it home OK? Are my three young children safe driving around with him?
So far, my dad has been one of the lucky ones.
Workouts For Your Brain
Last Spring, as Arthur Marquis started brushing up on the French he'd learned in junior high, the 61-year-old retired lawyer and Long Beach, Calif., resident had trouble discerning where one mellifluous word ended and the next began. So he decided to exercise his auditory skills in much the same way a bodybuilder might zero in on a particular muscle group. His weapon of choice: Posit Science's Brain Fitness software, which promised to hone his hearing, as well as his memory, for $395. (Yes, you heard that right: $395.) After completing the program's 40 hour-long sessions, he's a believer.
Driving and the Brain
In the film noir classic Double Indemnity, insurance agents are presented as cold-blooded in their pursuit of the facts. But it wasn’t until Isaw a recent advertisement for Allstate, the insurance company, that I realized how seriously insurance agents take neuroscience. Allstate was advising parents to vote for graduated driver-licensing laws because teenagers’ "dorsal lateral prefrontal cortexes" are immature.
There’s a reason, as this ad implies, that there are age brackets for auto insurance premiums.
Bad times, good deals
Lovers of word games will be delighted to discover their passion comes in a free variety: Word Wanderer, available at www.wordwanderer.com for use on PCs and Macs.
The goal of the game, developed by Posit Science, a producer of brain fitness software programs, is for the user to place a total of 50 letter tiles on a board - a la Scrabble - in the shortest amount of time.
The game level changes depending on the player's proficiency: The better a player does the more letter tiles he or she has to use; weaker players get fewer tiles.
"This adaptive component is critical to pr
Improve reaction time with brain fitness program
Driving is a visual exercise.
