Aging and teen brains working together: WIN/WIN

NPR’s Full Story: Older brain: http://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=124118077&m=124188678
Teen Brain: http://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=124119468&m=124188677 Mrs. Clay concluded: Now I have scientific proof why intergenerational projects are win/win opportunities. Our brains complement each other.


The Teen Brain: It is just not all grown up yet:-a crucial part of the brain — the frontal lobes — are not fully connected Scientists used to think teenage brains are just like those of adults — with fewer miles on them. But they're not. Teens' brains are developmentally different. One neurologist mother decided to get to the roots of her son's maddening behavior.

"It's the part of the brain that says: 'Is this a good idea? What is the consequence of this action?' " Jensen says. "It's not that they don't have a frontal lobe. And they can use it. But they're going to access it more slowly." This also may explain why teenagers often seem so maddeningly self-centered. "You think of them as these surly, rude, selfish people," Jensen says. "Well, actually, that's the developmental stage they're at. They aren't yet at that place where they're thinking about — or capable, necessarily, of thinking about the effects of their behavior on other people. That requires insight."


The aging brain: Less Quick, More Shrew: Neuroscientists have found that as we age, our brain's reaction time slows and our ability to multitask diminishes. But maturity also brings an enhanced ability to reason out problems and empathize.

And the middle-aged brain can still strengthen neuron circuits associated with memory and decision-making. As we age, our ability to multi-task diminishes. "We're quick, but we're sloppy when we're in middle-age. We make more errors when we're in middle age," says Small.

Brain researcher Gary Small from UCLA conveys the bad news first: "Reaction time is slower," he says. "It takes us longer to learn new information. Sometimes it takes us longer to retrieve information, so we have that tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon — where you almost have that word or that thought. That's typical of the middle-age brain." He points to a continued improvement in complex reasoning skills as we enter middle age. Small suggests that this increase may be due to a process in the brain called "myelination." Myelin is the insulation wrapped around brain cells that increases their conductivity — the speed with which information travels from brain cell to brain cell. And the myelination doesn't reach its peak until middle age. By this point, says Small, "the neuro-circuits fire more rapidly, as if you're going from dial-up to DSL." Complex reasoning skills improve, and we're able to anticipate problems and reason things out better than when we were young.

And, Small adds, there's another area of improvement as we age: empathy — the ability to understand the emotional point of view of another. Empathy increases as we age. Helpful things: 'Your Brain On Google' Physical Fitness Helps Brain, Too