Even as an adult, it is possible to acquire new skills and improve cognitive skills, there are points to realize
It is generally thought that the brain ceases to grow and the humans cannot gain new skills as they age. However, new research has shown that people between the ages of 58 and 86 can acquire new skills if they are in the right learning environment and have the encouragement of others. According to the test, the cognitive ability of the subject improved, reaching a level in the mid-30s or lower.
Impact of Learning Multiple Real-World Skills on Cognitive Abilities and Functional Independence in Healthy Older Adults | The Journals of Gerontology: Series B | Oxford Academic
Think You're Too Old to Learn New Tricks?-Scientific American Blog Network
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/think-youre-too-old-to-learn-new-tricks/
A long time, we have believed that and become an adult is the growth of the brain stops, but in recent years the research part responsible for the intelligence of the brain that continues to grow to 40 to 60 years has been shown . There are several other papers showing that adults can grow new neurons.
Nevertheless, there are still a few people who are new and start new things, so those who have achieved success by starting as an adult tend to be considered 'special'. Historian Nell Painter, for example, obtained a bachelor's and master's degree in painting after leaving Princeton University. Ernestine Shepherd , known as the world's oldest bodybuilder, was spotlighted for not even exercising until his 50s, and Irving Olson, who had been shooting analog for 90 years, suddenly shot at the age of 98 I changed the way and used the latest technology, and it became very famous.
Even if it is not an extreme example up to this point, there are cases where beekeepers who started as hobbies in the 50s became specialists in a few years, such as becoming expert, actually becoming proficient at what started as an adult . However, according to a
It is generally said that children can absorb new information like a sponge. This is partly because children learn multiple skills at the same time, focus on learning, and get encouragement from teachers and parents. And if there is a child with few learning resources and low expectations from others, it is considered a “state to improve”.
On the other hand, much of the environment surrounding adults falls into this “state to be improved”. Elderly people have low expectations of their surroundings, have few learning resources, and are not in an environment that promotes learning. And no effort is made to improve these issues.
A research team of Prof. Rachel Wu and others at the University of California hypothesized that `` If you learn multiple skills in an environment where elderly people are encouraged to learn, it may improve cognition like a child '' Experiment. Researchers said that 58-86-year-old subjects took 3-5 courses simultaneously for three months. At this time, one course was on average about 15 hours per week, and included 'Spanish course', 'iPad course', 'Drawing course', 'Composition course' and so on. Subjects also talked with researchers about an hour a week about 'things that hinder learning,' 'the value of learning new things,' and 'resilience in aging.'
In addition, subjects measured changes in short-term memory, such as 'remember phone numbers for a few minutes,' as well as cognitive control and task switching.
The results showed that one and a half months after learning, subjects had improved their cognitive abilities to mid-thirties or lower. On the other hand, subjects who did not take learning courses as a target group but became members of an active community had cognitive abilities comparable to those of general elderly people. In other words, being in an environment that encourages learning is the key to developing new skills and improving cognitive skills. Researchers will continue to look at how long the benefits of improved cognitive skills from learning will last.
With the intervention of researchers, elderly subjects have escaped the comfort zone and are no longer afraid of new challenges. At the beginning of the experiment, the subjects did not seem to think that they would grow up, but it was shown that learning new techniques at the same time can improve learning and cognitive skills even for elderly people. It can be said that it was done.
Related Posts:
in Science, Posted by darkhorse_log