The Decline of Memory

I had already decided what to blog about this morning, but changed my mind on the fly when my attention was caught by an interview on NPR. The person being interviewed was Harriet Harvey Wood, editor of an anthology of studies called Memory.

Memory is a fascinating topic, and I find it more interesting and intriguing as I grow older and cope with my own problems of memory. How do we remember things? Why? What makes us remember some things and not others? Why does memory seem to get worse as we get older?

Ms Wood made the observation in her interview that she finds herself no longer able to remember her friends' telephone numbers, and guesses that it's because she has all the numbers stored in her telephone, ready to be retrieved at the push of a button - why memorize them? She noted also that many of the bits and pieces of data we used to keep in memory are now stored in PDAs for easy retrieval - no need to memorize an address or a factoid when you can whip it right out of your trusty digital assistant. And students soon learn that whatever they may need to know can be Googled at any time - leaving plenty of room in memory for ... what?

People who study memory tell us that the brain is like any other muscle - it needs to be exercised and kept in trim in order to work at its best. Unfortunately, many people don't bother to exercise their brain any more. Schools don't emphasize rote memorization of facts any more; while the ability to think is good, the brain training done by memorization may well be at least as good, if not perhaps better. I love crossword puzzles, which are good vehicles for teaching vocabulary and spelling; Agnes enjoys suddoku puzzles (not being good with numbers, I don't). I enjoy reading, and love the old radio comedy and dramatic programs that forced you to use your imagination to set the mental stage that TV and movies can easily and effortlessly fill with vivid digital imagery.

Many other people nowadays don't work their brains that way. Of course, as I've often lamented in this space, people don't do much thinking for themselves any more, anyhow. But in all seriousness, the decline of memory is a dangerous thing. Each time I find myself unable to remember some bit of information, I worry about the onset of Alzheimer's Disease - the terrifying scourge that robbed my mother of her mind and led to the long decline that ended with her death seven years ago. I try to exercise my mind and memory as much as I can to avoid the same dreadful decline.

What does the decline of memory skills mean for the population at large? What we call experience is the application of lessons learned and stored in our memories. What happens when the memories aren't there? We lose the lessons of experience. If you're a Republican, you revere Ronald Reagan while forgetting the tawdry Iran-Contra scandal. If you're a Democrat, you long for the days of Bill Clinton while forgetting his disgraceful personal behavior. The selective memory employed by children and spouses works overtime for everyone during an election year...and political campaigns count on it.

So the message today is simply this: your brain is a muscle, just like your biceps. You need to exercise it. Read more books, magazines, and newspapers, and think about what you're reading. Do puzzles. Listen to the radio instead of watching TV.

You may never know your memory is failing until it actually happens, and by then it's too late. Work your brain now. It's good for you, and for the rest of us, too.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo