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I have great news for you. The brain is extremely plastic. Read about neuroplasticity here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroplasticity http://en.wikipedia.org

I have great news for you. The brain is extremely plastic. Read about neuroplasticity here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroplasticity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroplasticity Rest assured that your capacity to acquire new skills and knowledge is massive. You don't just get smarter. You get smarter at something in particular. Playing chess, doing IQ tests, running the 100m dash, programming, social skills, public speaking, etc. So you need to pick a particular skill or set of skills or vocation and decide to get smarter at that. There are some general rules for improving brain function though. Here are a few: 1. Read books. Reading trains your brain to concentrate for long periods of time without fatigue or distraction. There is a growing school of thought that the short bursts of reading and frequent distractions we experience online are harming our ability for deep contemplation, introspection and concentration. See Nicholas Carr, The Shallows. http://n.pr/bnAfRV http://n.pr/bnAfRV 2. Try to get 10 hours of sleep a night. Sleep improves mental and athletic performance. http://n.pr/9wQsXr http://n.pr/9wQsXr 3. Maintain your cardiovascular fitness. I highly recommend running. After years of cycling, swimming, hiking, etc I've found that running gives my brain function the biggest boost and provides me with sustained mental energy through the day. A good cardiovascular system supplies your brain with plenty of healthy oxygen rich blood. It's like putting racing fuel in your car. 4. Eat well. Cook your own food. Avoid processed or pre-prepared foods and non-organic foods (mainly due to the pesticides). Fish is awesome, but watch out for mercury. 5. Don't drink anything stronger than wine. Don't do drugs. (just like your mom told you) 6. Watch your weight. I find the biggest source of mental fatigue is when I've gained a few pounds. Good luck, and congratulations on making the decision at a relatively young age to focus on your mental fitness.

mikeleeorg 16y ago
+1 for a great response. I totally agree. I would like to expand upon one of the points and add a few more too. Expanding on #3: Team sports & activities can increase not just mental acuity, but social acuity as well. Being academically intelligent will get you far, but being socially & emotionally intelligent as well will get you even further. Also, martial arts, dancing, and any kind of activity that requires fine coordination can significantly build new neural patterns. If you enjoy doing them, then the overall mental health you gain is a total bonus. #7: Learning a new language and/or travel outside of your country. Different languages and cultures can actually affect the way you perceive the world in subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) ways. They expand your understanding & view of the world, thereby allowing you to see an issue from multiple viewpoints. A quick example is national and global politics. I don't really care for politicians, but I try to follow the shifts in the world climate as much as I can. And I'm always impressed by how my European friends seem to have such a keen understanding of US politics, while I'm scratching my head about European politics. #8: Foster many interests. If you have a random interest in birds, feed it. Read books on birds. Go bird watching. Join a bird watching group. One of the reasons people are cited as geniuses is because they are able to engage in lateral thinking. They can see patterns in seemingly unrelated topics. This is a powerful mental mechanism that can help in all facets of life - especially in solving difficult problems. #9: Engage in critical thinking. Practice the art of asking "Why?" Don't always accept what you see and hear at face value. Question it, probe behind it, and get at the underlying truth. The news media is a great place to practice this. I used to work in this industry and even studied subjects like communication, propaganda, and marketing in college. Allow your curiosity to take over as you read the news or watch a TV show. If something doesn't make sense, try searching for more information about it online. Read about it until you've satisfied that itch of curiosity. One word of caution here: this can be taken too far. I think it's a fine practice to think critically about the declarations people tend to make. I have many friends who say things that seem to be full of questionable assumptions. I want nothing more than to question their statements and challenge them. But doing so can easily cross the line into obnoxiousness. For friends who like to debate, I'll jump right into it. But I pick those battles carefully. Some can take it, some can't. I hope this helps. It's great that you're asking this question. Wish I had asked it when I was 19. Good luck!
- Ixiaus 16y ago
  Upvoted for an excellent expansion on the OP's comment. I will second world travel; I backpacked through India for two months on my own (made a lot of friends though) on a budget. I've also been sent out on many survival trips, while not world travel, you see a side of life most urban dwellers never even scratch at. I will strongly second the "no drugs" advice. I experimented and quickly stopped because I noticed - more than inhibiting my mental capacity - it ruins your life and makes you dependent (rather than autonomous). Autonomy is the watchword of an adept mind! Read. Read. Read. But, don't believe everything you read! Part of being intelligent is knowing when to accept a piece of thinking and when to question it; when you do question it, dig into it deeply until you come out the other end with a whole new set of original conclusions that were inspired by one dubious conclusion. I will strongly second the advice to foster many interests. You interact with people that have points of view (goes with world traveling well) you would never consider. Also, don't forget, "weirdos" or "eccentrics" have much to offer - just be sure to follow your gut when interacting with them (some have misguided intentions, others are pure as gold).
  - krsna 16y ago
    I absolutely agree with reading. But I'm surprised no-one's mentioned writing. I find writing (à la pen-and-paper) to be a great way to organize one's own thoughts and opinions. It's so easy to read someone else's opinion and assimilate it implicitly into one's own view. Writing, on the other hand, seems to allow for deeper inquiry into a subject.
    - mikeleeorg 16y ago
      Ah yes, great point. The critical thinking, introspection, and analysis that goes into writing definitely strengthens neural pathways. You just reminded me of another one: teaching. One study showed that older siblings, on average, tend to be slightly smarter than their younger siblings. One plausible rationale may be because they spend time teaching their younger brothers & sisters. http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=3401 http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=3401 If you've ever taught someone a subject, and found yourself walking away knowing that subject better than you did before, you're experiencing a similar phenomenon. The act of teaching a subject requires you to understand it well enough to be able to synthesize, then explain it to someone else.
HiroshiSan 16y ago
Thank you so much for the wonderful response. out of the 6 things you've mentioned I have been doing all of them except for #2 which I have been working on slowly. Running is absolutely amazing, I definitely agree with you that it provides the biggest boost of brain function, after a nice run a long the canal I feel like I can take on the world. I now just need to find something I love doing, and just stick with it. I have trouble sticking with something, as soon as it gets challenging I back out...most likely a fear of failure that I need to overcome.
cromulent 16y ago
+1. Regarding 4 and 5 though, will these actually improve your brain function - make you smarter? Or are they just to guard against decline? I've heard about fish being good in the womb and good for warding off dementia, but I haven't seen anything about it actually making you smarter. And I guess the warning on drugs doesn't include nootropics.
- timdorr 16y ago
  #4 has a tiny bit of bullshit in it. Organic produce doesn't not use pesticides, they just use older, outdated ones that are perceived as "safer" because they've been around longer. New stuff is adapted to newer plant threats and has less harmful side effects. I buy my produce non-organic when possible and my meat organic, because that actually has an appreciable benefit (less hormones and other crap being put into my food, rather than on top of it). That said, the rest is solid. Cooking for yourself is cheaper, healthier, and tastier.
  - cromulent 16y ago
    Cheaper, healthier, tastier, sure. Does it make you smarter?
    - albemuth 16y ago
      Mens sana in corpore sano
      - cromulent 16y ago
        Not enough I'm afraid. I can't help thinking of Stephen Hawking.
    - timdorr 16y ago
      If you get enough Omega-3's, then sure! Plus, you get to learn a useful skill. That should wrinkle the brain a bit.
stcredzero 16y ago
#2 - Some researchers think there is wide variability in the optimal amount of sleep. Some even think that you can get too much sleep. The thing to do is to pay attention and experiment. I sleep in two sessions, one 4 hours, the second three. Getting more sleep makes me feel a little worse. The good news, is that there are cheap sleep monitoring smartphone apps.
- jpdbaugh 16y ago
  I completely agree as a bimodal sleeper myself. If I sleep over 7 hours in one session I feel terrible, much worse even than if I would have only gotten 5 hours of sleep that night. I usually sleep 5 hours a night and take 2 and half hour nap. You just have to figure out what works for you.
- HiroshiSan 16y ago
  What has worked for me in the past was going to bed at 10:30pm and waking up at 5:30a - 6:00a. Now that summer has started I've screwed up my sleeping pattern that I'm slowly trying to get back.
keefe 16y ago
I'm very much in agreement here. Sound body, sound mind and all that. A few comments: Micronutrients - you should take a vitamin daily Omega 3s - these are well worth supplementing, they play a key role in brain development and I have felt an impact from them. 2) The ideal case is to let your body decide how much sleep it needs, I rarely sleep more than 8 hours. 3) I used to run, but a knee injury has taken me out of that particular hobby. What matters is that you raise your heart rate - elliptical machines do a great job, particularly if you do weights in advance. exrx.net has some great info. 5) This shows a bit of prejudice. You definitely should moderate your drug intake and bear in mind that caffeine is just as much a drug as alcohol or thc or lsd. You have to make up your own mind which drugs are acceptable and how you want to use them and in what quantities. Drinking 8oz of wine or 2 ounces of cognac are pretty well equivalent, it's the alcohol that matters. Same goes for tea vs coffee etc.

mikeleeorg 16y ago

+1 for a great response. I totally agree. I would like to expand upon one of the points and add a few more too. Expanding on #3: Team sports & activities can increase not just mental acuity, but social acuity as well. Being academically intelligent will get you far, but being socially & emotionally intelligent as well will get you even further. Also, martial arts, dancing, and any kind of activity that requires fine coordination can significantly build new neural patterns. If you enjoy doing them, then the overall mental health you gain is a total bonus. #7: Learning a new language and/or travel outside of your country. Different languages and cultures can actually affect the way you perceive the world in subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) ways. They expand your understanding & view of the world, thereby allowing you to see an issue from multiple viewpoints. A quick example is national and global politics. I don't really care for politicians, but I try to follow the shifts in the world climate as much as I can. And I'm always impressed by how my European friends seem to have such a keen understanding of US politics, while I'm scratching my head about European politics. #8: Foster many interests. If you have a random interest in birds, feed it. Read books on birds. Go bird watching. Join a bird watching group. One of the reasons people are cited as geniuses is because they are able to engage in lateral thinking. They can see patterns in seemingly unrelated topics. This is a powerful mental mechanism that can help in all facets of life - especially in solving difficult problems. #9: Engage in critical thinking. Practice the art of asking "Why?" Don't always accept what you see and hear at face value. Question it, probe behind it, and get at the underlying truth. The news media is a great place to practice this. I used to work in this industry and even studied subjects like communication, propaganda, and marketing in college. Allow your curiosity to take over as you read the news or watch a TV show. If something doesn't make sense, try searching for more information about it online. Read about it until you've satisfied that itch of curiosity. One word of caution here: this can be taken too far. I think it's a fine practice to think critically about the declarations people tend to make. I have many friends who say things that seem to be full of questionable assumptions. I want nothing more than to question their statements and challenge them. But doing so can easily cross the line into obnoxiousness. For friends who like to debate, I'll jump right into it. But I pick those battles carefully. Some can take it, some can't. I hope this helps. It's great that you're asking this question. Wish I had asked it when I was 19. Good luck!

Ixiaus 16y ago
Upvoted for an excellent expansion on the OP's comment. I will second world travel; I backpacked through India for two months on my own (made a lot of friends though) on a budget. I've also been sent out on many survival trips, while not world travel, you see a side of life most urban dwellers never even scratch at. I will strongly second the "no drugs" advice. I experimented and quickly stopped because I noticed - more than inhibiting my mental capacity - it ruins your life and makes you dependent (rather than autonomous). Autonomy is the watchword of an adept mind! Read. Read. Read. But, don't believe everything you read! Part of being intelligent is knowing when to accept a piece of thinking and when to question it; when you do question it, dig into it deeply until you come out the other end with a whole new set of original conclusions that were inspired by one dubious conclusion. I will strongly second the advice to foster many interests. You interact with people that have points of view (goes with world traveling well) you would never consider. Also, don't forget, "weirdos" or "eccentrics" have much to offer - just be sure to follow your gut when interacting with them (some have misguided intentions, others are pure as gold).
- krsna 16y ago
  I absolutely agree with reading. But I'm surprised no-one's mentioned writing. I find writing (à la pen-and-paper) to be a great way to organize one's own thoughts and opinions. It's so easy to read someone else's opinion and assimilate it implicitly into one's own view. Writing, on the other hand, seems to allow for deeper inquiry into a subject.
  - mikeleeorg 16y ago
    Ah yes, great point. The critical thinking, introspection, and analysis that goes into writing definitely strengthens neural pathways. You just reminded me of another one: teaching. One study showed that older siblings, on average, tend to be slightly smarter than their younger siblings. One plausible rationale may be because they spend time teaching their younger brothers & sisters. http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=3401 http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=3401 If you've ever taught someone a subject, and found yourself walking away knowing that subject better than you did before, you're experiencing a similar phenomenon. The act of teaching a subject requires you to understand it well enough to be able to synthesize, then explain it to someone else.

HiroshiSan 16y ago

Thank you so much for the wonderful response. out of the 6 things you've mentioned I have been doing all of them except for #2 which I have been working on slowly. Running is absolutely amazing, I definitely agree with you that it provides the biggest boost of brain function, after a nice run a long the canal I feel like I can take on the world. I now just need to find something I love doing, and just stick with it. I have trouble sticking with something, as soon as it gets challenging I back out...most likely a fear of failure that I need to overcome.

cromulent 16y ago

+1. Regarding 4 and 5 though, will these actually improve your brain function - make you smarter? Or are they just to guard against decline? I've heard about fish being good in the womb and good for warding off dementia, but I haven't seen anything about it actually making you smarter. And I guess the warning on drugs doesn't include nootropics.

timdorr 16y ago
#4 has a tiny bit of bullshit in it. Organic produce doesn't not use pesticides, they just use older, outdated ones that are perceived as "safer" because they've been around longer. New stuff is adapted to newer plant threats and has less harmful side effects. I buy my produce non-organic when possible and my meat organic, because that actually has an appreciable benefit (less hormones and other crap being put into my food, rather than on top of it). That said, the rest is solid. Cooking for yourself is cheaper, healthier, and tastier.
- cromulent 16y ago
  Cheaper, healthier, tastier, sure. Does it make you smarter?
  - albemuth 16y ago
    Mens sana in corpore sano
    - cromulent 16y ago
      Not enough I'm afraid. I can't help thinking of Stephen Hawking.
  - timdorr 16y ago
    If you get enough Omega-3's, then sure! Plus, you get to learn a useful skill. That should wrinkle the brain a bit.

stcredzero 16y ago

#2 - Some researchers think there is wide variability in the optimal amount of sleep. Some even think that you can get too much sleep. The thing to do is to pay attention and experiment. I sleep in two sessions, one 4 hours, the second three. Getting more sleep makes me feel a little worse. The good news, is that there are cheap sleep monitoring smartphone apps.

jpdbaugh 16y ago
I completely agree as a bimodal sleeper myself. If I sleep over 7 hours in one session I feel terrible, much worse even than if I would have only gotten 5 hours of sleep that night. I usually sleep 5 hours a night and take 2 and half hour nap. You just have to figure out what works for you.
HiroshiSan 16y ago
What has worked for me in the past was going to bed at 10:30pm and waking up at 5:30a - 6:00a. Now that summer has started I've screwed up my sleeping pattern that I'm slowly trying to get back.

keefe 16y ago

I'm very much in agreement here. Sound body, sound mind and all that. A few comments: Micronutrients - you should take a vitamin daily Omega 3s - these are well worth supplementing, they play a key role in brain development and I have felt an impact from them. 2) The ideal case is to let your body decide how much sleep it needs, I rarely sleep more than 8 hours. 3) I used to run, but a knee injury has taken me out of that particular hobby. What matters is that you raise your heart rate - elliptical machines do a great job, particularly if you do weights in advance. exrx.net has some great info. 5) This shows a bit of prejudice. You definitely should moderate your drug intake and bear in mind that caffeine is just as much a drug as alcohol or thc or lsd. You have to make up your own mind which drugs are acceptable and how you want to use them and in what quantities. Drinking 8oz of wine or 2 ounces of cognac are pretty well equivalent, it's the alcohol that matters. Same goes for tea vs coffee etc.