Got Summaries for 2008?

Half of the scientific studies I read in ’08 required a reincarnation of A. Einstein for full comprehension. The other half is clear as crystal, and memorable. The media knows that only 10% of the 310 million Americans are interested in science stories. They do not print 95% of scientific breakthroughs.

Stuff For Inquiring Minds

1. For every 100 students enrolled in college, only 18 complete the requirements to receive their degree”. Compared internationally, we rank below half of the major countries.

The four-year colleges disagree, they claim a bit more than 50% get their degrees in six years (not the usual four years). Still lower than a beetle’s belly.

The Gates Foundation is granting $500 million in 2009 to raise the graduating level. Hilary Pennington, Gates director of U.S. special initiatives says, “Maybe institutions would get more money for students who come back for a second semester or perhaps students would get their loan reduced for each semester they finished.”

Do you agree bribery in the defense of education is worthwhile?

George R. Boggs, prez of the American Association of Community Colleges (even lower rates of graduation) says, “students who take a college-success skills course their first semester are much more successful.” He is on-the-money, and here’s why.

Coda: High school graduates do not know how to study, learn or remember what they heard or read. Statistically they read about 100 words per page, while the average for college graduates is 250-300 wpm. They keep falling behind daily. Think on it.

2. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources report these numbers about mental health (for 2007) released in 2008. One of every five Americans suffer from or in the past five years suffered an incidence of Mental Illness, not stress, but disabling stress. Hospitals disagree: it is their consensus it is one-in four.

Look around your office, if your four peers are OK, then might it be you? Wicked.

3. Your brain produces 10,000 new brain cells daily. These new neurons (neurogenesis) travel to the area of the brain they are most needed for repairs and improved memory (hippocampus). Over the next 120 days the new neurons on the block make 10,000 new links (connections) with their established peers.

The term to remember for Inquiring Minds is Neuroplasticity, changes in brain function and structure. In the 1990s the scientific principle was: adult brains cannot and do not create new brain cells.

In 2008 research proved the hippocampus (memory and learning) engages in neuroplasticity through out life.

4. Each Homo sapiens maintains 100,000 kilometers (62,000 miles) of blood vessels. That is 2.5 times around the world. Imagine: a blood clot (embolism) anywhere in our highway of arteries, veins and capillaries produces a stroke or cardiovascular (heart) attack.

5. Do you believe you have willpower? About half of scientists in 2008 are unconvinced. Dr. Benjamin Libet, retired professor at UCSF proved the existence of willpower in 2,000, and it was verified in 2008.

Our conscious mind (left hemisphere) has a veto power over the automatic operations of our nonconsciousness. We are not robots automatons or cyborgs, but we are hardwired through DNA in
many vital areas.

Willpower is directed through the use of Attention, Intention, and Perseverance. It is located in our Left Prefrontal Cortex, linked to the Anterior Cingulate Cortex. Google: University of Wisconsin, Dr. Richard Davidson.

6. The avoidance of Immediate Gratification and Impulsive behavior has been linked in 2008 to loss of promotions in executive careers. Cooperation and the ability to operate in teams is a Human Resources predictor of corporate success. Choose between competition and cooperation; both are instincts from our Hunting-Gathering stage.

Google: Emotional and Social Intelligence, Dr. Daniel Goleman, University of Illinois, Chicago.

7. Intentionally using our non-dominant (passive) hand as a daily exercise improves executive performance significantly – up to 25%. About 85% of us are right handed (left-hemisphere) dominant, 10%
are dominantly left-handed, and 5% are ambidextrous.

a) practice brushing your teeth with your passive hand
b) improve your eyesight with 2 minutes of using your passive hand to trace imaginary (air) reclining 8s. Lemniscate is the infinity symbol we trace.
c) hold your fork in your non-dominant for two meals weekly.
d) two-minutes daily of writing with your passive hand is a worthwhile exercise.

Using your right hemisphere more produces a greater integration in your brain between hemispheres. It improves attention, learning, long-term memory, and comprehension.

8. Our brain intentionally forgets trivia (irrelevant detail) to allow more space for remembering important information. Communication is the be-all and end-all of our brain. We've got 100 billion nerve cells for data-exchange. Each links to thousands of neighboring cells. Our brain is a communicating machine, remodeling itself for adaptability to ever-changing environments. It gives us survival value.

Google: the journal Neuron, December 2008 – Max Planck Institute
of Neurobiology, Germany.

Big news about Synapses: Our PFC Prefrontal Cortex controls the suppression and retrieval of memories processed by the hippocampus.