Slashdot Mirror
Brain Decline Begins At Age 27
krou writes "The BBC is reporting that a new study suggests that our mental abilities start to dwindle at 27 after peaking at 22, and 27 could be seen as the 'start of old age.' The seven-year study, by Professor Timothy Salthouse of the University of Virginia, looked at 2,000 healthy people aged 18-60, and used a number of mental agility tests already used to spot signs of dementia. 'The first age at which there was any marked decline was at 27 in tests of brain speed, reasoning and visual puzzle-solving ability. Things like memory stayed intact until the age of 37, on average, while abilities based on accumulated knowledge, such as performance on tests of vocabulary or general information, increased until the age of 60.'"
but I'm 31, not 22.
"It doesn't cost enough, and it makes too much sense."
[sarcasm]
Yeah, like I'm going to pay any attention to a study by a guy who got his Ph.D. in 1974 whose brain has therefore been declining for at least 35 years...
[/sarcasm]
Or, maybe by their late 20s, people have had enough of stupid tests -- they're done with school and the day when success was measured by testing rather than real accomplishments are over. Being less interested and excited by tests, they score lower.
If old age begins at 27, then I can say that from over a decade in, it's not so bad. I can still kick 20-somethings butts. I just wish those darn kids would stay off my lawn. (True -- I live near a middle school and the bastards keep cutting through yards to walk to school...)
Tom Swiss | the infamous tms | my blog
You cannot wash away blood with blood
... or perhaps the reason they saw declining figures starting at the age of 27, is that older people who are more intelligent, tend to not have the time, choose not to waste the effort, and do not need the $100, to participate in these kinds of studies.
That's the problem with doing these kinds of studies as a point-measurement across an age-range. The test groups cannot possibly be equivalent, unless a VERY large sample is taken at random from the population. Frankly, I'll have trouble believing such a study unless it's a prospective study that tests the same volunteers across a span of their lifetime.
You think you have it bad, I'm 27. I was going to say something like "wooo! That means I'm at my peak." Then I realized that it said, right there, that 22 was the peak. Also I'm wearing my Mr Rogers cardigan, I told myself I was wearing it ironically, but now I see that for the lie it is. So enjoy these last few months when you can finish the summary before jumping to conclusions and can actually wear old person clothes ironically.
Well I feel like an idiot everyday of med school, so I am inclined to disagree.