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Boost your brain power!
2

Boost your brain power!

Boost your brain power!

(OP)
This is a silly post, but hey, i'll ask anyway....

I always tend to worry that i'm not 'brainy' enough. When I see a product/invention etc that i find interesting and clever, or i'm stuck on solving a problem, I get cheesed-off with myself that I have'nt the talent to produce such a device....

Any tips on becoming more creative and brainier.


RE: Boost your brain power!

Eat lots of celery and do expert sudokus at the same time...If that doesn't work then you have no chance.

RE: Boost your brain power!

Brainies do not invent anything, they market others inventions.

Ask Bill Gates.

Start a small business and hire smart people around you.

RE: Boost your brain power!

I always thought the brand name was a kind of in-joke to let you know what they were made of.  Now the term "pork faggots" is just digging the innuendo hole deeper...

RE: Boost your brain power!

Must be a "British" thing?

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."   
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: Boost your brain power!

Why can't the british just say "Meat Balls" just like Americ... I mean everyone else....

David

RE: Boost your brain power!

Getting away from the food debate... start taking apart those things you find interesting/cleaver to learn how they were assembled and the mechanics behind them.  The more exposure to onther things you have, the more they stick in your brain for later retrieval when needed.

I am constantly taking my kids cheap toys apart to see a) how they are made, b) how they work, c) how they are assembled, and D) how they can give them away for such low prices.

And remember its not brain power that creates new things, but rather creativity to apply old things in ways.

"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."

Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

RE: Boost your brain power!

Solve Crossword puzzles.

RE: Boost your brain power!

Play chess

RE: Boost your brain power!

Eat blueberries  

Sincerely

RE: Boost your brain power!

The brain is often compared to a muscle, the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Ditto the brain.

However, there are a nunmber of good reads out there from the likes of Edward De Bono (I particularly like "Latral Thinking") and Tony Buzzan who writes about brain power and memory.
His latest, which I am now reading, is "The Power of Verbal Inteligence".

In many ways the way we use our brains has changed dramatically both over the years and with our individual lives.
As children we are, for example, pre-programmed to learn and have natural language abilities, with a inbuilt grammer, apparently, but equally apparently no inate ability to spell and that may be because written language and mature language is an artifical tool.

Historically, when only the elite could read and write, "ordinary" people had impressive memories and perhaps more dexterity with mental excercises.
The ability to read and write took that need away and people progressive lost the impetus to read and memorise.
In school, about the only things you needed to memorise were  multiplication tables and poems (e.g. the Rhyme of the Ancinet Mariner of exceptional length). Today you are told you don't need to memorise things, you just look them up.
However, the inate abilities are all still there, just not used and hence the success of writers such as these in tapping into these abilities and showing us how we can indeed improve ourselves.

So my suggestion is to excercise the mind as others have suggested, but like everything esle, there is always an "expert" who can help us do so more effectively.

JMW
www.ViscoAnalyser.com

RE: Boost your brain power!

As an ex soldier, I support the idea that “Your Mind is Your Primary Weapon.”

There is some very interesting CD training for developing and understanding creativity.

See -> http://www.ideafocus.com/products/serious/_serious.htm

I think Dr. De Bono makes some credible argument for improving thinking skills in his other books on Six Hats and learning to think,

You may not be able to improve on your genetics but you probably can learn to use your abilities to their fullest.

I believe in exercise, and good nutrition to develop peak performance anyway. I try to limit alcohol consumption.

I think it's good to set aside quiet time to actually think about problems and possibilities.

I have experimented with practicing multiplication tables when I go jogging to see if I could improve my ability to think on my feet. It’s doable.

One of the reasons for learning to play the piano (in addition to enjoying music) was to see if I could develop additional neural pathways in my brain. To that end, I use the computer mouse on the RH side at work, and the LH side at home.

I haven’t owned a TV in about 25 years. I see it as an obstacle to forming an objective opinion and in depended thought to receive to the same manufactured messages as all the other gerbils.

RE: Boost your brain power!

After posting this, I thought I should probably return to the thread and apologize in advance to anyone offended by the gerbil comment.

I like the gerbil model, because gerbils are fed by lapping the nutritional fluid provided them from a TUBE placed in their habitat. At least that’s what I saw the last time I was in a pet store.

My personal opinion on TVs does vacillate between several two not too complementary views.

On the one hand, sometimes I take the position given the economics of the programming and commercials that I would allow one in my habitat if it was paid for by politicians and marketing groups. Why would I pay good money to hear messages clearly tailored to benefit those groups?

Then I realize politicians placing media devices in homes has been tried and could immediately arouse the suspicion of all citizens (at least hopefully).

Maybe the fact that the audience pays for the TVs and service is part of the illusion that it would some how deliver content that somehow benefits the audience, though not in any indispensable way.

I personally don’t think most human beings, myself included, have sufficient emotional filtering to come away after viewing most well crafted audiovisual presentations remaining emotionally neutral.

RE: Boost your brain power!

As an engineer, we should recognize that no single tool is the end-all or be-all.  This applies to TV as well.  To be totally dependent on a SINGLE source for data is the pitfall.  As with alcohol, EVERYTHING should be done in moderation.  That goes with being a balanced person.

TTFN



RE: Boost your brain power!

I own TV but only use to watch movies of my choice for my entertainment or some sports events if like them.

News, I get from internet. Views, I form my own.

Ads, I ignore for the most part.

RE: Boost your brain power!

food to get smarter?  are you guys serious?  

RE: Boost your brain power!

Why not?  They've just recently postulated that eating fish allowed the human brain to evolve and develop, which is what my mother used to tell me 40 yrs ago.

TTFN



RE: Boost your brain power!

Eat garlic, blueberries, dark chocolate, etc etc. Take your vitamins and get plenty of rest that YOU need. I agree with Madmango...creativity is what re-invents the wheel. I've taking apart my toys for years... Both mechanical and electrical. My Dad use to scream  "...we just bought that for you!"  Now I do it with my child's toys surprise

Edson Gebo
Mechanical Designer/Drafter
SW2007 SP2.0
Cadra 2006 (yup 2D still exists)
-------------------------------------
Sometimes Success Begins at Failure
-------------------------------------

RE: Boost your brain power!

I haven't seen any evidence that eating certain foods can improve intelligence. There may be nutrients that help to reduce the cognitive decline associated with ageing, but, to my knowledge, a healthy person cannot improve his fluid g simply by modifying his or her diet.

There is, however, plenty of evidence suggesting that certain drugs such as caffeine can improve cognitive functioning:

http://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=caffeine+cognitive+&hl=en&lr=

-Christine

RE: Boost your brain power!

There's one thing I like to do to tickle the synapses- I play chess with my girlfriend about three or four times a week.  We have very different styles - mine is sort of like a steamroller stuck in first gear, hers is more like a machine gun stuck on full auto.  Makes for some interesting chess.

RE: Boost your brain power!


Coffee doesn't do the same for me as it might for others. Thought here...Do energy drinks count for cognitive functioning? I know when I drink one of those beverages that come in the 'SUPERSIZE ME' 24 oz can, I become fairly alert and energized. Honestly, I want to believe they are good for ya but there made of mostly processed sugars. But then again alcohol isn't neither but the ingredients that create a beer are. The saying was an apple a day will keep the doctor away...now it's a drink a day...just my .25 cents (inflation)

Break out the Rubik's cube smile

Cheers!

Edson Gebo
Mechanical Designer/Drafter
SW2007 SP2.0
Cadra 2006 (yup 2D still exists)
-------------------------------------
Sometimes Success Begins at Failure
-------------------------------------

RE: Boost your brain power!

Start hanging out with stupid people.  You'll feel smart right away!

RE: Boost your brain power!

I do that daley ... dailey ... daily ... whatever.

Chris
SolidWorks 06 5.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 10-27-06)

RE: Boost your brain power!

Brain transplant

RE: Boost your brain power!

COEngineer--

Hanging out with stupid people is unavoidable.  Many workplaces are rife with them.

However, NEVER argue with a stupid person.  He will only bring you down to his level, and then beat you with experience...

old field guy

RE: Boost your brain power!

Dear oldfieldguy...a member of eng-tips.com actually has that phrase/slogan in their signature. Avoiding stupid people is not an easy task. What was the line in Caddy Shack, "Hey the world needs ditch diggers too", or something...

Hey...I don't think I'm stupid until I talk with my 4 year old. Did you know Goofy has a son and his name is Max...not me! I had to look it up...boy did I feel stupid wink

Edson Gebo
Mechanical Designer/Drafter
SW2007 SP2.0
Cadra 2006 (yup 2D still exists)
-------------------------------------
Sometimes Success Begins at Failure
-------------------------------------

RE: Boost your brain power!

Edson-

Wait until you acquire grandkids - that's how I found out how dumb I REALLY am!

John Nabors

'Heaven is the place where the police are British, the chefs are Italian, the mechanics are German, the poets are French, and it is all organized by the Swiss.

Hell is the place where the police are German, the chefs are British, the mechanics are French, the poets are Swiss and it is all organized by the Italians.'

RE: Boost your brain power!

Juggling is one act that keeps both sides of your brain working simultaneously.

RE: Boost your brain power!

John,
I thought it was lovers, not poets..... and that heaven was where the Italians were the lovers and the French the chefs... but it works your way too, if one replaces poets with lovers.love

JMW
www.ViscoAnalyser.com

RE: Boost your brain power!

Hire a life coach.  Trust me, it works.

RE: Boost your brain power!

Call me odd but I read upside down. It helps work your brain and once you are good enough at it you don't have to have people turn things around for you to read!

David

RE: Boost your brain power!

aardvarkdw...that is so whacked...I ACTUALLY DO THAT!!! I don't think I'll be joining MENSA anytime soon but...:~)

Edson Gebo
Mechanical Designer/Drafter
SW2007 SP2.0
Cadra 2006 (yup 2D still exists)
-------------------------------------
Sometimes Success Begins at Failure
-------------------------------------

RE: Boost your brain power!

This is what I tell my kids:
Genious (success, getting rich, inventing something, etc.) is 1% inspiration (talent) and 99% perspiration.  Didn't Einstein say somethink like this?

RE: Boost your brain power!

Graybeach,

Is that why engineers sometimes smell so bad? smile

David

RE: Boost your brain power!

aardvarkdw:

Yes, but one must differentiate between the smell of BO and the smell of BS.

RE: Boost your brain power!

sughew, I often feel the same way, and would like to increase my CREATIVITY, which is not necessarily the same thing as INTELLIGENCE (which I could stand to improve also:))

I often think if I had it to do over again I would get some actual hands-on art training (as opposed to art history, art criticism, etc.) something to improve visualization and creative skills.

Unfortunately it is the nature of the engineering profession that, in lots of fields, people can have a great deal of technical and organizational skills, be extremely competant and successful and yet almost never get a chance to do anything creative.

Regards,

Mike

graybeach, that was Edison

RE: Boost your brain power!

Oh yeah, it was Edison.  I always get those two mixed up.

SnTMan, I agree with you about creativity.  As I sit through technical lectures (so I can get enough PDHs to maintain my PE registration) it occurs to me that a class in creative writing, pottery, literature or film would be more helpful all around.  I'll have to put that on the short list for New Year's resolutions.     

RE: Boost your brain power!

graybeach, I firmly beleive the more the hands are invoved in shaping matter the better. There is something about the hands and head working together to produce some thing that just feeds creativity. I spent a lot of years fabricating metal and so forth, and kind of miss a lot of it, although the pay is better and the work is physically easier at my "desk" job.

Regards,

Mike

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