Friday, August 20, 2010

Not being self-focussed in your 20s, How the brain matures

Now there is scientific research to support young people in their 20s who are not focused-in-life.... I am not in my 20s anymore, but I am that sort of a person, so it is good to have scientific backup..
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/magazine/22Adulthood-t.html?pagewanted=4&ref=general&src=me

Interesting Excerpts -

As the brain matures, one thing that happens is the pruning of the synapses. Synaptic pruning does not occur willy-nilly; it depends largely on how any one brain pathway is used. By cutting off unused pathways, the brain eventually settles into a structure that’s most efficient for the owner of that brain, creating well-worn grooves for the pathways that person uses most. Synaptic pruning intensifies after rapid brain-cell proliferation during childhood and again in the period that encompasses adolescence and the 20s. It is the mechanism of “use it or lose it”: the brains we have are shaped largely in response to the demands made of them.
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..Maybe there’s an analogy to be found in the hierarchy of needs, a theory put forth in the 1940s by the psychologist Abraham Maslow. According to Maslow, people can pursue more elevated goals only after their basic needs of food, shelter and sex have been met.

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