New Year’s Reading for Long Brain Life: Norma Roth’s 2012 Book List for Baby Boomers to stay mentally tough and in the game,urges everyone to read Eric Erickson books for Tips on Keeping Your Brain Fit and Tough

January 3, 2012--For many decades Norma Roth has been educating herself and the public about brain health. During that time Roth, author of Aging Gracefully With Dignity, Integrity & Spunk; Aging Defiantly, she has read hundreds of books, some better than others. For 2012 she urges everyone, especially those millions of Baby Boomers looking, to break out those ground breaking books by Eric Erickson and his wife, Joan.

Vital Involvement in Old Age and The Life Cycle Completed: Extended Version both put forth the case that growing "older is simply another phase of life—part of the life cycle and no different from the other phases." Eric Erickson, a prominent Pulitzer Prize winning psychiatrist, told us in the last century that "this phase calls for making new plans, having new goals and taking steps to fulfill the goals you have for this important and active stage of your life."

2012 will be a monumental year, as government seeks to intrude more and more in to our lives, and this make it all the more vital, as Roth often says, for "the Silver Generation and those entering that age to throw off the shackles of the green pasture and get on with life. Millions of highly accomplished people, men and women who have changed the world, could easily find themselves losing control of their existence; decisions on where and how they live left to government bureaucrats, family members or seemingly well-meaning doctors. We just fight this with every fiber of our beings, don't go easy into that good night,"

Norma Roth has looked to the Erickson's for knowledge and wisdom, and thus she encourages everyone else to do the same. Roth has been touting her PRS, Personal Retrieval System, that relates to keeping the brain fit by finding the hidden nuggets knowledge and perspective collected over a lifetime; using the PRS to plow new trenches within in the brain by taxing it beyond our perceived capabilities. Great literature might suffice; Shakespeare, the Bible, Plato, Socrates; or try to understand something extremely complex like how the nuclear secret was unlocked by scientists in the 1930s and 1940s, explore the mysterious world of nano technology or wonders of the universe.

Roth is very pleased that, at last, Neuroscience's emphasis on the brain and publication of data as well by researchers and scientists and respected Institutes like Johns Hopkins are bringing forth studies that confirm the ability of the brain to function well into old age?actually almost until the end of life. The proliferation of articles by Neuroscientists studying the potential of the brain to maintain its function is giving a much needed data base to affirm the continued functioning of the brain into old age—we are talking into the 90's.

This new material, says Roth, should put an end to any lingering doubts about the degeneration and deterioration of the mind as we get older. Of course, many members of the Silver Generation already know this as they find new and new resources within themselves for continued learning and participation in life.

The prescient forecasting of the Erikson's as they made their way through their lives and their work predicting this continuity of life. Erikson and that the Life Cycle would be extended, meaning that achievements and potential contributions of older people (whom Ms. Roth calls the dynamic Silver Generation) are not yet known (expectations high)

The proliferation of research coming out of the scientific communities adds a wealth to the much needed scientific data base needed to offset the greatly outmoded, but still prevalent social attitudes and behavior patterns, says Roth and allow members of the Silver Generation to plan a life that is interesting and in which they continue to participate and contribute to the world around them.

Roth applauds the proliferation of recent article dealing with improving your memory; exercising your memory, using that memory. Roth agrees with brain workout, and suggests that there are many ways to utilize the brain?that have value.

Roth suggests that this dynamic generation of the 21st Century start by looking into and tapping resources within themselves for exercising the brain, that members of the Silver Generation, start with Treasure Hunts within their own brain based on the long years of learning, experience, skills and abilities.

In Aging Gracefully With Dignity, Integrity & Spunk Intact: Aging Defiantly, Roth describes the wonderful world of rich experience, learning and memory that lie within each person's own memory banks: the things we learned and did not continue, but liked?even loved, but let go because life got in the way; the hobbies we pursued: miniature shipbuilding or wood working that we got pretty proficient at?but dropped along the way; the areas of music or art or reading! or writing may well lie just beneath the surface ready to emerge. Roth calls this "Finding the Buried Treasure Within the Self."

She gives multiple examples in her book about "giving thought to those buried treasures, skills, abilities, knowledge bases that have been lying within you, waiting for your commands."

Eric and Joan Erikson called the older people the "collectors of memory" and saw maturity, wisdom and perspective of older people as qualities of immense importance not only to themselves but to the community they live in, including the wider community. Today, science and research are finding that the continued use of the brain is key to keeping that brain power available throughout a lifetime; in other words, "Use It (your brain), or Lose it." Not rocket science when you think of that.

Although the many new games advertised as "brain games" are rapidly becoming available to the Silver Generation, and are certainly worthwhile and welcome to supplement to expand and target individual needs, Roth suggests that members of the Silver Generation might want to start with the treasures they already have and build on them.

Think about it, says Roth. Reading is giving your brain a workout; studying or reviewing that interest in literature, art, philosophy or psychology or history is giving that brain a workout; discussion, clarifying and getting new information is giving your brain a workout?so many wonderful ways, including the new tools of mind games at your fingertips: it gets better every day.

Roth notes that studies like a recent one published by Yeshiva University "demonstrate that continuing participation in a range of mentally stimulating activities such as that which is required for "playing chess and bridge... serve to protect the health of the brain" and also lay a foundation for continued use of the brain.

Other earlier research, commonly called the "Use It or Lose It" phenomenon, mentioned above, postulates simply: as you age "if you continue to use your brain you will continue to be able to, and if you do not you will 'lose' that ability. A no-brainer when you think of it.

Many people have been buoyed by that suggestion. Roth sees the current research "significant benefits accrue to those who read regularly " (also a part of the findings of lead author Dr. Verghese at Yeshiva) vastly contributing to a generation of people who, as Roth has stated, are growing older but see themselves as remain dynamic individuals seeking fully to participate in life.

Roth would add to the list of exercising the brain playing board games with grandchildren: checkers, monopoly, puzzles and "Trivial Pursuit" will also serve as brain exercise.

With the holiday season upon us, Ms. Roth suggests this is a good time to renew interests in these games—most of us have a fair number of people around to play with. See how quickly games come back and moves seem almost automatic, Roth says.

And, don't forget to look at some of the Trivial Pursuit add- on categories that touch upon your old interests. Roth found that often the "literature" questions were answered correctly by her almost without thinking.

She realized that, although, other things had gotten in the way of continued studies in that field, the information had stayed with her. And yet, where does that knowledge, not used for decades come from? There is nothing like the sudden realization that you have a hidden knowledge base?not lost, not gone, but within your memory banks: highly retrievable and so satisfying (Or, put another way stored in a data base within your Personal Retrieval System (PRS), in other words your brain).

Be innovative, Roth suggests, hunt those treasures within the brain?and begin a joyful phase of the fulfilling life that is being predicted and granted to you by the new Dynamic Age.

Expand old pathways; find new treasures; and exercise your brain.

Ms. Roth suggests members of the Silver Generation make Aging Gracefully With Dignity, Integrity & Spunk Intact; Aging Defiantly a New Year's Resolution along with the Eriksons' Vital Involvement in Old Age.