The Art, Act or End of Attention...

Amity

"PAY ATTENSHUN !" screams my little grey cell, "I don't want to go missing in action...TPF will never forgive you and...what was I saying...?" :chin:
"...Ah yes, you are getting so damned lazy...your mental faculties have slipped off your nose...get a grip!"

I want to reply False something or other but I can't remember the phrase. I struggle...a vision of Trump...red-faced and angry comes to mind. There ya go: 'Fake News!'
Memory cell conspiracy.

OK. So, I've just had my morning mental exercise and read a Guardian article:

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/aug/17/stop-drinking-keep-reading-look-after-your-hearing-a-neurologists-tips-for-fighting-memory-loss-and-alzheimers

A quote struck me and I thought to look it up to make sure it was right.
I utilised my now customary 'copy and paste'. For some reason, the search box did not accept.
My grey cell just grinned and winked knowingly. Giving the :up: to the universe.
"See what I mean...use me or lose me, sucker!" :nerd:

So then, I returned to the article and penned the quote to paper, which I now can't find.
It lies somewhere amongst scribbled spider-like notes.
"You need to get a system, dopey" - grey cell (now wants the title GC)

Yeah, I know it. So why don't I do it?
The gap between thought and action.
Ah yes, it's something along the lines of...I glance at my scrawls...
'Memory as an activity'.
Why did I write that - is it important?
Focus.

What sticks out in my mind about the article?
I'll try to be systematic:
1. Reading
Keep doing it. Easy for some. Trying to keep a handle on the characters and plot without turning back the pages...means you have to pay attention...is there an art to this?
Does it help prevent or delay brain deterioration?
GC pleads: "Anything is worth a go, right? " and don't drink alcohol at the same time!!"
But what if vision is going...
The answer is Kindle.
Exercise your working memory.

2. Listening
Use your ears. Not just to hear.
That reminds me (hah!) of parents using subtitles when watching TV. Apparently, even younger people do it now. I sometimes use that function on YouTube. I don't watch or listen to educational videos, I prefer to download the transcript, even if my eyes hurt...

What's so difficult about listening to a book rather than reading?
The narrator's voice can hypnotise...great for falling asleep, if that is your aim...
Some people would die rather than give up their reading.
Just look at the 'Currently Reading' thread.
It has Front Page status, unlike the 'What are you listening to?' type threads stuck in the Lounge.
Is listening seen as inferior?
What does that say about the Art of Attention?

The What, Who, Why and How of the Art and Act of Attention.
Worth thinking about?
GC gives a :up:
"Now try and remember the quote from the article!"
"I can't!", I wail :groan: "I wasn't paying attention..."
"TRY harder!!!"
*sighs*

Why should I?
Nobody listens to me, anyway...
GC: "Your sense of self is sliding away...catch it!"

Memory flickers.

The aim of the game is to focus, and try to remember so that you can explain.

“The true art of memory is the art of attention.”
— Samuel Johnson

What have you been attending to, and why?
Do you get lost?
How's your cognition?
If you go for a walk, is it the same old, same old?
Or do you dare venture into the unkown?

Even the same old can be good for the art of attention.
Capturing details and appreciating what you have.
As your world shrinks...
Well, for some.

For philo surfers, what route to escape any thought rut or the same way of looking at the world?
Do we even need to, perhaps being still and paying closer attention is enough...?
TPF can and does help to connect GC's and even a few sparks. Wise-cracks :cool:

GC nods and is open to engagement with other GC's floating around.
Anyone?

praxis

Socialization is the most important part of keeping away Alzheimer’s and dementia, and keeping your memory.

I wonder if written online stimulation/socializing like here at TPF counts in this way.

Amity

Socialization is the most important part of keeping away Alzheimer’s and dementia, and keeping your memory.

I wonder if written online stimulation/socializing like here at TPF counts in this way. — praxis

Absolutely :100:
Why do you think I came back?
Seriously seeking attention, not. Well, not much :roll:
But to take care of GC.

Glad you read the article and picked out that piece :up:
Can you remember, without looking, any other areas of interest?

When I come to think about it...I don't remember reading anything about Writing...

praxis

↪Amity

To be honest I only skimmed the article for something that corresponded to my interest in something you said, though you’re post touches on several points of interest. I should have given it more attention :grimace: , but in my defense I’ve read similar articles recently.

Amity

To be honest I only skimmed the article — praxis

To be honest, I didn't give it my complete attention, as is obvious.

in my defense I’ve read similar articles recently. — praxis

Interesting. I've seen that happen when an author has a book to sell.

Oh look-see:

Neuroscientist Dr Richard Restak is a past president of the American Neuropsychiatric Association, who has lectured on the brain and behaviour everywhere from the Pentagon to Nasa, and written more than 20 books on the human brain.His latest, The Complete Guide to Memory: The Science of Strengthening Your Mind, homes in on the great unspoken fear that every time you can’t remember where you put your reading glasses, it’s a sign of impending doom. “In America today,” he writes “anyone over 50 lives in dread of the big A.” Memory lapses are, he writes, the single most common complaint over-55s raise with their doctors, even though much of what they describe turns out to be nothing to worry about. — The Guardian

That's kinda put me off a re-read.
Is it worth paying more or less attention to an article if we know it is an extended advert?

jgill

It's interesting to read of the varying opinions of Talking to Oneself. It can be a sign of oncoming dementia - or not. I've always done math by either talking with others or talking to myself, arguing both sides of an issue. As for children, they are encouraged to read aloud to themselves and others initially, but to do so as one matures is discouraged. We are taught to not utter the words we read, but doing so may help retain memories.

Amity

It's interesting to read of the varying opinions of Talking to Oneself. — jgill

Is that in the article, the BTL comments or elsewhere?
I've just re-read the article and can't remember that being covered.
BTL someone suggests verbalisation of what you're doing. Some even take photos of locking the door!
I try to stop and focus rather than do this automatically.
When I'm parking the car at a hospital or railway station, I deliberately look back to capture the return scene. I take note of points of reference, like lamposts, lettered signs, trees...
I never thought of using my phone as camera...again, that would make the mind lazy, no?

It can be a sign of oncoming dementia - or not. — jgill

If it's a sign, then I've had it coming since forever.
I suppose it depends if it's external or internal and what it is you're talking or arguing about.
It's not unusual to have an inner voice, like my GC in the OP.
Sometimes it encourages, other times it can be hypercritical.
I think I'd start worrying if I lost it but it needs to be controlled.
Otherwise, you can talk yourself into a state of anxiety about losing your mind!
Stress and Memory loss. A self-fulfilling prophecy?

Re: reading fiction and tracking characters and plots.
I read BTL that kindle has a function where all that info is captured - Kindle X-ray?
Again, does that help or hinder the mind...it depends.

As for children, they are encouraged to read aloud to themselves and others initially, but to do so as one matures is discouraged. We are taught to not utter the words we read, but doing so may help retain memories. — jgill

I once tried to read aloud - not in public.
It's more time-consuming and difficult, especially if you seldom use your voice.
But yes, if we slow down and relish the words, it might help.
Then again, I tried to memorise a short poem recently and couldn't.
A bit upsetting given that I could recite 'Tam O' Shanter' nae bother when at school.

Then, I never had a problem with memory, due perhaps to rote-learning.
However, that can limit your ability to think for yourself. I'm thinking of exam regurgitation.
Foreign language learning requires some rote learning of grammar, declensions but then you need to practise it in real life. Understanding someone is easier than producing, creating the sensible sentence.

And that brings me to the article's omission.
That of Writing.
As @praxis mentioned:

I wonder if written online stimulation/socializing like here at TPF counts in this way. — praxis

Words are in my memory but can't always be retrieved.
Writing to communicate can help.
TPF is wonderful for this kind of creative activity.
By this time, I should have collected a whole new vocabulary and be able to use it appropriately...

Finally, the article's Mind-Mapping suggestion.
Nothing new there. A bit like mnemonics.
I don't find it useful. It simply adds another layer to remember. I'm a fan of Occam's Razor.
I do remember K.I.S.S. for whatever reason :kiss:
Others can't do it because they are not visual thinkers.
A few BTL mentioned having aphantasia.
Wow.
I can't imagine that one...
Do they see nothing?

Amity

Damn it. I forget to mention concerns re: "Memory Wars".

The attempts to influence a nation's collective memory.
Politicians disputing a particular event.

How something is framed or fabricated in our memory - how trustworthy is it?
Can we doubt what we saw or heard happening?
Witness accounts from different perspectives are notoriously unreliable.

The importance, then, of 'Lest We Forget'.

----
Someone BTL recommended the Revisionist History podcasts by Malcolm Gladwell.
Has anyone here listened to them?
Thoughts?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revisionist_History_(podcast)

The Art, Act or End of Attention...

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