The Power of Concentration (NYT article referencing Sherlock Holmes)

[admin]

This article is about psychology, the mind, the brain and concentration, which I have always found fascinating, but what drew me to it initially was the artwork of Sherlock Holmes smoking a pipe.
The author references Holmes and how he concentrates while smoking a pipe.
There have been many references in articles and discussions in the forums about how smoking a pipe helps one relax and concentrate.
Lastly, I find it interesting that at the end of the article, she says;

...In 2012, researchers from Ohio State University demonstrated that older adults who scored higher on mindfulness scales had increased connectivity in their default networks, specifically in two of the brain’s major information processing hubs. And while we already know that this kind of increased connectivity is a very good thing, there’s more to these particular results. The precise areas that show increased connectivity with mindfulness are also known to be pathophysiological sites of Alzheimer’s disease.
The implications are tantalizing. Mindfulness may have a prophylactic effect ...

What is really interesting about this, which is not in the article, is that scientific studies have been done that show that nicotine inhibits the development of Parkinson’s disease and has a preventative effect against the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Nicotine is also being studied as a possible treatment for schizophrenia.
Here is the article if you'd like to exercise your brain a little.
The Power of Concentration, By MARIA KONNIKOVA

 

[vaboatbuilder]

That looks like a good read Keven, thanks.

 

[twangthang]

Good article. My mom suffered from dementia and I am always curious as to what causes this. I am also interseted

in finding ways to prevent it.

If pipe smoking is a path to mindfulness and then strentghening neural pathways it is a win win for me.

The author is publishing a book on the subject due out in January. It has a pipe on the cover so that makes it a must have for me!

 

[admin]

The author is publishing a book on the subject due out in January. It has a pipe on the cover so that makes it a must have for me!

Whoa! I missed that. That is quite cool.

 

[fitzy]

Great article Kevin.

 

[fitzy]

The book is called Master Mind How To Think Like Sherlock Holmes
http://www.mariakonnikova.com/book/