Self-help Put your brain through its Making Everything Easier!™ paces and achieve first-rate mental agility Tanhde ,b wraitihn rise gyouularr beoxderyc’sis me, oysotu i mcapno irmtapnrto mveu istcsl e Open the book and find: Tr Tr a i n i n g performance and strengthen it against age-related (cid:129) The facts behind the fiction a deterioration. This guide offers everything you need (cid:129) Mental fitness exercises for i to know to keep your brain and memory in tip-top n sphlaaypineg, w thhee tphiaenr oit.’ sF rboym c hpouozszilnesg atnhde erixgehrtc ifsoeosd tos othr e (cid:129) Wchaiylds rteon m aenmdo trhisee o yvoeurr- 5sh0osp- in Yo u r B r a i n best day-to-day habits and long-term mental fitness ping list, put names to faces, g techniques, this book enables you to boost your and remember directions mental agility and reduce memory loss. So shake (cid:129) How to visualise your success Y off those cobwebs and get your brain fighting-fit in no time! (cid:129) Why socialising is important o (cid:129) Techniques for managing u (cid:129) Start as you mean to go on – get to grips with stress and anxiety the basics of brain training and discover how r to make it work for you (cid:129) Advice on nutrition and B ‘brain food’ (cid:129) Keep your mind razor sharp – improve your r memory and banish that pesky ‘tip-of-the- (cid:129) Word searches, sudoku a tongue’ phenomenon puzzles, and more i (cid:129) Have happy thoughts – follow expert advice n on how to keep your mind happy and healthy (cid:129) Start afresh – adapt to new brain-friendly diet and lifestyle choices Learn to: (cid:129) Let the games begin – get stuck into a compendium of brain games, exercises and Go to Dummies.com® (cid:129) Improve both your long-term and puzzles for videos, step-by-step examples, short-term memory how-to articles or to shop! (cid:129) Increase your creativity and develop a positive mindset (cid:129) Make brain-friendly diet and lifestyle choices Dr Tracy Packiam Alloway, PhD is the Director of the (cid:129) Maximise your mental fitness Centre for Memory and Learning in the Lifespan at the with puzzles and exercises University of Stirling. Her research has been featured £12.99 UK / $14.99 US / $16.99 CN in newspapers including The Guardian and The Daily ISBN 978-0-470-97449-0 Mail, as well as on BBC Radio, Sky News, and ABC News. Dr Tracy Packiam She has also written over 75 scientific articles and books about memory and learning. Tracy was the winner of Alloway, PhD the 2009 Joseph Lister Science Award. Director of the Centre for Memory and Learning in the Lifespan Alloway Get More and Do More at Dummies.com ® Start with FREE Cheat Sheets Cheat Sheets include (cid:129) Checklists Mobile Apps (cid:129) Charts (cid:129) Common Instructions (cid:129) And Other Good Stuff! To access the Cheat Sheet created specifically for this book, go to www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/trainingyourbrainuk Get Smart at Dummies.com Dummies.com makes your life easier with 1,000s There’s a Dummies App of answers on everything from removing wallpaper to using the latest version of Windows. for This and That Check out our (cid:129) Videos (cid:129) Illustrated Articles With more than 200 million books in print and (cid:129) Step-by-Step Instructions over 1,600 unique titles, Dummies is a global leader in how-to information. Now you can Plus, each month you can win valuable prizes by entering our Dummies.com sweepstakes. * get the same great Dummies information in an App. With topics such as Wine, Spanish, Digital Want a weekly dose of Dummies? Sign up for Newsletters on Photography, Certification, and more, you’ll (cid:129) Digital Photography have instant access to the topics you need to (cid:129) Microsoft Windows & Office know in a format you can trust. (cid:129) Personal Finance & Investing (cid:129) Health & Wellness To get information on all our Dummies apps, visit the following: (cid:129) Computing, iPods & Cell Phones (cid:129) eBay www.Dummies.com/go/mobile from your computer. (cid:129) Internet www.Dummies.com/go/iphone/apps from your phone. (cid:129) Food, Home & Garden Find out “HOW” at Dummies.com *Sweepstakes not currently available in all countries; visit Dummies.com for official rules. Training Your Brain FOR DUMmIES ‰ 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd ii 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd iiii 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM Training Your Brain FOR DUMmIES ‰ by Dr Tracy Packiam Alloway Puzzles by Timothy E. Parker A John Wiley and Sons, Ltd, Publication 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd iiiiii 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM Training Your Brain For Dummies® Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd The Atrium Southern Gate Chichester West Sussex PO19 8SQ England E-mail (for orders and customer service enquires): [email protected] Visit our Home Page on www.wiley.com Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex, England Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or trans- mitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or other- wise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS, UK, without the permission in writing of the Publisher. 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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-0-470-97449-0 (paperback), 978-0-470-97541-1 (ebk), 978-0-470-97542-8 (ebk), 978-0-470-97630-2 (ebk) Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd iivv 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM About the Authors Tracy Packiam Alloway, PhD, is the Director of the Center for Memory and Learning in the Lifespan at the University of Stirling, UK. She was the 2009 winner of the prestigious Joseph Lister Award by the British Science Association for bringing her scientific discov- eries to a wide audience. She is the author of over 75 scientific arti- cles and books on working memory and learning, and has developed the world’s first standardised working-memory tests for educators, published by Pearson Assessment. Her research has received wide- spread international coverage, appearing in outlets such as the Scientific American, Forbes, US News, ABC News, BC, BBC, Guardian, and Daily Mail. She is a much-in-demand international speaker in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, and provides advice to the World Bank on the importance of working memory. Timothy E. Parker is the Senior Crossword Puzzle Editor of USA Today Crosswords and the ‘World’s Most Syndicated Puzzle Compiler’ according to Guinness World Records. In addition, he is the creator and senior editor of the Universal Crossword, the Internet’s most popular crossword puzzle since 1998. 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd vv 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd vvii 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM Dedication To Marcus: For teaching me that you are never too young to train your brain. To Baby No. 2: For keeping me company while I was writing this book. – Tracy Packiam Alloway, PhD 0011__99778800447700997744449900--ffffiirrss..iinndddd vviiii 1111//55//1100 66::3355 PPMM Publisher’s Acknowledgements We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online regis- tration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Commissioning, Editorial, and Media Composition Services Development Project Coordinator: Lynsey Stanford Project Editor: Steve Edwards Layout and Graphics: Commissioning Editor: Nicole Hermitage Samantha K. 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