Page 111 - Mind Games The Aging Brain and How to Keep it Healthy

Develop a Brawny Brain • 95

your sensory store. It helps to close your eyes and try to see
the information in your mind. If a natural image does not
present itself, create an image of your own. The more un-
usual the visual image, the more likely you will be able to
recall it. Suppose that you are looking for a new car. You are
trying to remember the features of one automobile over an-
other. See each car in your mind with the features dancing in
and out of the car.
If you are not accustomed to making a mental image
whenever new information presents itself, this exercise will
help you learn how to do that. For each of the following
questions, try to imagine what the referenced object looks
like. To increase your kinesthetic skill, move your body to
respond to these questions. For example, if you are asked to
identify the direction in which you turn a doorknob, use
your hands to help create a mental image of yourself actu-
ally turning the knob. In each case, your creation of the men-
tal image is far more important than the correct answer.
However, for those of us who just need to know whether we
are right, the answers are listed at the end of this chapter in
“Solutions to Exercises and Games.”

Imagine That
Create a mental picture to answer the following questions.

Imaging Questions

1. On the touch-tone telephone keypad, where is the #
key?____________________________________________

2. On the head of a tiger, are the ears above, even with, or
below the nose?__________________________________

3. How many tines does a dinner fork have? ___________
________________________________________________

4. On each M&M’s candy piece, there is a stamped letter.
Is it a lowercase letter or an uppercase letter? ________
________________________________________________
5. To turn on a lamp, do you turn the knob clockwise or
counterclockwise? _______________________________