Older and Wiser

Do we get wiser as we get older?

A recent study found that older people have much more information in their brains than younger people, and the quality of the information in the older brain is more nuanced. While younger people were faster in tests of cognitive performance, older people showed "greater sensitivity to fine-grained differences".

Read about the study here.

It seems the more information we have in our brains the more we can detect familiar patterns. Cognitive templates develop in the older brain based on pattern recognition, and these form the basis for wise behaviour and wise decisions.

It takes time to gain insights and perspectives from our own cognitive knowledge to be wise. Although time doesn't necessarily lead to wisdom!



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