9/5:  Orientation and Introduction 

Start by reading the "Lesson" below, and then come back to these Quick Links to access additional materials and resources as they are referenced here.

There are two websites that will be particularly helpful to you.  

Our online classroom: bfclass.com - “The Lessons”

This website is just like any other classroom in that; this is where you will access all of your class materials, like your syllabus, handouts, lessons, and fascinating videos. You can also share your ideas and communicate with other students, link to your reading assignments, and take your quizzes. Just like any other class, except it’s all online.

All underlined (and sometimes, colored) words are live links, that will take you to sites and documents that may be of interest.

Each week you will receive an email from one of your instructors with links to all of the weekly assignments. All assignments stay on the class website in case you missed one or would like to go back to one later. Each weekly email will also have direct links to your websites, so you will never get lost. You may want to make these websites “favorites” on your toolbar, for easy access. Both websites can also be accessed, just by putting the web address into your address bar when you are on the internet on any computer.

The brain training (BrainHQ) website: www.brainhq.com - “The Exercises”

This website is for the Posit Science, BrainHQ Brain Training Program, where you will exercise your brain by doing scientifically designed cognitive exercises. You will have a free account as long as you are registered for a Brain Fitness course.

These are not “games” even though they may look like games. The goal is to exercise your brain, not to win.  This can be frustrating if you believe you will ever get an exercise 100% “correct”.  The program is developed so that no one will ever have perfect answers.  “Winning” is noticing that your memory, attention, brain speed, or other skills are improving. Don’t let these exercises frustrate you – they are challenging because your brain improves when it encounters and overcomes a challenge. Some exercises take many attempts to figure out. Be patient. It will pay off. Ask for help when you need it by reaching out to an instructor and/or attending our TUESDAY MORNING LAB class at 11:00 am until 12:30 p.m.  In addition, you may attend any of the Basics course times during the week and bring questions to the instructor. 

BrainHQ Login:  Your login is the email address that you used when registering for BrainHQ and the semester in which you first took a Brain Fitness course.  If this is your first semester, your password will be fall2023

If you have taken this course in the past, use the same password you have been using. 

Log in at www.brainhq.com  Take a look around the site. 

Nearly one million people in the U.S. are living with Parkinson's disease, which is more than the combined number of people diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy and Lou Gehrig's disease (or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis). The following data are provided by the Parkinson’s Foundation (2022). 

• The number of people with Parkinson’s is expected to rise to 1.2 million by 2030.  https://www.parkinson.org/Understanding-Parkinsons/Statistics

• Incidence of Parkinson’s disease increases with age, but an estimated 4% of people with Parkinson’s are diagnosed before age 50.

• Men are 1.5 times more likely to have Parkinson's disease than women. https://www.parkinson.org/Understanding-Parkinsons/Statistics 

Depression and loneliness are normal in older adults. 

False.  In fact, several studies indicate that depression and loneliness are more common in younger people than in older adults.  As older adults, we may find we have more time to reach out to others and to pursue activities that interest us.  When we were younger we had responsibilities that consumed our time.  Now we can use our times in ways we choose.

Older adults need more sleep than younger people.

False.  We may actually need less sleep as we get older.  But… we need sound sleep.  As we get older we may want to use strategies to help us get a good night’s sleep.  We will discuss this in a later lesson. 

Older adults cannot learn.

False.  The process of neurogenesis activates seed cells (stem cells) deep within our brains to create new neurons and facilitate learning.  Yes, these seed cells are in our brains for our entire lives.  We will discuss brain plasticity throughout this course, and you will come to see that your brain wants to learn.

Just as you can exercise your abs, delts, and quads, you can exercise your memory, attention, and more.  As with physical exercise, brain exercise can help you test your brain and improve your performance.

• In the past people believed that the brain was fixed, and that volume was lost as we aged.

• It was assumed that we all would face degradation in the brain and decreased cognition.

• This process seemed inevitable.

Now we know that Research has shown that brain volume is not fixed.    Brains can be maintained and improved through process of neuroplasticity.  We have control over our future cognition.  Just look at the members of the Rolling Stones.  They have broken many stereotypes about aging. 

Options for Basics Zoom Sessions:

• Our Basics courses are available on the following days.  You may attend when you like.  Access the links to each class via our class website (bhqonline.org), then click Zoom Classroom, at the top of the page, and scroll down. 

•  Tuesday, 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. (Zoom link: Yael Lorberfeld, Instructor)   LESSON via Zoom.

•  Thursdays, 10:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. (Zoom link: Yael Lorberfeld, Instructor)   (occasional in person meeting at JCC) LESSON via Zoom.

Brain HQ Lab (all welcome)

• Tuesday, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 pm. (Zoom link: Yael Lorberfeld, Instructor) LESSON via Zoom.

What will we discuss?

This is a list of the interesting topics we will discuss this semester. You can find more details via our class website (bhqonline.org), then click on BF Fall Basics 23, at the top of the page, and then click on the heading for each week’s lesson.

We introduced a weekly Brain Fitness virtual lab hosted by instructor Yael Lorberfeld on Tuesdays from 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. It is open so you may come and go as you please. It offers an opportunity to improve your knowledge and skills with BrainHQ exercises. The link is under the “Brain Fitness Lab Zoom Session” section on the fall Zoom Classroom tab of our class website. Look for the below picture on the page to find that section.

Posture.  Sit straight up and about two feet away from the computer screen.  This helps reduce back fatigue and reduces eyestrain. 

Computer monitor.  Make sure the center of the computer monitor is slightly lower than eye level—four to eight inches.  The upside is that your neck and eyes will be under less strain; the downside is that your wrists will no longer be straight. 

Breaks.  “Our eyes were designed to be flexible and look from far away to up close, back and forth all day long,” says Aaron Werner, O.D. (Pawlak, 2017). Staring at a computer screen for long periods of time can lead to two conditions:

• Eyestrain.  Consider the brightness or glare that comes from an electronic screen—this can cause eyestrain.  Another source of eyestrain can come from focusing up close on a screen without the proper eyeglass prescription—this may cause headaches.

Dry eye.  Dry eye is a condition in which your eyes dry out due to lack of blinking, causing blurry vision and discomfort.  When looking at a screen, you sometimes forget to blink.  The blink rate can go from 15 times a minute to 5-7 times per minute (Harvard Medical School, 2017). 

By joining our class, you have taken a big step forward on a path to greater joy and fulfillment.   We hope that you recognize that you have the choice and ability to influence your brain health.  The Brain Fitness team is here to both support you and learn from you.   Grab this opportunity and gain all that you can from it.   Together we will build a better future for ourselves, and those around us.  Thank you for being here. 

Alzheimer’s Association (2021).  2021 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts & Figures.  Special Report:  Race, Ethnicity, & Alzheimer’s in America.  Alzheimer’s Association, Chicago, IL.

Cemental, R. (2022).  Infographic: Cognitive Decline in Seniors.  Caring Senior Service, Healthy, Happy, Home.  Retrieved on January 28, 2022 from https://www.caringseniorservice.com/blog/infographic-cognitive-decline-in-seniors

Harvard Medical School (2017).  Electronic screen alert: Avoid this vision risk.  Harvard Health Publishing, August 2017.  Retrieved on January 28, 2022 from https://www.health.harvard.edu/diseases-and-conditions/electronic-screen-alert-avoid-this-vision-risk

Parkinson’s Foundation (2022).  Statistics.  Retrieved on January 28, 2022 from https://www.parkinson.org/Understanding-Parkinsons/Statistics.

Pawlak, L. (2017).  How digital devices affect eyes: What to know about Computer Vision Syndrome.  San Diego Family, January 2017, pp. 20-21.