Ah, I knew we were in China for a reason...

From another NYT book review (umm, can you tell I'm procrastinating?), this article about how to keep your brain going. Basic premise is that our brains keep developing by getting new perspectives on information we already know. A quote or two...

Educators say that, for adults, one way to nudge neurons in the right direction is to challenge the very assumptions they have worked so hard to accumulate while young. With a brain already full of well-connected pathways, adult learners should “jiggle their synapses a bit” by confronting thoughts that are contrary to their own, says Dr. Taylor, who is 66.

“We need to know stuff. But we need to move beyond that and challenge our perception of the world. If you always hang around with those you agree with and read things that agree with what you already know, you’re not going to wrestle with your established brain connections.”

See. Brain deevelopment. Yeah, that's it. I'm not hopelessly behind in learning Chinese, I'm just, um bumping my neurons a bit...