Exercises for the Whole Brain

by Allen D. Bragdon, David Gamon

The most fascinating mental exercises from the New York Times internationally syndicated column "Playspace." They build brain skills in the same way physical exercise builds muscles and stamina. 60 brain-awakening exercises that strengthen connections among the mental centers that control creative-visual, executive-planning, spatial-manipulative, and logical thinking. Each exercise was developed to stimulate a different combination of brain circuits to sharpen mental skills needed to compete professionally and to retard loss of memory and other skills as the brain ages. Yet they are almost addictively fascinating. Optional hints for each exercise make every format accessible to all levels of skill.

Genres: Nonfiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

About the author

The whimsical old dog with puzzle experience and a curious mind. Member of the Society for Neuroscience. Founding Editor of Games magazine, Editor of Playspace daily puzzle column formerly syndicated internationally by the New York Times. Author of dozens of books of professional and academic examinations and how-to instructions in practical skills. Director, The BrainWaves Center. During the summer, Allen writes from his office at the Brainwaves Center on Cape Cod and races sailboats. During the winter he works from his 14th century villa in Tuscany. You can contact him by e-mail at abragdon@brainwaves.com

Reviews

[Joseph Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

My complaint is that the puzzles are too random. Sometimes there is not a good way of working out the solution except through brute force. In those cases, I don't feel a sense of accomplishment from finding the solution, merely a sense of relief at oh, I finally found the specific set or keys that work perfectly for this given problem.

[Serge Pierro · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice collection of intellectual puzzles meant to stimulate the brain. One page has text and the opposite page has the puzzle. Solutions are given at the bottom of the page - several pages away. Wide range of puzzle types.