Dr. Alan Castel, PhD, is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and one of the world’s foremost experts on human memory and cognitive aging. We discuss what science actually tells us about how to improve our learning ability and memory at any age. We also discuss how memory works, why all planning and imagination about the future is based on the past, false memories, and how to leverage curiosity, emotion, and self-testing retrieval practice to stamp in memories for the long term. We discuss what "superagers"—people who actually improve their cognitive capacity with age—do differently than everyone else. This episode is for anyone interested in the science of memory and tools to maintain and improve your memory across the lifespan.
Show notes: https://go.hubermanlab.com/5RRf5z9
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Dr. Alan Castel
Lab website: https://castel.psych.ucla.edu
Book (Better with Age): https://global.oup.com/academic/product/better-with-age-9780190279981
*Timestamps*
00:00:00 Dr. Alan Castel
00:02:41 What Is Memory?, Reconstruction & Metacognition
00:04:49 Mnemonics, Remembering Names & Deeper Learning
00:08:22 The Penny & Apple Logo, Noticing vs Seeing, Learning Through Mistakes
00:10:43 Sponsors: Wealthfront & Helix
00:14:05 Neuroplasticity, Frustration, Curiosity & Mindset
00:17:42 Maintaining vs Learning New Things, Habits, Novelty & Emotional Memory
00:24:28 "Mental Photographs," Photo-Taking & Imagining the Future
00:29:28 Eyewitness Memory, the Ronald Cotton Case, Confidence vs Accuracy
00:35:07 Medium-Term & Prospective Memory, Hotel Fire Exits
00:40:28 Sponsor: AG1
00:41:47 When Habits Turn Lethal, Aviation & Human Error
00:49:01 Why Memory Changes With Age; Alzheimer’s & the Nun Study
00:52:34 Exercise & Hippocampal Volume, Falls & Balance
00:57:14 SuperAgers & Athletes; Regret, Balance & Being Driven
01:12:08 Sponsor: Function
01:13:45 Age Stereotypes, Subjective Age & Positive Age Beliefs
01:20:02 Goals & Plans, Scams; Anterior Midcingulate Cortex & SuperAgers
01:26:23 Culture, Resilience, Blue Zones & COVID
01:29:18 Adversity, the Positivity Effect & Intergenerational Learning
01:36:31 Sponsor: Lingo
01:38:00 Limitations & Purpose; Time, Family & Connection
01:44:58 Deliberately Building Memories; the ABCs of Successful Aging
01:51:02 Following Your Interests; Castel’s Path & Older Adults
01:57:16 Mental Simulations, Curiosity Studies & Selectivity
02:01:19 Socioemotional Selectivity Theory; Steve Jobs & Lifespan
02:07:10 The Secret to Successful Aging; State vs Trait Curiosity
02:11:04 Scams & AI Voice Cloning
02:14:31 John Wooden, Wisdom, Love & Balance
02:17:41 Learning Through Mistakes; Does the Brain Get Better With Age?
02:25:00 Conclusion, Better With Age
02:26:00 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow, Reviews & Feedback, Sponsors, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter
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