idealawg

Blog Glob: "Neuroplasticity gets your brain in shape in a very literal way"

Excerpt:

It has long been understood that there is a high degree of brain plasticity in young people. (To see an astonishing video showing a remarkable example of child brain plasticity after surgery removing half the brain, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSu9HGnlMV0. This video also contains an interesting conversation with surgeon Benjamin Carson, who performed the surgery.) What is new is that there appears to be significant plasticity in adult and even older adult brains.

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Alvaro Pascual-Leone, chief of the laboratory for magnetic brain stimulation at the Harvard Medical School, has conducted a number of interesting studies on the way our thoughts can change our brain. For example, he "taught two groups of people, who had never studied piano, a sequence of notes, showing them which fingers to move and letting them hear the notes as they were played." One group physically practiced; the other imagined their practice. In the end, the mental practice group performed nearly as well as the physical practice group, and with a single two-hour physical practice session, the group performed at the same level as the physical practice group ("The Brain that Changes Itself"). Other studies have been done on obsessive compulsive disorder patients and patients suffering depression with similar results ("Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain," Sharon Begley).

Click to read the rest of "Neuroplasticity gets your brain in shape in a very literal way" (Mormon Times).

Blog Glob: "Centenarians show it's never too late to tweet"

Excerpt:

Three percent of U.S. centenarians questioned in a new survey said they use the service that allows users to send short text messages, or tweets, of up to 140 characters at least once a week to keep in touch with their friends and family.

Another 10 percent sent emails to stay connected, 12 percent shared photos on the Internet and 4 percent downloaded music from the web.

"These centenarians are really inspiring because they are starting to embrace newer trends and newer technologies," said Sherri Snelling, senior director at Evercare, one of the nation's largest care coordination programs, which commissioned the survey.

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Evercare said it believes the results support the belief that longevity is based primarily on lifestyle rather than genetics.

Click to read the rest of "Centenarians show it's never too late to tweet" (Reuters).

Still another article on the benefits of meditation for lawyers and law students

Seems like very soon the odd person out is going to be the lawyer who does not meditate or participate in some other mindfulness practice. I am now seeing articles like "Meditation great way to ease stress" (The Lawyers Weekly) frequently. And when I do, I point them out to you.

Excerpt:

We all know that the practice of law is stressful. We have client demands coming at us through phone, cell phone, CrackBerrys, fax and (even) post. Clients want more, quicker. We may have pressures in our partnerships, money worries and attempts at having a life outside the office. We try to meet these needs that, in the process, take a toll on ourselves. We may develop health problems such as high blood pressure, anxiety disorders and panic attacks. We may see personal relationships suffer. We may feel unhappy and discontent with the practice of law.

I have a suggestion of what to do to deal with the immediate symptoms of stress. ...

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A number of leading law schools, including Harvard University and the University of California, Berkeley, are now offering meditation courses to their students in an effort to provide budding lawyers with tools to fight the stress they will face in their careers.

What's your mindfulness practice?

Image credit: pattpoom.

Paying attention to what you are paying attention to is key to success

Anyone who has attended my training programs knows that I put a lot of emphasis on the benefits of paying attention. Click to read more about maintaining "a tight grip on your mental flashlight." So I read of this new research with much interest. From "Remembering What To Remember And What To Forget" (Medical News Today):

"One of the first telltale signs of Alzheimer's disease may be not memory problems, but failure to control attention," said Alan Castel, UCLA assistant professor of psychology and lead author of the study.

Attention is a critical arrow in life's quiver. And it can be strengthened and disciplined no matter the age of the person. (One method [PDF]. How are you using yours?

"Look Inward, Attorney"

Excerpt:

Before attending his first meditation session, employment lawyer Robert Waldeck told himself, “If these people are into crystals and new age, I’m out of here.” That was 11 years ago. Today, Waldeck, an associate at the D.C.-based law firm of John Berry, meditates twice a week.

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Besides such individual endorsements, meditation as a tool for the legal profession is finally getting a little attention from the academic world. Leonard Riskin, a former Justice Department appellate lawyer and today a professor of law at the University of Missouri Law School [now at University of Florida College of Law], wrote an article titled “The Contemplative Lawyer” about the ways that “mindfulness meditation” can help students, lawyers, and even clients ... .[*] The article, published in the Harvard Negotiation Law Review in the spring of 2002, was one of the first on the subject in a major legal journal.

Even a few years ago, getting a law journal to accept an article on meditation wasn’t easy, Riskin admits. The idea that the subject deserved scholarly attention was met with skepticism. But once published, it garnered Riskin numerous speaking engagements and requests for follow-up articles. He is now working on a book on meditation and the law.

Riskin, who’s been meditating since 1974, tries to meditate twice a day and leads noontime sittings in the law school once a week for a small group. ...

Click to read the rest of "Look Inward, Attorney" (Legal Times) [pdf].

*To see the article mentioned above by Professor Riskin as well as other articles on mindfulness and the practice of law, go to http://www.contemplative lawyers.com.

11 ways to exercise your brain

Lawyers, you can't provide excellent client service if your brain is out of shape. Here (Productivity501) are 11 ways to give your brain a workout. They include

• Learn to Notice
• Learn a Different Culture
• Play Games In Your Head
• Avoid Television
• Meet New Smart People.

Blog Glob: Can Memory Loss Be Prevented?

Excerpt:

Memory is among the least understood areas of neuroscience, and the sad truth is that there is no magic pill or potion at present that will prevent our parents’ minds from failing. But a panel of 30 experts from the United States and Europe recently issued a consensus statement on what we do know about maintaining brain fitness (which includes not only memory, but also reasoning, attention and speed of processing). The verdict was that three things are crucial: physical exercise, mental challenges and good health habits in general.

But wait! What about the supplements and software programs we’ve been stocking up on? “There’s a lot of snake oil out there,” warned Dr. Laura Carstensen, director of the Center on Longevity at Stanford University, who co-chaired the panel. In short, don’t count on supplements. (The rationale behind ginkgo biloba is plausible, but there is no scientific evidence it works.) Steer clear of anything that promises to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. ... And look skeptically on software programs. (Most improve performance only on the games themselves, not mental function in general.)

Instead, Dr. Carstensen said, get moving. Exercise may sound like an impractical way to boost Mom’s cognition when her energy levels are dwindling. But multiple studies show it helps. In a study published

NeuroLeadership Summit 2009: Speakers and topics

Here's a list of speakers from the brochure (linked to below):

• Daniel Siegel – author of best seller ‘The Developing Mind’, co-director of UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center
• Warren Bennis – one of the greats of leadership development
• Werner Erhard – founding father of transformational leadership
• Jonah Lehrer – neuroscientist and author of recent bestseller ‘How We Decide’
• Marco Iacoboni – leading mirror neuron researcher
• Naomi Eisenberger – leading social neuroscience researcher
• Yi-Yuan Tang – leading attention researcher
• Matthew Lieberman – founding father of social neuroscience
• Evian Gordon – leading brain researcher, building world’s largest database of brain research
• John Joseph – expert on teaching kids about the brain
• Dr Al Ringleb – Director, CIMBA Business School, Italy, co-founder, NeuroLeadership Institute
• David Rock – author and global leadership consultant, co-founder, NeuroLeadership Institute

And some of the topics to be covered:

• Mindfulness and the integrated brain
• How we make decisions
• The neuroscience of flow
• Making decisions in groups
• Emotional regulation and the brain
• The neuroscience of motivation
• How we know each other
• The social brain
• Learning from the masters of change
• Making leadership development stick

More in this NeuroLeadership Summit brochure [pdf].

Two more programs on mindfulness for lawyers, both sponsored by state bar associations

1st program: "Mindfulness and Neuroscience: Enhancing Lawyer Effectiveness, Stress Reduction and Well-Being From the Inside Out"

This seminar will be presented June 25, 2009, at the Florida State Bar Convention by Scott Rogers (with guests Professor Leonard Riskin, The Honorable Allen S. Gold, and Paul R. Lipton, Esq. in the last session). The agenda:

9:00-9:30 Introduction to Mindfulness: Overview of Jurisight’s Use of “Hearsay” “Pain & Suffering,” and “Torture,” to Teach Fundamental Mindfulness Principles.

9:30-10:00 Presentation of Recent Neuroscience Findings on Mindfulness Practices and “Neuroplastic” Changes to the Brain. Discussion of Jurisight’s Use of “Slippery Slope,” and “Meeting of the Minds,” along with Exercises and Discussion of Impact on Lawyer Effectiveness, and Well-Being.

10:00-10:30: Interactive Demonstration of Jurisight’s Use of “Stare Decises” and “Justice” to Explore The Stressful Effects of Uncertainty and Change on Attorneys’ Ethical Conduct.

10:30-10:45: Presentation and Group Discussion of “The (Neural Circuit) Courthouse” Metaphor to Hone and Make Practical the Mindfulness and Neuroscientific Material Discussed.

10:45-11:00 Break (and Opportunity to Practice Mindfulness in “Real Life”).

11:00-12:00 Mindfulness in Action: A Rare Look Inside the Mind of a Professor, Judge, and Litigator Reactivity and Mindful Awareness

The Honorable Alan S. Gold, Federal District Judge
Paul R. Lipton, Esq., Greenberg, Traurig, LLP
Professor Leonard L. Riskin, UF College of Law

Click for the rest of the seminar description [pdf].

2nd program: "Applying Mindfulness Meditation in Law Practice"

From the flyer:

Practicing law in times of economic uncertainty and dislocation presents special challenges to

Upcoming course: Mindfulness for the Lawyer's Brain

The course description:

The practice of law is a wonderful opportunity, but the challenge of working in a system that is explicitly adversarial can take its toll.

Grounded in cutting-edge neuroscientific findings on the brain’s capacity to change in response to directing awareness, Jurisight uses legal terms and images to communicate fundamental mindfulness principles. We learn to disrupt old patterns of thought and behavior to respond optimally to the pressing needs of the moment. With continued practice, we begin to experience challenges as opportunities to find greater joy, success, and satisfaction in the practice of law and life.

This workshop is open to lawyers and other legal professionals, as well as those who interact with attorneys.

The dates are October 11 through 16, 2009. The place is Rhineback, New York. And the teacher is my friend Scott Rogers; click for an interview of Scott. More about the workshop here.

Please click here for information about a program Scott and I are presenting in September.