Future retirees will want work and play, according to HSBC study
[27 April 2006 - Insurance Business Review] HSBC has conducted the largest global survey into attitudes towards ageing and retirement ever conducted. The London-based bank has found that, around the world, people want to abandon traditional models of retirement in favor of self-sufficiency and a mix of work and leisure. ...

Creativity Is a Habit
[22 February 2006 - EDUCATION WEEK - By Robert J. Sternberg - Reprinted by Mass Cultural Council Education News] The increasingly massive and far-reaching use of conventional standardized tests is one of the most effective, if unintentional, vehicles this country has created for suppressing creativity. Creativity is a habit. The problem is that schools sometimes treat it as a bad habit. And the world of conventional standardized tests we have invented does just that. Try being creative on a standardized test, and you will get slapped down just as soon as you get your score. That will teach you not to do it again. It may sound paradoxical that creativity-a novel response-is a habit, a routine response. But creative people are creative largely not by any particular inborn trait, but because of an attitude toward their work and even toward life: They habitually respond to problems in fresh and novel ways, rather than allowing themselves to respond in conventional and sometimes automatic ways. Like any habit, creativity can either be encouraged or discouraged. The main things that promote the habit are (a) opportunities to engage in it, (b) encouragement when people avail themselves of these opportunities, and (c) rewards when people respond to such encouragement and think and behave creatively. You need all three. Take away the opportunities, encouragement, or rewards, and you will take away the creativity. In this respect, creativity is no different from any other habit, good or bad. ...

First Major Survey of Baby Boomer Attitudes on Alzheimer's Shows Fear About Their Own Future and Frustration Over Pace of New Drug Approvals (PDF)
[27 April 2006 - ACT-AD (Accelerate Cure/Treatments for Alzheimer's Disease) Coalition] Historic ACT-AD Coalition calls for recognition of Alzheimer's as an urgent national health crisis, activation of Baby Boomers, and acceleration of therapy approvals -- As the first Baby Boomers turn 60 this year, they are beginning to confront the consequences of growing older. A new survey shows the majority of Boomers are anxious about how Alzheimer's disease (AD) will affect their health and quality of life. At the same time, Boomers are frustrated that the government and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) do not adequately address adequately this looming public health crisis. The findings from the first major survey of over 1,000 American Baby Boomers about Alzheimer's disease were announced today by a newly formed coalition of 21 leading advocacy groups known as ACT-AD (Accelerate Cure/Treatments for Alzheimer's Disease). "These survey findings underscore the fact that when Baby Boomers are asked to address the potential of Alzheimer's in their future, they are clearly not ready emotionally, psychologically or financially," said Daniel Perry, executive director of the Alliance for Aging Research and chair of the ACT-AD Coalition. ... In summary, survey results reveal that when provided with basic information on Alzheimer's disease, the vast majority of Baby Boomers are extremely concerned about the potential impact on their health, quality of life and finances as well as on the healthcare system. ... Key Findings include:

• Personal Preparedness for Alzheimer's -- 90 to 95 percent of
  respondents said that they would either be unprepared or would find
  life "not worth living" if they were forced to face limitations common
  to the disease by the time they were 70. These limitations included
  basic abilities (not being able to dress or toilet themselves), social
  interactions (not being able to recognize family members) and mental
  abilities (not being able to remember who or where they are).
• Cost of Alzheimer's -- 80 percent of respondents said that their
  current savings would not be sufficient to cover the cost of care if
  they were diagnosed and 81 percent said the same thing about their
  families' savings. 83 percent said they are also worried that the
  healthcare system is under-prepared to cover the demands of the coming
  Alzheimer's crisis.
• Treatment Options -- Only 8 percent of respondents feel that current
  treatments are adequate. In fact, most (80 percent) are willing to
  take experimental treatments that have the potential for stopping the
  disease and preserving their quality of life, even if significant
  health risk was involved. Respondents put the highest priority on
  drugs that stop the disease/loss of mental abilities (84 percent) or
  that reverse the disease/loss of mental abilities (82 percent), even
  though current drugs do none of these things. 90 percent of
  respondents felt that drugs that have this potential should be given
  the same priority review and fast track status that the FDA gives to
  drugs for other life-threatening diseases as cancer and HIV/AIDS.
• Satisfaction with Government/FDA -- When provided with an overview of
  the FDA's current review policy for Alzheimer's drugs, 82 percent of
  respondents remained unsure about what the government is doing to
  prioritize Alzheimer's, but most (84 percent) feel that more should be
  done and over 75 percent feel that Alzheimer's should be made a top
  priority. 89 percent feel that promising Alzheimer's drugs deserve
  the same priority status and fast track review that the FDA uses for
  drugs for other serious diseases. ...

Older Workers Underappreciated in Workplace, Says Survey: Baby boomers and senior citizens not considered good source of advice
[26 April 2006 - Senior Journal] Three quarters of older, experienced workers � age 55 and older � said they relate well to younger co-workers, but the sentiment is not returned by the young employees � only 56 percent say they relate well to older workers. Even more startling in the new survey: 77 percent of the young workers say their contemporaries do not seek advice and guidance from their seniors. Is the workplace a fountain of youth for older workers or is it a necessary means to supplement meager retirement funds? According to the survey released today by Randstad USA, a workforce solutions company, 91 percent of employed U.S. adults said they have not saved enough money for a comfortable retirement, and 40 percent expect to continue working after retiring from full-time work. ...

Retirement satisfaction not just about income
[18 April 2006 - Reuters Health] Whether a man is happily retired or not may depend on his marriage, mental outlook and physical health more than his pension, a new study suggests. The finding comes from a group of socially disadvantaged men followed since their youth. They tended to have a happy retirement if, before retiring, they had enjoyable relationships, enjoyed their vacations and were satisfied with their jobs. ...

Immigration Is An Aging Issue
[18 April 2006 - Washington Post] How they marched: tens of thousands in cities across the country, waving the American flag and calling for legislation that would legalize the presence of an estimated 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants. A banner at a rally in Atlanta summed it up: "Give us a chance for a better life!" But overlooked in the debate over how to secure borders and how to treat those already here -- legally and illegally -- is this: Immigration is an aging issue. ...

Mental illness linked to intelligence
[17 April 2006 - 999Today] British scientists have discovered that intelligence can reduce the severity of such disorders as schizophrenia, bipolar disorders and depression. Previous research has shown that intelligence can protect you against dementia and the consequences of head injury. However, Cambridge University researchers have discovered that intelligence can also buffer the consequences of neuropsychiatry disorders such as schizophrenia. ...

$1.7 Million NIA Aging Study at Yale: How Early Work and Health Habits Affect Later Health
[13 April 2006 - Yale School of Medicine] Researchers have received a four-year, $1.7 million grant from the National Institute on Aging to examine how early choices in work-life and health habits can have long-lasting health effects. The overall aim of the study, �Work-life, Health Habits and Health: Longitudinal Analysis of Aging,� is to examine the dynamic interplay of work-life, health habits and health outcomes throughout life. Researchers will build a life-cycle model using several longitudinal data sets from adolescence to late life. Among the data evaluated will be information on occupation, initiation of smoking and drinking, and obesity. ...

Books on the brain: These 3 offer an update on the fledgling science of the human mind
[14 April 2006 - Houston Chronicle -By MIHALY CSIKSZENTMIHALYI] During the past half-century or so, we have seen enormous advances in mapping the brain and its functions. We now know which area of the brain controls the movement of each finger and how religious ecstasy looks when translated into colored patches on a computer screen. No wonder scientists are beginning to feel ready to communicate the fruits of their labor to a general audience and to explain how knowledge of the brain will help us understand what we do, how we do it and why. Three slender new books are part of this recent trend of popularizing the brain sciences: All were written by professionals trained in the intricacies of gray matter. ...