Passage Two

Questions 51 to 55 are based on the following passage.

Some people have said aging is more a slide into forgetfulness than a journey towards wisdom. However, a growing body of research suggests that late-in-life learning is possible. In reality, education does an aging brain good.

Throughout life, people's brains constantly renovate themselves. In the late 1960s, British brain scientist Geoffrey Raisman spied growth in damaged brain regions of rats through an electron microscope; their brains were forging new connections. This meant brains may change every time a person learns something new.

Of course, that doesn't mean the brain isn't affected by the effects of time. Just as height usually declines over the years, so does brain volume: Humans lose about 4 percent every decade starting in their 40s. But that reduction doesn't necessarily make people think slower; as long as we are alive and functioning, we can alter our brains with new information and experiences.

In fact, scientists now suspect accumulating novel experiences, facts, and skills can keep people's minds more flexible. New pathways can strengthen our ever-changing mental structure, even as the brain shrinks.

Conventional fixes like word puzzles and brain-training apps can contribute to mental durability. Even something as simple as taking a different route to the grocery store or going somewhere new on vacation can keep the brain healthy.

A desire for new life challenges can further boost brainpower. Research about aging adults who take on new enterprises shows improved function and memory as well as a reduced risk of mental disease. Openness — a characteristic defined by curiosity and a desire for knowledge — may also help folks pass brain tests. Some folks are born with this take-in-the-world attitude, but those who aren't as genetically gifted aren't necessarily out of luck. While genes can encourage an interest in doing new things, a 2012 study in the journal Psychology and Aging found completing reasoning tasks like puzzles and number games can enhance that desire for novel experiences, which can, in turn, refresh the brain. That's why brain scientist Richard Kennedy says "It's not that old dogs can't learn new tricks. It's that maybe old dogs don't realize why they should."