Research suggests that certain types of mental exercises -- whether they are memory games on your mobile device or jotting down letters backward -- might help our brain maintain concentration, memory and visual and spatial skills over the years. At a recent "Brain Neurobics" session at the Waltonwood Senior Living center in Novi, Cheryl Deep of Wayne State's Institute of Gerontology, encouraged several dozen senior citizens to flip the pictures in their homes upside-down. It might baffle houseguests, but the exercise crowbars the brain out of familiar grooves cut deep by years of mindless habit. "Every time you walk past and look, your brain has to rotate that image," Deep said. "Brain neurobics is about getting us out of those ruts, those pathways, and shaking things up." Assistant professor of pediatrics Moriah Thomason, a scientific adviser to www.Lumosity.com, one of the fastest-growing brain game websites, is a proponent of mental workouts. "We used to think that what you're born with is what you have through life. But now we understand that the brain is a lot more plastic and flexible than we ever appreciated," she said. Photos from the event are included.

http://www.freep.com/article/20120610/FEATURES08/206100314/Flipping-script-mundane-habits-can-boost-brain-productivity
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/story/2012-06-10/mental-exercises-brain-health/55497440/1
http://www.blackchristiannews.com/news/2012/06/mental-games-may-help-brains-function-better.html