Today was one of those rare and dreamy days. I spent the entire day IN. MY. OFFICE. Oh, I got so much done. I was in such a groove that I forgot to leave work on time...I didn't notice it was 5:30 until the first closing announcement was made.
It doesn't happen very often that I forget to leave work on time -- but I've had my fair share of embarrassing "what did I come here to do?" moments. You know the ones -- where you walk into a room and by the time you get there, you forget what your purpose was. Also, as documented in this blog, there are quite a few facts that I've managed to forget throughout my life. I'm not that stressed about it, but it is pretty annoying to forget things. A feeling that others share...
Don't fret. There are options, people. You could try...
a backup for your brain!
Evernote allows you to capture information (pictures, voice, data) in a number of different places (your desktop, internet browser, cell phone or PDA), and then search and retrieve that information from any of those devices. (Really, the video does a better job of explaining it.) They're saying you can remember everything. My initial reaction to this was "this is over the top! it's still a crutch for your brain! it's no different than pen and paper and what's wrong with pen and paper anyway?" But, then I remembered the message I Jotted to myself earlier today because I never have pen and paper with me on the go. Then I thought about how happy I am that I can access my Google Docs anywhere with Internet access. The list goes on.
There is apparently a rapidly growing brain fitness software market. I'm not sure that Evernote qualifies as brain fitness software, but he's tapping into a real desire, I'm guessing.
a prosthetic for your brain!
Today's Future Tense had to do with memory, too. Gary Marcus, psychology professor and author of Kluge: the haphazard construction of the human mind, says "implanting chips in human brains would help us overcome evolutionary limitations on memory." I get where our brains are not computers, and it would be cool to organize our memories the way we organize our email inbox or feed readers for easy search and retrieval, but seriously. Would you really want to index your own memory? Really?? There are things that I'm trying to forget, and I don't want any tags on those memories. At all.
a bike for your brain!
The StarTribune reported yesterday that the Mayo Clinic's Study on Aging finds that (drum roll, please) physical exercise is good for the brain. I haven't been on a bike for several years (mainly because I hate biking), but I'm tempted to check out the bike auction this spring. I love the trails near my house.
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