Intellectual improve? Who doesn’t want to improve their brain? I mean, almost all advertising in our culture implies that with just a bit more temperament oomph, another degree, a harder workout, or this or that potion or pill, you too can own the Mercedes, or the mansion, or be a super hero tender-hearted of guy.
It turns out that there are some things we can do to improve our brains, but brain improvement actually is not what one would think it is initially.
Brains improvement is actually about neurogenesis and neuroplasticity, concepts about which there was no knowledge perhaps a decade or so ago.
It turns out that my brain indeed grows new neurons, which overturns neuroscientific dogma that has been around for decades if not centuries, and that those new neurons can be cemented into existing neural networks if they are challenged by a creative learning experience.
Novel learning experiences help existing neurons grow new dendritic branches which will bud new synapses, which mean more connections between neurons, which means greater computing power, perhaps fluid intelligence, which is cognition improvement, which is now available to help solve problems in the external world in novel ways, which could translate into increased return or fame and fortune.
What does a novel learning experience consist of? Well, if you are a counselor, reading another counseling libretto will not provide a novel learning experience, but learning a new language will, or learning to play a musical instrument will.