GRAY MATTERS
Vol: 42 No. 1
Spring 2015
News of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
Sonoma State University
MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Dear OLLI Community,
In the last issue of Gray Matters, I
mentioned that I enjoyed a good
game of Scrabble. In the “be careful
what you wish for” category…OLLI
Ambassador Berkeley Malm has now
challenged me to Scrabble in not one,
but TWO languages. I may stand
a chance at not humiliating myself
in English, but the French game
might be one for the record books in disparity of scoring.
While I majored in French Literature at UC Santa Cruz
years ago, I’m not sure I’ve used the degree much since
then. In fact, that brings to mind a New Yorker cartoon
my father sent me when I graduated with this terribly
marketable degree. It featured two cavemen in an office.
One was behind a desk, clearly interviewing the other
for a prospective position. In reviewing the applicant’s
resume, he exclaimed, “I see here you have a hunting major
and a gathering minor.” I suppose there was a point in
there somewhere. Then again, my father has a degree in
sociology. How many students are majoring in that these
days? Aren’t we all glad that in OLLI, such things don’t
concern us? Learning for the sake of learning. That’s our
story and we’re sticking to it.
Carin
“This is a whole new game... Now we know that the brain
can evolve and shift and change,” said Katz, who wrote
“The Healthy Mind Cookbook: Big-Flavor Recipes to
Enhance Brain Function, Mood, Memory and Mental
Clarity.” “How are you going to feed it now? Because how
you feed it now will make a big difference in how you feel
later.”
Katz, working with Dr. Dale Bredesen, a UCLA neurology
professor who researches treatments for Alzheimer’s has
published their 3 top tips for feeding a healthy brain:
1. Eat good fat, not bad. Oils high in omega-6
(polyunsaturated fatty acids) can adversely affect the heart
as well as the brain. These include highly processed seed
and corn oils that are often found in the standard American
diet.
“This is worrisome, because any time you’re dealing with
that, it will cause inflammation,” she said, listing the good
fats (coconut oil, clarified butter, grapeseed oil, extra-virgin
olive oil, sesame oil) as well as the bad (corn oil, cottonseed
oil, soybean oil, trans-fats and polyunsaturated fats, among
others). “The brain is 60 percent fat, so that means your
brain needs good, healthy fats like avocados, nuts and
seeds,” she said, “and healthy oils like olive oil.”
2. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. “That’s where all the
phytonutrients and good phytochemicals are that combat
inflammation in the body,” she said. “In those, there are
these sub-sets — antioxidants, and the herb and spice
kingdom, which is amazingly anti-inflammatory.”
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Foods that Feed your Brain
3. Go easy on carbohydrates and sugar. When you are
eating a lot of refined carbohydrates and sugars, your
pancreas has to work harder to pump out more insulin.
Then it gets tired, and your blood sugar goes up. And that’s
“the surest way to get yourself into a brain fog,” Katz said.
For many years, researchers have thought about the
brain as an organ separate from the rest of the body. It
sits like a bowling ball on top of our shoulders, boasting
no less than 100 billion neurons.
To combat that, eat plenty of good fats, lots of vegetables
(fiber) and lots of seeds and nuts, especially pumpkin seeds.
“They are like mini-vacuum cleaners” she said.
(Exerpt from Press Democrat, 2/13/15)
In the past decade, though, researchers and nutrition
experts such as Rebecca Katz of San Rafael have started
to look at the brain in a more holistic manner and have
started talking about neurogenesis, the idea that the
brain can regenerate neurons over time.
(For the complete story: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/
lifestyle/3489596-181/foods-that-feed-your-brain?page)
Gray Matters Spring 2015
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The Good Life
Question:
2015
What are the five key elements of
your "good life?"
What would you be
willing to give up to achieve
your version of utopia?
If you'd like to share, please send your
MUSINGS responses to:
Kristin Thigpen at [email protected]
EXTRA CURRICULARS:
Paperback Nonfiction
Top 5 NPR Best Sellers, Week of Feb 26, 2015:
Pos.
TitleAuthor
1
The Boys In The Boat-Daniel James Brown
2Wild-Cheryl Strayed
3
Unbroken-
Laura Hillenbrand
4
American Sniper-
Chris Kyle, Scott Mcewen
and Jim DeFelice
5
The Sixth Extinction- Elizabeth Kolbert
Sonoma Film Institute (SFI)
Located on the SSU campus, SFI screens films at the
Warren Auditorim in Ives Hall. Tickets (age 55+) are $6.
Fridays at 7:00p.m. and Sundays at 4:00p.m.
Coming films:
March 27 and 29: Timbuktu An account of the
temporary occupation of Timbuktu by militant Islamic
Jihadists in 2012. Film Preview: https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=Cs2dYAlbINY
April 3 and 5: The Young Girls of Rochefort Citizens
of a sleepy town are energized by the arrival of a
traveling fair. Film Preview: https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=vZFK8svwtxA
MEET YOUR AMBASSADORS!
Irwin and Judy Miller haven't been in town long, but they
certainly have made an impact already. Jumping in with
both feet since moving to Sonoma County three years
ago, they're
"busy"
and loving
life, from
seeing their
grandkids
in San
Francisco
each week,
to lectures
and concerts
in San
Francisco
Judy and Irwin Miller, OLLI Ambassadors
and Santa Rosa, and attending the opera in New York,
"our last remaining vice," says Irwin.
You may know the Millers, "I'm an OLLI doorman,"
Irwin says with a twinkle in his eye, - "hoping for
a promotion someday." He and Judy are OLLI
Ambassadors, and love their role helping greet students
before classes and answer questions about the program.
Judy says the best thing about OLLI is the way the classes
are set up - "being able to learn without pressure - no
preparing, just going and enjoying learning for the sake of
learning. OLLI gives us the opportunity to learn things we
otherwise wouldn't have known, it's opened our eyes to
things we were not aware of."
"And the variety of classes is so good!" adds Irwin, "from
Kayleen Asbo, our '1st' favorite teacher, to Bill O'Connor
to James Sokol to Bruce Elliott - we love them all."
After a lifetime in the card and book distribution industry
in Boston, life in Petaluma has been a culture shift. But
from their next door neighbors, to their temple activities,
to their community volunteering, the Millers have made
new friends and new traditions, and we're all the richer for
them. Irwin adds, "Something you might not know about
me - for the past 10 years I've run across the Golden Gate
Bridge on my birthday." Which would be a feat for most
people, and rather spectacular if you're 80!
"Of all we do - OLLI is the most enjoyable thing. It's
the one place we go where people do things for us!" says
Irwin. We're feeling very lucky that the Millers found
OLLI at SSU. Thank you Irwin and Judy!