Mark Tommerdahl - corticalmetrics insights

The Grumpy Science Origin Story: Why We Do What We Do

February 21, 2025

A few years after launching Grumpy Science, we figured it was time to resurrect it. Why? Because we’re a couple of curmudgeonly old guys who do what we want, when we want. Simple as that.

So, what exactly is Grumpy Science? It’s a videocast co-hosted by Bob Dennis and yours truly. It all started with our Friday afternoon impromptu meetings—sessions we refused to call "Happy Hour" because, well, that would have been inaccurate. Instead, they turned into “Grumpy Hour,” where we vented about all the

No magic bullet for better brain health

February 17, 2025

Let’s be honest—most people treat their brain health like an old, neglected car. They assume it’s running fine because, hey, it hasn’t completely broken down yet! The reality? Cognitive decline is a sneaky little thing, creeping up on you while you continue to assume you’re as sharp as ever.

The Boiling Frog Syndrome: Your Brain on Autopilot
Too many people suffer from what’s known as the boiling frog syndrome—the idea that if a problem worsens gradually, you won’t notice it until it’

Lion's Mane - another way to improve cognition?

February 15, 2025

Lion's Mane Mushroom: A Natural Ally for Cognitive Enhancement
In recent years, the use of natural supplements for cognitive enhancement has gained significant traction. One of the most notable and widely researched options is Lion's Mane mushroom (Hericium erinaceus). This unique, shaggy-looking fungus has been traditionally used in Eastern medicine for centuries and is now gaining recognition for its potential to support brain health and cognitive function. Of course, as always, it helps some individuals more than others and the only way to know whether or not it is working

What is cognitive reserve and how is it related to overall brain health?

December 18, 2024

There are many parallels between physical fitness and brain fitness. A good understanding of these parallels can help you achieve and maintain better brain function.

Physical reserve and cognitive reserve are two distinct but interrelated concepts that play important roles in overall health and well-being. Here's a comparison of the two:

Nature and Focus:

Physical Reserve: Physical reserve refers to the body's ability to withstand and recover from physical stressors and challenges. It encompasses factors like physical fitness, strength, endurance, and overall health.

Cognitive Reserve: Cognitive reserve, on the other

Benefits of brain training for first responders

December 04, 2023

Recently we have been working with groups of first responders and helping them set up programs for improving cognitive reserve. While most of these groups have programs for maintaining physical fitness, it has only been recently that they have determined the need for maintaining brain fitness. Stressful situations, long periods without sleep and exposure to traumatic events on a routine basis can work overtime to deplete cognitive reserves. Similar to physical training for keeping in shape during down times, many first responders are implementing brain training into their fitness regimen.

Building blocks of the CNS

October 18, 2023

The Brain Gauge is effective at tracking brain health because it measures the building blocks of information processing. So what do we mean by this? Essentially, the Brain Gauge measures target, at a systems level, ingredients for higher order processing. For example, information processing speed is critical for all types of processing. Mechanisms such as lateral inhibition and plasticity are key components or building blocks for memories (i.e, the Brain Gauge measures lateral inhibition and plasticity, but not memory). In other words, the design of the Brain Gauge system

Boiling frogs and old people

October 02, 2023

How many times do we need to hear people say "I'm fine" and have that be the primary method for evaluating mental health? That really doesn't make any reasonable standard. Using degenerative and failing brain health to evaluate whether or not that very brain is still capable of working simply does not work.

The "boiling frog syndrome" is a metaphorical anecdote often used to illustrate the concept of gradual change or a slow decline that goes unnoticed until it's too late. The story goes that if

A modest proposal: the not so secret formula for getting dementia

September 29, 2023

After watching a few people in my life go down the dementia path, I thought I might share with you the benefits of dementia and the best lifestyle to pursue that elusive formula. After all, after you completely lose it, you don't have to be responsible for anything. You can sit in a wheel chair and watch TV all day. Or just talk to your cats. You don't have to drive because your driver's license will be taken away. Your memory is shot - but with the lifestyle that you

Can you train to multi-task?

September 27, 2023

Multi-tasking is something that is difficult to accomplish - unless you train for it - and then it can become a significantly valuable tool. Imagine all the work that you could get done during zoom meetings if you could sort of pay attention to what's being said online while you go about doing something else. For most of our lives (well, for those of us that grew up pre-cell phones and social media), we have been taught to focus on one thing and one thing only. Constant interruptions from emails,

What is cognitive reserve and how do you preserve it?

September 01, 2023

When I started to look for images for "cognitive reserve", the majority of photos that popped up were related to preservation - such as preserving different aspects of the environment. Not what I was looking for, but when you think about it, preserving your individual environment has a lot to do with preserving cognitive reserve. I have always been fully supportive of any efforts we make to preserve the environment that we have and in many ways, the same principles apply to preserving our cognitive abilities through the