Chapter I. Neurophysiological support of mental

Sports and mental activity ... Many perceive these two concepts as not related to each other. As heaven and earth, at first glance, the head and legs correspond. But, just as the firmament is connected with the earth, so our physical activity is connected with intellectual activity. Yes, not just connected, but directly proportionally affects!

It's no secret that people who lead an active and healthy lifestyle tend to be much more intelligent than those who lead the opposite lifestyle. Paradoxical, even mysterious, isn't it?

Unfortunately, there is no magic here (and you really want to believe in miracles!). Everything can be explained in terms of biology, anatomy. There is a special pattern inherent in the human body: during physical activity, blood with useful and nutritious substances, and most importantly, oxygen, flows more actively to the human brain. Our brain is designed in such a way that it cannot work without oxygen, for it it is needed in enormous quantities. The more oxygen is supplied to the brain, the more actively the “gray” matter works, thereby the process of increasing the mental activity of a person takes place. There are many more arguments given by biologists on this topic:

Physical activity - a stimulator of organs and tissues of the body
Physical activity is an impetus to the formation and growth of branches of nerve cells.
Sport is a way of self-healing of the body from many diseases.

All this leads to the fact that the state of the human body improves, which, in turn, leads to an improvement in brain activity.

By the way, an attentive reader will most likely immediately have the following question: “So, athletes must have superpowers in terms of mental activity”? It is impossible to answer this question unambiguously. Yes and no.

Indeed, it has been scientifically proven that athletes have a much higher level of brain activity than people who do not go in for sports. But then does it mean that all athletes must be Lomonosovs and Einsteins?

They should, but they don't want to. Many athletes after training "fall" on the sofa to watch an entertaining movie. Far perishing here until spiritual food! Of course, you can’t blame such people, but you can’t justify them either. After all, make a little effort - and you can achieve incredible heights! For example, like Plato, who was a philosopher and a good wrestler, or like the famous German physicist V.K. Roentgen, who went in for mountaineering, rowing, luge, and ice skating. Currently, there are also many such “versatile personalities” among athletes who manage to combine several completely opposite activities.

If we consider the issue from the point of view of psychology, then we can identify a number of causes and consequences, due to which, according to psychologists, sport improves brain activity:

The very first and most important thing is that sports activities teach a person to self-organize his life, to correctly distribute and use the summary time.
Physical activity leads to stress resistance, which helps a person to focus not on their experiences, but on the assimilation of the material.
Opposites attract. A body that has received physical exercise requires spiritual food.

There are many more theories and just points of view regarding this topic. However, the conclusion is similar for all of them: sport has a positive effect on intellectual activity.

But which sports, in this case, are the most effective?

dancing;
gymnastics;
walking;
yoga;
breathing exercises;
swimming;
tennis;
badminton;
volleyball;
football

In my opinion, you need to start with the simplest and most important - breathing exercises. Only by mastering it, you will be able to breathe properly while exercising. Let me remind you that the most important thing for the brain is an abundant supply of oxygen. So start messing with your brain.

I will give here one example of such a technique, which, in my opinion, seems to be the most effective.

Solar-lunar breath.

This technique is based on the theory that the daily respiratory cycle depends on the sun, moon and stars. We breathe priority to either the left or right nostril throughout the day. If we breathe through the right nostril, and the left one is “clogged”, then we are too tired, and if the right nostril is “clogged”, then we are in a state of strong nervous tension. To harmonize our body, you must perform the following exercises:

first, with the thumb of the right hand, it is necessary to close the right nostril, inhale air through the opposite nostril for 2 seconds. Pause for 2 seconds and then exhale for exactly 4 seconds.
Repeat the same manipulations, only with the left nostril closed.

Exercises should be repeated alternately 10-12 times for each nostril.

This exercise allows you to relax the body, bring it out of a state of fatigue and nervous tension, thereby balancing the work of the left and right nostrils.

I would like to repeat that this technique is not the only one. There are whole complexes of developed exercises “for every taste”. Breathing exercises can be used as an independent technique, or as part of other exercises.

Feeling unwell after exercising? Stop doing the exercise, calm down, think about something good, don't panic. If your condition greatly worries you, consult a doctor immediately. Also, please note that breathing exercises for some individuals may not be recommended or even contraindicated. If you have problems with the heart or respiratory organs, first of all, be sure to consult with your doctor, because safety is above all!

The most important thing is to provide fresh air in the room. Smile more often, because everything that makes us positive emotions is good for us. Get involved with pleasure!

Least of all did I want to state these rules didactically: de-i and not otherwise. Every person is unique. Everyone has their own character, their own circumstances of life and way of thinking, different abilities. and features of the psyche and spiritual level. Therefore, each one must work out [oneself the manner and rules of rational labor.) It is better for one person to work in the morning or afternoon, for another in the evening. One I can create only in complete solitude and silence, the other composes poetry in a subway car packed with passengers. Therefore, the main \ Noah principle - creativity and variability, independent development of individual rules for rational work.

But still, there are some well-established, time-tested methods of the culture of mental labor. Perhaps they will \ are used in the development of your own program. Or maybe such a program will be programlessness, spontaneity, prompted each time only by circumstances and intuition. The main course of your behavior. Be the creators of your life and the process of comprehension of knowledge, the process of creation! The main prerequisite for the effectiveness of your educational process will be strongly developed motivation for mastering a profession, for knowledge and broadening of one's horizons, enthusiasm for the very process of cognition and creativity. K. Markelov ("Journalist's Career") studied the success of the creative career of different groups of journalists and came to the conclusion that one of the main factors is a highly developed creative dominant.

What about the rules? Let them be ten for good measure. Rule one: give yourself a strong, motivated work order. Develop creative dominance and a pronounced, motivation for creativity, for knowledge, for ultimate goals, is associated with the mastery of a profession. In our case, the profession of a journal is to draw up a program, set a clear goal, try to visualize the process of work and the result you want- " reach.

Remember, the Bible said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." The word is the beginning of the deed. We have also learned to understand the deep essence and creative possibilities of a word, a thought; sometimes we do not understand what colossal power it possesses. Our brain and the information environment around us have a huge store of information, and we will give the brain a mental order to find the right solution, it will do this job and make it more efficient.

Scientists have already developed a "mind power technique" (see, for example, the book by J. Scott "The Power of the Mind"), built on the awakening and* itiya, mental vision, internal task. Research connects intuitive functions with the work of the right hemisphere of the brain, which, unlike the logical, rational left hemisphere, uses a holistic, figurative perception of the world and therefore is connected with creativity, feelings, images, symbols and synthesis. Left hemisphere analytical thinking is associated with logic, writing and mathematics.

Unfortunately, in the process of learning, we mainly develop | the left hemisphere and try to remember the verbal information. But, not being perceived figuratively, emotionally, it bys “disappears” from memory. Therefore, it is so important to use only logical thinking, but also figurative: try to clearly and vividly present the object of memorization, imagine, do it! voluminous and colorful, as if emotionally, visually trans live, perceive in all its versatility.

Rule two: do any business with interest, develop a positive attitude to work, be a creator.

Interest, inspiration, creativity - this is what constitutes the basis of any effective work. It has been noticed that when you like work, it is done easily and quickly, minutes and even hours fly unnoticed. And uninteresting, tedious, monotonous work is tiring, and it seems like it takes forever.

V. M. Bekhterev explains the physiological significance of res in this way. Any work excites a protective reflex of resistance-! Therefore, the body, as if moving away from overwork, produces! toxic products that make him rest, hinder the performance of labor operations. In contrast to this * reflex, another arises, which develops mainly o6paf| zom in the cardiovascular sphere. This is an emotional factor - I interest in work. By raising the activity of the heart, this reflex counteracts fatigue.

You will say: “But there are obviously boring classes, there are courses that do not arouse interest.” Of course, fiction

content cannot be compared with algebra, although some consider mathematics the most interesting and creative field of human knowledge. What about economics or law? For some, darkness, for others - the poetry of patterns and trends, an endless variety of situations, a creative solution to the pressing problems of life. Journalism, as a rule, interests everyone, and the disciplines associated with it seem interesting, although also to a different extent.

In short, there are no boring activities, there is a routine attitude towards them. After all, even washing the floor can be made an exciting activity if you draw flowers on the floor with a rag or write poetry. Look for interesting and useful things in seemingly boring subjects, if not in content, then in the form of learning. Remember that you cannot do without them in your future profession. Invent, play, turn on the imagination, fantasize. Be creative. And then things will go smoothly and productively.

Rule three: use useful stereotypes in your work, try, if possible, to always work at the same time, in the same place, under the same conditions.

When this rule is followed, the body is easily included in

We already touched on such an important topic when we talked about time planning. A dynamic stereotype is a relatively stable system of body reactions to environmental influences. It is formed under the influence of factors that are repeated in a certain sequence. This is the physiological basis for the automation of skills, their best performance, a means of adapting the body to the environment.

Our central nervous system works very hard to develop such a stereotype. Therefore, any restructuring of it causes great tension in the cerebral cortex of the brain and sometimes leads to nervous breakdowns. I will cite the reasoning of A. B. Zalkind on this subject: “The bark should not think and take care of the ordering of biological functions - the environment should do this for it - with its correct organization, its system of rhythmic signals (hours of food, sleep, work, movements). And if she, the cortex, is forced to actively serve these lower functions - woe to her, woe to creativity.

For example, if we eat at certain hours, then the body automatically, without coercion, does all the preparatory work (allocates digestive juices, sets

* Zalkinda. B. Brainwork. S. 114.

Movement of food, blood circulation tends to the abdominal cavity, etc.). “The factory is loaded,” as A.B. Kind figuratively says, but the owner did not appear, he does not eat, and all the wise work of the preparers turned out to be in vain. When eating at different times, digestive preparation requires a large additional cost on the part of the brain.

It's the same with work. Our body builds its activity depending on time sensors. By the beginning of work, the activity of the cardiovascular sphere decreases, the excitability of the nervous system grows. And the more precisely the beginning of work coincides with the general rise in the tone of the body, the more effective it is and the less the person gets tired. Again, I will quote Mayakovsky, often mentioned by specialists in NOT, “To ensure that the work goes smoothly, follow the rules of the internal regulations.”

During lectures and seminars, it is useful to sit in the same place, if, moreover, you can see and hear well there. Don't bhoci undue variety in working conditions at home.

Rule four: observe the dynamics of the stages of work.

A person enters into any work gradually, reaches the highest optimal level in it, and then - a decline in creative activity, after which rest is needed.

Let's call these steps.

prelaunch, prework the period of adjustment of the body to work, when a person is psychologically and physiologically ready * for it. The heart rate increases by 15-2C compared to the initial value.

working period, during which the body mobilizes its resources to reach the optimal level, the period depending on the content and degree of difficulty of pat lasts from 3 to 20 minutes, and for some even more than an hour. Poeto" it is expedient to enter into business gradually, and never take; difficult from the start. The productivity of the second hour is approximately 10% higher than that of the first.

Steady state period of high performance, when the optimal mode of the nervous, circulatory is established! respiratory and other body systems necessary for productive work. The duration of this period is 1.5-3 hours! depending on the nature and degree of a person's passion for cboi-business.

Then comes fatigue, decreased performance, although an hour at the end of the work there is a period of "ultimate breakthrough", which4| ry associated with the emotional expectation of completion and | recreation.

It is logical to conclude that you need to do simple things first, plan the most difficult work for the second hour, and then distribute it as the complexity decreases.

Rule five: work rhythmically, constantly, using any work opportunities.

Long breaks in work lead to a decrease in its productivity, because a person has to re-tune, get into the essence of the problem, into the rhythm. It is very important to bring each case to the end, to do certain completed pieces of work, to set real achievable goals, the fulfillment of which will certainly be achieved.

You need to clearly imagine for what time period how much work you need to do, and try to meet the deadline. But if you still have to interrupt the work, it is better to do it in the most interesting place, so that you want to take it up again, as M. Shaginyan advised.

Rule six: be constant in solving complex creative problems, do not turn off for a long time from the labor process.

Mental, especially creative work loves constancy, immersion in the problems and ideas posed. Parts of the brain involved in complex mental work should not switch too often. This is connected with the concept of a dominant (according to Ukhtomsky's definition), or a focus of optimal excitation (according to Pavlov).

As experts say, additional energy, mental, informational resources of the body and the environment are attracted to the part of the brain engaged in solving certain creative tasks, an additional mass of nerve fibers is involved, the necessary amount of blood flows, etc. Then the quality of work is high. If there is no dominant, the energy resources go to other, non-creative areas and the person loses the ability to accomplish his plan.

Therefore, the constant focus on work, “feeling into the object”, as the philosopher I. Ilyin said, especially when solving complex creative problems (writing an abstract, term paper and diploma work, journalistic publication, etc.), has a huge positive value.

Of course, distractions from work are possible and necessary, but given the above.

L. Tolstoy said: “I would kill myself if I didn’t work for at least one day” (and he usually worked at his desk from 9 am to 3 pm daily). It is useful to recall the statement of Charles Darwin: "I never considered half an hour an insignificant time." And many-

Gee of us argue like Oblomov: "Is it possible to do anything: after all, there are two hours left before dinner."

It is worth listening to the words of the ancient Greek scientist ", Pocrates, who lived 104 years: “Idleness and nothingness entail perversity. On the contrary, aspiration; anything brings with it cheerfulness, eternally directed towards the "strengthening of life."

Rule seven: use 1 subconscious or intuition for creative work. Learn to create conditions for the subconscious.

Here it is necessary to say a few words about the greatest significance of the creative work of the subconscious. If you are solving some simple problem, it is useful to “order” your subconscious mind to search< на заданный ему вопрос. И тогда поиски решения идут беспрерь но, мозг перебирает варианты, ищет информацию, пока не пс скажет вам решение. Поэтому чередование работы за столом с: рерывами для подсознательной работы, для возбуждения va tion is extremely important. And such a thought process can pass during walks or physical labor. It is well known that great people often created, composed their works on walks in the garden.

An important component of creative inspiration is the lowering of a certain rhythmic background, in the presence of which it is easier to work. It can be soft music, the rhythm of wag steps, the tapping of wheels if you are going to the subway or tram, etc. Many creative people admitted that in order to work fruitfully, they need to enter a concentrated state of rhythm. However, extraneous noises and intrusions disrupt the creative process and can “frighten away” the idea or the progress of its implementation.

Rule eight: alternate types of work.

In the process of such a change, the inclusion of various \ cells to work, so the brain is less tired. In the working area of the brain, the bloodstream expands, but correspondingly decreases in other areas. This is both good, because it is productive, dominant, and bad, because if one system is overloaded, it loses elasticity, and non-working areas are deprived of nutrition and part of its activity. Therefore, as A. B. Zalkind says, the body worked "life-giving rhythm." Respiratory muscles work * 5 hours a day, in groups. The heart divides duties between: the ventricle, which is busy for 8 hours, and the atrium with a four-hour rhythm. The central nervous system is loaded with 16 owls - the time of wakefulness.

The alternation of types of work is an organic necessity. This property was known and successfully used by many great people. It is known that after working at the desk Tolstoy mowed, dug, stitched boots (in the museum in Khamovniki you can see a pair of boots made by him). Borodin was not only a musician, but also a professor of chemistry, Chekhov was a doctor. Pushkin and Lermontov drew beautifully. Griboyedov wrote music. In general, one of the main properties of geniuses is their versatile talent.

Voltaire had five desks in his office and moved from one to another from time to time. Five tables in your room is a utopia, but the principle of alternating activities is useful to learn and apply in your studies and life.

It is recommended to change the type of work after 1.5-3 hours, although this is also an individual matter. But here it is necessary to recall some features. It is best to alternate simple and complex work, and it is important that the type of follow-up activity is very different from the previous one and is of a different complexity. This contributes not only to less fatigue, but also to a better fixation in the memory of the studied material. Therefore, it is advisable to alternate the study of theoretical material with preparatory work (search for information, for example, or taking notes), the study of foreign languages with reading fiction, etc. However, it should be remembered that if you are solving some important creative task, then you should not interrupt it with another difficult creative task. But you can change the types of work within the framework of the chosen topic: reading with writing the text, editorial editing with reflection on the future course of work.

Rule nine: study the features of your personality: temperament, character, mindset, memory, attention, will. Use their positive properties, overcome shortcomings, learn to activate your mental processes, especially attention and memory, master the method of self-education.

There are many good books on these issues. It is possible to develop, train attention, perception, observation, thinking, imagination, memory with the help of special techniques, tests, psychological workshops. Let's recommend at least "Workshop on General Psychology" (M., 1979). Read more about this in the section “Activation of mental processes”.

Rule tenth and last: Alternate work and rest, give the body the opportunity to recuperate.

Resting, the body is freed from harmful substances that are formed during mental work (carbon dioxide, urea, lactic acid, etc.). Therefore, it is very important to do

Breathes for rest for 10-15 minutes every 40-45 minutes of work, and after 3-4 hours, rest for at least half an hour. At this time, it is useful to do a little warm-up, gymnastics, take a walk in the fresh air, i.e. voluntarily relax. This is helped by the technique of relaxation (relaxation) and auto-training. Resting, of course, is better during a period of decreased creative activity, taking into account daily biorhythms.

During periods of hard work at the table, at the computer, it is important to give your eyes a rest and do special exercises that relieve their tension. Experts advise to blink more often when reading, periodically do palming, i.e. cover your eyes with your palms and give them rest in complete darkness. It is good to do exercises for the eyes: move your eyes up and down 6 times, from side to side, rotate your eyes 2-3 times in a circle, look from near objects to distant ones. It takes a little time, but will allow you to save your eyesight, especially if you sit at the computer for hours. Cold rinsing of the eyes gives a good effect: splash cold water into closed eyes up to 20 times *.

It is useful to relax in the fresh air, it is best not in a gassed part of the city, but in a forest or park. There are a lot of substances in the forest air that are essential for the body: phytoncides that kill microbes, aromatic substances, resins, essential oils. Ionized particles that form in green areas have a restorative effect on a person and stimulate the creative process (there are especially many ions in a winter forest when the crown and roots are bipolar charged). In general, the forest restores the energy balance of a person. And if in the forest you still do physical education, run, play football or volleyball, then you will fully restore your working capacity and improve your health.

Anything that promotes health also stimulates the mental faculties. History knows the names of remarkable people who had enviable health and were colossally efficient: Leonardo da Vinci, Lomonosov, Tolstoy. Byron was one of the first to swim across the English Channel, and Lermontov tied bows from ramrods.

Studies show that the worse the health, the lower the level of performance. Such students spend more time and effort preparing assignments. Naturally, the time for

* See: How to restore vision yourself. M., 1998.

(there is not enough breath. Fatigue turns into overwork when the body is already having difficulty restoring its working capacity. It is so important for the poem to be engaged in hardening of health, sports, physical training and, at a minimum, physical exercises. Skating, rowing, volleyball are especially useful for workers , diving, skiing, hiking.Do not regret the time spent on

physical education - it will pay off handsomely. Do not save on walks: at this time, the brain is doing the most important subconscious work, solving the tasks that you gave it, processing the information received and packing it into memory. It is better to walk without exciting and meaningless conversations, at least an hour a day. You can use erogu to the university and back for this (at least part of the way). The mountain air is very useful, and it is not for nothing that many great people go to the mountains. Good baths and saunas. The action of high temperature and its sharp changes cause increased blood circulation, help to avoid congestion. But coolness, suitable water procedures during breaks or after intensive creative work also help. Schiller, resting his labors, dipped his feet into the cold water, while Pushkin took cold baths.

Special mention should be made of dream, the longest rest during le days. Shakespeare called sleep a balm for a sick soul, the source of all strength. People engaged in intense mental ra-hey are recommended to sleep 8 hours a day. The best time to go to bed is at 23.00-23.30. In any case, scientists recommend lying down at midnight. Moreover, if choleric people, people of an optimistic attitude, sometimes 6-7 hours of sleep are enough, then phlegmatic people, meinholics, people living in conflict situations, inclined to experiences, need to sleep 8-9 hours. Naturally, I change the time of sleep for "owls" and "larks".

But in general, the duration of sleep is an individual category. I know that Napoleon slept for 4-5 hours with two breaks: he lay down at 21.00-24.00 and slept until 2 in the morning. Then he got up, worked at 15:00 in the morning and slept again until 7:00. Albert Einstein slept for hours and it was in his sleep that he made some of the most important discoveries (other great people often made discoveries in their sleep). In general, sleep is the secret of secrets. Obviously, this is a state in which the body not only rests, but also processes information that is not present during the day. As some scientists say, during sleep there is a connection with the information and energy structures of the world around us. But this is still the little-known jaws of science. But it is well known that the reduction or increase

Determining the optimal duration for a given person 4 reduces the performance of mental activity by 15- 2Sch

A survey of first-year students of the Faculty of Journalism showed that SCH every tenth sleeps more than 9 hours and about the same half 6 hours, i.e. one in five violates the accepted norms of sleep. They go to bed after midnight, trying to make up for the time I missed during the day to prepare for classes. Naturally, they get up with the patient: they are late for lectures, they constantly feel tired, they reach nervous breakdowns.

American psychiatrist Dan Kripke has made a clear connection between health and sleep duration*. Surveyed 1958-1960 million people over the age of 30 and repeating this study after 6 years, he found that the death rate was minimal among those who sleep 7-8 hours, the rate increased sharply among those who slept less or more of this time, and the graph resembled a sharp arc with ends, nq| taken up.

It is advisable to go to bed at the same time. Before going to bed, lie outdoors, ventilate the room well. For two, stop intense mental activity in order to calm down the brain. But before going to bed, you can read what you don't remember. A warm bath before bed is helpful. In the evening hours] avoid coffee, alcohol, rich food, overexcitation. You still have insomnia, you can apply the techniques of autoheal training, relax and give yourself a mental order mustache * It is useful to massage your head, above your forehead. But if nothing can, it's better to get up and do some simple thing to read something that does not cause strong emotions. Do not sleep during the day if you did not sleep well at night. A spoonful of honey or a glass of warm milk is very useful for insomnia.

Now about nutrition. Scientists have found that mental
requires about 2400 calories, while the physical from 3000 to 500 |
Does mental work consume a lot of proteins and phosphorus?
salts, so meat, fish, eggs, cheese, milk are recommended
The pancreas plays a big role, and it needs food.
iodine (sorrel, fish oil). With nervous mental work, org.
nism needs iron, which is found in meat, bake*
cauliflower, egg yolk, wholemeal bread. Useful*
nuts, mushrooms, of course, vegetables and fruits. There is always desirable!
the same time, 4 times is better. But nutrition is also an individual matter *
Really, everyone chooses their diet. sch

* See this in detail in the book: Borbeli A. Sleep secrets. M., 1989.

Two words about the dangers of such a "rest" as smoking. Science has proven that 3-4 cigarettes reduce the ability to memorize and the amount of memorization by 5-6%. Of course, you will not be surprised by the information that a drop of nicotine kills a horse, and every fifth cause of death is smoking and every cigarette smoked (according to German scientists) shortens life by 12 minutes, that smokers are five times more likely to get cancer .

But perhaps the following facts will affect you: smoking causes deformities and various anomalies in children born to smoking mothers, the body weight of newborns is on average 150-200 g less than in children of non-smoking women, premature births occur two to three times more often. childbirth. Smokers have impaired hearing, vision, and smell. Moreover, passive smoking, i.e. inhaling smoke in a smoky room is also very harmful, especially for babies.

There is a legend that smoking helps in mental work. But experiments have shown that the pace and quality of solving mathematical, chess, logical and other problems is deteriorating sharply. Some refer to the fact that many great people smoked. I will quote the words of L. Tolstoy on this subject: “From the fact that spiritually strong people, subjected to the degrading action of intoxicating substances, nevertheless produced great things, we can only conclude that they would have produced even more if they had not been intoxicated.”

Alcohol has an even worse effect on mental activity. A bottle of beer and dry wine is also not safe if they are taken regularly, because the body gets used to drinking alcohol, alcohol addiction develops, which turns into a terrible disease - alcoholism. And the earlier a person is addicted to alcohol, the faster this incurable disease occurs. Large doses of alcohol cause swelling, and then wrinkling and death of nerve cells. Only one strong intoxication leads to the death of tens of thousands of nerve cells. Alcohol abuse leads to thinning and smoothing of the convolutions of the brain. Penetrating into germ cells, ethanol partially destroys DNA, which carries hereditary information, which leads to deformities and diseases in children born from drinking parents.

But on the other hand, laughter is very useful for creativity, for improving well-being, health. Researchers at Stanford University called it "running in place" after finding that the effect of laughter is similar to that of exercise and has a long duration. With laughter, the content of adrenaline in the blood increases and endorphins enter the brain, which improve well-being. Lower your heart rate, relieve headaches. In the West

There are even laughter clinics. In general, good intentions, benevolence, the desire to help a person will increase the vitality, creative possibilities and ability to work of a person.

And the last thing I would like to say, ending the conversation ^ rest: do not forget about the need join the common cultural values, use this time rationally to become broadly educated, cultured people X sociality. This is especially true of the journalistic profession,

Mental work requires extensive connections with general cultures, a fund of information that is now easily obtained from the search engine. Libraries, museum collections, exhibitions, concerts: theaters are your wealth. But it is important to develop a system sch information about really noteworthy phenomena of culture, to get acquainted, first of all, with the best images *, not to waste precious time on second-rate productions, i we, gray literature. Although, of course, everything is determined by taste predilections. The results of film festivals can become a good reference point in the sea of cinema and video. Undoubtedly, the spiritual is enriched by acquaintance with works that have been awarded at music and ballet competitions, theater festivals (for example, ■ a lota mask). In modern literature, it is better oriented to literary publications, the results of literary awards, to meddle in the reading circle of people you respect, including famous writers.

There is now a competition for TEFI TV journalists as well, = the best works are nominated. Print media journals are also celebrated annually.

Do not waste time, join the cultural treasury* of humanity. This will enrich and develop you, help you become not only a well-educated person, but also a good cnei-list.

Introduction ................................................ .............................. 2

Chapter I. Intellectual Functions of the Brain............................................... 4

1.1. Attention................................................. ................................. 4

1.1.1. Definition of attention .................................................................. ...... 4

1.1.2. Physiological bases of attention.................................................... 5

1.1.3. Types of attention .................................................................. ................. 6

1.1.4. Basic properties of attention ..................................................................

1.2. Memory................................................. ..................................... nine

1.2.1. Definition of memory .................................................................. .......... nine

1.2.2. Types of memory .................................................. .................... ten

1.2.3. Mechanisms of memory................................................... .......... 12

1.3. Learning and its types .............................................................. ................ thirteen

1.3.1. Adaptation and learning ............................................................... ...... thirteen

1.3.2. Forms of learning processes............................................... 14

1.4. Thinking................................................. ............................. sixteen

1.4.1. General concept of thinking .............................................. 16

1.4.2. Types of thinking and its forms, mental operations. 17

1.5. Speech................................................. ....................................... nineteen

Chapter II. Training of the intellectual functions of the brain............... 21

2.1. Development of attention .................................................................. ................. 21

2.2. The development of memory .................................................. ................... 22

Conclusion................................................. ......................................... 24

List of references .............................................................. 25

At different stages of historical and individual development, the human psyche has a different content and structure: at the early initial stages, the cognitive side of the psyche is sensual in nature, it appears in the form of sensation and sensory perception; the primary act of human activity has a predominantly sensory-practical character. At the highest stages of development in the cognitive side of the psyche, intellectual moments acquire an increasing share, at first relatively elementary, directly woven into the fabric of material practical activity; then they stand out from it, acquiring relative independence, ideal, theoretical activity. However, at the same time, any act of concrete activity always includes a unity of cognitive and influencing moments, and at higher levels, knowledge becomes more and more effective, and action more and more conscious.

The emergence of human consciousness and human intellect can be correctly explained only depending on its material basis, in connection with the process of the formation of man as a historical being. The development of more and more sophisticated senses was inextricably linked with the development of more and more specialized sensory areas in the human brain, and the development of more and more advanced movements was inextricably linked with the development of an increasingly differentiated motor area.

The development of labor activity and the new functions that the human brain had to assume in connection with the development of labor were reflected in a change in its structure, and the development of its structure determined, in turn, the possibility of the emergence and development of new, increasingly complex functions. Following labor and next to it, speech that arose in joint labor activity was a significant stimulus for the development of the human brain and consciousness. The organ of human conscious activity is the cerebral cortex, therefore the main question is the relationship between the human psyche and the cerebral cortex, concretized in science as a question of functional localization or localization of mental functions in the cerebral cortex.

The cognitive sphere of personality includes attention, sensation and perception, memory, thinking, imagination. Individual manifestations and personality traits include will, feelings, temperament, character, abilities of each person.

The task of psychology as a science is to study these mental phenomena, since it is a science that studies the facts, patterns and mechanisms of the psyche.

Attention is the focus of the psyche (consciousness) on certain objects that have a stable or situational significance for the individual, the concentration of the psyche (consciousness), suggesting an increased level of sensory, intellectual or motor activity.

Directivity is primarily understood as the selective (selective) nature of the course of cognitive activity, an arbitrary (intentional) or involuntary (unintentional) choice of its objects. At the same time, selectivity is manifested not only in the choice of this activity, the selection of these influences, but also in their more or less long-term preservation (long-term retention of certain images in the mind).

Another characteristic feature of attention is the concentration (concentration) of mental activity (concentration of the subject on the object). Concentration implies not just a distraction from everything extraneous, from everything that is not related to this activity, but also inhibition (ignoring, elimination) of secondary, competing activities. Thanks to this, the reflection of the objects of this activity becomes clearer and more distinct. The more difficult the task facing a person, the more intense, intense, deeper his attention will obviously be, and, conversely, the easier the task, the less profound his attention will be.

Concentration is associated with the intensity or intensity of attention. Attention fluctuations in intensity can be assessed by the electroencephalographic method (EEG - method). Different degrees of attention tension correspond to different EEG curves. The greater the interest in the activity (the greater the awareness of its significance) and the more difficult the activity (the less familiar it is), the greater the influence of distracting stimuli, the more intense the attention will be.

Attention is usually expressed in facial expressions, in posture, in movements. It is easy to distinguish an attentive listener from an inattentive one. But sometimes attention is directed not to the surrounding objects, but to the thoughts and images that are in the mind of a person. In this case, we speak of intellectual attention, which is somewhat different from sensory (external) attention. It should also be noted that in some cases, when a person shows an increased focus on physical actions, it makes sense to talk about motor attention. All this indicates that attention does not have its own cognitive content and only serves the activity of other cognitive processes.

The physiological basis of attention is the mechanism of interaction of the main nervous processes - inhibition and excitation, occurring in the cerebral cortex. At attention in the field of clear awareness, an object (object) stands out from the many other objects surrounding a person, and other objects represent the general background of perception. Physiologically, this means that some nerve centers are excited and others are inhibited, the established by Ch. Sherrington and widely used by I.P. Pavlov's law of induction of nervous processes, according to which the processes of excitation that occur in some parts of the cerebral cortex cause the processes of inhibition in other parts of the brain. The formed center of excitation dominates (predominates) over all others, and it is called the dominant (or the optimal focus of excitation). This creates conditions under which the influence of extraneous stimuli is eliminated, since their signals enter the inhibited areas of the cerebral cortex. The focus of optimal excitation moves along the cerebral cortex, which creates conditions for better knowledge and study of the subject.

Of great importance for clarifying the physiological foundations of attention is also the principle of dominance, put forward by Academician A.A. Ukhtomsky. The concept of "dominant" denotes a temporarily dominant focus of excitation, which determines the work of the nerve centers at a given moment and thereby gives behavior a certain direction. The dominants are summed up and impulses flowing into the nervous system are accumulated, while simultaneously suppressing the activity of other centers, due to which the focus of excitation is further enhanced. Due to these properties, the dominant is a stable focus of excitation, which makes it possible to explain the neural mechanism of long-term intensity of attention.

Speaking about the physiological mechanisms of active attention, it should be noted that the selection of significant influences is possible only against the background of the general wakefulness of the body associated with active brain activity. Usually, 5 stages of wakefulness are distinguished, effective attention is possible only at the stage of active and calm wakefulness, while at other stages the main characteristics of attention change and can only perform certain functions. For example, in a drowsy state, a reaction is possible only to 1–2 of the most important stimuli, while the rest of the reactions are completely absent.

Thus, attention is conditioned by the activity of a whole system of hierarchically dependent brain structures, but their role in the regulation of different types of attention is unequal.

Depending on the nature of orientation and concentration, involuntary (unintentional) and voluntary (intentional) attention are distinguished. Attention that arises without any intention and without a predetermined goal is called involuntary. This is the most simple and genetically original, also called passive or forced attention. Activity captures a person in these cases by itself, because of its fascination, entertainment and surprise. A person involuntarily surrenders to the objects that affect him, the phenomena of the activity performed.

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Mental activity (as well as muscular) is primarily the activity of the central nervous system, its higher department - the human brain cortex.

Mental activity, which includes the process of modeling, develops on the basis of the functioning and interaction of three formations of the cerebral cortex: sensory, neural and operational fields of the cerebral cortex. The patterns of functioning of these brain formations are reflected in the modeling activity of a person. This means that in the process of building a new model, the features of the functioning of the operational field, the different speed and completeness of the manifestation of information stored in memory traces of different strength, as well as the state of aftereffect that occurs in the cortical traces covered by mental operations, are manifested.

Mental activity, - Piaget proceeds from this, - is not wholly a logical activity.

Directed-organized mental activity in the process of finding the optimal solution allows you to clearly see the progress of solving the problem, analyze data in connections and relationships, and organize your actions based on the essence of the problem.

Purposeful mental activity for 11 hours a day is very stressful and, of course, tiring. But, firstly, fatigue from mental activity, if it is not excessive, is normal, like any fatigue from work. Secondly, modern general and special requirements for a specialist are so great that even these 11 hours of hard daily work are barely enough.

The mental activity of the designer does not allow the rater to be a witness to the emergence, development and maturation of the design concept. He can only record the time it took the designer to implement a particular idea in the drawings, and in each individual case it is different.

The mental activity of the driver is directly included in practical labor actions and proceeds in inseparable connection with them. It is characterized by high performance, fatigue resistance in track conditions with a certain physical load and a given pace of work.

The mental activity of the driver is directly related to his labor actions. He must have a well-developed practical operational thinking for independent solution of various technological problems.

The mental activity of a pipe-laying crane driver is directly related to his practical actions.

The mental activity of operators of different professions is different in composition and structure. In typical HMS of oil and gas production, the operator performs the listed types of mental activity with different intensity, at different costs of time, information, and energy.

Mental activity requires finely differentiated excitation of limited areas of the cerebral cortex and simultaneous inhibition of other adjacent areas. Strong feelings are associated with a high level of excitation of the subcortical centers. Impulses from the subcortex bombard the cerebral cortex, leading to its diffuse excitation, and intellectual activity deteriorates. This is the neurophysiological basis of the Yerkes-Dodson law.

Energy boundaries of various groups of physical condition, kcal/min

The results of many studies indicate the inadmissibility of exceeding 33-40% of the maximum aerobic capacity during physical activity throughout the full working day. Therefore, it can be roughly considered, taking into account age fluctuations, that for persons of group I of physical condition, 8-hour labor energy costs should not exceed 15 kJ/min(3,5 kcal/min), II - groups - 15-19 kJ/min,(3,5-4,5 kcal/min), Group III -19-23 kJ/min(4,5-5,5 kcal/min), Group IV - 23.4-27 kJ/min(5, 6-6,5 kcal/min) for persons of group V, they may be higher than these values.

There is a widespread misconception that mental work is easy work. This idea is based on the fact that during mental labor energy costs (and this is one of the main criteria for assessing the severity of labor) are much lower than during physical labor.

In physiological terms, the main feature of mental labor is that during it the brain performs the functions of not only a coordinating, but the main working organ. At the same time, the analytical and synthetic functions of the central nervous system are significantly activated, the reception and processing of information becomes more complicated, new functional connections are formed, new complexes of conditioned reflexes, the role of the functions of attention, memory, the tension of the visual and auditory analyzers and the load on them increase.

Despite significant physiological differences, the division of labor activity into physical and mental is somewhat arbitrary. With the development of science and technology, the boundaries between them are increasingly smoothed out.

Nevertheless, the majority of types of labor activity can be classified as predominantly mental: managerial work, creative (work of scientists, writers, artists, composers, designers, etc.) work of operators, teachers and lecturers, medical workers. One of the most numerous groups where mental labor predominates are pupils and students. Their work activity is characterized by a strain of memory, attention, perception, frequent stressful situations (control classes, tests, exams), and a largely sedentary lifestyle.

Physiological features of mental labor. Low mobility, a forced monotonous posture during mental work contribute to a weakening of metabolic processes, congestion in the muscles of the legs, abdominal organs and small pelvis, and worsen the supply of oxygen to the brain. Making up only 1.2-1.5% relative to body weight, the brain consumes more than 20% of its energy resources. The blood flow to the working brain increases by 8-10 times compared to the state of rest, and its consumption of oxygen and glucose will increase.

The content of glucose in the blood increases by 18-36%, the concentration of adrenaline, norepinephrine and free fatty acids in the blood increases. In the brain tissue, the consumption of glucose, methionine, glutamine and other essential amino acids, vitamins of group B increases. The functions of the visual analyzer deteriorate - visual acuity, stability of clear vision, contrast sensitivity, visual performance. Increased visual-motor reaction time.

Mental labor also has the highest degree of attention strain: when reading specialized literature, the strain is almost twice as high as when driving a car in the city, and 5-10 times higher than when performing many types of mechanized physical work.

The formal completion of the working day often does not stop the process of professionally directed mental activity. They say that a thought cannot be folded like hands, and even in a dream it does not quite sleep. A special state of the body develops - fatigue can turn into overwork. This condition should be considered already as a serious violation of the normal physiological functioning of the body, as a pre-pathology, and sometimes even a pathology. During mental work, the state of overwork is characterized by the lack of a full recovery of working capacity by the next working day, sleep disturbances (up to persistent insomnia), a decrease in resistance to the effects of adverse environmental factors, and an increase in neuro-emotional excitability.

During mental labor, the state of overwork is not as demonstrative as during physical labor. People who are engaged in mental work, even in a state of overwork, are able to perform their professional duties for a long time without a noticeable decrease in the level of labor activity and labor productivity.

Labor intensity. When developing criteria for a professional assessment of the degree of nervous tension in the process of work, they use characteristics that reflect the tension of the sensory apparatus, higher nerve centers that provide the functions of attention, thinking, and regulation of movements. Special tables have been compiled for the classification of labor according to the degree of neuro-emotional stress based on 14 indicators (intellectual load; duration of concentrated observation, the number of production-important "objects of simultaneous" observation; the number of signals per hour; the number of signals for action per hour; time of active actions; the need for an independent search for mismatches; monotony; visual strain; accuracy of work; shift; mode of work and rest). Using such tables, sanitary doctors and other specialists can determine the degree of stress in certain types of work in various industries (for example, Table 4.3).