Great Courses: The Aging Brain by Thad. A. Polk

 Everyone knows that certain cognitive abilities decline with age. In this series of twelve lectures, Dr. Polk discusses what brain functions decline and which stay the same.  He delves into the physiological causes of declines and explores a variety of theories about what causes age related changes.  He also touches on the main causes of dementia and talks particularly about Alzheimer's disease. He finishes off the course by discussing what people can and can't do to mitigate effects of aging on the brain. 

I checked this out because I am on the nether side of 60 and occasionally can't find something in my memory that I know should be there. I found these series of lectures very informative and accessible.  There are terms and ideas that I had heard of but realized that I didn't fully understand before listening to the lectures. I imagine that if you viewed this series in its video format there would have been interesting graphics and charts, but it works fine without those. Dr. Polk has a engaging lecture style and I would recommend this series to anyone who might be interested in an entry level treatment of the topic. (6 hrs, 2016)