I have seen some good ideas on this topic here and there, buried in several HN comment threads. But I thought it'll be better off being a separate topic, aggregating everything good/bad for our precious brains.
I've read a ton in this area so let me offer some of my findings. If I get time this weekend I'll put together a blog post and link to it from here so I can include references, etc:
Generally thought to be good for the brain:
Fish oil (Omega 3 in general but fish oil is tough to beat)
Exercise (Read the book Spark for more details)
Meditation (While this needs to be studied more some of the studies on long-time meditators look very promising)
Keeping the brain active, especially as we age (learning a language, doing crosswords or other brain puzzles, etc.)
Quality sleep
Some supplements (While I think there may be more definitive studies necessary, certain supplements like blueberry extract, vitamin D and melatonin are showing promising benefits to the brain)
Generally thought to be bad for the brain:
Excessive consumption of alcohol (1-2 drinks/day may be OK but more than that is typically
Excessive consumption of sugar (the book Sugar Blues goes into a lot more detail)
Toxic fats (Trans Fatty Acids, etc.)
Head injuries (concussions, wear helmets, seatbelts, etc.)
Many drugs (while some drugs are neuroprotective, many are neurotoxic, proceed with caution and reference Daniel Amen's work for more details)
Overexposure to certain chemicals (many people who work in factories with constant exposure suffer problems)
Two of my favorite books in this are are Making a Good Brain Great by Daniel Amen and The Ultra Mind Solution by Mark Hyman.
I've also done a lot reading in this area and the overall topic is really interesting to me.
I met a guy at Hackers and Founders (SF) and the topic of Vitamin D came up. We discussed some of the research that I've found lately about how much good it can do you in terms of general health/brain health/immune health, etc., and how more-than-likely most hackers are deficient because they stay out of the sun during the hours when your body produces
Vitamin D (generally thought to be 10am - 3pm).
Then we got on the topic of how it would be cool to have some kind of Health for Hackers meetup to discuss this and other things hackers can do to have optimal brain and general health.
jonbischke (or others with an interest in this topic), if you're interested in putting on something like this with me in the Bay Area shoot me an email (see my bio). I'm curious if this would be of interest to anybody else who is in the area. Send feedback if anybody's interested in attending or help put on something like this.
Saving Your Brain is a fantastic book by Jeff Victoroff, M.D. He reviewed 14,000 medical research studies to write that book. He's also the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board for Nolan Bushnell's new company, Anti-AgingGames.com.
I would add to your list above: not smoking; being within 5-10 lbs of your ideal weight; partnering with a doctor who is both proactive and focused on prevention; getting an annual checkup with tests that can spot if you have Vitamin D, E, B12, calcium, or iron deficiency; maintaining regular social contact with your friends; buying cars with a good safety rating (in one study the chance of getting Alzheimers was 4x higher in people who sustain head injuries after the age of 39; doing activities that are new and mentally engaging (helps keep the brain's plasticity). You said this but I wanted to stress that the activity should be new because that's what helps the most.
Good stuff!
But just for fun:
1. Sitting on your ass programming for long periods of time develops brain power too.
2. We've held on tightly to our lizard brains too.
3. Faulty wiring can be creative if it's faulty in the right way.
4. We do pay attention to annoying boring things.
5-6. Imagine to remember
7. Sometimes it takes an all-nighter to get your brain over the hump.
8. True, although not always a bad way.
9. Or isolate to concentrate and build myelin.
10. Only if you're a visual learner.
11. Viva la difference
12. We are also inveterate couch potatoes.
Cool stuff. I'm thinking of getting the book. Is it sufficient to get just the book itself (going to do it via my Kindla app) or should I spring for the DVD?
Novelty is good for your brain. But then repitition (a.k.a. "practice") can be too. Caveat: practice makes permanent -- not perfect. Malpractice makes malperfect.
On the practice subject - in college I studied in the double bass studio for a few years. He always said that his goal was to teach us how to practice. He told us that we'd probably forget everything that he actually said, but if he taught us how to practice properly we'd be able to learn anything if only we knew the proper way to practice. He'd also make us tell him exactly what we were going to do after each lesson in order to be ready for the next lesson. A lot of what he taught us, i've found, could be applied to other areas of life.
I like that: "practice makes permanent". Also "perfect practice makes perfect" although lousy practice is pretty good for developing "perfect practice." And turning practice into "your practice" in the yogic sense is good for the brain too. Routine doesn't have to be routine.
It's not the language IMHO, but for me rather the problem that Java programming involves using libs and configuring stuff (which is rather dumb and boring) rather then designing algorithm and understanding how stuff really works..
Wet your hands with cold water and twist and turn your ear with two finger (not too hard, the idea is to generate blood flow so they get warm. You are not trying to hurt yourself). It jolts my attention for about 20-30 minutes.
When I was writing this, I thought to myself if there is any science behind it. Turns out this seems like a fairly well-known thing to some people. I found this out myself. Now I will go read what causes this to happen.
Mercury is really bad for your brain. It inhibits myelin production, which is the mechanism by which people learn and develop skills. Mercury is found in all aquatic animals, which is why I stay away from all of them.
I can't back this up with research, but from my own experience, concentrated thinking is good for the brain. Activities and environments that promote concentration are good while those that disturb concentration are bad.
Good:
writing,
quiet,
solitary runs and walks,
thinking in the shower,
schedule with plenty of margin,
moving around, standing,
working in large blocks of time.
Bad:
noise,
too much information (TV, radio, clutter),
hurry,
packed schedule,
too much food,
too little water,
sitting too long.
I have a feeling that if you list everything that at least one study or credible report found to be good or bad for our brains, it'd end up looking sort of like the compendium of "things that cause and/or prevent cancer": http://kill-or-cure.heroku.com/
Unless you live with no tv and you check them 10 minutes daily to keep yourself informed of what's happening in your industry (i.e. they're not an addiction).
Yes, if you spend no more than 10 minutes with them daily, it stands to reason that you're not addicted or have your addition well under control. Unless you have a TV. ?
Generally thought to be good for the brain:
Fish oil (Omega 3 in general but fish oil is tough to beat)
Exercise (Read the book Spark for more details)
Meditation (While this needs to be studied more some of the studies on long-time meditators look very promising)
Keeping the brain active, especially as we age (learning a language, doing crosswords or other brain puzzles, etc.)
Quality sleep
Some supplements (While I think there may be more definitive studies necessary, certain supplements like blueberry extract, vitamin D and melatonin are showing promising benefits to the brain)
Generally thought to be bad for the brain:
Excessive consumption of alcohol (1-2 drinks/day may be OK but more than that is typically
Excessive consumption of sugar (the book Sugar Blues goes into a lot more detail)
Toxic fats (Trans Fatty Acids, etc.)
Head injuries (concussions, wear helmets, seatbelts, etc.)
Many drugs (while some drugs are neuroprotective, many are neurotoxic, proceed with caution and reference Daniel Amen's work for more details)
Overexposure to certain chemicals (many people who work in factories with constant exposure suffer problems)
Two of my favorite books in this are are Making a Good Brain Great by Daniel Amen and The Ultra Mind Solution by Mark Hyman.