Evening star., 1941-05-23
Tests Dispute Theory
Older Persons Lack
RetentiVe Memory
Findings Have Beorine on
Defense, Public Health
Conference Told

Conference Told
The current opinion that old age
Is forgetful and slow to learn is
probably fallaCy.
This was stressed before the
United States Public Health Service
Conference on Later Maturity here
today by DR.. Carl D. Camp, neurol-
ogiSt of the University of Michigan.
His findings, it was stressed, have
a significant bearing on national
defense.
He told of tests on memory and
learning with man of 35 and one
of 70.
First DR.. Camp and his two sub
jects, who did not know they were
being tested, witnessed an event and
discussed it afterward A month
later the neurologist, who had made
notes at the time. recalled the sub
iect in conversation and found tina,
the 72-year-old man remembered
the circumstances as we'll as his
younger rival.
bOOk-heduiIS ltSt'
Then all three read book, in a
field outside the interests OF either
of the men being tested. Questioned
a month later the older man could
recall Just as many details as the
younger.
Ability to learn was tested by
memorizing two pages of dialogue
from a novel. 1t required 35 minutes
for the man of 35. after which
he repeated the material with 10
errors. The older man learned it
In IS minutes, but repeated it with
only errors.
He told DR.. Camp that he actually
had learned it in shorter time,
but that he was afraid of him
self" and so had studied it for
a longer time.
Then they were asked to learn a
paragraph of a political speech. A
common test of learning with chill
dren is to memoriZe nonsense Syl-
tables but DR.. Camp said, 1T was
less trouble TO take the political
speech and after all there was no
difference" The man of 35 learned
the nonsense" in 10 minutes and
repeated it with two errors. The
man of 70 required 25 minutes TO
learn the material, but repeated it
with no errors. Here again, DR..
Camp said, the greater time re-
ouired for learning was due to an
emotional handicap.
"A man of 72,' he concluded, "can
learn and remember about as well
as a man of 35."
Remarkable Memory.
One of his recent patients, he
said, was man of 80 with a re-
markab BILE memory for figures.
1t turned out that in his work
Ing days this man had been a bag
gage master at large railroad
station and had acquired his curious
ability by long practice in remem-
bering the numbers on trunks.
This ability of the elderly man
10 retain learned skill, DR.. Camp
stressed, may be of great impor-
tance to the country in the present
emergency. He told of one COM
pany engaged in defense produc-
ton which gained a three-month
jump by calling out of retirement
man of Is with skill at making a
certain type of tools.
DR.. Winfred Oberholzer, super
intendent of st. Elizabeth'S Hos
pital, opened the conference by
stressing the increasing Importance
OF the maladieS of old age as the
average age level of the country
rises.
100000 Above IS.
1t has been estimated, he said,
that whereas in 1900 only per
cent of the population were above
SIS. the figure now is per cent and
will be IA per cent in 40 years.
There are now nearly 100000 in
this group in the United States.
But in 1890 "a per cent of the aged
were employed, while in 1880 this
figure had fallen to So per cent.
The feeling of not being wanted,
he said, may have much to do with
the increase of mental deterioration
among the elderly. This is aug
mented by the feeling of loneliness
as ones old friends die.
But, said DR.. Overholzer. 1--WE
should never lost sight of the fact
that there are compenSations. The
accumulated wisdom of the older
person, the wealth of experience
upon which he may draw in ar
irving at judgements, the ability to
balance the new against the old
and to weigh the desirability of
change against undue experimental
ton may be valuable aSetS,,