If you enjoy word puzzles like Boggle (finding as many words as you can in a time limit from a set number of letters) then Wordsplay is just what you are looking for. No cost, but you do have to sign up and give a user name.

http://www.wordsplay.net/

For those of you who have travelled the world and think you have a fair knowledge of where countries and capitals are to be found, here is a real challenge for your brain.

http://www.mentalfloss.com/geographyzone/

Change is supposed to be good for our brain.  One day we will probably appreciate the ruts in our ever decreasing memory bank, however while we can still flex our mental muscle we should incorporate some daily changes in our lives to grow/activate new neural pathways.

Try brushing your teeth or combing your hair with your other hand.

Take another route to get to the shops or transport.

Move your wastebasket at work.

Try putting the key in the lock using your sense of touch not your sense of sight.

"What your brain does most is form associations between different senses — that’s what your brain is really good at; that’s what it is designed to do. The basic idea behind brain exercises is to use your brain’s natural desire to form associations, to do things in different ways that cause it to form new associations. The capacity of the brain to form new associations is essentially unlimited.

When your brain does this it causes brain cells to become more active. And when cells are more active they produce molecules that, in turn, "fertilize" nerve cells, keeping them healthier and more resistant to the assaults of old age. It used to be thought that as you get older, you lose nerve cells. That’s not really the case. Now we realize that nerve cells are like a tree, and as you get older the branches start to fall off and thin out. But when nerve cells are activated by specific tasks, that causes them to make their own "fertilizer," which causes them and the cells around them to grow new branches again — or at least retain the ones they have. It makes brain cells more active in significant ways but also helps cells produce brain-healthy chemicals.

This is a new approach to brain exercises. Most older exercises are a variation on doing puzzles or logic riddles. The approach that Manning and I developed is really more related to lifestyle. How you live your life will affect how your brain is working, and it’s important to use the world as your "brain gym," and to use the activities in your everyday life to stimulate your brain in new and interesting ways."

Taken from an interview with Lawrence C. Katz, PhD, Co-author of "Keep Your Brain Alive: 83 Neurobic Exercises"

Welcome to the NEW PamPonders.

“We’re starting out again - and this time my favorite webmaster (husband Gary) says he’ll set it up correctly from the beginning. That will save the recent hiccups we had at the site.

Living and learning… Hope you are too.”

Cheers,
Gary
…hoping this is what Pam would say