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Nancy Shlaes wrote: > I wish (or I think I wish) that there was a way to self-measure > mental acuity on the job. Charles Countryman wrote: > But how do you measure when you suspect that mental processing is > slowing down, vocabulary may be regressing, or other "higher level" > functions may be impaired? We need to do some research as to what are the general cognitive changes due to aging, so as to not confuse them with PD, and then what psychologists have identified as "cognitive deficits" of PD. But what if they haven't all been identified? And how do we distinguish the PD component of those results of aging which are intensified by PD? Also, assuming there is such a test, at what intervals do you take it so as to show significantly different results? Also, how would the results be affected by the hour by hour changes that can occur depending on medication schedules? I have read that with PD there is a change in ability to estimate time. This is also age-related. Time passes more quickly than we perceive it (or is it more slowly? - see next paragraph). This is because the substantia nigra is involved in time perception. I experience greater difficulty in dealing with logical relationships as illustrated by giving an explanation of "spring forward, fall back". I also experience a decrease in ability to concentrate unless I am well motivated internally. It's harder to keep focused on tedious tasks. Some of this is due to fatigue from not enough sleep. I also experience difficulty in short-term memory retention - e.g., not forgetting a phone number I just looked up before I dial it.** Phil Tompkins Hoboken NJ 60/9 ** A while ago I saw someone with a tee shirt that said "I have CRS (can't remember sh..)". I asked him where he got it. He couldn't remember.