Why is learning easier(or seems easier) when we’re young and futile, but as we get older learning gets harder, but understanding more abstract and complex subjects also gets easier?

Question

Like for example the older you get the wiser and more abstract minded you become, but the learning process on the other hand seems to wear down real badly with age, if you want to learn a language learn while you’re still young because language comprehension can only be so decent, right?

Is such mindfuckery, compare to the vocabulary and linguistics of a 25 year old compared to that of say a 10 year old and see the world of difference, of course some learn fasters than others and who knows sometimes kids can be smarter than adults, but is the brain just more or less plasticy when we’re younger? But then why does brain processing speed peak around ages 16-19 according to so many infographics that I’ve seen.

In: 1

Answer 1

Two big things in play on opposite sides here:
Neuroplasticity is how quickly and easily your brain cells can create new connections. On a biological level, it’s how you learn. It’s very high in kids (in part because their brain is still growing) and goes down as we age. So kid brains are physically better at learning things.

Countering this is the fact that most knowledge builds directly or indirectly in other knowledge. Clearly knowing how to add makes learning multiplication easier. Less obviously throwing a ball makes parts of physics easier to learn since you’ve seen gravity and forward velocity turn into a curve. As we build up knowledge, the odds that we have some part of the knowledge required for what we are learning next goes up. Older brains have a bigger repository of stuff to draw on and apply to new situations.