Discover Some Brainy Diversions

In the mood for some mental gymnastics? Here's a terrific article I stumbled upon from the Web site of Discover Magazine that I think you'll like:

Which Brain Games Will Help Your Brain The Most?

The article is an online review of six Web sites--with links--where you can find brainy fun and games that'll help your noggin work up a sweat!

How About A Game Of Checkers Online?

Here's the problem: You're in the mood for a game of checkers, but you just can't find your old checkers board--or maybe you found the darn thing, dusted it off, but no one wants to play. Your solution? Since you're on the Web, why not play online?

Here are a couple of great sites to try:

Ben & Jerry's Online Checkers

Thinks.com's Online Checkers

At these sites you can enjoy a virtual game of checkers any time you like!

Play A Ton Of History Games Online

If you're a history buff looking for some challenging online diversions to pass the time, head on over to Games On History at the Web site of History.com.

Highlights include the Think About History trivia game!, All About Grand Central Quiz, Thomas Jefferson Quiz, and many, many others. Who knew history could be so much fun?

Challenge Yourself With GameKnot's Daily Chess Puzzle

Do you like trying to solve the types of chess puzzles you find in your daily newspaper? Then you'll love the chess puzzle provided by GameKnot.com that you'll find here every day on The Senior Surfer!

The puzzle is located on the left-hand sidebar, right after The Memory Game. See if you can solve today's challenge!

Who's Afraid Of The Stock Market?

If the ups and downs-and it's been mostly downs lately-of the stock market has you worried, maybe you'd like to invest in a stock market that doesn't put any of your money at risk. Of course that's a fantasy in the real world, but, on the Web you can do just that with what are known as virtual stock exchange games.

A virtual stock exchange game lets you buy and sell stocks without risk, because-unlike the real thing-it's just a game, so you're not using any real money. Of course, you won't be making any money either! It's just for fun and might teach you something about how the stock market works.

To get a better idea of how these types of games work take a look at a couple of examples like HowTheMarketWorks.com or Virtual Stock Exchange from MarketWatch.

At least when you play the virtual stock market, you won't have to worry about losing your shirt!

Play Frame Games Online Too

Have you ever tackled those terrific Frame Games created by Terry Stickels and featured in popular newspapers? Well, did you know they're available on the Web too?

You can find tons of these Frame Games at USAWeekend.com. Check out the site to play this week's puzzle and while you're there, access their archive of Frame Games for even more mind stimulating fun!

How many can you solve?

It's Like The Olympics For Your Brain

Do you like to challenge yourself with the kinds of brainy fun and games found on the Web? How about taking that to the next level and competing in a sort of mental Olympics with players from around the world?

A site called Brain Arena let's you do just that! They feature a series of fun mental challenges that you must complete in the shortest amount of time possible. What will your best time be? How will it stack up to the competition?

Let the brain games begin!

Put Your Problem Solving Abilities To The Test

How are your problem solving skills? Worried they're getting a bit rusty? There's a terrific site full of brainy fun that's worth checking out and just might give the old noodle a tune up too-it's called, aptly enough, The Problem Site.

The site is packed with a wide selection of mentally challenging puzzles and exercises-math games, word games, strategy puzzles and more-all presented with detailed instructions that are easy to understand.

You'll find time spent at this site a great way to stimulate your mind on a carefree summer afternoon-and who knew problem solving could be so much fun?

Have You Expanded Your Mind Today?

Since it's summer, you're probably thinking more about exercising you body than your mind. Well, if you want to give your body a break and exercise that muscle between your ears for a change, try the Logic Problems found on ExpandYourMind.com.

This terrific site boasts a variety of mental exercises for you to tackle, like classic logic problems, visual logic puzzles and lateral thinking problems.

Challenging and fun, these exercises are like circuit training for the brain!

Challenge Yourself With A Word Origin Game

Ever wonder where a particular word or expression comes from? If you're fascinated by etymology or the study of word origins you'll enjoy playing an online game called Etymologic!

Billing itself as "the toughest word game on the Web" Etymologic! challenges you to guess the origins of 10 words or phrases, and lets you can play as often as you like.

Satisfy the etymologist in you and find out how much you really know about word origins!

What's Your Baseball I.Q.?

Baseball season is here once again, and if you're a true fan, it's not a moment too soon. To celebrate the start of the new season, The Senior Surfer is linking to several online quizzes that will test your baseball I.Q. Think of these quizzes as spring training for the baseball lover's brain.

Ready? Step up to the plate...

• The Baseball Quiz from PBS.org

• The Major League Baseball Quiz from Infoplease.com

• The Legends of Baseball Quiz from PARADE.com

...and take a swing!

Are You Up To The Mensa Workout Challenge?

Need an idea for a great way to challenge your brain online? How about taking the Mensa Workout quiz you'll find on the Web site of Mensa, the international organization for people with a high I.Q.? The quiz consists of 30 questions and they suggest you try to complete it in 30 minutes or less.

Remember, it's just for fun! As clearly stated at the site, the quiz is not to be considered an I.Q. test, and regardless of how well you score, it won't get you into the exclusive organization. However, it will provide you with a rigorous mental challenge, especially if you try to complete it in the allotted time.

How many questions will you get right?

New Brain Games At Prevention.com

Next time you're looking for a real cerebral challenge on the Web, try the new Brain Games you'll find at Prevention.com. These 21 games are as attractively designed and fun to play as they are mentally stimulating.

Some of the games you can play there include:

• An American In Paris - This game puts your memory and powers of concentration to the test.

• Decipher - Your logic and deductive reasoning abilities get a workout with this game.

• Towers of Hanoi - How good are you at problem-solving? This challenge should help you find out!
  

If you're ready for it, hours of brain-twisting pleasure await!

What's Your Presidential IQ?

How well do you know your U.S. Presidents? In honor of Presidents Day, here are a few quizzes from around the Web to test your knowledge:

• U.S. Presidents Trivia Quiz at WorldBook.com

• Presidents Day Quiz at AOL Research & Learn

• 20th Century U.S. Presidents Quiz at Biography.com

• Quiz: U.S. Presidency at BBC News

Happy Presidents Day!

A Blog That's Like Boot Camp For The Brain

Want to know an easy way to make a habit of working out your brain? Try signing up for a regular supply of puzzles and brain teasers from Smart-Kit.com, a blog created by a neurologist and designed to whip your noggin into shape.

Puzzle categories you'll find there include:

• Anagrams
  


• IQ Test Questions
  


• Photo Puzzles
  


• Word Puzzles

And plenty more to tax your gray matter. Think you're smart? You'll need some serious brain power for these challenges!

Have You Fired Up Your Synapses Lately?

How long has it been since you've given your mind a good workout? When was the last time you put it through a rigorous obstacle course of brain teasers and puzzles? If it's been too long and you want to test your mental mettle, try the mind teasers and brain games at the popular SharpBrains.com Web site.

You'll find plenty of mentally stimulating exercises in categories like:

• Pattern recognition and planning
  
  
• Visual workouts
  


• Logic



• Math Puzzles
  

And several others-50 brain teasers in all. Enjoy the challenge as you fire up a synapse or two!

Paint By Number: No Paint Brush Required

Remember those great paint by number kits you had as a kid? Hours of fun wasn't it? Today, you can experience the joys of painting by number on the Web too. At a site like Segmation.com, for example, you'll find a section called SegPlay where you can paint by number online for free. Of course, since it's online, you'll be substituting mouse clicks for brushstrokes as you "digitally" paint your masterpieces-and that's part of the fun, because it puts a new twist on an old hobby.

You'll love too, the fact that they offer dozens of categories to choose from and supply magnification tools to help you see the numbers better. And If you've got grandkids, put this one high on your list of online activities to share with them-it'll be just as much fun for them as it is for you.

Don't be surprised if you find the online version of this popular pastime just as addictive as the one you grew up with!

A Feast For The Brain

By now your stomach has probably had more than its fill of turkey and all the fixings, so why not give it a break and feed your brain for a change of pace? When you're ready to put down that drumstick, a cornucopia of stimulating puzzles and brain-bending diversions awaits you at BrainBashers.com.

Some of the items on the menu include:

• Logic games like Kakuro and Sudoku just to name a few
  


• Crossword puzzles of both the traditional and non-traditional varieties
  


• Visualization puzzles that exercise your ability to think in three dimensions
  


• Fractals, Stereograms and other illusions

And that's just a sample to whet the appetite. There's so much here to feed your hungry mind you might have trouble deciding where to start-but at least you can keep going back for more without having to loosen your belt buckle!

Boost Your Vocabulary And Help End World Hunger While You're At It

As Thanksgiving approaches do your thoughts turn to the plight of those less fortunate? Are you the type of person who's concerned with the worsening problem of global hunger and wish you could do more about it? Then you'll be happy to know that there's a new Web site dedicated to helping you fight global hunger with, of all things, your knowledge of vocabulary!

The site is called FreeRice.com and it works like this: You play a vocabulary game where you're shown a word and asked to select its definition from four choices. Click on the correct definition and 10 grains of rice will be donated to the United Nations Food Program! Continue playing and for every correct answer you choose, another 10 grains of rice will be donated.

By the way, if the grandkids are over this is a great online activity to share with them as well. It's free to play, you'll both improve your vocabulary, have fun doing it and help put a dent in world hunger-what's better than that?

Don't Forget To Test Your Memory

If you're an elephant, you can stop reading now. The rest of you are in for a mental challenge called Explore your memory, which can be found on the Web site of the BBC. Designed with the help of Professor Robert Logie from the University of Edinburgh, Explore your memory consists of a series of exercises that test what is known as your working memory, or more commonly referred to as short-term memory.

Not intended as a diagnostic tool-as the site clearly states-the test nonetheless presents a fun and interactive way to flex your memory muscles. To take this memory test you'll need some free time-at least twenty minutes-and free software called Flash 7, which you can download via a link on the site.

Oh, and a highly functioning prefrontal cortex will come in handy too! Good luck!