Invention is the talent of youth, as judgment is of old age (Jonathan Swift), so it all balances out. I know I don't have the ability to focus on issues like I once did, but then neither did I have my own family or any money. While I think my wife, kids and money are worth some distraction by themselves, I also think the cognitive cost of sorting though my now larger hard drive makes for more useful, though less clever, thoughts.


This article summarizes some research documenting this conventional wisdom. Older people see the bigger picture better, younger people see the details better. Complementary functionality.