Being provided with the Psychology 102 study guide, I was exposed to numerous examples that both supported and contradicted the main points of the article. Mara Mather studied information that came to the conclusion that "older people tend to focus more on positive information and less on negative information than their younger counterparts," which makes sense because, according to the guide study, the active role of schemas in the brain is that “If the information does not fit, it will be ignored or forgotten” (Unit 2, T3). I also learned that “the ability to think critically, question assumptions, evaluate evidence, consider alternative explanations, and defend conclusions with sound reasoning” (Unit 2, 49, T5). But this is only evident in people in their twenties. The author does not support this idea because he strictly says that middle-aged people aged 45-64 have the most difficulty thinking critically and questioning assumptions. “Well-rehearsed activities do not require conscious attention, we are programmed to react to many situations in a senseless way” (Unit 2, 49, T4). Nor did she question whether older people were able to function more effectively because they had experienced more than someone who was just out of college or starting a career. They