Discover Bridge Through Hool

The benefits of Bridge have been well researched and documented: 1) Cognitive Workout, 2) Enhanced Immunity, and 3) Opportunity for Social Interaction. This can be a fantastic game for the entire family too!

Starts

18 May 2020

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About the Course

Open to All Adults

The impact of Bridge on children and adults alike - ranging from significantly improved test scores, memory, immune system, soft skills, among others - are well documented (from our GenWise Blog Archives)...

Two components of bridge promote healthy aging and therefore make it an ideal game for adults.  Bridge provides (1) a cognitive workout, 2) enhanced immunity, and (3) an opportunity for social interaction.  The combination of these two key components sets bridge apart from many other leisure-time activities such solving crossword and other puzzles, sudoku, etc.

From a cognitive workout perspective, Bridge helps with concentration/ attention. reasoning, organizing, sequencing, learning and communicating through the coded language of bidding, memory, and visualization! 

A study in 2000 at the University of California, Berkeley, found strong evidence that an area in the brain used in playing bridge stimulates the immune system. 

Two of the smartest Americans, if not the most accomplished bridge players, are Warren Buffett, 89, and Bill Gates, 64. Buffett once said that he wouldn't mind going to jail — if he had three cell mates who were capable bridge players!! 

In 2019, GenWise decided to integrate Bridge into our GenWise Summer Program, which was very well received. Bridge is difficult to pick up, especially in the modern age, with short attention spans – Amaresh, our mentor for the 2020 Program, has developed a precursor game (Hool), which reduces the barrier to learn Bridge. Hool is a shorter and faster version of Bridge, and is available in 2 formats - a Board Game, and a Mobile App. Both formats are recognized by the World Bridge Federation.

This program, targeted at adults, is a fantastic opportunity for the family to be gently introduced to the game of Bridge. There are plenty of opportunities to play online, as well as in most clubs in your city!

Please go through the attached links for well-researched articles that speak to the importance of learning to play Bridge:

• A Bridge to Brainpower
• Healthy Aging and Bridge: It's in the Cards!
• Bridging the Gap: Why Playing Bridge is Good for you.... and FUN! 
• At the Bridge Table: Clues to a Lucid Old Age

Learn more about our expert course facilitator, Amaresh Deshpande, here. 

About our Facilitator:

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Rachit is an electronics engineer who has been designing analog circuits for the past decade. His work experience includes Cosmic Circuits and Cadence Design Systems (which acquired Cosmic Circuits), on the design of integrated circuits for audio codecs, serial interfaces, and phase locked loops amongst other things. He likes to spend his time on reading, understanding audio, building speakers, music, and sports.


Rachit has a Masters degree from the Centre For Electronic Design And Technology at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru.


Muralidhar (aka Murali) is senior mentor and course designer at GenWise with 20+ years of experience in the social sector. In addition to delivering Vocational Training to young adults, he is currently responsible for design, manufacturing and marketing operations at a traditional handicraft (wooden toys) enterprise near Bengaluru. Murali has also delivered training and professional development programs for secondary science teachers and 'making' skills to "gifted students" for around 4 years.


Murali has a bachelor's degree in Engineering from IIT Madras.