There seems to be mounting evidence that a lifetime of learning,
mental and physical activity, and rewarding work is good for
people. That finding also appears to be true when it comes to
warding off Alzheimer's disease.  Although the disease seems to
strike all socioeconomic levels at about the same rate, people
with higher education, higher occupational status and even more
participation in leisure activities seem to be able to keep the
symptoms at bay longest. They appear to have what researchers
have begun calling cognitive or brain "reserve" that allows them
to compensate for the ravages inflicted on their brains by
Alzheimer's disease.  Neuropsychologists, along with teams of
neurologists, neuroscientists, behavioral neurologists and other
medical researchers are beginning to piece together data that
point to the idea that keeping the brain active and stimulated
may reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.  "Some people--who
are better educated, more active in work and leisure activities
--seem to hold of