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Crossword puzzle creators aren’t merely entertaining people these days. According to some researchers, they’re improving the nation’s mental health. Dr. Gary Small, a neuroscientist at the UCLA Center on Aging, found that crossword puzzles are among the mental exercises that reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s. Daily crosswords are considered well suited to maintaining mental agility because they require regular and sustained bursts of brainpower. That’s assuming, of course, that you get close to solving them.

The complexity of creating a crossword probably increases geometrically as the size increases,” Newman says. “The daily puzzle, from start to finish, takes me about an hour. ” Newman’s signature puzzle is the Saturday Stumper, his most difficult yet most popular crossword. Newsday crosswords increase in difficulty from Monday through Friday so that there’s a puzzle for most every skill level. The Saturday puzzle is a real stumper because it has no theme, emphasizes longer words over shorter ones, and has tougher clues than appear earlier in the week.

Foreign language and international studies will come in handy. Before you’re considered for a foreign assignment, you’ll have to prove yourself as a top reporter, preferably at the national level. ” People imagine a world of intrigue, danger, and excitement. They imagine interviews with shadowy figures in dark corners of cafes, and think of a foreign correspondent as an eyewitness to history. Although there’s some truth to these stereotypes, when you come right down to it, foreign correspondents are just newspaper reporters working overseas.