President Joe Biden.

Is President Biden too old to serve a second term? A cognitive scientist explains the effects of aging on the brain

Is President Joe Biden too old to become president again?

As the 2024 election season gets underway, questions about whether Biden, now 80 years, is fit to serve a second term have turned into countless editorials and think pieces declaring that, in fact, he is not.

Northeastern Global News spoke with Art Kramer, professor of psychology and founding director of the Center for Cognitive & Brain Health at Northeastern, to explain how a person’s age impacts cognition and decision-making. Kramer also touched on some of the questions swirling around Biden’s fitness for high office, on his famous presidential gaffes—a feature of his presidency that’s as endearing to some as it is worrying to others—and more. The conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Read more from Northeastern Global News.

Photo by AP Photos/Alex Brandon

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