Happiness is the very serious pursuit of science today. Dr. William Kent Larkin, a Life Coach, trained as a neuropsychologist, and a resident of Rancho Mirage, is one of the researchers in this movement. Dr. Larkin is interested the developmental stages after 40. He believes they are as significant and real as those of early childhood. Dr. Larkin believes that in a new second half of life that the brain has had the opportunity to unfold in its development in new ways that push the evolutionary envelope. For example, Dr. Larkin questions the results of short-term memory studies. “We are looking at the wrong thing in the hopes that a few pharmaceutical companies will make millions curing loss of short-term memory, when, in fact, we are not dealing with loss at all. We are dealing with a change in the function of the brain. We are dealing with a change in where the brain is willing to invest its limited amount of psychic energy.” He cites the example of learning a language. The capacity to learn a language is lodged entirely in the right hemisphere until the ages of 12-16. After that, learning a language becomes a whole brain activity, because the brain is redirecting its resources. “It is the same with short term memory”, says Dr. Larkin, “the brain is saying, in effect, don’t expect me to remember where you put your keys or all your appointments, I have bigger things to do with my psychic energy.” And those are the tasks of the second half of life; getting the larger picture, a higher degree of more complex thinking based upon life experience. It is a time when the brain is better able to handle the nuances of issues, moves beyond the black and white of things and thinks in new ways. Dr. Larkin cites the number of great artists, composers, and authors who have accomplished their greatest work in the second half of their lives. But there is more, it is a time of greater happiness, potentially. Dr. Larkin cites research showing that three kinds of happiness have to be present for an overall sense of happiness to be lasting and to have depth. The first is being called The Pleasant Life; it is characterized by the greater capacity to experience positive emotions, to enjoy and savor life. The second, and the most important, is the discovery of one’s signature strengths and talents and a plan to use them. The research shows that people who use their signature strengths and talents everyday are happier and have a greater sense of fulfillment. All of this leads eventually to what must unfold in the second half of life: The Meaningful Life. Emerging from one’s talents and strengths and their utilization is the experience of new meanings and purposes to living. It leads to a deeper sense of personal significance, essential to a personal sense of well-being. All three aspects of happiness are correlated statistically with well-being, life-satisfaction, longevity, freedom from depression, and overall health.