Funnily enough, I think of this issue from the other direction, due to the bottom poem on this page, The Winter Palace (http://blue.carisenda.com/archives/philip_larkin/).
I can only suggest testing your brain by picking a book you've been meaning to read, and spend some serious time with it, making notes, following up leads (as far as possible without the Net), and testing your critical faculties against it. In my case the book in question is Godel, Escher, bach: an Etrnal Golden Braid (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Godel-Escher-Bach-Eternal-anniversary/dp/0140289208/ref=pd_bowtega_1/203-3631536-3334329?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1181471872&sr=1-1), and it's been sitting on my shelf daring me to try it for ages...
no subject
I can only suggest testing your brain by picking a book you've been meaning to read, and spend some serious time with it, making notes, following up leads (as far as possible without the Net), and testing your critical faculties against it. In my case the book in question is Godel, Escher, bach: an Etrnal Golden Braid (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Godel-Escher-Bach-Eternal-anniversary/dp/0140289208/ref=pd_bowtega_1/203-3631536-3334329?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1181471872&sr=1-1), and it's been sitting on my shelf daring me to try it for ages...