- F.Y.I. -

Up To Your Ears In Crystals?

2009-04-19T13:57:00.006-04:00

Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo

In Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) dizziness is generally thought to be due to debris which has collected within a part of the inner ear. This debris can be thought of as "ear rocks", although the formal name is "otoconia". Ear rocks are small crystals of calcium carbonate derived from a structure in the ear called the "utricle" (figure1 ).

While the saccule also contains otoconia, they are not able to migrate into the canal system. The utricle may have been damaged by head injury, infection, or other disorder of the inner ear, or may have degenerated because of advanced age. Normally otoconia appear to have a slow turnover.

They are probably dissolved naturally as well as actively reabsorbed by the "dark cells" of the labyrinth (Lim, 1973, 1984), which are found adjacent to the utricle and the crista, although this idea is not accepted by all (see Zucca, 1998, and Buckingham, 1999).

BPPV is a common cause of dizziness. About 20% of all dizziness is due to BPPV. While BPPV can occur in children (Uneri and Turkdogan, 2003), the older you are, the more likely it is that your dizziness is due to BPPV. About 50% of all dizziness in older people is due to BPPV. In a recent study, 9% of a group of urban dwelling elders were found to have undiagnosed BPPV (Oghalai et al., 2000).

The symptoms of BPPV include dizziness or vertigo, lightheadedness, imbalance, and nausea. Activities which bring on symptoms will vary among persons, but symptoms are almost always precipitated by a change of position of the head with respect to gravity. Getting out of bed or rolling over in bed are common "problem" motions . Because people with BPPV often feel dizzy and unsteady when they tip their heads back to look up, sometimes BPPV is called "top shelf vertigo." Women with BPPV may find that the use of shampoo bowls in beauty parlors brings on symptoms. A Yoga posture called the "down dog", or Pilates are sometimes the trigger. An intermittent pattern is common. BPPV may be present for a few weeks, then stop, then come back again.

Supplemental material on the site DVD: Animation of otoconia being displaced into posterior canal

WHAT CAUSES BPPV?

The most common cause of BPPV in people under age 50 is head injury . There is also a strong association with migraine (Ishiyama et al, 2000). In older people, the most common cause is degeneration of the vestibular system of the inner ear. BPPV becomes much more common with advancing age (Froeling et al, 1991). Viruses affecting the ear such as those causing vestibular neuritis and Meniere's disease are a significanct causes. Minor strokes such as those involving anterior inferior cerebellar artery (AICA) syndrome", autoimmune disorders, are unusual causes. Occasionally BPPV follows surgery, where the cause is felt to be a combination of a prolonged period of supine positioning, or ear trauma when the surgery is to the inner ear (Atacan et al 2001). While rarely encountered, BPPV is also common in persons who have been treated with ototoxic medications such as gentamicin (Black et al, 2004). In half of all cases, BPPV is called "idiopathic," which means it occurs for no known reason. Other causes of positional symptoms are discussed here.

HOW IS THE DIAGNOSIS OF BPPV MADE?

A physician can make the diagnosis based on your history, findings on physical examination, and the results of vestibular and auditory tests. Often, the diagnosis can be made with history and physical examination alone. The figure to the right illustrates the Dix-Hallpike test. In this test, a person is brought from sitting to a supine position, with the head turned 45 degrees to one side and extended about 20 degrees backward. A positive Dix-Hallpike tests consists of a burst of nystagmus (jumping of the eyes). The eyes jump upward as well as twist so that the top part of the eye jumps toward the down side. Click here to see a movie of BPPV nystagmus. (13 meg download). The test can be made more sensitive by having the patient wear Frenzel goggles or a video goggle. Most doctors that specialize in seeing dizzy patients have these in their office.

With respect to history, the key observation is that dizziness is triggered by lying down, or on rolling over in bed. Most other conditions that have positional dizziness get worse on standing rather than lying down (e.g. orthostatic hypotension). There are some rare conditions that have symptoms that resemble BPPV. Patients with certain types of central vertigo such as the spinocerebellar ataxias may have "bed spins" and prefer to sleep propped up in bed (Jen et al, 1998). These conditions can generally be detected on a careful neurological examination and also are generally accompanied by a family history of other persons with similar symptoms.

Electronystagmography (ENG) testing may be needed to look for the characteristic nystagmus (jumping of the eyes) induced by the Dix-Hallpike test. It has been claimed that BPPV accompanied by unilateral lateral canal paralysis is suggestive of a vascular etiology (Kim et al, 1999). For diagnosis of BPPV with laboratory tests, it is important to have the ENG test done by a laboratory that can measure vertical eye movements. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan will be performed if a stroke or brain tumor is suspected. A rotatory chair test may be used for difficult diagnostic problems. It is possible but uncommon (5%) to have BPPV in both ears (bilateral BPPV).

HOW IS BPPV TREATED?

Wait it out

Office Treatment

Home Treatment

Surgical Treatment

Updated: 12/07/08 Spanish

Causes Diagnosis Treatment

BPPV- IN SHORT:

THEY ARE "EAR CRYSTALS" CALCIUM DEBRI

The inner ear consists of three semicircular canals that contribute to a sense of balance. Over time, particles in the inner ear can break off and accumulate behind a membrane in the posterior canal. Moving the head in certain directions may cause particles to tug on hairlike sensors, triggering a type of dizziness called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

In most cases when it is found that a patient has BPPV, a noninvasive positioning procedure is used to clear the crystals out of the canal and deposit them back into the part of the inner ear where they belong.

TREATMENTS
At Mayo (where proceedure was initialized/tested) there are several positioning procedures used to cure BPPV, including the modified Eply maneuver (canalith repositioning procedure or CRP), Semont's liberatory procedure, and a procedure using an electric circle bed that rotates the canals 360 degrees in a vertical plane.

Results of a study of the canalith repositioning maneuver for treatment of BPPV.

The Elderly Population

2009-03-19T13:20:00.002-04:00

Embracing the Disinherited

The Elderly Population

In tribal cultures, the elderly play an important role. They are the keepers of the tribe’s memories and the holders of wisdom. As such, the elderly are honored and respected members of tribes. In many modern cultures, however, this is often not the case. Many elderly people say that they feel ignored, left out, and disrespected.

This is a sad commentary on modernization, but it doesn’t have to be this way. We can change this situation by taking the time to examine our attitudes about the elderly and taking action.

Modern societies tend to be obsessed with the ideas of newness, youth, and progress. Scientific studies tell us how to do everything, from the way we should raise our kids to what we need to eat for breakfast. As a result, the wisdom that is passed down from older generations is often disregarded. Of course, grandparents and retired persons have more than information to offer the world. Their maturity and experience allows for a larger perspective of life, and we can learn a lot from talking to elderly people.

It’s a shame that society doesn’t do more to allow our older population to continue to feel productive for the rest of their lives, but you can help to make change. Perhaps you could help facilitate a mentorship program that would allow children to be tutored by the elderly in retirement homes. The elderly make wonderful storytellers, and creating programs where they could share their real life experiences with others is another way to educate and inspire other genera! tions.

Take stock of your relationships with the elderly population. Maybe you don’t really listen to them because you hold the belief that their time has passed and they are too old to understand what you are going through. You may even realize that you don’t have any relationships with older people. Try to understand why and how our cultural perception of the elderly influences the way you perceive them.

Look around you and reach out to someone who is elderly, even if you are just saying hello and making small talk. Resolve to be more aware of the elderly.

They are our mentors, wise folk, and the pioneers
that came before us and paved the way for our future.

K. Sarnac

Loneliness stalks ...

2009-03-13T20:33:00.001-04:00

Loneliness stalks urban professionals: The Asian Age -

New Delhi, Feb 21:
How many of us will agree that life in a metro, at times, becomes synonymous with loneliness?

Amidst hectic work schedules and high-pressure jobs, professionals often tend to ignore their social life and end up being depressed and lonely.

Believe it or not, in today’s times, loneliness has been tagged as a silent killer, which is stalking the lives of many working professionals.

Loneliness is spreading like a plague among working professionals in the city. And if you go by a recent research conducted by US-based psychologist John Cacioppo, many would be shocked to know that loneliness is as bad for your body as smoking and obesity.

Meet Mary Khuvung, a 30-year-old professional working for Amnesty International India. Mary came to Delhi 14 years ago, and has been a Delhiite ever since. Initially she didn’t realise it, but her constantly deteriorating health compelled her to visit a physician, and then she came to know that loneliness had taken its toll on her.

"For a couple of years I have been facing problems such as insomnia and high blood pressure, and it was my physician who informed me that more than any medical help, all I need is some friends and a socially active life," she quips.

The research conducted by John made it official that loneliness can make it hard to sleep and even speed up the progression of dementia. He explained the process in his research stating that loneliness raises levels of the hormone cortisol and can push blood pressure up into the danger zone, making the patient vulnerable to heart attacks and strokes. But, at a time when thousands of young professionals are moving everyday to metros in search of jobs, how can one help them from forming a giant pool of loneliness?

Experts opine that the worst part about being lonely is that it breeds depression, which today has become the most popular disease among professionals. "People are not aware of loneliness as a disease. Actually people don’t even think loneliness and depression are disorders. Isolation from friends and peers often leads to sadness, loss of appetite, and if anyone is facing such problems, it is advisable to visit a psychiatrist as soon as possible," opines Samir Parikh, chief of department of mental health, Max Healthcare.

http://www.zeenews.com/newspapers/2009-02-21/509499news.html

What is Zen?

2009-03-05T10:29:00.002-05:00

What is Zen?

      Many people are confused because they are unaware that the term "Zen" has a few meanings. Basically, the word "Zen" means meditation. Sometimes it may refer to a transcendental glimpse of cosmic reality, or even the transcendental reality itself. Often Zen is used as a short form for Zen Buddhism.

The following examples illustrate the use of "Zen" in these four meanings:
      1. I sat cross-legged on a hard pillow, closed my eyes gently and practised Zen.
      2. My teacher came in and hit my head to test if I had a Zen experience.
      3. I was shocked when he said he did not hit me, but years later I realized my kind teacher was trying to make me aware that there was no hitting, and no nothing, in Zen.
      4. Lacking a deep understanding, many people may think Zen masters are mad.

Is Zen Japanese?
      No, it is universal, irrespective of which meaning of Zen you refer to. Zen was first transmitted from master to master in India, brought to China by Bodhidharma, and later spread to Japan and the world. But the word "Zen", not its meaning or concept, is Japanese. It is derived from the Chinese word "Chan", which is a short form for "Chana", and which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word "Dhyana", which means meditation.

Is Zen Buddhist?
      If Zen refers to Zen Buddhism, then it is of course Buddhist. But if Zen refers to cosmic reality, or its glimpse, or meditation to seek this glimpse, then it can be Buddhist or non- Buddhist. Yogis in India and Taoists in China had practised Zen long before Zen Buddhism was established. Countless people without any religious affiliations have practised Zen knowingly or unknowingly for various purposes. Whenever you closed your eyes to reflect on what you had done, or what you intended to do, you had, in a way, practised Zen.

Is Zen a religion?
      No, not in the sense the term "religion"" is normally conceptualized in the West. Even Zen Buddhism is not a "religion" in the Western sense, especially in the sense that followers have to accept dogmas and worship God. On the other hand, one can practise Zen, or even Zen Buddhism, without scarifying his religious beliefs. It may sound odd, but from the Zen perspective, many pious Christians and Muslims can be considered pious Zen Buddhists, although the Christians and Muslims themselves would probably consider such a suggestion heretical.

What benefits can we achieve by practising Zen?
      We can look at the benefits from two levels: the mundane and the supramundane. At the mundane level, practising Zen enables us to attain better results in whatever we do! This becomes understandable, when we realize that Zen training improves our mind. At the supramundane level, Zen leads us to the highest attainment we can ever achieve, i.e. enlightenment, or called differently by people of different cultural or religious background as merging into the Great Void, union with the Ultimate, or return to God/dess.

How do I practise Zen?
      There are numerous ways and different approaches. If you wish to approach Zen casually, one way to add a touch of Zen to enrich your daily life is to be aware of whatever you are doing at the moment. When you are reading this line, be aware that you are reading this line, including its meaning and significance. This may not be as straightforward as it appears. Some people, for example, may be thinking of a hundred things other than the meaning of the line they are reading. Another way is to be simple, direct and effective in whatever you say and do. If you want to borrow your friend's tennis racket, for example, ask him politely or in whatever way is appropriate if he can lend you his racket. It will be unZenlike if you start by saying how pleasant the weather is, or how nice his shoes are, and drag on for half an hour before losing track of the tennis racket. If you wish to be more serious in your approach, but not necessarily without much fun, you may spend some time daily for meditation, or learn directly from a Zen master.

What is the sound of clapping with one hand?
      This is a famous example of a Zen question meant to trigger off a Zen awakening, or to test if the listener has attained one. Zen questions are recorded in Zen stories known in Chinese as "gong-ans", or in Japanese as "koans". The factual answer to a Zen question is not important. Different people may give the same answer, but their "same" answer could indicate different levels of attainment. As a rough analogy, let us say an experienced art teacher wants to teach his students drawing, or he wants to assess their attainment. He may ask, "Can you draw an elephant?" He is not interested in answers like "yes", "no", "I can't draw an elephant but I can draw a horse", or whatever the students may say. And it does not matter whether they draw elephants, horses or anything else. As soon as they start drawing, the teacher has initiated his teaching, and he can assess their performance.

How is Zen related to Shaolin Kungfu?
      Many people, including some Zen students, may be unaware of the following two historical facts. One, all schools of Zen today issued from the Shaolin Monastery. Two, Shaolin Kungfu started as a result of Zen. Shaolin Kungfu and Zen, as well as Chi Kung, are intimately connected, although some kungfu instructors today may not know this connection, and therefore teach Shaolin Kungfu as a purely external art, deprived of its internal and spiritual aspects. At its elementary level, every kungfu movement involves energy control and mental awareness. At its advanced level, chi kung and Zen enable kungfu masters to develop abilities which other martial artists may not even dream of.

- om -

HOW TO WASTE YOUR YOUTH

2009-02-15T12:23:00.003-05:00

HOW TO WASTE YOUR YOUTH
(or not)

The effort to wise up
while we're still young enough
to enjoy it.

"That children do not know the reason of their desires,
all the learned teachers and instructors agree.
But that gownups too
stumble like children on this earth,
not knowing whence they come or whither they go,
acting as little according to true purposes,
being ruled by cakes and birch rods, no one likes to believe;
yet to me it seems quite obvious."
- Johannes von Goethe

"It is one of the capital tragedies of youth -
and youth is the time of tragedy -
that the youth are thrown mainly with adults
they do not quite respect."
- H. L. Mencken

Thought Experiment:

Step 1:
Some of us, maybe even many of us, when we're getting up in years . . . look back on our lives ( . . . or at least, our youth), reflect thoughtfully and say . . .

"I blew it."
( . . . or, "What could I have done better?" or, like "the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation," that kind of thing.

Step 2:
   Say, this is the realization of a parent, or an old grandmother, who has kids or grandkids she really cares about.

   Then, too often, she goes to her grandkids and says, "Hey, don't do what I did. Don't make the same mistakes I made. This is something I know, from experience."

Step 3:
   Grandkid says, "What do you know? You're just an old codger! And who are you to impose your morality on me? That (whatever you're talking about) doesn't sound like any fun.

   I'm different, special, completely unique, smarter, immortal, the rules don't apply to me, by nature I an inherently immune to any kind of whatever you're talking about. But thanks anyway."

Step 4:
   Grandkid repeats the same mistakes as Grandmother.

Step 5:
Sixty or so years pass.

Grandkid now assumes the same position as Grandmother.

Return to Step 1.

Such is life.

"Youth is a wonderful thing.
What a crime to waste it on children."
- George Bernard Shaw

http://www.livereal.com/

What is NLP?

2009-02-10T11:33:00.014-05:00

What is NLP?

NLP provides the ‘How To’ for exceptional results.
There have been times when you were superb, you found the very best in yourself. With NLP you can discover how to have more of these.

NLP is the study of exceptional talent - how outstanding individuals and organisations get their results. These methods can be taught to others so they too can get the same results. This process is called modeling.
With it you can make your highest standards into your normal achievements.

NLP is both the study of excellence and the practical tools and methods that are generated through modeling. NLP models the beliefs, values, thinking strategies and behaviour that lead to effective action. These tools are used internationally in business, training, sales, sports, education and law. NLP is practical, it gives skills as well as theories.

NLP began in the mid nineteen seventies in America from the work of the linguist John Grinder, and Richard Bandler, a psychologist. They began by modeling excellent communicators, building models of communication skills. Since then NLP has continued to develop and grow and is taught all over the world.

In order to model, NLP studies how we structure our subjective experience - how we think about our values and beliefs and how we create our emotional states - how we construct our internal world from our experience and give it meaning. NLP is not about finding the right map, but broadening and enriching the one we have. This map of the world is not an intellectual construct but literally a way of being, of moving, breathing, speaking and feeling.

The name 'Neuro-Linguistic Programming' comes from the three areas it brings together.

N for Neurology - The mind and how we think.

L for Linguistics - How we use language and how we are affected by it.

P for Programming - What we do: our sequence of actions and thinking patterns to achieve our goals.

NLP is more than just a collection of techniques. It is also a way of thinking, a frame of mind based on curiosity, exploration and fun. NLP starts with you - learning how you guide yourself and influence others.

Now try this NLP Thought Experiment -

This takes but a few moments, and it will give you an immediate experience of the power of NLP.

Think of a pleasant experience, one you enjoyed. Make a picture of it in your mind. Notice whether you are looking out through your own eyes, as if it were happening, or whether you are seeing yourself in the picture, like on a film or television.
Come out of that experience.

Now experience the memory in a different way.
If you were inside it, as if it were happening again, looking out through your own eyes, then change the way you view it. See yourself in the picture having the experience.
If you were already seeing yourself having the experience, then step into it, and be inside it, see it again through your own eyes.

Come out of the experience.
Did you notice the difference in your feelings?

When you are inside an experience seeing it through your own eyes you get the feelings of the experience again. When you are outside the experience seeing yourself inside it, you automatically reduce those feelings.

Is it useful to choose how you think of your experiences? Do cows eat grass?
- you can experience the good feelings again and have your good memories as resources to call on for the rest of your life.
- and you can distance yourself from bad experiences, diminish their power and learn from them more easily.

This is one of the most useful ways of managing your memories and feelings.

The Principles of NLP

The principles of NLP are often called presuppositions because you pre-suppose them to be true and then act. They are not claimed to be true, or universal, but they do make a difference if you act as if they are true.

1. People respond to their map of reality and not to reality itself.
We operate and communicate from those maps. NLP is the art of changing these maps, not reality. We cannot know reality directly in our usual state of consciousness, because we perceive the world through our senses, and they take in only a tiny fraction of all the possibilities. 'Reality', as John Lennon once said, 'leaves a lot to the imagination.'

2. Human behaviour is purposeful.
We do not always know what that purpose is consciously. A purpose opens a gap between where we are and where we want to be. That gap gives us a reason and the energy to act.

3. Every behaviour has a positive intention.
It is trying to achieve something valuable for us. A person is more than their behaviour. NLP separates the intention or purpose behind an action from the action itself. All behaviour makes sense to the person who does it at some level, however bizarre it appears on the outside. Another way of expressing this is that people always make the best choice available to them in their model of the world. Give them a better choice from their point of view and they will take it.

4. The unconscious mind is not malevolent. It contains great resources
The unconscious mind balances the conscious, it is everything that we are not aware of in the present moment, from the feeling in our toes to the processes that keep our heart beating. It is not inherently malevolent. What appear as monsters from one point of view may be angels from another, (And vice versa).

5. Having a choice is better than not having a choice.
Set your goals to create the richest choices available in harmony with your values. Act always to increase choice. The person with the most number of choices, that is, the greatest flexibility of thought and behaviour, will have the greatest influence in any interaction.

6. People work perfectly.
No one is wrong or broken. What is important is how we achieve our aims. If it is cumbersome, complicated or unpleasant, it can be changed for something more useful and desirable. Some people are travelling in the equivalent of a psychological chariot. They might like the option of a private jet if they knew about it. However, the chariot they have is a perfectly good chariot, not a bad private jet.

7. The meaning of the communication is the response you get.
This may be different to the one you intended. There are no failures in communication, only responses and feedback. Every experience can be utilised. If you are not getting the result you want, do something different.

8. We already have all the resources we need, or we can create them.
There are no unresourceful people, only unresourceful states.

9. Mind and body are one system
They interact and mutually influence each other. Change one and the other must change too.

10. Modeling successful performance leads to excellence.
If one person can do something it is possible to model it and teach it to others. Excellence can be duplicated. It does not mean anything is possible for anybody in exactly the same way.

11. If you want to understand - Act
We create our world and our perceptions by what we do.

http://www.freeweb.hu/kovy/Ak/VeerZoli/lambent/default.htm

NLP Resources

Want to find out (almost) everything about NLP and Systems Thinking?Visit www.lambent.com Take a look at the books that I have written about Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).
You can taste and try before you buy.

A short rap- fits on the back of a post stamp.

A list of the principles or presuppositions.

A comprehensive list of NLP vocabulary.

The most useful links to find other NLP information on the net.

An organized list of NLP books with short commentary, and a full list of books by Joseph O'Connor, with excerpts available from each .

NLP models excellence. The library is a resource so the models of NLP are available to all. Read and contribute.

NLP courses, seminars and consultancy offered by Lambent Training.

NLP software available.

NLP and Spirituality

2009-02-10T11:32:00.001-05:00

NLP and Spirituality

Studying the sedative

http://kovy.freeweb.hu/Ak/VeerZoli/lambent/

Spirituality for me is about finding our deepest essence as human beings, the same essence we share with every person; it connects us to everyone else. So spirit is where we become most truly ourselves, by discovering and becoming most deeply connected with others. We find ourselves in our connections with others. One metaphor occurs constantly in spiritual literature is spirituality as a journey or search, sometimes on the outside, always within.

How does NLP connect with the quest for spirit, the inner journey? I think there is some good news and some bad news about NLP in this context. Bad news first.

NLP has three elements woven into its title in a rich mixture:

Neuro- our neurology and our consciousness.
Linguistics- our language.
Thirdly our ability to go for outcomes: the programming part.

I would like to examine each of these three in turn. Consciousness can be a barrier if spirituality is thought of (consciously) as something to be attained, and if consciousness is assumed to be identical to self-consciousness. Consciousness is only a small part of our being, it cannot grasp the complete picture. Also something you consciously search for is different from you, the seeker.

In 1934 a man named J.W. Dunne wrote an interesting book called The Serial Universe.(see footnote 1). Dunne tells of a certain artist who had escaped from the lunatic asylum, where he had been confined, perhaps by mistake. This artist bought some materials: paint and easel, and set out to make a complete picture of the universe. He was not crazy enough to think he could paint the whole world, but he was determined to do the best possible job on a small section: the beautiful countryside in which he found himself.

He started by painting a small picture of the surrounding countryside in the middle of his huge canvas. He drew a wonderful picture. He was extremely pleased until he noticed that something was missing. He was part of this universe and he was not in the picture. How could he add a representation of himself? The man may have been crazy but he was not mad enough to think he could paint himself standing on the ground that he had already painted as lying in front of him. So he moved his easel a little way back, asked a passing farmer to be a model and drew a picture of himself drawing the original picture.

However, he was still not satisfied. My first picture, he thought to himself, is a picture that a man would paint who is unaware of his own existence. My second picture rectifies that. But I, the real artist am conscious and aware of my own existence, so my second picture is still incomplete. So saying, he shifted his easel................

If there could be a picture of the real world, who would be painting it?

Now language. NLP has done great work here building on the insights of Korzybski who gets credit for the famous phrase 'the map is not the territory'. The word is not the thing. As Bateson pointed out, thinking that the word is the same as the thing it describes (whatever it might be) is like going into a restaurant and eating the menu.

Chuang Tzu, the Chinese master of the fourth century AD wrote:
'The fish trap exists because of the fish. Once you have gotten the fish you can forget the trap. The rabbit snare exists because of the rabbit; once you have gotten the rabbit you can forget the snare. Words exist because of meaning. Once you have gotten the meaning you can forget the words. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words, so I can have a word with him?'
(See footnote 2)

Language divides the world and divides us from the world on a profound level. Language creates dualities; black or white, day or night, good and bad. Qualities are defined by their opposite. We know the good the bad and the ugly by contrasting them with the better the worse and the beautiful. So to define something like spirit using words and attributing qualities to it is paradoxically to limit it by saying it is not something else. Secondly, when we do describe something we make a distinction between us and the thing described and so immediately dissociate from it. All spiritual writings describe spirituality in metaphor. If pressed for a more direct description it is always in terms of what it is Not : 'not this, not that', (in the Upanishads) and in the Tao Te Ching: 'The Tao that can be spoken in words is not the true Tao'.

If man is basically asleep to the spiritual realm as many mystics say, then language and normal waking conscious thought are the strong and principal soporifics that not only keep him asleep, but also fool him in thinking that he is really awake. So is NLP a study of the sleeping draught?

Chuang Tzu has another story: strolling along the banks of the Hao river with his friend Hui Tzu, he says, 'See how the minnows come out and dart round as they please! That's what fish really enjoy!'
Hui Tzu replies, 'You're not a fish - how do you know what fish enjoy?'

Chuang Tzu has a retort however, 'You're not I, so how do you know I don't know what fish enjoy?'
Hui Tzu comes back again, 'I'm not you, so I certainly don't know what you know. On the other hand you're certainly not a fish - so that still proves you don't know what fish enjoy!'
Chuang Tzu has the last word, 'Let's go back to the original question please. You asked me how I know what fish enjoy- so you already knew I knew it when you asked the question. I know it by standing here beside the Hao.'
(See footnote 2)

Now the programming part of NLP - the ways we act with purpose to achieve outcomes. Outcomes are a very important part of NLP, they are the starting point for any NLP intervention. A basic NLP presupposition is that everything we do has a purpose. Conscious minds set outcomes. We set them and make sure they are expressed in the positive, are specified appropriately, within our influence, and appropriately sized. We make sure we have an evidence procedure for knowing when we have arrived, and attempt to make them ecological, although how our unaided conscious mind is supposed to do this, is hard to know. If outcomes are ends, things to be attained, the 'how to', the means are not specified, and yet how we go about achieving the outcome will affect what we get and the consequences. It's the 'how' that counts.

The books of the American Anthropologist Carlos Casteneda, are unacknowledged influences on NLP. Casteneda writes in his book Journey to Ixtlan, (see footnote 3), or rather reports his mentor Don Juan, talking about the spirit of the warrior. The warrior is impeccable. The warrior sets outcomes knowing full well they may be totally trivial, but commits to them totally as if they were to be his or her last act on earth. The warrior is totally aligned and totally him or herself, so the resulting action has a purity and a focus that does not come from the outcome, but from the process of acting. It's interesting that the root of the word impeccable means 'unable to sin'. Casteneda is asking us to act 'As If' the quality of what we do is the most important thing in the world - regardless of what we are trying to achieve. As our lives are so complex and systemically intertwined the idea of outcomes as isolated occurrences are an illusion anyway. The quality of the journey is the important thing. Outcomes 'come out' of how we act to achieve what we want.

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions. This usually means wonderful outcomes and appalling means. The greater, the more refined and spiritual the outcome the more mayhem and havoc can be wreaked in trying to achieve it, once you accept that the end justifies the means. With an end outcome defined for the good of all, people have felt totally justified in committing atrocities trying to achieve it.

There is a character called Shigalov in Dostoevsky's novel The Possessed. (see Footnote 4).Shigalov has founded a Utopian system that will redeem present society. He warns his co-conspirators that even the shortest explanation of his system will take ten evening sessions to explain. And the system is not yet complete. He goes on: 'I am perplexed by my own data, and my conclusion is in direct contradiction to the original idea from which I started. Starting from unlimited freedom, I arrived at unlimited tyranny. I will add, however, that there is no other solution of the social formula than mine.' Here his friends started to laugh at him, which was probably the most sensible thing they could have done.

It is possible to argue the only humane definition of peace is actually a negative one: the absence of violence, because every positive definition will lead to violence in trying to attain it. This does not fit well with NLP well-formedness outcome conditions.
Although good intentions pave the road to Hell, one of the important contributions of NLP is to separate behaviour from intention. So while marching towards the underworld we can at least acknowledge that this is not exactly where we want to go. In fact we want to go in the opposite direction, only the signposts got a little confused. By explicitly recognising the intention behind the behaviour we have a choice of moving logical levels. There is another NLP presupposition: everyone makes the best choice they can given their model of the world, but this does not excuse or explain that some terrible things are done in the world, NLP has to recognise this. Recognition, does not mean justification.

Intentions are positive in the sense of being directed at some outcome as opposed to positive as being 'good' in some way. I do see a interesting clash between the focus on outcomes from NLP and spirituality as the quality of the journey. Perhaps setting process outcomes is one answer. End outcomes are what you get at the end, (eg. in sport winning the race), process outcomes are about how you are going to act in order to achieve it. Perhaps NLP could address the issue of well formedness conditions for process outcomes. How could you begin to think about setting an outcome to act impeccably?

That's the bad news. The good news is that precisely because NLP concerns itself so closely with linguistics, outcomes and consciousness, we have a fine way of exploring these issues. In another age old metaphor, if you perceive yourself in a prison, a good place to start your escape plan is to study the walls, bars, and habits of the guards in detail. Only by knowing intimately what constrains you can you hope to escape it.

NLP studies maps with the insistence that they are to be separated from the territory they represent. NLP's contribution to spirituality can be to carefully map the areas in its title. Spirituality itself will always begin just beyond the edge of the map. I believe Spirituality is territorial. NLP also insists on sensory based descriptions and the importance of sensory experience. This is congruent with spirituality which is about experience. Mystics through out the ages tell the same metaphors about spiritual experience, regardless of historical period, or the organised belief systems they subscribe to. They insist on the importance of the experience. Words fall short of the experience like stones thrown at the stars. We throw a lot of stones, some may be well aimed, but they still bring us no closer, nor do they help you appreciate their beauty.

A final story from Chuang Tzu, talking to his friend Hui Tzu. Hui Tzu said to Chuang Tzu, 'Your words are useless!'
Chuang Tzu said, 'A man has to understand the useless before you can talk to him about the useful. The earth is certainly vast and broad, though a man uses no more of it than the area he puts his feet on. If however, you were to dig away all the earth from around his feet until you reached the Yellow Springs (The Underworld) then would the man still be able to make use of it?'
'No, it would be useless,' said Hui Tzu.
'It is obvious then,' said Chuang Tzu, 'that the useless has its uses.'

Footnote 1
J.W. Dunne, The Serial Universe (Faber 1934)

Footnote 2
Chuang Tzu - Basic Writings Translated by Burton Watson (Columbia University press 1964)

Footnote 3
Carlos Casteneda, Journey to Ixtlan (Simon and Schuster 1972)

Footnote 4
Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Possessed (various editions)

http://kovy.freeweb.hu/Ak/VeerZoli/lambent/article.htm

Intergalactic Origins of Life

2009-02-04T18:35:00.005-05:00

Zeroing in on the Intergalactic Origins of Life

Recent discoveries using The Paranal Observatory located in the Atacama Desert in the northern part of Chile have led astrophysicists believe that carbon-based molecules that once floated in interstellar space were present in the cloud of dust and gas from which our solar system formed, providing the raw materials for life on Earth. These molecules have been observed throughout our galaxy, which is one reason why many believe conditions may also be ripe for life in other parts of the Milky Way, and in billions of galaxies beyond.

By seeking out dusty galaxies – where organic molecules may form in greater abundance – galaxies similar to our own, but at an earlier stage of their evolution, astronomers hope to work out how long these molecules have been abundant in the universe, and therefore how long the conditions suitable for life as we know it have prevailed.

New evidence appears to support the theory that organic molecules are common elsewhere in the universe. A team led by Sara Ellison of the University of Victoria, Canada, has found another galaxy about 2 billion light years away with telltale diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) by focusing on dusty-looking galaxies, using the Very Large Telescope in Chile. "Our theory group does simulations on how galaxy structure evolves over time, and my observations can test those theories," she says

The chemical signature of a class of organic compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons can be seen in the way they absorb light from distant stars. The molecules are thought to leave a complex pattern of dark bands in these spectra called diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs).

Finding such organic bands in other galaxies could help pin down when organic molecules -the ingredients for life -first become abundant in galactic evolution.

Nobody has worked out what exactly which molecules contribute to the signature of the interstellar bands, so there is some uncertainty over the composition of the material. By observing the bands in many different galaxies, it may be possible to pin down the exact molecule or molecules.

Other research has shown that Dwarf galaxies which are much smaller than ordinary galaxies like our Milky Way and have weaker gravitational fields, are the most common type of galaxy in the universe and makes them a key to understanding how the universe was seeded with various elements billions of years ago.

Only about thirty of the naturally occurring elements are widespread on Earth, and barely half a dozen are of central importance to life. Oxygen, of course, is the most common, accounting for 50 percent of the Earth's crust, followed by silicon. Many of the more obscure elements are more common that the better known: cerinium trumps copper, ditto for lanthanum over nitrogen. Tin is leapfrogged into the top fifty by dysprosium and samarium. Neither is abundance an indicator of criticality to life: carbon is only the fifteenth most common element, but life as we know it would be impossible without it. Of every 200 atoms in your body, only 19 are carbon. Other elements are key to sustaining life if not creating it: iron is a sina qua non for the manufacture of hemoglobin; cobalt for vitamin B12; potassium is critically important for your nerves.

In 1869, Dimitri Mendeleyev published his Periodic Table of the Elements. Scientists before and after Mendeleyev have proposed a spiral galaxy showing the stars link to the elements and to express the astronomical reach of the elements to evoke wonder at the order underlying the universe.

As we advance in our exploration of the Universe and the search for life, we'll most likely discover that one planet's cherished elements are another planet's poison, preferring their lakes of methane or shiny seas of mercury, to our blue seas of oxygen and hydrogen.

Posted by Casey Kazan.

The Little Things

2009-02-04T17:54:00.002-05:00

The Little Things

As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because…his son started kindergarten.

Another man was alive because…it was his turn to bring donuts.

One woman was late because…her alarm clock didn’t go off in time.

One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because…of an auto accident.

One of them…missed his bus.

One spilled food on her clothes and had to take…time to change.

One person’s…car wouldn’t start.

One went back to…answer the telephone.

One ha a…child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have.

One couldn’t…get a taxi.

     The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid! That is why he is alive today.

     Now when I am…stuck in traffic…miss an elevator…turn back to answer a ringing telephone…all the little things that annoy me. I think to myself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment.

     Next time your morning seems to be going wrong…the children are slow getting dressed…you can’t seem to find the car keys…you hit every traffic light…don’t get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you!

May The Almighty continue to bless you will all those annoying little things and may you remember their possible purpose.

Law of Time--

2008-12-12T15:34:00.005-05:00

You are now passing through a galactic portal into a vast domain of knowledge based on a major new discovery, the Law of Time.

Great discoveries occur because the time demands them. The more urgent the need, the more necessary is the discovery. The Law of Time was unearthed to facilitate an unprecedented shift in human consciousness. Only by such a shift can the global crisis be resolved and surmounted.

By 2012, according to the Law of Time, we must be ready for this shift, the unparalleled transition into the next stage of our evolution, the noosphere. This signifies the attainment of a unified field of planetary consciousness.

To change human consciousness, one preliminary step is to change the human macroprogram - the calendar. The most practical application of the Law of Time is the Thirteen Moon/28-day calendar. With this elegant tool, the Law of Time lays the foundation for the reformulation of the human mind - the coming of the noosphere. But this is only the beginning of the adventure in time.

Explore with us on this site the on-going revelations of the Galactic Research Institute. Enter a new cosmically elevated perception of reality which is already transforming the way we think of ourselves, our planet, our universe.

Whoever you are, whatever your beliefs, if your cause is for a just future, a regenerated planetary environment, peace, spiritual unity and the furtherance of art and culture, then join with us in the excitement of participating in the discovery and creation of a New Time of Peace on planet Earth.

http://www.lawoftime.org/

MENTAL HEALTH - Persecutory Delusions

2008-09-09T11:24:00.001-04:00

Persecutory Delusions

What Are Persecutory Delusions?
     Persecutory Delusions, sometimes called Querulant delusions, are when a person believes (wrongly) that they are being picked on, or threatened by someone/something else.

     This can be someone familiar to them (e.g. a family member, friend, group), someone in the media (e.g. a film star), an organisation (e.g. the CIA), or even aliens.

It is classed under a group of Disorders known as the Delusional (Paranoid) Disorders.

________________

Paranoia/Definition
     Paranoia is an unfounded or exaggerated distrust of others, sometimes reaching delusional proportions. Paranoid individuals constantly suspect the motives of those around them, and believe that certain individuals, or people in general, are "out to get them."

What is Paranoia?
     Paranoia involves feelings of persecution and an exaggerated sense of self-importance. Paranoia occurs in many mental disorders and is rare as an isolated mental illness. Since the delusions involve only one area, a person with paranoia can usually work and function in everyday life, however, their lives may be limited and isolated. There are different types of paranoia including conjugal paranoia, erotomania, hypochondriacal paranoia, and different types of paranoid disorders such as paranoid personality and paranoid schizophrenia.

Description
     Paranoid perceptions and behavior may appear as features of a number of mental illnesses, including depression and dementia, but are most prominent in three types of psychological disorders: paranoid schizophrenia, delusional disorder (persecutory type), and paranoid personality disorder (PPD).

     Individuals with paranoid schizophrenia and persecutory delusional disorder experience what is known as persecutory delusions: an irrational, yet unshakable, belief that someone is plotting against them.

     Persecutory delusions in paranoid schizophrenia are bizarre, sometimes grandiose, and often accompanied by auditory hallucinations. Delusions experienced by individuals with delusional disorder are more plausible than those experienced by paranoid schizophrenics; not bizarre, though still unjustified. Individuals with delusional disorder may seem offbeat or quirky rather than mentally ill, and, as such, may never seek treatment.

     Persons with paranoid personality disorder tend to be self-centered, self-important, defensive, and emotionally distant. Their paranoia manifests itself in constant suspicions rather than full-blown delusions.

     The disorder often impedes social and personal relationships and career advancement. Some individuals with PPD are described as "litigious," as they are constantly initiating frivolous law suits. PPD is more common in men than in women, and typically begins in early adulthood.

Causes and symptoms
     The exact cause of paranoia is unknown. Potential causal factors may be genetics, neurological abnormalities, changes in brain chemistry, (tumors- lesions etc) and stress. Acute, or short term, paranoia may occur in some individuals overwhelmed by stress.

     The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV), the diagnostic standard for mental health professionals in the United States, lists the following symptoms for paranoid personality disorder:

suspicious; unfounded suspicions; believes others are plotting against him/her

preoccupied with unsupported doubts about friends or associates

reluctant to confide in others due to a fear that information may be used against him/her

reads negative meanings into innocuous remarks bears grudges

perceives attacks on his/her reputation that are not clear to others, and is quick to counterattack - or quick to spread her 'beliefs' of such (mental) occurances - taking the delusional aspect and manifesting it into "real life".

maintains unfounded suspicions regarding the fidelity of a spouse or significant other - family , friends, collegues (etc).

Key Terms

Persecutory delusion:
     A fixed, false, and inflexible belief that others are engaging in a plot or plan to harm an individual.

For Your Information

Resources/Organizations

     American Psychiatric Association. 1400 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20005. (888) 357-7924.

     American Psychological Association (APA). 750 First St. NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. (202) 336-5700. ttp://www.apa.org.

     National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI). Colonial Place Three, 2107 Wilson Blvd., Ste. 300, Arlington, VA 22201-3042. (800) 950-6264.

     National Institute of Mental Health. Mental Health Public Inquiries, 5600 Fishers Lane, Room 15C-05, Rockville, MD 20857. (888) 826-9438

______________________

PARANOID PERSONALITY DISORDER

Suspicious
     An unmistakable sign of paranoia is continual mistrust. People with paranoid personality disorder are constantly on their guard because they see the world as a threatening place. They tend to confirm their expectations by latching on to any speck of evidence that supports their suspicions and ignore or misinterpret any evidence to the contrary.

     They are ever watchful and may look around for signs of a threat. Anyone in a new situation--beginning a job or starting a relationship, for example--is cautious and somewhat guarded until he or she learns that the fears are groundless.
     People suffering from paranoia cannot abandon their fears. They continue to expect trickery and to doubt the loyalty of others. In a personal relationship or marriage, this suspiciousness may take the form of pathological, unrealistic jealousy.

Hypersensitive
     Because persons with paranoid personality disorder are hyperalert, they notice any slight and may take offense where none is intended. As a result, they tend to be defensive and antagonistic.

     When they are at fault, they cannot accept blame, not even mild criticism. Yet they are highly critical of others.

Other people may say that these individuals make "mountains out of molehills."

Cold and Aloof
     In addition to being argumentative and uncompromising, the people with paranoid personality disorder are often emotionally cut off from other people. They appear cold and, in fact, often avoid becoming intimate with others. They pride themselves on their rationality and objectivity.

     People with a paranoid outlook on life rarely come to the attention of clinicians--it is not in their nature to seek help. Many presumably function competently in society. They may seek out social niches in which a moralistic and punitive style is acceptable, or at least tolerated to a certain degree.

DELUSIONAL (PARANOID) DISORDER
     Psychiatrists make a distinction between the milder paranoid personality disorder described above and the more debilitating delusional (paranoid) disorder. The hallmark of this disorder is the presence of a persistent, nonbizarre delusion without symptoms of any other mental disorder.

     Delusions are firmly held beliefs that are untrue, not shared by others in the culture, and not easily modifiable. Five delusional themes are frequently seen in delusional disorder. In some individuals, more than one of them is present.

     -- Ruth is a clerk typist who is efficient and helpful. Her employers and co-workers value her contribution to the office. But Ruth spends her evenings writing letters to State and Federal officials. She feels that God has opened her mind and given her the cure for cancer. She wants some leading treatment center to use her cure on all its patients so that the world can see she is right. Many of her letters go unanswered, or she receives noncommittal replies that only make her feel that no one understands that she can save all cancer patients if only given the chance. When one of her letters is answered by an employee of the official to whom she wrote, she is sure that the official is being deliberately kept unaware of her knowledge and power. Sometimes she despairs that the world will ever know how wonderful she is, but she doesn't give up. She just keeps writing. Ruth suffers from one of the delusional disorders, grandiose delusion.

     The most common delusion in delusional disorder is that of persecution. While persons with paranoid personality might suspect their colleagues of joking at their expense, persons with delusional disorder may suspect others of participating in elaborate master plots to persecute them.

     They believe that they are being poisoned, drugged, spied upon, or are the targets of conspiracies to ruin their reputations or even to kill them.

     They sometimes engage in litigation in an attempt to redress imagined injustices. Another theme seen frequently is that of delusional jealousy. Any sign--even a meaningless spot on clothing, or a short delay in arriving home--is summoned up as evidence that a spouse is being unfaithful.

     Erotic delusions are based on the belief that one is romantically loved by another, usually someone of higher status or a well-known public figure. Individuals with erotic delusions often harass famous persons through numerous letters, telephone calls, visits, and stealthy surveillance.

     * Persons with grandiose delusions often feel that they have been endowed with special powers and that, if allowed to exercise these powers, they could cure diseases, banish poverty, ensure world peace,or perform other extraordinary feats.

     Individuals with somatic delusions are convinced that there is something very wrong with their bodies--that they emit foul odors, have bugs crawling in or on their bodies, or are misshapen and ugly. Because of these delusions, they tend to avoid the society of other people, share no photos, memories (etc, and spend much time consulting "others" for their imagined condition. (be it MD - Counselor- Religious Pratictioner - Confidant... etc..)

     Whether or not persons with delusional disorder are dangerous to others has not been systematically investigated, but clinical experience suggests that such persons are rarely homicidal.

     Delusional patients are commonly angry people, and thus they are perceived as threatening.

In the rare instances when individuals with delusional disorder become:violent, verbally abusive, revengeful, instigators, plotting...

Their victims are usually people who unwittingly fit into their delusional scheme. (conviniently)

     The person in most danger from an individual with delusional disorder is a spouse/lover, family, or friend.

How to Resolve Conflict Online

2008-08-12T12:33:00.001-04:00

Conflict in Cyberspace:
How to Resolve Conflict Online

Kali Munro, M.Ed., Psychotherapist

www.KaliMunro.com

Have you ever noticed how conflict can get blown out of proportion online? What may begin as a small difference of opinion, or misunderstanding, becomes a major issue very quickly. Conflict can be difficult at the best of times, but what is it about online communication that seems to ignite ?flaming? and make conflicts more difficult to resolve?

There are a number of reasons to explain why conflict may be heightened online. One is the absence of visual and auditory cues. When we talk to someone in person, we see their facial expressions, their body language, and hear their tone of voice. Someone can say the exact same thing in a number of different ways, and that usually effects how we respond.

For example, someone could shout and shake their finger at you, or they could speak gently and with kindness. They could stand up and tower over you, or they could sit down beside you. How you feel, interpret, and respond to someone?s message often depends on how they speak to you, even when it?s a difficult message to hear.

In online communications, we have no visual or auditory cues to help us to decipher the intent, meaning, and tone of the messenger. All we have are the words on a computer screen, and how we hear those words in our head. While people who know each other have a better chance at accurately understanding each others? meaning and intentions, even they can have arguments online that they would not have in-person.

Projections and Transference

While many people are convinced that how they read an email is the only way it can be read, the truth is, how we read a text, or view a work of art, often says more about ourselves than it does about the message or the messenger.

All of our communications, online and in real-time, are filled with projections. We perceive the world through our expectations, needs, desires, fantasies, and feelings, and we project those onto other people. For example, if we expect people to be critical of us, we perceive other people?s communication as being critical - it sounds critical to us even though it may not be. We do the same thing online; in fact we are more likely to project when we are online precisely because we don?t have the visual or auditory cues to guide us in our interpretations. How we ?hear? an email or post is how we hear it in our own heads, which may or may not reflect the tone or attitude of the sender.

We usually can?t know from an email or post alone whether someone is shouting, using a criticizing tone, or speaking kindly. Unless the tone is clearly and carefully communicated by the messenger, and/or we are very skilled at understanding text and human communication, we most likely hear the voice we hear, or create in our head and react to that. This is one of the reasons why controversial or potentially conflictual issues are best dealt with by using great care and explicit expressions of our tone, meaning, and intent.

Where do projections come from? They come from our life experiences - how we?ve been treated, how important figures in our lives have behaved, how we felt growing up, how we responded and coped, etc. All of us project or transfer our feelings and views of important figures in our lives onto other people.

To take a look at your own projections or transference with people online, think back to the last time you felt angry at someone online. What was it about them or their email that made you so angry? What did you believe that they were doing to you or someone else? How did you react internally and externally? Was your reaction to this person (whether spoken or not) influenced by someone or something from your past? While it certainly happens that people are treated with disrespect and anger online, if there are any parallels between this experience and any of your past experiences, it?s likely that how you felt and responded was coloured by your past. When our past is involved, particularly when we are unaware of it happening, we invariably project and transfer old feelings onto the present situation.

Disinhibition Effect

Conflict can be heightened online by what is known as the ?disinhibition effect?, a phenomenon that psychologist, Dr. John Suler, has written extensively about. Suler writes,

?It's well known that people say and do things in cyberspace that they wouldn't ordinarily say or do in the face-to-face world. They loosen up, feel more uninhibited, express themselves more openly. Researchers call this the "disinhibition effect." It's a double-edged sword. Sometimes people share very personal things about themselves. They reveal secret emotions, fears, wishes. Or they show unusual acts of kindness and generosity. On the other hand, the disinhibition effect may not be so benign. Out spills rude language and harsh criticisms, anger, hatred, even threats.? (Suler, 2002)

Suler explains that the disinihibition effect is caused by or heightened by the following features of online communication:

a) anonymity - no one knows who you are on the net, and so you are free to say whatever you want without anyone knowing it?s you who said it.

b) invisibility - you don't have to worry about how you physically look or sound to other people when you say something. You don't have to worry about how others look or sound when you say something to them. ?Seeing a frown, a shaking head, a sigh, a bored expression, and many other subtle and not so subtle signs of disapproval or indifference can slam the breaks on what people are willing to express.? (Suler, 2002)

c) delayed reactions - you can say anything you think and feel without censorship at any time, including in the middle of the night when you?re most tired and upset, leave immediately without waiting for a response, and possibly never return - in the extreme this can feel to someone like an emotional ?hit and run?.

d) the perception that the interaction is happening in your head - with the absence of visual and auditory cues you may feel as though the interaction is occurring in your head. Everyone thinks all kinds of things about other people in their minds that they would never say to someone?s face - online, you can say things you?d otherwise only think.

e) neutralizing of status - in face-to-face interactions, you may be intimidated to say something to someone because of their job, authority, gender, or race. Because this is not visible to you online, you feel freer to say what ever you want to anyone.

f) your own personality style may be heightened online - for example, if your communication style tends to be reactive or angry, you may be more reactive or angry online.

Tips for Resolving Conflict Online

What can be done to prevent unnecessary conflict in cyberspace? The following are tips for handling conflict online with respect, sensitivity, and care:

Don?t respond right away

When you feel hurt or angry about an email or post, it?s best not to respond right away. You may want to write a response immediately, to get it off your chest, but don't hit send! Suler recommends waiting 24 hours before responding - sleep on it and then reread and rewrite your response the next day.

Read the post again later

Sometimes, your first reaction to a post is a lot about how you're feeling at the time. Reading it later, and sometimes a few times, can bring a new perspective. You might even experiment by reading it with different tones (matter-of-fact, gentle, non-critical) to see if it could have been written with a different tone in mind than the one you initially heard.

Discuss the situation with someone who knows you

Ask them what they think about the post and the response you plan to send. Having input from others who are hopefully more objective can help you to step back from the situation and look at it differently. Suler recommends getting out of the medium in which the conflict occurred - in this case talking to someone in person - to gain a better perspective.

Choose whether or not you want to respond

You do have a choice, and you don?t have to respond. You may be too upset to respond in the way that you would like, or it may not be worthy of a response. If the post is accusatory or inflammatory and the person?s style tends to be aggressive or bullying, the best strategy is to ignore them.

Assume that people mean well, unless they have a history or pattern of aggression

Everyone has their bad days, gets triggered, reacts insensitively, and writes an email without thinking it through completely. It doesn?t mean that they don?t have good intentions.

On the other hand, some people pick fights no matter how kind and patient you are with them. They distort what you say, quote you out of context, and make all sorts of accusations all to vilify and antagonize you. Don't take the "bait" by engaging in a struggle with them - they'll never stop. Sometimes, the best strategy is to have nothing more to do with someone.

Clarify what was meant

We all misinterpret what we hear and read, particularly when we feel hurt or upset. It?s a good idea to check out that you understood them correctly. For example, you could ask, ?When you said...did you mean...or, what did you mean by...?? Or, ?when you said...I heard...is that what you meant?? Often times, what we think someone said is not even close to what they meant to say. Give them the benefit of the doubt and the chance to be clear about what they meant.

Think about what you want to accomplish by your communication

Are you trying to connect with this person? Are you trying to understand them and be understood? What is the message you hope to convey? What is the tone you want to communicate? Consider how you can convey that.

Verbalize what you want to accomplish

Here are some examples, ?I want to understand what you?re saying.? ?I feel hurt by some stuff that you said. I want to talk about it in a way that we both feel heard and understood.? ?I want to find a way to work this out. I know we don?t agree about everything and that?s okay. I?d like to talk with you about how I felt reading your post.? ?I hope we can talk this through because I really like you. I don?t want to be argumentative or blaming.?

Use ?I? statements when sharing your feelings or thoughts

For example, ?I feel...? versus ?You made me feel...?

Use strictly feeling statements

Feeling statements include saying you felt hurt, sad, scared, angry, happy, guilty, remorseful, etc. In everyday conversations, we describe our feelings differently than this. For example, we say that we felt ?attacked?, ?threatened?, ?unsafe?, or ?punched in the stomach?. When the person we?re upset with is not present, or able to read our words, this is an understandable way to express the full depth of our feelings and experience. Generally though, these statements are not simply feeling statements because they contain within them unexpressed beliefs. For example, you believe that you were attacked by the person, not that it just felt that way. If you want to communicate with the person involved (or they can read your words), it is best to stick to simple feeling statements otherwise they will hear you as accusing them of attacking them and be angry or upset with you. Some people get confused why other people get upset with them when they think they are only expressing their feelings; usually in these cases there were unstated beliefs expressed which the person reacted to.

Choose your words carefully and thoughtfully, particularly when you?re upset

Do your best to keep in mind that the person will read your post alone. You are not physically or virtually present with them to clarify what you meant, and they can?t see the kindness in your eyes. They must rely entirely on your words to interpret your meaning, intent, and tone. This is why it?s important to choose your words carefully and thoughtfully. You can still be real and honest while being selective.

Place yourself in the other person?s shoes

How might they hear your message? To avoid unnecessary conflict or a lot of hurt feelings, it helps to take into account who you?re writing to. One person might be able to hear you say it exactly how you think it, and another person would be threatened by that style of communication. Think about the other person when writing your email or post. Do your best to communicate in a way that is respectful, sensitive, and clear to them. People often say, to do that feels like they?re being controlled and why shouldn?t they just write it the way they want to. Of course you can write it any way you want, especially online, but if you want to communicate with this person and have them hear and understand what you?re saying, it helps to think about how they will hear it.

Use emoticons to express your tone

In online communication, visual and auditory cues are replaced by emoticons, for example, smiles, winks, and laughter. It helps to use emoticons to convey your tone. Additionally, if you like the person, tell them! Having a conflict or misunderstanding doesn?t mean you don?t like the person any more, but people often forget that reality, or don?t think to say it. It may be most needed during a tense interaction.

Start and end your post with positive, affirming, and validating statements

Say what you agree with, what you understand about how they feel, and any other positive statements at the beginning of your email. This helps set a positive tone. End on a positive note as well.

The Paradox of Online Communication

Handling conflict constructively is hard at the best times, and it can be even harder online. It can take a great deal of effort, care, and thoughtfulness to address differences, tensions, and conflicts online. Paradoxically, some of the same things that contribute to heightened conflict online can contribute to peaceful resolutions as well. The internet is an ideal place to practice communication and conflict resolution skills. Just as the absence of visual and auditory cues, the anonymity, invisibility, delayed reactions, and neutralizing of status free us to say what ever negative thing we want, they can also free us to try new, and more positive communication styles and to take all the time we need to do that. As with any new technology, the internet can be used to enhance our personal growth and relationships, or to alienate us from each other. It?s our choice.

Dealing With Pathological Liars

2008-07-31T14:03:00.003-04:00

Dealing With Pathological Liars

How to Deal with Liars
Tips for Coping when Friends and Family Members Lie
© Venice Kichura

When close friends and family members continue to lie, it can be devastating. Here are some tips on how to deal with liars, as well as how to help them.

There’s nothing more frustrating than knowing someone is habitually lying to you. When it’s a small child, it’s considered immaturity. But after a parent has tried to teach basic honesty and the child grows up and continues to lie, creating a fantasy world that you know isn’t real, the lying surpasses immaturity, becoming a serious problem. Both the liar and those close to him (or her) suffer if the lying persists.

Hold Your Tongue
Although you’re tempted to lash back, letting the liar know you don’t believe a word he says, it’s better to hold your tongue. Of course, you do want to let him know you don’t believe the lies, but try to keep your words soft and few, although it’s not easy. Calmly state (resisting the urge to use harsh words) what you know to be true.

State Only the Truth
Be sure you tell only the truth. If you’re known for being an honest person, then others can see the lie for what it is. Also, weigh your words carefully, as you don’t want to be accused of telling any untruths yourself.

Share Your Concerns with the Liar
In a gentle way, meet with the liar to share that you’re concerned about him. Tell him that you have proof of his lying and that you’re concerned for his welfare if he doesn’t change. If you know this approach probably won’t work, then maybe you’ll need to plan a confrontation where other friends and family members confront him in a surprise meeting, urging him to get professional help. Explain how it’s possible he may have a mental illness and need therapy. Be sure to convey that you really care about his welfare.

Seek Counseling Yourself
If your friend or loved one refuses to get professional help, or a confrontation doesn’t work, then you get help yourself, either professional counseling, or with a trusted friend, church elder, or minister with whom you can confide. Often when you associate with a liar, you can feel like you’re losing your mind, so to protect your own sanity, seek help.

Pathological Lying
A pathological liar is someone who exaggerates his stories to impress people. While a normal liar knows he’s lying, a pathological liar may actually come to believe his own lies. This is a serious mental disorder that needs to be corrected. On the other hand, some pathological liars know they’re lying, but continue to do so, as they get rewards in the form of sympathy, attention, etc.

How do you know if someone is a pathological liar? There are several red flags. For example, the liar….

Changes his stories
Acts defensively when questioned
Lies about minor things
Often actually believes his own lies
Exaggerates to an extreme degree about everything
Uses manipulation
Never admits she/he’s wrong

If all Else Fails, Disassociate
If the liar persists in telling untruths, then you may have break off all ties with him until he realizes the seriousness of his problem. Don’t give up on him, but when the opportunities arise, continue to let him know you’re concerned about his mental health. Meanwhile, pray for him, as you go on with your own life.

The copyright of the article
How to Deal with Liars in Personality/Anxiety/Mood Disorders
is owned by Venice Kichura.

Gossip belongs to small, petty minds

2008-07-12T12:26:00.000-04:00

Gossip belongs to small, petty minds

Eleanor Roosevelt, known for her sensitivity and her work to improve the lot of the underprivileged, loved and admired by many, said, "Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people."

Father Lawrence G. Lovasik, a missionary in America's coal and steel regions, who said his life's ideal was to "make God more known and loved through my writings," wrote, "Only the ignorant and narrow-minded gossip, for they speak of persons instead of things," and that, "It is just as cowardly to judge an absent person as it is wicked to strike a defenseless one."

Gossip refers to "ostensibly value free" idle chatty talk, but Wikipedia encyclopedia also says, gossip "often specifically refers to talk of scandal, slander or schadenfreude (German word for enjoyment taken from the misfortune of someone else) ... discussed in an underhand or clandestine manner," introducing "errors and other variations" into information transmitted, isolating and harming a person's reputation.

Some say gossip is simply "immoral."

The world's major religions preach against and condemn gossip. Yet, gossip is not a province of any nationality, ethnicity or race. Gossip cuts across national, ethnic and racial boundaries.

Christian Proverbs 16:27 says, "A worthless man digs up evil, while his words are scorching fire," and Proverbs 16:28, "A perverse man spreads strife, and a slanderer separates intimate friends."

The Chinese say, "What is told in the ear of a man is often heard 100 miles away," and the Irish, "Who brings a tale takes two away."

Many nations have this same proverb: "Whoever gossips to you will gossip about you." And a Biblical goes, "Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down."

The Ninth Commandment of the world's largest religion, Christianity, teaches: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."

Islam, the second largest, says, to "backbite one another" is to "eat the flesh of one's dead brother" who has no recourse to self-defense.

In Judaism, gossip is sin, and Jewish "lashon ha-ra" (bad tongue) teaches that speaking negatively -- including "negative truths" -- about others "demeans the dignity of man -- both the speaker and the subject of the gossip."

Lord Gautama Buddha teaches, "Killing is evil, lying is evil, slandering is evil, abuse is evil, gossip is evil, envy is evil, hatred is evil, to cling to false doctrine is evil, all these things are evil."

Digging dirt

Yet, "many small minds" find pleasure engaging in what religions prohibit. Look around to see how some busily dig up dirt to throw at their fellow human beings, thereby sowing friction, ending friendships, and alienating people.

On the other hand, there are men who rise above all that: Benjamin Franklin said, "I resolve to speak ill of no man whatever, not even in a matter of truth; but rather by some means excuse the faults I hear charged upon others, and upon proper occasions speak all the good I know of everybody."

Spiritual and political leader Mahatma Gandhi declared, "I look only to the good qualities of men. Not being faultless myself, I won't presume to probe into the faults of others."

Last October, a Reuters article, "Gossip more powerful than truth, researchers say," looked at the findings of Ralf Sommerfield, of Germany's Max Planck Institute, who led a study on gossip by using a computer game. The study found that "gossip has a strong influence ... even when participants have access to the original information."

As Reuters put it, "Gossip is more powerful than truth. ... people believe what they hear through the grapevine even if they have evidence to the contrary," or in the words of the study, "gossip has a strong manipulative potential."

And that's the problem: In spite of evidence, people in general are intrigued by, and continue to give weight to gossip.

Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti wrote in his book, "This Light in Oneself," that it is we, the inhabitants of the world -- whether in family, in school, at the office, in communities, or in nations -- who have made our world what it is. We are the creators of the situation and environment in it. In this world, not only are there frictions and disharmony around us, but within many of us, too, we cannot even find peace, order and happiness.

Constant struggle

Krishnamurti explained life as "a constant struggle," and life journey as "a battlefield not only within ourselves but also outwardly" through marriage, children, jobs, achievements. "That is what we call living," he wrote, and suggested that we engage in an "inward revolution" to remove the "me" from all relationships, actions, thinking, and way of life, to transform the mind, instill compassion, love and energy to transcend life's pettiness, narrowness and shallowness. Only so would we find peace, order, and happiness within ourselves and in our world.

The Indian sage advised that we develop a "psychological detachment" from "things" that should not be a focus of life, and to live the present, here and now, "in goodness," which is life's focus.

"Good" is that which is holy, related to God and to the highest principles -- the holy does not preach love and practice hatred, Krishnamurti said, and God and the highest principles do not preach killing, stealing and smearing someone's good name.

It is not "Do unto others before they do unto you,"

but as the Golden Rule says:

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Article By:

A. Gaffar Peang-Meth, Ph.D.,

Is a New Solar Cycle Beginning?

2008-06-25T20:15:00.002-04:00

Dec. 14, 2007: The solar physics community is abuzz this week. No, there haven't been any great eruptions or solar storms. The source of the excitement is a modest knot of magnetism that popped over the sun's eastern limb on Dec. 11th, pictured below in a pair of images from the orbiting Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO).
It may not look like much, but "this patch of magnetism could be a sign of the next solar cycle," says solar physicist David Hathaway of the Marshall Space Flight Center.

Above: From SOHO, a UV-wavelength image of the sun and a map showing positive (white) and negative (black) magnetic polarities. The new high-latitude active region is magnetically reversed, marking it as a harbinger of a new solar cycle.
For more than a year, the sun has been experiencing a lull in activity, marking the end of Solar Cycle 23, which peaked with many furious storms in 2000--2003. "Solar minimum is upon us," he says.

The big question now is, when will the next solar cycle begin?

It could be starting now.

"New solar cycles always begin with a high-latitude, reversed polarity sunspot," explains Hathaway. "Reversed polarity " means a sunspot with opposite magnetic polarity compared to sunspots from the previous solar cycle. "High-latitude" refers to the sun's grid of latitude and longitude. Old cycle spots congregate near the sun's equator. New cycle spots appear higher, around 25 or 30 degrees latitude.

The region that appeared on Dec. 11th fits both these criteria. It is high latitude (24 degrees N) and magnetically reversed. Just one problem: There is no sunspot. So far the region is just a bright knot of magnetic fields. If, however, these fields coalesce into a dark sunspot, scientists are ready to announce that Solar Cycle 24 has officially begun.

Below: Solar Cycle 23 is coming to an end. What's next? Image credit: NOAA/Space Weather Prediction Center.

Many forecasters believe Solar Cycle 24 will be big and intense. Peaking in 2011 or 2012, the cycle to come could have significant impacts on telecommunications, air traffic, power grids and GPS systems. (And don't forget the Northern Lights!) In this age of satellites and cell phones, the next solar cycle could make itself felt as never before.

The furious storms won't start right away, however. Solar cycles usually take a few years to build to a frenzy and Cycle 24 will be no exception. "We still have some quiet times ahead," says Hathaway.

Meanwhile, all eyes are on a promising little active region. Will it become the first sunspot of a new solar cycle? Stay tuned for updates from Science@NASA.

Author: Dr. Tony Phillips

Production Editor: Dr. Tony Phillips

Credit: http://science.nasa.gov/

Robots Simulate Darwin's Natural Selection

2008-04-05T20:10:00.002-04:00

Robots Simulate Darwin's Natural Selection -Daily Discovery

The New Scientist reports that robots that experiments designed by a Swiss research team have artificially evolved ways to communicate with one another.

The experiments suggest that simulated evolution could be a useful tool for those designing of swarms of robots.

The "genomes" of the bots that found food and avoided poison most efficiently were recombined, mimicking biological natural selection.

Cooperative communication evolved when selective success was judged at the group level – when many robots displayed efficient behaviour – or when the genomes of the robots were most similar – like biological relatives.

by Jason McManus.

http://technology.newscientist.com/channel/tech/dn11248?DCMP=ILC-Top5&nsref=dn11248

Saturn's Vanishing Rings

2008-03-25T17:57:00.004-04:00

Saturn's Vanishing Rings

The planetary jewel of our solar system, Saturn, has bedazzled astronomers for centuries. Named for the Roman god Saturnus, its rings make it one of the most breathtaking sites in the galaxy. However those rings are disappearing, at least, for a little while.

Four hundred years ago, Galileo spotted Saturn and made the first recorded discovery of her rings. He immediately wrote to his patrons saying "I found another very strange wonder, which I should like to make known to their Highnesses…." Unluckily for him though, the rings immediately began disappearing and vanished only a year after he had found them.

What Galileo didn’t know was that this happens every 14 or 15 years, and is known as “ring plane crossing.” Essentially, as Saturn moves around the sun it periodically orbits so that its rings are precisely edge on to Earth. Because they are so thin – relatively speaking – they thus began invisible to us.

Amateur and professional astronomers all across Earth are currently seeing a narrowing of Saturn’s rings. Efrain Morales Rivera and his backyard telescope in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico have captured images (see above). "The rings have narrowed considerably in the last year," he reports. "The Cassini division (a dark gap in the rings) is getting hard to see."

Wadly for Galileo, he stopped viewing Saturn when the rings disappeared. For him, that is bad luck, because at such times as the possibility of discovering extra Saturnian moons or even faint outer rings increase.In addition, it is also a good time to get a look at the unusually blue north pole of Saturn. In 2005 the Cassini – Huygens spacecraft flew over the northern hemisphere and found that the skies, unlike the golden clouds of the rest of the planet, were cloudless and a deep blue like Earth’s. Only Cassini has been able to see this, but now, thanks to the ring plane crossing, the northern hemisphere won’t be obscured by the rings."

Now that Saturn's rings are only open 8 degrees, we can finally view its northern hemisphere's beautiful teal blue colored belts and zones, which really did look blue through my 10-inch telescope," reports Dan Petersen of Racine, WisconsinOver the next months Saturn’s rings will continue to disappear, and will vanish entirely on the 4th of September, 2009.

If you liked this article, please give it a quick review on

Digg, Reddit, or StumbleUpon.
Thanks!

Herbal Teas

2008-03-24T20:20:00.004-04:00

“and the fruit thereof
shall be for meat,
and the leaf thereof
for medicine.”
– Ezekiel 47:12

Herbal Teas

HERBAL TEAS are pure, simple and delicious ways to stay healthy and revitalize from the inside out. They are the most gentle, natural and beneficial way to absorb the healing properties of herbs. A cup of hot or iced tea has the power to soothe and relax, while also delivering herbal healing agents to the bloodstream. Through teas, herbal healing agents are delivered within the body more quickly than capsules, tinctures or infusions.

As with any herb or medication, caution should be practiced. Herbs should never be used as substitutes for a doctor’s prescription. If you are being treated for any illness and are taking prescription medication, seek the advice and consent of your doctor, prior to taking herbs. Children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers should not take herbs without a doctor’s consent.

There are thousands of different herbal tea varieties. Each offers healing properties unique to the specific blend. Below is a partial listing of available herbal teas, and their associated healing properties:

BLACK: Antioxidant, Overall Health and Immunity, Longevity, Antiviral, Respiratory, Stimulant.

BLACKBERRY: Astringent for cleansing, Fevers, Source of Vitamin A, B-Complex and Citric and Mal ic Acids.

CHAMOMILE: Muscle aches, Strains, Pains, Bladder, Burns, Nausea, Skin Softener, Calming, Tranquilizing.

CRANBERRY: Urinary Tract Infections, Source of Vitamin C, Coli Fighter, Immunity.

DANDELION: Anemia, Constipation, Digestion, Water Retention, Weight Control, Detoxifier, Urinary Tract.

DONG QUAI: Builds “Chi” Energy, Digestion, Disease Resistance, Heart and Blood, Liver, Muscles, Nerves, PMS.

ECHINACEA: Skin Toner, Immunity, Iron for blood, Calcium for bones and teeth, Silica for tissue repair.

ELDER: Chest and Upper Respiratory Conditions, Colds, Coughs, Flu, Throat and Mouth infections, Skin.

EYE BRIGHT: Eye Conditions (tired, dry, inflamed), Nose, Throat, Hay fever, Bronchial Irritations.

GINGER: Circulation, Colds, Chills, Heart, Blood Pressure, Strokes, Nausea, Weight Control, Digestion.

GINKO: Circulation, Headaches, Memory Loss, Anxiety, Allergies, Asthma, High Blood Pressure, Heart, Stroke.

GINSENG: Energy Enhancer, Sexual Vigor, Muscle & Skin Tone, Stress, Nervousness, Immunity, Antioxidant.

GREEN: Powerful Antioxidant, Overall Health and Immunity, Longevity, Antiviral, Respiratory, Stimulant.

HYSSOP: Respiratory System Cleanser, Asthma, Allergic Reactions, Bronchitis, Chest Congestion, Rheumatism.

KAVA KAVA: Mildly sedating, Calming, Mood swings, Relax muscles, Anxiety, Tension, Emotional stress.

LAVENDER: Anxiety, Tension, Headaches, Nervousness, Infectious Diseases, Fevers, Purify, Skin antiseptic.

LEMON BALM: Natural Antihistamine, Allergies, Asthma, Digestive Disorders, Stress, Nervousness.

OOLONG: Antioxidant, Overall Health and Immunity, Longevity, Antiviral, Respiratory, Stimulant.

PAPAYA: Digestive Health, Heart, Lymph System, Weight Loss, Gastrointestinal Distress, Water Retention.

PLANTAIN: Blood, Colds, Deobstruent, Fungal Infections, Lungs, Mucous Infections, Poison Ivy, Skin, Venoms.

RASPBERRY: Nutrition, Female Reproductive System, Kidneys, Urinary Tract.

ROOIBOS (RED BUSH): Healing, Antioxidant, Hay fever, Asthma, Eczema, Insomnia, Headaches, Nervousness.

SAGE: Healing, Antioxidant, Anti-aging, Antibiotic, Digestive Remedy, Respiratory Infections, Night Sweats.

SASSAFRAS: Cleansing, Removes toxins out of blood, Anodyne for pain relief.

ST. JOHN’S WORT: Antidepressant, Immunity, Menses, Menopause, Neuralgia, Nerve pains, Inflammation.

THYME: Infections, Colds, Flu, Viral, Bronchial Dilator, Skin Infections, Urinary tract, Kidney, Mouth and Throat.

WHITE: Most Powerful Antioxidant, Overall Health and Immunity, Longevity, Antiviral, Respiratory, Stimulant.

2008-03-16T22:25:00.003-04:00

1st Hiking Map of Mars

Pull on your backpack!!

Scientists using data from the European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft have produced the first 'hiker's maps' of Mars.

These topo maps give detailed height contours and names of geological features in the Iani Chaos region; the maps could become a standard reference for future Martian research.

The contour lines are superimposed upon high-resolution images of Mars, taken by the High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) onboard Mars Express.

The map is a fascinating document of an unknown area. To me, it's a work of art, a thing of beauty and mystery and almost religious awe. It reminds me of the early maps of the European explorers in the new world.

Today, there are no remaining white spaces of the maps of our planet. The white space is our "new world" of space exploration -an necessary component I suspect for the DNA-coded curiosity and imagination of the human species.

“Longevity Genes” Solve Centenarian Paradox

2008-03-13T11:15:00.006-04:00

Scientists have long been baffled as to why some people live so much longer than others. Diet and exercise account for some of it, but researchers have found that genetics also factor heavily into the equation, and that long life is somewhat hereditary as it is with the ancient bristlecone pine shown left that was alive when Caesar ruled Rome.

However, centenarians are known to have just as many—and sometimes even more—harmful gene variants compared with those who die much younger. So what is the secret advantage? That’s a question the experts have been eager to find an answer to.

Scientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have finally unlocked the secret behind the paradox. They were able to identify specific favorable “longevity genes” that offer protection from the harmful effects of “bad genes”. The discovery could lead to new drugs that protect against age related diseases.

“We hypothesized that people living to 100 and beyond must be buffered by genes that interact with disease-causing genes to negate their effects,” says Dr. Aviv Bergman, a professor in the departments of pathology and neuroscience at Einstein and senior author of the study, which appears in the August 31 issue of PLoS Computational Biology.

To test the hypothesis, Dr. Bergman and his colleagues examined individuals enrolled in Einstein’s Longevity Genes Project, initiated in 1998 to investigate longevity genes in a selected population: Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jews. They are descended from a founder group of just 30,000 or so people. So they are relatively genetically homogeneous, which makes it easier to associate traits (in this case, age-related diseases and longevity) with the genes that determine them.

Participating in the study were 305 Ashkenazi Jews more than 95 years old and a control group of 408 unrelated Ashkenazi Jews. (Centenarians are so rare in any human population—only one in 10,000 people live to be 100—that “longevity” genes probably wouldn’t turn up in a typical control group.)

All participants were grouped into cohorts representing each decade of lifespan from the 50’s on up. Using DNA samples, the researchers determined the prevalence in each cohort of 66 genetic markers present in 36 genes associated with aging.

As expected, some disease-related gene variants were as prevalent or even more prevalent in the oldest cohorts of Ashkenazi Jews than in the younger ones. And as Dr. Bergman had predicted, genes associated with longevity also became more common in each succeeding cohort.

“These results indicate that the frequency of deleterious genotypes may increase among people who live to extremely old ages because their protective genes allow these disease-related genes to accumulate,” says Dr. Bergman.

The Einstein researchers were able to construct a network of gene interactions that contributes to the understanding of longevity. In particular, they found that the favorable variant of the gene CETP acts to buffer the harmful effects of the disease-causing gene Lp(a).

If future research confirms that a single longevity gene can buffers against multiple disease-causing genes, then drugs that mimic the action of the gene could protect against a variety of cardiovascular disease and other age-related ailments.

Space 'CaCa"?

2008-03-12T00:23:00.002-04:00

Did You Know?" Daily Discovery

Estimates vary, but the U.S. Geological Survey reports at least 1,000 million grams, or roughly 1,000 tons of material and debris enters the atmosphere every year from outer space and makes its way to Earth's surface.

ain't that "HOT SHI(F)T " or not....? =)

Wikipedia Moves into Top 10

2008-03-11T23:00:00.000-04:00

Wikipedia Moves into Top 10

As a seminal benchmark, Wikipedia's move into the top ten U.S. websites underscores the power and validity of the Web 2.0 principle: people are the algorithm. The volunteer-powered content of the online encyclopedia, with its more than 5 million articles in more than 200 languages, is now the largest single source of knowledge in history. Wikipedia is already ranked in the top ten list of most popular Web sites globally, has been quickly gaining popularity in the U.S. It's also the world's fourth most recognzied brand.

In January of last year, Wikipedia sites ranked in the 33rd spot with 18.3 million unique visitors. By July, it had climbed to the 18th spot on the list with 28.1 million unique visitors, and in November it ranked 12th with 39.1 million unique visitors, according to comScore.

FROM ICEHOUSE TO HOTHOUSE....

2008-03-11T22:49:00.005-04:00

FROM ICEHOUSE TO HOTHOUSE:

MELTING ICE AND RISING CARBON DIOXIDE CAUSED CLIMATE SHIFT

Three hundred million years ago, Earth's climate shifted dramatically from icehouse to hothouse, with major environmental consequences. That shift was the result of both rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations and the melting of vast ice sheets, new research by University of Michigan paleoclimatologist Christopher Poulsen shows.

Poulsen will discuss his findings in a symposium titled "Geosystems: Climate Lessons from Earth's Last Great Icehouse" at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Francisco.

The changes occurred during the period of Earth's history when the continents were consolidated into a single supercontinent, Pangaea. Toward the end of the Paleozoic Era, tropical regions of Pangaea became much warmer and drier, winds in the region shifted direction, and tropical flora drastically changed. At the same time, atmospheric carbon dioxide increased and the enormous ice sheets that blanketed Gondwana---the landmass that eventually broke up to become present-day South America, Africa, Antarctica, India and Australia---began disappearing.

"There's lots of evidence for large changes in climate and vegetation, but there's been no clear hypothesis for why those changes occurred," said Poulsen, who is an assistant professor of geological sciences. A few notions have been floating around: some researchers have suggested that the uplifting or erosion of mountain chains might have caused the climate shift; others think the motion of the plates that make up Earth's outer layer played a role. But Poulsen had a different idea. "I wondered whether the melting of the Gondwana ice sheets and/or the rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide could explain these documented climate and vegetation changes," he said.

Poulsen and coworkers used theoretical climate models to experiment with different combinations of carbon dioxide concentrations and glaciation.

"The modeling simulations showed that as Gondwana deglaciated and carbon dioxide rose, the tropics became more arid and the vegetation was fried and replaced with desert," Poulsen said. "Our results also showed that deglaciation and rising carbon dioxide contributed about equally to the observed climate and vegetation changes."

In addition, the model, which relied on estimates of carbon dioxide concentrations, produced more warming than geological evidence actually indicates. This may suggest that carbon dioxide didn't rise quite as much as has been estimated, Poulsen said.

Poulsen is cautious about applying his conclusions to current climate concerns.

"The climate change I'm studying happened a long time ago, so you have to be a little careful, but certainly this work shows there is a very strong connection between carbon dioxide increase and warming," he said. "Another interesting aspect is that for a long time people have thought that the tropics aren't really susceptible to large climate changes. This work shows that the tropics are susceptible."

article- http://umich.edu/~newsinfo/

HALF A CENTURY... a woman's view.

2006-10-19T14:59:00.000-04:00

In case you have ever wondered - - - - -

What a Hot Flash Looks Like

THE BIG "M" word for women!

A * MINIPAUZ MOVIE *

35 SYMPTOMS OF (.. also 'peri' ) MENOPAUSE

1. Hot flashes, flushes, night sweats and/or cold flashes, clammy feeling
2. Bouts of rapid heart beat
3. Irritability, Mood swings
4. Sudden tears
5. Trouble sleeping through the night (with or without night sweats)
6. Irregular periods; shorter, lighter periods; heavier periods, flooding; phantom periods, shorter cycles, longer cycles
7. Loss of libido
8. Dry vagina
9. Crashing fatigue MORE INFO
10. Anxiety, feeling ill at ease
11. Feelings of dread, apprehension, doom
12.Difficulty concentrating, disorientation, mental confusion
13. Disturbing memory lapses
14.Incontinence, especially upon sneezing, laughing; urge incontinence
15. Itchy, crawly skin
16. Aching, sore joints, muscles and tendons
17. Increased tension in muscles
18. Breast tenderness
19. Headache change: increase or decrease
20. Gastrointestinal distress, indigestion, flatulence, gas pain, nausea
21. Sudden bouts of bloat
22. Depression
23. Exacerbation of existing conditions
24. Increase in allergies
25. Weight gain
26.Hair loss or thinning, head, pubic, or whole body; increase in facial hair
27. Dizziness, light-headedness, episodes of loss of balance
28. Changes in body odor
29. Electric shock sensation under the skin and in the head
30. Tingling in the extremities
31. Gum problems, increased bleeding
32. Burning tongue, burning roof of mouth, bad taste in mouth, change in breath odor
33. Osteoporosis -- MORE INFO
34. Changes in fingernails: softer, crack or break easier
35. Tinnitus: ringing in ears, bells, 'whooshing' buzzing etc.

Menopause, Is It Really YOU...?

Why GOD Invented Menopause.

GOODBYE PLUTO!

2006-08-24T13:22:00.003-04:00

For how many years have we, and our children, been taught of the solar system and it's 9 planets?
Well ALL science books will need to be re-written since now we are only recognizing 8 planets.
So our 9th planet has been rejected, and what about Walt Disney's famous dog named Pluto? Will he be taken out of orbit too?(lol) After all, he was named after our "last" planet in our solar system.
If Pluto where to land here, on our planet, it could fit nicely into the USA, since it is smaller. HEY maybe a few hundred years down the road we Amnericans will become PLUTONIANS, (he he he...)
Who knows, we may soon find yet another "unknown" celestial body, bringing it back to 9, and even 10 or 11 or 12..... etc.

ALL ABOUT PLUTO

*Pluto's day:
6.4 Earth days.

*Pluto's year:
248 Earth years.

*Average distance from sun:
3.7 billion miles, or 5.9 billion kilometers.

*What's in a name?
Pluto is also the name of the Roman god of the underworld.
It was suggested by many people, but credit was given to an 11-year-old girl from England.

Giving Pluto The Boot:
PRAGUE, Czech Republic (Aug. 24)
Leading astronomers declared Thursday that Pluto is no longer a planet under historic new guidelines that downsize the solar system from nine planets to eight.

The decision by the prestigious international group spells out the basic tests that celestial objects will have to meet before they can be considered for admission to the elite cosmic club.

For now, membership will be restricted to the eight "classical" planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
Much-maligned Pluto doesn't make the grade under the new rules for a planet: "a celestial body that is in orbit around the sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a ... nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit."
Pluto is automatically disqualified because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune's.

Instead, it will be reclassified in a new category of "dwarf planets," similar to what long have been termed "minor planets." The definition also lays out a third class of lesser objects that orbit the sun -- "small solar system bodies," a term that will apply to numerous asteroids, comets and other natural satellites.

Say "Yes" to Cilantro

2006-04-06T08:39:00.000-04:00

     Adding chopped cilantro to your salsa could help keep illness-causing bacteria to a minimum.
     Cilantro contains antibacterial compounds that may help inhibit Salmonella choleraesuis, a common culprit in food poisoning.
     The best safeguards against food-borne illness are still frequent hand washing and safe food handling practices.
     However, serving meals with a side of cilantro-seasoned salsa may be both a nutritious and protective bonus.

Dissed Soda?

2006-03-22T08:39:00.001-05:00

NEWS + TRENDS (health)
Liquid Candy Gets "Dissed"
By Amy Paturel, M.S., M.P.H.

Soda sales are down for the first time in 20 years in the United States. Given soda's reputation as the Darth Vader of drinks, a sales slump is good news according to American nutritionists.

"Soda, whether regular or diet, offers no health benefit besides the water it contains," says Milton Stokes, M.P.H., R.D., of the American Dietetic Association. In fact, the nation’s leading nutrition researchers recently issued guidelines urging Americans to cut back on soda, while allowing up to 40 ounces of coffee and tea per day -- and a little room for alcohol, too.

So, if you're a die-hard Diet Coke fan, what's the best thirst-quenching alternative? Here's a look at some options:

Alcohol:
That's right. Alcohol may help slow the absorption of food and keep blood sugar levels in check (pasta with Chianti anyone?) And research shows that moderate drinking (one drink per day for women and two for men) may increase circulating leptin, a natural hormone that curbs the appetite for sweets. The drawback: Alcohol can lower inhibitions -- potentially zapping your ability to resist caloric temptations.

Water:
Can’t get jazzed about the plain stuff? Try seltzer. It provides pizzazz without the calories. Or add orange slices or strawberries to a pitcher of water for a fruity, refreshing flavor.

Milk:
Skim or low fat, milk is quite possibly the most nutrient dense beverage available, says Stokes. "With nine essential nutrients, it’s a true powerhouse. And there’s emerging research suggesting that calcium from dairy may promote weight loss."

Coffee:
America’s no. 1 source of antioxidants, coffee is linked with a reduced risk of several chronic diseases. Just be careful not to sabotage your diet by pouring in tons of sugar and cream.

Tea:
Research shows that green tea may promote weight loss. "It's not the answer to obesity, but it’s a healthful addition to your diet," says Stokes. Don't bother with green tea supplements though. Just drink the actual tea. And if you use mint tea to placate your sweet tooth, you may be able to skip dessert.

Some soda substitutes are better left on the shelf altogether:
Vitamin Waters:
"Skip ‘em," says Stokes. "You’re better off buying a multi-vitamin/mineral supplement and drinking plain water."

Energy Drinks:
These concoctions are for endurance athletes, not the average American working out to lose weight.
In fact, some energy drinks have as many calories and sugar grams as soda, and a hefty dose of caffeine, too.

Cup 'O Java, Anyone?

2006-01-18T23:02:00.001-05:00

Caffeine May Boost Female Sex Drive
By LiveScience Staff

Caffeine motivates female rats to have more frequent sex, a new study suggests. But don't start guzzling more coffee just yet.

Scientists gave 108 female rats a moderate dose of caffeine. The caffeine shortened the amount of time it took the females to return to males after a first romp, indicating they were more motivated to do it again.

Loading up on more caffeine is not expected to improve human sex drive in most cases, however.

"These rats had never had caffeine before," said study leader Fay Guarraci, an assistant professor of psychology at Southwestern University. "In humans, it might enhance the sexual experience only among people who are not habitual users."

The research could help scientists better understand sexual motivation, however.

"Understanding the circuits that control this behavior will help us understand how the brain works and what part of the brain mediates motivation because sexual behavior is a motivative behavior," Guarraci said.

Senior Citizens - Mortgages - Expense

2006-01-11T09:04:00.001-05:00

Is a reverse mortgage something to celebrate?

"The National Council on the Aging wants us to observe this week as "National Aging in Place Week." It's a public relations gimmick, of course, organized by the reverse mortgage lending industry, which provides financial support for the nonpartisan council.

But they raise a legitimate issue, for if you're an older American homeowner of modest means, it's getting tougher to remain in your home. And "aging in place" - staying in the home you've paid for or the retirement condo you've moved into - has become a mantra for older Americans determined to avoid a nursing home.

The squeeze on the middle-class homeowner is getting tighter. Next year's 4.1 percent Social Security cost- of-living raise won't keep up with the soaring costs of home heating fuel, gasoline and health care. And with Medicare charging higher fees and facing competition from private insurance in the new drug bill, our only national health insurance program for the disabled and elderly is becoming unaffordable.

As a result, the council on the aging NCOA is leading a campaign to popularize something I've been pushing for years: using the equity in your home to help keep you in your home with an FHA-guaranteed reverse mortgage. To that end, the council has published a couple of well-written booklets on how to "Use Your Home to Stay at Home." They can be downloaded from http://www., or ordered from NCOA, 300 D St. SW, Suite 801, Washington, D.C. 20024.

"Many seniors and their families are looking for creative ways to pay for the assistance they need, so they can stay in their own homes and remain independent for as long as possible," said James Firman, who runs the council. Yet their greatest asset, their home equity, remains idle.

One survey by the council found that more than 13 million older Americans could use a reverse mortgage to help pay for long-term care at home. But few have applied.

Members of Congress and several governors, eager to save Medicaid money, have been considering incentives to encourage the use of reverse mortgages. A crackdown on the use of Medicaid to pay for long-term care is almost inevitable.

For those who don't know, a reverse mortgage is a loan against the equity in your home or condo (no co-ops) for persons 62 and older. The proceeds, which are tax-free, may be taken as a lump-sum, a line of credit or in periodic payments, and may be used for any purpose. The home remains in your name, and the unused portion of the loan will continue to grow with interest.

One type of reverse mortgage, called the "Cash Account," is sold by Financial Freedom, the nation's largest lender of reverse mortgages. The "Homekeeper," is sold by Fannie Mae. But the best and the most popular is the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, or HECM, sold and guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

How much you'll get depends on where you live and your age. To find out what your home or condo would bring from the various lenders, use the calculator at www.reversemortgage. org, the Web site of the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association, or www.financialfreedom.com. Or go HUD's site: http://www.hud.gov/groups/seniors.cfm and click on reverse mortgages.

Despite the increase in reverse mortgages (500 percent since 2001), there were only about 43,000 HECM loans throughout the country this fiscal year, including 4,000 in Los Angeles but only 1,400 in New York. Last year, the loan limit for a HECM was raised to $312,896 in metropolitan areas, and $172,632 in rural areas. The loan limit for a Homekeeper is $359,650.

The typical borrower no longer is a 76-year-old widow in need of help with her daily living expenses. While the average borrower is in his/her 70s, increasingly, couples and younger homeowners are making their equity work for them to enhance their retirement years.

The proceeds of a reverse mortgage can be used for a dream trip, or it may be invested or help eliminate payments on existing debts.

While reverse mortgages can be a great help, they have their downside, as NCOA the council points out. Closing costs could amount to more than 5 percent of the value of your home. Although the costs can be financed as part of the loan, you'll lose money unless you remain in the home for at least five years.

Also, even if the interest rates are favorable, interest will add up over the life of the loan.

Although the closing costs and the interest are paid at the end of the loan, the accrued interest plus what equity is used by the borrower means the value of the home to be left to heirs will be sharply reduced. Indeed, the heirs will be left with a heavy debt, should they wish to keep or sell the home.

But, as HUD says on its Web site, the government guarantee of a HECM means "you do not need to repay the loan as long as you or one of the borrowers continues to live in the house and keeps the taxes and insurance current. You can never owe more than your home's value." And the government guarantee protects the lender if the home's value declines below the value of the loan.

A reverse mortgage is a big, complicated step. But as reverse mortgage expert Dennis Haber of Hicksville, N.Y. points out, the HECM requires you to have counseling from a HUD-approved agency, so you know what you're getting into. Also, it's free.

To find the nearest counselor, call 1-800-569-4287."

©2006-Newsday,Inc.- Saul Friedman - Melville, N.Y.

Hurricane Katrina

2005-09-02T12:17:00.002-04:00

Hurricane Katrina
( aug 2005 )

Among the messages and essays circulating in cyberspace that lament the lost lives and missed opportunities is one by Mark Naison, a white professor of African-American Studies at Fordham University in the Bronx.

"Is this what the pioneers of the civil rights movement fought to achieve, a society where many black people are as trapped and isolated by their poverty as they were by segregation laws?" Mr. Naison wrote. "If Sept. 11 showed the power of a nation united in response to a devastating attack, Hurricane Katrina reveals the fault lines of a region and a nation, rent by profound social divisions."

That sentiment was shared by members of other minority groups who understand the bizarre equality of poverty.

"We tend to think of natural disasters as somehow even-handed, as somehow random," said Martín Espada, an English professor at the University of Massachusetts and poet of a decidedly leftist political bent who is Puerto Rican. "Yet it has always been thus: poor people are in danger. That is what it means to be poor. It's dangerous to be poor. It's dangerous to be black. It's dangerous to be Latino."

Just Some Thoughts On The Tragedy...

FUN FAQs & LESSONS

2005-06-04T14:57:00.001-04:00

GREAT TRUTHS THAT LITTLE CHILDREN HAVE LEARNED:

1) No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats.
2) When your Mom is mad at your Dad, don't let her brush your hair.
3) If your sister hits you, don't hit her back. They always catch the second person.
4) Never ask your 3-year old brother to hold a tomato.
5) You can't trust dogs to watch your food.
6) Don't sneeze when someone is cutting your hair.
7) Never hold a Dust-Buster and a cat at the same time.
8) You can't hide a piece of broccoli in a glass of milk.
9) Don't wear polka-dot underwear under white shorts.
10) The best place to be when you're sad is Grandpa's lap.

GREAT TRUTHS THAT ADULTS HAVE LEARNED:

1) Raising teenagers is like nailing jelly to a tree.
2) Wrinkles don't hurt.
3) Families are like fudge...mostly sweet, with a few nuts.
4) Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.
5) Laughing is good exercise. It's like jogging on the inside.
6) Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy.

GREAT TRUTHS ABOUT GROWING OLD

1) Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
2) Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.
3) When you fall down, you wonder what else you can do while you're down there.
4) You're getting old when you get the same sensation from a rocking chair that you once got from a roller coaster.
5) It's frustrating when you know all the answers but nobody bothers to ask you the questions.
6) Time may be a great healer, but it's a lousy beautician.
7) Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone.

THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE:

1) You believe in Santa Claus.
2) You don't believe in Santa Claus.
3) You are Santa Claus.
4) You look like Santa Claus.

SUCCESS:

At age 4 success is...not piddling in your pants.
At age 12 success is ... having friends.
At age 17 success is ... having a drivers license.
At age 35 success is . . . having money.
At age 50 success is . . . having money.
At age 70 success is . . . having a drivers license.
At age 75 success is . . . having friends.
At age 80 success is . . . not piddling in your pants.

Always remember to forget the troubles that pass your way;
BUT NEVER forget the blessings that come each day.

Daylight Savings Time

2005-03-31T19:41:00.001-05:00

Remember to spring forward and set your clocks ahead one hour at 2AM this Sunday. The time change gives us an extra hour of daylight; it originated during wartime as a way to get people to use less electricity.

FYI:

Arizona and Hawaii and the territories of Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands and American Samoa are the only places in the U.S. that do not observe DST but instead stay on "standard time" all year long.
And if you've spent any time in the sweltering summer sun in those regions you can understand why residents don't need another hour of sunlight.

Word Whimsies

2005-03-09T08:26:00.001-05:00

Confusing English Words?

forgiving ( adjective ) = willing or able to forgive...
forgiven ( verb ) = Has been forgiven- released from err or wrong doing...
given ( adjective ) = presented as a gift : bestowed without compensation...
giving ( verb ) = to care to the extent of: to give of oneself: unselfish act of sharing...

red (noun) =A Color- Normal Blood Color
read (adjective) =Past Tense- Of reading (pronounced like the color "red")
read (noun) =the action or an instance of reading - The action of reading
read (verb) =To interpret- Understand- to learn the nature of -

And There are So Many Others..
Can you spell fish "phisch"?
Road or Rode?
bite - byte?
OH MY!!

True Tidbit

2005-03-08T11:52:00.001-05:00

FAQ:
A ten year old mattress weighs double what it did when it was new, because of the (ahem) debris which is absorbed through the years.
That debris includes dust mites (their droppings and their decaying bodies), mold, millions of dead skin cells, dandruff, animal and human hair, secretions, excretions, lint, pollen, dust, soil, sand and a lot of perspiration, of which the average person loses a quart per day.
YIKES!!! Good night?

FYI - HIV - STDs

2005-03-04T05:29:00.001-05:00

Young Americans living with HIV are worse off -- and having much more risky sex -- since powerful AIDS drugs came along.
You might think that the drugs, known as highly active antiretroviral therapy or HAART, would make life better for HIV-infected youths. You might think that when teens learn they have the AIDS virus, they would be more careful about unsafe sex and substance abuse. But you would be wrong.
Those that have taken the "HAART" drug are having more unprotective sex, using drugs, are more emotionally distress, and are living a "lower" quality of life.
Youths (before-HAART therapy} averaged 5-6 sex partners, having unprotected sex 27% of the time.After HAART became available, numbers changed, they had more than 10 sex partners and unprotected sex 42% of the time. They also were twice as likely to have sex with an (injection) drug user.
Don't any of them learn- or fear this deadly disease? Are We "leaving it" to stronger drugs to save us? As If That Where The Solution!
This Is Not A Way To live!

** American Journal of Health Behavior-February Issue
UCLA researcher Marguerita Lightfoot, PhD, and colleagues.
Info Based On 13 to 24 year olds living with HIV from:
Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, and Miami.

Just 13 ... and With Aids!? That Is Scarey!

You already know about the birds and the bees.
But what about the snakes in the trees?
Know your STDs?

Concerns about AIDS in recent years have overshadowed other Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) that also have serious health consequences, including sterility, cancer or death.
Some STDs can even make you more prone to the AIDS virus.
Learn how to safeguard your health and recognize signs of an STD.
http://www.thehealthpages.com/articles/ar-stds.html
READ ABOUT IT

Vive Le Sex

2005-03-01T21:48:00.001-05:00

"Libido Meter" May Be First True Sexual-Arousal Gauge
Israeli scientists have developed a test that they say can measure brain waves to objectively determine the level of a person's sexual desire.

A Measure of Health
Keeping track of sexual desire may be a more serious health issue than many people realize. Sex contributes to the overall physical and mental health of a person, researchers say.

"I think having frequent, satisfying sex keeps the hormone levels up and keeps us young, both physically and mentally," said Barbara Bartlik, a psychiatry professor at Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York State.

In describing how sex helps, scientists are looking at three neurotransmitters released in the brain during sex:

Oxytocin: Promotes emotional bonding. "It is probably oxytocin that helps to explain the benefits of sexual experience," said Sue Carter, a researcher at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "This hormone influences the parasympathetic nervous system, which regulates and can reduce heart rate and blood pressure."

Endorphins Provide natural relief from the pain of arthritis, injury, and even migraines. Endorphins also boost the immune system by dampening the harmful hormones that stress stimulates.

Serotonin Contributes to the feeling of pleasure, satiety, and relaxation that people usually experience after good sex.

"Take all of that together, and its easy to see how pervasive sexual pleasure is to our well-being," said Jim Pfaus, a behavioral neuroscientist at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.

Well...
"Vive Le Sex"!

Crazy Climate??

2005-02-22T18:52:00.002-05:00

THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW....
We all have seen/heard the movie- now of course it is a bit exaggerated (is it?)
Looking at the way things are going on our planet ...it is possible.
It may not come as "quickly" (as in the movie)- but it is happening!
Research:
Continued global warming could have many damaging effects. It might harm plants and animals that live in the sea. It could also force animals and plants on land to move to new habitats. Weather patterns could change, causing flooding, drought, and an increase in damaging storms. Global warming could melt enough polar ice to raise the sea level. In certain parts of the world, human disease could spread, and crop yields could decline.

The impact of global warming
Harm to ocean life
It Kills Our Coral reefs/ spreads diseases affecting sea creatures.
Changes of habitat.
Widespread shifts might occur in the natural habitats of animals and plants
Many species would have difficulty surviving in the regions they now inhabit.
Weather damage.
rainfall patterns could increase-flooding and drought in some areas. More hurricanes/ tropical storms might occur, and they could become more powerful.
Rising sea level.
melting of ice (a vast sheets covering most of Antarctica) Results: sea level would rise - coastal areas would experience: flooding/erosion/loss of wetlands/entry of seawater into freshwater / submerging some coastal cities/small island/nations, and other inhabited regions.
Threats to human health.
Tropical diseases, ie:malaria /dengue, spread to larger regions. Intense heat waves causing more deaths and illnesses. Floods/droughts increasing hunger and malnutrition.
Changes in crop yields.
floods/hurricanes- washing away crops - high temps in tropics- where plant cannot tolerate the heat and die.. etc etc
---------------------------------------------------------

Qori Kalis (glacier-Andes Mountains-Peru )
melted substantially - 1983 and 2000 (17 yrs).
This melting provides a clear sign of global warming.

Technology/Progress - Has a Price...
but should it be this high?

I BELIEVE...

2005-01-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

I believe-
that two people
can look at the exact same thing
and see something totally different.

I believe-
that even when you think
you have no more to give,
when a friend cries out to you,
you will find the strength to help.

I believe-
that when you think you've reached
your end of the road-
a new crossroad appears before you-
offering a path to more possibilities.

I believe-
You should think before you speak-
'cause, sticks and stones
can break your bones...
but some spoken words-
can really harm thee.

I believe-
That confession and true forgiveness
is a private matter kept within oneself...
And if made public-
for self-righteous reasons,it only belittles,
and "nulls" the act in itself.

I believe-
That "those" that Go Around
"speading untrue-beliefs/stories"
will Have to answer to a "higher authority"...
One that does not discriminate-
nor pass judgment..
but will be be just in giving back
"just deserved" for your actions.

I believe-
That Only God can mark a person-
mortals just mark themselves.

I beleive-
that whatever you do in life-
weather be right or wrong-
you'll see the day that you pay for it-
before darkness takes over your life.

I believe-
that credentials on the wall
do not make you a decent human being.
Only shows, that You are Vein!