Artificial Limbs
I think this idea, of the possibility of controlling artificial limbs by thought alone, is wonderful. my caveat is much like what i wrote in the following post, that i have some serious concerns about other applications for this technology. but as far as using this technology to help people who need artificial limbs have better control and ease of movement and function in the world, i think that is a great thing. also, i think it's a pretty cool concept, at least when applied to this purpose, that it's even possible for our thoughts/brainwaves to be connected to a piece of technology and exert control. when used for such trivial purposes as video games, it seems really inane and wasteful and lazy to me, but in this instance, i find it refreshing for such technology to be used to improve the quality of life of people who really need it.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Monday, August 4, 2008
Week 13
"Bionic" People
I find this idea rather frightening. i would decidedly not support the development of a bionic person. the possible applications of this which i feel could harm humanity far outweigh any benefits for scientific inquiry and technological development. in general, i find myself wary of technology for technology's sake, and in this case, especially so. i do understand human curiosity, and therefore get why scientists would want to forge ahead with any possible developments on this front, but i don't think that we should. aside from the possible uses as weapons, spy equipment, etc, other potential uses for a bionic person would seem to me to serve primarily to take us further away from our humanity, from our connection to the earth and to cycles of life. these are among the things that i value most about being human, and i think that as a species, we need to be moving back towards these connections, not further away. so no bionic people, please.
I find this idea rather frightening. i would decidedly not support the development of a bionic person. the possible applications of this which i feel could harm humanity far outweigh any benefits for scientific inquiry and technological development. in general, i find myself wary of technology for technology's sake, and in this case, especially so. i do understand human curiosity, and therefore get why scientists would want to forge ahead with any possible developments on this front, but i don't think that we should. aside from the possible uses as weapons, spy equipment, etc, other potential uses for a bionic person would seem to me to serve primarily to take us further away from our humanity, from our connection to the earth and to cycles of life. these are among the things that i value most about being human, and i think that as a species, we need to be moving back towards these connections, not further away. so no bionic people, please.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Week 11
Acupuncture As Effective Energy Medicine
I would say that yes, acupuncture is very much so effective medicine. i trust in it's effectiveness to treat a multitude of ailments, illnesses, dis-eases, emotional imbalances, etc. i feel comfortable considering acupuncture to be energy medicine in that a primary focus of acupuncture is chi, which we also refer to as energy. so acupuncture works on an energetic level, moving and rebalancing our bodies' chi. but i also think that acupuncture is more than energy medicine, as it does work on a physical level as well. the needles are physically inserted, many patients will physically ingest herbs, and other techniques sometimes used in acupuncture, like cupping, also have physical components as well. so i would say that while i do agree that acupuncture is effective energy medicine, i would also say that it is effective medicine in general.
Kirlian Photography
I think that many different conclusion can be drawn from Kirlian photography, depending upon who you ask. personally, though i am looking forward to thursday's field trip and seeing what my aura looks like photographed, i am wary to say that i would draw any conclusions from it. i would probably find it interesting, and perhaps useful, and feel very open to hearing any additional information that the owner is available to share with me, be i don't know about conclusions. i do believe in the theory of kirlian photography, and am open to experiencing it for myself. so for right now, i, personally, draw no conclusions. perhaps this will change on thursday.
Human Intent As It Affects Health
I believe that intent can indeed play a significant role in health. prayer, meditation, visualizations, mantras, affirmations- i believe that all of these can have a positive impact on health, all of which do involve some form of clear and/or focused intention. cancers have and will continue to be healed by the power of believing alone, which could manifest many different ways. conversely, a patient may receive state of the art treatment, and make no improvements, perhaps because they don't believe that they will, or have a very impactful unhealed emotional wound around that part of their body. i believe that oftentimes it is some combination of intent and actual care, but i really think that if our intention is not clear, and we do not look at the emotional components of dis-ease, that long-term healing is unlikely to take place until we do. i also believe that the intention of the practioner has an impact as well, though i do believe each of us is fully responsible for our own healing. a healer's intention can further or hinder one's own intention of healing. in so many areas of life, i think that intention is powerful.
I would say that yes, acupuncture is very much so effective medicine. i trust in it's effectiveness to treat a multitude of ailments, illnesses, dis-eases, emotional imbalances, etc. i feel comfortable considering acupuncture to be energy medicine in that a primary focus of acupuncture is chi, which we also refer to as energy. so acupuncture works on an energetic level, moving and rebalancing our bodies' chi. but i also think that acupuncture is more than energy medicine, as it does work on a physical level as well. the needles are physically inserted, many patients will physically ingest herbs, and other techniques sometimes used in acupuncture, like cupping, also have physical components as well. so i would say that while i do agree that acupuncture is effective energy medicine, i would also say that it is effective medicine in general.
Kirlian Photography
I think that many different conclusion can be drawn from Kirlian photography, depending upon who you ask. personally, though i am looking forward to thursday's field trip and seeing what my aura looks like photographed, i am wary to say that i would draw any conclusions from it. i would probably find it interesting, and perhaps useful, and feel very open to hearing any additional information that the owner is available to share with me, be i don't know about conclusions. i do believe in the theory of kirlian photography, and am open to experiencing it for myself. so for right now, i, personally, draw no conclusions. perhaps this will change on thursday.
Human Intent As It Affects Health
I believe that intent can indeed play a significant role in health. prayer, meditation, visualizations, mantras, affirmations- i believe that all of these can have a positive impact on health, all of which do involve some form of clear and/or focused intention. cancers have and will continue to be healed by the power of believing alone, which could manifest many different ways. conversely, a patient may receive state of the art treatment, and make no improvements, perhaps because they don't believe that they will, or have a very impactful unhealed emotional wound around that part of their body. i believe that oftentimes it is some combination of intent and actual care, but i really think that if our intention is not clear, and we do not look at the emotional components of dis-ease, that long-term healing is unlikely to take place until we do. i also believe that the intention of the practioner has an impact as well, though i do believe each of us is fully responsible for our own healing. a healer's intention can further or hinder one's own intention of healing. in so many areas of life, i think that intention is powerful.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Week 10
I know I'm a living system because...
what else would i be? it seems really obvious and simple to me that human beings would be considered living systems. we are alive, we breathe, thus actively participating in the carbon cycle, we reproduce, and we are infinitely complex. on a personal level, i very much feel like a living system, whatever exactly that would feel like on a sensory level. what i mean is that my whole being feels alive, down to every last cell, and my mind, and my spirit, and my soul. i couldn't even fathom being considered any other way. when i sometimes hear people refer to themselves and/or their bodies as machines, my whole being rebels, and, even though i know people are speaking metaphorically, i believe that it is the furthest thing from the truth for my living being.
Biophysics and Oriental Medicine
i can definitely see these fields as connected. as biophysics itself is rather interdisciplinary in nature, it shouldn't seem a stretch at all to link it to oriental medicine. and because of the ways in which biophysics is interdisciplinary, i can also see it serving as a bridge in the scientific community with oriental medicine, perhaps even making the latter more accessible to the general public. in particular, its study of bioenergetics, biomechanics, channel biology, and biomolecular free energy seem particularly relevant and connected to oriental medicine. but mostly, i just think that they are largely connected by their natures- oriental medicine is very complex, in-depth, and interdisciplinary, as well as something of a cross-over, in that people are now interested in having it reach a large diversity of the population. i think a similar thing can be said of biophysics.
what else would i be? it seems really obvious and simple to me that human beings would be considered living systems. we are alive, we breathe, thus actively participating in the carbon cycle, we reproduce, and we are infinitely complex. on a personal level, i very much feel like a living system, whatever exactly that would feel like on a sensory level. what i mean is that my whole being feels alive, down to every last cell, and my mind, and my spirit, and my soul. i couldn't even fathom being considered any other way. when i sometimes hear people refer to themselves and/or their bodies as machines, my whole being rebels, and, even though i know people are speaking metaphorically, i believe that it is the furthest thing from the truth for my living being.
Biophysics and Oriental Medicine
i can definitely see these fields as connected. as biophysics itself is rather interdisciplinary in nature, it shouldn't seem a stretch at all to link it to oriental medicine. and because of the ways in which biophysics is interdisciplinary, i can also see it serving as a bridge in the scientific community with oriental medicine, perhaps even making the latter more accessible to the general public. in particular, its study of bioenergetics, biomechanics, channel biology, and biomolecular free energy seem particularly relevant and connected to oriental medicine. but mostly, i just think that they are largely connected by their natures- oriental medicine is very complex, in-depth, and interdisciplinary, as well as something of a cross-over, in that people are now interested in having it reach a large diversity of the population. i think a similar thing can be said of biophysics.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Week 9
My E-Prime Day
i believe that i awoke this morning at approximately 8am. i think i stayed in what i consider to be my bed for maybe 30 more minutes, trying to remember what i believe to be my dreams from the night before. when i recalled what i thought were my dreams, i attempted to interpret what i believed they possibly could have meant to me. i'm pretty sure i then pulled a tarot card in order to gain some additional insights into a possible theme or focus for what i consider to be my day. in my eyes, the card registered as the 8 of cups, which i think can be interpreted as somewhat out of balance emotions. i then remember sighing, and then recall creating what i thought to be the intention of integration and balance for what i believe to be my day.
that was actually pretty fun, and not as hard as i thought it may be, assuming of course that i "did it right". anyway, it was an interesting exercise, at least how i perceived it!
Synthesizing East and West
i do believe that this is possible. i take the assignment to mean do i think that i can synthesize east and west either within myself or within my life, rather than do i think that our culture can synthesize them. the latter i see as more of a challenge, but i truly do believe that the former is not only possible, but is very real in most of our lives. i see aimc as such a synthesis. i think that for most people, practicing chinese medicine in this country will necessarily be a synthesis, as we live in the epitome of the west. bringing an eastern system of medicine to the east will involve some level of affect for both, and i believe that the level is what may differ from practioner to practioner, also possibly dependent upon the environment and culture where one lives. in the bay area, for example, i think that it may be easier to organically synthesize and blend the best of both worlds of chinese medicine and facets of western culture and experience. whereas practicing chinese medicine in a less open minded and hearted environment may involve a dominating of the western influence, with the eastern going a bit more underground.
in my life, i attempt to balance eastern and western thought and influence within myself, and feel like i can hold the duality or seeming paradox without much effort or distress. i appreciate blending and merging and the opportunity to pull the best or most useful parts of each system and leave the rest. i believe there's something very powerful about acknowledging the beauty and gifts of both systems and schools of thought.
i believe that i awoke this morning at approximately 8am. i think i stayed in what i consider to be my bed for maybe 30 more minutes, trying to remember what i believe to be my dreams from the night before. when i recalled what i thought were my dreams, i attempted to interpret what i believed they possibly could have meant to me. i'm pretty sure i then pulled a tarot card in order to gain some additional insights into a possible theme or focus for what i consider to be my day. in my eyes, the card registered as the 8 of cups, which i think can be interpreted as somewhat out of balance emotions. i then remember sighing, and then recall creating what i thought to be the intention of integration and balance for what i believe to be my day.
that was actually pretty fun, and not as hard as i thought it may be, assuming of course that i "did it right". anyway, it was an interesting exercise, at least how i perceived it!
Synthesizing East and West
i do believe that this is possible. i take the assignment to mean do i think that i can synthesize east and west either within myself or within my life, rather than do i think that our culture can synthesize them. the latter i see as more of a challenge, but i truly do believe that the former is not only possible, but is very real in most of our lives. i see aimc as such a synthesis. i think that for most people, practicing chinese medicine in this country will necessarily be a synthesis, as we live in the epitome of the west. bringing an eastern system of medicine to the east will involve some level of affect for both, and i believe that the level is what may differ from practioner to practioner, also possibly dependent upon the environment and culture where one lives. in the bay area, for example, i think that it may be easier to organically synthesize and blend the best of both worlds of chinese medicine and facets of western culture and experience. whereas practicing chinese medicine in a less open minded and hearted environment may involve a dominating of the western influence, with the eastern going a bit more underground.
in my life, i attempt to balance eastern and western thought and influence within myself, and feel like i can hold the duality or seeming paradox without much effort or distress. i appreciate blending and merging and the opportunity to pull the best or most useful parts of each system and leave the rest. i believe there's something very powerful about acknowledging the beauty and gifts of both systems and schools of thought.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Week 8
Newton's 3 Law's & Me
I am really appreciating that we learned about classical physics around the midway point of this class. i found it very helpful to have a more conceptual foundation of physics- this not only helped keep me interested and engaged, but also made physics accessible to me. i think it is possible that if we started right off with thermodynamics and Newton's laws, etc, that it may have felt harder to jump right in, or even keep afloat, for that matter. so thanks, larry!
that being said, i do apprecciate Newton's laws. there's something very solid about them. i find that they provide a very useful framework for how motion works, and for how to think about motion in a new, interesting and applicable way. i would not, however, daresay that i believed these laws to be absolutely absolute; my worldview has space for the occasional exception.
Our "Energy Effecient" Culture
I am really appreciating that we learned about classical physics around the midway point of this class. i found it very helpful to have a more conceptual foundation of physics- this not only helped keep me interested and engaged, but also made physics accessible to me. i think it is possible that if we started right off with thermodynamics and Newton's laws, etc, that it may have felt harder to jump right in, or even keep afloat, for that matter. so thanks, larry!
that being said, i do apprecciate Newton's laws. there's something very solid about them. i find that they provide a very useful framework for how motion works, and for how to think about motion in a new, interesting and applicable way. i would not, however, daresay that i believed these laws to be absolutely absolute; my worldview has space for the occasional exception.
Our "Energy Effecient" Culture
Energy can neither be created nor destroyed- it can only change forms. this one is a little tricky for me to wrap my brain around. why can't it be created or destroyed- or at least just destroyed? wasn't it created at one point anyway? or does the big bang theory still have the energy just changing form? i understand in theory the piece about energy changing forms, but remain unclear about why there is necessarily a finite quantity of energy in the entire universe, or perhaps just on earth. in the past when i've heard this law, my mind has followed the thread of our humanness as energy, in relation to reincarnation. if energy can neither be created nor destroyed, and our souls our energy, then they must just change forms after they leave our bodies. when thought of in that capacity, it definitely makes sense to me, and it's also very intriguing. i find pondering about what happens to our souls/spirits/energy/humanness after we die to be profoundly fascinating. in that way, our human culture is very energy efficient indeed.
Descartes
this guy had some interesting theories. interesting as in well-intentioned, but definitely missing the mark. i find it amazing that his mechanistic theories survived for so long, but i'm glad that they were ultimately replaced. it seems that as a culture we are still struggling to get over viewing the universe as dead, and separating ourselves from nature. did descartes originate these ideas and christianity adopted them into its tenets, or vice versa? christianity has definitely been a major contributor to the spreading of these ideas, whichever way they originated. it's pretty amazing in a disturbing way that we are still trying to undo one man's ideas from several hundred years ago. i am practicing trusting that on at least some level, this was a stage that was necessary for humanity's growth and development as a species. i'm glad to not be living in those times right now, though.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Week 7
"Ordered Chaos"
I like this concept. it makes a great deal of sense to me, and feels like it's in alignment with my overall worldview. i see examples of ordered chaos throughout the universe, down to experiences in my own life. what i like about it is that chaos doesn't have to mean randomness or complete arbitrariness, if that's even a word, but rather it leaves room for things about the universe, and about ourselves, that we cannot necessarily explain. maybe it is completely random, but maybe it's part of a much larger pattern that we aren't yet able to comprehend. and as virgo, i am very much a fan of order. so i appreciate the coexistence of these two seemingly contradictory concepts: order and chaos. i find this to be both comforting to me on a human level, and also very beautiful and perfect on a more spiritual level.
Fractals
I like fractals too. i think they are absolutely beautiful and a reminder that the universe is far more complex, ordered, intelligent and profound than i am generally present to. i think they are very much patterns of complex systems. complex systems existing in the universe, as well as complex theory and phenomenon in physics and mathematics, as time gets added into the mix.
i find fractals to be both simple and complex at the same time, as well as embodying the paradoxical concept of ordered chaos. also, just looking/gazing at fractals i believe helps us access other parts of our brains/consciousness that are not perhaps our dominant ones. i find them to be a powerful meditation tool, as well as microcosms of systems in the universe as well as within our bodies. go fractals!
Consciousness out of chaos?
i'm not so sure about this one. i'm not opposed to the idea of consciousness as the electromagnetic field outside of our brains-in fact this kind of makes sense to me. however, the part about this field being the result of chaotically fired neurons seems like a big leap. or irrelevant. i think our consciousness is alive in every way, and not random or chaotic. i'm far less interested in the neurons firing in our brains than i am in how all of our human consciousness is connected, and from where in the universe does it originate. i am actually uncomfortable with limiting consciousness, which to me is divine, to the realm of neurons and brain chemistry. i believe that it is so much more than that, so much more than the sum of its neurological parts.
the cat experiment
okay, so i didn't actually use my cat. i did consider it for a minute, before realizing that my cat, schizandra, would not subject herself to being dragged around the carpet for one second. there would be scratches to show for it. but, from reading about the intention and results of the experiment, which involves static and sparks in the dark, i recalled one such experience that occurred, without any animals being harmed in the process :)
i have an older model sleeping bag that has a very soft fleece-like lining which also happens to be black. i've had the experience many times while camping with this bag while wearing my thick wool socks of sparks emanating from the bag when i moved my feet around. i found it a bit disconcerting the first time this happened, but since then have come to enjoy the sparks out in the desert or woods. just some electrons moving around!
I like this concept. it makes a great deal of sense to me, and feels like it's in alignment with my overall worldview. i see examples of ordered chaos throughout the universe, down to experiences in my own life. what i like about it is that chaos doesn't have to mean randomness or complete arbitrariness, if that's even a word, but rather it leaves room for things about the universe, and about ourselves, that we cannot necessarily explain. maybe it is completely random, but maybe it's part of a much larger pattern that we aren't yet able to comprehend. and as virgo, i am very much a fan of order. so i appreciate the coexistence of these two seemingly contradictory concepts: order and chaos. i find this to be both comforting to me on a human level, and also very beautiful and perfect on a more spiritual level.
Fractals
I like fractals too. i think they are absolutely beautiful and a reminder that the universe is far more complex, ordered, intelligent and profound than i am generally present to. i think they are very much patterns of complex systems. complex systems existing in the universe, as well as complex theory and phenomenon in physics and mathematics, as time gets added into the mix.
i find fractals to be both simple and complex at the same time, as well as embodying the paradoxical concept of ordered chaos. also, just looking/gazing at fractals i believe helps us access other parts of our brains/consciousness that are not perhaps our dominant ones. i find them to be a powerful meditation tool, as well as microcosms of systems in the universe as well as within our bodies. go fractals!
Consciousness out of chaos?
i'm not so sure about this one. i'm not opposed to the idea of consciousness as the electromagnetic field outside of our brains-in fact this kind of makes sense to me. however, the part about this field being the result of chaotically fired neurons seems like a big leap. or irrelevant. i think our consciousness is alive in every way, and not random or chaotic. i'm far less interested in the neurons firing in our brains than i am in how all of our human consciousness is connected, and from where in the universe does it originate. i am actually uncomfortable with limiting consciousness, which to me is divine, to the realm of neurons and brain chemistry. i believe that it is so much more than that, so much more than the sum of its neurological parts.
the cat experiment
okay, so i didn't actually use my cat. i did consider it for a minute, before realizing that my cat, schizandra, would not subject herself to being dragged around the carpet for one second. there would be scratches to show for it. but, from reading about the intention and results of the experiment, which involves static and sparks in the dark, i recalled one such experience that occurred, without any animals being harmed in the process :)
i have an older model sleeping bag that has a very soft fleece-like lining which also happens to be black. i've had the experience many times while camping with this bag while wearing my thick wool socks of sparks emanating from the bag when i moved my feet around. i found it a bit disconcerting the first time this happened, but since then have come to enjoy the sparks out in the desert or woods. just some electrons moving around!
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