Put on your thinking cap when you visit CITB - here you'll find Concepts, Ideas, Thoughts and "Outside The Box" thinking, plus we call Bullsh!t for what it is. Enjoy the ride, and if we stimulate your brain, please tell others about us!
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept, Thought
Tuesday Mar 18, 2008
I have long believed in the mind body connection. I have noticed recently more and more stories like the one below. Often these type of stories just scrape the surface in an attempt to not offend common current thinking. This story was published by the Telegraph.co.uk which bills itself as "Britain's No.1 quality newspaper website". While I have used excerpts from this story to make a larger "Thought Provoking" point, I have included a link to the entire story.
A woman claims to have undergone a complete "personality transplant" after receiving a new kidney.
Cheryl Johnson, 37, says she has changed completely since receiving the organ in May. She believes that she must have picked up her new characteristics from the donor, a 59-year-old man who died from an aneurysm.
Now, not only has her personality changed, the single mother also claims that her tastes in literature have taken a dramatic turn. Whereas she only used to read low-brow novels, Dostoevsky has become her author of choice since the transplant.
Academics in America have developed a theory called cellular memory phenomenon to explain the personality changes that are allegedly experienced by some transplant recipients.
Cellular memory is the hypothesis that such things as memories, habits, interests, and tastes may somehow be stored in all the cells of human bodies, i.e. not only in the brain.
Examples include a Massachusetts woman with vertigo who became a climber; a Milwaukee lawyer who began eating Snickers, having always hated chocolate; and a seven-year-old girl who had nightmares about being killed after being given the heart of a murdered child.
However, the only case recognised by the scientific community is that of a 15-year-old Australian girl whose blood type changed following a liver transplant.
Body memory is a belief that the body itself is capable of storing memories, as opposed to only the brain. It was cited by some to explain certain claims of having memories for events where the brain was not in a position to store memories.
IS YOUR BRAIN REALLY NECESSARY?
By Richard Milton
Alternative Science
Is your brain you really necessary? The reason for my apparently absurd question is the remarkable research conducted at the University of Sheffield by neurology professor the late Dr. John Lorber.
When Sheffield's campus doctor was treating one of the mathematics students for a minor ailment, he noticed that the student's head was a little larger than normal. The doctor referred the student to professor Lorber for further examination.
The student in question was academically bright, had a reported IQ of 126 and was expected to graduate. When he was examined by CAT-scan, however, Lorber discovered that he had virtually no brain at all.
Instead of two hemispheres filling the cranial cavity, some 4.5 centimetres deep, the student had less than 1 millimetre of cerebral tissue covering the top of his spinal column. The student was suffering from hydrocephalus, the condition in which the cerebrospinal fluid, instead of circulating around the brain and entering the bloodstream, becomes dammed up inside.
Normally, the condition is fatal in the first months of childhood. Even where an individual survives he or she is usually seriously handicapped. Somehow, though, the Sheffield student had lived a perfectly normal life and went on to gain an honours degree in mathematics. This case is by no means as rare as it seems. In 1970, a New Yorker died at the age of 35. He had left school with no academic achievements, but had worked at manual jobs such as building janitor, and was a popular figure in his neighbourhood. Tenants of the building where he worked described him as passing the days performing his routine chores, such as tending the boiler, and reading the tabloid newspapers. When an autopsy was performed to determine the cause of his premature death he, too, was found to have practically no brain at all. Do you need your brain? Professor Lorber has identified several hundred people who have very small cerebral hemispheres but who appear to be normal intelligent individuals. Some of them he describes as having 'no detectable brain', yet they have scored up to 120 on IQ tests.
Later in that post was this:
One of the few biologists to propose a radically novel approach to these questions is Dr. Rupert Sheldrake. In his book A New Science of Life Sheldrake rejected the idea that the brain is a warehouse for memories and suggested it is more like a radio receiver for tuning into the past. Memory is not a recording process in which a medium is altered to store records, but a journey that the mind makes into the past via the process of morphic resonance. Such a 'radio' receiver would require far fewer and less complex structures than a warehouse capable of storing and retrieving a lifetime of data.
CITB EDITOR'S NOTE:The name Dr. Rupert Sheldrake may sound familiar to CITB readers. It is Dr. Sheldrake that is directing the experiments detailed in our post titled Do You Have Telephone Telepathy?
As I stated at the start of this post, my intent was to make a larger "Thought Provoking" point, and here it is...
To see the potential in this story requires one to do some "Outside The Box" thinking. This is something that I feel it is our duty at CITB to encourage. This story does not require a quantum leap of logic - it just requires you to see possibilities until more scientific data can be gathered. But, of course, such a crazy idea couldn't possibly be true, could it?
CITB Quote of the day: "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is usually more important than the outcome." - Arthur Ashe
We all have stress sometimes. For some people, it happens before having to speak in public. For other people, it might be before a first date. What causes stress for you may not be stressful for someone else.
Sometimes stress is helpful - it can encourage you to meet a deadline or get things done. But long-term stress can increase the risk of diseases like depression, heart disease and a variety of other problems.
Yoga, Meditation, and Other Relaxation Techniques
Yoga can be an effective tool for dealing with work related stress. This video offers short exercises that can be done at your desk for stress relief and relaxation.
This is a video featuring Dr. Jon Kabal-Zinn. He describes the revolution in medicine that has occurred over the past 30 years that has integrated the mind back into the body and developed a remarkable range of practices for integrating one's experience, reducing stress, healing the body, coping more effectively with emotions such as anxiety, anger, and depression, and cultivating greater well-being and happiness.
Chronic Stress is stress that lasts a long time or occurs frequently. Chronic stress is potentially damaging. Family problems, a difficult class at school, a schedule that is too busy, or a long illness can cause chronic stress.
Symptoms of chronic stress can be:
eating disorder
upset stomach
headache
backache
insomnia
anxiety
depression
anger
In the most severe cases it can lead to panic attacks or a panic disorder.
If you have chronic stress, the best way to deal with it is to take care of the underlying problem. Counseling can help you find ways to relax and calm down. Medicines may also help. There are a variety of methods to control chronic stress, including exercise, healthy diet, stress management, relaxation techniques, adequate rest, and relaxing hobbies.
Ensuring a healthy diet containing magnesium may help control or eliminate stress, in those individuals with lower levels of magnesium or those who have a magnesium deficiency. Chronic stress can also lead to a magnesium deficiency, which can be a factor in continued chronic stress.
Having personally experienced the effects of stress. How stress effects your life varies from person to person. Here is a collection of links to help you and your loved ones with this issue.
Major Life Changes: This list is a handy tool to keep available at all times. Anytime you’re faced with major changes, you experience physical and emotional stress. This list will help you make choices about how many stressful situations you’re willing to juggle at one time. For instance, if you’re expecting a child, it might not be the best time to consider relocation, a new job, or to decide to head back for that college degree.
Major Life Change: Chaos Could Be a Good Sign: Although this article is brief and to-the-point, life coach Laura Young looks at the positive side of stress. When you deal with crises, you can develop inner strength and confidence in your abilities. Read on to learn more positives!
Stress at Work: NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) provides a comprehensive yet concise list of tools and information where you can learn all angles about work-related stress and relief from that stress.
Stress Management: This is an About.com site that focuses on stress management in all areas of life. This is one of the most comprehensive sites we’ve encountered on this topic, as it provides a blog, articles, and tools to help recognize and deal with stress issues.
Stress Relief: Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, and yoga can help you activate this relaxation response to stress. This site shows you how to plan for and achieve a level of relaxation that may help you to cope with everyday stress triggers.
Stress Relief Exercises: Unlike exercises for physical strength, these tools will help you learn how to relax so you don’t hurt your body or shorten your lifespan.
Top 10 Steps to Making Life Changes: This PDF file was created by life coach Steve Davis, and he provides some sound advice on how to alleviate many stressful situations. For instance, if the bank forecloses on your apartment building, the stress won’t be half as bad on you if you have money set aside to handle a blow like this.
Work-Related Stress: Health & Safety Executive (HSE) provides a four-pronged approach to work-related stress. Learn how to tackle stress, about management’s role in this issue, about good practices, and advice for individuals.
CITB Quote of the day: "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover" - Mark Twain
People who know my writings are well aware that I am not a fan of IDIOT television. Please understand I am NOT anti-television. I am NOT a snob who only watches PBS and the BBC. I am not an arrogant intellectual who only watches C-SPAN and the National Geographic Channel.
I find value in SOME reality television. Not the kind that locks 10 people in a house and watches from hidden cameras to see who is the most disrespectful, which "contestant" has the least principles, who lacks the most manners or who has no values or moral code. I am a fan of reality television that inspires, or demonstrates the ability to succeed against all odds and lift up the human condition.
I am fundamentally opposed to sitcoms and other types of programming with foolish, idiotic, senseless, inane and salacious story lines. I am opposed to television that re-enforces the concept that John and Jane Average are: Absent-Minded, Absurd, Brainless, Brash, Careless, Carnal, Crazy, Delirious, Demented, Dense, Desperate, Disconnected, Dull, Empty-Headed, Flaky, Flighty, Foolish, Forgetful, Hasty, Hopeless, Imbecilic, Impetuous, Inattentive, Inconsiderate, Inconsistent, Insignificant, Irrational, Irresponsible, Loose, Mindless, Moronic, Negligent, Oblivious, Pointless, Preposterous, Rash, Reckless, Ridiculous, Scatterbrained, Senseless, Shortsighted, Sloppy, Stupid, Thoughtless, Trivial, Uncaring, Unconcerned, Unintelligent, Unobservant, Unreasonable, Unstable, Unwise, or Violent.
I attribute the NUMBING DOWN of America to the mindless, value-impaired, consumption-driven TV programming that America's media giants are bringing into our lives and those of our children. This is done simply to obtain more and more advertising dollars no matter what the cost to the basic human fabric of our society. We are seduced into a trance-like state by subliminal manipulation. Commercial messages tell us that if we use "Spackle Brand" toothpaste we will lose weight, instantly become more confident and popular, we will become the perfect Mom or Dad and using "Spackle" to brush our teeth will drive men and women wild with sexual desire.
This mind numbing blight of "lowest common denominator" drivel is an atrocity and morally it is just plain WRONG! It is a travesty of the human spirit when business sells our souls to the highest bidder.
Right now I'll bet you are asking yourself "I wonder how he really feels about it?"
Having defined my position on what is wrong with television today let me tell you there is hope! There are programs being produced today that allow you to become mentally and emotionally involved in a healthy, productive way. They take you on a thrilling introspective journey in the same way a great book draws you in. Weekly dramas and mini-series that portray real life experience
These shows let you sit at the sidelines of life and become a "Monday Morning Quarterback" calling game winning plays with uncanny accuracy. They allow you a sky box view of real world challenges. This is television at its best. Television that for a brief moment allows you to live vicariously. You can experience life's lowest lows as well as life's highest highs from the safety of your armchair.
Television provides a safety net not available in the real world. You remain detached enough to not be permanently scarred when you make a wrong choice, and you WILL make wrong choices. We know with our knower it is a make-believe world yet we work through the twists and turns of the plot and experience it as if it were real. Sometimes, most of the time, it effects us in ways we find hard to admit even to ourselves.
Every once in a while something happens that can change the course of destiny. Every once in a while something truly amazing happens...
A moment in time takes place where possibility meets choice. Where opportunity meets responsibility. A life juncture when a path is followed or denied. Divine inspiration is given - the opportunity to change lives presented. A script writer can choose to respond to the gift being given to him at that moment. A director stands at the precipice of choice, deciding how to present the story. The result of these choices will either be more mediocre television or a story that ignites man's spirit and guides him to his destiny. Every once in a while that writer, that director, chooses to follow the guidance of an unseen hand. In doing so they take you on a journey that will change you forever.
In that one moment something magical happens...
"Change. We don't like it. We fear it, but we can't stop it from coming. We either adapt to change or we get left behind. It hurts to grow, anybody who tells you it doesn't is lying, but here's the truth... Sometimes the more things change the more they stay the same. And sometimes, oh, sometimes change is good. Sometimes change is everything."
- Dr. Meredith Grey "Grey's Anatomy"
EPISODE: A Change Is Gonna Come (2007 - Season 4, Episode 1)
All of a sudden that program you are watching becomes the moment - the moment when you know that in your life "A Change Is Gonna Come..."
CITB Quote of the day: "The individual desires judgment. Without that desire, the cohesion of groups is impossible, and so is civilization." - Morpheus
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept, Idea
Tuesday Mar 11, 2008
In the course of writing CITB we read and research a LOT of web sites. While surfing the web today I saw a link to VistaRewired.com. I no longer am a Microsoft Windows user having made the move to Linux several months ago. But, in my humble opinion, no Microsoft operating system is more bloated and convoluted than Vista. When I visited Vista Rewired I knew I had found a site that was a gold mine of simple, easy to use, solutions to the mysteries of Windows Vista.
Vista Rewired was created by two aspiring young entrepreneurs with the intent of solving the headaches of Windows Vista users, and to educate them on the operating system. The easy to use tips and tricks will help Vista users so they can use the operating system to its full potential.
Here is a LIMITED selection of links to Vista Rewired articles that I felt many users would find helpful.
The complete index of articles on the site can be found HERE. Remember that this site is adding important information and growing daily. Be sure to bookmark it or subscribe to their RSS feed to stay updated on this VALUABLE resource to Windows Vista.
We give this site our HIGHEST recommendation. We think it such a valuable resource that we have added it to our permanent list of Important Blogs on CITB's sidebar.
CITB Quote of the day: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work!"- Thomas Edison
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept
Friday Mar 7, 2008
At CITB we always on the lookout for new and innovative ideas that serve the readers of our blog at large. We think we have found one that serves not only you the reader, but also bloggers like CITB. BlogUpp! has introduced a service that can help you discover new sources of quality content.
Previous methods for adding visibility to a blog consisted mostly of static blogrolls. That means the blogger had to know of the existence of a blog and then they established a link manually. With BlogUpp! bloggers have the ability to discover and make new connections in an interactive, automated, and simplified way.
There is no registration, no account, and other than providing the link to the blog no other data is required. From the site link BlogUpp! generates a short code for the blogger to copy and paste into site blog once.
This is the result:
BlogUpp! doesn't require the blogger to submit an ad, either. It automatically takes a snapshot of the blog, and shares it on other sites. Each blog's snapshot is accompanied by the most recent article, which BlogUpp! gets by reading the blog's RSS feed. This method ensures there are no animation and annoying ads displayed to the readers.Although every blogger is invited to use the BlogUpp! service, each submitted blog passes an approval step to ensure only those with quality content are added. They do not not accept adult, gambling, and illegal or inappropriate content websites. This makes BlogUpp! a family friendly service with quality content. BlogUpp! seeks to be a simple, efficient and honest community service.
Readers and traffic are the true currency of blogs, and BlogUpp! gives it free to every blogger with quality content.
We give this service our HIGHEST recommendation, based on the concept. We will watch to see how the service grows, and will report again as it develops and matures.
CITB Quote of the day: "By definition, if you don't stand up for anything you stand for nothing" - Paul Timmins
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Thought
Wednesday Feb 6, 2008
This may be slightly off-topic for this blog, so I'll say up front that if any Mac blogs (or Mac-related web sites) would like to pick this up and republish it, please feel free. Having said that, I've been using a Mac mini for a little over a month (alongside a Windows box) and there are a few annoyances I've discovered that don't appear to have easy resolutions (and please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong about any of these!). These have all been observed under Leopard. Listed in reverse order, starting with the least annoying and progressing to most annoying (to me, anyway):
Finder won't save FTP passwords - you may not realize that you don't really need an external FTP client to connect to an FTP site. Finder lets you do it (while in a Finder window, use Go|Connect to Server from the top menu bar, then specify the FTP address as you would in a web browser, starting with ftp://). It will pop up a box asking for your user name and password, and that box includes a checkbox that offers to remember your password on your keychain - except that it doesn't, at least when I tested it. Once you've done this, the site opens in a finder window, and (assuming you have the proper permissions on the server) you can move files back and forth just as you can to or from any networked drive. The annoyance here is that you have to re-type the password each time. My solution? I use muCommander (a cross platform, twin-pane file manager, somewhat like the old Norton Commander program) for FTP transfers - it will remember the passwords, works very well, and it's free!
Unexplained program crashes - sometimes, for no apparent reason, a program will just crash, and a box pops up asking if you want to restart it or ignore it. This seems to happen frequently when I'm actually trying to quit a program (some programs are worse than others in this regard) but at least in those cases I'm actually wanting the program to quit. More annoying is when it happens for no apparent reason while trying to do something perfectly normal, like opening a file. This happens with both Apple-supplied apps and third-party apps. The saving grace is that this rarely happens in a way that you actually lose data, so it's just annoying that you have to restart the program (or click a button to ignore the error when you really want to quit).
Firewall blocks incoming connections only - Leopard provides a firewall, but it only blocks incoming connections, and seems to allow or disallow connections on a per-application basis only (in other words, if you allow one incoming connection to an app, you allow them all). It has no way to prevent rogue apps from "phoning home", and third-party Mac apps seem much worse about phoning home without express user permission than PC apps (although many do ask first, and in some cases the only reason for "phoning home" is to check for new versions). There is a third-party add-on that provides outgoing connection blocking but it costs money, and some users have reported problems after installing it, which is why I'm not naming it here. C'mon, Apple, one of the reasons people buy Macs is because they perceive them to be more secure than PC's, so at least give us a firewall preference panel that doesn't look like it was thrown together in a single afternoon, and actually allows flexibility in blocking both outgoing and incoming connections.
No simple way to paste plain text - Let's say you want to do a copy and paste of some text from your web browser to an outgoing mail. You'll get different results depending on the browser you are copying from, but under no circumstances will you get plain text. On a PC, using Eudora, I could always do Control-Shift-V to paste plain text. Try using Command-Shift-V in Apple Mail and it does change the formatting, but also pastes the text as if it were a quote from the message being replied to. The ONLY way I've found around this is to use a utility called Plain Clip, which sits in the dock, and when you click on it it changes whatever text is in the clipboard to plain text. But that's cumbersome to use when you are in the middle of a keyboard operation (you have to move a hand from keyboard to mouse to perform this operation). I can't believe there's no keystroke combination that will simply strip the formatting from text and paste it as plain text, but if there is, I sure haven't found it. Edit: Would you believe that pressing Alt-Command-Shift-V (or in AppleSpeak, Option-Command-Shift-V) sometimes works to paste plain text? Yes, that's a FOUR key combination. Wonder what genius came up with that one?!
No way to delay outgoing mail - While on the subject of the Apple Mail program, I'm the type of person who frequently composes a mail, clicks Send, and then realizes that I should have added something (like a URL to a web page) or perhaps included another recipient. Sometimes, infrequently, I realize I shouldn't have sent it at all. On the PC, in Eudora, I could set it up so that it only sent out mail in batches at predefined intervals (I used 20 minutes), which let me catch most of my "mistakes" before they were actually sent. With Apple Mail, you click Send and boom! It's gone, with no "cooling off" period whatsoever. I would be oh, so happy if someone would come out with a "delayed send" plugin for Mail, that you could click and it would delay sending until 20 minutes into the future (or some other predefined period) - and if you then reopened and edited the message, the clock would reset. There are, of course, times when I really do want the message to go out immediately, but most of what I send is not time-sensitive and I'd really appreciate the opportunity to have an automatic delay on sent e-mail (and one that does not involve clicking around and making an event in iCal, or something that's more difficult than it should be).
iCal can't set a recurring alarm for the exact time of the event - And speaking of iCal, maybe I'm missing something obvious, but it doesn't seem to have a fast and elegant way to set up a simple recurring reminder (such as, I want an alarm to pop up on my computer at 9:00 AM on the third of every month). You have to create an event, and then you can specify that it's a recurring event and then specify the popup alarm, but annoyingly you cannot set the alarm to the exact start of the event - it can be one minute before or one minute after (if you manually enter those), or 15 minutes before or 15 minutes after if you take the defaults. But sometimes you don't want to create an event in the usual sense of the word, you just want a simple reminder at a specific time, and iCal makes this more difficult than it should be. Bonus iCal annoyance: If you enter someone's birthday in the Address book, an entry shows up on that day in iCal, but there's no way to associate an alarm with it. Didn't anybody at Apple consider that you might want to have a popup reminder a day or two before the birthday?
This is the one that really bugs me. On a Mac mini, you can plug in any USB keyboard, or just about any keyboard if you get a cheap PS2 to USB adapter (these are easy to find on eBay), so you can still use all those free-after-rebate keyboards you stocked up on several years ago. A minor annoyance, at least for me, is that if I simply reboot the computer without powering it down completely for a few seconds, it doesn't recognize the keyboard at all. But, that I could live with. What's really annoying is that the geniuses at Apple decided that the numeric keypad should only be a numeric keypad - the NumLock key is disabled, and there's no way to get the directional keys or Ins/Del keys to work (please note I'm talking about the keys on the numeric keypad, NOT the keys between the alpha keypad and the numeric keypad, which for the most part work fine though not always exactly as on a PC). The reason this is a HUGE annoyance for me is that I learned to type on a manual typewriter and when I want a number, I use the numbers in the row above the QWERTY line of keys. And for that reason, ever since there have been numeric keypads on keyboards I've always released NumLock and used the numeric keypad for navigation only. Do you have any idea how hard it is to unlearn a quarter century of habit? And there is simply no good reason that Apple could not have allowed PC keyboards to work as expected - their OS is built on Unix, after all, and I'm sure that most Unix-based operating systems don't disable the NumLock (no version of Linux does that to my knowledge). I hope that when whoever made the decision to eliminate the NumLock switch gets old, they are forced to change some longstanding habits just to accommodate some idiot designer's idea of how things ought to work. Can you tell I'm REALLY PISSED about this one? You would be too, if you hit the wrong key about 300 times a day (in my case it's the Delete key on the numeric pad), then had to backspace and find the right one. Yes, I finally did find a hack that works in a few programs (Apple Mail for one) but for whatever reason, it doesn't work in Firefox (such as when entering this post). Edit: Help is finally here! The program KeyRemap4MacBook now has the ability to fix the numeric keypad (even in Firefox). Be sure to get the latest release version (3.1.0 or better). In that program, you will want to enable "Use KeyPad as Arrow (PC Style NumLock)" and (optionally) "Use PC Style Home/End (Command+Arrow)" and/or "Application Key to F11" (the "Application" key is the one between the right-hand Windows/Command key and the right-hand Ctrl key on PC-style keyboards).
Well, that's my list of Mac irritants. Now, please don't get the wrong idea, there's a lot to like about the Mac, and some things are definitely easier on the Mac. Even my list of irritations are for the most part small stuff, but that's part of what makes them irritating - I have to think that none of the things on my list would take considerable effort for the coders at Apple to fix (except maybe the firewall thing), and many of them might only take an hour or so, maybe less. What I don't know is whether these things annoy anyone but me, or whether others have found acceptable workarounds.
One thing that might have been on this list a month ago, but isn't now, is a lack of good freeware and open-source software for the Mac, compared to what's available for Linux and the PC. It turns out that there's a wealth of Mac freeware out there, but you have to find the sites that list it, and they do exist. The annoyance, if you can call it that, is that on several of the Mac-based forums they just don't talk about the freeware much. It seems that there is a certain contingent within the ranks of Mac devotees that has the attitude that free software can't be good software, which is a myth long since discarded among Windows and Linux users (and I think the Mac folks are coming around, but some of them are doing a lot of kicking and screaming about it). Here are links to a few good Mac freeware sites that also have RSS newsfeeds:
There are probably other good Mac freeware sites (feel free to mention them in a comment, but be aware that I'll actually check the link, so don't try to spam!)
Posted by Thom Byxbe | Under Concept, Idea, Video
Monday Mar 31, 2008
The best part of my job is sometimes the saddest. Sometimes when you find a gem it's beauty is momentarily obscured by the rubble that surrounds it. I found this short film and was deeply moved. I offer it as an example of fine work on an extremely difficult subject.
"My Name is Lisa" is a short film about the Alzheimer's Disease, which is one of many serious and devastating diseases still without a cure. Alzheimer's causes gradual memory loss.
This film was made for YouTube's Project: Direct and it took 3RD PRIZE in the International short film competition
Just like the rest of our bodies, our brains change as we age. Most of us notice some slowed thinking and occasional problems remembering certain things. However, serious memory loss, confusion and other major changes in the way our minds work are not a normal part of ageing. They may be a sign that brain cells are failing.
The brain has 100 billion nerve cells (neurons). Each nerve cell communicates with many others to form networks. nerve cell networks have special jobs. Some are involved in thinking, learning and remembering. Others help us see, hear and smell. Still others tell our muscles when to move.
To do their work, brain cells operate like tiny factories. They take in supplies, generate energy, construct equipment and get rid of waste. Cells also process and store information. Keeping everything running requires coordination as well as large amounts of fuel and oxygen.
In Alzheimer's disease, parts of the cell's factory stop running well. Scientists are not sure exactly where the trouble starts. But just like a real factory, backups and breakdowns in one system cause problems in other areas. As damage spreads, cells lose their ability to do their jobs well. Eventually, they die.
For more information on Alzheimer's Disease please visit http://www.ALZ.org
CITB Quote of the day: "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds!" - Prophet Mohamed (c. 570 Mecca - June 8, 632 Medina)
To see the potential in this story requires one to do some “Outside The Box” thinking. This is something that I feel it is our duty at CITB to encourage.
I believe one of the BEST ways for CITB encourage “Outside The Box” thinking is to provide EXCELLENT examples. That is the purpose of this new series. We will focus on current living and tested innovative thinkers. NOT conceptual thinkers, but individuals who have demonstrated practical functional, “Outside The Box” thinking.
The other day I re-discovered Seth Godin. Seth has been around the Internet for a LONG time. Why is he the subject of our inaugural post in the "Thinkers You NEED To Know" series? Here are SOME of his accomplishments:
Founder and CEO of Yoyodyne, the interactive direct marketing company acquired by Yahoo! in 1998
Founded the "Recommendation Network" website Squidoo
Daily he helps adjust the way people think about change, marketing and work processes. He is highly respected for his intricate understanding of the Internet. Seth has lead in helping to define not only the Internet's processes, but a large chunk of its marketing vocabulary. Here is an example of how he coined the term "permission marketing", and defined a basic concept of the Internet today.
Advertisements on TV and Radio are classified as "interruption marketing", which interrupt the customer while he is doing something of his preference. Godin introduced the concept of "permission marketing", where the business provides something of value to the customer and obtains his permission, and then does marketing.
Godin combines three elements in his writings.
The end of the "TV-Industrial complex" means that marketers no longer have the power to command the attention of anyone they choose, whenever they choose.
In a marketplace in which consumers have more power, marketers must show more respect; this means no spam, no deceit and a bias for keeping promises.
He asserts that the only way to spread the word about an idea is for that idea to earn the buzz by being remarkable.
Godin refers to those who spread these ideas as "Sneezers", and to the ideas being spread as "IdeaViruses." He calls a remarkable product or service a purple cow. Yahoo! currently has a model of a purple cow in the lobby of its Sunnyvale campus.
SETH'S PHILOSOPHY in his own words...
For fifty years, advertising drove our economy. Then media exploded. We went from three channels to five hundred, from no web pages to a billion. Suddenly there are more than 100 brands of nationally advertised water. There are dozens of car companies, selling thousands of combinations. Starbucks offers 19,000,000 different ways to order a beverage, and Oreo cookies now come in more than nineteen flavors.
In the face of all this choice and clutter, consumers realized that they have quite a bit of power. So advertising stopped working.
One insight is that marketing with permission works better than spam. In other words, delivering anticipated, personal and relevant ads to the people who want to get them is always more effective than yelling loudly at strangers. PERMISSION MARKETING addresses this issue.
Once an idea is in the hands of people who care about its success, it may be lucky enough to benefit from digitally augmented word of mouth. I call this an ideavirus. Modern ideas spread online and off, and this is faster and more effective than the old-fashioned centralized way of selling. "UNLEASHING THE IDEAVIRUS" is the most successful ebook of all time and you can buy the paperback for about $10.
It's remarkable products that get remarked on. That seems obvious, but it flies in the face of the way most goods and services and business items are created and marketed. Boring is invisible.
The thing that makes something remarkable isn't usually directly related to the original purpose of the product or service. It's the FREE PRIZE INSIDE, the extra stuff, the stylish bonus, the design or the remarkable service or pricing that makes people talk about it and spread the word.
Seth's controversial book, ALL MARKETERS ARE LIARS, isn't about lying at all. It's about telling stories that people want to believe. It's about the fact that people want bottled water, not tap; iPod Nanos, not Rios; and politicians who talk straight, regardless of the consequences... But most of all, it's about authenticity.
I believe that it's possible to enjoy your job, to do the right thing, to be transparent, to give more than you get and to be successful, all at the same time. In fact, that's sort of the definition of success, isn't it?
TOP 7 "SETH'S BLOG" POSTS OF ALL TIME
Small is the new big - How the net turns the advantage of the mighty upside down.
This animation was created by comedian Mike Polk as a comedy piece and commentary. I saw it and realized its potential to help kick-off a series of posts on the topic of MISCONCEIVED and/or FORCED/DESTRUCTIVE life patterns commonly referred to as Belief Systems. This series of posts will help you identify destructive patterns (Belief Systems). We will offer guidance in identifying and correcting MISCONCEIVED patterns (Belief Systems).
Watch, Listen, Learn...
Don't Compromise!
LIFE PATTERNS 101
Truth is sometimes painful. This video touches on EVERY issue (Belief System) that can develop when people try to FORCE a Belief System upon a relationship. If you IDENTIFY the truth and accept it, then let it guide you, the result will be CHANGE in your Belief System. By changing your Belief System you break the pattern.
If you recognised ANY of the patterns (Belief Systems) in this video I STRONGLY encourage you to READ ON. This series of posts will offer some NEW concepts to help you understand and change your relationship patterns (Belief Systems). This article kicks off our "Belief System" series by helping you define (in a new way) important relationships.
LESSON ONE: Soul Mates 101
We have been mislead to believe there is only ONE Soul Mate for each of us. So we travel through our lives looking for the BIG ONE, the REAL DEAL, the EARTH SHAKING event that we have been assured will be SO OBVIOUS to us.
"MAKE IT WORK" - Tim Gunn
What happens when this process (EVENT) does not take place the way you have been led to believe it will? At that point most people take it upon themselves to FORCE (artificially create) these incorrect Belief Systemsto become true. In effect they begin to "Create Their Own (BUT INAPPROPRIATE) Reality". This results in living patterns (Belief Systems) like those portrayed in this animation.
This thinking pattern (Belief System) is SO WRONG in so many ways. Your thoughts are much more powerful than you realize - Your thoughts (Belief Systems) are like a massive iceberg that is mostly hidden beneath the surface, yet the part that is underwater is usually what sinks ships!
Wrong thinking, including ideas and misconceptions (Belief Systems) you formed as a child, could very well be affecting your life negatively right now.
LESSON TWO: Soul Mates - A NEW Belief System
In your lifetime, MANY Soul Mates will travel through your life.
Main Entry: Soul Mate Function: noun
1 : a person who is perfectly suited to another in temperament
2 : a person who strongly resembles another in attitudes or beliefs
3 : one of two persons compatible with each other in disposition, point of view, or sensitivity
What most do NOT understand is the FACT that in our lifetime many POTENTIAL Soul Mates are available AND seeking us out.
FACT: If you are busy with the WRONG person when a POTENTIAL Soul Mate seeks you out, that Soul Mate will keep on walking.
Are you so afraid of the unknown that you MUST fill the void by FORCE even at the cost of NOT meeting a yet unknown Soul Mate? You fill that void with a COMPROMISE. MOST of the time you fill that void with the WRONG person.
LESSON THREE: A NEW BELIEF SYSTEM - A Reason - A Season - A Lifetime
People come into your life for a reason, others just a season and sometimes they stay a lifetime. When you know which it is, then you will know what to do. This is A NEW Belief System for most people. With this NEW Belief System you need not fear being alone. You will not be driven by fear and you can fully enjoy you destiny.
When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, or to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.
They are there for the reason you need them what ever it may be. Then, without any wrongdoing on your part, or perhaps at an inconvenient time, that person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
We must realize that when our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The request you made has been answered, and now it is time to move on. In this NEW Belief System, we need NOT fear being alonebecause we know other Soul Mates will follow.
Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn. Their purpose may be to bring you peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person, and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.
"One of my core beliefs is that belief itself is a choice that can be made of our own free will" - Steve Pavlina (1971 - )
By applying these concepts you have a NEW choice in Belief Systems. Will you find yourself saying "Thank You For Being A Part Of My Life" (no matter if for a reason, a season or a lifetime) or will you continue to say "I Guess You'll Do - You Can Pick Me Up At Eight..."
EDITORS NOTE: I am an Ordained Minister and focus on pastoral counseling. In addition I have been a certified Neuro-linguistic Practitioner for over 20 years. In my current counseling practice I utilize a blend of talk based counseling with NLP programming techniques.
CITB Quote of the day: "The past is history. The future is a mystery. The only time that really counts on all levels is right now. Now is the time!" - Bodhidahrma
The Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit APRU at Goldsmiths, University of London is currently engaged in a collaborative research project with Dr Rupert Sheldrake investigating the phenomenon of “telephone telepathy”. This is the fairly common experience of feeling that you know who is calling you on the telephone before you answer it - even on occasions when you had no particular reason to expect a call from that person. Obviously, skeptics and believers in the paranormal have different explanations for what is going on in such situations, but Rupert Sheldrake claims to have demonstrated that a genuinely paranormal phenomenon may be in operation here. The only way to find out is to carry out well controlled empirical studies and that is what researchers at the APRU are doing.
Here is a video clip of Dr. Rupert Sheldrake's experiment in action:
Read the full article at Public Parapsychology (and if you live in the U.K., you may want to volunteer).
The reason I found this interesting is that although I am normally oblivious to anything “paranormal”, I think I may have had a peculiar form of this when I was a kid. Bear in mind that back in those days we were on a four-party line, with a manual switchboard (they didn’t get dial where I lived until 1960), but it was a Michigan Bell exchange and all the ring current came from the same local ringing generators. Our signal on the party line was two short rings, and it was the same for any incoming call, local or long distance, and we rarely got long distance calls. Nevertheless, it seemed that whenever one of my aunts or anyone else was calling long distance, I’d hear the first double ring and immediately say “that’s a long distance call.” My folks would ask how I knew and I’d just say that the ring somehow sounded different, although it really didn’t - on an objective level I knew it was exactly the same ring, yet somehow it “sounded different” to me (and not to anyone else) when it was an incoming long distance call.
I have long believed in the mind body connection. I have noticed recently more and more stories like the one below. Often these type of stories just scrape the surface in an attempt to not offend common current thinking. This story was published by the Telegraph.co.uk which bills itself as "Britain's No.1 quality newspaper website". While I have used excerpts from this story to make a larger "Thought Provoking" point, I have included a link to the entire story.
People who know my writings are well aware that I am not a fan of IDIOT television. Please understand I am NOT anti-television. I am NOT a snob who only watches PBS and the BBC. I am not an arrogant intellectual who only watches C-SPAN and the National Geographic Channel.
I attribute the NUMBING DOWN of America to the mindless, value-impaired, consumption-driven TV programming that America's media giants are bringing into our lives and those of our children. This is done simply to obtain more and more advertising dollars no matter what the cost to the basic human fabric of our society. We are seduced into a trance-like state by subliminal manipulation. Commercial messages tell us that if we use "Spackle Brand" toothpaste we will lose weight, instantly become more confident and popular, we will become the perfect Mom or Dad and using "Spackle" to brush our teeth will drive men and women wild with sexual desire.
These shows let you sit at the sidelines of life and become a "Monday Morning Quarterback" calling game winning plays with uncanny accuracy. They allow you a sky box view of real world challenges. This is television at its best. Television that for a brief moment allows you to live vicariously. You can experience life's lowest lows as well as life's highest highs from the safety of your armchair.
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