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Immortality Formula: YOLF
http://dishondesigngal.com/inspiration-by-gandhi-learn-as-if-youll-live-forever/ Predicting the future is hard. At least that’s what Nostradamus tells me every time I’m on mescaline. But, damn it, if Ed McMann can do it, we might as well take a swing here at Wondergressive.
According to the calendar, it’s been 2013 for a little while now, and that means it’s probably safe to say we didn’t all explode in boiling hellfire at the end of 2012. It’s unfortunate, because, of all the dooms-day prophecies floating around, that Mayan prediction was especially promising. That means, though, if ever there was a time to plan for the future, it’s today.
While advancements in technology and medicine grow all the more futuristic with each passing moment and the internet is busy coalescing our collective hive unconscious into an unprecedented uber-mind, we wander ever closer to the upcoming singularity we’re so looking forward to. All these massive paradigm shifts coming at us exponentially quicker let us say one thing at least with near certainty: “This is the era where man will possess immortality.”
It may come in the form of implanting our sentience into cyborgs, imprinting clones with a map of the alpha version’s memories, or just extending our stays on this plane to 6 or 700 years via sea turtle style metabolism manipulation. However events may unfold, Carpe Diem has never before been so pertinent. (If immortality’s too big of a leap, just follow some of the previous links and see what we mean.)
So in the spirit of having oodles of time to do whatever the hell you want, we present you with part one of Qwizx’s guide to surfing oblivion.
Step 1: Shifting Perspectives (Introduction to the Avatar mindset)
Just change your mind a bit. The tools have been laid out already for those in the mood to adapt rather than shunt the burden off onto the next generation. Let’s take a moment and let some of the implications of prolonged life settle in…The ritual goes: same window, different visuals…
Instead of renting, or mooching off the parents, as immortals, we now own the property. Every perk and burden that comes with that. Global warming something you’re concerned about? You personally will be here in a few thousand years to experience the fall out. Think the country’s going to shit? You, yourself, will be witnessing the rise and fall of empires and shift of power regimes. Want to own your own continent? Spend a few hundred years amassing a fortune and learning all the skills you’ll need to rise to the top and control the ignorant populace. Want to topple a violent dictator? Same thing, control the ignorant populace. The point is, you will have the time, so anything conceivable is not only within your grasp, it’s your responsibility to foresee. Congratulations, us.
Just pretend you know with certainty that you and all those you love will live forever, then jot it down.
I understand this has just been a tease, a bit of intellectual foreplay to ponder, but I hope you’re as titillated as I am. Over the next few weeks we’ll be covering a whole range of lessons for the up and coming demi-god, from the 10,000 hour mastery law to do-it-yourself propaganda to Napoleon Hill’s formula for becoming the next Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.
In any case, let’s not waste the next millennia on boredom.
http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/who%20wants%20to%20live%20forever Sources:
3 Ways the WWE Invented Professional Sports
Augmented Reality Blows My Mind – Twice
New Cancer Treatment Shows Promising Results in Leukemia Patients
AI Prescribes Better Treatment Than Doctors
Reanimated Kidneys and 3D Printing
Autophagy: The Unsung Hero in Slowing Aging
Erase Memories, Because… Why Not?
DNA Ancestry Checking as Cheap as $99
The Singularity is Nigh Upon Us
Brain Implants Powered By Spinal Fluid: Another Huge Step Towards Our Cyborg Future
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German Tech Company Seeks to Hire People With Autism
http://www.meetup.com German Tech Company SAP AG has recently stated that it will be recruiting people with autism due to their incredible ability to process information at super human speeds and efficiency. SAP will be hiring people with autism to fill positions in programming, software testing, and quality assurance.
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by
impaired social interaction and verbal and non-verbal communication, and by restricted, repetitive or stereotyped behavior.
http://thebrainperformancecenter.com Traditionally, to be diagnosed with autism, symptoms must become apparent before a child is 3 years old. If symptoms appear after that age it was thought to likely be a different disorder. The number of people diagnosed with autism in the United States alone used to be near 1%, but in the last 5 years it has jumped to more than 2%, likely due to greater awareness and many diagnoses now occuring later in life. Nowadays, autism can be predicted as early as age 1.
While some people may be skeptical of SAP’s decision, the tech company is positive that autism can be an asset in numerous cases, espeically in the case of mild autism, where the person retains all the informational processing benefits with minimal social difficulties (Much in the same way Blade retained all the badassery of vampirism with none of the drawbacks (except for the thirst!)). SAP performed a pilot project in India with autistic workers and saw improvements in productivity. The pilot project is being expanded to the US, Canada, and Germany later this year. They are understandably very confident in their decision.
In searching for the causes of autism researchers have pointed fingers at
certain foods, infectious disease, heavy metals, solvents, diesel exhaust, PCBs, phthalates andphenols used in plastic products, pesticides, brominated flame retardants, alcohol, smoking, illicit drugs, vaccines, and prenatal stress.
Obviously no one is entirely sure what the cause of autism is, but due to its high prevalence a huge amount of studies have been, and continue to be conducted. While multiple studies have revealed genetic links, other studies have debunked these links and shown no genetic inheritance. Due to its elusive etiology autism has even been given the paradoxical catchphrase
Highly heritable but not inherited.
While autism remains largely a mystery, SAP has decided to brush the enigma aside and capitalize on the positive aspects of it. As they saying goes, there is a good side to everything.
http://blog.lib.umn.edu I have personally seen the good and bad side of autism. When I was in boyscouts, there were 3 kids in my troop that had autism. Two of them were twins, and seemed to live in their own heads, barely aware of the world and people around them. It was very hard for them to interact with others, and especially hard to mold themselves to society’s demands; particularly a job.
The other kid, who was older than me at the time, was highly social, active, happy, and succesful. Although you could tell he was a bit different socially than other children around him, he was always happy to have a conversation and always tried to make others laugh. He worked as a UPS driver and was able to swim 11 miles in one go. He was something of a legend in my boyscout troop, and was an incredible rolemodel for so many children and adults alike.
If nobody had ever told me he had autism, I truly would have never known. I would have gone on thinking he was just an incredible, albiet strange (in a wonderful way) guy.
Think twice before you judge others, they might be far, far better at processing information than you. If there is a lesson in all this, I suppose that would be it.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_AG
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/german-tech-company-recruits-people-autism-6C10020898
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurodevelopmental_disorder
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/hcp-dsm.html
http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2013/03/20/autism-prevalence-is-now-at-1-in-50-children/
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr065.pdf
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/04/28/austism.predict.questionnaire/index.html
http://idea.library.drexel.edu/bitstream/1860/2632/1/2006175339.pdf
http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v13/n5/full/nm0507-534.html
asset, autism, autism awareness, autism cause, autism future, autism genes, autism jobs, autism prevalence, autism rate, autism symptoms, autistic, autistic age, awareness, badass, blade, blade 2, blade 3, blade 4, blade movie, causes of autism, communication, diagnosis, does my child have autism, does my kid have autism, etiology of autism, genetic, genetic inheritance, germany, hereditary, neurodevelopmental disorder, percentage autism, sap, sap ag, studies, tech giant, twilight, usa autism, vampire, vampirism, wesley snipes -
Hoplophobes Terrified of Lego Gun, Boy Suspended
http://dailycaller.com/2013/05/29/kindergartener-gets-detention-forced-to-apologize-for-lego-gun-the-size-of-a-quarter/ In an absurd display of zero tolerance and anti-gun hysteria, a Palmer, Massachusetts kindergartner was given detention for bringing a Lego gun the size of a quarter onto a school bus. The boy was also forced to write a letter of apology to the bus driver. As much as I’d like to believe that this will instill the child with a healthy disrespect for unwarranted authority, tragically I fear he will be shamed into submissive acceptance of his incompetent overlords.
The 6-year-old boy was playing with the diminutive toy when another student alerted the bus driver about the impending doom of the G.I. Joe accessory. Acting with all of the tact and logic one expects from a public school worker, the driver then put the children in an exponentially more dangerous situation by bringing the vehicle to an abrupt stop. The Old Mill Pond Elementary School then meted out its punishment to the youngster, presumably feeling as wise as Solomon.
Mieke Crane, the boy’s mother, was not thrilled with the schools draconian response:
“I think they overreacted, totally. I totally do…At six-years-old, I don’t really think he understood the zero-tolerance policy and related it to this as the same.”
This is not the first time that school officials have overreacted in the name of zero-tolerance. As I have written about before at Wondergressive, earlier this year a 7-year-old boy was suspended for biting a Pop-Tart into (supposedly) the shape of a gun. Colorado second grader Alex Evans was suspended in February for throwing an imaginary grenade while playing soldier at recess. First grader Rodney Lynch was actually suspended for making a gun gesture with his hand, pointing it at a fellow classmate and saying “pow.”
http://www.conservativedailynews.com/2013/01/young-children-suspended-for-harmless-hand-gesture/ Most disturbingly, Honor Student Savana Redding, then 13, was strip-searched down to her underwear under suspicion of possessing prescription-strength Ibuprofen. The humiliating search proved fruitless. The Supreme Court decided 8-1 that the school officials did indeed violate Redding’s 4th Amendment rights by illegally searching her. However, the Justices ruled that the officials could not personally be held liable for their criminal actions.
All in the name of zero-tolerance for both guns and drugs.
Sanity and reason are not the end-goals of these bizarre, one-size-always-fits-all policies. Instead they serve to protect teachers and union officials from parents who might sue for malfeasance or neglect.
Recite the magic incantation of “Procedures were followed!” and no litigious harm shall befall you! As long as these bus drivers, teachers and principals are not held accountable for their misdeeds, the absurdity will only magnify. Only when they are personally liable for their own actions will they (unwillingly) step away from the Cliffs of Insanity.
Stories like this help to reveal the madness that is currently brewing in American public schools. They also help illustrate the growing fear of firearms in the country. The disconcerting part of this trend is that fear is a rational response to something threatening. The current mania sweeping the nation is more properly described as an irrational phobia of guns, hoplophobia to be exact.
Despite highly visible and tragic events like the Sandy Hook shooting, violent crime has actually been dropping for about two decades. The gun murder rate has almost halved in that stretch. The overall non-fatal violent crime rate involving guns dropped 75% between 1993 and 2011.
Yet despite this good news, when polled by Pew Research Center, a whopping 56% of Americans falsely believed that gun crime had increased over that period. Only 12% correctly responded that crime has plummeted.
As witnessed by the innumerable calls for further gun control post-Sandy Hook, Americans are increasingly frightened of firearms despite the demonstrable reality that the world around them continues to be safer than at any time since the early ’90s. This irrational fear is crescendoing into a palpable phobia for all things ballistic.
This fear of guns is very animistic in nature. In animistic religions, plants, animals, and even inanimate objects are imbued with special powers or spiritual significance. When you look at the irrational hatred of firearms through this lens, the insanity of zero-tolerance begins to come sharply into focus. It doesn’t matter that the Lego gun is the size of a quarter, in the eyes of hoplophobes it is still a gun with magical powers. It doesn’t matter that it’s simply a kid’s Pop-Tart chewed into an ambiguous shape, it looks like a gun, dammit!
The best example of this phobia is poor 7-year-old Rodney Lynch, whom I previously mentioned was suspended for making a gun shape with his hand. He was punished merely for making a representation of a firearm. In more Biblical terms, he was penalized for making a graven image of an unholy object. He had to be punished for this sin, lest he or others repeat the blasphemy.
Another aspect of this irrational fear is that it’s only directed towards everyday citizens, something that doesn’t apply to police officers, who are viewed as a special breed of humans. Famously, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had to walk back gun control legislation because it didn’t exempt police officers from the ban on “high-capacity” magazines.
To clarify the governor’s position, spokesman Matthew Wing said:
“Police officers possessing ammunition clip [sic] with more than seven bullets are not in violation of this law and they never will be, period.”
This special privilege granted to the Boys in Blue seem unwarranted given their behavior.
During the manhunt for former-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner earlier this year, at least seven officers amazingly mistook Margie Carranza, 47, and her mother, Emma Hernandez, 71, for the sizable black fugitive. They fired upon the pair and Hernandez was shot twice in the back. Carranza was injured from flying glass and shrapnel from the over two dozen bullet holes that were found in the back of their pickup truck.
Those officers seem like models of restraint.
More recently, Philly.com reported on a surge in police shootings in the City of Brotherly Love:
“The number of shootings by police in 2012 resulting in death or injury climbed to the highest level it’s been in 10 years. Philadelphia police shot 52 suspects last year while responding to calls for reported crimes. Of those shot, 15 people died.”
These shootings represent a 50% increase over 2011. The police department hasn’t provided a reason for the increase and they have refused to release any information concerning the shootings.
Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey supported his department’s use of force, saying:
“I think we have a solid policy and consider it best practice.”
Mistakes were made. Procedures were followed.
Another disgusting aspect of this animism manifests itself in the way it’s reported. Almost invariably the passive voice is used to describe police officers shooting a victim.
Three years ago in Detroit, a 7-year-old girl was fatally shot during a raid in search of a murder suspect. The police fired a flash-bang into the house to disorient its occupants and stormed in. Rather than directly blaming Officer Joseph Weekley for killing the girl, amazingly the Associated Press writes that “A gunshot then went off inside, fatally striking [Aiyana Stanley-Jones] in the head while she slept on the couch.”
A human being didn’t pull the trigger. The gun magically “went off.” The writer then reports that “[Weekley] didn’t prevent his gun from firing” and later that “Police have said his gun accidentally discharged.”
Guns don’t accidentally discharge. The safety was off and someone pulled the trigger when it was pointed at a human being. But in the animistic view of firearms, they possess a will of their own and the supernatural ability to impart it on the world.
The hoplophobia of many Americans today has manifested itself in bizarre and increasingly paranoid ways. Pop-Tarts and Legos are viewed as functional weapons by school officials yet the violence perpetrated by police officers is seemingly justified in the eyes of the press and the public. Malfeasance is explained away by triggers with self-determination.
Guns are tools, just like automobiles or hammers or ladders, and they can be dangerous when they are misused. But they are not magical talismans. They are not to be inherently feared. Rather, like with any dangerous device, criminal users of firearms or cars should be held culpable for their neglect or malicious intent.
People need to be educated about guns and their productive uses and also their potential dangers. By outlawing the mere representation of firearms, it ensures that people will continue to reflexively and irrationally fear them, knee-jerking into draconian and pointless legislation.
More education and less bed-wetting terror is needed to end this hysteria. However, I fear that many people deem guns to be too impure and icky to dare challenge their own animistic preconceptions of them.
For the sake of liberty, I hope I’m wrong.
Sources:
http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt09a03.htm#16
http://abcnews.go.com/US/maryland-grader-suspended-pointing-finger-shape-gun/story?id=18123294
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/25/savana-redding-strip-sear_n_220717.html
http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/07/gun-homicide-rate-down-49-since-1993-peak-public-unaware/
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-gun-crimes-pew-report-20130507,0,3022693.story
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/05/29/detroit-officer-goes-on-trial-in-death-7-year-old-girl/
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The Road Rage is Strong With This One
http://media.theiapolis.com/d4-iZFC-k4-lZH6/nicolas-cage-as-milton-in-drive-angry-2011.html You are driving down the road to the nearest grocery store to get some bread. You slow down as you get to a yellow traffic light and the person behind you slams on their brakes thinking they would have made the yellow no problem. Alas, you are now the victim of something very serious: ROAD RAGE, also known as intermittent explosive disorder.
Then again, at some point in your life you were undoubtedly that person braking or flipping out at another driver for something “stupid” they had done. According to dmv.org:
Aggressive drivers routinely:
- Tailgate
- Use their horn
- Flash their headlights
- Change lanes quickly and often
- Gesture to other drivers
- Talk on their cell phone
Shockingly, 1500 people a year are seriously injured or killed in senseless traffic disputes. It doesn’t help that most of us, myself included, are likely texting while driving or talking on their cell phone, causing all kinds of traffic violations. This adds to the already amassing multitude of cars which unfortunately leads to traffic buildups (although clearly there are other factors involved this is one that could be realistically avoided). In essence, with all the distractions in our daily life, WE directly create those aggressive drivers.
And so what? I know, I’ll just be passive and let all the other drivers be aggressive, that wont affect me… WELL! Aggressive drivers will undoubtedly cut you off if you are swerving while texting or not paying attention to the road or simply being a passive, safe driver, and this action of cutting someone off is one of the most aggravating experiences of driving. The Center for Addiction and Mental Health, or CAMH, has yielded some interesting results from accumulated online reporting participants. It seems that:
Cutting in and weaving, speeding, and hostile displays are among the top online complaints posted by drivers.
You mean that person I just cut off will go home to blog about it? They will go and write a Wondergressive article pertaining to it with hopes that a chain reaction occurs and eventually drivers become more aware and respectful of their fellow drivers? And I wonder why I Rage on the Road so much. Too many shattered hopes and dreams.
As recommended by dmv.org, if you can’t help your Road Rage then ease it by venting:
Talk to a friend or family member about the driving experience―telling the story can relieve your stress. Some driving clubs or online discussions offer members a chance to vent their frustration.
I admit it, I am a prime example of someone suffering from intermittent explosive disorder. I truly cannot wait to trade in my car for a shiny brand new blimp! Life would just be so much easier. No traffic, no a-holes to cut you off, no worries about cops and obeying the rules of the road, no speed limits or traffic lights. Only those damn birds to watch out for. That, and the bad weather/gusts of wind that you are likely to encounter. Let’s not forget about the other a-holes with their brand new blimps. ARGH! GET OUT OF MY WAY ALREADY!
I believe the best way to limit anger/traffic/congestion/violations is to put into act a proposal that one of my managers laid out for me. He suggests that anyone who causes traffic or gets in an accident and is solely at fault for the accident should have to get in front of everyone on TV and/or in a public setting and give a formal apology. Let’s see how many people risk going on the freeway while texting or using their cell phone THEN! Cheers!
Sources:
NBCnews: Road Rage gets medical diagnosis
DMV: Road Rage: How to Deal with It
AAA Foundation: Aggressive Driving
Science Direct: Texting While Driving
Science Direct: Dialling and Driving
Center for Addiction and Mental Health, or CAMH
CAMH: Cutting In and Weaving Irritates Drivers
Wondergressive: Save the Food Pyramid
Birds, Blimp, car, carpool, Cell phone, cops, crossing, deer crossing, family, freeway, friend, go, green, highway, hitch hiking, intermittent explosive disorder, lamp, limit, rage, red, road, road rage, road rage statistics, rules of the road, slow, sms, speed, speed limit, stop, stop light, stop sign, stoplight, stopsign, street, texting, traffic, traffic lights, truck, van, wondergressive, yellow -
GMO Labeling Going In Right Direction In The US
GMO Labeling World Map GMO labeling finally got itself a small yet big win. Last week, Connecticut became the first state in the U.S. to pass a bill through the senate that would require mandatory labeling of all GMOs. There will be some understandable exceptions that would not have to label their food as a GMO, such as fast food restaurants and farmer’s markets. But come on, that’s not at bad start.
We’re not banning anything, we’re not restricting anything, we’re not taxing anything,
Senate Republican leader John McKinney said at a press conference.
We’re just saying let moms and dads know what’s in the food they’re buying for their young kids… That’s not a lot to ask.
Would the US food industry really suffer from this type of labeling?
Related Article: Mystery of the Dying/Disappearing Honeybees Solved
If you were to complain to a fast food restaurant manager that you found a hair in your hamburger, they would probably say that’s impossible, because they don’t use any natural ingredients! Joking of course, but you get the picture.
GMO Labeling Initiatives Fortunately, there are other states in the union that are taking initiatives to make some sort of legislation for GMO labeling. As of this writing there are 29 states with initiatives for labeling of GMO products. You are able to find your own state group fighting for this initiative.
According to the polls taken from MSNBC in 2011, Reuters and Washington Post in 2010, Consumer Reports in 2008, and ABC News in 2001, 93-96% of Americans support GMO labeling. Also, according to justlabelit.org, GMO labeling is required in 64 countries worldwide. This includes most of the developed nations, exceptions being the United States of course, and Canada.
Related Article: The Senate is Useless and Should be Dismantled
If you are interested in seeing the whole world map of where GMO labeling is required, head over to the Center For Food Safety website.
There are only five countries in Europe that do not require labeling of GMOs. Those are Bosnia, Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, and Moldova. Serbia, however, is the exception in the group because it actually has an official ban on GMO imports and cultivation! Benin and Zambia, two countries in the African continent, are the only other countries in the world that have an official ban on importing and cultivation of GMOs.
Related Article: Don’t Fear Anti-GM Hysteria (Nor the Reaper)!
GMO Labeling In Europe Sources:
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/
http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/State-Senate-approves-genetic-labeling-4534999.php
http://justlabelit.org/right-to-know/labeling-around-the-world/
http://justlabelit.org/state-initiatives/
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/ge-map/
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/issues/976/ge-food-labeling/us-polls-on-ge-food-labeling
https://wondergressive.com/2013/04/20/united-states-senate-is-useless/
https://wondergressive.com/2013/03/28/dont-fear-the-reaper-or-anti-gm-propaganda/
https://wondergressive.com/2012/10/10/mystery-of-the-dyingdisappearing-honeybees-solved/
Benin, best gmo, bill gates, canada, Center For Food Safety, Connecticut, Europe, gates fondation, gmo bad, gmo ban, gmo complications, gmo good, gmo health, gmo labeling, gmo negative, gmo positive, gmo problems, gmo safe, gmo study, gmo world, gmos, health, John McKinney, Serbia, state initiative, United States, USA, Zambia -
Germany Sets Example for Global Climate Battle
Energiewende! This one word defines the German view on the global climate crisis that our planet is currently experiencing. Literally Energiewende means energy change. While its definition is simple it’s connotation encompasses an entire movement. Osha Gray Davidson writes:
The government has set a target of 80 percent renewable power by 2050, but many Germans I spoke with in three weeks traveling across this country believe 100 percent renewable power is achievable by then.
This plan also has many checkpoint gates that it must achieve. By 2020 Germany must be dependent on 35% renewable energies. These energies include wind, solar, and sheer German momentum. Sheer German momentum believes strongly that the Earth is experiencing a global climate crisis.
If a member of parliament called climate change a hoax or said that its cause is unknown, he or she would be laughed out of office.
Interesting. Here in the United States, we’re still trying to accept the idea of climate change. For example, my favorite winter-time joke: Where’s that dang-old global warming when you need it? (note: this joke is best told when temperatures are under 41°F and is best told by or to somebody who doesn’t properly understand what global warming is). As another example, lets see what the US Chief of Energy has to say about the matter.
Let me make it very clear that there is no ambiguity in terms of the scientific basis calling for a prudent response on climate change.
Ernest Moniz goes on to say:
“I am not interested in debating what is not debatable…There is plenty to debate as we try and move forward on our climate agenda.”
While it is good that the Energy Chief (a tittle best held by a true sorcerer) strongly holds this as fact, there are still many United Statians (I think it’s time we stopped calling ourselves Americans as we live on only a part of the continent) that uphold the belief that Global warming is a myth. If you really want to delve into crazy, I suggest you check out the Friends of Science webpage.
As we move back to the realms of science and reality we can see that the majority of the world understands science and actually is pretty good friends with it. Stanford University is spearheading the global awareness of climate change caused by humans (scroll down to page 26 for the good stuff). Don’t forget to sign the petition!
Sources:
http://phys.org/news/2013-05-scientists-co2-sequestration-technique-supergreen.html
http://www.economist.com/node/21559667
http://www.friendsofscience.org/index.php?ide=2
http://www.globalwarminghysteria.com/ten-myths-of-global-warming/
http://mahb.stanford.edu/consensus-statement-from-global-scientists/
http://mahb.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Consensus-Statement.pdfOther Wondergressive Articles:
and German Momentum, Clean Energy Economy, Climate Hoax?, crazy, Energiewende, Ernest Moniz, Friends of Science, germany, Global Climate Change, Global Warming Is A Myth, Humans, Hysteria, Osha Gray Davidson, Petitions, Realms of Science and Reality, Renewable Energies, science, solar power, Sorcery, Stanford University, United States, United Statians, US Chief of Energy, Wind Power -
Food Myth: Don’t Eat After a Certain Time
http://rawfoodblog.purejeevan.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/STRESS-EATING.jpg It’s late. I’m juggling several deadlines. This past week has seen a sharp influx in my stress levels. I know, I thought the same thing you’re thinking right now—pizza would absolutely solve this problem.
But here’s my dilemma: at the time of this writing, it’s already past 8. And 9. And 10. Y’know, just well past the acceptable social norm of when people are “allowed” to eat. What’s a stressed, hungry, spread-too-thin girl on the verge of a complete meltdown to do?
You readers are right again: I took to the internet.
As it turns out, not eating after a certain time is just a stubborn food myth. According to Andy Bellatti, a Seattle-based Registered Dietitian…
What matters is what you’re eating throughout the day. Food eaten after 7 does not magically turn to fat. This is also a ridiculous ‘tip’ for someone who goes to bed at midnight or 1 AM. This tip often ‘works’ because people end up reducing their total caloric intake.
Depending on when you go to sleep, setting an arbitrary stop time on your eating patterns isn’t doing you any favors. You’re basically just skipping a meal, at that point—especially if you’re like me and awake into the single-digits.
On the subject of skipping meals, Boston-based nutritionist and counselor, Alannah DiBona, had this to say:
If a meal is skipped, the body begins a process of metabolic slowing commonly referred to as ‘starvation mode. Additionally, surges of hormones then encourage overeating at the next meal, resulting in a higher caloric intake at the day’s end. Keeping one’s blood sugar balanced with small meals and snacks throughout the day is a much more successful approach for weight maintenance and mental alertness.
…so it looks like pizza’s back on the menu tonight. Don’t judge me.
References
10 Stubborn Food Myths That Just Won’t Die
Andy Bellatti
Alannah DiBona -
The Draw of Cell Phones
everydaymomideas.com Bzzzt! Bzzt! Did I just receive a text? Am I getting a call? Email? Facebook notification? Oh wait, I guess it was just my imagination. Or was it…
The other day I left my cell phone at home and worked a 12 hour shift only to find myself completely bored out of my mind during the slow periods. Nobody to text, no news to read, no status updates to follow/comment/post on facebook, but worst of all no Wondergressive articles to browse through! Oh the humanity!
In this day and age a cell phone deprived person seems to be at a great disadvantage. A prime example of this happened last week. My girlfriend forgot her cell phone at home and her house keys in my car while she was out running some errands.That got me thinking. Without a cell phone she could easily have gotten hurt or lost or needed assistance and there would have been no way of me reaching her. Needless to say, she showed up where I was and got her keys, but I was still left with the thought of how important and intertwined our lives have become with cell phones.
inthebestofhealth.wordpress.com For those of us suffering from nomophobia, and for those that are in denial, let me ask you: could you really part with your digital friend? Think of all of your daily routines, think of all of your leisure time and what you spend doing during that time, think about what you do while driving or while you are stuck in traffic, and finally, think of how you reach your friends/family/lovers/doctors/Wondergressive authors etc. If you can honestly avoid using your cell phone for any of these activities then congratulations! You may not be a zombie like the rest of us. Yet. A preliminary study on cell phone addiction by Baylor University yields that:
mobile phones are conspicuous artifacts of acquisition and sometimes are viewed as extensions of the self.
How deep is THAT?! Cell phones as a part of ourselves! Or is it the other way around… In the same way that some would argue that people suffer from hoarding items because they project emotions, experiences, and self onto the items they are keeping, cell phones are now becoming an integral part of our body and mind! In a way, my cell phone is my best friend: it always listens and does what I want it to do, well most of the time at least, so it is no wonder that I feel lost if I am without it. Not too long now, and the singularity will be nigh upon us, at which point I wonder if we will greet it with open arms?
The study goes on to say that
Much in the same way as consumers who use materialistic pursuits to cope with stress, anxiety, and feelings of low self-worth, cell phone and other technological addictions are likely similar attempts to cope with the exigencies of life and self esteem struggles.
A lot of people resort to cell phone sexting instead of real human interaction and that may be partially caused by stress and low self worth. Digitally displaying something is easier than having to deal with real life encounters and embarrassment. I think, at least, that its easier to get rejected digitally than it is in person.
Lets re-rail this focus train and stop with all the sexting talk for a second. Speaking of re-railing thoughts, Multi tasking while using your cell phone has almost become impossible not to do. Just think of all those recipes you looked up on your smartphone while cooking or those soundtracks you listened to while working on something. One would think headlines like “Brain and Spinal tumors caused by cell phones” would put a stop to our obsessions but then again why do we continue to smoke, and not the good kind, when we know it is killing us?
I am as guilty as the rest of you, however this is my conscious effort at lessening my cell phone dependency. Here are a couple of tips to help with our digital addictions, but the most important thing to remember is to be as involved with other humans as we are with our electronic devices. Remember, when your battery dies, it is comforting to know that the person next to you will keep you not only interested, but also as warm as your cell phone does when it overheats in your hands from overuse. And for those of us that prefer to live in denial, check out this awesome tablet/phone concept designers are working on! Cheers!
Research:
Baylor University Preliminary Cell Phone Study
Tips to Overcoming Digital Addiction
Wondergressive – Cannabis Cures Cancer
Wondergressive – Singularity is Nigh Upon Us
Wondergressive – TVs, Brains, and Zombies
Wondergressive – From Multi to Mono
addiction, android, anxiety, apps, AT&T, baylor university, call, cannabis cures cancer, Cell phone, communication, consumer, dependancy, Digital, distraction, email, emotion, extensions of self, Facebook, google, health, iphone, lifestyle, low self-worth, mobile, nomophobia, notification, phone, phone book, sexting, Singularity, sms, sprint, stress, t mobile, technology, text, texting, US cellular, verizon, vonage, wikipedia, wondergressive, zombies -
Running Slows Down Aging, Slows Down the Clock
New research indicates that running slows down aging by beefing up protection of our DNA, which degenerates over time, causing many of the body’s aging signs. This is because as we age, telomeres, part of DNA that acts like caps on shoelaces, start to diminish and expose our DNA to change and damage. If you are not familiar with what telomeres are, there is an article about it right below:
Related: Aging Process Is Similar to Replicating CDs: Story of Telomeres
How Running Slows Down Aging
New research is finding that aerobic exercise, such as running, swimming and cycling has the ability to slow down the aging of the human body. The already well known benefits of running are improved cardiovascular function, strengthening of the heart, aid in forging healthy eating habits, as well as improvement in insulin control and having a clearer mind. These benefits already show how running slows down aging; by improving our body and mind overall.
Running shows positive signs at any age. But the real key here as to how running slows down the aging process lies in the protection of our DNA and cells:
Human cells divide at an average of 50-60 times in one lifespan. Every time they divide, the cell’s DNA has to be replicated. That way, a new chromosome can form and be used in the newly duplicated cell. However every time a cell duplicates, it comes at a cost. That is, the chromosomes get shorter and shorter. If they get short enough, the chromosomes can have their twining undone and our genetic data gets corrupted. Eventually, that cell dies. – Aging Process Is Similar to Replicating CDs
Related: What Is Autophagy and How It Slows Down Aging
This is why it is important to keep the telomeres, the shoelace caps for our DNA strands, intact as long as possible, and prevent wear and tear. One study found that sedentary people aged 55-72 had relatively short telomeres compared to sedentary 18-32 year olds. But when comparing people in the 55-72 age group who have exercised all their lives, there was no significant difference in the length of the telomeres between younger people and older athletes.2
Want to stay as healthy and spry as a teenager? Go for a run.
Sources:
AGING – HOW RUNNING MAY BE ABLE TO STOP THE CLOCK
2 LaRocca TJ, Seals DR, Pierce GL. (2009). Leukocyte telomere length is preserved with aging in endurance-trained adults and related to maximal aerobic capacity. Mechanisms of aging and development 131(2):165-167
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The Evolutionary Leaps of Snails
Picture Taken From http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/15/us/florida-giant-snails Leaps in evolutionary development have often befuddled scientists in their goal towards discovering the answer to every last question. Though they have been extremely successful in answering those last questions, certain scientists struggle with some of the first questions: “Where did I leave my car keys?”, “Why is the ceiling above my bed different?”, and “what does love got to do, got to do with it?”
This time the folks over at the University of Tübingen in Germany dared to ask a question that lie hidden somewhere deep in between: What happens when we leave a little bit of platinum in a petri dish with a little bit of baby snails? The answer is definitely one shell off of a slug.
Snails are tiny slimey creatures. They are best recognized from their characteristic shells, strange ability to stick to anything, and the questionable ooze that they leave in their wake. The much more agile Slug, a relative in the incredibly large Gastropada family, is similar to the snail in many aspects with the main exception being it’s incredible lack of a Nautilis Shell.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Molusca
Class: Gastropada
Order:Terrestrial gastropod mollusks are an extremely diverse grouping of animals. There is an incredible amount of different species all under the same classification. From the extremely tiny Daphniola eptalophos to the alarmingly large Giant African Land Snail (ALGALS). The ALGALS ranks in as one of Indiana’s “Most Unwanted Invasive Plant Pests.” Native Indiana-ites be wary of roaming hypnotoads!
Yikes. Almost as big as those Australian Golden Silk Orb Weavers. Golden Silk Orb Weavers are strangely famous in the creative community as they are incredibly adept at being used as a segue for others who have ridden the stream of consciousness thought wave too far.
So what about that study involving Platinum and Snails? Were they making a new marvel character or what?
Scientists reared Marisa snails, best known for cleaning up algae and other debris in home aquariums, in petri dishes containing varying concentrations of platinum. At certain exposures, all of the roughly 80 percent of snails that survived were shell-less
So the shell finally comes off but why does this even matter? Well it just so happens that a snail with out a shell is just a slug. Just a slug-that is- that evolved in one generation. One single generation. This sort of single generation evolution has likely happened multiple times in the Gastropada family.
So you had better be careful with your salt shakers or this conversation will get a bit bubbly.
Sources:
Los caracoleshttp://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/taxa/inverts/mollusca/gastropoda.php
http://extension.entm.purdue.edu/CAPS/pestInfo/giantSnail.htm
http://a-z-animals.com/animals/snail/
http://www.popmath.org.uk/rpamaths/rpampages/snail.html
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/10/snails-slugs-shell-evolution/
http://esciencenews.com/articles/2011/11/01/a.new.species.a.tiny.freshwater.snail.collected.a.mountainous.spring.greeceOther Wondergressive Nature:
Dolphins Exhibit Unending Compassion
Belly Buttons: Bacteria Wonderland!
Wonder about your world…
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Wondergressive 
