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["title"]=>
string(24) "Hack 40. Blind to Change"
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string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=193"
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["description"]=>
string(312) "We don’t memorize every detail of a visual scene. Instead, we use the world as its own best representationcontinually revisiting any bits we want to think about. This saves the brain time and resources, but can make us blind to changes.
Both our vision [Hack 14] and attention [Hack #34] have far [...]"
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string(300) "We don’t memorize every detail of a visual scene. Instead, we use the world as its own best representationcontinually revisiting any bits we want to think about. This saves the brain time and resources, but can make us blind to changes.
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["title"]=>
string(32) "As you did with the head muscles"
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string(314) "As you did with the head muscles, you should actually tighten the muscle groups to create tension, and then relax them to feel the tension leave.
You will be instructed to pay special attention to the feelings you get when the tension comes into the area and then how good it feels when that tension leaves. [...]"
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As you did with the head muscles, you should actually tighten the muscle groups to create tension, and then relax them to feel the tension leave.
You will be instructed to pay special attention to the feelings you get when the tension comes into the area and then how good it feels when that tension leaves. Follow directions carefully. Pay attention to the tension, notice it. Pay attention to the relaxed, free, feeling. The object is i to recognize when tension begins, in any part of your body, so you can quickly respond and eliminate it through relaxation and visualization.
At the command, get your relaxation tape and prepare to go through it. You should check your time schedule at this time. It takes 15 minutes to go through the Relaxation Exercise Tape. If you do not have a full 15 minutes at this time, do not proceed. Wait until you have a full 15
minutes and then come back to this point. It is necessary that this exercise be completed as soon as you can, but only if you can go through it completely. It is just as important that you go back through the exercise tape as often and as soon as you can. It will take only a few times using the tape, for you to be able to do the exercises without it. The more you repeat this exercise, the more quickly you will be able to learn and use all the skill exercises you must learn to become an effective and rapid reader. Remember to practice, practice, practice.
Put the Relaxation Exercise Tape in your recorder and begin the exercise. At the end of the exercise, return to this point. DO IT NOW!
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(314) "As you did with the head muscles, you should actually tighten the muscle groups to create tension, and then relax them to feel the tension leave.
You will be instructed to pay special attention to the feelings you get when the tension comes into the area and then how good it feels when that tension leaves. [...]"
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string(1731) "As you did with the head muscles, you should actually tighten the muscle groups to create tension, and then relax them to feel the tension leave.
You will be instructed to pay special attention to the feelings you get when the tension comes into the area and then how good it feels when that tension leaves. Follow directions carefully. Pay attention to the tension, notice it. Pay attention to the relaxed, free, feeling. The object is i to recognize when tension begins, in any part of your body, so you can quickly respond and eliminate it through relaxation and visualization.
At the command, get your relaxation tape and prepare to go through it. You should check your time schedule at this time. It takes 15 minutes to go through the Relaxation Exercise Tape. If you do not have a full 15 minutes at this time, do not proceed. Wait until you have a full 15
minutes and then come back to this point. It is necessary that this exercise be completed as soon as you can, but only if you can go through it completely. It is just as important that you go back through the exercise tape as often and as soon as you can. It will take only a few times using the tape, for you to be able to do the exercises without it. The more you repeat this exercise, the more quickly you will be able to learn and use all the skill exercises you must learn to become an effective and rapid reader. Remember to practice, practice, practice.
Put the Relaxation Exercise Tape in your recorder and begin the exercise. At the end of the exercise, return to this point. DO IT NOW!
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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[1]=>
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["title"]=>
string(47) "Hack 69. Use Your Right Brainand Your Left, Too"
["link"]=>
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string(31) "Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:00:22 +0000"
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string(331) "The logical left brain and intuitive right brain metaphor is popular, but the real story of the difference between the two halves of your brain is more complex and more interesting.
There’s a grain of truth in all the best myths, and this is true for the left-brain/right-brain myth. Our cortex is divided into left and [...]"
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string(2052) "The logical left brain and intuitive right brain metaphor is popular, but the real story of the difference between the two halves of your brain is more complex and more interesting.
There’s a grain of truth in all the best myths, and this is true for the left-brain/right-brain myth. Our cortex is divided into left and right hemispheres, and they do seem to process information differently, but exactly how they do this isn’t like the story normally told by management gurus and the self-help literature. As with many scientific myths, the real story is less intuitive but more interesting.
Our brains follow the general pattern of the rest of our bodies: two of everything down the sides and one of everything down the middle. With the brain, the two halves are joined directly in the subcortex, but in the cortex the two halves, called hemispheres, have a gap between them. They are connected by a tight bunch of some 250 million nerve fibers, called the corpus callosum, which runs between the two hemispheres (it’s not the only way for information to cross the hemispheres, but it’s the most important).
Each hemisphere is wired up to sense and act on the opposite side of the body. So information from your right goes to the left side of the visual cortex, and signals from your left motor cortex control your right hand. For higher functions, in which information from both senses is combined, the two hemispheres seem to have different strengths and weaknesses, so that for certain tasks one hemisphere or the other will be dominant.
The origins of the popular myth were studies of patients who had their corpus callosum severed as part of a radical surgical intervention for epilepsy. These “split-brain” patients could function seemingly normally on many tasks, but displayed some quirks when asked to respond to the same material with different hands or when speaking (left brain) rather than pointing with their left hand (right brain).1
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(331) "The logical left brain and intuitive right brain metaphor is popular, but the real story of the difference between the two halves of your brain is more complex and more interesting.
There’s a grain of truth in all the best myths, and this is true for the left-brain/right-brain myth. Our cortex is divided into left and [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2052) "The logical left brain and intuitive right brain metaphor is popular, but the real story of the difference between the two halves of your brain is more complex and more interesting.
There’s a grain of truth in all the best myths, and this is true for the left-brain/right-brain myth. Our cortex is divided into left and right hemispheres, and they do seem to process information differently, but exactly how they do this isn’t like the story normally told by management gurus and the self-help literature. As with many scientific myths, the real story is less intuitive but more interesting.
Our brains follow the general pattern of the rest of our bodies: two of everything down the sides and one of everything down the middle. With the brain, the two halves are joined directly in the subcortex, but in the cortex the two halves, called hemispheres, have a gap between them. They are connected by a tight bunch of some 250 million nerve fibers, called the corpus callosum, which runs between the two hemispheres (it’s not the only way for information to cross the hemispheres, but it’s the most important).
Each hemisphere is wired up to sense and act on the opposite side of the body. So information from your right goes to the left side of the visual cortex, and signals from your left motor cortex control your right hand. For higher functions, in which information from both senses is combined, the two hemispheres seem to have different strengths and weaknesses, so that for certain tasks one hemisphere or the other will be dominant.
The origins of the popular myth were studies of patients who had their corpus callosum severed as part of a radical surgical intervention for epilepsy. These “split-brain” patients could function seemingly normally on many tasks, but displayed some quirks when asked to respond to the same material with different hands or when speaking (left brain) rather than pointing with their left hand (right brain).1
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(23) "6.8.2. How It Works (3)"
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string(322) "It is plausible that only the one hand (the right) was used for a more efficient and simple way of communicating. This would explain why language and hand dominance are on the same side (remember, the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, so left-language dominance and right-hand dominance are [...]"
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string(3196) "It is plausible that only the one hand (the right) was used for a more efficient and simple way of communicating. This would explain why language and hand dominance are on the same side (remember, the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, so left-language dominance and right-hand dominance are both due to the left side of the brain).
If this were the norm during evolution, it may help to explain why most left-handers still have speech areas in the left hemisphere. However, this still doesn’t answer the question of why the right hand was dominant in the beginning. At present, this can be only speculation; the important point is that right- and left-handedness are distributed differentlythey are not mirror images of each other, which has implications for the genetics of handedness and the laterality of other functions.
It has been argued that the original hand preferences evolved from a postural position preference of the right hand and consequently a left preference for reaching in arboreal (tree-living) species.8 So, with postural demands becoming less pronounced in ground-dwelling species, the left hand remained the dominant one for highly stereotyped tasks like simple reaching, whereas the right became the preferred one for more manipulative tasks or tasks requiring some skill. In other words, we would hang on with the left hand and pick fruit with the right.
Although this is an interesting theory for why the majority of the population is right-handed, it does not give any indication as to why some people are left-handed. Are left-handed people highly skilled in reaching? Are left-handed people as skilled in manipulative tasks as their right-handed counterparts? Regretfully, these questions have to wait for further research.
6.8.3. End Notes
Salive, M. E., Guralink, J. M., & Glynn, R. J. (1993). Left-handedness and mortality. American Journal of Public Health, 83, 265-267.
Annet, M. (1972). The distribution of manual asymmetry. The British Journal of Psychology, 63, 343-358.
Hartlage, L. C., & Gage, R. (1997). Unimanual performance as a measure of laterality. Neuropsyhological Review, 7(3), 143-156.
Bakan, P. (1971). Handedness and birth order. Nature, 229, 195.
Davidson, R. J., & Hugdahl, K (eds.) (1995). Brain Asymmetry. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Rasmussen, T., & Milner, B. (1977). The role of early left-brain injury in determining lateralization of cerebral speech functions. Annuls of the New York Academy of Sciences, 299, 355-369.
Rizzolatti, G., & Arbib, A. (1998). Language within our grasp. Trends in Neurosciences, 21, 188-194.
MacNeilage, P. E. (1990). The “Postural Origins” theory of primate neurobiological asymmetries. In N. A. Krasneger et al. (eds.), Biological and Behavioural Determinants of Language Development, 165-168, Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
6.8.4. See Also
Laska, M. (1996). Manual laterality in spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) solving visually and tactually guided food-reaching tasks. Cortex, 32(4), 717-726.
Karen Bunday
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(322) "It is plausible that only the one hand (the right) was used for a more efficient and simple way of communicating. This would explain why language and hand dominance are on the same side (remember, the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, so left-language dominance and right-hand dominance are [...]"
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string(3196) "It is plausible that only the one hand (the right) was used for a more efficient and simple way of communicating. This would explain why language and hand dominance are on the same side (remember, the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, so left-language dominance and right-hand dominance are both due to the left side of the brain).
If this were the norm during evolution, it may help to explain why most left-handers still have speech areas in the left hemisphere. However, this still doesn’t answer the question of why the right hand was dominant in the beginning. At present, this can be only speculation; the important point is that right- and left-handedness are distributed differentlythey are not mirror images of each other, which has implications for the genetics of handedness and the laterality of other functions.
It has been argued that the original hand preferences evolved from a postural position preference of the right hand and consequently a left preference for reaching in arboreal (tree-living) species.8 So, with postural demands becoming less pronounced in ground-dwelling species, the left hand remained the dominant one for highly stereotyped tasks like simple reaching, whereas the right became the preferred one for more manipulative tasks or tasks requiring some skill. In other words, we would hang on with the left hand and pick fruit with the right.
Although this is an interesting theory for why the majority of the population is right-handed, it does not give any indication as to why some people are left-handed. Are left-handed people highly skilled in reaching? Are left-handed people as skilled in manipulative tasks as their right-handed counterparts? Regretfully, these questions have to wait for further research.
6.8.3. End Notes
Salive, M. E., Guralink, J. M., & Glynn, R. J. (1993). Left-handedness and mortality. American Journal of Public Health, 83, 265-267.
Annet, M. (1972). The distribution of manual asymmetry. The British Journal of Psychology, 63, 343-358.
Hartlage, L. C., & Gage, R. (1997). Unimanual performance as a measure of laterality. Neuropsyhological Review, 7(3), 143-156.
Bakan, P. (1971). Handedness and birth order. Nature, 229, 195.
Davidson, R. J., & Hugdahl, K (eds.) (1995). Brain Asymmetry. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Rasmussen, T., & Milner, B. (1977). The role of early left-brain injury in determining lateralization of cerebral speech functions. Annuls of the New York Academy of Sciences, 299, 355-369.
Rizzolatti, G., & Arbib, A. (1998). Language within our grasp. Trends in Neurosciences, 21, 188-194.
MacNeilage, P. E. (1990). The “Postural Origins” theory of primate neurobiological asymmetries. In N. A. Krasneger et al. (eds.), Biological and Behavioural Determinants of Language Development, 165-168, Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
6.8.4. See Also
Laska, M. (1996). Manual laterality in spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) solving visually and tactually guided food-reaching tasks. Cortex, 32(4), 717-726.
Karen Bunday
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(17) "5.10.3. End Notes"
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string(347) "Although if you do want to dwell on the role of language in brain evolution (and vice versa), you should start by reading Terrence Deacon’s fantastic The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain. New York: W. W. Norton & Company (1998).
The article that contains this theory was published by Peter Carruthers in [...]"
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string(1751) "Although if you do want to dwell on the role of language in brain evolution (and vice versa), you should start by reading Terrence Deacon’s fantastic The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain. New York: W. W. Norton & Company (1998).
The article that contains this theory was published by Peter Carruthers in Behavioural and Brain Sciences. It, and the response to comments on it, are at http://www.philosophy.umd.edu/people/faculty/pcarruthers/Cognitive-language.htm and http://www.philosophy.umd.edu/people/faculty/pcarruthers/BBS-reply.htm.
OK, by “modules,” he means a lot more than that, but that’s the basic idea. Read Jerry Fodor’s Modularity of Mind (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1983) for the original articulation of this concept. The importance of modularity is also emphasized by evolutionary psychologists, such as Steven Pinker.
Much of the work Peter Carruthers bases his theory on was done at the lab of Elizabeth Spelke (http://www.wjh.harvard.edu/~lds).
Strictly, you don’t have to use both kinds of information in combination at the same time to pass this test; you could use the geometric information and then use the color information, but there is other good evidence that the subjects of the experiments described hererats, children, and adultsdon’t do this.
Hermer-Vazquez, L., Spelke, E. S., & Katsnelson, A. S. (1999). Sources of flexibility in human cognition: Dual-task studies of space and language. Cognitive Psychology, 39(1), 3-36.
Berk, L. E. (November 1994). Why children talk to themselves. Scientific American, 78-83 (http://www.abacon.com/berk/ica/research.html).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(347) "Although if you do want to dwell on the role of language in brain evolution (and vice versa), you should start by reading Terrence Deacon’s fantastic The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain. New York: W. W. Norton & Company (1998).
The article that contains this theory was published by Peter Carruthers in [...]"
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string(1751) "Although if you do want to dwell on the role of language in brain evolution (and vice versa), you should start by reading Terrence Deacon’s fantastic The Symbolic Species: The Co-Evolution of Language and the Brain. New York: W. W. Norton & Company (1998).
The article that contains this theory was published by Peter Carruthers in Behavioural and Brain Sciences. It, and the response to comments on it, are at http://www.philosophy.umd.edu/people/faculty/pcarruthers/Cognitive-language.htm and http://www.philosophy.umd.edu/people/faculty/pcarruthers/BBS-reply.htm.
OK, by “modules,” he means a lot more than that, but that’s the basic idea. Read Jerry Fodor’s Modularity of Mind (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1983) for the original articulation of this concept. The importance of modularity is also emphasized by evolutionary psychologists, such as Steven Pinker.
Much of the work Peter Carruthers bases his theory on was done at the lab of Elizabeth Spelke (http://www.wjh.harvard.edu/~lds).
Strictly, you don’t have to use both kinds of information in combination at the same time to pass this test; you could use the geometric information and then use the color information, but there is other good evidence that the subjects of the experiments described hererats, children, and adultsdon’t do this.
Hermer-Vazquez, L., Spelke, E. S., & Katsnelson, A. S. (1999). Sources of flexibility in human cognition: Dual-task studies of space and language. Cognitive Psychology, 39(1), 3-36.
Berk, L. E. (November 1994). Why children talk to themselves. Scientific American, 78-83 (http://www.abacon.com/berk/ica/research.html).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(333) "Drop from the scalp to the forehead. Push the forehead down into the eyebrows. Form a very tight and terrible scowl with the eyebrows and forehead. Push eyebrows and forehead together. Hold it there. Hold it. Very easily and slowly, relax those tight muscles. Let that scowl go. Slowly, slowly. Feel the tension leaving. Smooth [...]"
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string(2180) "Drop from the scalp to the forehead. Push the forehead down into the eyebrows. Form a very tight and terrible scowl with the eyebrows and forehead. Push eyebrows and forehead together. Hold it there. Hold it. Very easily and slowly, relax those tight muscles. Let that scowl go. Slowly, slowly. Feel the tension leaving. Smooth your brow. Relax. Relax. You felt the tension, now feel the relaxation.
EYE CUPPING
Another exercise to help relax tired, smarting and hurting eyes is called cupping. This is done by cupping your hands and placing the hands over your eyes. Rubbing your hands together, palm to palm, rapidly makes your hands warm, and feels good as you cup your eyes. Rest the heel
of your hand on your cheek bones. Push lightly. Do not put any pressure on the eyes or eye lids. With the cupped hands over the eyes, consciously relax all the eye and eyelid muscles. Close your eyes lightly and relax. Hold your hands over your eyes for a few seconds as you fully
relax the eye area. Remove the hands and then repeat the ?cupping? again. Any time you feel tension building around the eye area, cup the eyes for a quick relief. Visualization is very important when you are relaxing. Think of every muscle you tighten as being drawn as tight as a bow string. When you begin to relax, think of the muscles becoming loose and flabby as you begin to relax. While cupping your eyes, think of them as soft balls of cotton. Think soft and limp. You should practice cupping your eyes now. Think soft and limp. Then return to this point. DO IT NOW!
It is always a good idea to cup your eyes every time you begin reading or studying. From time to time, while reading or studying, if you will pause, relax and cup your eyes while visualizing, your ability to concentrate will increase. Immediately after cupping, your eye vision is most acute. That is because your eyes are more relaxed. Eyes free from tension and relaxed, not only feel better, but see better. Cupping is good exercise to use, often.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(333) "Drop from the scalp to the forehead. Push the forehead down into the eyebrows. Form a very tight and terrible scowl with the eyebrows and forehead. Push eyebrows and forehead together. Hold it there. Hold it. Very easily and slowly, relax those tight muscles. Let that scowl go. Slowly, slowly. Feel the tension leaving. Smooth [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2180) "Drop from the scalp to the forehead. Push the forehead down into the eyebrows. Form a very tight and terrible scowl with the eyebrows and forehead. Push eyebrows and forehead together. Hold it there. Hold it. Very easily and slowly, relax those tight muscles. Let that scowl go. Slowly, slowly. Feel the tension leaving. Smooth your brow. Relax. Relax. You felt the tension, now feel the relaxation.
EYE CUPPING
Another exercise to help relax tired, smarting and hurting eyes is called cupping. This is done by cupping your hands and placing the hands over your eyes. Rubbing your hands together, palm to palm, rapidly makes your hands warm, and feels good as you cup your eyes. Rest the heel
of your hand on your cheek bones. Push lightly. Do not put any pressure on the eyes or eye lids. With the cupped hands over the eyes, consciously relax all the eye and eyelid muscles. Close your eyes lightly and relax. Hold your hands over your eyes for a few seconds as you fully
relax the eye area. Remove the hands and then repeat the ?cupping? again. Any time you feel tension building around the eye area, cup the eyes for a quick relief. Visualization is very important when you are relaxing. Think of every muscle you tighten as being drawn as tight as a bow string. When you begin to relax, think of the muscles becoming loose and flabby as you begin to relax. While cupping your eyes, think of them as soft balls of cotton. Think soft and limp. You should practice cupping your eyes now. Think soft and limp. Then return to this point. DO IT NOW!
It is always a good idea to cup your eyes every time you begin reading or studying. From time to time, while reading or studying, if you will pause, relax and cup your eyes while visualizing, your ability to concentrate will increase. Immediately after cupping, your eye vision is most acute. That is because your eyes are more relaxed. Eyes free from tension and relaxed, not only feel better, but see better. Cupping is good exercise to use, often.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(338) "Nine out of 10 people use their right hand predominantly, and at least 9 out of 10 people have their major functions on their left side.5 This includes around two-thirds of left-handers. Everyone else, a significant minority, either uses the right hemisphere for speech or uses both hemispheres.6
One test of which half of the brain [...]"
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string(1903) "Nine out of 10 people use their right hand predominantly, and at least 9 out of 10 people have their major functions on their left side.5 This includes around two-thirds of left-handers. Everyone else, a significant minority, either uses the right hemisphere for speech or uses both hemispheres.6
One test of which half of the brain is dominant for language is the Wada test. This involves a short-acting anesthetic (e.g., sodium amytal) being injected into the carotid artery. This transiently anesthetizes the left hemisphere, thus testing the functional capabilities of the affected half of the brain. People for whom the left hemisphere is indeed dominant for language (i.e., most of us) will temporarily become aphasic, losing the ability to comprehend or produce language. If counting at the time, you’ll stop being able to do so for a few beats when injected with the anesthetic.
The reason most people are still left-brainers for language may be due to how our brain functions became lateralized [Hack #69] before the evolution of language, the brain lateralizing separately from the use of our hands.
It has been suggested that the speech areas of the brain developed near the motor cortex because hand gestures were the principal form of communication before speech.7 Studies show that, when a participant observes hand and mouth gestures, parts of the motor cortex (F5) and Broca’s area (found in the left frontal lobe, specifically involved in the production of language) are stimulated. It is argued that before speech our ancestors used gestures to communicate, much as monkeys and apes do now (i.e., lip smacks). And so the human speech circuit is a consequence of the precursor of Broca’s area, which was endowed (before speech) with mechanisms to recognize action made by others, from which speech developed.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(338) "Nine out of 10 people use their right hand predominantly, and at least 9 out of 10 people have their major functions on their left side.5 This includes around two-thirds of left-handers. Everyone else, a significant minority, either uses the right hemisphere for speech or uses both hemispheres.6
One test of which half of the brain [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1903) "Nine out of 10 people use their right hand predominantly, and at least 9 out of 10 people have their major functions on their left side.5 This includes around two-thirds of left-handers. Everyone else, a significant minority, either uses the right hemisphere for speech or uses both hemispheres.6
One test of which half of the brain is dominant for language is the Wada test. This involves a short-acting anesthetic (e.g., sodium amytal) being injected into the carotid artery. This transiently anesthetizes the left hemisphere, thus testing the functional capabilities of the affected half of the brain. People for whom the left hemisphere is indeed dominant for language (i.e., most of us) will temporarily become aphasic, losing the ability to comprehend or produce language. If counting at the time, you’ll stop being able to do so for a few beats when injected with the anesthetic.
The reason most people are still left-brainers for language may be due to how our brain functions became lateralized [Hack #69] before the evolution of language, the brain lateralizing separately from the use of our hands.
It has been suggested that the speech areas of the brain developed near the motor cortex because hand gestures were the principal form of communication before speech.7 Studies show that, when a participant observes hand and mouth gestures, parts of the motor cortex (F5) and Broca’s area (found in the left frontal lobe, specifically involved in the production of language) are stimulated. It is argued that before speech our ancestors used gestures to communicate, much as monkeys and apes do now (i.e., lip smacks). And so the human speech circuit is a consequence of the precursor of Broca’s area, which was endowed (before speech) with mechanisms to recognize action made by others, from which speech developed.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1257736273)
}
[6]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(20) "RELAXATION EXERCISES"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=573"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=573#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:54:51 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(313) "Starting this exercise, you should be in a location and position that is comfortable and in which you can totally respond to the directions you will receive. Sit or lie comfortably and relaxed. Keep your eyes closed. There is nothing to look at, or read for the rest of this exercise. With your eyes closed, [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(1698) "Starting this exercise, you should be in a location and position that is comfortable and in which you can totally respond to the directions you will receive. Sit or lie comfortably and relaxed. Keep your eyes closed. There is nothing to look at, or read for the rest of this exercise. With your eyes closed, think only of what you are hearing. Pay attention to the muscles around the areas we talk about. If you need time to get into a comfortable position, turn the recorder off and when ready, turn it back on. DO IT NOW!
THE HEAD
Start at the top of your head. Raise your eyebrows. Push them right up toward the top of your head. Push hard. Hold it. Push harder. Hold it there. Feel the tension tighten in the muscles in the forehead and scalp area. Now, gradually and slowly, lower your eyebrows. Smooth your
forehead. This tension created by raising your eyebrows extended back into your scalp area. As you relaxed, the entire top of your head relaxed. Pay attention to the top of your head gaining tension and then releasing it as you repeat this exercise.
Raise your eyebrows high. Push them right up to the top of your head. Push hard. Notice the tightness all the way back over your head and to the rear of your scalp. Keep pushing. Hold it.
Hold it. Now, very slowly, slowly, begin to lower your eyebrows. Gradually and slowly. Smooth your forehead. Totally relax that area. Pay special attention to how good it feels. Relax. Relax. Could you feel the tension begin to leave as soon as you began to relax?
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(313) "Starting this exercise, you should be in a location and position that is comfortable and in which you can totally respond to the directions you will receive. Sit or lie comfortably and relaxed. Keep your eyes closed. There is nothing to look at, or read for the rest of this exercise. With your eyes closed, [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1698) "Starting this exercise, you should be in a location and position that is comfortable and in which you can totally respond to the directions you will receive. Sit or lie comfortably and relaxed. Keep your eyes closed. There is nothing to look at, or read for the rest of this exercise. With your eyes closed, think only of what you are hearing. Pay attention to the muscles around the areas we talk about. If you need time to get into a comfortable position, turn the recorder off and when ready, turn it back on. DO IT NOW!
THE HEAD
Start at the top of your head. Raise your eyebrows. Push them right up toward the top of your head. Push hard. Hold it. Push harder. Hold it there. Feel the tension tighten in the muscles in the forehead and scalp area. Now, gradually and slowly, lower your eyebrows. Smooth your
forehead. This tension created by raising your eyebrows extended back into your scalp area. As you relaxed, the entire top of your head relaxed. Pay attention to the top of your head gaining tension and then releasing it as you repeat this exercise.
Raise your eyebrows high. Push them right up to the top of your head. Push hard. Notice the tightness all the way back over your head and to the rear of your scalp. Keep pushing. Hold it.
Hold it. Now, very slowly, slowly, begin to lower your eyebrows. Gradually and slowly. Smooth your forehead. Totally relax that area. Pay special attention to how good it feels. Relax. Relax. Could you feel the tension begin to leave as soon as you began to relax?
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1257483291)
}
[7]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(45) "Benefits of Shopping Zenni Optical Eyeglasses"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=741"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=741#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:09:01 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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string(5) "admin"
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["category"]=>
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["guid"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(316) "Smart shopper like to buy everything they need online because they know that online shopping really can save time and money. How about you? If you are looking for eyeglasses for yourself or for your kids, you can also get best quality eyeglasses if you visit Zenni Optical. People like to shop at Zenni Optical [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(830) "Smart shopper like to buy everything they need online because they know that online shopping really can save time and money. How about you? If you are looking for eyeglasses for yourself or for your kids, you can also get best quality eyeglasses if you visit Zenni Optical. People like to shop at Zenni Optical website because they can get cheap price like $8 Prescription Zenni Glasses. If you like to match your eyeglasses frames with your clothes, you can also buy the stylish New Arrivals collection as well. If you prefer plastic full-rim frame which has many colors, you can select the Holiday Fun Eyeglasses collections. So, get it now!
"
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string(316) "Smart shopper like to buy everything they need online because they know that online shopping really can save time and money. How about you? If you are looking for eyeglasses for yourself or for your kids, you can also get best quality eyeglasses if you visit Zenni Optical. People like to shop at Zenni Optical [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(830) "Smart shopper like to buy everything they need online because they know that online shopping really can save time and money. How about you? If you are looking for eyeglasses for yourself or for your kids, you can also get best quality eyeglasses if you visit Zenni Optical. People like to shop at Zenni Optical website because they can get cheap price like $8 Prescription Zenni Glasses. If you like to match your eyeglasses frames with your clothes, you can also buy the stylish New Arrivals collection as well. If you prefer plastic full-rim frame which has many colors, you can select the Holiday Fun Eyeglasses collections. So, get it now!
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1257394141)
}
[8]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(19) "6.8.2. How It Works"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=407"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=407#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:10:16 +0000"
["dc"]=>
array(1) {
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string(5) "admin"
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["category"]=>
string(13) "Uncategorized"
["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=407"
["description"]=>
string(294) "By doing the previous tests, you can see that you can still use your off-hand for some things and that it is easier to use your off-hand for some things than for other things. Most people have some things for which they use their dominant hand, some things they may use both for, and some [...]"
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string(1467) "By doing the previous tests, you can see that you can still use your off-hand for some things and that it is easier to use your off-hand for some things than for other things. Most people have some things for which they use their dominant hand, some things they may use both for, and some for which they use their off-hand.
So, in a sense, describing people as left-handed or right-handed is limiting because it puts them into only one category and ignores the extent to which they may be in that categoryor in between the two. This is why, of course, we used behavioral measures to work out the handedness quotient, rather than just asking people.3
Handedness is only weakly genetic. The child of two left-handers has a 45-50% chance of being left-handed, and thus handedness must partly be to do with how the child is brought up as well, so we know that there is a large nongenetic influence on whether you turn out to be a left-hander. Evidence also suggests that left-handedness may be associated with neurological insult in the womb or during delivery.4
If you try the test out on a few people, you will see that left-handed people more easily use their right hand than right-handed people use their left hand. In part, this is probably because our right-handed world forces left-handers to learn to use their right more, and it could also be for deeper reasons to do with brain lateralization as well.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(294) "By doing the previous tests, you can see that you can still use your off-hand for some things and that it is easier to use your off-hand for some things than for other things. Most people have some things for which they use their dominant hand, some things they may use both for, and some [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1467) "By doing the previous tests, you can see that you can still use your off-hand for some things and that it is easier to use your off-hand for some things than for other things. Most people have some things for which they use their dominant hand, some things they may use both for, and some for which they use their off-hand.
So, in a sense, describing people as left-handed or right-handed is limiting because it puts them into only one category and ignores the extent to which they may be in that categoryor in between the two. This is why, of course, we used behavioral measures to work out the handedness quotient, rather than just asking people.3
Handedness is only weakly genetic. The child of two left-handers has a 45-50% chance of being left-handed, and thus handedness must partly be to do with how the child is brought up as well, so we know that there is a large nongenetic influence on whether you turn out to be a left-hander. Evidence also suggests that left-handedness may be associated with neurological insult in the womb or during delivery.4
If you try the test out on a few people, you will see that left-handed people more easily use their right hand than right-handed people use their left hand. In part, this is probably because our right-handed world forces left-handers to learn to use their right more, and it could also be for deeper reasons to do with brain lateralization as well.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1257214216)
}
[9]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(24) "HOW TO RECOGNIZE TENSION"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=571"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=571#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sat, 31 Oct 2009 04:52:42 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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}
["category"]=>
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["guid"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(303) "It is not unusual for you to be unaware of the presence of tension. Many people develop great tension when they sleep. They even grind their teeth while sleeping. While sleeping, it is possible for your eyes to be tense and strained. When you wake up with tired and smarting eyes, it is because of [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(1308) "It is not unusual for you to be unaware of the presence of tension. Many people develop great tension when they sleep. They even grind their teeth while sleeping. While sleeping, it is possible for your eyes to be tense and strained. When you wake up with tired and smarting eyes, it is because of that tension while sleeping. As you learn to relax more effectively, you will find that you not only read much more effectively, but all areas of your life will be positively affected because of your learning the relaxation skill.
When reading and becoming involved in other skill activity areas, the area most singly affected by tension is that of the head. The head area will be used to demonstrate tension. You will be asked to tighten muscles in different parts of the face and head to simulate and demonstrate tension and then relaxation.
Once you learn to recognize tension and then learn to release it through relaxation, you can do this at any time, in any place. You can begin to eliminate your ?tension headaches,? and generally feel better when you start to get ?up-tight.? It is important that you do the relaxation exercises now.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
}
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string(303) "It is not unusual for you to be unaware of the presence of tension. Many people develop great tension when they sleep. They even grind their teeth while sleeping. While sleeping, it is possible for your eyes to be tense and strained. When you wake up with tired and smarting eyes, it is because of [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1308) "It is not unusual for you to be unaware of the presence of tension. Many people develop great tension when they sleep. They even grind their teeth while sleeping. While sleeping, it is possible for your eyes to be tense and strained. When you wake up with tired and smarting eyes, it is because of that tension while sleeping. As you learn to relax more effectively, you will find that you not only read much more effectively, but all areas of your life will be positively affected because of your learning the relaxation skill.
When reading and becoming involved in other skill activity areas, the area most singly affected by tension is that of the head. The head area will be used to demonstrate tension. You will be asked to tighten muscles in different parts of the face and head to simulate and demonstrate tension and then relaxation.
Once you learn to recognize tension and then learn to release it through relaxation, you can do this at any time, in any place. You can begin to eliminate your ?tension headaches,? and generally feel better when you start to get ?up-tight.? It is important that you do the relaxation exercises now.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1256964762)
}
[10]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(43) "CHAPTER 22 Other Potential Promemory Agents"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=526"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=526#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:01:14 +0000"
["dc"]=>
array(1) {
["creator"]=>
string(5) "admin"
}
["category"]=>
string(13) "Uncategorized"
["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=526"
["description"]=>
string(374) "MANY OTHER MEDICATIONS have been proposed as treatments for mild memory loss, or as part of an antiaging regimen. These agents include DHEA, hormones and related peptides, and metallic elements. Although several of these substances are intriguing, the knowledge base is currently insufficient to include them in the Memory Program. Nonetheless, knowing the basic facts [...]"
["content"]=>
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string(1958) "MANY OTHER MEDICATIONS have been proposed as treatments for mild memory loss, or as part of an antiaging regimen. These agents include DHEA, hormones and related peptides, and metallic elements. Although several of these substances are intriguing, the knowledge base is currently insufficient to include them in the Memory Program. Nonetheless, knowing the basic facts will give you a better understanding of the stories that you are likely to hear in the media about one or more of these agents as potential cures for memory loss.
What about DHEA?
Dehydroepiandrosterone, or DHEA, is a natural substance produced primarily by the adrenal glands, which sit on top of the kidneys in the lower back. DHEA is the main starting point for the synthesis of over twenty steroids, including the female hormone estrogen and the male hormone testosterone. Some call it the mother of all steroid hormones.
Actions of DHEA
Heightens sex drive.
Raises general activity level.
Strengthens immune function.
In mice, maintains neuronal structure, improves the ability to traverse a maze.
Increases longevity in mice.
In the human brain, DHEA is present at six times its concentration in the bloodstream. In the average person, DHEA blood levels decline fivefold from the age of twenty to seventy years. A few proponents quote this fact to claim that giving DHEA to older people boosts low blood levels and corrects a ??deficit.? More systematic research is needed to find out if this claim is valid. Of note, in a study of older men, those with the highest DHEA blood levels had the best general health over the course of a decade of follow-up. An alternative to DHEA is pregnenolone, a natural steroid that is converted to DHEA in the body.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(374) "MANY OTHER MEDICATIONS have been proposed as treatments for mild memory loss, or as part of an antiaging regimen. These agents include DHEA, hormones and related peptides, and metallic elements. Although several of these substances are intriguing, the knowledge base is currently insufficient to include them in the Memory Program. Nonetheless, knowing the basic facts [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1958) "MANY OTHER MEDICATIONS have been proposed as treatments for mild memory loss, or as part of an antiaging regimen. These agents include DHEA, hormones and related peptides, and metallic elements. Although several of these substances are intriguing, the knowledge base is currently insufficient to include them in the Memory Program. Nonetheless, knowing the basic facts will give you a better understanding of the stories that you are likely to hear in the media about one or more of these agents as potential cures for memory loss.
What about DHEA?
Dehydroepiandrosterone, or DHEA, is a natural substance produced primarily by the adrenal glands, which sit on top of the kidneys in the lower back. DHEA is the main starting point for the synthesis of over twenty steroids, including the female hormone estrogen and the male hormone testosterone. Some call it the mother of all steroid hormones.
Actions of DHEA
Heightens sex drive.
Raises general activity level.
Strengthens immune function.
In mice, maintains neuronal structure, improves the ability to traverse a maze.
Increases longevity in mice.
In the human brain, DHEA is present at six times its concentration in the bloodstream. In the average person, DHEA blood levels decline fivefold from the age of twenty to seventy years. A few proponents quote this fact to claim that giving DHEA to older people boosts low blood levels and corrects a ??deficit.? More systematic research is needed to find out if this claim is valid. Of note, in a study of older men, those with the highest DHEA blood levels had the best general health over the course of a decade of follow-up. An alternative to DHEA is pregnenolone, a natural steroid that is converted to DHEA in the body.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1256691674)
}
[11]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(16) "6.8.1. In Action"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=405#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sun, 25 Oct 2009 01:00:35 +0000"
["dc"]=>
array(1) {
["creator"]=>
string(5) "admin"
}
["category"]=>
string(13) "Uncategorized"
["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=405"
["description"]=>
string(308) "Have a go at the following tests to determine which is your dominant hand and just how dominant it is. Do each test twiceonce with each handand record your score, in seconds, both times. You don’t have to do all of them; just see which you can do given the equipment you have on hand.
Darts
Throw [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(1628) "Have a go at the following tests to determine which is your dominant hand and just how dominant it is. Do each test twiceonce with each handand record your score, in seconds, both times. You don’t have to do all of them; just see which you can do given the equipment you have on hand.
Darts
Throw three darts at a dartboard. (Be very careful when doing this with your off-hand!) Add up the distances from the bull’s-eye.
Handwriting
Measure the time that it takes to write the alphabet as one word, six times. Start with the hand you normally write with and rest for 1 minute before starting with the other hand.
Drawing
Measure the time that it takes to draw a line between two of the lines of some lined paper. Add a penalty of 2 seconds for each time your line touches one of the ruled lines.
Picking up objects with tweezers
Using tweezers, measure the time that it takes to pick up and transfer 12 pieces of wire from one container to another.
Stoppering bottles
Measure the time, in seconds, it takes to put the lids on five jars, the corks back in five wine bottles, or the cap back on five beer bottles.
Here’s how to calculate your handedness quotient:
(Left-hand score - Right-hand score) / (Right-hand score + Left-hand score) x 100
You can now see how the score differs for the different tasks and take an average to see your average dominance. Negative numbers mean right-handedness, positive numbers mean left-handedness. Bigger numbers mean greater dominance by one hand.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
}
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array(1) {
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string(308) "Have a go at the following tests to determine which is your dominant hand and just how dominant it is. Do each test twiceonce with each handand record your score, in seconds, both times. You don’t have to do all of them; just see which you can do given the equipment you have on hand.
Darts
Throw [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1628) "Have a go at the following tests to determine which is your dominant hand and just how dominant it is. Do each test twiceonce with each handand record your score, in seconds, both times. You don’t have to do all of them; just see which you can do given the equipment you have on hand.
Darts
Throw three darts at a dartboard. (Be very careful when doing this with your off-hand!) Add up the distances from the bull’s-eye.
Handwriting
Measure the time that it takes to write the alphabet as one word, six times. Start with the hand you normally write with and rest for 1 minute before starting with the other hand.
Drawing
Measure the time that it takes to draw a line between two of the lines of some lined paper. Add a penalty of 2 seconds for each time your line touches one of the ruled lines.
Picking up objects with tweezers
Using tweezers, measure the time that it takes to pick up and transfer 12 pieces of wire from one container to another.
Stoppering bottles
Measure the time, in seconds, it takes to put the lids on five jars, the corks back in five wine bottles, or the cap back on five beer bottles.
Here’s how to calculate your handedness quotient:
(Left-hand score - Right-hand score) / (Right-hand score + Left-hand score) x 100
You can now see how the score differs for the different tasks and take an average to see your average dominance. Negative numbers mean right-handedness, positive numbers mean left-handedness. Bigger numbers mean greater dominance by one hand.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1256432435)
}
[12]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(33) "There are two types of relaxation"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=569"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=569#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:48:32 +0000"
["dc"]=>
array(1) {
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string(5) "admin"
}
["category"]=>
string(13) "Uncategorized"
["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=569"
["description"]=>
string(366) "There are two types of relaxation: ?Dynamic? and ?Passive.? When muscles are completely relaxed and simply dormant, it is called PASSIVE RELAXATION. When the muscles are relaxed, but moving smoothly and easily, it is called DYNAMIC RELAXATION. The latter is best illustrated by an athlete running easily in a relaxed manner.
This same dynamic relaxation, used [...]"
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string(1980) "There are two types of relaxation: ?Dynamic? and ?Passive.? When muscles are completely relaxed and simply dormant, it is called PASSIVE RELAXATION. When the muscles are relaxed, but moving smoothly and easily, it is called DYNAMIC RELAXATION. The latter is best illustrated by an athlete running easily in a relaxed manner.
This same dynamic relaxation, used by athletes, must be used in the reading activity. All barriers to relaxation must be removed. No tension of any kind should be felt. As you practice and progress through the program, you will learn to relax and your eye movement, while reading, will be easy, smooth and natural. The more you practice, the more easily and the more quickly it will be learned.
The most important step you must take in developing your Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading skills, is learning the skill of relaxation. It is a skill, and like any other skill, it can be learned with practice. You will be given passive relaxation exercises to help you develop the relaxation skill. Once you learn it, you will be able to relax at any time, and in any place. If you can relax this way, you will be able to function more effectively with dynamic relaxation exercises. It is important that you understand and be able to function with dynamic relaxation.
There have been many varied and interesting experiences with people using the relaxation exercises taught by the program. Readers have stated that they could only read for a few minutes before their eyes became tired and they became sleepy. After using the program and learning the relaxation program, they can now read for indefinite periods of time. Others have stated that the ability to relax is so important to them that learning the relaxation skill alone was worth more than the total amount they paid for the program.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
}
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string(366) "There are two types of relaxation: ?Dynamic? and ?Passive.? When muscles are completely relaxed and simply dormant, it is called PASSIVE RELAXATION. When the muscles are relaxed, but moving smoothly and easily, it is called DYNAMIC RELAXATION. The latter is best illustrated by an athlete running easily in a relaxed manner.
This same dynamic relaxation, used [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1980) "There are two types of relaxation: ?Dynamic? and ?Passive.? When muscles are completely relaxed and simply dormant, it is called PASSIVE RELAXATION. When the muscles are relaxed, but moving smoothly and easily, it is called DYNAMIC RELAXATION. The latter is best illustrated by an athlete running easily in a relaxed manner.
This same dynamic relaxation, used by athletes, must be used in the reading activity. All barriers to relaxation must be removed. No tension of any kind should be felt. As you practice and progress through the program, you will learn to relax and your eye movement, while reading, will be easy, smooth and natural. The more you practice, the more easily and the more quickly it will be learned.
The most important step you must take in developing your Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading skills, is learning the skill of relaxation. It is a skill, and like any other skill, it can be learned with practice. You will be given passive relaxation exercises to help you develop the relaxation skill. Once you learn it, you will be able to relax at any time, and in any place. If you can relax this way, you will be able to function more effectively with dynamic relaxation exercises. It is important that you understand and be able to function with dynamic relaxation.
There have been many varied and interesting experiences with people using the relaxation exercises taught by the program. Readers have stated that they could only read for a few minutes before their eyes became tired and they became sleepy. After using the program and learning the relaxation program, they can now read for indefinite periods of time. Others have stated that the ability to relax is so important to them that learning the relaxation skill alone was worth more than the total amount they paid for the program.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1256186912)
}
[13]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(29) "Hack 68. Test Your Handedness"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=403"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=403#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Mon, 19 Oct 2009 01:00:11 +0000"
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string(309) "We all have a hand preference when undertaking manual tasks. But why is this so? And do you always prefer the same hand, or does it vary with what you are doing? Does the way people vary their hand preference differ between right- and left-handers?
The world is a right-handed one, as will be obvious to [...]"
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string(1634) "We all have a hand preference when undertaking manual tasks. But why is this so? And do you always prefer the same hand, or does it vary with what you are doing? Does the way people vary their hand preference differ between right- and left-handers?
The world is a right-handed one, as will be obvious to left-handers. Most tools are made for right-handed people. Implements such as scissors, knives, coffee pots, and so on are all constructed for the right-handed majority. In consequence, the accident rate for left-handers is higher than for rightand not just in tool use; the rate of traffic fatalities among left-handers is also greater than for right.1
The word “sinister,” which now means “ill-omened,” originally meant “left-handed.” The corresponding word for “right-handed” is “dexter,” from which we get the word “dexterous.”
T.S.
Nine out of 10 people are right-handed.2 The proportion appears to have been stable over thousands of years and across all cultures in which handedness has been examined. Anthropologists have been able to determine the incidence of handedness in ancient cultures by examining artifacts, such as the shape of flint axes. Based on evidence like this and other evidence such as writing about handedness in antiquity, our species appears always to have been a predominantly right-handed one.
But even right-handers vary in just how right-handed they are, and this variation may have a link to how you use the different sides of your brain [Hack #69] .
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(309) "We all have a hand preference when undertaking manual tasks. But why is this so? And do you always prefer the same hand, or does it vary with what you are doing? Does the way people vary their hand preference differ between right- and left-handers?
The world is a right-handed one, as will be obvious to [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1634) "We all have a hand preference when undertaking manual tasks. But why is this so? And do you always prefer the same hand, or does it vary with what you are doing? Does the way people vary their hand preference differ between right- and left-handers?
The world is a right-handed one, as will be obvious to left-handers. Most tools are made for right-handed people. Implements such as scissors, knives, coffee pots, and so on are all constructed for the right-handed majority. In consequence, the accident rate for left-handers is higher than for rightand not just in tool use; the rate of traffic fatalities among left-handers is also greater than for right.1
The word “sinister,” which now means “ill-omened,” originally meant “left-handed.” The corresponding word for “right-handed” is “dexter,” from which we get the word “dexterous.”
T.S.
Nine out of 10 people are right-handed.2 The proportion appears to have been stable over thousands of years and across all cultures in which handedness has been examined. Anthropologists have been able to determine the incidence of handedness in ancient cultures by examining artifacts, such as the shape of flint axes. Based on evidence like this and other evidence such as writing about handedness in antiquity, our species appears always to have been a predominantly right-handed one.
But even right-handers vary in just how right-handed they are, and this variation may have a link to how you use the different sides of your brain [Hack #69] .
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1255914011)
}
[14]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(35) "Hack 67. Objects Ask to Be Used (3)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=401"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=401#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 16 Oct 2009 09:00:01 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(345) "So, objects can produce movements within our mind, but just how do they do so? We don’t know the answer to this yet. One possibility is that these effects happen automatically, as Gibson suggested. Our system for visual perception has two routes [Hack #66] : the ventral (or “what?”) route, concerned with the identity of [...]"
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string(2811) "So, objects can produce movements within our mind, but just how do they do so? We don’t know the answer to this yet. One possibility is that these effects happen automatically, as Gibson suggested. Our system for visual perception has two routes [Hack #66] : the ventral (or “what?”) route, concerned with the identity of the object and the dorsal (”where?” or “how?”) route, concerned with location and action. Affordances may act directly on the dorsal stream, without relying on any higher processing; information about the type of movement might be extracted directly from the shape or location of the object.
However, our knowledge about objects must play a role. We certainly couldn’t have evolved to respond to everyday objects of todayprehistoric man didn’t live in a world filled with door handles and coffee mugs! These automatic responses must be learned through experience. Recently, Tucker and Ellis4 found that merely seeing an object’s name was enough to speed reaction times to produce the relevant size of grasp. Thus, our previous experience and knowledge about acting upon objects become bound up with the way that we represent each object in our brains. So, whenever you see (or simply consider) an object, the possibility of what you might do with it is automatically triggered in your mind.
One point to remember from this research is that objects will exert a constant “pull” on people to be used in the ways that they afford. Don’t be surprised if people who are tired, in a hurry, or simply not paying attention (or who just have a lack of respect for how you wanted the object to be used) end up automatically responding to the actions the object offers. One practical example: if you don’t want something to be used by accident (e.g., an ejector seat), don’t have it triggered by the same action as something else that is used constantly without much thought (e.g., have it triggered by a twist switch, rather than by a button like the ignition).
T. S.
6.7.3. End Notes
Tucker, M., & Ellis, R. (1998). On the relationship between seen objects and components of potential actions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 24, 830-846.
de’Sperati, C., & Stucchi, N. (1997). Recognizing the motion of a graspable object is guided by handedness. NeuroReport, 8, 2761-2765.
Grezes, J., & Decety, J. (2002). Does visual perception of object afford action? Evidence from a neuroimaging study. Neuropsychologia, 40, 212-222.
Tucker, M., & Ellis, R. (2004). Action priming by briefly presented objects. Acta Psychologica, 116, 185-203.
Ellen Poliakoff
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(345) "So, objects can produce movements within our mind, but just how do they do so? We don’t know the answer to this yet. One possibility is that these effects happen automatically, as Gibson suggested. Our system for visual perception has two routes [Hack #66] : the ventral (or “what?”) route, concerned with the identity of [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2811) "So, objects can produce movements within our mind, but just how do they do so? We don’t know the answer to this yet. One possibility is that these effects happen automatically, as Gibson suggested. Our system for visual perception has two routes [Hack #66] : the ventral (or “what?”) route, concerned with the identity of the object and the dorsal (”where?” or “how?”) route, concerned with location and action. Affordances may act directly on the dorsal stream, without relying on any higher processing; information about the type of movement might be extracted directly from the shape or location of the object.
However, our knowledge about objects must play a role. We certainly couldn’t have evolved to respond to everyday objects of todayprehistoric man didn’t live in a world filled with door handles and coffee mugs! These automatic responses must be learned through experience. Recently, Tucker and Ellis4 found that merely seeing an object’s name was enough to speed reaction times to produce the relevant size of grasp. Thus, our previous experience and knowledge about acting upon objects become bound up with the way that we represent each object in our brains. So, whenever you see (or simply consider) an object, the possibility of what you might do with it is automatically triggered in your mind.
One point to remember from this research is that objects will exert a constant “pull” on people to be used in the ways that they afford. Don’t be surprised if people who are tired, in a hurry, or simply not paying attention (or who just have a lack of respect for how you wanted the object to be used) end up automatically responding to the actions the object offers. One practical example: if you don’t want something to be used by accident (e.g., an ejector seat), don’t have it triggered by the same action as something else that is used constantly without much thought (e.g., have it triggered by a twist switch, rather than by a button like the ignition).
T. S.
6.7.3. End Notes
Tucker, M., & Ellis, R. (1998). On the relationship between seen objects and components of potential actions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 24, 830-846.
de’Sperati, C., & Stucchi, N. (1997). Recognizing the motion of a graspable object is guided by handedness. NeuroReport, 8, 2761-2765.
Grezes, J., & Decety, J. (2002). Does visual perception of object afford action? Evidence from a neuroimaging study. Neuropsychologia, 40, 212-222.
Tucker, M., & Ellis, R. (2004). Action priming by briefly presented objects. Acta Psychologica, 116, 185-203.
Ellen Poliakoff
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1255683601)
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[15]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(38) "THE GREATEST ENEMY TO READING: TENSION"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=567"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=567#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Tue, 13 Oct 2009 04:42:12 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(313) "Most people say they don?t read more than they do because it gives them a headache, or they just can?t keep their eyes open, or they just can?t develop and keep their interest level up, or something similar. The people who are having these thoughts and problems believe that these are an inseparable part of [...]"
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string(2637) "Most people say they don?t read more than they do because it gives them a headache, or they just can?t keep their eyes open, or they just can?t develop and keep their interest level up, or something similar. The people who are having these thoughts and problems believe that these are an inseparable part of reading.
For them, these problems really are an inseparable part of reading because they have become a part of their reading habits. All these problems are caused by one thing, TENSION. Tension is not inevitable. As long as tension is present, the reader will always have discomfort, like some of the problems mentioned above or something similar. Tension can be created voluntarily and involuntarily, but can be eliminated with concentrated effort. Tension means tight or taut. The obvious solution to something tight is to loosen it. Tension in a person takes the form of tight muscles and mental tightness. The solution is relaxation, both physically and mentally. Once you learn to relax properly, at any place or time, you should be able to take about 10 minutes and feel almost completely rested. This is, in fact, not difficult to learn or to do.
READING CONDITIONS
When you are preparing to read, take your reading conditions into consideration first. The greatest cause of tension in readers is the condition under which they are reading. Poor light, glare or poor posture, all create tension while reading. When you read for just a few minutes, and feel tired or sleepy, it is usually a result of eye strain and tension caused by poor reading conditions. Eliminating tension by eliminating poor reading conditions must be your top priority.
You should always create as near to ideal reading conditions as you possibly can. The ideal reading position is seated in a comfortable, firm chair with the book on a table or desk, tilted slightly toward the reader. The room should be well lit, with the reading area lighted even more directly than the rest of the room.
When you begin to practice as instructed, you are going to be doing things that are contrary to your primary habits. This will begin to develop tension. As you push yourself across the printed page and you are intentionally trying not to see the words, you are going against your normal reading habits. To avoid building tension, you must make every effort to relax. This effort will make your learning easier. Your biggest road block to learning these new reading skills is tension.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(313) "Most people say they don?t read more than they do because it gives them a headache, or they just can?t keep their eyes open, or they just can?t develop and keep their interest level up, or something similar. The people who are having these thoughts and problems believe that these are an inseparable part of [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2637) "Most people say they don?t read more than they do because it gives them a headache, or they just can?t keep their eyes open, or they just can?t develop and keep their interest level up, or something similar. The people who are having these thoughts and problems believe that these are an inseparable part of reading.
For them, these problems really are an inseparable part of reading because they have become a part of their reading habits. All these problems are caused by one thing, TENSION. Tension is not inevitable. As long as tension is present, the reader will always have discomfort, like some of the problems mentioned above or something similar. Tension can be created voluntarily and involuntarily, but can be eliminated with concentrated effort. Tension means tight or taut. The obvious solution to something tight is to loosen it. Tension in a person takes the form of tight muscles and mental tightness. The solution is relaxation, both physically and mentally. Once you learn to relax properly, at any place or time, you should be able to take about 10 minutes and feel almost completely rested. This is, in fact, not difficult to learn or to do.
READING CONDITIONS
When you are preparing to read, take your reading conditions into consideration first. The greatest cause of tension in readers is the condition under which they are reading. Poor light, glare or poor posture, all create tension while reading. When you read for just a few minutes, and feel tired or sleepy, it is usually a result of eye strain and tension caused by poor reading conditions. Eliminating tension by eliminating poor reading conditions must be your top priority.
You should always create as near to ideal reading conditions as you possibly can. The ideal reading position is seated in a comfortable, firm chair with the book on a table or desk, tilted slightly toward the reader. The room should be well lit, with the reading area lighted even more directly than the rest of the room.
When you begin to practice as instructed, you are going to be doing things that are contrary to your primary habits. This will begin to develop tension. As you push yourself across the printed page and you are intentionally trying not to see the words, you are going against your normal reading habits. To avoid building tension, you must make every effort to relax. This effort will make your learning easier. Your biggest road block to learning these new reading skills is tension.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1255408932)
}
[16]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(42) "Why Other Medications Did Not Make the Cut"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=522"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=522#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sat, 10 Oct 2009 08:08:54 +0000"
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string(319) "The cholinergic compounds lecithin and Alcar just missed the cut because the data are much weaker than for Aricept (or Exelon or Reminyl). DHEA (discussed in the next chapter) is not on my list, not only because its efficacy against memory loss has not been established, but also because it is more toxic than the [...]"
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string(3483) "The cholinergic compounds lecithin and Alcar just missed the cut because the data are much weaker than for Aricept (or Exelon or Reminyl). DHEA (discussed in the next chapter) is not on my list, not only because its efficacy against memory loss has not been established, but also because it is more toxic than the medications that are on the list. The data on hydergine and the nootropics do not suggest sufficient action against memory loss. The COX-II inhibitors did not make it to the list either, mainly because they have just been released and we have no information on their use against memory loss. Ongoing and future clinical studies may demonstrate significant antimemory-loss properties for the COX-II inhibitors, in which case Celebrex or Vioxx might well vault to the top of the list.
The FDA Has Yet to Approve Any Medication for Mild-Memory Loss
Note that none of the prescription medications are approved by the FDA for age-related or mild memory loss, so not all physicians will be willing to prescribe them. However, many neurologists and psychiatrists are prescribing one or more of these medications (off-label) for these purposes.
Long-Term Efficacy Data Are Lacking, But Safety Data Do Exist
Although I have emphasized that we do not have data about any medications on long-term prevention of memory loss, we do have safety data on long-term use for many of these medications. The vitamins can be taken on a daily basis for years, and so can estrogen in women, provided there is gynecological monitoring. Aricept has been prescribed for several years of continuous usage without major adverse events in Alzheimer’s patients, and selegiline has been taken by many Parkinson’s
patients continuously for several years to decades. Ginkgo biloba also appears to be quite safe during long-term use. Phosphatidylserine has not been studied in long-term trials, but its lack of side effects during several months of daily administration indirectly suggests that it is likely to be safe even when taken for several years at a stretch.
Which Medications Should You Take?
If you wish to take a memory enhancer, what medication should you choose from this list? Obviously, you cannot take the whole lot for several reasons: the high cost and large number of capsules required, the increased risk of toxicity, and the lack of solid evidence that combinations are better than single agents. Adding selegiline to vitamin E, for example, does not improve matters for patients with Alzheimer’s disease, even though individually each agent has a small effect. Critically, combining too many medications can be dangerous because the risk of toxic interactions will skyrocket. The solution is to follow the medication guidelines in the following tables, based on whether you have a normal memory or have mild memory loss.
I will now review the possible combinations of medications, and the Memory Program more broadly, according to categories divided on the basis of age, gender, and preventing future memory loss versus treatment for mild memory loss. I will not repeat the doses and side effects of each medication; this information can be obtained from these tables and the preceding text in this chapter (and earlier chapters).
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(319) "The cholinergic compounds lecithin and Alcar just missed the cut because the data are much weaker than for Aricept (or Exelon or Reminyl). DHEA (discussed in the next chapter) is not on my list, not only because its efficacy against memory loss has not been established, but also because it is more toxic than the [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(3483) "The cholinergic compounds lecithin and Alcar just missed the cut because the data are much weaker than for Aricept (or Exelon or Reminyl). DHEA (discussed in the next chapter) is not on my list, not only because its efficacy against memory loss has not been established, but also because it is more toxic than the medications that are on the list. The data on hydergine and the nootropics do not suggest sufficient action against memory loss. The COX-II inhibitors did not make it to the list either, mainly because they have just been released and we have no information on their use against memory loss. Ongoing and future clinical studies may demonstrate significant antimemory-loss properties for the COX-II inhibitors, in which case Celebrex or Vioxx might well vault to the top of the list.
The FDA Has Yet to Approve Any Medication for Mild-Memory Loss
Note that none of the prescription medications are approved by the FDA for age-related or mild memory loss, so not all physicians will be willing to prescribe them. However, many neurologists and psychiatrists are prescribing one or more of these medications (off-label) for these purposes.
Long-Term Efficacy Data Are Lacking, But Safety Data Do Exist
Although I have emphasized that we do not have data about any medications on long-term prevention of memory loss, we do have safety data on long-term use for many of these medications. The vitamins can be taken on a daily basis for years, and so can estrogen in women, provided there is gynecological monitoring. Aricept has been prescribed for several years of continuous usage without major adverse events in Alzheimer’s patients, and selegiline has been taken by many Parkinson’s
patients continuously for several years to decades. Ginkgo biloba also appears to be quite safe during long-term use. Phosphatidylserine has not been studied in long-term trials, but its lack of side effects during several months of daily administration indirectly suggests that it is likely to be safe even when taken for several years at a stretch.
Which Medications Should You Take?
If you wish to take a memory enhancer, what medication should you choose from this list? Obviously, you cannot take the whole lot for several reasons: the high cost and large number of capsules required, the increased risk of toxicity, and the lack of solid evidence that combinations are better than single agents. Adding selegiline to vitamin E, for example, does not improve matters for patients with Alzheimer’s disease, even though individually each agent has a small effect. Critically, combining too many medications can be dangerous because the risk of toxic interactions will skyrocket. The solution is to follow the medication guidelines in the following tables, based on whether you have a normal memory or have mild memory loss.
I will now review the possible combinations of medications, and the Memory Program more broadly, according to categories divided on the basis of age, gender, and preventing future memory loss versus treatment for mild memory loss. I will not repeat the doses and side effects of each medication; this information can be obtained from these tables and the preceding text in this chapter (and earlier chapters).
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1255162134)
}
[17]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(71) "ALPHA-NETICS RAPID READING PROGRAM A BASIC COURSE FOR EVERYONE PART TWO"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=559"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=559#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 07 Oct 2009 03:17:53 +0000"
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array(1) {
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["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=559"
["description"]=>
string(324) "?Cod be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead, and makes us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages.?
William Ellery Channing
SPECIAL NOTE: Effort and commitment are essential to reaching a goal. To achieve your rapid reading goal, you must make this program a top priority in your daily [...]"
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string(1758) "?Cod be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead, and makes us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages.?
William Ellery Channing
SPECIAL NOTE: Effort and commitment are essential to reaching a goal. To achieve your rapid reading goal, you must make this program a top priority in your daily routine. Do not underestimate the value of practice. It will be easier if you set up a specific time of day to practice.
Put that time down in your daily schedule and do not change it. Otherwise, it becomes easy to let your practice slide. Every time you are alone, pick up the program and PRACTICE. The more you do, the more quickly your reading skills will develop. The better your reading skills become, the easier your practicing will become. If you keep a strict practice schedule for only four weeks, the skills you develop with this program will be worth more to you over the rest of your life than anything e/se you will ever do. All the growth and enjoyment begins with your setting and keeping a good practice schedule.
Practicing twice a day is ideal and will guarantee your success in developing new reading and learning skills. Before you set your time schedule for practicing, go through the practice instructions. Then, you will be ready to begin your daily practice schedule. Because the initial instructions are important and will be very helpful to you, refer to them as often as you may need to.
In the next session, you will learn how to practice using the easy-to-read book. If the book is new, prepare it as explained in Part Three.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(324) "?Cod be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead, and makes us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages.?
William Ellery Channing
SPECIAL NOTE: Effort and commitment are essential to reaching a goal. To achieve your rapid reading goal, you must make this program a top priority in your daily [...]"
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string(1758) "?Cod be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead, and makes us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages.?
William Ellery Channing
SPECIAL NOTE: Effort and commitment are essential to reaching a goal. To achieve your rapid reading goal, you must make this program a top priority in your daily routine. Do not underestimate the value of practice. It will be easier if you set up a specific time of day to practice.
Put that time down in your daily schedule and do not change it. Otherwise, it becomes easy to let your practice slide. Every time you are alone, pick up the program and PRACTICE. The more you do, the more quickly your reading skills will develop. The better your reading skills become, the easier your practicing will become. If you keep a strict practice schedule for only four weeks, the skills you develop with this program will be worth more to you over the rest of your life than anything e/se you will ever do. All the growth and enjoyment begins with your setting and keeping a good practice schedule.
Practicing twice a day is ideal and will guarantee your success in developing new reading and learning skills. Before you set your time schedule for practicing, go through the practice instructions. Then, you will be ready to begin your daily practice schedule. Because the initial instructions are important and will be very helpful to you, refer to them as often as you may need to.
In the next session, you will learn how to practice using the easy-to-read book. If the book is new, prepare it as explained in Part Three.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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}
[18]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(35) "Hack 67. Objects Ask to Be Used (2)"
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string(317) "Effects of object affordances have been found in experiments: Tucker and Ellis1 asked subjects to press a button with their left or right hand, to indicate whether a picture of an object was the right way up or inverted. Even though subjects were not thinking about the action they would use for that object, it [...]"
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string(2572) "Effects of object affordances have been found in experiments: Tucker and Ellis1 asked subjects to press a button with their left or right hand, to indicate whether a picture of an object was the right way up or inverted. Even though subjects were not thinking about the action they would use for that object, it had an effect. If they saw a cup with a handle pointing toward the rightevoking a right-hand graspthey were faster to react if their response also happened to require a right-hand response. That is, the reaction time improved if the hand used for the button press coincided with the hand that would be used for interacting with the object. This is called a compatibility effect. (The Simon Effect [Hack #56] shows that reaction times improve when stimuli and response match in the more general case. What’s happening here is that the stimulus includes not just what you perceive directly, but what affordances you can perceive too.)
The graspability of objects can affect judgments, even when people are not making any kind of movement. de’Sperati and Stucchi2 asked people to judge which way a moving screwdriver was rotating on a computer screen. People were slower to make a judgment if the handle were in a position that would involve an awkward grasping movement with their dominant hand. That is, although they had no intention to move, their own movement system was affecting their perceptual judgment.
6.7.2. How It Works
Brain imaging has helped us to understand what is happening when we see action-relevant objects. Grèzes and Decety3 looked at which brain areas are active when people do the Tucker and Ellis judgment task. Bits of their brain become active, like the supplementary motor area and the cerebellum, which are also involved in making real movements. In related research in monkeys, cells have also been discovered that respond both when the monkey sees a particular object and also when it observes the type of action that object would require.
People with damage to their frontal lobes sometimes have problems suppressing the tendency to act upon objects. They might automatically pick up a cup or a pair of glasses, without actually wishing to do so (or even when they’re told not to). It is thought that we all share these same tendencies, but with our intact frontal lobes, we are better at stopping ourselves from acting them out. (Frontal patients can also have trouble suppressing other impulses; for instance, some become compulsive gamblers.)
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(317) "Effects of object affordances have been found in experiments: Tucker and Ellis1 asked subjects to press a button with their left or right hand, to indicate whether a picture of an object was the right way up or inverted. Even though subjects were not thinking about the action they would use for that object, it [...]"
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string(2572) "Effects of object affordances have been found in experiments: Tucker and Ellis1 asked subjects to press a button with their left or right hand, to indicate whether a picture of an object was the right way up or inverted. Even though subjects were not thinking about the action they would use for that object, it had an effect. If they saw a cup with a handle pointing toward the rightevoking a right-hand graspthey were faster to react if their response also happened to require a right-hand response. That is, the reaction time improved if the hand used for the button press coincided with the hand that would be used for interacting with the object. This is called a compatibility effect. (The Simon Effect [Hack #56] shows that reaction times improve when stimuli and response match in the more general case. What’s happening here is that the stimulus includes not just what you perceive directly, but what affordances you can perceive too.)
The graspability of objects can affect judgments, even when people are not making any kind of movement. de’Sperati and Stucchi2 asked people to judge which way a moving screwdriver was rotating on a computer screen. People were slower to make a judgment if the handle were in a position that would involve an awkward grasping movement with their dominant hand. That is, although they had no intention to move, their own movement system was affecting their perceptual judgment.
6.7.2. How It Works
Brain imaging has helped us to understand what is happening when we see action-relevant objects. Grèzes and Decety3 looked at which brain areas are active when people do the Tucker and Ellis judgment task. Bits of their brain become active, like the supplementary motor area and the cerebellum, which are also involved in making real movements. In related research in monkeys, cells have also been discovered that respond both when the monkey sees a particular object and also when it observes the type of action that object would require.
People with damage to their frontal lobes sometimes have problems suppressing the tendency to act upon objects. They might automatically pick up a cup or a pair of glasses, without actually wishing to do so (or even when they’re told not to). It is thought that we all share these same tendencies, but with our intact frontal lobes, we are better at stopping ourselves from acting them out. (Frontal patients can also have trouble suppressing other impulses; for instance, some become compulsive gamblers.)
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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["title"]=>
string(31) "Hack 67. Objects Ask to Be Used"
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string(315) "When we see objects, they automatically trigger the movements we’d make to use them.
How do we understand and act upon objects around us? We might perceive the shape and colors of a cup of coffee, recognize what it is, and then decide that the most appropriate movement would be to lift it by the handle [...]"
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string(2223) "When we see objects, they automatically trigger the movements we’d make to use them.
How do we understand and act upon objects around us? We might perceive the shape and colors of a cup of coffee, recognize what it is, and then decide that the most appropriate movement would be to lift it by the handle toward our mouth. However, there seems to be something rather more direct and automatic going on. In the 1960s, James Gibson developed the idea of object affordances. Objects appear to be associated with (or afford) a particular action or actions, and the mere sight of such an object is sufficient to trigger that movement in our mind. There are obvious advantages to such a system: it could allow us to respond quickly and appropriately to objects around us, without having to go to the bother of consciously recognizing (or thinking about) them. In other words, there is a direct link between perceiving an object and acting upon it. I don’t just see my cup of coffee; it also demands to be picked up and drunk.
6.7.1. In Action
You may not believe me yet, but I’m sure you can think of a time when your movements appeared to be automatically captured by something in your environment. Have you ever seen a door handle with a “Push” sign clearly displayed above it, yet found yourself automatically pulling the door toward you? The shape of the pullable handle suggests that you should pull it, despite the contradictory instruction to push it. I go through such a door several times a week and still find myself making that same mistake!
Try finding such a door near where you live or work. Sit down and watch how people interact with it. What happens if you cover up the “Push” sign with a blank piece of paper? Or cover it with a piece of paper labeled “Pull”; does this appear to affect how often people pull rather than push, or is the shape of the handle all they’re really paying attention to?
Perhaps you’ve found yourself picking up a cup or glass from the table in front of you, even though you didn’t mean to (or even knowing that it belonged to someone else)?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(315) "When we see objects, they automatically trigger the movements we’d make to use them.
How do we understand and act upon objects around us? We might perceive the shape and colors of a cup of coffee, recognize what it is, and then decide that the most appropriate movement would be to lift it by the handle [...]"
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string(2223) "When we see objects, they automatically trigger the movements we’d make to use them.
How do we understand and act upon objects around us? We might perceive the shape and colors of a cup of coffee, recognize what it is, and then decide that the most appropriate movement would be to lift it by the handle toward our mouth. However, there seems to be something rather more direct and automatic going on. In the 1960s, James Gibson developed the idea of object affordances. Objects appear to be associated with (or afford) a particular action or actions, and the mere sight of such an object is sufficient to trigger that movement in our mind. There are obvious advantages to such a system: it could allow us to respond quickly and appropriately to objects around us, without having to go to the bother of consciously recognizing (or thinking about) them. In other words, there is a direct link between perceiving an object and acting upon it. I don’t just see my cup of coffee; it also demands to be picked up and drunk.
6.7.1. In Action
You may not believe me yet, but I’m sure you can think of a time when your movements appeared to be automatically captured by something in your environment. Have you ever seen a door handle with a “Push” sign clearly displayed above it, yet found yourself automatically pulling the door toward you? The shape of the pullable handle suggests that you should pull it, despite the contradictory instruction to push it. I go through such a door several times a week and still find myself making that same mistake!
Try finding such a door near where you live or work. Sit down and watch how people interact with it. What happens if you cover up the “Push” sign with a blank piece of paper? Or cover it with a piece of paper labeled “Pull”; does this appear to affect how often people pull rather than push, or is the shape of the handle all they’re really paying attention to?
Perhaps you’ve found yourself picking up a cup or glass from the table in front of you, even though you didn’t mean to (or even knowing that it belonged to someone else)?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(16) "The plant genies"
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string(386) "The plant genies donÕt manufacture imagination, nor do they market wonder and beautyÑbut they force us out of context so dramatically and so meditatively that we gawk in amazement at the ubiquitous everyday
wonders that we are culturally disposed to overlook, and they teach us
invaluable lessons about fluidity, relativity, flexibility and paradox. Such
an increase in awareness, [...]"
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string(1971) "The plant genies donÕt manufacture imagination, nor do they market wonder and beautyÑbut they force us out of context so dramatically and so meditatively that we gawk in amazement at the ubiquitous everyday
wonders that we are culturally disposed to overlook, and they teach us
invaluable lessons about fluidity, relativity, flexibility and paradox. Such
an increase in awareness, if skillfully applied, can lift a disciplined,
adventurous artist permanently out of reach of the faded jaws of mediocrity.
The impact of psychedelics upon my own sensibility was to dissolve a
lot of my culturally-conditioned rigidity. Old barriers, often rooted in
ignorance and superstition, just melted away. I learned that one might
move about freely from one level of existence to another. The borderlines between reality and fantasy, dream and wakefulness, animate and inanimate, even life and death, were no longer quite as fixed. The Asian concept of interpenetration of realities was made physically manifestÑ and this served to massage the stiffness out of my literary aesthetic.
Unbeknownst to most western intellectuals, there happens to be a
fairly thin line between the silly and the profound, between the clear light and the joke; and it seems to me that on that frontier is the single most risky and significant place artists or philosophers can station themselves. IÕm led to suspect that my psychedelic background may have prepared me to straddle that boundary more comfortably than those writers who insist on broaching the luminous can of consciousness with a hammer and chisel, and, especially, those who, spurning the in-CAN-descent altogether, elect to lap their watered-down gruel from the leaky trough of orthodoxy.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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string(386) "The plant genies donÕt manufacture imagination, nor do they market wonder and beautyÑbut they force us out of context so dramatically and so meditatively that we gawk in amazement at the ubiquitous everyday
wonders that we are culturally disposed to overlook, and they teach us
invaluable lessons about fluidity, relativity, flexibility and paradox. Such
an increase in awareness, [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1971) "The plant genies donÕt manufacture imagination, nor do they market wonder and beautyÑbut they force us out of context so dramatically and so meditatively that we gawk in amazement at the ubiquitous everyday
wonders that we are culturally disposed to overlook, and they teach us
invaluable lessons about fluidity, relativity, flexibility and paradox. Such
an increase in awareness, if skillfully applied, can lift a disciplined,
adventurous artist permanently out of reach of the faded jaws of mediocrity.
The impact of psychedelics upon my own sensibility was to dissolve a
lot of my culturally-conditioned rigidity. Old barriers, often rooted in
ignorance and superstition, just melted away. I learned that one might
move about freely from one level of existence to another. The borderlines between reality and fantasy, dream and wakefulness, animate and inanimate, even life and death, were no longer quite as fixed. The Asian concept of interpenetration of realities was made physically manifestÑ and this served to massage the stiffness out of my literary aesthetic.
Unbeknownst to most western intellectuals, there happens to be a
fairly thin line between the silly and the profound, between the clear light and the joke; and it seems to me that on that frontier is the single most risky and significant place artists or philosophers can station themselves. IÕm led to suspect that my psychedelic background may have prepared me to straddle that boundary more comfortably than those writers who insist on broaching the luminous can of consciousness with a hammer and chisel, and, especially, those who, spurning the in-CAN-descent altogether, elect to lap their watered-down gruel from the leaky trough of orthodoxy.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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int(1254107696)
}
[21]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(13) "Robbins Rants"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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string(354) "Tom Robbins is the author of numerous books, including Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates, Still Life with Woodpecker, Skinny Legs and All, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction.
THE TIN CAN was invented in 1811. The can opener was not invented
until 1855. In the intervening 44 years, people were obliged to access
their [...]"
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string(1939) "Tom Robbins is the author of numerous books, including Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates, Still Life with Woodpecker, Skinny Legs and All, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction.
THE TIN CAN was invented in 1811. The can opener was not invented
until 1855. In the intervening 44 years, people were obliged to access
their pork ÕnÕ beans with a hammer and chisel.
Now, the psychedelic can opener, the device that most efficiently
opens the tin of higher consciousness, was discovered thousands of years ago and put to beneficial use by shamans and their satellites well before the advent of what we like to call Òcivilization.Ó Yet, inconceivably, modern society has flung that proven instrument into the sin bin, forcing its citizens to seek access to the most nourishing of all canned goods with the psychological equivalent of a hammer and chisel. (IÕm referring to Freudian analysis and the various, numberless self-realization techniques.)
Our subject here, however, is creativity, and I donÕt mean to suggest
that just because one employs the psychedelic can opener to momentous effect, just because one manages to dip into the peas of the absolute with a lightning spoon, that one is going to metamorphose into some creative titan if one is not already artistically gifted. The little gurus who inhabit certain psychoactive compounds are not in the business of manufacturing human talent. They donÕt sell imagination by the pound, or even by the microgram. What they ARE capable of doing, however, is reinforcing and supporting that innate imagination that manages to still exist in a nation whose institutionsÑacademic, governmental, religious and otherwiseÑ seem determined to suffocate it with a polyester pillow from WalMart.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
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string(354) "Tom Robbins is the author of numerous books, including Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates, Still Life with Woodpecker, Skinny Legs and All, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction.
THE TIN CAN was invented in 1811. The can opener was not invented
until 1855. In the intervening 44 years, people were obliged to access
their [...]"
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string(1939) "Tom Robbins is the author of numerous books, including Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates, Still Life with Woodpecker, Skinny Legs and All, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction.
THE TIN CAN was invented in 1811. The can opener was not invented
until 1855. In the intervening 44 years, people were obliged to access
their pork ÕnÕ beans with a hammer and chisel.
Now, the psychedelic can opener, the device that most efficiently
opens the tin of higher consciousness, was discovered thousands of years ago and put to beneficial use by shamans and their satellites well before the advent of what we like to call Òcivilization.Ó Yet, inconceivably, modern society has flung that proven instrument into the sin bin, forcing its citizens to seek access to the most nourishing of all canned goods with the psychological equivalent of a hammer and chisel. (IÕm referring to Freudian analysis and the various, numberless self-realization techniques.)
Our subject here, however, is creativity, and I donÕt mean to suggest
that just because one employs the psychedelic can opener to momentous effect, just because one manages to dip into the peas of the absolute with a lightning spoon, that one is going to metamorphose into some creative titan if one is not already artistically gifted. The little gurus who inhabit certain psychoactive compounds are not in the business of manufacturing human talent. They donÕt sell imagination by the pound, or even by the microgram. What they ARE capable of doing, however, is reinforcing and supporting that innate imagination that manages to still exist in a nation whose institutionsÑacademic, governmental, religious and otherwiseÑ seem determined to suffocate it with a polyester pillow from WalMart.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1253848301)
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array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(14) "6.6.1.3 Part 3"
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string(340) "You should find that your friend’s spoken estimate of the second line is less than her estimate of the first, even though both lines were the same length. That’s the visual illusion. (If you used different length lines, this difference will be in relative terms.) And yet her walked-out estimates should be pretty much the [...]"
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string(3188) "You should find that your friend’s spoken estimate of the second line is less than her estimate of the first, even though both lines were the same length. That’s the visual illusion. (If you used different length lines, this difference will be in relative terms.) And yet her walked-out estimates should be pretty much the same (i.e., not tricked by the illusion), or at least you should find she underestimates the second line’s length far less when walking. That is, her conscious judgment should be tricked more by this illusion (a version of a famous illusion called the Muller-Lyer illusion), than her walked-out estimate, controlled by her dorsal stream.
6.6.2. How It Works
How it works depends upon whom you ask. Advocates of the dual-stream theory of visual processing argue that these demonstrations, of the immunity of our actions to visual illusions, are evidence for the separateness of the dorsal (action) and ventral (perception) streams. The ventral stream is susceptible, they argue, because it processes objects relative to their surroundings, assessing the current context in order that we might recognize things. The dorsal stream, by contrast, is invulnerable to such illusions because it processes objects of interest in egocentric coordinates, relative to the observer, so that we might accurately interact with them.
Doubters of the dual-stream theory take a different view. One reason we are sometimes duped by illusions, and sometimes not, they argue, is all to do with the type of task, far less to do with there being separate processing pathways in our brain. For instance, when we view the Ebbinghaus illusion (Figure 6-6), we are typically asked to compare the two central disks. Yet, when we reach for one of the disks, we are focused on only one disk at a time. Perceptual tasks tend to involve taking context and nearby objects into account, whereas motor tasks tend to involve focusing on one object at a time and, by necessity, using egocentric coordinates to interact accurately. When changing the task conditions reverses these tendencies, the visuomotor system can be found to be susceptible to illusion or the perceptual system invulnerable.
Which argument is right? Well, there’s evidence both ways and the debate will probably roll on for some time yet.2,3 What is clear, is that this phenomenon provides yet another example [Hack #62] of how our illusory sense of a unified self keeps all these conflicting processes conveniently out of mind.
Does the world really appear as you’re seeing it? Who cares? Just sit back and enjoy the view, accurate or not, while your neurons fight things out.
6.6.3. End Notes
Aglioti, S. et al. (1995). Size contrast illusions deceive the eye but not the hand. Current Biology, 5, 679-685.
Franz, V. H. (2001). Action does not resist visual illusions. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 5, 457-459.
Milner, D., & Dyde, R. (2003). Why do some perceptual illusions affect visually guided action, when others don’t? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 10-11.
Christian Jarrett
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(340) "You should find that your friend’s spoken estimate of the second line is less than her estimate of the first, even though both lines were the same length. That’s the visual illusion. (If you used different length lines, this difference will be in relative terms.) And yet her walked-out estimates should be pretty much the [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(3188) "You should find that your friend’s spoken estimate of the second line is less than her estimate of the first, even though both lines were the same length. That’s the visual illusion. (If you used different length lines, this difference will be in relative terms.) And yet her walked-out estimates should be pretty much the same (i.e., not tricked by the illusion), or at least you should find she underestimates the second line’s length far less when walking. That is, her conscious judgment should be tricked more by this illusion (a version of a famous illusion called the Muller-Lyer illusion), than her walked-out estimate, controlled by her dorsal stream.
6.6.2. How It Works
How it works depends upon whom you ask. Advocates of the dual-stream theory of visual processing argue that these demonstrations, of the immunity of our actions to visual illusions, are evidence for the separateness of the dorsal (action) and ventral (perception) streams. The ventral stream is susceptible, they argue, because it processes objects relative to their surroundings, assessing the current context in order that we might recognize things. The dorsal stream, by contrast, is invulnerable to such illusions because it processes objects of interest in egocentric coordinates, relative to the observer, so that we might accurately interact with them.
Doubters of the dual-stream theory take a different view. One reason we are sometimes duped by illusions, and sometimes not, they argue, is all to do with the type of task, far less to do with there being separate processing pathways in our brain. For instance, when we view the Ebbinghaus illusion (Figure 6-6), we are typically asked to compare the two central disks. Yet, when we reach for one of the disks, we are focused on only one disk at a time. Perceptual tasks tend to involve taking context and nearby objects into account, whereas motor tasks tend to involve focusing on one object at a time and, by necessity, using egocentric coordinates to interact accurately. When changing the task conditions reverses these tendencies, the visuomotor system can be found to be susceptible to illusion or the perceptual system invulnerable.
Which argument is right? Well, there’s evidence both ways and the debate will probably roll on for some time yet.2,3 What is clear, is that this phenomenon provides yet another example [Hack #62] of how our illusory sense of a unified self keeps all these conflicting processes conveniently out of mind.
Does the world really appear as you’re seeing it? Who cares? Just sit back and enjoy the view, accurate or not, while your neurons fight things out.
6.6.3. End Notes
Aglioti, S. et al. (1995). Size contrast illusions deceive the eye but not the hand. Current Biology, 5, 679-685.
Franz, V. H. (2001). Action does not resist visual illusions. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 5, 457-459.
Milner, D., & Dyde, R. (2003). Why do some perceptual illusions affect visually guided action, when others don’t? Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 10-11.
Christian Jarrett
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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int(1253599218)
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["title"]=>
string(16) "6.6.1. In Action"
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string(367) "In the mid-’90s, Salvatore Aglioti1 and colleagues showed that when people are presented with the Ebbinghaus illusion (see Figure 6-6) they find the disk surrounded by smaller circles seems larger than an identically sized disk surrounded by larger circles, and yet, when they reach for the central disks, they use the same, appropriate, finger-thumb grip [...]"
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string(2115) "In the mid-’90s, Salvatore Aglioti1 and colleagues showed that when people are presented with the Ebbinghaus illusion (see Figure 6-6) they find the disk surrounded by smaller circles seems larger than an identically sized disk surrounded by larger circles, and yet, when they reach for the central disks, they use the same, appropriate, finger-thumb grip shape for both disks. The brain’s conscious perceptual system (the ventral pathway) appears to have been tricked by the visual illusion, whereas the brain’s visuomotor (hand-eye) system (the dorsal pathway) appears immune.
There are many examples of situations in which our perception seems to be tricked while our brain’s visuomotor system remains immune. Here’s one you can try. You’ll need a friend and a tape measure. Find a sandy beach so you can draw in the sand or a tarmac area where you can draw on the ground with chalk. Tell your friend to look away while you prepare things.
6.6.1.1 Part 1
Draw a line in the sand, between 2 and 3 meters long. Now draw a disk at the end, about 70 cm in diameter, as in Figure 6-7A. Ask your friend to stand so her toes are at the start of the line, with the disk at far end, and get her to estimate how long the line is, using whichever units she’s happy with. Then blindfold her, turn her 90°, and get her to pace out how long she thinks the line is. Measure her “walked” estimate with your tape measure.
6.6.1.2 Part 2
Tell your friend to look away again, get rid of the first line, and draw another one of identical length. (You could use another length if you think your friend might suspect what’s going onit just makes comparing estimates easier if you use the same length twice.) This time, draw the disk at the end so that it overlays the line, as in Figure 6-7B. Now do exactly as before: get your friend to stand with her toes at the line start and guess the length verbally from where she is, blindfold her, and ask her to walk the same length as she thinks the line is.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(367) "In the mid-’90s, Salvatore Aglioti1 and colleagues showed that when people are presented with the Ebbinghaus illusion (see Figure 6-6) they find the disk surrounded by smaller circles seems larger than an identically sized disk surrounded by larger circles, and yet, when they reach for the central disks, they use the same, appropriate, finger-thumb grip [...]"
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string(2115) "In the mid-’90s, Salvatore Aglioti1 and colleagues showed that when people are presented with the Ebbinghaus illusion (see Figure 6-6) they find the disk surrounded by smaller circles seems larger than an identically sized disk surrounded by larger circles, and yet, when they reach for the central disks, they use the same, appropriate, finger-thumb grip shape for both disks. The brain’s conscious perceptual system (the ventral pathway) appears to have been tricked by the visual illusion, whereas the brain’s visuomotor (hand-eye) system (the dorsal pathway) appears immune.
There are many examples of situations in which our perception seems to be tricked while our brain’s visuomotor system remains immune. Here’s one you can try. You’ll need a friend and a tape measure. Find a sandy beach so you can draw in the sand or a tarmac area where you can draw on the ground with chalk. Tell your friend to look away while you prepare things.
6.6.1.1 Part 1
Draw a line in the sand, between 2 and 3 meters long. Now draw a disk at the end, about 70 cm in diameter, as in Figure 6-7A. Ask your friend to stand so her toes are at the start of the line, with the disk at far end, and get her to estimate how long the line is, using whichever units she’s happy with. Then blindfold her, turn her 90°, and get her to pace out how long she thinks the line is. Measure her “walked” estimate with your tape measure.
6.6.1.2 Part 2
Tell your friend to look away again, get rid of the first line, and draw another one of identical length. (You could use another length if you think your friend might suspect what’s going onit just makes comparing estimates easier if you use the same length twice.) This time, draw the disk at the end so that it overlays the line, as in Figure 6-7B. Now do exactly as before: get your friend to stand with her toes at the line start and guess the length verbally from where she is, blindfold her, and ask her to walk the same length as she thinks the line is.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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["title"]=>
string(19) "Sri Ramana Maharshi"
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string(314) "Sri Ramana Maharshi, according to Ken Wilber,3 Òis arguably the greatest Guru who ever lived.Ó He has stated that the only reason we are not enlightened is that we do not know that we are already enlightened. While this is no doubt true, I have in my own some forty years of psychedelic exploration, enhanced [...]"
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string(3431) "Sri Ramana Maharshi, according to Ken Wilber,3 Òis arguably the greatest Guru who ever lived.Ó He has stated that the only reason we are not enlightened is that we do not know that we are already enlightened. While this is no doubt true, I have in my own some forty years of psychedelic exploration, enhanced by Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice, uncovered a vast variety of conditions that seemed to form barriers to this realization. Some of these are listed in the second paragraph above.
While I have found meditation practices extremely valuable, and an important factor in deepening and increasing the profundity of psychedelic experiences, I have found properly conducted psychedelic experiences to be the most powerful aid in rapidly resolving the obstacles that separate us from full realization. But it is well to remember that experiences alone, as influential and valuable as they may be, may not accomplish completely freeing the mind without dedicated application of newfound wisdom. An excellent way of focusing, clarifying, and applying learned wisdom is through a good meditation practice.
All the following factors promote effective psychedelic application: preparation, intent, honesty, set and setting, a qualified guide, experienced and dedicated companions. As interior obstacles are resolved and transcended, one sinks deeper into the intimate, priceless connection with our inner Being. As one develops proficiency and the ability to hold the mind steadily focused, one can discover that the most promising activity is to search out, encounter, and then maintain
the connectedness with the Heart of our own being. For me, this has led to the most satisfactory outcomes.
I do not want to create the impression that this is a simple thing to accomplish. I have found this kind of straightforward surrender very difficult to achieve and maintain, often because we resist the feelings or experiences that spontaneously wish to arise. It may take exploring with different attitudes and occasionally focusing our attention on various considerations, especially if we are prone to getting tense by trying too hard. Things that may work in one situation may not
work the next time, and a fresh approach is required. And since we
are all different, results may well vary considerably from person to
person. For it is fresh, unmediated experience that we are seeking. Just
reading this information or hearing similar ideas and concepts from
others will not accomplish the objective. We each in our own way
must seek out how to best discover and maintain this priceless connection. For myself, I have found that simply being still and Òjust beingÓ is extraordinarily difficult.
Yet I firmly believe this to be the highest prize. Having achieved
an on-going connection or realization of our True Self, we are free to
direct our attention wherever we wish. It is from this perspective that
any object of attention is seen in its clearest light, in its truest aspects, in the most meaningful connections with other aspects of reality. It is from this perspective that the greatest creativity flows forth. By learning how to maintain this connection, we have truly learned how to learn.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
"
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string(314) "Sri Ramana Maharshi, according to Ken Wilber,3 Òis arguably the greatest Guru who ever lived.Ó He has stated that the only reason we are not enlightened is that we do not know that we are already enlightened. While this is no doubt true, I have in my own some forty years of psychedelic exploration, enhanced [...]"
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string(3431) "Sri Ramana Maharshi, according to Ken Wilber,3 Òis arguably the greatest Guru who ever lived.Ó He has stated that the only reason we are not enlightened is that we do not know that we are already enlightened. While this is no doubt true, I have in my own some forty years of psychedelic exploration, enhanced by Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice, uncovered a vast variety of conditions that seemed to form barriers to this realization. Some of these are listed in the second paragraph above.
While I have found meditation practices extremely valuable, and an important factor in deepening and increasing the profundity of psychedelic experiences, I have found properly conducted psychedelic experiences to be the most powerful aid in rapidly resolving the obstacles that separate us from full realization. But it is well to remember that experiences alone, as influential and valuable as they may be, may not accomplish completely freeing the mind without dedicated application of newfound wisdom. An excellent way of focusing, clarifying, and applying learned wisdom is through a good meditation practice.
All the following factors promote effective psychedelic application: preparation, intent, honesty, set and setting, a qualified guide, experienced and dedicated companions. As interior obstacles are resolved and transcended, one sinks deeper into the intimate, priceless connection with our inner Being. As one develops proficiency and the ability to hold the mind steadily focused, one can discover that the most promising activity is to search out, encounter, and then maintain
the connectedness with the Heart of our own being. For me, this has led to the most satisfactory outcomes.
I do not want to create the impression that this is a simple thing to accomplish. I have found this kind of straightforward surrender very difficult to achieve and maintain, often because we resist the feelings or experiences that spontaneously wish to arise. It may take exploring with different attitudes and occasionally focusing our attention on various considerations, especially if we are prone to getting tense by trying too hard. Things that may work in one situation may not
work the next time, and a fresh approach is required. And since we
are all different, results may well vary considerably from person to
person. For it is fresh, unmediated experience that we are seeking. Just
reading this information or hearing similar ideas and concepts from
others will not accomplish the objective. We each in our own way
must seek out how to best discover and maintain this priceless connection. For myself, I have found that simply being still and Òjust beingÓ is extraordinarily difficult.
Yet I firmly believe this to be the highest prize. Having achieved
an on-going connection or realization of our True Self, we are free to
direct our attention wherever we wish. It is from this perspective that
any object of attention is seen in its clearest light, in its truest aspects, in the most meaningful connections with other aspects of reality. It is from this perspective that the greatest creativity flows forth. By learning how to maintain this connection, we have truly learned how to learn.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
"
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[25]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(20) "6.5.2.2 How it works"
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string(318) "This predictive process may also be at the root of why physical fights tend to escalate. Notice how tit-for-tat tussles between children (or indeed brawls between adults) intensify, with each person claiming that the other hit him harder. In a recent study,3 a motor was used to apply a brief force to the tip of [...]"
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string(2986) "This predictive process may also be at the root of why physical fights tend to escalate. Notice how tit-for-tat tussles between children (or indeed brawls between adults) intensify, with each person claiming that the other hit him harder. In a recent study,3 a motor was used to apply a brief force to the tip of each participant’s left index finger. Participants were then asked to match the force they felt using their right index finger to push down on their left index finger through a force transducer.
Results showed that participants consistently applied a stronger force than that which was applied to them. The authors suggest that, just as when we try to tickle ourselves, the brain predicts the sensory consequences of the self-generated force and then reduces the sensation. We can only predict the outcome of our own actions and not of someone else’s, so an externally generated force feels more intense. As a result, if you were to deliver a vengeful punch to match the force of your opponent’s blow, it is likely that you would overestimate the strength of the opponent’s punch and strike back harder.
Why have we evolved the inability to tickle ourselves? The force generation experiment shows that sensations that are externally caused are enhanced. Similarly, our reactions to tickling may have evolved to heighten our sensitivity to external stimuli that pose a threat. Our sensory systems are constantly bombarded with sensory stimulation from the environment. It is therefore important to filter out sensory stimulation that is uninterestingsuch as the results of our own movementsin order to pick out, and attend to, sensory information that carries more evolutionary importance, such as someone touching us. When a bee lands on your shoulder or a spider climbs up your leg, the brain ensures that you attend to these potentially dangerous external stimuli by ignoring feelings from your own movements. The predictive system therefore protects us and tickling may just be an accidental consequence.
6.5.3. End Notes
Blakemore, S-J, Wolpert, D. M., & Frith, C. D. (1998). Central cancellation of self-produced tickle sensation. Nature Neuroscience, 1(7), 635-640.
Blakemore, S-J, Frith, C. D., & Wolpert, D. W. (1999). Spatiotemporal prediction modulates the perception of self-produced stimuli. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 11(5), 551-559.
Shergill, S., Bays, P. M., Frith, C. D., & Wolpert, D. M. (2003). Two eyes for an eye: The neuroscience of force escalation. Science, 301(5630), 187.
6.5.4. See Also
Weiskrantz, L., Elliot, J., & Darlington, C. (1971). Preliminary observations of tickling oneself. Nature, 230(5296), 598-599.
Wolpert, D. M., Miall, C. M., & Kawato, M. (1998). Internal models in the cerebellum. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2(9), 338-347.
Suparna Choudhury and Sarah-Jayne Blakemore
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(318) "This predictive process may also be at the root of why physical fights tend to escalate. Notice how tit-for-tat tussles between children (or indeed brawls between adults) intensify, with each person claiming that the other hit him harder. In a recent study,3 a motor was used to apply a brief force to the tip of [...]"
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string(2986) "This predictive process may also be at the root of why physical fights tend to escalate. Notice how tit-for-tat tussles between children (or indeed brawls between adults) intensify, with each person claiming that the other hit him harder. In a recent study,3 a motor was used to apply a brief force to the tip of each participant’s left index finger. Participants were then asked to match the force they felt using their right index finger to push down on their left index finger through a force transducer.
Results showed that participants consistently applied a stronger force than that which was applied to them. The authors suggest that, just as when we try to tickle ourselves, the brain predicts the sensory consequences of the self-generated force and then reduces the sensation. We can only predict the outcome of our own actions and not of someone else’s, so an externally generated force feels more intense. As a result, if you were to deliver a vengeful punch to match the force of your opponent’s blow, it is likely that you would overestimate the strength of the opponent’s punch and strike back harder.
Why have we evolved the inability to tickle ourselves? The force generation experiment shows that sensations that are externally caused are enhanced. Similarly, our reactions to tickling may have evolved to heighten our sensitivity to external stimuli that pose a threat. Our sensory systems are constantly bombarded with sensory stimulation from the environment. It is therefore important to filter out sensory stimulation that is uninterestingsuch as the results of our own movementsin order to pick out, and attend to, sensory information that carries more evolutionary importance, such as someone touching us. When a bee lands on your shoulder or a spider climbs up your leg, the brain ensures that you attend to these potentially dangerous external stimuli by ignoring feelings from your own movements. The predictive system therefore protects us and tickling may just be an accidental consequence.
6.5.3. End Notes
Blakemore, S-J, Wolpert, D. M., & Frith, C. D. (1998). Central cancellation of self-produced tickle sensation. Nature Neuroscience, 1(7), 635-640.
Blakemore, S-J, Frith, C. D., & Wolpert, D. W. (1999). Spatiotemporal prediction modulates the perception of self-produced stimuli. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 11(5), 551-559.
Shergill, S., Bays, P. M., Frith, C. D., & Wolpert, D. M. (2003). Two eyes for an eye: The neuroscience of force escalation. Science, 301(5630), 187.
6.5.4. See Also
Weiskrantz, L., Elliot, J., & Darlington, C. (1971). Preliminary observations of tickling oneself. Nature, 230(5296), 598-599.
Wolpert, D. M., Miall, C. M., & Kawato, M. (1998). Internal models in the cerebellum. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2(9), 338-347.
Suparna Choudhury and Sarah-Jayne Blakemore
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(342) "HE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of learning how to learn is to immerse oneself completely and without reservation into the Knower.
For within each of is that unimaginable place, our Real Self, known by a
variety of names in various times and cultures, listed by Stan Grof: ÒBrahman, Buddha, the Cosmic Christ, Keter, Allah, the Tao, the Great [...]"
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string(2164) "HE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of learning how to learn is to immerse oneself completely and without reservation into the Knower.
For within each of is that unimaginable place, our Real Self, known by a
variety of names in various times and cultures, listed by Stan Grof: ÒBrahman, Buddha, the Cosmic Christ, Keter, Allah, the Tao, the Great Spirit, and many others.Ó1 This Self, which dedicated explorers find to be intimately connected to every aspect of the Universe, seems to hold infinite knowledge. From this perspective, if we have become totally free, vast knowledge is available.
To become one with this Self, one must become free of all attachments,
conceptualizations, judgments, investments, reifications,2 and unconscious barriers, until the mind can be held perfectly still without distractions. Mind training and disciplining as taught by the Buddha, Hindus, and other wisdom traditions are valuable procedures to accomplish the required state of quiescence. A powerful tool for accelerating this process is the informed use of psychedelics. Informed use includes preparation in understanding the nature of psychedelic experiences and possible outcomes, deep intention, and integrity in the form of honoring the experience and the commitment to put what one learns into effect in oneÕs life. It may take a number of experiences
at varying dose levels and settings to achieve a glimpse of the Ultimate Self.
A common experience for those who penetrate deeply into the levels made available by psychedelic experience is the realization that we are all One, that we are all intimately connected through the life force that manifests in every living thing and every aspect of the universe. This being so, we can understand the Buddhist precept that our own ultimate realization depends on committing ourselves to the happiness and welfare of all sentient beings. I have personally found that my own adverse judgment of certain individu- als puts a definite lid on my own development.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
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string(342) "HE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of learning how to learn is to immerse oneself completely and without reservation into the Knower.
For within each of is that unimaginable place, our Real Self, known by a
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string(2164) "HE MOST IMPORTANT aspect of learning how to learn is to immerse oneself completely and without reservation into the Knower.
For within each of is that unimaginable place, our Real Self, known by a
variety of names in various times and cultures, listed by Stan Grof: ÒBrahman, Buddha, the Cosmic Christ, Keter, Allah, the Tao, the Great Spirit, and many others.Ó1 This Self, which dedicated explorers find to be intimately connected to every aspect of the Universe, seems to hold infinite knowledge. From this perspective, if we have become totally free, vast knowledge is available.
To become one with this Self, one must become free of all attachments,
conceptualizations, judgments, investments, reifications,2 and unconscious barriers, until the mind can be held perfectly still without distractions. Mind training and disciplining as taught by the Buddha, Hindus, and other wisdom traditions are valuable procedures to accomplish the required state of quiescence. A powerful tool for accelerating this process is the informed use of psychedelics. Informed use includes preparation in understanding the nature of psychedelic experiences and possible outcomes, deep intention, and integrity in the form of honoring the experience and the commitment to put what one learns into effect in oneÕs life. It may take a number of experiences
at varying dose levels and settings to achieve a glimpse of the Ultimate Self.
A common experience for those who penetrate deeply into the levels made available by psychedelic experience is the realization that we are all One, that we are all intimately connected through the life force that manifests in every living thing and every aspect of the universe. This being so, we can understand the Buddhist precept that our own ultimate realization depends on committing ourselves to the happiness and welfare of all sentient beings. I have personally found that my own adverse judgment of certain individu- als puts a definite lid on my own development.
Taken From: Learning How to Learn
"
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string(43) "Hack 65. Why Can?t You Tickle Yourself? (3)"
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string(302) "One study used two robots to trick the brain into reacting to a self-tickle as if it were an external tickle.2 In the left hand, participants held an object attached to the first robot. This was connected to a second robot, attached to which was a piece of foam that delivered a touch stimulus to [...]"
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string(2155) "One study used two robots to trick the brain into reacting to a self-tickle as if it were an external tickle.2 In the left hand, participants held an object attached to the first robot. This was connected to a second robot, attached to which was a piece of foam that delivered a touch stimulus to the palm of the right hand. Movement of the participant’s left hand therefore caused movement of the foam, as if by remote control. The robotic interface was used to introduce time delays between the movement of the participant’s left hand and the touch sensation on the right palm, and participants were asked to rate the “tickliness” (Figure 6-5).
When there was no time delay, the condition was equivalent to a self-produced tickle because the participant determined the instant delivery of the touch stimulus by movements of the left hand. Greater delay between the causal action and the sensory effect (up to 300 ms) meant participants experienced the touch as more tickly.This suggests that, when there is no time delay, the brain can accurately predict the touch stimulus so that the sensory effect is attenuated. Introducing a time delay increases the likelihood of a discrepancy between the predicted and actual sensory effect. As a result, there is less attenuation of the tickly sensation, which tricks the brain into labeling the stimulus as external. By making the consequences of our own action unpredictable, therefore, the brain treats the self as another.
6.5.2. Force Prediction
You can see how we anticipate a stimulus and compensate for it, by attempting to estimate a force and seeing whether you can get that right.
6.5.2.1 In action
Use your right index finger to press down gently on the back of a friend’s hand. Your friend should then use her right index finger to press down on the same spot on your hand with the same force that she felt from your finger press. Continue taking turns at thisreproducing the same force each timeand you may notice that after about 10 turns, the forces of your finger presses are getting stronger.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(302) "One study used two robots to trick the brain into reacting to a self-tickle as if it were an external tickle.2 In the left hand, participants held an object attached to the first robot. This was connected to a second robot, attached to which was a piece of foam that delivered a touch stimulus to [...]"
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string(2155) "One study used two robots to trick the brain into reacting to a self-tickle as if it were an external tickle.2 In the left hand, participants held an object attached to the first robot. This was connected to a second robot, attached to which was a piece of foam that delivered a touch stimulus to the palm of the right hand. Movement of the participant’s left hand therefore caused movement of the foam, as if by remote control. The robotic interface was used to introduce time delays between the movement of the participant’s left hand and the touch sensation on the right palm, and participants were asked to rate the “tickliness” (Figure 6-5).
When there was no time delay, the condition was equivalent to a self-produced tickle because the participant determined the instant delivery of the touch stimulus by movements of the left hand. Greater delay between the causal action and the sensory effect (up to 300 ms) meant participants experienced the touch as more tickly.This suggests that, when there is no time delay, the brain can accurately predict the touch stimulus so that the sensory effect is attenuated. Introducing a time delay increases the likelihood of a discrepancy between the predicted and actual sensory effect. As a result, there is less attenuation of the tickly sensation, which tricks the brain into labeling the stimulus as external. By making the consequences of our own action unpredictable, therefore, the brain treats the self as another.
6.5.2. Force Prediction
You can see how we anticipate a stimulus and compensate for it, by attempting to estimate a force and seeing whether you can get that right.
6.5.2.1 In action
Use your right index finger to press down gently on the back of a friend’s hand. Your friend should then use her right index finger to press down on the same spot on your hand with the same force that she felt from your finger press. Continue taking turns at thisreproducing the same force each timeand you may notice that after about 10 turns, the forces of your finger presses are getting stronger.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(22) "A Bright Future Awaits"
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string(316) "The graveyard of memory research has turned into a fertile field budding with roses of all shapes and colors. The rose isn’t a bad analogy; while the final product will be extremely beautiful, you are likely to meet a few thorns along the way. In this book, I have reviewed our current knowledge base and [...]"
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string(3038) "The graveyard of memory research has turned into a fertile field budding with roses of all shapes and colors. The rose isn’t a bad analogy; while the final product will be extremely beautiful, you are likely to meet a few thorns along the way. In this book, I have reviewed our current knowledge base and laid out a comprehensive program to help you prevent memory loss due to the aging process, or to identify and treat mild memory loss if it has already set in. But all this is based on current knowledge, which is clearly limited in many ways. Given the various research directions that the field is taking, what does the future hold?
Research in molecular genetics, neuroscience, and clinical trials is growing at a blinding pace and is likely to accelerate. Part of this pressure comes from the worldwide exponential increase in knowledge, and part of it comes from you. You comprise the largest segment of the population with the most political clout, and at least when it comes to funding medical research, the politicians are responding.
If things pan out the way that some experts hope, every Kodak moment will literally be inside your head in a perfect image, and cameras will become obsolete. But I do not entirely subscribe to this view, because the fact is that human memory is finite. We all have to wipe out old, useless memories to make way for the new, important ones. We do this daily, as our hippocampi and frontal lobes deliberately forget what we ate for lunch yesterday, two days ago, a week ago, and so forth.
Therefore, at least for the foreseeable future, I expect that new treatments will be able to completely block memory loss, but they will not be able to give us total recall. Total recall would mean cluttering up our brains with sundry, often worthless information, and life would become impossible to manage.
Larger societal questions will spring forth as memory enhancement becomes a universal tool. Will people in high-precision jobs that do not permit error, such as highfliers on Wall Street or surgeons in the operating room, be required to take memory enhancers as a matter of course? And the courts, which are already nightmarish in their complexity? what will they do about witnesses who do or don’t take promemory agents? And what about the opposite end of the age spectrum: will children be made to take memory enhancers to perform well in school the way they now use computers and the Internet to boost academic performance?
These possibilities lie well into the future. For now, I urge you to begin, and then maintain, the Memory Program to prevent memory loss, and to directly tackle mild memory loss if it has already begun to affect your life. I predict that as time goes on, you are likely to look back with satisfaction at the results that you have achieved.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(316) "The graveyard of memory research has turned into a fertile field budding with roses of all shapes and colors. The rose isn’t a bad analogy; while the final product will be extremely beautiful, you are likely to meet a few thorns along the way. In this book, I have reviewed our current knowledge base and [...]"
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string(3038) "The graveyard of memory research has turned into a fertile field budding with roses of all shapes and colors. The rose isn’t a bad analogy; while the final product will be extremely beautiful, you are likely to meet a few thorns along the way. In this book, I have reviewed our current knowledge base and laid out a comprehensive program to help you prevent memory loss due to the aging process, or to identify and treat mild memory loss if it has already set in. But all this is based on current knowledge, which is clearly limited in many ways. Given the various research directions that the field is taking, what does the future hold?
Research in molecular genetics, neuroscience, and clinical trials is growing at a blinding pace and is likely to accelerate. Part of this pressure comes from the worldwide exponential increase in knowledge, and part of it comes from you. You comprise the largest segment of the population with the most political clout, and at least when it comes to funding medical research, the politicians are responding.
If things pan out the way that some experts hope, every Kodak moment will literally be inside your head in a perfect image, and cameras will become obsolete. But I do not entirely subscribe to this view, because the fact is that human memory is finite. We all have to wipe out old, useless memories to make way for the new, important ones. We do this daily, as our hippocampi and frontal lobes deliberately forget what we ate for lunch yesterday, two days ago, a week ago, and so forth.
Therefore, at least for the foreseeable future, I expect that new treatments will be able to completely block memory loss, but they will not be able to give us total recall. Total recall would mean cluttering up our brains with sundry, often worthless information, and life would become impossible to manage.
Larger societal questions will spring forth as memory enhancement becomes a universal tool. Will people in high-precision jobs that do not permit error, such as highfliers on Wall Street or surgeons in the operating room, be required to take memory enhancers as a matter of course? And the courts, which are already nightmarish in their complexity? what will they do about witnesses who do or don’t take promemory agents? And what about the opposite end of the age spectrum: will children be made to take memory enhancers to perform well in school the way they now use computers and the Internet to boost academic performance?
These possibilities lie well into the future. For now, I urge you to begin, and then maintain, the Memory Program to prevent memory loss, and to directly tackle mild memory loss if it has already begun to affect your life. I predict that as time goes on, you are likely to look back with satisfaction at the results that you have achieved.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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int(1252030437)
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[29]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(22) "CREB and Knockout Mice"
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string(327) "A memory trace is solidified if there is a small gap in time between the pieces of information that need to be remembered. Using this technique, which is called spaced training, scientists engineered a fruit fly to have a photographic memory. In the same fruit fly species, they triggered a master gene called CREB, which [...]"
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string(4315) "A memory trace is solidified if there is a small gap in time between the pieces of information that need to be remembered. Using this technique, which is called spaced training, scientists engineered a fruit fly to have a photographic memory. In the same fruit fly species, they triggered a master gene called CREB, which has the ability to goad a number of other genes into action. In this manner, the fruit fly with a fabulous memory was born. Ideally, if we could stimulate CREB in the same way in
the human brain, total recall would become the standard for everyone. But there is no known method to turn a gene on or off in the human brain, so even though we all possess CREB, we don’t yet know how to galvanize it into action in people. The goal of these researchers is to see if manipulating CREB in some fashion will make it possible to unlock the full power of human memory.
Other researchers like Eric Kandel approach the same problem from a different angle. He takes mice and removes, or knocks out, a gene or set of genes that are involved in cognitive processes. These ?knockout? mice perform horribly in mazes and similar tests of cognitive ability. Drugs are then administered, one by one, to see if they can reverse this glaring memory deficit in the knockout mice. One such promising agent is rolipram, but as yet there are no worthwhile clinical studies with
this compound. Another strategy is to block the synthesis of specific proteins by genetic manipulation, which then leads to memory loss in rats. As with the knockout mice, specific drugs can be given to reverse this process and correct the memory deficit. Kandel, in his dynamic way, has formed his own company to employ these techniques to try and find the magic pill that will reverse memory loss.
Other Novel Strategies
AMPA receptors are present throughout the brain, and are involved in synaptic connections between brain cells. These AMPA receptors play a role in boosting both learning and memory, and ampakines are substances that amplify or enhance these signals. Some investigators are trying to develop drugs that can amplify the AMPA signal, while others believe that this is a waste of time because ampakines share many similarities to caffeine, which improves attention and mental arousal with no direct impact on memory.
In animal models, a number of other substances can amplify long-term potentiation, which is the physiologic property of cells to remain depolarized, or stimulated, for an extended period of time. Kandel and other researchers believe that at the cellular level, long-term potentiation is the method by which a memory trace becomes solidified and is eventually transferred into long-term memory storage. A number of chemicals can amplify the effects of long-term potentiation. These include substances that stimulate dopamine receptors and others that inhibit the enzyme phosphodiesterase. In animal studies, these chemical substances improve transfer of information from short- to longterm storage. But as of yet, there are no clinical studies to back up these intriguing laboratory findings.
Earlier, I referred to Dennis Choi’s work on zinc and memory. Although few other researchers are putting much time and energy into studying metallic elements that are known to be involved in essential enzyme pathways, my guess is that this will change in the future. Sophisticated new technologies will help us to decipher what exactly these trace metals like chromium and selenium are doing in the brain. Future therapies may be based on increasing or decreasing the levels of these
metallic elements in a targeted fashion, taking into account the delicate balance that exists between these metallic elements and a variety of processes in the brain.
The elusive prion, discovered by Nobel laureate Stanley Prusiner, must not be forgotten. These microscopic prions play a role not only in neurological disorders, but possibly in memory loss due to the aging process itself. I suspect that we will hear a lot more about the role of prions in memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(327) "A memory trace is solidified if there is a small gap in time between the pieces of information that need to be remembered. Using this technique, which is called spaced training, scientists engineered a fruit fly to have a photographic memory. In the same fruit fly species, they triggered a master gene called CREB, which [...]"
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string(4315) "A memory trace is solidified if there is a small gap in time between the pieces of information that need to be remembered. Using this technique, which is called spaced training, scientists engineered a fruit fly to have a photographic memory. In the same fruit fly species, they triggered a master gene called CREB, which has the ability to goad a number of other genes into action. In this manner, the fruit fly with a fabulous memory was born. Ideally, if we could stimulate CREB in the same way in
the human brain, total recall would become the standard for everyone. But there is no known method to turn a gene on or off in the human brain, so even though we all possess CREB, we don’t yet know how to galvanize it into action in people. The goal of these researchers is to see if manipulating CREB in some fashion will make it possible to unlock the full power of human memory.
Other researchers like Eric Kandel approach the same problem from a different angle. He takes mice and removes, or knocks out, a gene or set of genes that are involved in cognitive processes. These ?knockout? mice perform horribly in mazes and similar tests of cognitive ability. Drugs are then administered, one by one, to see if they can reverse this glaring memory deficit in the knockout mice. One such promising agent is rolipram, but as yet there are no worthwhile clinical studies with
this compound. Another strategy is to block the synthesis of specific proteins by genetic manipulation, which then leads to memory loss in rats. As with the knockout mice, specific drugs can be given to reverse this process and correct the memory deficit. Kandel, in his dynamic way, has formed his own company to employ these techniques to try and find the magic pill that will reverse memory loss.
Other Novel Strategies
AMPA receptors are present throughout the brain, and are involved in synaptic connections between brain cells. These AMPA receptors play a role in boosting both learning and memory, and ampakines are substances that amplify or enhance these signals. Some investigators are trying to develop drugs that can amplify the AMPA signal, while others believe that this is a waste of time because ampakines share many similarities to caffeine, which improves attention and mental arousal with no direct impact on memory.
In animal models, a number of other substances can amplify long-term potentiation, which is the physiologic property of cells to remain depolarized, or stimulated, for an extended period of time. Kandel and other researchers believe that at the cellular level, long-term potentiation is the method by which a memory trace becomes solidified and is eventually transferred into long-term memory storage. A number of chemicals can amplify the effects of long-term potentiation. These include substances that stimulate dopamine receptors and others that inhibit the enzyme phosphodiesterase. In animal studies, these chemical substances improve transfer of information from short- to longterm storage. But as of yet, there are no clinical studies to back up these intriguing laboratory findings.
Earlier, I referred to Dennis Choi’s work on zinc and memory. Although few other researchers are putting much time and energy into studying metallic elements that are known to be involved in essential enzyme pathways, my guess is that this will change in the future. Sophisticated new technologies will help us to decipher what exactly these trace metals like chromium and selenium are doing in the brain. Future therapies may be based on increasing or decreasing the levels of these
metallic elements in a targeted fashion, taking into account the delicate balance that exists between these metallic elements and a variety of processes in the brain.
The elusive prion, discovered by Nobel laureate Stanley Prusiner, must not be forgotten. These microscopic prions play a role not only in neurological disorders, but possibly in memory loss due to the aging process itself. I suspect that we will hear a lot more about the role of prions in memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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[30]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(18) "The Memory Program"
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string(411) "This comprehensive Memory Program has three major steps, each involving several components:
Step 1. Identifying and treating specific, reversible causes of memory loss;
Step 2. General measures to protect against memory loss
that include a healthy diet, physical exercise, and memory training;
Step 3. Medication strategies to maintain and improve your memory.
I will first describe the Memory Program in [...]"
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Step 1. Identifying and treating specific, reversible causes of memory loss;
Step 2. General measures to protect against memory loss
that include a healthy diet, physical exercise, and memory training;
Step 3. Medication strategies to maintain and improve your memory.
I will first describe the Memory Program in its entirety, and then individualize the program by focusing on subcategories of people, based on whether you have a sound memory or mild memory loss, as well as by gender and age group.
Step 1: Identify Reversible Causes of Memory Loss
I have started with reversible causes of memory loss for a very important reason. If you fall within the category of people with mild memory loss, identifying and treating these reversible causes, where
a cure is often possible, should be your first step. A large minority of people with mild memory loss suffer from reversible causes, and it is absolutely essential to fix these causes first.
The following table outlines the most common reversible causes of memory loss, and describes typical symptoms and the main treatment approaches for the specific disorder. To avoid clutter, less common causes like drug abuse and infections are not listed in the table. The symptoms of many of these reversible causes are not restricted to memory loss but also include general cognitive and intellectual decline.
If you suffer from mild memory loss and think you may be suffering from a potentially reversible cause:
1. Carefully read the relevant chapter earlier in this book and institute the recommended measures.
2. If you’re not sure about whether you have a reversible cause, go see your doctor. Diagnosis and treatment of some reversible causes require physician consultation.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(411) "This comprehensive Memory Program has three major steps, each involving several components:
Step 1. Identifying and treating specific, reversible causes of memory loss;
Step 2. General measures to protect against memory loss
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Step 3. Medication strategies to maintain and improve your memory.
I will first describe the Memory Program in [...]"
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Step 1. Identifying and treating specific, reversible causes of memory loss;
Step 2. General measures to protect against memory loss
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Step 3. Medication strategies to maintain and improve your memory.
I will first describe the Memory Program in its entirety, and then individualize the program by focusing on subcategories of people, based on whether you have a sound memory or mild memory loss, as well as by gender and age group.
Step 1: Identify Reversible Causes of Memory Loss
I have started with reversible causes of memory loss for a very important reason. If you fall within the category of people with mild memory loss, identifying and treating these reversible causes, where
a cure is often possible, should be your first step. A large minority of people with mild memory loss suffer from reversible causes, and it is absolutely essential to fix these causes first.
The following table outlines the most common reversible causes of memory loss, and describes typical symptoms and the main treatment approaches for the specific disorder. To avoid clutter, less common causes like drug abuse and infections are not listed in the table. The symptoms of many of these reversible causes are not restricted to memory loss but also include general cognitive and intellectual decline.
If you suffer from mild memory loss and think you may be suffering from a potentially reversible cause:
1. Carefully read the relevant chapter earlier in this book and institute the recommended measures.
2. If you’re not sure about whether you have a reversible cause, go see your doctor. Diagnosis and treatment of some reversible causes require physician consultation.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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["title"]=>
string(36) "Smart Spending to get the Eyeglasses"
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string(296) "Spending some money in the internet would need some ?smart? strategies. We must be able to get the perfect stuff in the perfect site to make sure that we use the money smartly. We must to find the perfect online store that could give us what we need.
If you need the eyeglasses, it would be [...]"
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If you need the eyeglasses, it would be strongly recommended for you to visit the Zennioptical.com. This is one of the ultimate online optical that could give you some awesome services. One of the best services is that they have the cheap $ 8 Rx eyeglasses .
Some people said that finally; I found My favorite high fashion eyeglasses in this site. If you wish to be the smart spender, get the How You Can Start Spending Smart tips in the Cbn.com.
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If you need the eyeglasses, it would be [...]"
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string(870) "Spending some money in the internet would need some ?smart? strategies. We must be able to get the perfect stuff in the perfect site to make sure that we use the money smartly. We must to find the perfect online store that could give us what we need.
If you need the eyeglasses, it would be strongly recommended for you to visit the Zennioptical.com. This is one of the ultimate online optical that could give you some awesome services. One of the best services is that they have the cheap $ 8 Rx eyeglasses .
Some people said that finally; I found My favorite high fashion eyeglasses in this site. If you wish to be the smart spender, get the How You Can Start Spending Smart tips in the Cbn.com.
"
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string(31) "DHEA: Clinical Impact on Memory"
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string(364) "Clinically, some patients with lupus who take DHEA have reported improved mood and less generalized pain. DHEA has also been administered to people with a variety of age-related maladies, including memory loss. A major limitation is that most studies to date have involved only a handful of subjects.
German investigators recently reported that a single 300 [...]"
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German investigators recently reported that a single 300 mg dose of DHEA did not affect memory test performance in young adults. In another negative study, Kristine Yaffe, in San Francisco, found no associations between DHEA blood levels and cognitive test performance in a community sample of 394 women. On the other hand, a small uncontrolled study conducted within the NIH in Bethesda, Maryland, suggests that DHEA can treat memory loss in patients with dementia. But until the acid test of a large-scale, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial has been passed, the jury will still be out on this compound.
DHEA Side Effects Can Be Serious
DHEA’s conversion to steroid hormones underlies some of its therapeutic effects, but the same properties can lead to toxicity. DHEA raises the levels of testosterone and other male hormones, which increases the risk of prostate cancer. I strongly recommend medical evaluation and clearance by a physician, including assessment of blood prostate-specific antigen (PSA), for any middle-aged or elderly man who chooses to embark on DHEA therapy.
Another side effect is an increase in masculine features such as growth of facial hair and acne. As a result, DHEA is rarely given to women, who also risk losing scalp hair and developing a bass voice. Proper medical monitoring is essential. Daily doses of DHEA cover a range from 25 to 200 mg daily, with an average of 50 mg daily. This range is wide because some physicians adjust the dose to maintain high blood levels of
DHEA, a scientifically unproven practice.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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German investigators recently reported that a single 300 [...]"
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German investigators recently reported that a single 300 mg dose of DHEA did not affect memory test performance in young adults. In another negative study, Kristine Yaffe, in San Francisco, found no associations between DHEA blood levels and cognitive test performance in a community sample of 394 women. On the other hand, a small uncontrolled study conducted within the NIH in Bethesda, Maryland, suggests that DHEA can treat memory loss in patients with dementia. But until the acid test of a large-scale, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial has been passed, the jury will still be out on this compound.
DHEA Side Effects Can Be Serious
DHEA’s conversion to steroid hormones underlies some of its therapeutic effects, but the same properties can lead to toxicity. DHEA raises the levels of testosterone and other male hormones, which increases the risk of prostate cancer. I strongly recommend medical evaluation and clearance by a physician, including assessment of blood prostate-specific antigen (PSA), for any middle-aged or elderly man who chooses to embark on DHEA therapy.
Another side effect is an increase in masculine features such as growth of facial hair and acne. As a result, DHEA is rarely given to women, who also risk losing scalp hair and developing a bass voice. Proper medical monitoring is essential. Daily doses of DHEA cover a range from 25 to 200 mg daily, with an average of 50 mg daily. This range is wide because some physicians adjust the dose to maintain high blood levels of
DHEA, a scientifically unproven practice.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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["title"]=>
string(67) "Hack 62. The Broken Escalator Phenomenon: When Autopilot Takes Over"
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string(337) "Your conscious experience of the world and control over your body both feel instantaneousbut they’re not.
Lengthy delays in sensory feedback and in the commands that are sent to your muscles mean that what you see now happened a few moments ago and what you’re doing now you planned back then. To get around the problem [...]"
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string(1544) "Your conscious experience of the world and control over your body both feel instantaneousbut they’re not.
Lengthy delays in sensory feedback and in the commands that are sent to your muscles mean that what you see now happened a few moments ago and what you’re doing now you planned back then. To get around the problem caused by these delays in neural transmission, your brain is active and constructive in its interactions with the outside world, endlessly anticipating what’s going to happen next and planning movements to respond appropriately.
Most of the time this works well, but sometimes your brain can anticipate inappropriately, and the mismatch between what your brain thought was going to happen and what it actually encounters can lead to some strange sensations.
6.2.1. In Action
One such sensation can be felt when you walk onto a broken escalator. You know it’s broken but your brain’s autopilot takes over regardless, inappropriately adjusting your posture and gait as if the escalator were moving. This has been dubbed the broken escalator phenomenon.1 Normally, the sensory consequences of these postural adjustments are canceled out by the escalator’s motion, but when it’s broken, they lead to some self-induced sensations that your brain simply wasn’t expecting. Your brain normally cancels out the sensory consequences of its own actions [Hack #65], so it feels really weird when that doesn’t happen.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(337) "Your conscious experience of the world and control over your body both feel instantaneousbut they’re not.
Lengthy delays in sensory feedback and in the commands that are sent to your muscles mean that what you see now happened a few moments ago and what you’re doing now you planned back then. To get around the problem [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1544) "Your conscious experience of the world and control over your body both feel instantaneousbut they’re not.
Lengthy delays in sensory feedback and in the commands that are sent to your muscles mean that what you see now happened a few moments ago and what you’re doing now you planned back then. To get around the problem caused by these delays in neural transmission, your brain is active and constructive in its interactions with the outside world, endlessly anticipating what’s going to happen next and planning movements to respond appropriately.
Most of the time this works well, but sometimes your brain can anticipate inappropriately, and the mismatch between what your brain thought was going to happen and what it actually encounters can lead to some strange sensations.
6.2.1. In Action
One such sensation can be felt when you walk onto a broken escalator. You know it’s broken but your brain’s autopilot takes over regardless, inappropriately adjusting your posture and gait as if the escalator were moving. This has been dubbed the broken escalator phenomenon.1 Normally, the sensory consequences of these postural adjustments are canceled out by the escalator’s motion, but when it’s broken, they lead to some self-induced sensations that your brain simply wasn’t expecting. Your brain normally cancels out the sensory consequences of its own actions [Hack #65], so it feels really weird when that doesn’t happen.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(20) "5.10.2. How It Works"
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["description"]=>
string(379) "Peter Carruthers thinks that you get this effect because language is essential for conjoining information from different modules. Specifically he thinks that it is needed at the interface between beliefs, desires, and planning. Combining across modalities is possible without language for simple actions (see the other crossmodal hacks [Hack #57] through [Hack #59] in this [...]"
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string(1768) "Peter Carruthers thinks that you get this effect because language is essential for conjoining information from different modules. Specifically he thinks that it is needed at the interface between beliefs, desires, and planning. Combining across modalities is possible without language for simple actions (see the other crossmodal hacks [Hack #57] through [Hack #59] in this book for examples), but there’s something about planning, and that includes reorientation, that requires language.
This would explain why people sometimes begin to talk to themselvesto instruct themselves out loudduring especially difficult tasks. Children use self-instruction as a normal part of their development to help them carry out things they find difficult.7 Telling them to keep quiet is unfair and probably makes it harder for them to finish what they are doing.
If Carruthers is right, it means two things. First, if you are asking people to engage in goal-oriented reasoning, particularly if it uses information of different sorts, you shouldn’t ask them to do something else that is verbal, either listening or speaking.
I’ve just realized that this could be another [Hack #54] part of the reason people can drive with the radio on but need to turn it off as soon as they don’t know where they are going and need to think about which direction to take. It also explains why you should keep quiet when the driver is trying to figure out where to go next.
T.S.
Second, if you do want to get people to do complex multisequence tasks, they might find it easier if the tasks can be done using only one kind of information, so that language isn’t required to combine across modules.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(379) "Peter Carruthers thinks that you get this effect because language is essential for conjoining information from different modules. Specifically he thinks that it is needed at the interface between beliefs, desires, and planning. Combining across modalities is possible without language for simple actions (see the other crossmodal hacks [Hack #57] through [Hack #59] in this [...]"
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string(1768) "Peter Carruthers thinks that you get this effect because language is essential for conjoining information from different modules. Specifically he thinks that it is needed at the interface between beliefs, desires, and planning. Combining across modalities is possible without language for simple actions (see the other crossmodal hacks [Hack #57] through [Hack #59] in this book for examples), but there’s something about planning, and that includes reorientation, that requires language.
This would explain why people sometimes begin to talk to themselvesto instruct themselves out loudduring especially difficult tasks. Children use self-instruction as a normal part of their development to help them carry out things they find difficult.7 Telling them to keep quiet is unfair and probably makes it harder for them to finish what they are doing.
If Carruthers is right, it means two things. First, if you are asking people to engage in goal-oriented reasoning, particularly if it uses information of different sorts, you shouldn’t ask them to do something else that is verbal, either listening or speaking.
I’ve just realized that this could be another [Hack #54] part of the reason people can drive with the radio on but need to turn it off as soon as they don’t know where they are going and need to think about which direction to take. It also explains why you should keep quiet when the driver is trying to figure out where to go next.
T.S.
Second, if you do want to get people to do complex multisequence tasks, they might find it easier if the tasks can be done using only one kind of information, so that language isn’t required to combine across modules.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1250733753)
}
[35]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(26) "Blocking Neurotransmitters"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=544"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=544#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
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string(398) "There may be ways to either block the formation or increase the destruction of other naturally occurring toxic chemicals and neurotransmitters, which include nitric oxide, n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), and glutamate. Studies with glutamate antagonists have been unsuccessful in clinical trials of patients with dementia, and fiddling with NMDA receptor function can be dangerous because of the [...]"
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string(2487) "There may be ways to either block the formation or increase the destruction of other naturally occurring toxic chemicals and neurotransmitters, which include nitric oxide, n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), and glutamate. Studies with glutamate antagonists have been unsuccessful in clinical trials of patients with dementia, and fiddling with NMDA receptor function can be dangerous because of the risk of seizures.
Part of the problem is that we currently do not have a complete understanding of how exactly these chemicals and neurotransmitters work in the brain, and what impact they have on
memory processes. As research evolves, compounds that can better target the right neurotransmitter sites within the brain will be developed.
Genetic Strategies: There Is No ?Memory Gene?
The more we learn about the brain, the more it becomes clear that there is no single ?memory gene? that holds the key. A complex web of interacting genes, chemicals, and neurotransmitters is involved in an intricate dance to keep our brains ticking along accurately, and at the right pace.
Genetics is the holy grail of new technology in medicine. There is a lot of hype, which reaches a crescendo with every breakthrough, be it the cloning of sheep or a new treatment for breast cancer. But in my view, the hype is justified. An incredible number of diseases are primarily genetic in origin, and we have little to no idea as to how to treat them, except for therapies that treat the symptoms but not the disease itself. As our knowledge about human genetic structure and function
grows, more and more genetically engineered treatments will emerge. Eventually, some of our science fiction fantasies will be transformed into human reality.
A large part of the human genome, or genetic map, focuses on controlling protein synthesis within the brain. As of now, we do not know which genes are responsible for triggering the process of
neuronal degeneration and death in the hippocampus and frontal lobes, or for that matter any other part of the brain. It is likely that we all possess both ??good memory genes? and ?bad memory genes,? and once we discover them we will be able to directly tackle the problem of age-related memory loss that affects most of us as we grow older.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(398) "There may be ways to either block the formation or increase the destruction of other naturally occurring toxic chemicals and neurotransmitters, which include nitric oxide, n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), and glutamate. Studies with glutamate antagonists have been unsuccessful in clinical trials of patients with dementia, and fiddling with NMDA receptor function can be dangerous because of the [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2487) "There may be ways to either block the formation or increase the destruction of other naturally occurring toxic chemicals and neurotransmitters, which include nitric oxide, n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), and glutamate. Studies with glutamate antagonists have been unsuccessful in clinical trials of patients with dementia, and fiddling with NMDA receptor function can be dangerous because of the risk of seizures.
Part of the problem is that we currently do not have a complete understanding of how exactly these chemicals and neurotransmitters work in the brain, and what impact they have on
memory processes. As research evolves, compounds that can better target the right neurotransmitter sites within the brain will be developed.
Genetic Strategies: There Is No ?Memory Gene?
The more we learn about the brain, the more it becomes clear that there is no single ?memory gene? that holds the key. A complex web of interacting genes, chemicals, and neurotransmitters is involved in an intricate dance to keep our brains ticking along accurately, and at the right pace.
Genetics is the holy grail of new technology in medicine. There is a lot of hype, which reaches a crescendo with every breakthrough, be it the cloning of sheep or a new treatment for breast cancer. But in my view, the hype is justified. An incredible number of diseases are primarily genetic in origin, and we have little to no idea as to how to treat them, except for therapies that treat the symptoms but not the disease itself. As our knowledge about human genetic structure and function
grows, more and more genetically engineered treatments will emerge. Eventually, some of our science fiction fantasies will be transformed into human reality.
A large part of the human genome, or genetic map, focuses on controlling protein synthesis within the brain. As of now, we do not know which genes are responsible for triggering the process of
neuronal degeneration and death in the hippocampus and frontal lobes, or for that matter any other part of the brain. It is likely that we all possess both ??good memory genes? and ?bad memory genes,? and once we discover them we will be able to directly tackle the problem of age-related memory loss that affects most of us as we grow older.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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int(1250474737)
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[36]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(39) "Hack 65. Why Can?t You Tickle Yourself?"
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string(362) "Experiments with tickling provide hints as to how the brain registers self-generated and externally generated sensations.
Most of us can identify a ticklish area on our body that, when touched by someone else, makes us laugh. Even chimpanzees, when tickled under their arms, respond with a sound equivalent to laughter; rats, too, squeal with pleasure when [...]"
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string(2485) "Experiments with tickling provide hints as to how the brain registers self-generated and externally generated sensations.
Most of us can identify a ticklish area on our body that, when touched by someone else, makes us laugh. Even chimpanzees, when tickled under their arms, respond with a sound equivalent to laughter; rats, too, squeal with pleasure when tickled. Tickling is a curious phenomenon, a sensation we surrender to almost like a reflex. Francis Bacon in 1677 commented that “[when tickled] men even in a grieved state of mind . . . cannot sometimes forebear laughing.” It can generate both pleasure and pain: a person being tickled might simultaneously laugh hysterically and writhe in agony. Indeed, in Roman times, continuous tickling of the feet was used as a method of torture. Charles Darwin, however, theorized that tickling is an important part of social and sexual bonding. He also noted that for tickling to be effective in making us laugh, the person doing the tickling should be someone we are familiar with, but that there should also be an element of unpredictability.
As psychoanalyst Adam Phillips commented, tickling “cannot be reproduced in the absence of another.” So, for tickling to induce its effect, there needs to be both a tickler and a ticklee. Here are a couple of experiments to try in the privacy of your own homeyou’ll need a friend, however, to play along.
6.5.1. Tickle Predicting
First, you can look at why there’s a difference between being tickled by yourself and by someone else.
6.5.1.1 In action
Try tickling yourself on the palm of your hand and notice how it feels. It might feel a little ticklish. Now, ask a friend to tickle you in the same place and note the difference. This time, it tickles much more.
6.5.1.2 How it works
When you experience a sensation or generate an action, how do you know whether it was you or someone else who caused it? After all, there is no special signal from the skin receptors to tell you that it was generated by you or by something in the environment. The sensors in your arm cannot tell who’s stimulating them. The brain solves this problem using a prediction system called a forward model. The brain’s motor system makes predictions about the consequences of a movement and uses the predictions to label sensations as self-produced or externally produced.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(362) "Experiments with tickling provide hints as to how the brain registers self-generated and externally generated sensations.
Most of us can identify a ticklish area on our body that, when touched by someone else, makes us laugh. Even chimpanzees, when tickled under their arms, respond with a sound equivalent to laughter; rats, too, squeal with pleasure when [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2485) "Experiments with tickling provide hints as to how the brain registers self-generated and externally generated sensations.
Most of us can identify a ticklish area on our body that, when touched by someone else, makes us laugh. Even chimpanzees, when tickled under their arms, respond with a sound equivalent to laughter; rats, too, squeal with pleasure when tickled. Tickling is a curious phenomenon, a sensation we surrender to almost like a reflex. Francis Bacon in 1677 commented that “[when tickled] men even in a grieved state of mind . . . cannot sometimes forebear laughing.” It can generate both pleasure and pain: a person being tickled might simultaneously laugh hysterically and writhe in agony. Indeed, in Roman times, continuous tickling of the feet was used as a method of torture. Charles Darwin, however, theorized that tickling is an important part of social and sexual bonding. He also noted that for tickling to be effective in making us laugh, the person doing the tickling should be someone we are familiar with, but that there should also be an element of unpredictability.
As psychoanalyst Adam Phillips commented, tickling “cannot be reproduced in the absence of another.” So, for tickling to induce its effect, there needs to be both a tickler and a ticklee. Here are a couple of experiments to try in the privacy of your own homeyou’ll need a friend, however, to play along.
6.5.1. Tickle Predicting
First, you can look at why there’s a difference between being tickled by yourself and by someone else.
6.5.1.1 In action
Try tickling yourself on the palm of your hand and notice how it feels. It might feel a little ticklish. Now, ask a friend to tickle you in the same place and note the difference. This time, it tickles much more.
6.5.1.2 How it works
When you experience a sensation or generate an action, how do you know whether it was you or someone else who caused it? After all, there is no special signal from the skin receptors to tell you that it was generated by you or by something in the environment. The sensors in your arm cannot tell who’s stimulating them. The brain solves this problem using a prediction system called a forward model. The brain’s motor system makes predictions about the consequences of a movement and uses the predictions to label sensations as self-produced or externally produced.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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}
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["title"]=>
string(15) "Transplantation"
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string(382) "A more direct human application is transplantation, which has been tried with dopamine-producing cells in Parkinson’s patients who suffer from dopamine deficiency. In the early work, human fetal cells that produced dopamine were transplanted, because such cells are more likely to retain the capacity to reproduce than adult cells. Later, the abortion controversy led to [...]"
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string(3700) "A more direct human application is transplantation, which has been tried with dopamine-producing cells in Parkinson’s patients who suffer from dopamine deficiency. In the early work, human fetal cells that produced dopamine were transplanted, because such cells are more likely to retain the capacity to reproduce than adult cells. Later, the abortion controversy led to a U.S. ban on the use of fetal tissue in medical research or procedures. This political detour submerged the revolutionary impact of the finding that cells from outside the body can actually survive and reproduce after being placed inside the brain. A Mexican neurosurgeon reported the initial successful transplants in Parkinson’s disease, but Scandinavian and American doctors could not replicate the results, and the jury is still out on this issue. But note that
long-term follow-up of these transplanted Parkinson’s patients has revealed a disturbing side effect: involuntary jerks and movements caused by the transplanted dopamine cells continuing to reproduce,
because the normal regulatory mechanisms that suppress their action within the brain don’t work well on transplanted cells.
Memory loss involves the hippocampus and surrounding areas, which are relatively small regions, but also the frontal cortex, which occupies a huge portion of the brain’s surface. This wide representation of memory in the brain makes transplantation an unlikely candidate for the next
memory ?cure.? Nonetheless, if a method can be developed to transplant cells that reproduce and differentiate into hippocampal nerve cells, preferably cholinergic nerve cells, the field would truly be revolutionized. My prediction, however, is that highly effective promemory medications will be developed long before implantation of cells into the brain can be used to solve the problem of memory loss.
Blocking Formation of Toxic Compounds
Most of the existing therapies, and those in research development, focus on stimulating natural promemory factors? the good guys? in the brain, or by blocking destruction of the good guys (e.g., cholinesterase inhibitors). But what about the opposite strategy: blocking the bad guys? the toxic enzymes, the destructive genes and neurotransmitters that trigger and mediate cell death? Antioxidants represent one such approach. But in recent years, the focus has shifted to more sophisticated techniques that attempt to block the formation of deposits in the brain that damage nerve cells. These deposits, which are called amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, typically occur in Alzheimer’s disease. The same plaques are present, though to a much lesser extent, in elderly people with age-related memory loss. So the question naturally arises: what if we could block the formation of plaques and tangles in the first place?
Preventing Amyloid Formation
Many drug companies are now in hot pursuit of compounds (Beta-block is the name of one such drug in development) that can block the enzymes that trigger the formation of Beta-amyloid, which is the main protein component of the amyloid plaque. Recently, an experimental vaccine has also been developed for this purpose. Many of these compounds are toxic, and we are still a long way from translating these concepts into a clinically useful treatment. But if it does occur, millions of patients and families with dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s disease, will be eternally grateful.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(382) "A more direct human application is transplantation, which has been tried with dopamine-producing cells in Parkinson’s patients who suffer from dopamine deficiency. In the early work, human fetal cells that produced dopamine were transplanted, because such cells are more likely to retain the capacity to reproduce than adult cells. Later, the abortion controversy led to [...]"
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string(3700) "A more direct human application is transplantation, which has been tried with dopamine-producing cells in Parkinson’s patients who suffer from dopamine deficiency. In the early work, human fetal cells that produced dopamine were transplanted, because such cells are more likely to retain the capacity to reproduce than adult cells. Later, the abortion controversy led to a U.S. ban on the use of fetal tissue in medical research or procedures. This political detour submerged the revolutionary impact of the finding that cells from outside the body can actually survive and reproduce after being placed inside the brain. A Mexican neurosurgeon reported the initial successful transplants in Parkinson’s disease, but Scandinavian and American doctors could not replicate the results, and the jury is still out on this issue. But note that
long-term follow-up of these transplanted Parkinson’s patients has revealed a disturbing side effect: involuntary jerks and movements caused by the transplanted dopamine cells continuing to reproduce,
because the normal regulatory mechanisms that suppress their action within the brain don’t work well on transplanted cells.
Memory loss involves the hippocampus and surrounding areas, which are relatively small regions, but also the frontal cortex, which occupies a huge portion of the brain’s surface. This wide representation of memory in the brain makes transplantation an unlikely candidate for the next
memory ?cure.? Nonetheless, if a method can be developed to transplant cells that reproduce and differentiate into hippocampal nerve cells, preferably cholinergic nerve cells, the field would truly be revolutionized. My prediction, however, is that highly effective promemory medications will be developed long before implantation of cells into the brain can be used to solve the problem of memory loss.
Blocking Formation of Toxic Compounds
Most of the existing therapies, and those in research development, focus on stimulating natural promemory factors? the good guys? in the brain, or by blocking destruction of the good guys (e.g., cholinesterase inhibitors). But what about the opposite strategy: blocking the bad guys? the toxic enzymes, the destructive genes and neurotransmitters that trigger and mediate cell death? Antioxidants represent one such approach. But in recent years, the focus has shifted to more sophisticated techniques that attempt to block the formation of deposits in the brain that damage nerve cells. These deposits, which are called amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, typically occur in Alzheimer’s disease. The same plaques are present, though to a much lesser extent, in elderly people with age-related memory loss. So the question naturally arises: what if we could block the formation of plaques and tangles in the first place?
Preventing Amyloid Formation
Many drug companies are now in hot pursuit of compounds (Beta-block is the name of one such drug in development) that can block the enzymes that trigger the formation of Beta-amyloid, which is the main protein component of the amyloid plaque. Recently, an experimental vaccine has also been developed for this purpose. Many of these compounds are toxic, and we are still a long way from translating these concepts into a clinically useful treatment. But if it does occur, millions of patients and families with dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s disease, will be eternally grateful.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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[38]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(34) "Hack 64. Mold Your Body Schema (3)"
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string(329) "These disorders suggest that the brain’s system for representing body schema can operate (and be damaged) independently from the sensory feedback provided by the body itself. Sensory feedback must play a role of course, and it seems that it is used to update and correct the model to keep it in check with reality. In [...]"
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string(2944) "These disorders suggest that the brain’s system for representing body schema can operate (and be damaged) independently from the sensory feedback provided by the body itself. Sensory feedback must play a role of course, and it seems that it is used to update and correct the model to keep it in check with reality. In some situations, like the ones in the previous exercises, one type of sensory feedback can become out of sync with the others, leading to the experience of mild confusion of the body schema.
Ramachandran and Rogers-Ramachandran applied an understanding of the relationship between sensory feedback and the body schema to create a novel method to help people with phantom-limb pain.2 They used a mirror to allow people who were experiencing a phantom limb to simulate visual experience of their amputated hand. In the same way as the earlier exercise, the image of their amputated hand was simply a reflection of their remaining hand, but this simulated feedback provided enough information to the brain so they felt as if they could control and move their phantom limb. In some cases, they were able to “move” their limb out of positions that had been causing them real pain.
An fMRI [Hack #4] study by Donna Lloyd and colleagues3 might explain why visual feedback of body position might have such a dramatic effect. They scanned people while they were receiving tactile stimulation to the right hand, either while they had their eyes closed or while they were looking directly at their hand. When participants had the opportunity to view where they were being stimulated, activation shifted dramatically, not only to the parietal area, known to be involved in representing the body schema, but also to the premotor area, a part of the brain involved in planning and executing movements. This may also explain why the earlier exercises confuse our body schema enough to make accurate movement seem difficult or feel unusual. Visual information from viewing our body seems to activate brain areas involved in planning our next move.
6.4.3. End Notes
Ramachandran, V. S., & Blakeslee, S. (1998). Phantoms in the Brain: Human Nature and the Architecture of the Mind. London: Fourth Estate.
Ramachandran, V. S., & Rogers-Ramachandran, D. (1996). Synaesthesia in phantom limbs induced with mirrors. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences, 263(1369), 377-386.
Lloyd, D. M., Shore, D. I., Spence, C., & Calvert, G. A. (2002). Multisensory representation of limb position in human premotor cortex. Nature Neuroscience, 6(1), 17-18.
6.4.4. See Also
Tool use extends the body schema with its reach, altering the map the brain keeps of our own body: Maravita, A., & Iriki, A. (2004). Tools for the body (schema). Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 8(2), 79-86.
Vaughan Bell
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(329) "These disorders suggest that the brain’s system for representing body schema can operate (and be damaged) independently from the sensory feedback provided by the body itself. Sensory feedback must play a role of course, and it seems that it is used to update and correct the model to keep it in check with reality. In [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2944) "These disorders suggest that the brain’s system for representing body schema can operate (and be damaged) independently from the sensory feedback provided by the body itself. Sensory feedback must play a role of course, and it seems that it is used to update and correct the model to keep it in check with reality. In some situations, like the ones in the previous exercises, one type of sensory feedback can become out of sync with the others, leading to the experience of mild confusion of the body schema.
Ramachandran and Rogers-Ramachandran applied an understanding of the relationship between sensory feedback and the body schema to create a novel method to help people with phantom-limb pain.2 They used a mirror to allow people who were experiencing a phantom limb to simulate visual experience of their amputated hand. In the same way as the earlier exercise, the image of their amputated hand was simply a reflection of their remaining hand, but this simulated feedback provided enough information to the brain so they felt as if they could control and move their phantom limb. In some cases, they were able to “move” their limb out of positions that had been causing them real pain.
An fMRI [Hack #4] study by Donna Lloyd and colleagues3 might explain why visual feedback of body position might have such a dramatic effect. They scanned people while they were receiving tactile stimulation to the right hand, either while they had their eyes closed or while they were looking directly at their hand. When participants had the opportunity to view where they were being stimulated, activation shifted dramatically, not only to the parietal area, known to be involved in representing the body schema, but also to the premotor area, a part of the brain involved in planning and executing movements. This may also explain why the earlier exercises confuse our body schema enough to make accurate movement seem difficult or feel unusual. Visual information from viewing our body seems to activate brain areas involved in planning our next move.
6.4.3. End Notes
Ramachandran, V. S., & Blakeslee, S. (1998). Phantoms in the Brain: Human Nature and the Architecture of the Mind. London: Fourth Estate.
Ramachandran, V. S., & Rogers-Ramachandran, D. (1996). Synaesthesia in phantom limbs induced with mirrors. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences, 263(1369), 377-386.
Lloyd, D. M., Shore, D. I., Spence, C., & Calvert, G. A. (2002). Multisensory representation of limb position in human premotor cortex. Nature Neuroscience, 6(1), 17-18.
6.4.4. See Also
Tool use extends the body schema with its reach, altering the map the brain keeps of our own body: Maravita, A., & Iriki, A. (2004). Tools for the body (schema). Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 8(2), 79-86.
Vaughan Bell
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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["title"]=>
string(30) "Hack 63. Keep Hold of Yourself"
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string(288) "How do we keep the sensations on our skin up to date as we move our bodies around in space?
When an insect lands on your skin, receptors in that area of skin fire and a signal travels up to your brain. The identity of the receptor indicates which part of your skin has been touched. [...]"
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string(1950) "How do we keep the sensations on our skin up to date as we move our bodies around in space?
When an insect lands on your skin, receptors in that area of skin fire and a signal travels up to your brain. The identity of the receptor indicates which part of your skin has been touched. But how do you know exactly where that bit of your body is so you can swat the fly? As we move our bodies around in space we have to remap and take account of our changes in posture to understand the sensations arriving at our skin; very different movements are required to scratch your knee depending on whether you’re sitting down or standing up. This might seem like a trivial problem, but it is more complex than it seems at first. We have to integrate information from our joints and muscles about the current position of our bodyproprioceptive informationas well as touch and vision, for example, to gauge that the sight of a fly landing and the sensation of it contacting your finger are coming from the same place.
6.3.1. In Action
Try closing your eyes and feeling an object on a table in front of you with the fingers of both hands. Now, cross your hands and return your fingers to the object. Despite swapping the point of contact between your two hands, you do not feel that the object has flipped around. The next two illusions attempt to make this remapping fail.
First, try crossing your index finger and middle finger and run the gap between them along the ridge and around the tip of your nose (make sure you do this quite slowly). You will probably feel as if you have two noses. This is because your brain has failed to take account of the fact that you have crossed your fingers. Notice that you are unable to overcome this illusion even if you consciously try to do so. This is sometimes called Aristotle’s Illusion, as he was apparently the first person to record it.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(288) "How do we keep the sensations on our skin up to date as we move our bodies around in space?
When an insect lands on your skin, receptors in that area of skin fire and a signal travels up to your brain. The identity of the receptor indicates which part of your skin has been touched. [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1950) "How do we keep the sensations on our skin up to date as we move our bodies around in space?
When an insect lands on your skin, receptors in that area of skin fire and a signal travels up to your brain. The identity of the receptor indicates which part of your skin has been touched. But how do you know exactly where that bit of your body is so you can swat the fly? As we move our bodies around in space we have to remap and take account of our changes in posture to understand the sensations arriving at our skin; very different movements are required to scratch your knee depending on whether you’re sitting down or standing up. This might seem like a trivial problem, but it is more complex than it seems at first. We have to integrate information from our joints and muscles about the current position of our bodyproprioceptive informationas well as touch and vision, for example, to gauge that the sight of a fly landing and the sensation of it contacting your finger are coming from the same place.
6.3.1. In Action
Try closing your eyes and feeling an object on a table in front of you with the fingers of both hands. Now, cross your hands and return your fingers to the object. Despite swapping the point of contact between your two hands, you do not feel that the object has flipped around. The next two illusions attempt to make this remapping fail.
First, try crossing your index finger and middle finger and run the gap between them along the ridge and around the tip of your nose (make sure you do this quite slowly). You will probably feel as if you have two noses. This is because your brain has failed to take account of the fact that you have crossed your fingers. Notice that you are unable to overcome this illusion even if you consciously try to do so. This is sometimes called Aristotle’s Illusion, as he was apparently the first person to record it.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1249463384)
}
[40]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(59) "Brain Exercises and Memory Training: Practice Makes Perfect"
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string(346) "Exercising the brain can take many forms. It is essential to keep your mind curious, occupied, and creative. Maintaining an active social life as you grow older is crucial, because it is through interaction with other people that your intellect stays sharp. Be mentally active, and cultivate your memory skills to avoid losing them. Several [...]"
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string(2388) "Exercising the brain can take many forms. It is essential to keep your mind curious, occupied, and creative. Maintaining an active social life as you grow older is crucial, because it is through interaction with other people that your intellect stays sharp. Be mentally active, and cultivate your memory skills to avoid losing them. Several simple strategies, summarized in the table below, can be used to maintain and even boost your memory skills (see more details in chapter 6). Regularity and consistency are necessary for these techniques to have any long-term impact.
Diet, Physical Exercise, and Memory Training Work Best Together
Obviously, the most effective diet and exercise (physical and mental) program is just that: a diet and exercise program, not just one or the other. From a health standpoint, this combination needs to be executed on a steady, continuous basis. Fits and starts are not very helpful in preventing memory loss. Stick to a sensible diet without drastic changes and exercise regularly, preferably a few times each week. Memory training to maintain mental sharpness is also important. Once you convert these changes into regular habits you will be on automatic pilot, and the regimen will not seem so difficult to maintain.
Step 3: Supplement with Medications: Vitamins, Alternative, Pharmaceutical
Medications to prevent future memory loss, or to treat mild forms of memory loss, should be used to supplement, and not replace, general health measures like proper diet and exercise. You may wish to try the alternative medications in the list, or you may prefer to stick to modern pharmaceuticals, which include over-the-counter and prescription medications. But regardless of which camp you belong to, I suggest that you keep an open mind and weigh all the information in your Memory Program before starting any medications.
Individuals React Differently to Different Medications
People react in different ways to the same medications, so if you start with one and you’re not happy with it, or feel that you’re developing side effects, it is perfectly reasonable to switch to another medication or combination of medications.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(346) "Exercising the brain can take many forms. It is essential to keep your mind curious, occupied, and creative. Maintaining an active social life as you grow older is crucial, because it is through interaction with other people that your intellect stays sharp. Be mentally active, and cultivate your memory skills to avoid losing them. Several [...]"
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string(2388) "Exercising the brain can take many forms. It is essential to keep your mind curious, occupied, and creative. Maintaining an active social life as you grow older is crucial, because it is through interaction with other people that your intellect stays sharp. Be mentally active, and cultivate your memory skills to avoid losing them. Several simple strategies, summarized in the table below, can be used to maintain and even boost your memory skills (see more details in chapter 6). Regularity and consistency are necessary for these techniques to have any long-term impact.
Diet, Physical Exercise, and Memory Training Work Best Together
Obviously, the most effective diet and exercise (physical and mental) program is just that: a diet and exercise program, not just one or the other. From a health standpoint, this combination needs to be executed on a steady, continuous basis. Fits and starts are not very helpful in preventing memory loss. Stick to a sensible diet without drastic changes and exercise regularly, preferably a few times each week. Memory training to maintain mental sharpness is also important. Once you convert these changes into regular habits you will be on automatic pilot, and the regimen will not seem so difficult to maintain.
Step 3: Supplement with Medications: Vitamins, Alternative, Pharmaceutical
Medications to prevent future memory loss, or to treat mild forms of memory loss, should be used to supplement, and not replace, general health measures like proper diet and exercise. You may wish to try the alternative medications in the list, or you may prefer to stick to modern pharmaceuticals, which include over-the-counter and prescription medications. But regardless of which camp you belong to, I suggest that you keep an open mind and weigh all the information in your Memory Program before starting any medications.
Individuals React Differently to Different Medications
People react in different ways to the same medications, so if you start with one and you’re not happy with it, or feel that you’re developing side effects, it is perfectly reasonable to switch to another medication or combination of medications.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1249204172)
}
[41]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(29) "Stimulating Nerve Cell Growth"
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string(350) "In infant mice, an enriched environment of toys, high-quality food, games, and other stimuli increases nerve cell growth and branching in the brain. Compared to normally caged mice living a spartan existence, mice exposed to barely two months of this enriched environment show a 15 percent increase in the number of brain nerve cells.
You know [...]"
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string(2712) "In infant mice, an enriched environment of toys, high-quality food, games, and other stimuli increases nerve cell growth and branching in the brain. Compared to normally caged mice living a spartan existence, mice exposed to barely two months of this enriched environment show a 15 percent increase in the number of brain nerve cells.
You know that in children, intensive education accompanied by strong nurturing and healthy social stimulation often leads to outstanding academic and subsequent professional success. It is as if these enviromental factors are the cognitive enhancers, the promemory agents, of childhood. But can a similar approach be used to boost memory in older people, whose nerve cells have largely lost the ability to reproduce?
Substances that stimulate the growth and branching of existing nerve cells, without necessarily increasing their number through a reproductive process, may enhance cognitive abilities. For example, infusing a naturally occurring substance called nerve growth factor into mice increases neuronal branching and improves connectivity among brain cells. These ideas are still in animal experimentation, but clinical trials are likely to begin with one or more neurotrophic compounds in
the near future.
Pluripotent Nerve Cells: A Neuroscience Controversy
A healthy diet, regular exercise, and intellectual and social stimulation are clearly beneficial to brain function. There is a molecular basis to the effects of these types of environmental stimulation in the brain. Although most nerve cells in an older person’s brain have indeed lost the ability to reproduce, there are a few primitive cells, called pluripotent cells, that retain the capacity to differentiate or evolve into several types of nerve cells at any time during the life span, including old age. While these cells are small in number, they can still play an important restorative role after injury or damage or the aging process itself. Some of these pluripotent neural cells appear to be present in the hippocampus, and stimulating them to differentiate and reproduce may prove to be an excellent promemory strategy. As a matter of fact, a few drug companies are trying to develop neurotrophic compounds that can stimulate these primitive, pluripotent cells to differentiate and grow into functioning nerve cells in the brain.
Basic research on pluripotent nerve cells has been very limited, and some scientists question if they even exist in the adult human brain.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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You know [...]"
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You know that in children, intensive education accompanied by strong nurturing and healthy social stimulation often leads to outstanding academic and subsequent professional success. It is as if these enviromental factors are the cognitive enhancers, the promemory agents, of childhood. But can a similar approach be used to boost memory in older people, whose nerve cells have largely lost the ability to reproduce?
Substances that stimulate the growth and branching of existing nerve cells, without necessarily increasing their number through a reproductive process, may enhance cognitive abilities. For example, infusing a naturally occurring substance called nerve growth factor into mice increases neuronal branching and improves connectivity among brain cells. These ideas are still in animal experimentation, but clinical trials are likely to begin with one or more neurotrophic compounds in
the near future.
Pluripotent Nerve Cells: A Neuroscience Controversy
A healthy diet, regular exercise, and intellectual and social stimulation are clearly beneficial to brain function. There is a molecular basis to the effects of these types of environmental stimulation in the brain. Although most nerve cells in an older person’s brain have indeed lost the ability to reproduce, there are a few primitive cells, called pluripotent cells, that retain the capacity to differentiate or evolve into several types of nerve cells at any time during the life span, including old age. While these cells are small in number, they can still play an important restorative role after injury or damage or the aging process itself. Some of these pluripotent neural cells appear to be present in the hippocampus, and stimulating them to differentiate and reproduce may prove to be an excellent promemory strategy. As a matter of fact, a few drug companies are trying to develop neurotrophic compounds that can stimulate these primitive, pluripotent cells to differentiate and grow into functioning nerve cells in the brain.
Basic research on pluripotent nerve cells has been very limited, and some scientists question if they even exist in the adult human brain.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1248918331)
}
[42]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(25) "Hack 61. Talk to Yourself"
["link"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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string(342) "Language isn’t just for talking to other people; it may play a vital role in helping your brain combine information from different modules.
Language might be an astoundingly efficient way of getting information into your head from the outside [Hack #49] , but that’s not its only job. It also helps you think. Far from being [...]"
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string(1715) "Language isn’t just for talking to other people; it may play a vital role in helping your brain combine information from different modules.
Language might be an astoundingly efficient way of getting information into your head from the outside [Hack #49] , but that’s not its only job. It also helps you think. Far from being a sign of madness, talking to yourself is something at the essence of being human.
Rather than dwell on the evolution of language and its role in rewiring the brain into its modern form,1 let’s look at one way language may be used by our brains to do cognitive work. Specifically we’re talking about the ability of language to combine information in ordered structuresin a word: syntax.
Peter Carruthers, at the University of Maryland,2 has proposed that language syntax is used to combine, simultaneously, information from different cognitive modules. By “modules,” he means specialized processes into which we have no insight,3 such as color perception or instant number judgments [Hack #35] . You don’t know how you know that something is red or that there are two coffee cups, you just know. Without language syntax, the claim is, we can’t combine this information.
The theory seems pretty boldor maybe even wrongbut we’ll go through the evidence Carruthers uses and the details of what exactly he means and you can make up your own mind. If he’s right, the implications are profound, and it clarifies exactly how deeply language is entwined with thought. At the very least, we hope to convince you that something interesting is going on in these experiments.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(342) "Language isn’t just for talking to other people; it may play a vital role in helping your brain combine information from different modules.
Language might be an astoundingly efficient way of getting information into your head from the outside [Hack #49] , but that’s not its only job. It also helps you think. Far from being [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1715) "Language isn’t just for talking to other people; it may play a vital role in helping your brain combine information from different modules.
Language might be an astoundingly efficient way of getting information into your head from the outside [Hack #49] , but that’s not its only job. It also helps you think. Far from being a sign of madness, talking to yourself is something at the essence of being human.
Rather than dwell on the evolution of language and its role in rewiring the brain into its modern form,1 let’s look at one way language may be used by our brains to do cognitive work. Specifically we’re talking about the ability of language to combine information in ordered structuresin a word: syntax.
Peter Carruthers, at the University of Maryland,2 has proposed that language syntax is used to combine, simultaneously, information from different cognitive modules. By “modules,” he means specialized processes into which we have no insight,3 such as color perception or instant number judgments [Hack #35] . You don’t know how you know that something is red or that there are two coffee cups, you just know. Without language syntax, the claim is, we can’t combine this information.
The theory seems pretty boldor maybe even wrongbut we’ll go through the evidence Carruthers uses and the details of what exactly he means and you can make up your own mind. If he’s right, the implications are profound, and it clarifies exactly how deeply language is entwined with thought. At the very least, we hope to convince you that something interesting is going on in these experiments.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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}
[43]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(34) "Hack 64. Mold Your Body Schema (2)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=379"
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["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 24 Jul 2009 09:00:28 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(292) "One easy way of moving your hands together is to run a curtain rail under the mirror, if you have one handy, and place each hand on a curtain ring (this is what I’m doing in Figure 6-2). Move your hands toward and away from the mirror for 30 seconds, until your brain has confused [...]"
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string(2875) "One easy way of moving your hands together is to run a curtain rail under the mirror, if you have one handy, and place each hand on a curtain ring (this is what I’m doing in Figure 6-2). Move your hands toward and away from the mirror for 30 seconds, until your brain has confused your right hand and your reflected left hand in the mirrorthen release the curtain ring from your right hand. You can feel the ring has gone, but in the mirror it looks as though you’re still holding it. To me, the disconnect felt like pins and needles, all through my right hand.
Alternatively, you can manipulate your body schema into incorporating a table as part of yourself.1 Sit at a table with a friend at your side. Put one hand on your knee, out of sight under the table. Your friend’s job is to tap, touch, and stroke your hidden hand andwith identical movements using her other handto tap the top of the table directly above. Do this for a couple of minutes. It helps if you concentrate on the table where your friend is touching, and it’s important you don’t get hints of how your friend is touching your hidden hand. The more irregular the pattern and the better synchronized the movements on your hand and on the table, the greater the chance this will work for you. About 50% of people begin to feel as if the tapping sensation is arising from the table, where they can see the tapping happening before their very eyes. If you’re lucky, the simultaneous touching and visual input have led the table to be incorporated into your body image.
6.4.2. How It Works
These techniques provide conflicting touch and visual feedback, making it difficult to maintain a consistent impression of exactly where body parts are located in space. They’re similar to the crossed hands illusion [Hack #63], in which twisting your hands generates visual feedback contradictory to your body schema. In the crossed hands illusion, this leads to movement errors, and in the preceding techniques leads to the sense of being momentarily disconnected from our own movements.
Some of our best information on the body schema has been from patients who have had limbs amputated. More than 90% of amputees with reporting an experience of a “phantom limb”: they still experience sensations (sometimes pain) from an amputated body part. This suggests that the brain represents some aspects of body position and sensation as an internal model that does not entirely depend on sensory feedback. Further evidence is provided by a rare disorder called autotopagnosia: despite the patients having intact limbs, brain injury (particularly to the left parietal lobe [Hack #8]) causes a loss of spatial knowledge about the body so severe that they are unable to even point to a body part when asked.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(292) "One easy way of moving your hands together is to run a curtain rail under the mirror, if you have one handy, and place each hand on a curtain ring (this is what I’m doing in Figure 6-2). Move your hands toward and away from the mirror for 30 seconds, until your brain has confused [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2875) "One easy way of moving your hands together is to run a curtain rail under the mirror, if you have one handy, and place each hand on a curtain ring (this is what I’m doing in Figure 6-2). Move your hands toward and away from the mirror for 30 seconds, until your brain has confused your right hand and your reflected left hand in the mirrorthen release the curtain ring from your right hand. You can feel the ring has gone, but in the mirror it looks as though you’re still holding it. To me, the disconnect felt like pins and needles, all through my right hand.
Alternatively, you can manipulate your body schema into incorporating a table as part of yourself.1 Sit at a table with a friend at your side. Put one hand on your knee, out of sight under the table. Your friend’s job is to tap, touch, and stroke your hidden hand andwith identical movements using her other handto tap the top of the table directly above. Do this for a couple of minutes. It helps if you concentrate on the table where your friend is touching, and it’s important you don’t get hints of how your friend is touching your hidden hand. The more irregular the pattern and the better synchronized the movements on your hand and on the table, the greater the chance this will work for you. About 50% of people begin to feel as if the tapping sensation is arising from the table, where they can see the tapping happening before their very eyes. If you’re lucky, the simultaneous touching and visual input have led the table to be incorporated into your body image.
6.4.2. How It Works
These techniques provide conflicting touch and visual feedback, making it difficult to maintain a consistent impression of exactly where body parts are located in space. They’re similar to the crossed hands illusion [Hack #63], in which twisting your hands generates visual feedback contradictory to your body schema. In the crossed hands illusion, this leads to movement errors, and in the preceding techniques leads to the sense of being momentarily disconnected from our own movements.
Some of our best information on the body schema has been from patients who have had limbs amputated. More than 90% of amputees with reporting an experience of a “phantom limb”: they still experience sensations (sometimes pain) from an amputated body part. This suggests that the brain represents some aspects of body position and sensation as an internal model that does not entirely depend on sensory feedback. Further evidence is provided by a rare disorder called autotopagnosia: despite the patients having intact limbs, brain injury (particularly to the left parietal lobe [Hack #8]) causes a loss of spatial knowledge about the body so severe that they are unable to even point to a body part when asked.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1248426028)
}
[44]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(71) "Hack 62. The Broken Escalator Phenomenon: When Autopilot Takes Over (3)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=365"
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["pubdate"]=>
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string(347) "The first time the subjects stepped onto the moving walkway, they lost their balance and grasped the handrail. But over the next few attempts, they learned to anticipate the unbalancing effect of the walkway by speeding up their stride and leaning their body forward.
Then crucially, when the volunteers first walked onto the walkway when it [...]"
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string(3449) "The first time the subjects stepped onto the moving walkway, they lost their balance and grasped the handrail. But over the next few attempts, they learned to anticipate the unbalancing effect of the walkway by speeding up their stride and leaning their body forward.
Then crucially, when the volunteers first walked onto the walkway when it was switched off, they continued to walk at the increased speed and also continued to sway the trunk of their body forward. They performed these inappropriate adjustments even though they could see the walkway was no longer moving and even though they had been told it would no longer move. However, this happened only once. Their brain had apparently realized the mistake and the next time they walked onto the stationary walkway they didn’t perform these inappropriate adjustments. Consistent with anecdotal evidence for the broken escalator phenomenon, most of the volunteers expressed spontaneous surprise at the sensations they experienced when they first stepped onto the stationary walkway.
6.2.3. In Real Life
There are obviously differences between the lab experiment and the real-life phenomenon. Our brains have learned to cope with escalators over years of experience, whereas the experimental volunteers adapted to the lab walkway in just a few minutes. But what the real-life phenomenon and lab experiment both represent is an example of dissociation between our conscious knowledge and our brain’s control of our actions. The volunteers knew the walkway was motionless, but because it had been moving previously, the brain put anticipatory adjustments in place anyway to prevent loss of balance. Usually these kinds of dissociations work the other way around. Often our conscious perception can be tricked by sensory illusions, but the action systems of our brain are not fooled and act appropriately. For example, visual illusions of size can lead us to perceptually misjudge the size of an object, yet our fingertip grasp will be appropriate to the object’s true size. The motor system gets it right when our conscious perception is fooled by the illusion size (see [Hack #66] to see this in action).
These observations undermine our sense of a unified self: it seems our consciousness and the movement control parts of our brain can have two different takes on the world at the same time. This happens because, in our fast-paced world of infinite information and possibility, our brain must prioritize both what sensory information reaches consciousness and what aspects of movement our consciousness controls. Imagine how sluggish you would be if you had to think in detail about every movement you made. Indeed, most of the time autopilot improves performancethink of how fluent you’ve become at the boring drive home from work or the benefits of touch-typing. It’s just that, in the case of the broken escalator, your brain should really have handed the reins back to “you.”
6.2.4. End Notes
Reynolds, R. F., & Bronstein, A. M. (2003). The broken escalator phenomenon. aftereffect of walking onto a moving platform. Experimental Brain Research, 151, 301-308.
Reynolds, R. F., & Bronstein, A. M. (2004). The moving platform aftereffect: Limited generalization of a locomotor adaptation. Journal of Neurophysiology, 91, 92-100.
Christian Jarrett
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(347) "The first time the subjects stepped onto the moving walkway, they lost their balance and grasped the handrail. But over the next few attempts, they learned to anticipate the unbalancing effect of the walkway by speeding up their stride and leaning their body forward.
Then crucially, when the volunteers first walked onto the walkway when it [...]"
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string(3449) "The first time the subjects stepped onto the moving walkway, they lost their balance and grasped the handrail. But over the next few attempts, they learned to anticipate the unbalancing effect of the walkway by speeding up their stride and leaning their body forward.
Then crucially, when the volunteers first walked onto the walkway when it was switched off, they continued to walk at the increased speed and also continued to sway the trunk of their body forward. They performed these inappropriate adjustments even though they could see the walkway was no longer moving and even though they had been told it would no longer move. However, this happened only once. Their brain had apparently realized the mistake and the next time they walked onto the stationary walkway they didn’t perform these inappropriate adjustments. Consistent with anecdotal evidence for the broken escalator phenomenon, most of the volunteers expressed spontaneous surprise at the sensations they experienced when they first stepped onto the stationary walkway.
6.2.3. In Real Life
There are obviously differences between the lab experiment and the real-life phenomenon. Our brains have learned to cope with escalators over years of experience, whereas the experimental volunteers adapted to the lab walkway in just a few minutes. But what the real-life phenomenon and lab experiment both represent is an example of dissociation between our conscious knowledge and our brain’s control of our actions. The volunteers knew the walkway was motionless, but because it had been moving previously, the brain put anticipatory adjustments in place anyway to prevent loss of balance. Usually these kinds of dissociations work the other way around. Often our conscious perception can be tricked by sensory illusions, but the action systems of our brain are not fooled and act appropriately. For example, visual illusions of size can lead us to perceptually misjudge the size of an object, yet our fingertip grasp will be appropriate to the object’s true size. The motor system gets it right when our conscious perception is fooled by the illusion size (see [Hack #66] to see this in action).
These observations undermine our sense of a unified self: it seems our consciousness and the movement control parts of our brain can have two different takes on the world at the same time. This happens because, in our fast-paced world of infinite information and possibility, our brain must prioritize both what sensory information reaches consciousness and what aspects of movement our consciousness controls. Imagine how sluggish you would be if you had to think in detail about every movement you made. Indeed, most of the time autopilot improves performancethink of how fluent you’ve become at the boring drive home from work or the benefits of touch-typing. It’s just that, in the case of the broken escalator, your brain should really have handed the reins back to “you.”
6.2.4. End Notes
Reynolds, R. F., & Bronstein, A. M. (2003). The broken escalator phenomenon. aftereffect of walking onto a moving platform. Experimental Brain Research, 151, 301-308.
Reynolds, R. F., & Bronstein, A. M. (2004). The moving platform aftereffect: Limited generalization of a locomotor adaptation. Journal of Neurophysiology, 91, 92-100.
Christian Jarrett
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(30) "Hack 64. Mold Your Body Schema"
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Our brains are constantly updated with information about the position of our bodies. Rather than relying entirely on one form of sensory feedback, our bodies use both visual and tactile feedback in concert to allow us to work out where our limbs [...]"
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Our brains are constantly updated with information about the position of our bodies. Rather than relying entirely on one form of sensory feedback, our bodies use both visual and tactile feedback in concert to allow us to work out where our limbs are likely to be at any one moment. Proprioceptiongenerated by sensory receptors located in our joints and muscles that feed back information on muscle stretch and joint positionis another sense that is specifically concerned with body position.
The brain combines all this information to provide a unified impression of body position and shape known as the body schema. Nevertheless, by supplying conflicting sensory feedback during movement, we can confuse our body schema and break apart the unified impression.
6.4.1. In Action
Find a mirror big enough so you can stand it on its edge, perpendicular to your body, with the mirrored side facing left. Put your arms at your sides (you’ll probably need a friend to hold the mirror). This whole setup is shown in Figure 6-2. Look sideways into the mirror so you can see both your left hand and its reflection in the mirror, so that it appears at first blush to be your hidden right hand. While keeping your wrists still and looking into the mirror, waggle your fingers and move both your hands in synchrony for about 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, keep your left hand moving but stop your right. You should sense a momentary feeling of “strangeness,” as if disconnected from your right hand. It looks as if it is moving yet feels as if it has stopped.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(347) "Your body image is mutable within only a few minutes of judiciousand misleadingvisual feedback.
Our brains are constantly updated with information about the position of our bodies. Rather than relying entirely on one form of sensory feedback, our bodies use both visual and tactile feedback in concert to allow us to work out where our limbs [...]"
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string(1726) "Your body image is mutable within only a few minutes of judiciousand misleadingvisual feedback.
Our brains are constantly updated with information about the position of our bodies. Rather than relying entirely on one form of sensory feedback, our bodies use both visual and tactile feedback in concert to allow us to work out where our limbs are likely to be at any one moment. Proprioceptiongenerated by sensory receptors located in our joints and muscles that feed back information on muscle stretch and joint positionis another sense that is specifically concerned with body position.
The brain combines all this information to provide a unified impression of body position and shape known as the body schema. Nevertheless, by supplying conflicting sensory feedback during movement, we can confuse our body schema and break apart the unified impression.
6.4.1. In Action
Find a mirror big enough so you can stand it on its edge, perpendicular to your body, with the mirrored side facing left. Put your arms at your sides (you’ll probably need a friend to hold the mirror). This whole setup is shown in Figure 6-2. Look sideways into the mirror so you can see both your left hand and its reflection in the mirror, so that it appears at first blush to be your hidden right hand. While keeping your wrists still and looking into the mirror, waggle your fingers and move both your hands in synchrony for about 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, keep your left hand moving but stop your right. You should sense a momentary feeling of “strangeness,” as if disconnected from your right hand. It looks as if it is moving yet feels as if it has stopped.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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["title"]=>
string(25) "Cholinesterase Inhibitors"
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string(440) "Cholinesterase inhibitors represent the only class of medications that are FDA-approved to treat dementia, specifically Alzheimer’s disease. After tacrine came donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon), and galantamine (Reminyl). Although these medications were developed to treat patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the pharmaceutical industry has become aware that the market for mild memory loss is much larger. Aricept [...]"
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string(2732) "Cholinesterase inhibitors represent the only class of medications that are FDA-approved to treat dementia, specifically Alzheimer’s disease. After tacrine came donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon), and galantamine (Reminyl). Although these medications were developed to treat patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the pharmaceutical industry has become aware that the market for mild memory loss is much larger. Aricept has been shown to improve cognition in patients with multiple sclerosis, and is now being tested in people with mild to moderate memory loss. The other newer cholinergic agents may have similar properties. The underlying rationale is that cholinergic nerve cells decay in all of us during the aging process, and cholinesterase inhibitors can reverse this deficit and thereby improve cognitive performance.
Combination Therapies Need to Be Tested
From a theoretical perspective, tackling different pathways that lead to memory loss may be more beneficial than dealing with only one pathway, but a few studies that attempted combination therapies met with poor results. The Alzheimer’s study using vitamin E plus selegiline showed no advantage for the combination over either medication taken alone. Earlier, Ken Davis’s group at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York tried a medication cocktail to simultaneously correct the cholinergic and adrenergic (norepinephrine) deficits in Alzheimer’s disease, but the combination did not work well in a clinical trial.
But another incidental finding suggests that the search for an optimal combination therapy should not be abandoned. In the tacrine study of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the medication’s effect was strongest in women taking estrogen, indicating that the combination was better than tacrine alone. In an entirely different field, AIDS treatment underwent a revolution after combinations of protease inhibitors were shown to be much more effective than single medication regimens. In the future, I expect that a number of combinations will be studied from the potpourri of therapies for memory loss: ginkgo biloba, donepezil, vitamin E, estrogen, and COX-II inhibitors, to name a few. At this stage, it is impossible to predict which combination of two or three or four medications will prove superior to treatment with individual medications.
Note that the Memory Program relies on a multilayered strategy that includes the judicious use of carefully selected combinations of medications.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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["atom_content"]=>
string(2732) "Cholinesterase inhibitors represent the only class of medications that are FDA-approved to treat dementia, specifically Alzheimer’s disease. After tacrine came donepezil (Aricept), rivastigmine (Exelon), and galantamine (Reminyl). Although these medications were developed to treat patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the pharmaceutical industry has become aware that the market for mild memory loss is much larger. Aricept has been shown to improve cognition in patients with multiple sclerosis, and is now being tested in people with mild to moderate memory loss. The other newer cholinergic agents may have similar properties. The underlying rationale is that cholinergic nerve cells decay in all of us during the aging process, and cholinesterase inhibitors can reverse this deficit and thereby improve cognitive performance.
Combination Therapies Need to Be Tested
From a theoretical perspective, tackling different pathways that lead to memory loss may be more beneficial than dealing with only one pathway, but a few studies that attempted combination therapies met with poor results. The Alzheimer’s study using vitamin E plus selegiline showed no advantage for the combination over either medication taken alone. Earlier, Ken Davis’s group at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York tried a medication cocktail to simultaneously correct the cholinergic and adrenergic (norepinephrine) deficits in Alzheimer’s disease, but the combination did not work well in a clinical trial.
But another incidental finding suggests that the search for an optimal combination therapy should not be abandoned. In the tacrine study of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, the medication’s effect was strongest in women taking estrogen, indicating that the combination was better than tacrine alone. In an entirely different field, AIDS treatment underwent a revolution after combinations of protease inhibitors were shown to be much more effective than single medication regimens. In the future, I expect that a number of combinations will be studied from the potpourri of therapies for memory loss: ginkgo biloba, donepezil, vitamin E, estrogen, and COX-II inhibitors, to name a few. At this stage, it is impossible to predict which combination of two or three or four medications will prove superior to treatment with individual medications.
Note that the Memory Program relies on a multilayered strategy that includes the judicious use of carefully selected combinations of medications.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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["title"]=>
string(23) "6.3.2. How It Works (2)"
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string(301) "These cells usually respond to stimuli coming from the same region of space: a cell might respond to a finger being touched and to a light close to that finger. The most fascinating thing about some of these cells is that when the monkey moves its arm around, the region of visual space to which [...]"
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string(2839) "These cells usually respond to stimuli coming from the same region of space: a cell might respond to a finger being touched and to a light close to that finger. The most fascinating thing about some of these cells is that when the monkey moves its arm around, the region of visual space to which the cell responds also moves. Such cells are thought to represent the space that is close to our bodies. It is particularly important for us to merge together information from our different senses about this, our peripersonal space, which is within our immediate reach.
Spence and colleagues5 gave a patient with a split brain (whose left and right hemispheres were disconnected [Hack #69] ) the same touch and vision distraction task as described earlier. The patient behaved as normal with his right hand in the right side of space. That is, the lights on the right side produced the greatest interference. In this case, both touch and vision arrived first at the left hemisphere of his brain. When he moved his right hand over to the left side of space, we would now expect his right hand to be disrupted most by the nearby lights on the left side. However, the lights on the right side still interfered most with touches to the right hand (despite being on the opposite side of space to his hand). In this case, the lights on the left arrived first at the right hemisphere and touches to the right hand at the left hemisphere, and without connections between the two halves of his brain, he was unable to update. This shows how important the long-range connections between distant cortical areas of the brain are for remapping.
The fact that the updating of our posture and remapping of our visual-tactile links appears to occur before conscious awareness could explain why we take them for granted in our everyday lives. Some people seem to find such processing easier than others. Could experience affect these abilities? Might drummers who spend many hours playing with their arms crossed find remapping easier?
6.3.3. End Notes
Maravita, A., Spence, C., & Driver, J. (2003). Multisensory integration and the body schema: Close to hand and within reach. Current Biology, 13, R531-R539.
Yamamoto, S., & Kitazawa, S. (2001). Reversal of subjective temporal order due to arm crossing. Nature Neuroscience 4, 759-765.
Shore, D. I., Spry, E., & Spence, C. (2002). Confusing the mind by crossing the hands. Cognitive Brain Research, 14, 153-163.
Kitazawa, S. (2002). Where conscious sensation takes place. Consciousness and Cognition, 11, 475-477.
Spence, C. J., Kingstone, A., Shore, D. I., & Gazzaniga, M. S. (2001). Representation of visuotactile space in the split brain. Psychological Science, 12, 90-93.
Ellen Poliakoff
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(2839) "These cells usually respond to stimuli coming from the same region of space: a cell might respond to a finger being touched and to a light close to that finger. The most fascinating thing about some of these cells is that when the monkey moves its arm around, the region of visual space to which the cell responds also moves. Such cells are thought to represent the space that is close to our bodies. It is particularly important for us to merge together information from our different senses about this, our peripersonal space, which is within our immediate reach.
Spence and colleagues5 gave a patient with a split brain (whose left and right hemispheres were disconnected [Hack #69] ) the same touch and vision distraction task as described earlier. The patient behaved as normal with his right hand in the right side of space. That is, the lights on the right side produced the greatest interference. In this case, both touch and vision arrived first at the left hemisphere of his brain. When he moved his right hand over to the left side of space, we would now expect his right hand to be disrupted most by the nearby lights on the left side. However, the lights on the right side still interfered most with touches to the right hand (despite being on the opposite side of space to his hand). In this case, the lights on the left arrived first at the right hemisphere and touches to the right hand at the left hemisphere, and without connections between the two halves of his brain, he was unable to update. This shows how important the long-range connections between distant cortical areas of the brain are for remapping.
The fact that the updating of our posture and remapping of our visual-tactile links appears to occur before conscious awareness could explain why we take them for granted in our everyday lives. Some people seem to find such processing easier than others. Could experience affect these abilities? Might drummers who spend many hours playing with their arms crossed find remapping easier?
6.3.3. End Notes
Maravita, A., Spence, C., & Driver, J. (2003). Multisensory integration and the body schema: Close to hand and within reach. Current Biology, 13, R531-R539.
Yamamoto, S., & Kitazawa, S. (2001). Reversal of subjective temporal order due to arm crossing. Nature Neuroscience 4, 759-765.
Shore, D. I., Spry, E., & Spence, C. (2002). Confusing the mind by crossing the hands. Cognitive Brain Research, 14, 153-163.
Kitazawa, S. (2002). Where conscious sensation takes place. Consciousness and Cognition, 11, 475-477.
Spence, C. J., Kingstone, A., Shore, D. I., & Gazzaniga, M. S. (2001). Representation of visuotactile space in the split brain. Psychological Science, 12, 90-93.
Ellen Poliakoff
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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[48]=>
array(13) {
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string(4) "Iron"
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string(344) "What about iron, one of the most common metals in your body? Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, which is a big molecule inside red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body, including the brain. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which in severe cases can cause weakness, fatigue, and secondary cognitive impairment. [...]"
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string(2850) "What about iron, one of the most common metals in your body? Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, which is a big molecule inside red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body, including the brain. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which in severe cases can cause weakness, fatigue, and secondary cognitive impairment. The treatment is iron replacement (tablets). In the absence of iron deficiency, taking iron supplements will not boost your memory. I do not recommend iron supplementation in the absence of anemia, because excessive iron intake can damage the liver and other internal organs, as well as predispose you to a heart attack.
Trace Elements: To Take or Not To Take Them Except for iron, all the heavy metals described in this section come under the category of ?trace? elements because they are needed in microscopic quantities for normal bodily function. These metals can become toxic if taken in high doses. You may recall my earlier story about how my father’s Parkinson’s disease was going to be treated with an Ayurvedic heavy metal concoction, and I put a stop to it because of the potential for toxicity. Traces of lead, mercury, or arsenic, which are indistinguishable to the naked eye when mixed with other metals, can be extremely dangerous and even fatal. Therefore, if you plan to take a metallic supplement of any type, you must buy it from a reputed manufacturing source, preferably one with a national or international reputation.
As you’ve noticed, none of the trace metals made it into the Memory Program, largely because of the lack of systematic controlled studies with any of them.
CHAPTER 23
Your Future Memory Program
THE LONG-STANDING DEFEATISM about preventing and treating memory loss has now given way to a feeling of growing excitement that we will soon have the keys to the memory kingdom. But we have just scratched the surface, and new knowledge will eventually render obsolete our current repertoire of preventive and treatment strategies, including some of the components in the Memory Program.
Several potential therapies for age-related memory loss are still in the development stage. These include a new crop of cholinesterase inhibitors, treatment with combinations of cognitive enhancers,
stimulation of neuronal growth, blocking the formation of toxic compounds in the brain, and genetic strategies. Most of these attempts are likely to fail, but the few gems that emerge will revolutionize
the field of memory loss research and potentially could completely reverse the memory loss that occurs during the aging process.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(344) "What about iron, one of the most common metals in your body? Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, which is a big molecule inside red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body, including the brain. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which in severe cases can cause weakness, fatigue, and secondary cognitive impairment. [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2850) "What about iron, one of the most common metals in your body? Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, which is a big molecule inside red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body, including the brain. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, which in severe cases can cause weakness, fatigue, and secondary cognitive impairment. The treatment is iron replacement (tablets). In the absence of iron deficiency, taking iron supplements will not boost your memory. I do not recommend iron supplementation in the absence of anemia, because excessive iron intake can damage the liver and other internal organs, as well as predispose you to a heart attack.
Trace Elements: To Take or Not To Take Them Except for iron, all the heavy metals described in this section come under the category of ?trace? elements because they are needed in microscopic quantities for normal bodily function. These metals can become toxic if taken in high doses. You may recall my earlier story about how my father’s Parkinson’s disease was going to be treated with an Ayurvedic heavy metal concoction, and I put a stop to it because of the potential for toxicity. Traces of lead, mercury, or arsenic, which are indistinguishable to the naked eye when mixed with other metals, can be extremely dangerous and even fatal. Therefore, if you plan to take a metallic supplement of any type, you must buy it from a reputed manufacturing source, preferably one with a national or international reputation.
As you’ve noticed, none of the trace metals made it into the Memory Program, largely because of the lack of systematic controlled studies with any of them.
CHAPTER 23
Your Future Memory Program
THE LONG-STANDING DEFEATISM about preventing and treating memory loss has now given way to a feeling of growing excitement that we will soon have the keys to the memory kingdom. But we have just scratched the surface, and new knowledge will eventually render obsolete our current repertoire of preventive and treatment strategies, including some of the components in the Memory Program.
Several potential therapies for age-related memory loss are still in the development stage. These include a new crop of cholinesterase inhibitors, treatment with combinations of cognitive enhancers,
stimulation of neuronal growth, blocking the formation of toxic compounds in the brain, and genetic strategies. Most of these attempts are likely to fail, but the few gems that emerge will revolutionize
the field of memory loss research and potentially could completely reverse the memory loss that occurs during the aging process.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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}
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array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(8) "Chromium"
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string(377) "Chromium is essential in the manufacture of trypsin, an important digestive enzyme in the intestines. Chromium is also present in red blood cells and helps to metabolize cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of atherosclerosis. Most diets are sufficient in chromium, except for elderly people with poor diets. Supplements are available as chromium picolinate, but should [...]"
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string(3031) "Chromium is essential in the manufacture of trypsin, an important digestive enzyme in the intestines. Chromium is also present in red blood cells and helps to metabolize cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of atherosclerosis. Most diets are sufficient in chromium, except for elderly people with poor diets. Supplements are available as chromium picolinate, but should not be taken in excess because of the risk of toxicity. Although on a theoretical basis chromium may have promemory properties, there are no worthwhile research data on this issue.
Boron
Boron is another metallic element that acts in the brain. It improves electrical activity in nerve cells and seems to speed up reaction time and general alertness. It is also necessary for the body to properly process calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. Fruits and nuts have a high boron content. Since only a minuscule dietary intake is necessary, deficiency of this element is extremely rare. There are no clinical studies showing an effect against memory loss.
Zinc
Antiaging Properties of Zinc
Helps to heal wounds and repair skin damage.
Facilitates the action of antioxidants like vitamin E.
Increases the efficiency of the immune system.
Present in high concentrations in the hippocampus.
Involved either as a catalyst or in the chemical structure of over three hundred enzymes.
Levels decline with age, and some practitioners recommend zinc supplements as part of an antiaging program.
Zinc’s utility against memory loss remains to be tested clinically. In an elegant series of laboratory experiments in animals, Dennis Choi, chairman of the department of neurology at Washington University in St. Louis, showed that zinc in low concentrations protects against some types of hippocampal neuronal injury, but that at higher concentrations it kills nerve cells. So zinc therapy may be a double-edged sword: at low doses it is good, at high doses it is bad. This twist has led to a reversal in therapeutic strategies for memory loss; zinc therapy is now being replaced by substances that actually decrease zinc’s availability in the brain. Zinc is present in concentrations that are sometimes too low to detect, but new technology has opened up opportunities that should eventually tell us a great deal about the functions of zinc and all the other metallic trace elements in the brain.
The FDA recommended daily requirement for zinc is 15 mg for men and 12 mg for women, and this is easily obtained through a wide range of foods. Rarely, elderly people who suffer from general mal-nutrition can develop zinc deficiency, for which the main symptom is lack of taste and poor appetite. In high doses, zinc can cause stomach irritation, so if you plan to use zinc supplements, do so in moderation.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(377) "Chromium is essential in the manufacture of trypsin, an important digestive enzyme in the intestines. Chromium is also present in red blood cells and helps to metabolize cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of atherosclerosis. Most diets are sufficient in chromium, except for elderly people with poor diets. Supplements are available as chromium picolinate, but should [...]"
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string(3031) "Chromium is essential in the manufacture of trypsin, an important digestive enzyme in the intestines. Chromium is also present in red blood cells and helps to metabolize cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of atherosclerosis. Most diets are sufficient in chromium, except for elderly people with poor diets. Supplements are available as chromium picolinate, but should not be taken in excess because of the risk of toxicity. Although on a theoretical basis chromium may have promemory properties, there are no worthwhile research data on this issue.
Boron
Boron is another metallic element that acts in the brain. It improves electrical activity in nerve cells and seems to speed up reaction time and general alertness. It is also necessary for the body to properly process calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. Fruits and nuts have a high boron content. Since only a minuscule dietary intake is necessary, deficiency of this element is extremely rare. There are no clinical studies showing an effect against memory loss.
Zinc
Antiaging Properties of Zinc
Helps to heal wounds and repair skin damage.
Facilitates the action of antioxidants like vitamin E.
Increases the efficiency of the immune system.
Present in high concentrations in the hippocampus.
Involved either as a catalyst or in the chemical structure of over three hundred enzymes.
Levels decline with age, and some practitioners recommend zinc supplements as part of an antiaging program.
Zinc’s utility against memory loss remains to be tested clinically. In an elegant series of laboratory experiments in animals, Dennis Choi, chairman of the department of neurology at Washington University in St. Louis, showed that zinc in low concentrations protects against some types of hippocampal neuronal injury, but that at higher concentrations it kills nerve cells. So zinc therapy may be a double-edged sword: at low doses it is good, at high doses it is bad. This twist has led to a reversal in therapeutic strategies for memory loss; zinc therapy is now being replaced by substances that actually decrease zinc’s availability in the brain. Zinc is present in concentrations that are sometimes too low to detect, but new technology has opened up opportunities that should eventually tell us a great deal about the functions of zinc and all the other metallic trace elements in the brain.
The FDA recommended daily requirement for zinc is 15 mg for men and 12 mg for women, and this is easily obtained through a wide range of foods. Rarely, elderly people who suffer from general mal-nutrition can develop zinc deficiency, for which the main symptom is lack of taste and poor appetite. In high doses, zinc can cause stomach irritation, so if you plan to use zinc supplements, do so in moderation.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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[50]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(29) "Hormone and Peptide Therapy14"
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string(365) "If thyroid deficiency causes memory loss, can giving thyroid hormone to people without this hormone deficiency boost memory? The answer is no: the body’s internal regulatory system maintains a fine balance in the levels of thyroid and most other hormones, quickly getting rid of the excess hormone that is ingested. An additional factor weighing against [...]"
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string(1748) "If thyroid deficiency causes memory loss, can giving thyroid hormone to people without this hormone deficiency boost memory? The answer is no: the body’s internal regulatory system maintains a fine balance in the levels of thyroid and most other hormones, quickly getting rid of the excess hormone that is ingested. An additional factor weighing against these hormones is that they cause a variety of side effects (differs markedly among different hormones) when given in high doses, thus reducing their potential utility as a long-term preventive strategy against age-related memory loss.
Vasopressin, also called antidiuretic hormone, is produced by cells that lie just above the pituitary gland in the brain. Studies in mice indicate that vasopressin improves learning and memory, but clinical results have been disappointing. Vasopressin is difficult to use because it needs to be given intravenously or via a nasal spray, and its effects on blood pressure and the kidneys make it potentially dangerous when used in high doses.
Other hormones, and some peptides that are similar to hormones, have each been proposed as potential antimemory-loss agents, but no scientific basis has been found for these claims. These include melanotropin, atrial natriuretic peptide, and substance P.
Metallic Elements Are Present in Trace Quantities
Metallic elements like chromium, magnesium, and selenium are essential elements that are normally ingested only in trace quantities. These elements hold some promise in the fight against memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(365) "If thyroid deficiency causes memory loss, can giving thyroid hormone to people without this hormone deficiency boost memory? The answer is no: the body’s internal regulatory system maintains a fine balance in the levels of thyroid and most other hormones, quickly getting rid of the excess hormone that is ingested. An additional factor weighing against [...]"
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string(1748) "If thyroid deficiency causes memory loss, can giving thyroid hormone to people without this hormone deficiency boost memory? The answer is no: the body’s internal regulatory system maintains a fine balance in the levels of thyroid and most other hormones, quickly getting rid of the excess hormone that is ingested. An additional factor weighing against these hormones is that they cause a variety of side effects (differs markedly among different hormones) when given in high doses, thus reducing their potential utility as a long-term preventive strategy against age-related memory loss.
Vasopressin, also called antidiuretic hormone, is produced by cells that lie just above the pituitary gland in the brain. Studies in mice indicate that vasopressin improves learning and memory, but clinical results have been disappointing. Vasopressin is difficult to use because it needs to be given intravenously or via a nasal spray, and its effects on blood pressure and the kidneys make it potentially dangerous when used in high doses.
Other hormones, and some peptides that are similar to hormones, have each been proposed as potential antimemory-loss agents, but no scientific basis has been found for these claims. These include melanotropin, atrial natriuretic peptide, and substance P.
Metallic Elements Are Present in Trace Quantities
Metallic elements like chromium, magnesium, and selenium are essential elements that are normally ingested only in trace quantities. These elements hold some promise in the fight against memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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[51]=>
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["title"]=>
string(44) "Vitamin Supplements Are Good for Your Memory"
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string(361) "Diet alone can give you only a moderate amount of promemory antioxidants, and supplementation with vitamins is necessary to boost your antioxidant intake for a promemory effect. I describe the role of antioxidant vitamins E, A, and C, as well as other medications, in your Memory Program later in this chapter.
Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercise
Both aerobic [...]"
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string(2368) "Diet alone can give you only a moderate amount of promemory antioxidants, and supplementation with vitamins is necessary to boost your antioxidant intake for a promemory effect. I describe the role of antioxidant vitamins E, A, and C, as well as other medications, in your Memory Program later in this chapter.
Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercise
Both aerobic and anaerobic exercise are good for the heart and brain. Aerobic exercise involves medium-level effort in which the heart rate (pulse) rises on average by thirty to forty beats per minute. More severe exertion raises your heart rate even further and takes you into the anaerobic range, which is difficult to keep up for long. As you grow older, there is a good chance that you will shift from mixed anaerobic/aerobic to pure aerobic activity, tennis to golf. Long walks represent very good aerobic exercise, but with the exception of power walking they do not burn up as many calories as most people think they do.
Exercise Is Important for Your Memory
Perform moderate, regular exercise three to six times per week.
Regulate aerobic and anaerobic exercises to your age, health, and tolerance level.
Aerobic: brisk walking thirty minutes, jogging twenty-five minutes, swimming twenty minutes, formal exercise programs in aerobics classes.
Mixed aerobic and anaerobic: running, tennis, cycling, exercise equipment (stationary cycle, StairMaster, treadmill, NordicTrack, newer, low-impact workout machines).
Before you liftweights, start with at least twenty minutes of aerobic or anaerobic cardiovascular fitness exercise (any of the options listed above).
Yoga and related exercises are excellent for mobility but burn few calories.
Keep a regular routine: don’t overexert one week and become a couch potato the next.
Stop if breathing difficulty or palpitations or faintness develops.
Regular physical exercise not only improves your general feeling of well-being and quality of life, but it also has a positive impact on memory by decreasing the risk of stroke, releasing endorphins, and possibly stimulating neuronal branching within the brain.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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string(361) "Diet alone can give you only a moderate amount of promemory antioxidants, and supplementation with vitamins is necessary to boost your antioxidant intake for a promemory effect. I describe the role of antioxidant vitamins E, A, and C, as well as other medications, in your Memory Program later in this chapter.
Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercise
Both aerobic [...]"
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string(2368) "Diet alone can give you only a moderate amount of promemory antioxidants, and supplementation with vitamins is necessary to boost your antioxidant intake for a promemory effect. I describe the role of antioxidant vitamins E, A, and C, as well as other medications, in your Memory Program later in this chapter.
Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercise
Both aerobic and anaerobic exercise are good for the heart and brain. Aerobic exercise involves medium-level effort in which the heart rate (pulse) rises on average by thirty to forty beats per minute. More severe exertion raises your heart rate even further and takes you into the anaerobic range, which is difficult to keep up for long. As you grow older, there is a good chance that you will shift from mixed anaerobic/aerobic to pure aerobic activity, tennis to golf. Long walks represent very good aerobic exercise, but with the exception of power walking they do not burn up as many calories as most people think they do.
Exercise Is Important for Your Memory
Perform moderate, regular exercise three to six times per week.
Regulate aerobic and anaerobic exercises to your age, health, and tolerance level.
Aerobic: brisk walking thirty minutes, jogging twenty-five minutes, swimming twenty minutes, formal exercise programs in aerobics classes.
Mixed aerobic and anaerobic: running, tennis, cycling, exercise equipment (stationary cycle, StairMaster, treadmill, NordicTrack, newer, low-impact workout machines).
Before you liftweights, start with at least twenty minutes of aerobic or anaerobic cardiovascular fitness exercise (any of the options listed above).
Yoga and related exercises are excellent for mobility but burn few calories.
Keep a regular routine: don’t overexert one week and become a couch potato the next.
Stop if breathing difficulty or palpitations or faintness develops.
Regular physical exercise not only improves your general feeling of well-being and quality of life, but it also has a positive impact on memory by decreasing the risk of stroke, releasing endorphins, and possibly stimulating neuronal branching within the brain.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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[52]=>
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["title"]=>
string(71) "Hack 62. The Broken Escalator Phenomenon: When Autopilot Takes Over (2)"
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string(326) "To try it out yourself, the best place to look is somewhere like the London Underground (where you’re sure to find plenty of broken escalators) or your favorite run-down mall. You need an escalator that is broken and not moving but that you’re still allowed to walk up. You could also use the moving walkways [...]"
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string(2128) "To try it out yourself, the best place to look is somewhere like the London Underground (where you’re sure to find plenty of broken escalators) or your favorite run-down mall. You need an escalator that is broken and not moving but that you’re still allowed to walk up. You could also use the moving walkways they have at airports; again, you need one that’s stationary but that you’re still permitted to walk onto. Now, try not to think about it too much and just go ahead and walk on up the escalator. You should find that you experience an odd sensation as you take your first step or two onto the escalator. People often report feeling as though they’ve been “sucked” onto the escalator. You might even lose your balance for a moment. If you keep trying it, the effect usually diminishes quite quickly.
6.2.2. How It Works
Unless we’ve lived our lives out in the wilderness, most of us will have encountered moving escalators or walkways at least a few times. And when we’ve done so, our brain has learned to adapt to the loss of balance caused by the escalator’s motion. It’s done this with little conscious effort on our part, automatically saving us from falling over. So when we step onto an escalator or moving walkway now, we barely notice the transition, and continue fluidly on our way. The thing is, when the escalator is broken, our brain adjusts our balance and posture anyway, and it seems we can’t stop it from doing so.
Until recently, evidence for this phenomenon was based only on urban anecdotes. But now the phenomenon has actually been investigated in the laboratory using a computer-controlled moving walkway.1,2 Special devices attached to the bodies and legs of 14 volunteers recorded their posture and muscle activity. Each volunteer then walked 20 times from a fixed platform onto the moving walkway. After that, the walkway was switched off, the volunteers were told it would no longer move, and they then walked from the platform onto the stationary walkway 10 times.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(326) "To try it out yourself, the best place to look is somewhere like the London Underground (where you’re sure to find plenty of broken escalators) or your favorite run-down mall. You need an escalator that is broken and not moving but that you’re still allowed to walk up. You could also use the moving walkways [...]"
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string(2128) "To try it out yourself, the best place to look is somewhere like the London Underground (where you’re sure to find plenty of broken escalators) or your favorite run-down mall. You need an escalator that is broken and not moving but that you’re still allowed to walk up. You could also use the moving walkways they have at airports; again, you need one that’s stationary but that you’re still permitted to walk onto. Now, try not to think about it too much and just go ahead and walk on up the escalator. You should find that you experience an odd sensation as you take your first step or two onto the escalator. People often report feeling as though they’ve been “sucked” onto the escalator. You might even lose your balance for a moment. If you keep trying it, the effect usually diminishes quite quickly.
6.2.2. How It Works
Unless we’ve lived our lives out in the wilderness, most of us will have encountered moving escalators or walkways at least a few times. And when we’ve done so, our brain has learned to adapt to the loss of balance caused by the escalator’s motion. It’s done this with little conscious effort on our part, automatically saving us from falling over. So when we step onto an escalator or moving walkway now, we barely notice the transition, and continue fluidly on our way. The thing is, when the escalator is broken, our brain adjusts our balance and posture anyway, and it seems we can’t stop it from doing so.
Until recently, evidence for this phenomenon was based only on urban anecdotes. But now the phenomenon has actually been investigated in the laboratory using a computer-controlled moving walkway.1,2 Special devices attached to the bodies and legs of 14 volunteers recorded their posture and muscle activity. Each volunteer then walked 20 times from a fixed platform onto the moving walkway. After that, the walkway was switched off, the volunteers were told it would no longer move, and they then walked from the platform onto the stationary walkway 10 times.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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["title"]=>
string(19) "6.3.2. How It Works"
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string(322) "Charles Spence and colleagues1 have shown that we can update how we bind together vision and touch when we cross our hands over. They asked people to attend to and make judgments about vibrations that they felt on their hands, while ignoring lights presented at the same time. When feeling a vibration on their right [...]"
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string(2340) "Charles Spence and colleagues1 have shown that we can update how we bind together vision and touch when we cross our hands over. They asked people to attend to and make judgments about vibrations that they felt on their hands, while ignoring lights presented at the same time. When feeling a vibration on their right hand, the lights on the right sideclosest to their right handinterfered much more (made people slower to carry out the task), than lights on their left side. That is, we tend to bind together vision and touch when they come from the same part of the outside world. So what happened when they crossed their hands over? The interaction between vision and touch changed over: lights over on the left side of their body were now closest to their right hand and interfered more with the right hand than the lights over on the right side. So, when we change where our hands are in space, we integrate different sets of visual and tactile signals.
But remapping can sometimes fail, even without intertwining our fingers. Two recent experiments2,3 have shown that we are particularly bad at dealing with information in quick succession. If your hands are in their usual uncrossed position and you are asked to judge which hand is touched first, it is relatively easy. On the other hand, if your hands are crossed, the same task becomes much more difficult. This difficulty in coping with stimuli presented in quick succession, suggests that remapping can be a time-consuming process. Shigeru Kitazawa4 has suggested we do not become conscious of a sensation on a particular part of our skin and then attribute it to a particular location in space. Rather, our conscious sensation of touch seems to be delayed until we can identify where it’s coming from.
So where in the brain do we remap and update our connections? Some clues have come from investigating the monkey brain. Cells that respond to both vision and touch have been found in the parietal and premotor cortexhigher areas, upstream of the somatosensory [Hack #12] and visual areas, which deal mainly with touch and vision alone.
The parietal cortex [Hack #8] contains areas that are concerned with visual and spatial representation. The premotor cortex is involved in representing and selecting movements
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(322) "Charles Spence and colleagues1 have shown that we can update how we bind together vision and touch when we cross our hands over. They asked people to attend to and make judgments about vibrations that they felt on their hands, while ignoring lights presented at the same time. When feeling a vibration on their right [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2340) "Charles Spence and colleagues1 have shown that we can update how we bind together vision and touch when we cross our hands over. They asked people to attend to and make judgments about vibrations that they felt on their hands, while ignoring lights presented at the same time. When feeling a vibration on their right hand, the lights on the right sideclosest to their right handinterfered much more (made people slower to carry out the task), than lights on their left side. That is, we tend to bind together vision and touch when they come from the same part of the outside world. So what happened when they crossed their hands over? The interaction between vision and touch changed over: lights over on the left side of their body were now closest to their right hand and interfered more with the right hand than the lights over on the right side. So, when we change where our hands are in space, we integrate different sets of visual and tactile signals.
But remapping can sometimes fail, even without intertwining our fingers. Two recent experiments2,3 have shown that we are particularly bad at dealing with information in quick succession. If your hands are in their usual uncrossed position and you are asked to judge which hand is touched first, it is relatively easy. On the other hand, if your hands are crossed, the same task becomes much more difficult. This difficulty in coping with stimuli presented in quick succession, suggests that remapping can be a time-consuming process. Shigeru Kitazawa4 has suggested we do not become conscious of a sensation on a particular part of our skin and then attribute it to a particular location in space. Rather, our conscious sensation of touch seems to be delayed until we can identify where it’s coming from.
So where in the brain do we remap and update our connections? Some clues have come from investigating the monkey brain. Cells that respond to both vision and touch have been found in the parietal and premotor cortexhigher areas, upstream of the somatosensory [Hack #12] and visual areas, which deal mainly with touch and vision alone.
The parietal cortex [Hack #8] contains areas that are concerned with visual and spatial representation. The premotor cortex is involved in representing and selecting movements
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(8) "Selenium"
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string(358) "Selenium is an integral part of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase, which protects cell membranes. Selenium is a strong antioxidant, and therefore may work against memory loss, but this has not been tested systematically. The daily dietary requirement of selenium is 70 micrograms for men and 55 micrograms for women, and is easily obtained from grains, [...]"
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string(2363) "Selenium is an integral part of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase, which protects cell membranes. Selenium is a strong antioxidant, and therefore may work against memory loss, but this has not been tested systematically. The daily dietary requirement of selenium is 70 micrograms for men and 55 micrograms for women, and is easily obtained from grains, nuts, fish, and dairy products.
Magnesium
Both magnesium and selenium increase the production of antibodies and enhance immune system function. Magnesium is also a catalyst for enzymes involved in energy production, and helps to regulate cell membrane stability. This range of actions has lent it some standing as an antiaging and antimemory-loss therapy, but systematic clinical studies have not yet been conducted.
Magnesium may have antianxiety and antistress properties. Since magnesium has cardiac effects, if you are a heart patient you need to check with your doctor if you plan to start taking magnesium supplements. Magnesium is chemically very similar to calcium, and the two have to be in close balance? yin and yang? for proper bodily function. Therefore, high calcium intake needs to accompany magnesium therapy. Magnesium is present in a variety of foodstuffs: fruits, dairy products, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seafood. A normal diet easily exceeds the FDA minimum daily requirement of 350 mg for men and 280 mg for women.
Aluminum
Metals like chromium, magnesium, and selenium compete with aluminum in some of their actions because they occupy similar positions in the periodic table of natural elements. The interest in these elements accelerated after the aluminum theory of Alzheimer’s disease was proposed. In the early 1980s, traces of aluminum were found in the plaques and tangles that develop in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. However, community surveys across the world show no link between aluminum exposure and dementia, or even milder forms of memory loss. As a result, research in this area has floundered in recent years. Few studies have been conducted with any of these metals as a treatment for memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(358) "Selenium is an integral part of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase, which protects cell membranes. Selenium is a strong antioxidant, and therefore may work against memory loss, but this has not been tested systematically. The daily dietary requirement of selenium is 70 micrograms for men and 55 micrograms for women, and is easily obtained from grains, [...]"
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string(2363) "Selenium is an integral part of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase, which protects cell membranes. Selenium is a strong antioxidant, and therefore may work against memory loss, but this has not been tested systematically. The daily dietary requirement of selenium is 70 micrograms for men and 55 micrograms for women, and is easily obtained from grains, nuts, fish, and dairy products.
Magnesium
Both magnesium and selenium increase the production of antibodies and enhance immune system function. Magnesium is also a catalyst for enzymes involved in energy production, and helps to regulate cell membrane stability. This range of actions has lent it some standing as an antiaging and antimemory-loss therapy, but systematic clinical studies have not yet been conducted.
Magnesium may have antianxiety and antistress properties. Since magnesium has cardiac effects, if you are a heart patient you need to check with your doctor if you plan to start taking magnesium supplements. Magnesium is chemically very similar to calcium, and the two have to be in close balance? yin and yang? for proper bodily function. Therefore, high calcium intake needs to accompany magnesium therapy. Magnesium is present in a variety of foodstuffs: fruits, dairy products, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seafood. A normal diet easily exceeds the FDA minimum daily requirement of 350 mg for men and 280 mg for women.
Aluminum
Metals like chromium, magnesium, and selenium compete with aluminum in some of their actions because they occupy similar positions in the periodic table of natural elements. The interest in these elements accelerated after the aluminum theory of Alzheimer’s disease was proposed. In the early 1980s, traces of aluminum were found in the plaques and tangles that develop in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. However, community surveys across the world show no link between aluminum exposure and dementia, or even milder forms of memory loss. As a result, research in this area has floundered in recent years. Few studies have been conducted with any of these metals as a treatment for memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(29) "Customize Your Memory Program"
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string(332) "Classify Your Own Memory Status
Place yourself in one of the two categories of normal memory or mild memory loss based on your performance on the tests in the first chapter of this book, and not by relying only on your own subjective view or the opinion of family and friends.
Female, Forty to Fifty-nine Years Old,
Currently [...]"
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string(3396) "Classify Your Own Memory Status
Place yourself in one of the two categories of normal memory or mild memory loss based on your performance on the tests in the first chapter of this book, and not by relying only on your own subjective view or the opinion of family and friends.
Female, Forty to Fifty-nine Years Old,
Currently Normal Memory
Follow the entire promemory diet (chapter 5 and this chapter).
Follow the physical exercise regimen (chapter 5 and this chapter), but go easy on running and lifting weights. Equality of the sexes does not extend to bone structure: you need to protect your knees, ankles, and hips more than men of your age. Perform moderate, regular exercise three to six times per week; use any mixture of aerobic and anaerobic exercise that suits your interests.
Memory exercises and training: this is the right time to begin using all the methods to improve learning and recall that you can use, before memory loss begins to occur.
Identifying reversible causes of memory loss should not be an issue if you have a normal memory, but it is worth checking the list to see if you have a reversible condition that can be corrected.
Medications
1. Vitamin E 400 to 1,200 IUs daily (400 if you bleed easily, otherwise 800 to 1,200; avoid if taking anticoagulants for medical reasons; do not exceed 400 IUs if you also take aspirin or ginkgo).
2. Add vitamin A and C supplements (see table on page 203) to your diet, which should already be rich in these vitamins.
3. Consider taking phosphatidylserine as a cognitive enhancer.
4. If you’re postmenopausal, consult your doctor about taking estrogen, both for its promemory and antiosteoporosis effects.
5. Talk to your doctor about prescribing donepezil (Aricept; or Exelon or Reminyl), especially if you don’t have a clearly identifiable cause of memory loss.
6. You can also ask your doctor about selegiline. Ginkgo biloba is another option. Consider taking only one (or none) of these two medications.
7. Take an aspirin a day if you have risk factors for stroke.
Final Memory Program Tips
1. A combination of general health measures like proper diet and regular exercise, memory training, and appropriate medications (particularly if you have mild memory loss; medications are less critical if you currently have a normal memory), provides a comprehensive strategy to prevent memory loss due to the aging process.
2. If you have mild memory loss, you should first look for a reversible cause.
3. You should feel free to deviate from my recommendations if you have specific health reasons or conditions that make it difficult to implement (medical or other contraindication) one or more of these components in the Memory Program.
4. This field is evolving rapidly, so you need to keep up with the latest developments, which are certain to be given considerable play in the media. These new developments may make it necessary for you to change your strategy over time? for example, you may need to switch to COX-II inhibitors in the future if they are shown to be effective in treating mild memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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Place yourself in one of the two categories of normal memory or mild memory loss based on your performance on the tests in the first chapter of this book, and not by relying only on your own subjective view or the opinion of family and friends.
Female, Forty to Fifty-nine Years Old,
Currently [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(3396) "Classify Your Own Memory Status
Place yourself in one of the two categories of normal memory or mild memory loss based on your performance on the tests in the first chapter of this book, and not by relying only on your own subjective view or the opinion of family and friends.
Female, Forty to Fifty-nine Years Old,
Currently Normal Memory
Follow the entire promemory diet (chapter 5 and this chapter).
Follow the physical exercise regimen (chapter 5 and this chapter), but go easy on running and lifting weights. Equality of the sexes does not extend to bone structure: you need to protect your knees, ankles, and hips more than men of your age. Perform moderate, regular exercise three to six times per week; use any mixture of aerobic and anaerobic exercise that suits your interests.
Memory exercises and training: this is the right time to begin using all the methods to improve learning and recall that you can use, before memory loss begins to occur.
Identifying reversible causes of memory loss should not be an issue if you have a normal memory, but it is worth checking the list to see if you have a reversible condition that can be corrected.
Medications
1. Vitamin E 400 to 1,200 IUs daily (400 if you bleed easily, otherwise 800 to 1,200; avoid if taking anticoagulants for medical reasons; do not exceed 400 IUs if you also take aspirin or ginkgo).
2. Add vitamin A and C supplements (see table on page 203) to your diet, which should already be rich in these vitamins.
3. Consider taking phosphatidylserine as a cognitive enhancer.
4. If you’re postmenopausal, consult your doctor about taking estrogen, both for its promemory and antiosteoporosis effects.
5. Talk to your doctor about prescribing donepezil (Aricept; or Exelon or Reminyl), especially if you don’t have a clearly identifiable cause of memory loss.
6. You can also ask your doctor about selegiline. Ginkgo biloba is another option. Consider taking only one (or none) of these two medications.
7. Take an aspirin a day if you have risk factors for stroke.
Final Memory Program Tips
1. A combination of general health measures like proper diet and regular exercise, memory training, and appropriate medications (particularly if you have mild memory loss; medications are less critical if you currently have a normal memory), provides a comprehensive strategy to prevent memory loss due to the aging process.
2. If you have mild memory loss, you should first look for a reversible cause.
3. You should feel free to deviate from my recommendations if you have specific health reasons or conditions that make it difficult to implement (medical or other contraindication) one or more of these components in the Memory Program.
4. This field is evolving rapidly, so you need to keep up with the latest developments, which are certain to be given considerable play in the media. These new developments may make it necessary for you to change your strategy over time? for example, you may need to switch to COX-II inhibitors in the future if they are shown to be effective in treating mild memory loss.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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[56]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(29) "Hack 66. Trick Half Your Mind"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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string(372) "When it comes to visual processing in the brain, it’s all about job delegation. We’ve got one pathway for consciously perceiving the worldrecognizing what’s whatand another for getting involvedusing our bodies to interact with the world out there.
The most basic aspects of the visual world are processed altogether at the back of your brain. After [...]"
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string(1825) "When it comes to visual processing in the brain, it’s all about job delegation. We’ve got one pathway for consciously perceiving the worldrecognizing what’s whatand another for getting involvedusing our bodies to interact with the world out there.
The most basic aspects of the visual world are processed altogether at the back of your brain. After that, however, the same visual information is used for different purposes by two separate pathways. One pathway flows forward from the back of your brain to the inferior temporal cortex near your ears, where memories are stored about what things are. The other pathway flows forward and upward toward the crown of your head, to the posterior parietal cortex, where your mental models of the outside world reside. Crudely speaking, the first pathway (the “ventral” pathway) is for recognizing things and consciously perceiving them, whereas the second (the “dorsal” pathway) is for interacting with them. (Well, that’s according to the dual-stream theory of visual processing [Hack #13] .)
The idea was developed by David Milner and Melvyn Goodale in the 1990s, inspired in part by observation of neurological patients with damage to one pathway but not the other. Patients with damage to the temporal lobe often have difficulty recognizing thingsa toothbrush, saybut when asked to interact with the brush they have no problems. In contrast, patients with damage to the parietal lobe show the opposite pattern; they often have no trouble recognizing an object but are unable to reach out and grasp it appropriately.
Since then, psychologists have found behavioral evidence for this separation of function in people without neurological problems, using visual illusions.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(372) "When it comes to visual processing in the brain, it’s all about job delegation. We’ve got one pathway for consciously perceiving the worldrecognizing what’s whatand another for getting involvedusing our bodies to interact with the world out there.
The most basic aspects of the visual world are processed altogether at the back of your brain. After [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1825) "When it comes to visual processing in the brain, it’s all about job delegation. We’ve got one pathway for consciously perceiving the worldrecognizing what’s whatand another for getting involvedusing our bodies to interact with the world out there.
The most basic aspects of the visual world are processed altogether at the back of your brain. After that, however, the same visual information is used for different purposes by two separate pathways. One pathway flows forward from the back of your brain to the inferior temporal cortex near your ears, where memories are stored about what things are. The other pathway flows forward and upward toward the crown of your head, to the posterior parietal cortex, where your mental models of the outside world reside. Crudely speaking, the first pathway (the “ventral” pathway) is for recognizing things and consciously perceiving them, whereas the second (the “dorsal” pathway) is for interacting with them. (Well, that’s according to the dual-stream theory of visual processing [Hack #13] .)
The idea was developed by David Milner and Melvyn Goodale in the 1990s, inspired in part by observation of neurological patients with damage to one pathway but not the other. Patients with damage to the temporal lobe often have difficulty recognizing thingsa toothbrush, saybut when asked to interact with the brush they have no problems. In contrast, patients with damage to the parietal lobe show the opposite pattern; they often have no trouble recognizing an object but are unable to reach out and grasp it appropriately.
Since then, psychologists have found behavioral evidence for this separation of function in people without neurological problems, using visual illusions.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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[57]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(19) "8.4.2. How It Works"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 12 Jun 2009 02:51:01 +0000"
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string(380) "The effect is obvious. That we can perceive the human formeven mood and genderjust from moving lights demonstrates that we automatically extract underlying patterns from the normal human forms we see every day.
Through a combination of experience and specialized neural modules, we have learned the underlying commonalities of moving human formsthe relationships in time and [...]"
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string(1412) "The effect is obvious. That we can perceive the human formeven mood and genderjust from moving lights demonstrates that we automatically extract underlying patterns from the normal human forms we see every day.
Through a combination of experience and specialized neural modules, we have learned the underlying commonalities of moving human formsthe relationships in time and space between the important features (the joints) of the human body. Our brain can then use this template to facilitate recognition of new examples of moving bodies. Being able to do this provides (for free) the ability to perceive a whole just from abstracted parts that move in the right way. A similar process underlies the perception of expressions in emoticons [Hack #93] . It’s the reason cartoonists and caricaturists can make a livingshowing just the essentials is as expressive, maybe even more expressive, than the full image with all its irrelevant details.
Given our brains are so good at detecting human forms, it’s surprising that emoticons are so common and stick people aren’t. Perhaps it’s because posture is secondary to facial expression, and anyway you’d need to articulate the limbs to get the full effect. Mind you, that’s not to say you can’t have dancing stick people in plain text online chat (http://bash.org/?4281).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(380) "The effect is obvious. That we can perceive the human formeven mood and genderjust from moving lights demonstrates that we automatically extract underlying patterns from the normal human forms we see every day.
Through a combination of experience and specialized neural modules, we have learned the underlying commonalities of moving human formsthe relationships in time and [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1412) "The effect is obvious. That we can perceive the human formeven mood and genderjust from moving lights demonstrates that we automatically extract underlying patterns from the normal human forms we see every day.
Through a combination of experience and specialized neural modules, we have learned the underlying commonalities of moving human formsthe relationships in time and space between the important features (the joints) of the human body. Our brain can then use this template to facilitate recognition of new examples of moving bodies. Being able to do this provides (for free) the ability to perceive a whole just from abstracted parts that move in the right way. A similar process underlies the perception of expressions in emoticons [Hack #93] . It’s the reason cartoonists and caricaturists can make a livingshowing just the essentials is as expressive, maybe even more expressive, than the full image with all its irrelevant details.
Given our brains are so good at detecting human forms, it’s surprising that emoticons are so common and stick people aren’t. Perhaps it’s because posture is secondary to facial expression, and anyway you’d need to articulate the limbs to get the full effect. Mind you, that’s not to say you can’t have dancing stick people in plain text online chat (http://bash.org/?4281).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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[58]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(23) "8.3.2. How It Works (2)"
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["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(360) "All these demonstrations show just how effective correlations over time are in molding our perception. And not just perceptionsynchronizing stimuli can actually alter your body image, where your brain believes your hands are [Hack #64], for instance. The heart of the thing is similarif two things correlate exactly, our perception treats them as part of [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
["encoded"]=>
string(1996) "All these demonstrations show just how effective correlations over time are in molding our perception. And not just perceptionsynchronizing stimuli can actually alter your body image, where your brain believes your hands are [Hack #64], for instance. The heart of the thing is similarif two things correlate exactly, our perception treats them as part of the same object. For our brains, isolated inside the skull, perceived correlation is the only way we’ve ever had for deducing what sensations should be associated together as part of the same object.
Common fate can also draw inferences from points of light moving in much more complex ways than rotating spheres. For the case of biological motion [Hack #77], the visual system is specifically prepared to fit moving points into a schema based upon the human body to help perception of the human form. Alais et al. have suggested that the importance of common fate reflects a deeper principle of the brain’s organization.2 Neuroscientists talk about the binding problem, the question of how the brain correctly connects together all the information it is dealing with: all the things that are happening in different parts of the world, detected by different senses, whose component parts have properties represented in different cortical areas (such as color, contrast, sounds, and so on), all of which have to be knitted together into a coherent perception. The suggestion is that common fate reflects synchronization of neuron firingand that is this same mechanism that may underlie the brain’s solution to the binding problem.
8.3.3. End Notes
Part of Jim Levin’s “Gestalt Principles & Web Design” (http://tepserver.ucsd.edu:16080/~jlevin/gp). Applet developed by Adam Doppelt.
Alais, D., Blake, R., & Lee, S. (1998). Visual features that vary together over time group together over space. Nature Neuroscience. 1(2), 160-164.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(360) "All these demonstrations show just how effective correlations over time are in molding our perception. And not just perceptionsynchronizing stimuli can actually alter your body image, where your brain believes your hands are [Hack #64], for instance. The heart of the thing is similarif two things correlate exactly, our perception treats them as part of [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1996) "All these demonstrations show just how effective correlations over time are in molding our perception. And not just perceptionsynchronizing stimuli can actually alter your body image, where your brain believes your hands are [Hack #64], for instance. The heart of the thing is similarif two things correlate exactly, our perception treats them as part of the same object. For our brains, isolated inside the skull, perceived correlation is the only way we’ve ever had for deducing what sensations should be associated together as part of the same object.
Common fate can also draw inferences from points of light moving in much more complex ways than rotating spheres. For the case of biological motion [Hack #77], the visual system is specifically prepared to fit moving points into a schema based upon the human body to help perception of the human form. Alais et al. have suggested that the importance of common fate reflects a deeper principle of the brain’s organization.2 Neuroscientists talk about the binding problem, the question of how the brain correctly connects together all the information it is dealing with: all the things that are happening in different parts of the world, detected by different senses, whose component parts have properties represented in different cortical areas (such as color, contrast, sounds, and so on), all of which have to be knitted together into a coherent perception. The suggestion is that common fate reflects synchronization of neuron firingand that is this same mechanism that may underlie the brain’s solution to the binding problem.
8.3.3. End Notes
Part of Jim Levin’s “Gestalt Principles & Web Design” (http://tepserver.ucsd.edu:16080/~jlevin/gp). Applet developed by Adam Doppelt.
Alais, D., Blake, R., & Lee, S. (1998). Visual features that vary together over time group together over space. Nature Neuroscience. 1(2), 160-164.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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[59]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(43) "Hack 76. To Be Noticed, Synchronize in Time"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=477"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=477#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sat, 06 Jun 2009 06:42:29 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(318) "We tend to group together things that happen at the same time or move in the same way. It’s poor logic but a great hack for spotting patterns.
It’s a confusing, noisy world out there. It’s easier to understand the world if we perceive a set of objects rather than just a raw mass of sensations, [...]"
["content"]=>
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string(1616) "We tend to group together things that happen at the same time or move in the same way. It’s poor logic but a great hack for spotting patterns.
It’s a confusing, noisy world out there. It’s easier to understand the world if we perceive a set of objects rather than just a raw mass of sensations, and one way to do this is to group together perceptions that appear to have the same cause. The underlying assumptions involved manifest as the gestalt grouping principles, a set of heuristics used by the brain to lump things together (see [Hack #75] for the simplest of these, used for vision).
Perhaps the most powerful of these assumptions is termed common fate. We group together events that occur at the same time, change in the same way, or move in the same direction. Imagine if you saw, from far off, two points of light that looked a bit like eyes in the dark. You might think they were eyes or you could just put it down to a coincidence of two unrelated lights. But if the points of light moved at the same time, in the same direction, bounced with the characteristic bounce of a person walking, you’d know they were eyes. Using behavior over time allows you to stringently test spatial data for possible common cause. If the bouncing lights pass the common fate test, they’re almost certainly a single object. Visual system tags this certainty by providing you with a correspondingly strong perceptual experience; if some things move together, it is almost impossible to see them as separate items instead of a coherent whole.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(318) "We tend to group together things that happen at the same time or move in the same way. It’s poor logic but a great hack for spotting patterns.
It’s a confusing, noisy world out there. It’s easier to understand the world if we perceive a set of objects rather than just a raw mass of sensations, [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1616) "We tend to group together things that happen at the same time or move in the same way. It’s poor logic but a great hack for spotting patterns.
It’s a confusing, noisy world out there. It’s easier to understand the world if we perceive a set of objects rather than just a raw mass of sensations, and one way to do this is to group together perceptions that appear to have the same cause. The underlying assumptions involved manifest as the gestalt grouping principles, a set of heuristics used by the brain to lump things together (see [Hack #75] for the simplest of these, used for vision).
Perhaps the most powerful of these assumptions is termed common fate. We group together events that occur at the same time, change in the same way, or move in the same direction. Imagine if you saw, from far off, two points of light that looked a bit like eyes in the dark. You might think they were eyes or you could just put it down to a coincidence of two unrelated lights. But if the points of light moved at the same time, in the same direction, bounced with the characteristic bounce of a person walking, you’d know they were eyes. Using behavior over time allows you to stringently test spatial data for possible common cause. If the bouncing lights pass the common fate test, they’re almost certainly a single object. Visual system tags this certainty by providing you with a correspondingly strong perceptual experience; if some things move together, it is almost impossible to see them as separate items instead of a coherent whole.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1244270549)
}
[60]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(30) "Hack 75. Grasp the Gestalt (2)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=471"
["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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string(324) "Each group belongs together partly because the triangles are arranged into a pattern (two long rows pointing in a direction) and partly because of proximity (shapes that are closer together are more likely to form a group). The triangle in the middle is a long way from both groups and doesn’t fall into the same [...]"
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string(1372) "Each group belongs together partly because the triangles are arranged into a pattern (two long rows pointing in a direction) and partly because of proximity (shapes that are closer together are more likely to form a group). The triangle in the middle is a long way from both groups and doesn’t fall into the same pattern as either. It’s left alone by the brain’s grouping principles.
You can, however, voluntarily group the lone triangle. By mentally putting it with the left-hand set, it appears to point down and left along with the other triangles. You can make it point right by choosing to see it with the other set.
8.2.2. How It Works
The rules by which the brain groups similar objects together are called gestalt grouping principles in psychology. Although there’s no direct German-to-English translation, “gestalt” means (roughly) “whole.” When we understand objects and the relationships between them in a single, coherent pattern rather than as disconnected items, we understand the group as a gestalt. We have a gestalt comprehension of each of the sets of triangles in Figure 8-1, for instance.
Four of the most commonly quoted grouping principles are proximity, similarity, closure, and continuation. An example of each is shown in Figure 8-2.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(324) "Each group belongs together partly because the triangles are arranged into a pattern (two long rows pointing in a direction) and partly because of proximity (shapes that are closer together are more likely to form a group). The triangle in the middle is a long way from both groups and doesn’t fall into the same [...]"
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string(1372) "Each group belongs together partly because the triangles are arranged into a pattern (two long rows pointing in a direction) and partly because of proximity (shapes that are closer together are more likely to form a group). The triangle in the middle is a long way from both groups and doesn’t fall into the same pattern as either. It’s left alone by the brain’s grouping principles.
You can, however, voluntarily group the lone triangle. By mentally putting it with the left-hand set, it appears to point down and left along with the other triangles. You can make it point right by choosing to see it with the other set.
8.2.2. How It Works
The rules by which the brain groups similar objects together are called gestalt grouping principles in psychology. Although there’s no direct German-to-English translation, “gestalt” means (roughly) “whole.” When we understand objects and the relationships between them in a single, coherent pattern rather than as disconnected items, we understand the group as a gestalt. We have a gestalt comprehension of each of the sets of triangles in Figure 8-1, for instance.
Four of the most commonly quoted grouping principles are proximity, similarity, closure, and continuation. An example of each is shown in Figure 8-2.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(23) "7.6.3. In Real Life (2)"
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["pubdate"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(316) "Another manifestation of our preference for the way things are is the so-called endowment effect,5 whereby once we have something, however we acquired it, we give it more value than we would give up to obtain it. In one study, students were given a mug with their university emblem, worth $6. In a trading game [...]"
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string(2465) "Another manifestation of our preference for the way things are is the so-called endowment effect,5 whereby once we have something, however we acquired it, we give it more value than we would give up to obtain it. In one study, students were given a mug with their university emblem, worth $6. In a trading game they subsequently wanted an average of around $5 to give up their mug, whereas students without mugs were willing to offer an average of only around $2 to buy a mug. The mere sense of ownership that came with being given the mug was enough to create a difference between how the two groups valued the object. This is just one of the ways in which human behavior violates the rationality supposed by classical economic theory.
So we can see that if you want people to give something up, you shouldn’t give it to them in the first place, and if you want to introduce something new, you should make people try it before trying to persuade them to accept it. If you can’t do this, you should at least try and introduce the new change elements as part of the familiar experience.
7.6.4. End Notes
Rhinehart, L. (1971). The Dice Man.
Ajzen, I. (2002). Residual effects of past on later behavior: Habituation and reasoned action perspectives. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6, 107-122. See also: Ouellette, J. A., & Wood, W. (1998). Habit and intention in everyday life: The multiple processes by which past behavior predicts future behavior. Psychological Bulletin, 124, 54-74.
The Wikipedia has an enjoyable, if unstructured, list of cognitive biases (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases). A good introduction to cognitive biases and heuristics is Nicholls, N. (1999). Cognitive illusions, heuristics, and climate prediction. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 80(7), 1385-1397 (http://ams.allenpress.com/pdfserv/i1520-0477-080-07-1385.pdf).
Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1981). The framing of decisions and the psychology of choice. Science, 211, 453-458.
Kahneman, D., Knetch, J. L., & Thaler, R. H. (1991). Anomalies: The endowment effect, loss aversion, and status quo bias. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 5(1), 193-206. A reverse of the endowment effect is the windfall effect in which people value less highly money they didn’t expect to come to them (like lottery wins and inheritance).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(316) "Another manifestation of our preference for the way things are is the so-called endowment effect,5 whereby once we have something, however we acquired it, we give it more value than we would give up to obtain it. In one study, students were given a mug with their university emblem, worth $6. In a trading game [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2465) "Another manifestation of our preference for the way things are is the so-called endowment effect,5 whereby once we have something, however we acquired it, we give it more value than we would give up to obtain it. In one study, students were given a mug with their university emblem, worth $6. In a trading game they subsequently wanted an average of around $5 to give up their mug, whereas students without mugs were willing to offer an average of only around $2 to buy a mug. The mere sense of ownership that came with being given the mug was enough to create a difference between how the two groups valued the object. This is just one of the ways in which human behavior violates the rationality supposed by classical economic theory.
So we can see that if you want people to give something up, you shouldn’t give it to them in the first place, and if you want to introduce something new, you should make people try it before trying to persuade them to accept it. If you can’t do this, you should at least try and introduce the new change elements as part of the familiar experience.
7.6.4. End Notes
Rhinehart, L. (1971). The Dice Man.
Ajzen, I. (2002). Residual effects of past on later behavior: Habituation and reasoned action perspectives. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6, 107-122. See also: Ouellette, J. A., & Wood, W. (1998). Habit and intention in everyday life: The multiple processes by which past behavior predicts future behavior. Psychological Bulletin, 124, 54-74.
The Wikipedia has an enjoyable, if unstructured, list of cognitive biases (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases). A good introduction to cognitive biases and heuristics is Nicholls, N. (1999). Cognitive illusions, heuristics, and climate prediction. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 80(7), 1385-1397 (http://ams.allenpress.com/pdfserv/i1520-0477-080-07-1385.pdf).
Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1981). The framing of decisions and the psychology of choice. Science, 211, 453-458.
Kahneman, D., Knetch, J. L., & Thaler, R. H. (1991). Anomalies: The endowment effect, loss aversion, and status quo bias. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 5(1), 193-206. A reverse of the endowment effect is the windfall effect in which people value less highly money they didn’t expect to come to them (like lottery wins and inheritance).
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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[62]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(36) "Hack 74. Maintain the Status Quo (3)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=459"
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string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=459#comments"
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string(31) "Thu, 28 May 2009 10:26:20 +0000"
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string(333) "7.6.1. In Action
I’m going to tell you in advance that the two versions of the problem are logically identical, but I knowbecause your brain evolved in the same way mine didthat you’ll feel as if you want to answer them differently despite knowing this. If your supreme powers of reason don’t let you feel the [...]"
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string(1485) "7.6.1. In Action
I’m going to tell you in advance that the two versions of the problem are logically identical, but I knowbecause your brain evolved in the same way mine didthat you’ll feel as if you want to answer them differently despite knowing this. If your supreme powers of reason don’t let you feel the tug induced by the superficial features of the problem (the bit that conveys the bias), take the two versions and present them to two different friends.
Here we go . . .
7.6.1.1 Version 1
A lethal disease is spreading through the city of which you are mayor. It is expected to kill 600 people. Your chief medical adviser tells you that there is a choice between two treatment plans. The first strategy will definitely save 200 people, whereas the second strategy has a one-third chance of saving 600 people and a two-thirds chance of saving no one. Which strategy do you choose?
7.6.1.2 Version 2
A lethal disease is spreading through the city of which you are mayor. It is expected to kill 600 people. Your chief medical adviser tells you that there is a choice between two treatment plans. The first strategy will definitely kill 400 people, whereas the second strategy has a one-third chance that nobody will die and a two-thirds chance that 600 people will die.
Do you feel it? The choices feel different, even though you know they are the same. What’s going on?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(333) "7.6.1. In Action
I’m going to tell you in advance that the two versions of the problem are logically identical, but I knowbecause your brain evolved in the same way mine didthat you’ll feel as if you want to answer them differently despite knowing this. If your supreme powers of reason don’t let you feel the [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1485) "7.6.1. In Action
I’m going to tell you in advance that the two versions of the problem are logically identical, but I knowbecause your brain evolved in the same way mine didthat you’ll feel as if you want to answer them differently despite knowing this. If your supreme powers of reason don’t let you feel the tug induced by the superficial features of the problem (the bit that conveys the bias), take the two versions and present them to two different friends.
Here we go . . .
7.6.1.1 Version 1
A lethal disease is spreading through the city of which you are mayor. It is expected to kill 600 people. Your chief medical adviser tells you that there is a choice between two treatment plans. The first strategy will definitely save 200 people, whereas the second strategy has a one-third chance of saving 600 people and a two-thirds chance of saving no one. Which strategy do you choose?
7.6.1.2 Version 2
A lethal disease is spreading through the city of which you are mayor. It is expected to kill 600 people. Your chief medical adviser tells you that there is a choice between two treatment plans. The first strategy will definitely kill 400 people, whereas the second strategy has a one-third chance that nobody will die and a two-thirds chance that 600 people will die.
Do you feel it? The choices feel different, even though you know they are the same. What’s going on?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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[63]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(19) "7.5.2. How It Works"
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string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=453#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Mon, 25 May 2009 05:20:38 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(334) "Nobody knows for sure yet how the placebo effect works, but one theory is that the brain is very sensitive to the presence of social support during the process of recovery from injury and infection. The various components of the acute phase response are all designed to promote recovery and prevent further injury while recovery [...]"
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string(3345) "Nobody knows for sure yet how the placebo effect works, but one theory is that the brain is very sensitive to the presence of social support during the process of recovery from injury and infection. The various components of the acute phase response are all designed to promote recovery and prevent further injury while recovery is taking place. Pain, for example, makes you guard the wounded area. But these measures also have costs; high levels of pain, for example, can actually lengthen the healing process. The brain makes a trade-off between the risks of further damage to the injured area and the delay to the healing process. The presence of social support during recovery shifts the balance between these competing risks because some of the burden of preventing further damage is transferred from the sick person to those around them. The sick person can therefore reduce his own costly self-protective measures, such as pain, and allow the healing process to progress more rapidly.
Another suggestion is that the placebo effect works by means of conditioning (see also [Hack #92] ). Conditioning is a very general kind of learning process in which one stimulus is substituted for another. The classic example is Pavlov’s dogs, which learned to salivate on hearing a bell after Pavlov had trained them to associate the sound of the bell with the arrival of food. In technical terms, an unconditioned stimulus (the sight of the meat), which leads naturally to a certain unconditioned response (salivating at the sight of the meat), is repeatedly paired with a conditioned stimulus (the sound of the bell). Eventually, the dogs learn the conditioned response of salivating at the sound of the bell. Pavlov’s students showed that immune responses can also be conditioned, and others have gone on to suggest that this is what lies behind the placebo response. The unconditioned stimulus is a real drug or some other medical treatment that works even if you have never tried it before and don’t believe in it. The unconditioned response is the improvement you feel after receiving the treatment. The conditioned stimuli are all the things that are repeatedly paired with the treatmentthe size, shape, and color of the pill, for example. If you then take a pill that has the same size, shape, and color as the real one, but which lacks the active ingredient, you may still experience some improvement because your immune system has been conditioned to respond to such stimuli.
Placebos won’t cure the vast majority of medical conditions. It is much easier and quicker to list the things that placebos can influencepain, swelling, stomach ulcers, some skin conditions, low mood, and anxietythan the things they don’t. Everything else is probably not placebo-responsive. That said, placebos are able to help in the management of nearly all illnesses because nearly all illnesses involve pain, low mood, and/or anxiety.
7.5.3. End Note
Hashish I., Harvey, W., & Harris, M. (1986). Anti-inflammatory effects of ultrasound therapy: Evidence for a major placebo effect. British Journal of Rheumatology 25, 77-81.
7.5.4. See Also
Evans, D. (2003). Placebo: Mind over Matter in Modern Medicine. London: HarperCollins.
Dylan Evans
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(334) "Nobody knows for sure yet how the placebo effect works, but one theory is that the brain is very sensitive to the presence of social support during the process of recovery from injury and infection. The various components of the acute phase response are all designed to promote recovery and prevent further injury while recovery [...]"
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string(3345) "Nobody knows for sure yet how the placebo effect works, but one theory is that the brain is very sensitive to the presence of social support during the process of recovery from injury and infection. The various components of the acute phase response are all designed to promote recovery and prevent further injury while recovery is taking place. Pain, for example, makes you guard the wounded area. But these measures also have costs; high levels of pain, for example, can actually lengthen the healing process. The brain makes a trade-off between the risks of further damage to the injured area and the delay to the healing process. The presence of social support during recovery shifts the balance between these competing risks because some of the burden of preventing further damage is transferred from the sick person to those around them. The sick person can therefore reduce his own costly self-protective measures, such as pain, and allow the healing process to progress more rapidly.
Another suggestion is that the placebo effect works by means of conditioning (see also [Hack #92] ). Conditioning is a very general kind of learning process in which one stimulus is substituted for another. The classic example is Pavlov’s dogs, which learned to salivate on hearing a bell after Pavlov had trained them to associate the sound of the bell with the arrival of food. In technical terms, an unconditioned stimulus (the sight of the meat), which leads naturally to a certain unconditioned response (salivating at the sight of the meat), is repeatedly paired with a conditioned stimulus (the sound of the bell). Eventually, the dogs learn the conditioned response of salivating at the sound of the bell. Pavlov’s students showed that immune responses can also be conditioned, and others have gone on to suggest that this is what lies behind the placebo response. The unconditioned stimulus is a real drug or some other medical treatment that works even if you have never tried it before and don’t believe in it. The unconditioned response is the improvement you feel after receiving the treatment. The conditioned stimuli are all the things that are repeatedly paired with the treatmentthe size, shape, and color of the pill, for example. If you then take a pill that has the same size, shape, and color as the real one, but which lacks the active ingredient, you may still experience some improvement because your immune system has been conditioned to respond to such stimuli.
Placebos won’t cure the vast majority of medical conditions. It is much easier and quicker to list the things that placebos can influencepain, swelling, stomach ulcers, some skin conditions, low mood, and anxietythan the things they don’t. Everything else is probably not placebo-responsive. That said, placebos are able to help in the management of nearly all illnesses because nearly all illnesses involve pain, low mood, and/or anxiety.
7.5.3. End Note
Hashish I., Harvey, W., & Harris, M. (1986). Anti-inflammatory effects of ultrasound therapy: Evidence for a major placebo effect. British Journal of Rheumatology 25, 77-81.
7.5.4. See Also
Evans, D. (2003). Placebo: Mind over Matter in Modern Medicine. London: HarperCollins.
Dylan Evans
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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[64]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(40) "Hack 73. Fool Others into Feeling Better"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=447"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=447#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 22 May 2009 02:42:07 +0000"
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string(378) "Many of the unpleasant phenomena associated with injury and infection are in fact produced by the brain to protect the body. Medical assistance shifts the burden of protection from self to other, which allows the brain to reduce its self-imposed unpleasantness.
Injury or infection triggers a coordinated suite of physiological responses involving the brain, hormones, and [...]"
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string(1748) "Many of the unpleasant phenomena associated with injury and infection are in fact produced by the brain to protect the body. Medical assistance shifts the burden of protection from self to other, which allows the brain to reduce its self-imposed unpleasantness.
Injury or infection triggers a coordinated suite of physiological responses involving the brain, hormones, and immune system. The brain generates pain and fever, stress hormones mobilize energy from fat, and immune cells cause local swelling and redness. These processes are collectively known as the acute phase response because they occur rapidly and tend to subside after a few days. Medical assistance can help these unpleasant signs and symptoms to subside more quickly, even when that assistance is completely bogussuch as a witch doctor waving a rattle at you or a quack prescribing a sugar pill. This is known as the placebo effect.
7.5.1. In Action
It’s hard to invent a placebo and try it on yourself, because the effect relies crucially on the sincerely held belief that it will work. Several experiments have shown that pure placebos such as fake ultrasound produce no pain relief when they are self-administered. So unless you can fool yourself that other people are caring for you when they are not, your experiments with placebos will have to involve other people.
Moreover, you will also probably have to lie. The placebo effect depends not just on other people, but also on the belief that those people are providing bona fide medical assistance. If you don’t believe that the assistance provided by those around you is going to help you recover, you won’t experience a placebo effect.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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string(378) "Many of the unpleasant phenomena associated with injury and infection are in fact produced by the brain to protect the body. Medical assistance shifts the burden of protection from self to other, which allows the brain to reduce its self-imposed unpleasantness.
Injury or infection triggers a coordinated suite of physiological responses involving the brain, hormones, and [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1748) "Many of the unpleasant phenomena associated with injury and infection are in fact produced by the brain to protect the body. Medical assistance shifts the burden of protection from self to other, which allows the brain to reduce its self-imposed unpleasantness.
Injury or infection triggers a coordinated suite of physiological responses involving the brain, hormones, and immune system. The brain generates pain and fever, stress hormones mobilize energy from fat, and immune cells cause local swelling and redness. These processes are collectively known as the acute phase response because they occur rapidly and tend to subside after a few days. Medical assistance can help these unpleasant signs and symptoms to subside more quickly, even when that assistance is completely bogussuch as a witch doctor waving a rattle at you or a quack prescribing a sugar pill. This is known as the placebo effect.
7.5.1. In Action
It’s hard to invent a placebo and try it on yourself, because the effect relies crucially on the sincerely held belief that it will work. Several experiments have shown that pure placebos such as fake ultrasound produce no pain relief when they are self-administered. So unless you can fool yourself that other people are caring for you when they are not, your experiments with placebos will have to involve other people.
Moreover, you will also probably have to lie. The placebo effect depends not just on other people, but also on the belief that those people are providing bona fide medical assistance. If you don’t believe that the assistance provided by those around you is going to help you recover, you won’t experience a placebo effect.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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[65]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(24) "Hack 72. Detect Cheaters"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=441"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=441#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Tue, 19 May 2009 09:39:03 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(346) "Our sense of logic is much better when applied to social situations than used in abstract scenarios.
Despite the old saying that we’re ruled by our emotions, it’s tempting to believe that we have at least some intuitive sense of logic. The various forms of logic such as syllogisms and deductive and inductive reasoning1 seem so [...]"
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string(1772) "Our sense of logic is much better when applied to social situations than used in abstract scenarios.
Despite the old saying that we’re ruled by our emotions, it’s tempting to believe that we have at least some intuitive sense of logic. The various forms of logic such as syllogisms and deductive and inductive reasoning1 seem so simple and fundamental that you might expect that the rules are hardwired into our brains. After all, since we’re constantly told that our neurons are the equivalent of computer processors, shouldn’t our brains be able to handle a little bit of logic?
See how you do on these logical puzzles.
7.4.1. In Action
Each of the cards in Figure 7-1 has a letter on one side and a number on the reverse. If I told you there was a rule stating that a card with a vowel on one side must have an even number on the reverse, which of these cards would you need to turn over to prove or disprove this rule?
Many people turn over A and 2but that’s not quite right. While turning over A will tell you whether “one side” of the rule is true (if vowel, then even number), turning over 2 won’t tell you any more. It doesn’t matter whether 2 has a K or an A on its reversethe rules doesn’t specify either being true. Along with A, the other card you need to turn over is 7. If 7 has an A on its reverse, then the rule is disproved no matter what the A has on its reverse. You need to turn over A and 7.
Very few people solve this riddle on the first try. It shows that humans do not possess an innate set of abstract logic rules. Yet somehow we manage to get by without those rules. Try this similar puzzle, in Figure 7-2.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(346) "Our sense of logic is much better when applied to social situations than used in abstract scenarios.
Despite the old saying that we’re ruled by our emotions, it’s tempting to believe that we have at least some intuitive sense of logic. The various forms of logic such as syllogisms and deductive and inductive reasoning1 seem so [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1772) "Our sense of logic is much better when applied to social situations than used in abstract scenarios.
Despite the old saying that we’re ruled by our emotions, it’s tempting to believe that we have at least some intuitive sense of logic. The various forms of logic such as syllogisms and deductive and inductive reasoning1 seem so simple and fundamental that you might expect that the rules are hardwired into our brains. After all, since we’re constantly told that our neurons are the equivalent of computer processors, shouldn’t our brains be able to handle a little bit of logic?
See how you do on these logical puzzles.
7.4.1. In Action
Each of the cards in Figure 7-1 has a letter on one side and a number on the reverse. If I told you there was a rule stating that a card with a vowel on one side must have an even number on the reverse, which of these cards would you need to turn over to prove or disprove this rule?
Many people turn over A and 2but that’s not quite right. While turning over A will tell you whether “one side” of the rule is true (if vowel, then even number), turning over 2 won’t tell you any more. It doesn’t matter whether 2 has a K or an A on its reversethe rules doesn’t specify either being true. Along with A, the other card you need to turn over is 7. If 7 has an A on its reverse, then the rule is disproved no matter what the A has on its reverse. You need to turn over A and 7.
Very few people solve this riddle on the first try. It shows that humans do not possess an innate set of abstract logic rules. Yet somehow we manage to get by without those rules. Try this similar puzzle, in Figure 7-2.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1242725943)
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[66]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(33) "Another way to make the switching"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=435"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=435#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
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string(316) "Another way to make the switching answer seem intuitive is to imagine the situation with 1000 doors, 999 goats, and still just one prize. You choose a door (1 in 1000 chance it’s the right door) and your host opens all the doors you didn’t choose, which have goats behind them (998 goats). Stick or [...]"
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string(2375) "Another way to make the switching answer seem intuitive is to imagine the situation with 1000 doors, 999 goats, and still just one prize. You choose a door (1 in 1000 chance it’s the right door) and your host opens all the doors you didn’t choose, which have goats behind them (998 goats). Stick or switch? Obviously you have a 999 in 1000 chance of winning if you switch, even though as you make the choice there are two doors, one prize, and one goat like before. This variant highlights one of the key distractions in the original problemthe host knows where the prize is and acts accordingly to eliminate dud doors. You choose without knowing where the prize is, but given that the host acts knowing where the prize is, your decision to stick or switch should take that into account.
Part of the problem is that we are used to thinking about probabilities as things attached to objects or events in simple one-to-one correspondence. But probabilities are simply statements about what can be known about uncertain situations. The probabilities themselves can be affected by factors that don’t actually affect the objects or events they label (like base rates and, in this case, the game show host’s actions).
Evolutionary psychologists Leda Cosmides and John Tooby4 argue that we have evolved to deal with frequency information when making probability judgments, not to do abstract probability calculations. Probabilities are not available directly to perception, whereas how often something happens is. The availability of frequencies made it easier for our brains to make use of them as they evolved. Our evolved faculties handle probabilities better as frequencies because this is the format of the information as it is naturally present in the environment. Whether something occurs or not can be easily seen (is it raining or is it not raining, to take an example), and figuring out a frequency of this event is a simple matter of addition and comparison: comparing the number of rainy days against the number of days in spring would automatically give you a good idea whether this current day in spring is likely to be rainy or not. One-off probabilities aren’t like this; they are a cultural inventionand like a lot of cultural inventions, we still have difficulty dealing with them.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(316) "Another way to make the switching answer seem intuitive is to imagine the situation with 1000 doors, 999 goats, and still just one prize. You choose a door (1 in 1000 chance it’s the right door) and your host opens all the doors you didn’t choose, which have goats behind them (998 goats). Stick or [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2375) "Another way to make the switching answer seem intuitive is to imagine the situation with 1000 doors, 999 goats, and still just one prize. You choose a door (1 in 1000 chance it’s the right door) and your host opens all the doors you didn’t choose, which have goats behind them (998 goats). Stick or switch? Obviously you have a 999 in 1000 chance of winning if you switch, even though as you make the choice there are two doors, one prize, and one goat like before. This variant highlights one of the key distractions in the original problemthe host knows where the prize is and acts accordingly to eliminate dud doors. You choose without knowing where the prize is, but given that the host acts knowing where the prize is, your decision to stick or switch should take that into account.
Part of the problem is that we are used to thinking about probabilities as things attached to objects or events in simple one-to-one correspondence. But probabilities are simply statements about what can be known about uncertain situations. The probabilities themselves can be affected by factors that don’t actually affect the objects or events they label (like base rates and, in this case, the game show host’s actions).
Evolutionary psychologists Leda Cosmides and John Tooby4 argue that we have evolved to deal with frequency information when making probability judgments, not to do abstract probability calculations. Probabilities are not available directly to perception, whereas how often something happens is. The availability of frequencies made it easier for our brains to make use of them as they evolved. Our evolved faculties handle probabilities better as frequencies because this is the format of the information as it is naturally present in the environment. Whether something occurs or not can be easily seen (is it raining or is it not raining, to take an example), and figuring out a frequency of this event is a simple matter of addition and comparison: comparing the number of rainy days against the number of days in spring would automatically give you a good idea whether this current day in spring is likely to be rainy or not. One-off probabilities aren’t like this; they are a cultural inventionand like a lot of cultural inventions, we still have difficulty dealing with them.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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}
[67]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(58) "Hack 71. Think About Frequencies Rather than Probabilities"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=429"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=429#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 13 May 2009 03:29:37 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(374) "Probability statistics are particularly hard to think about correctly. Fortunately you can make it easier by presenting the same information in a way that meshes with our evolved capacity to reason about how often things happen.
Mark Twain once said, “People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support rather than for illumination.”1 [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(1730) "Probability statistics are particularly hard to think about correctly. Fortunately you can make it easier by presenting the same information in a way that meshes with our evolved capacity to reason about how often things happen.
Mark Twain once said, “People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support rather than for illumination.”1 Things haven’t changed. It’s strange, really, given how little people trust them, that statistics get used so much.
Our ability to think about probabilities evolved to keep us safe from rare events that would be pretty serious if they did happen (like getting eaten) and to help us learn to make near-correct estimates about things that aren’t quite so dire and at which we get multiple attempts (like estimating the chances of finding food in a particular part of the valley for example). So it’s not surprising that, when it comes to formal reasoning about single-case probabilities, our evolved ability to estimate likelihood tends to fail us.
One example is that we overestimate low-frequency events that are easily noticed. Just ask someone if he gets more scared traveling in a car or by airplane. Flying is about the safest form of transport there is, whether you calculate it by miles flown or trips made. Driving is pretty risky in comparison, but most people would say that flying feels like the more dangerous of the two.
Another thing we have a hard time doing is accounting for the basic frequency at which an event occurs, quite aside from the specific circumstances of its occurrence on the current occasion. Let me give an example of this in action . . .
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(374) "Probability statistics are particularly hard to think about correctly. Fortunately you can make it easier by presenting the same information in a way that meshes with our evolved capacity to reason about how often things happen.
Mark Twain once said, “People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support rather than for illumination.”1 [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1730) "Probability statistics are particularly hard to think about correctly. Fortunately you can make it easier by presenting the same information in a way that meshes with our evolved capacity to reason about how often things happen.
Mark Twain once said, “People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamppost: for support rather than for illumination.”1 Things haven’t changed. It’s strange, really, given how little people trust them, that statistics get used so much.
Our ability to think about probabilities evolved to keep us safe from rare events that would be pretty serious if they did happen (like getting eaten) and to help us learn to make near-correct estimates about things that aren’t quite so dire and at which we get multiple attempts (like estimating the chances of finding food in a particular part of the valley for example). So it’s not surprising that, when it comes to formal reasoning about single-case probabilities, our evolved ability to estimate likelihood tends to fail us.
One example is that we overestimate low-frequency events that are easily noticed. Just ask someone if he gets more scared traveling in a car or by airplane. Flying is about the safest form of transport there is, whether you calculate it by miles flown or trips made. Driving is pretty risky in comparison, but most people would say that flying feels like the more dangerous of the two.
Another thing we have a hard time doing is accounting for the basic frequency at which an event occurs, quite aside from the specific circumstances of its occurrence on the current occasion. Let me give an example of this in action . . .
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1242185377)
}
[68]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(28) "When you begin your practice"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=590"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=590#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(320) "When you begin your practice, think how you move your eyes over a landscape scene, like the Grand Canyon. Move your eyes smoothly from left to right, seeing all the color, size, shapes, movement.and grandeur in general. Don?t stop to examine any one part of the view, just move your eyes smoothly across the scene. [...]"
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string(2067) "When you begin your practice, think how you move your eyes over a landscape scene, like the Grand Canyon. Move your eyes smoothly from left to right, seeing all the color, size, shapes, movement.and grandeur in general. Don?t stop to examine any one part of the view, just move your eyes smoothly across the scene. Move your eyes across the page looking at the print in the same manner. Do not look at any one word more than another. Move all the way across the page, smoothly. Understanding what you are looking at will begin to come to you.
As the skill becomes stronger, your ability to relax and concentrate will make your understanding even better than it ever has been. This is the point at which your reading speed is going to be restricted only by the speed at which you can see. YOU determine your own reading speed,
understanding and enjoyment by the degree of development of your eye movement. Practice, practice, practice.
BOOK PREPARATION
Every book owner and every book reader should learn to care for the books they use. Books are the source of all stored knowledge and history. If cared for, these wonderful instruments will last for lifetimes. Every new book should be properly ?broken in? before it is read or used.
Breaking in a book is easy.
Open the book and lay it, with the spine down, on a table or desk top. Hold the pages upright, with the cover of the book and the spine lying flat on the table. Starting at the front of the book, take about 20 pages at a time and lay them down flat. Run your fingers gently, but firmly,
along the inner edge of the book (See Illust. 3). Be firm, but gentle enough not to break the glue at the spine. Continue through the entire book. Repeat the process. This time, start from the back of the book and go forward, with about 30 pages each time. With the book properly
broken in, you are ready to read.
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(320) "When you begin your practice, think how you move your eyes over a landscape scene, like the Grand Canyon. Move your eyes smoothly from left to right, seeing all the color, size, shapes, movement.and grandeur in general. Don?t stop to examine any one part of the view, just move your eyes smoothly across the scene. [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2067) "When you begin your practice, think how you move your eyes over a landscape scene, like the Grand Canyon. Move your eyes smoothly from left to right, seeing all the color, size, shapes, movement.and grandeur in general. Don?t stop to examine any one part of the view, just move your eyes smoothly across the scene. Move your eyes across the page looking at the print in the same manner. Do not look at any one word more than another. Move all the way across the page, smoothly. Understanding what you are looking at will begin to come to you.
As the skill becomes stronger, your ability to relax and concentrate will make your understanding even better than it ever has been. This is the point at which your reading speed is going to be restricted only by the speed at which you can see. YOU determine your own reading speed,
understanding and enjoyment by the degree of development of your eye movement. Practice, practice, practice.
BOOK PREPARATION
Every book owner and every book reader should learn to care for the books they use. Books are the source of all stored knowledge and history. If cared for, these wonderful instruments will last for lifetimes. Every new book should be properly ?broken in? before it is read or used.
Breaking in a book is easy.
Open the book and lay it, with the spine down, on a table or desk top. Hold the pages upright, with the cover of the book and the spine lying flat on the table. Starting at the front of the book, take about 20 pages at a time and lay them down flat. Run your fingers gently, but firmly,
along the inner edge of the book (See Illust. 3). Be firm, but gentle enough not to break the glue at the spine. Continue through the entire book. Repeat the process. This time, start from the back of the book and go forward, with about 30 pages each time. With the book properly
broken in, you are ready to read.
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1241926360)
}
[69]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(27) "These two misunderstandings"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=584"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=584#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Thu, 07 May 2009 03:12:55 +0000"
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string(357) "These two misunderstandings and misconceptions prevent many people from trying to improve their reading skills. Others who have these misconceptions and begin to use the Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading Program, have a difficult time until they mentally accept the fact that their reading skills can be improved. It is because of the need to mentally accept [...]"
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string(2197) "These two misunderstandings and misconceptions prevent many people from trying to improve their reading skills. Others who have these misconceptions and begin to use the Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading Program, have a difficult time until they mentally accept the fact that their reading skills can be improved. It is because of the need to mentally accept this fact that there is much detail and repetition in the program.
A very important point that must be known and accepted by everyone desiring to increase their reading speed is that when beginning to increase the skill, it is necessary to temporarily lose understanding. When beginning to replace a primary skill habit, there is going to be a great conflict in the subconscious mind. The mind is being asked to do something it knows it cannot do. It hasn?t learned how. It has no information it can use to do what it is asked. In order to teach the mind, the program presents skill exercises that, if used and practiced, give the mind new knowledge and direction. In other words, a new skill is taught by the program and learned by the subconscious mind. Making a change in a skill habit that has been there longer than any skill, except perhaps walking and talking, is very difficult. In order to overcome the difficulty, the total reading and learning skill is taught step by step. Each individual step, or smaller skill, is not difficult to learn. To some, these individual skills seem totally unrelated to the final reading skill. However, learning these initial steps, one at a time, is necessary.
It is very important to know that when practicing begins, it is necessary to push faster than the normal reading speed. If this is not done, it is just reading and READING IS NOT PRACTICING!
If a person wants to learn to read fast, they must practice fast. At first, it is just learning faster movement. As movement is learned, understanding automatically will be lost, only to be regained, better than ever, when the movement skill is learned, and then mastered.
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(357) "These two misunderstandings and misconceptions prevent many people from trying to improve their reading skills. Others who have these misconceptions and begin to use the Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading Program, have a difficult time until they mentally accept the fact that their reading skills can be improved. It is because of the need to mentally accept [...]"
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string(2197) "These two misunderstandings and misconceptions prevent many people from trying to improve their reading skills. Others who have these misconceptions and begin to use the Alpha-Netics Rapid Reading Program, have a difficult time until they mentally accept the fact that their reading skills can be improved. It is because of the need to mentally accept this fact that there is much detail and repetition in the program.
A very important point that must be known and accepted by everyone desiring to increase their reading speed is that when beginning to increase the skill, it is necessary to temporarily lose understanding. When beginning to replace a primary skill habit, there is going to be a great conflict in the subconscious mind. The mind is being asked to do something it knows it cannot do. It hasn?t learned how. It has no information it can use to do what it is asked. In order to teach the mind, the program presents skill exercises that, if used and practiced, give the mind new knowledge and direction. In other words, a new skill is taught by the program and learned by the subconscious mind. Making a change in a skill habit that has been there longer than any skill, except perhaps walking and talking, is very difficult. In order to overcome the difficulty, the total reading and learning skill is taught step by step. Each individual step, or smaller skill, is not difficult to learn. To some, these individual skills seem totally unrelated to the final reading skill. However, learning these initial steps, one at a time, is necessary.
It is very important to know that when practicing begins, it is necessary to push faster than the normal reading speed. If this is not done, it is just reading and READING IS NOT PRACTICING!
If a person wants to learn to read fast, they must practice fast. At first, it is just learning faster movement. As movement is learned, understanding automatically will be lost, only to be regained, better than ever, when the movement skill is learned, and then mastered.
Taken From: THE ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1241665975)
}
[70]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(16) "TOTAL RELAXATION"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=577"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=577#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
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string(330) "As you were told earlier, you are taught passive relaxation (when muscles are not moving and totally relaxed) so you can more effectively function with dynamic relaxation (when muscles are moving, but freely and easily, without tension or strain). You will be taught how to relax the entire body. If you don?t learn to relax [...]"
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string(2985) "As you were told earlier, you are taught passive relaxation (when muscles are not moving and totally relaxed) so you can more effectively function with dynamic relaxation (when muscles are moving, but freely and easily, without tension or strain). You will be taught how to relax the entire body. If you don?t learn to relax every time you read or study, it will be difficult for you to concentrate, remember or even learn. Knowing how to relax is the most important step you must take. You should go through the relaxation practice at least twice a day, even if it is at a. time when you are not normally going to practice with the program.
RELAXATION is a skill you must learn through practice. You do not need the program or even the relaxation cassette with you when you go through the exercise. The importance of relaxation cannot be stressed too strongly. Everything related to reading and learning, the ability to
concentrate, study, remember and even move smoothly, is greatly affected by tension. There is only one way to relieve or eliminate tension - RELAXATION.
When you begin this relaxation exercise, it is important that you are as comfortable as possible. You should not have any outside distractions from people, radio, TV or from any other source. Your clothing should be loose. If you are wearing garments that are in any way snug, they should be loosened. Take your shoes off, and even your stockings, if you feel freer without them. If you are wearing a watch that has a tight band, or a bracelet or necklace that is tight, take it off. You need to be as unencumbered as you can possibly be. Especially the first few times you go through this exercise, sit in an upright position. Later, you may lie down, or assume any other comfortable position from which you can go through the exercise practice. It is a good idea to turn the lights down or even off.
Mental and physical tensions are usually created by outside activities or actions. These create the tensions within. It is not often that you will be able to control the outside activity that causes these inside tensions. You can learn to control the effect they have on you inside. The relaxation exercise you will be taught uses a number of different techniques to do this. One of the most important, and most powerful, is the use of visualization. ?Acting as if? is a very powerful and
useful force that you can command and use at your discretion. The power of suggestion and expectation is applied. Self-fulfilling prophecy is used in getting you to see and even feel, before you start, what the achievement of your goals or objectives is like. You will practice deep breathing exercises and learn to relax your muscles, progressively, one area at a time, just as you were taught to relax the muscle areas around the head.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
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string(330) "As you were told earlier, you are taught passive relaxation (when muscles are not moving and totally relaxed) so you can more effectively function with dynamic relaxation (when muscles are moving, but freely and easily, without tension or strain). You will be taught how to relax the entire body. If you don?t learn to relax [...]"
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string(2985) "As you were told earlier, you are taught passive relaxation (when muscles are not moving and totally relaxed) so you can more effectively function with dynamic relaxation (when muscles are moving, but freely and easily, without tension or strain). You will be taught how to relax the entire body. If you don?t learn to relax every time you read or study, it will be difficult for you to concentrate, remember or even learn. Knowing how to relax is the most important step you must take. You should go through the relaxation practice at least twice a day, even if it is at a. time when you are not normally going to practice with the program.
RELAXATION is a skill you must learn through practice. You do not need the program or even the relaxation cassette with you when you go through the exercise. The importance of relaxation cannot be stressed too strongly. Everything related to reading and learning, the ability to
concentrate, study, remember and even move smoothly, is greatly affected by tension. There is only one way to relieve or eliminate tension - RELAXATION.
When you begin this relaxation exercise, it is important that you are as comfortable as possible. You should not have any outside distractions from people, radio, TV or from any other source. Your clothing should be loose. If you are wearing garments that are in any way snug, they should be loosened. Take your shoes off, and even your stockings, if you feel freer without them. If you are wearing a watch that has a tight band, or a bracelet or necklace that is tight, take it off. You need to be as unencumbered as you can possibly be. Especially the first few times you go through this exercise, sit in an upright position. Later, you may lie down, or assume any other comfortable position from which you can go through the exercise practice. It is a good idea to turn the lights down or even off.
Mental and physical tensions are usually created by outside activities or actions. These create the tensions within. It is not often that you will be able to control the outside activity that causes these inside tensions. You can learn to control the effect they have on you inside. The relaxation exercise you will be taught uses a number of different techniques to do this. One of the most important, and most powerful, is the use of visualization. ?Acting as if? is a very powerful and
useful force that you can command and use at your discretion. The power of suggestion and expectation is applied. Self-fulfilling prophecy is used in getting you to see and even feel, before you start, what the achievement of your goals or objectives is like. You will practice deep breathing exercises and learn to relax your muscles, progressively, one area at a time, just as you were taught to relax the muscle areas around the head.
Taken From: ALPHA-NETICS
RAPID READING PROGRAM
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1241416110)
}
[71]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(54) "Second-Level Medications: Doses, Actions, Side Effects"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=520"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=520#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Fri, 01 May 2009 01:01:11 +0000"
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string(335) "Vitamins A and C
The main reason that vitamins A and C did not make it to the first level is that they have not been rigorously tested against memory loss. Nevertheless, their powerful antioxidant properties, which in animal models have tended to exceed those of vitamin E, suggest potent antiaging and antimemory loss effects. I [...]"
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string(2896) "Vitamins A and C
The main reason that vitamins A and C did not make it to the first level is that they have not been rigorously tested against memory loss. Nevertheless, their powerful antioxidant properties, which in animal models have tended to exceed those of vitamin E, suggest potent antiaging and antimemory loss effects. I also like the fact that they are natural vitamins with few risks attached to their use. Vitamin A supplementation requires 10,000 to 50,000 units daily, or 10,000 to 25,000 units daily when combined with 15 mg beta-carotene. Vitamin C is found in abundance in grapefruits, oranges, and other citrus fruits, but if you wish to try higher doses, take 1 to 5 grams daily in tablet form. Because vitamin C is water soluble, there is no harm in taking even megadoses, because the kidneys can promptly flush them out in the urine. In contrast, megadoses of the fat-soluble vitamins A and E can cause toxicity.
Aspirin
Aspirin’s anticoagulant effects help protect against ministrokes, a common cause of memory loss during the aging process. If you have any risk factors for stroke, such as high cholesterol, smoking, or a positive family history of stroke, an aspirin daily (or even a baby aspirin daily) is a good idea. Its anti-inflammatory properties may also be useful in delaying the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, and memory loss more generally. Use aspirin with caution if you’re prone to stomach upset or irritation (or ulcer), and avoid it if you have bleeding tendencies or are taking anticoagulants.
Ginkgo Biloba
Ginkgo biloba joins phosphatidylserine as an alternative medication that makes the list. EGb 761 is the best-studied form of ginkgo biloba, and can be taken in doses of 120 mg daily. While there is evidence for ginkgo’s effectiveness against memory loss, my hesitation in placing it in the first-level category is that the size of its effects against age-related memory loss is very small. Bleeding has been reported when ginkgo is combined with anticoagulant medications; therefore, be cautious about combining it with Vitamin E or aspirin.
Selegiline (Deprenyl)
Selegiline (Deprenyl or Eldepryl) has many actions, including antioxidant properties, that make it an effective antiaging compound. Although its effects in delaying functional deterioration were comparable to those of vitamin E in a recent Alzheimer’s study, its use did not lead to improvement in performance on cognitive tests. Like vita- min E, it may be more useful in long-term prevention than it is in treating people who already have memory loss. The recommended dose for this prescription medication is 5 to 15 mg daily.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(335) "Vitamins A and C
The main reason that vitamins A and C did not make it to the first level is that they have not been rigorously tested against memory loss. Nevertheless, their powerful antioxidant properties, which in animal models have tended to exceed those of vitamin E, suggest potent antiaging and antimemory loss effects. I [...]"
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string(2896) "Vitamins A and C
The main reason that vitamins A and C did not make it to the first level is that they have not been rigorously tested against memory loss. Nevertheless, their powerful antioxidant properties, which in animal models have tended to exceed those of vitamin E, suggest potent antiaging and antimemory loss effects. I also like the fact that they are natural vitamins with few risks attached to their use. Vitamin A supplementation requires 10,000 to 50,000 units daily, or 10,000 to 25,000 units daily when combined with 15 mg beta-carotene. Vitamin C is found in abundance in grapefruits, oranges, and other citrus fruits, but if you wish to try higher doses, take 1 to 5 grams daily in tablet form. Because vitamin C is water soluble, there is no harm in taking even megadoses, because the kidneys can promptly flush them out in the urine. In contrast, megadoses of the fat-soluble vitamins A and E can cause toxicity.
Aspirin
Aspirin’s anticoagulant effects help protect against ministrokes, a common cause of memory loss during the aging process. If you have any risk factors for stroke, such as high cholesterol, smoking, or a positive family history of stroke, an aspirin daily (or even a baby aspirin daily) is a good idea. Its anti-inflammatory properties may also be useful in delaying the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, and memory loss more generally. Use aspirin with caution if you’re prone to stomach upset or irritation (or ulcer), and avoid it if you have bleeding tendencies or are taking anticoagulants.
Ginkgo Biloba
Ginkgo biloba joins phosphatidylserine as an alternative medication that makes the list. EGb 761 is the best-studied form of ginkgo biloba, and can be taken in doses of 120 mg daily. While there is evidence for ginkgo’s effectiveness against memory loss, my hesitation in placing it in the first-level category is that the size of its effects against age-related memory loss is very small. Bleeding has been reported when ginkgo is combined with anticoagulant medications; therefore, be cautious about combining it with Vitamin E or aspirin.
Selegiline (Deprenyl)
Selegiline (Deprenyl or Eldepryl) has many actions, including antioxidant properties, that make it an effective antiaging compound. Although its effects in delaying functional deterioration were comparable to those of vitamin E in a recent Alzheimer’s study, its use did not lead to improvement in performance on cognitive tests. Like vita- min E, it may be more useful in long-term prevention than it is in treating people who already have memory loss. The recommended dose for this prescription medication is 5 to 15 mg daily.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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}
[72]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(26) "A Reminder about Vitamin E"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=518"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=518#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Tue, 28 Apr 2009 08:08:32 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(373) "Vitamin E is present in high-fat foods like vegetable oils, germs, nuts, and seeds.
It is impossible for you to get more than 200 IUs daily through diet alone.
Phosphatidylserine
Phosphatidylserine is the one medication that has been consistently shown to be superior to placebo in treating age-related memory loss, though all studies have been short-term. It should [...]"
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string(2506) "Vitamin E is present in high-fat foods like vegetable oils, germs, nuts, and seeds.
It is impossible for you to get more than 200 IUs daily through diet alone.
Phosphatidylserine
Phosphatidylserine is the one medication that has been consistently shown to be superior to placebo in treating age-related memory loss, though all studies have been short-term. It should be taken as 300 mg daily for six to eight weeks followed by 100 mg daily thereafter, based on the notion that a smaller dose is sufficient after the neuronal cell membranes have been saturated with phosphatidylserine. Its lack of side effects, together with its established success in several studies of age-associated memory impairment, helped to get it into the first-level category.
Donepezil (Aricept)
Although donepezil (Aricept) has not been tested in people with mild memory loss, the strength of the data in Alzheimer’s disease, which includes FDA approval, as well as clinical experience, led me to elevate it to the A list. You need to be alert to its side effects of nausea and diarrhea, which means that if you are taking another medication that can cause such side effects, such as aspirin, be prepared for stomach discomfort. If this becomes severe, you may need to stop Aricept. Your physician will prescribe Aricept 5 to 10 mg as a single daily dose. Rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl) are very similar to Aricept and can substitute for Aricept in the Memory Program.
Estrogen (for Women Only)
Estrogen is only now being directly tested as both a preventive and treatment strategy for mild memory loss due to aging. Even though the results are not yet out, the weight of the evidence supporting its promemory properties is strong. Also, estrogen has broad antiaging properties that include actions against osteoporosis and heart disease, which helped it get top billing. Gynecologic monitoring is essential because of the potential risk of uterine and breast cancer, though using an estrogen-progesterone combination virtually eliminates the increased risk of cancer of the uterus. You need a prescription from your doctor for Premarin 0.625 mg daily (or equivalent), or estrogenprogesterone
combinations such as Prempro (over a dozen such combination medications exist).
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(373) "Vitamin E is present in high-fat foods like vegetable oils, germs, nuts, and seeds.
It is impossible for you to get more than 200 IUs daily through diet alone.
Phosphatidylserine
Phosphatidylserine is the one medication that has been consistently shown to be superior to placebo in treating age-related memory loss, though all studies have been short-term. It should [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2506) "Vitamin E is present in high-fat foods like vegetable oils, germs, nuts, and seeds.
It is impossible for you to get more than 200 IUs daily through diet alone.
Phosphatidylserine
Phosphatidylserine is the one medication that has been consistently shown to be superior to placebo in treating age-related memory loss, though all studies have been short-term. It should be taken as 300 mg daily for six to eight weeks followed by 100 mg daily thereafter, based on the notion that a smaller dose is sufficient after the neuronal cell membranes have been saturated with phosphatidylserine. Its lack of side effects, together with its established success in several studies of age-associated memory impairment, helped to get it into the first-level category.
Donepezil (Aricept)
Although donepezil (Aricept) has not been tested in people with mild memory loss, the strength of the data in Alzheimer’s disease, which includes FDA approval, as well as clinical experience, led me to elevate it to the A list. You need to be alert to its side effects of nausea and diarrhea, which means that if you are taking another medication that can cause such side effects, such as aspirin, be prepared for stomach discomfort. If this becomes severe, you may need to stop Aricept. Your physician will prescribe Aricept 5 to 10 mg as a single daily dose. Rivastigmine (Exelon) and galantamine (Reminyl) are very similar to Aricept and can substitute for Aricept in the Memory Program.
Estrogen (for Women Only)
Estrogen is only now being directly tested as both a preventive and treatment strategy for mild memory loss due to aging. Even though the results are not yet out, the weight of the evidence supporting its promemory properties is strong. Also, estrogen has broad antiaging properties that include actions against osteoporosis and heart disease, which helped it get top billing. Gynecologic monitoring is essential because of the potential risk of uterine and breast cancer, though using an estrogen-progesterone combination virtually eliminates the increased risk of cancer of the uterus. You need a prescription from your doctor for Premarin 0.625 mg daily (or equivalent), or estrogenprogesterone
combinations such as Prempro (over a dozen such combination medications exist).
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1240906112)
}
[73]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(19) "5.9.2. How It Works"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=345"
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["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sat, 25 Apr 2009 05:05:54 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(369) "It’s easier to understand what’s going on here if we think about it as two separate setups. Let’s call them “hard,” for the case in which you’re looking at the television right by the amplifier and “easy,” when you’re looking at the screen put a little further away.
In the hard case, there’s a video of [...]"
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string(1438) "It’s easier to understand what’s going on here if we think about it as two separate setups. Let’s call them “hard,” for the case in which you’re looking at the television right by the amplifier and “easy,” when you’re looking at the screen put a little further away.
In the hard case, there’s a video of a talking head on the television screen and two different voices, all coming from the same location. The reason it’s hard is because it’s easier to tune out of one information stream and into another if they’re in different locations (which is what [Hack #54] is all about). The fact there’s a video of a talking head showing in this case isn’t really important.
The easy setup has one audio stream tucked off to the side somewhere, while a talking head and its corresponding audio play on the television. It’s plain to see that tuning into the audio on the television is a fairly simple taskI do it whenever I watch TV while ignoring the noise of people talking in the other room.
But hang on, you say. In Driver’s experiment, the easy condition didn’t correspond to having one audio stream neatly out of the way and the one you’re listening to aligned with the television screen. Both audio streams were coming from the same place, from the amplifier, right?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
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["summary"]=>
string(369) "It’s easier to understand what’s going on here if we think about it as two separate setups. Let’s call them “hard,” for the case in which you’re looking at the television right by the amplifier and “easy,” when you’re looking at the screen put a little further away.
In the hard case, there’s a video of [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1438) "It’s easier to understand what’s going on here if we think about it as two separate setups. Let’s call them “hard,” for the case in which you’re looking at the television right by the amplifier and “easy,” when you’re looking at the screen put a little further away.
In the hard case, there’s a video of a talking head on the television screen and two different voices, all coming from the same location. The reason it’s hard is because it’s easier to tune out of one information stream and into another if they’re in different locations (which is what [Hack #54] is all about). The fact there’s a video of a talking head showing in this case isn’t really important.
The easy setup has one audio stream tucked off to the side somewhere, while a talking head and its corresponding audio play on the television. It’s plain to see that tuning into the audio on the television is a fairly simple taskI do it whenever I watch TV while ignoring the noise of people talking in the other room.
But hang on, you say. In Driver’s experiment, the easy condition didn’t correspond to having one audio stream neatly out of the way and the one you’re listening to aligned with the television screen. Both audio streams were coming from the same place, from the amplifier, right?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1240635954)
}
[74]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(48) "Enjoy Much Playing Golf at Some Beautiful Places"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=737"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=737#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 22 Apr 2009 10:32:41 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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string(275) "I am a man of forty five years in age. I like playing golf very much; every time I have a holiday; weekends or season holidays, I always had a time to play golf with friends, colleagues or even my family. The most memorable golf time is what I got in Ireland. I took my [...]"
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string(2153) "I am a man of forty five years in age. I like playing golf very much; every time I have a holiday; weekends or season holidays, I always had a time to play golf with friends, colleagues or even my family. The most memorable golf time is what I got in Ireland. I took my family there to spend summer holiday. The tour was golf holiday; we not only could enjoy the wonderful panoramic views there but also enjoy golf time in the great golf fields. It was kind of compacting for me; took my family to enjoy vacation and satisfied my hobby to golf.
Before I found golfkurs.com, I never knew about holiday that specialized for golf lovers where they can enjoy golf as much as they want. Since I knew the site, I booked the vacation for next summer. The experience there was so great; all of us really excited and satisfied about the vacation. My ten years son also could play golf with the special golf class there. He could learn about the golf further with kids? special golf training. Now I know the place where I can reach Golfshop without getting out from my home. The site also provides Golf shop inside; I can find golf equipments here with certainly great quality international brands.
The site is best in the golf holiday; it provides kinds of wonderful places so we can choose any places suit us to spend holiday and time of golf playing. The famous beautiful country; Germany also stores a great international class golf fields inside. Booking a holiday there through the site will enable you to enjoy golf times free by holding Golfkurs Platzreife; such kind of golf green card to enter the field. Find also a golf train for you who haven?t had a skill of golf playing in the site.
"
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string(275) "I am a man of forty five years in age. I like playing golf very much; every time I have a holiday; weekends or season holidays, I always had a time to play golf with friends, colleagues or even my family. The most memorable golf time is what I got in Ireland. I took my [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2153) "I am a man of forty five years in age. I like playing golf very much; every time I have a holiday; weekends or season holidays, I always had a time to play golf with friends, colleagues or even my family. The most memorable golf time is what I got in Ireland. I took my family there to spend summer holiday. The tour was golf holiday; we not only could enjoy the wonderful panoramic views there but also enjoy golf time in the great golf fields. It was kind of compacting for me; took my family to enjoy vacation and satisfied my hobby to golf.
Before I found golfkurs.com, I never knew about holiday that specialized for golf lovers where they can enjoy golf as much as they want. Since I knew the site, I booked the vacation for next summer. The experience there was so great; all of us really excited and satisfied about the vacation. My ten years son also could play golf with the special golf class there. He could learn about the golf further with kids? special golf training. Now I know the place where I can reach Golfshop without getting out from my home. The site also provides Golf shop inside; I can find golf equipments here with certainly great quality international brands.
The site is best in the golf holiday; it provides kinds of wonderful places so we can choose any places suit us to spend holiday and time of golf playing. The famous beautiful country; Germany also stores a great international class golf fields inside. Booking a holiday there through the site will enable you to enjoy golf times free by holding Golfkurs Platzreife; such kind of golf green card to enter the field. Find also a golf train for you who haven?t had a skill of golf playing in the site.
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1240396361)
}
[75]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(43) "Hack 65. Why Can?t You Tickle Yourself? (2)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=385"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=385#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 22 Apr 2009 02:00:49 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(304) "Every time an action is made, the brain generates an efference copy of the actual motor command in parallel. The efference copy is just like a carbon copy, or duplicate, of the real motor command and is used to make a prediction about the effect of the action, for example, the tickling effect of a [...]"
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string(2001) "Every time an action is made, the brain generates an efference copy of the actual motor command in parallel. The efference copy is just like a carbon copy, or duplicate, of the real motor command and is used to make a prediction about the effect of the action, for example, the tickling effect of a finger stroke. The predicted sensory effect of the efference copy and the actual sensory effect of the motor command are compared (Figure 6-3). If there is a mismatch, the sensation is labeled as externally generated.
Your accurate prediction of the consequences of the self-tickle reduces the sensory effects (the tickliness) of the action, but this does not happen when someone else tickles you. This explains why the sensation is usually more intense when another person touches your arm compared with when you touch your own arm.
Neuroimaging studies using a tickling machine (Figure 6-4) at University College London1 suggest that the distinction between self and other is hardwired in the brain. This device was used to apply a soft piece of foam to the participant’s left palm. In one condition, the participant self-produced the touch stimulus with his right hand, and in the other condition, the experimenter produced the stimulus. The participant’s brain was scanned during the experiment to investigate the brain basis of self-produced versus externally produced touch. Results show stronger activation of the somatosensory cortex and anterior cingulate, parts of the brain involved in processing touch and pleasure, respectively, when a person is tickled by someone else, compared with when they tickle themselves. The cerebellum, a part of the brain that is generally associated with movement, also responds differently to self-produced and externally produced touch, and it may have a role in predicting the sensory consequences of self-touch but not external touch. (See [Hack #7] for more about these parts of the brain.)
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(304) "Every time an action is made, the brain generates an efference copy of the actual motor command in parallel. The efference copy is just like a carbon copy, or duplicate, of the real motor command and is used to make a prediction about the effect of the action, for example, the tickling effect of a [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(2001) "Every time an action is made, the brain generates an efference copy of the actual motor command in parallel. The efference copy is just like a carbon copy, or duplicate, of the real motor command and is used to make a prediction about the effect of the action, for example, the tickling effect of a finger stroke. The predicted sensory effect of the efference copy and the actual sensory effect of the motor command are compared (Figure 6-3). If there is a mismatch, the sensation is labeled as externally generated.
Your accurate prediction of the consequences of the self-tickle reduces the sensory effects (the tickliness) of the action, but this does not happen when someone else tickles you. This explains why the sensation is usually more intense when another person touches your arm compared with when you touch your own arm.
Neuroimaging studies using a tickling machine (Figure 6-4) at University College London1 suggest that the distinction between self and other is hardwired in the brain. This device was used to apply a soft piece of foam to the participant’s left palm. In one condition, the participant self-produced the touch stimulus with his right hand, and in the other condition, the experimenter produced the stimulus. The participant’s brain was scanned during the experiment to investigate the brain basis of self-produced versus externally produced touch. Results show stronger activation of the somatosensory cortex and anterior cingulate, parts of the brain involved in processing touch and pleasure, respectively, when a person is tickled by someone else, compared with when they tickle themselves. The cerebellum, a part of the brain that is generally associated with movement, also responds differently to self-produced and externally produced touch, and it may have a role in predicting the sensory consequences of self-touch but not external touch. (See [Hack #7] for more about these parts of the brain.)
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1240365649)
}
[76]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(21) "5.10.1. In Action (2)"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=353"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=353#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Sun, 19 Apr 2009 09:09:29 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(300) "So, here’s a test to see if people can use both kinds of information in combination.5 Show a person something he’d like, like some food, and let him see you hide it behind the curtains in one corner of the room. Now disorient him by spinning him around and ask him to find the food. [...]"
["content"]=>
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string(1982) "So, here’s a test to see if people can use both kinds of information in combination.5 Show a person something he’d like, like some food, and let him see you hide it behind the curtains in one corner of the room. Now disorient him by spinning him around and ask him to find the food. If he can combine the geometric and the color information, he’ll have no problem finding the foodhe’ll be able to tell unambiguously which corner it was hidden in. If he doesn’t combine information across modules, he will get it right 50% of the time and 50% of the time wrong on his first guess and need a second guess to find the food.
Where does language come into it? Well, language seems to define the kinds of subjects who can do this task at better than 50% accuracy. Rats can’t do it. Children who don’t have language yet can’t do it. Postlinguistic children and adults can do it.
Convinced? Here’s the rub: if you tie up an adult’s language ability, her performance drops to close to 50%. This is what Linda Hermer-Vazquez, Elizabeth Spelke, and Alla Katsnelson did.6 They got subjects to do the experiment, but all the time they were doing it, they were asked to repeat the text of newspaper articles that were played to them over loudspeakers. This “verbal shadowing task” completely engaged their language ability, removing their inner monologue.
The same subjects could orient themselves and find the correct corner fine when they weren’t doing the task. They could do it when they were doing an equivalently difficult task that didn’t tie up their language ability (copying a sequence of rhythms by clapping). But they couldn’t do it with their language resources engaged in something else. There’s something special about language that is essential for reorienting yourself using both kinds of information available in the room.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(300) "So, here’s a test to see if people can use both kinds of information in combination.5 Show a person something he’d like, like some food, and let him see you hide it behind the curtains in one corner of the room. Now disorient him by spinning him around and ask him to find the food. [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1982) "So, here’s a test to see if people can use both kinds of information in combination.5 Show a person something he’d like, like some food, and let him see you hide it behind the curtains in one corner of the room. Now disorient him by spinning him around and ask him to find the food. If he can combine the geometric and the color information, he’ll have no problem finding the foodhe’ll be able to tell unambiguously which corner it was hidden in. If he doesn’t combine information across modules, he will get it right 50% of the time and 50% of the time wrong on his first guess and need a second guess to find the food.
Where does language come into it? Well, language seems to define the kinds of subjects who can do this task at better than 50% accuracy. Rats can’t do it. Children who don’t have language yet can’t do it. Postlinguistic children and adults can do it.
Convinced? Here’s the rub: if you tie up an adult’s language ability, her performance drops to close to 50%. This is what Linda Hermer-Vazquez, Elizabeth Spelke, and Alla Katsnelson did.6 They got subjects to do the experiment, but all the time they were doing it, they were asked to repeat the text of newspaper articles that were played to them over loudspeakers. This “verbal shadowing task” completely engaged their language ability, removing their inner monologue.
The same subjects could orient themselves and find the correct corner fine when they weren’t doing the task. They could do it when they were doing an equivalently difficult task that didn’t tie up their language ability (copying a sequence of rhythms by clapping). But they couldn’t do it with their language resources engaged in something else. There’s something special about language that is essential for reorienting yourself using both kinds of information available in the room.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1240132169)
}
[77]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(17) "5.10.1. In Action"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=351"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=351#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Thu, 16 Apr 2009 06:06:57 +0000"
["dc"]=>
array(1) {
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["category"]=>
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["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=351"
["description"]=>
string(293) "The experiment described here was done in the lab of Elizabeth Spelke.4 You could potentially do it in your own home, but be prepared to build some large props and to get dizzy.
Imagine a room like the one in Figure 5-4. The room is made up of four curtains, used to create four walls in [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
["encoded"]=>
string(1175) "The experiment described here was done in the lab of Elizabeth Spelke.4 You could potentially do it in your own home, but be prepared to build some large props and to get dizzy.
Imagine a room like the one in Figure 5-4. The room is made up of four curtains, used to create four walls in a rectangle, defined by two types of information: geometric (two short walls and two long walls) and color information (one red wall).
Now, think about the corners. If you are using only geometric information, pairs of corners are identical. There are two corners with a short wall on the left and a long wall on the right and two corners the other way around. If you are using only color information, there are also two pairs of identical corners: corners next to a red wall and corners not next to a red wall.
Using just one kind of information, geometry or color, lets you identify corners with only 50% accuracy. But using both kinds of information in combination lets you identify any of the four corners with 100% accuracy, because although both kinds of information are ambiguous, they are not ambiguous in the same way.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(293) "The experiment described here was done in the lab of Elizabeth Spelke.4 You could potentially do it in your own home, but be prepared to build some large props and to get dizzy.
Imagine a room like the one in Figure 5-4. The room is made up of four curtains, used to create four walls in [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1175) "The experiment described here was done in the lab of Elizabeth Spelke.4 You could potentially do it in your own home, but be prepared to build some large props and to get dizzy.
Imagine a room like the one in Figure 5-4. The room is made up of four curtains, used to create four walls in a rectangle, defined by two types of information: geometric (two short walls and two long walls) and color information (one red wall).
Now, think about the corners. If you are using only geometric information, pairs of corners are identical. There are two corners with a short wall on the left and a long wall on the right and two corners the other way around. If you are using only color information, there are also two pairs of identical corners: corners next to a red wall and corners not next to a red wall.
Using just one kind of information, geometry or color, lets you identify corners with only 50% accuracy. But using both kinds of information in combination lets you identify any of the four corners with 100% accuracy, because although both kinds of information are ambiguous, they are not ambiguous in the same way.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1239862017)
}
[78]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(16) "5.9.1. In Action"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=341"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=341#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Mon, 13 Apr 2009 03:03:23 +0000"
["dc"]=>
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["guid"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=341"
["description"]=>
string(350) "Jon Driver from University College London1 took advantage of our experience with syncing language sounds with lip movements to do a little hacking. He showed people a television screen showing a person talking, but instead of the speech coming from the television, it was played through a separate amplifier and combined with a distracting, and [...]"
["content"]=>
array(1) {
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string(1659) "Jon Driver from University College London1 took advantage of our experience with syncing language sounds with lip movements to do a little hacking. He showed people a television screen showing a person talking, but instead of the speech coming from the television, it was played through a separate amplifier and combined with a distracting, and completely separate, voice speaking. The television screen was alternately right next to the amplifier or some distance away. The subject was asked to repeat the words corresponding to the talking head on the television.
If they watched the talking head on screen nearby the amplifier, they made more errors than if they watched the talking head on the screen kept distant from the sound. Even though both audio streams were heard from the single amplifier in the two cases, moving the video image considerably changed the listener’s ability to tune into one voice.
This experiment is a prime candidate for trying at home. An easy way would be with a laptop hooked up to portable speakers and a radio. Have the laptop playing a video with lots of speech where you can see lip movements. A news broadcast, full of talking heads, is ideal. Now put the radio, tuned into a talk station, and the laptop speaker, in the same location. That’s the single amplifier in Driver’s experiment. The two different cases in the experiment correspond to your laptop being right next to the speakers or some feet away. You should find that you understand what the talking heads on the video are saying more easily when the laptop is further away. Give it a go.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(350) "Jon Driver from University College London1 took advantage of our experience with syncing language sounds with lip movements to do a little hacking. He showed people a television screen showing a person talking, but instead of the speech coming from the television, it was played through a separate amplifier and combined with a distracting, and [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1659) "Jon Driver from University College London1 took advantage of our experience with syncing language sounds with lip movements to do a little hacking. He showed people a television screen showing a person talking, but instead of the speech coming from the television, it was played through a separate amplifier and combined with a distracting, and completely separate, voice speaking. The television screen was alternately right next to the amplifier or some distance away. The subject was asked to repeat the words corresponding to the talking head on the television.
If they watched the talking head on screen nearby the amplifier, they made more errors than if they watched the talking head on the screen kept distant from the sound. Even though both audio streams were heard from the single amplifier in the two cases, moving the video image considerably changed the listener’s ability to tune into one voice.
This experiment is a prime candidate for trying at home. An easy way would be with a laptop hooked up to portable speakers and a radio. Have the laptop playing a video with lots of speech where you can see lip movements. A news broadcast, full of talking heads, is ideal. Now put the radio, tuned into a talk station, and the laptop speaker, in the same location. That’s the single amplifier in Driver’s experiment. The two different cases in the experiment correspond to your laptop being right next to the speakers or some feet away. You should find that you understand what the talking heads on the video are saying more easily when the laptop is further away. Give it a go.
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1239591803)
}
[79]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(17) "Chapter 6. Moving"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
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["pubdate"]=>
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["description"]=>
string(305) "6.1. Hacks 62-69
The story of the brain is a story of embodiment, of how much the brain takes for granted the world we’re in and the body that carries it about.
For instance, we assume a certain level of stability in the world. We make assumptions about how our body is able to move within the [...]"
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string(1535) "6.1. Hacks 62-69
The story of the brain is a story of embodiment, of how much the brain takes for granted the world we’re in and the body that carries it about.
For instance, we assume a certain level of stability in the world. We make assumptions about how our body is able to move within the environment, and if the environment has changed [Hack #62], we get confused.
As we assume stability in the world, so too do we assume stability from our body. Why should the brain bother remembering the shape of our own body when it’s simply there to consult? But when our body’s shape doesn’t remain stable, the brain can get confused. You start by getting your fingers mixed up when you cross your hands [Hack #63] ; you end up convincing your brain that you’re receiving touch sensations from the nearby table [Hack #64] .
This is also a story of how we interact with the world. Our brains continually assess and anticipate the movements we need to grasp objects, judging correctly even when our eyes are fooled [Hack #66] . We’re built for activity, our brains perceiving the uses of an object, its affordances [Hack #67], as soon as we look at itas soon as we see something, we ready ourselves to use it.
We’ll finish on what we use for manipulation: our hands. What makes us right- or left-handed [Hack #68] ? And, while we’re on the topic, what does all that left-brain, right-brain stuff really mean [Hack #69] ?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
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string(305) "6.1. Hacks 62-69
The story of the brain is a story of embodiment, of how much the brain takes for granted the world we’re in and the body that carries it about.
For instance, we assume a certain level of stability in the world. We make assumptions about how our body is able to move within the [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1535) "6.1. Hacks 62-69
The story of the brain is a story of embodiment, of how much the brain takes for granted the world we’re in and the body that carries it about.
For instance, we assume a certain level of stability in the world. We make assumptions about how our body is able to move within the environment, and if the environment has changed [Hack #62], we get confused.
As we assume stability in the world, so too do we assume stability from our body. Why should the brain bother remembering the shape of our own body when it’s simply there to consult? But when our body’s shape doesn’t remain stable, the brain can get confused. You start by getting your fingers mixed up when you cross your hands [Hack #63] ; you end up convincing your brain that you’re receiving touch sensations from the nearby table [Hack #64] .
This is also a story of how we interact with the world. Our brains continually assess and anticipate the movements we need to grasp objects, judging correctly even when our eyes are fooled [Hack #66] . We’re built for activity, our brains perceiving the uses of an object, its affordances [Hack #67], as soon as we look at itas soon as we see something, we ready ourselves to use it.
We’ll finish on what we use for manipulation: our hands. What makes us right- or left-handed [Hack #68] ? And, while we’re on the topic, what does all that left-brain, right-brain stuff really mean [Hack #69] ?
Taken from : Mind Hacks
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1239325216)
}
[80]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(39) "Obtain Car Headlights from Headlight.me"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=734"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=734#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Tue, 07 Apr 2009 08:18:13 +0000"
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["description"]=>
string(331) "Presently internet is not only for business matter but internet also become the media of learning for student too. Internet has many benefits since you can find any impossible things. However internet also becomes one way for motor or auto lover to receive information related with their interest. And if you are one of those [...]"
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string(2013) "Presently internet is not only for business matter but internet also become the media of learning for student too. Internet has many benefits since you can find any impossible things. However internet also becomes one way for motor or auto lover to receive information related with their interest. And if you are one of those man who crazy about car and its headlights you can visit this link site. Here you can save your time from long uncertain result of searching.
Headlight.me meets you with headlights service provides. Through this link you can view for various headlight types and from various car brands. There are Jeep Headlights with interesting headlights offered. Jeep Cherokee headlights, jeep commander headlights, or jeep liberty headlights are some of types of jeep headlights. You may click one of those options and you will deliver significant information about it.
Or if you want to look for Mazda Headlights you can click for this term and you will get list of headlights types and information about it. Moreover this website provides you with reviews, guide and categories. If you want to get information about Toyota Headlights, is the right place for you, choose Toyota Yaris headlights with best price and information. Keep this site and find your suitable headlight soon. Call (954)-762-7624 for order and purchasing headlights.
"
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string(331) "Presently internet is not only for business matter but internet also become the media of learning for student too. Internet has many benefits since you can find any impossible things. However internet also becomes one way for motor or auto lover to receive information related with their interest. And if you are one of those [...]"
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string(2013) "Presently internet is not only for business matter but internet also become the media of learning for student too. Internet has many benefits since you can find any impossible things. However internet also becomes one way for motor or auto lover to receive information related with their interest. And if you are one of those man who crazy about car and its headlights you can visit this link site. Here you can save your time from long uncertain result of searching.
Headlight.me meets you with headlights service provides. Through this link you can view for various headlight types and from various car brands. There are Jeep Headlights with interesting headlights offered. Jeep Cherokee headlights, jeep commander headlights, or jeep liberty headlights are some of types of jeep headlights. You may click one of those options and you will deliver significant information about it.
Or if you want to look for Mazda Headlights you can click for this term and you will get list of headlights types and information about it. Moreover this website provides you with reviews, guide and categories. If you want to get information about Toyota Headlights, is the right place for you, choose Toyota Yaris headlights with best price and information. Keep this site and find your suitable headlight soon. Call (954)-762-7624 for order and purchasing headlights.
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[81]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(72) "Be Realistic: Long-Term Therapy Is Needed to Protect against Memory Loss"
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string(341) "Be Realistic: Long-Term Therapy Is Needed to Protect against Memory Loss
You must not forget that a truly effective preventive strategy will take many months to years to exert its full effects, and being impatient about the fact that medications are not giving you a rapid response will be self-defeating. Bear in mind the reality that [...]"
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string(2501) "Be Realistic: Long-Term Therapy Is Needed to Protect against Memory Loss
You must not forget that a truly effective preventive strategy will take many months to years to exert its full effects, and being impatient about the fact that medications are not giving you a rapid response will be self-defeating. Bear in mind the reality that for age-related memory loss without a specific reversible cause, there is no miracle cure. Blocking further decline, and hopefully experiencing a moderate degree of improvement in memory, should be your goal.
This list of questions to ask your doctor (ask only those questions on the list that are important to you) applies mainly to prescription medications, though it is always a good idea to consult your doctor about over-the-counter and alternative medications as well.
What to Ask Your Doctor about Medications
to Improve Memory
Why am I taking this particular medication?
How does this medication work on my memory?
How much improvement can I reasonably expect?
What is the right dose to take?
Does it interfere with any other medicines I am taking?
What are the common side effects?
How long do I need to take it?
Is the medicine addictive in any way?
Can I drink alcohol while taking it?
Is there any risk in stopping it for a few days at a time?
First-Level Medications: Doses, Actions, Side Effects
My primary or first-level nonprescription choices are vitamin E and phosphatidylserine, with donepezil and estrogen (for women only) making the prescription list.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E’s broad antioxidant and antiaging properties vaulted it to the top, particularly as a longterm preventive measure against future memory loss. Vitamin E should be taken as a single daily capsule of 400 to 800 IUs, but you can go up to 1,200 IUs (a maximum of 2,000 IUs if you’re very adventurous). There is a very small risk of bleeding if you also take anticoagulants like Coumadin; for the same reason, be cautious about combining vitamin E with aspirin or ginkgo biloba. Fortunately, in the very rare instances of bleeding caused by taking vitamin E, it is likely to begin gradually, so there will be time to reverse the problem by just stopping vitamin E.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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string(341) "Be Realistic: Long-Term Therapy Is Needed to Protect against Memory Loss
You must not forget that a truly effective preventive strategy will take many months to years to exert its full effects, and being impatient about the fact that medications are not giving you a rapid response will be self-defeating. Bear in mind the reality that [...]"
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string(2501) "Be Realistic: Long-Term Therapy Is Needed to Protect against Memory Loss
You must not forget that a truly effective preventive strategy will take many months to years to exert its full effects, and being impatient about the fact that medications are not giving you a rapid response will be self-defeating. Bear in mind the reality that for age-related memory loss without a specific reversible cause, there is no miracle cure. Blocking further decline, and hopefully experiencing a moderate degree of improvement in memory, should be your goal.
This list of questions to ask your doctor (ask only those questions on the list that are important to you) applies mainly to prescription medications, though it is always a good idea to consult your doctor about over-the-counter and alternative medications as well.
What to Ask Your Doctor about Medications
to Improve Memory
Why am I taking this particular medication?
How does this medication work on my memory?
How much improvement can I reasonably expect?
What is the right dose to take?
Does it interfere with any other medicines I am taking?
What are the common side effects?
How long do I need to take it?
Is the medicine addictive in any way?
Can I drink alcohol while taking it?
Is there any risk in stopping it for a few days at a time?
First-Level Medications: Doses, Actions, Side Effects
My primary or first-level nonprescription choices are vitamin E and phosphatidylserine, with donepezil and estrogen (for women only) making the prescription list.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E’s broad antioxidant and antiaging properties vaulted it to the top, particularly as a longterm preventive measure against future memory loss. Vitamin E should be taken as a single daily capsule of 400 to 800 IUs, but you can go up to 1,200 IUs (a maximum of 2,000 IUs if you’re very adventurous). There is a very small risk of bleeding if you also take anticoagulants like Coumadin; for the same reason, be cautious about combining vitamin E with aspirin or ginkgo biloba. Fortunately, in the very rare instances of bleeding caused by taking vitamin E, it is likely to begin gradually, so there will be time to reverse the problem by just stopping vitamin E.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
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[82]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(64) "Reversible Causes and Age-Related Memory Loss: The Domino Effect"
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string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=510"
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string(31) "Sat, 04 Apr 2009 06:10:38 +0000"
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string(342) "Returning to an earlier point, some people develop mild memory loss for the first time in their sixties and seventies. Many of these people chug along for years with minimal memory loss induced by a specific, reversible cause like depression or medication toxicity, because it is too subtle to affect daily functioning. Then the process [...]"
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string(2975) "Returning to an earlier point, some people develop mild memory loss for the first time in their sixties and seventies. Many of these people chug along for years with minimal memory loss induced by a specific, reversible cause like depression or medication toxicity, because it is too subtle to affect daily functioning. Then the process of age-related memory loss, which has been progressing slowly but steadily in the meantime, catches up and adds an extra wallop that leads to clear-cut memory loss. In other words, the two types of memory loss may each be very mild, but when added together, memory loss becomes obvious.
Step 2: Take Sound General Health Measures
General health measures are of great importance in the prevention of age-related memory loss. Diet, exercise, and memory training are the linchpins of these measures to prevent memory loss due to the aging process.
The Essential Promemory Diet
Decrease intake of saturated fats such as red meat, pizza, desserts.
Cook with canola, sunflower, corn, or olive oil, which are all high in ??good? unsaturated fats.
Fish has high protein and unsaturated fat content, which lowers the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
At least two daily helpings each of fruits and vegetables: citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruits; drinking juice instead of eating the actual fruit is okay) and berries are important sources of antioxidants, and green leafy vegetables have essential vitamins.
Maintain your nonalcohol fluid intake of at least three to five glasses of water daily (more if you do heavy exercise).
Take a multivitamin tablet daily to boost the promemory effect of a healthy diet. A multivitamin tablet is a supplement, not a substitute, for a healthy diet!
Supplement with vitamin E, consider taking vitamins A and C as well.
A saturated fat-rich diet is the worst dietary culprit. It can lead to memory loss because high cholesterol levels and plaques begin to block the brain’s arteries. Eventually, blood clots can lead to ministrokes and cognitive deficits, depending on which specific part of the brain has been damaged. If hippocampal or frontal cortex nerve cells, or the pathways connecting these regions, are destroyed, memory loss is the result. High levels of saturated fats also generate toxic free radicals, which can damage brain cells even further. Lowering saturated fats boosts the antioxidant potency of your diet, which is beneficial for memory and the aging process more broadly. A diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables will prevent vitamin deficiencies, promote memory, and reduce the risks of cancer, heart attacks, and stroke.
For further details about the components in the promemory diet, refer back to the table in chapter 5.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
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string(342) "Returning to an earlier point, some people develop mild memory loss for the first time in their sixties and seventies. Many of these people chug along for years with minimal memory loss induced by a specific, reversible cause like depression or medication toxicity, because it is too subtle to affect daily functioning. Then the process [...]"
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string(2975) "Returning to an earlier point, some people develop mild memory loss for the first time in their sixties and seventies. Many of these people chug along for years with minimal memory loss induced by a specific, reversible cause like depression or medication toxicity, because it is too subtle to affect daily functioning. Then the process of age-related memory loss, which has been progressing slowly but steadily in the meantime, catches up and adds an extra wallop that leads to clear-cut memory loss. In other words, the two types of memory loss may each be very mild, but when added together, memory loss becomes obvious.
Step 2: Take Sound General Health Measures
General health measures are of great importance in the prevention of age-related memory loss. Diet, exercise, and memory training are the linchpins of these measures to prevent memory loss due to the aging process.
The Essential Promemory Diet
Decrease intake of saturated fats such as red meat, pizza, desserts.
Cook with canola, sunflower, corn, or olive oil, which are all high in ??good? unsaturated fats.
Fish has high protein and unsaturated fat content, which lowers the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
At least two daily helpings each of fruits and vegetables: citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruits; drinking juice instead of eating the actual fruit is okay) and berries are important sources of antioxidants, and green leafy vegetables have essential vitamins.
Maintain your nonalcohol fluid intake of at least three to five glasses of water daily (more if you do heavy exercise).
Take a multivitamin tablet daily to boost the promemory effect of a healthy diet. A multivitamin tablet is a supplement, not a substitute, for a healthy diet!
Supplement with vitamin E, consider taking vitamins A and C as well.
A saturated fat-rich diet is the worst dietary culprit. It can lead to memory loss because high cholesterol levels and plaques begin to block the brain’s arteries. Eventually, blood clots can lead to ministrokes and cognitive deficits, depending on which specific part of the brain has been damaged. If hippocampal or frontal cortex nerve cells, or the pathways connecting these regions, are destroyed, memory loss is the result. High levels of saturated fats also generate toxic free radicals, which can damage brain cells even further. Lowering saturated fats boosts the antioxidant potency of your diet, which is beneficial for memory and the aging process more broadly. A diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables will prevent vitamin deficiencies, promote memory, and reduce the risks of cancer, heart attacks, and stroke.
For further details about the components in the promemory diet, refer back to the table in chapter 5.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1238825438)
}
[83]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(33) "Auto Insurance Information Center"
["link"]=>
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["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=732#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
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string(294) "Accident, crush and other bad thing can happen to us. They come attack our peaceful life without we know it. So to avoid the worst effect of the accident, especially for your car, you need to get protection for your car. Like we know, this thing can?t be avoiding, but we just can make it [...]"
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string(1207) "Accident, crush and other bad thing can happen to us. They come attack our peaceful life without we know it. So to avoid the worst effect of the accident, especially for your car, you need to get protection for your car. Like we know, this thing can?t be avoiding, but we just can make it do less damage for us. So, lie mentioned before, you need to get the best protection for the damage that happen to your car, and the best way for that is by using the insurance. With insurance you can get the guarantee for the damage that happen to your car that can reduce the value of your car. With insurance, you can fix and make your car protected.
Onlineautoinsurance.com, is the website that you need to visit to get information and to compare it the insurance that offered by many company. Here you will get the quote comparison service from many autos insurance that offered by many auto insurance companies. Or if you want to know about the best and cheap insurance for your car, you will get the complete information here to.
For more information about the best auto insurance, you can visit this website now.
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string(294) "Accident, crush and other bad thing can happen to us. They come attack our peaceful life without we know it. So to avoid the worst effect of the accident, especially for your car, you need to get protection for your car. Like we know, this thing can?t be avoiding, but we just can make it [...]"
["atom_content"]=>
string(1207) "Accident, crush and other bad thing can happen to us. They come attack our peaceful life without we know it. So to avoid the worst effect of the accident, especially for your car, you need to get protection for your car. Like we know, this thing can?t be avoiding, but we just can make it do less damage for us. So, lie mentioned before, you need to get the best protection for the damage that happen to your car, and the best way for that is by using the insurance. With insurance you can get the guarantee for the damage that happen to your car that can reduce the value of your car. With insurance, you can fix and make your car protected.
Onlineautoinsurance.com, is the website that you need to visit to get information and to compare it the insurance that offered by many company. Here you will get the quote comparison service from many autos insurance that offered by many auto insurance companies. Or if you want to know about the best and cheap insurance for your car, you will get the complete information here to.
For more information about the best auto insurance, you can visit this website now.
"
["date_timestamp"]=>
int(1238749844)
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[84]=>
array(13) {
["title"]=>
string(32) "COX-II Inhibitors and the Future"
["link"]=>
string(27) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=504"
["comments"]=>
string(36) "http://zombiefud.com/?p=504#comments"
["pubdate"]=>
string(31) "Wed, 01 Apr 2009 04:08:39 +0000"
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string(396) "If anti-inflammatory agents can prevent or slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, then could they also work against milder forms of memory loss? Merck, the pharmaceutical company that manufactures rofecoxib (Vioxx), one of the new Cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-II inhibitors that has been approved by the FDA to treat arthritis, has started a large-scale placebocontrolled clinical [...]"
["content"]=>
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string(2966) "If anti-inflammatory agents can prevent or slow down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, then could they also work against milder forms of memory loss? Merck, the pharmaceutical company that manufactures rofecoxib (Vioxx), one of the new Cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-II inhibitors that has been approved by the FDA to treat arthritis, has started a large-scale placebocontrolled clinical trial to evaluate the new medication’s effects in treating people with mild cognitive impairment. Similarly, Searle, which makes another COX-II inhibitor called celecoxib (Celebrex), is completing a similar trial in people with mild cognitive impairment.
These COX-II inhibitors hold some promise as promemory agents. Other drug companies are likely to develop similar compounds. These new medications are as powerful as older NSAIDs, and because they preferentially enter the brain more than the rest of the body, they seem to be less likely to cause the side effects of stomach irritation, ulcers, and bleeding.
Therapeutic Guidelines for Anti-inflammatory Medications
For anti-inflammatory agents, a few broad guidelines are in order. Although steroids like prednisone have the s