Discovering What You Don't Know

"When you discover what you don't know, what's left?"

I think this is a question that more people should give greater thought to. There is no shame in not knowing something; even people with PHD's, people who have devoted their entire lives to learning and education, cannot know everything. There is shame, however, in not expanding upon one's knowledge and becoming more educated. When you discover what you don't know, everything is left to you and everything is open to you. No doors are closed unless you refuse to pass through them and the amount of knowledge that you can gain is unending.

Knowing

"Sometimes knowing what you don't know and why you don't know it is all you need to know."

During class I was somewhat bothered by this statement. To me, this seemed to be saying that one should accept their limitations and simply not bother to try and improve or achieve one's goals, however outlandish they might be. However, now, when I think about it, it seems that this statement has more merit than I formerly gave it. It is important to know what you don't know and to accept that. If a 35 year old person wants to be a famous musician but cannot play nearly as good as their superiors (after, hypothetically, 23 years of playing), they will never make it--it is simply not plausible and to believe that it is possible would be foolish. Personally, I believe that if someone has a dream or a goal, even if its highly unlikely that they'll make it, they should at least try. If one tries, one can never live in regret but rather gains valuable knowledge of them self and their limitations.

The US Patriot Act

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA_PATRIOT_Act
This site offers a very comprehensive look into the patriot act; anyone interested in learning more about it should give this a read.

Some of the changes the Act brought about include:

- Giving the law enforcement the rights to look into e-mail and telephone lines, and medical and financial records as well.

- Gave Secretary of State more power with financial relations

- Enhanced power of law enforcement to detain immigrants

- And gave police the right to search homes without a warrant

These are just some of the changes made, all of which take away from our civil liberties that are supposed to be undenyable according to the Constitution.

Stem Cells From Skin Cells

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7101834.stm

This is a link to a really interesting article from BBC News about how scientists have recently discovered that skin cells can be used like stem cells from fetuses to rebuild damaged areas of the human body. This is an amazing breakthrough, especially because stem cells from fetuses caused such an uproar with the religious right who believed that this would encourage the full legalization of abortions. We can only hope this research will continue. It is unbelievable that this research was called to a halt because of the controversy over using fetuses (which I believe makes no sense because if theyre already dead, why not use them?) and if this research progresses, who knows how many lives could be saved.

Faith

In yesterdays class I was surprised [well, not that surprised truly] to hear someone say that faith is something that can be quantified--that it is something greater than belief. Belief is defined as an idea that someone accepts as truth, despite truth, reason, or evidence. Faith, according to Dictionary.com, "is a belief that is not based on truth." Faith is a feeling, a belief that can become so strong that it becomes truth and reality for that person. Religion is an example of faith; religion in fact requires faith and it is nothing more than a belief because it lacks evidence and reason and can never grow into knowledge.

Greed and Death in Madagascar

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7098213.stm

This article from BBC.com is focused on the recent "gold rush" in Madagascar. It is not gold that is being cultivated however, but sapphires, and because of the high demand and high amount of the precious stones in the area, Ilakaka, Madagascar has become one of the most dangerous cities in the world. According to recent reports, 20-30 are killed per year (the population of Ilakaka is only 20,000) because of competition between people trying to find as many sapphires as they can. I found this article to be highly disturbing. It is amazing what greed can do to people, how people will gun each other down just for the chance of selling a precious stone.

Beliefs on Death

I was thinking about the discussion we had last week in class about death. I recall that one person in class repeatedly mentioned that death was something he feared while others mentioned that death is natural and a part of life. I think beliefs, more than an acceptance of reality, factor very heavily into one's perceptions on death. Personally, I'm an atheist; I don't believe in a God or an afterlife and I believe that when I die, I will remain in the ground where my body will rot. I don't believe in a soul or that a part of myself will transcend into another life. I have no fear of death (unless it is an untimely one) because I know what awaits me. For those who believe in heaven/hell or are unsure of what happens after death, I imagine death must be a terrifying idea. How can one accept death when they believe that if they've committed too many sins they will suffer for eternity? It must be near impossible to accept the inevitable in this case, unless one is so firm in their beliefs that they know they will end up in a good place after death.

Breastfeeding and Intelligence

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7075511.stm

Interesting article that states that a single gene may influence and increase a baby's IQ if the child is also breastfed.

Beliefs: Near Death Experiences

Today, I was thinking about beliefs and how they influence our thinking in such an incredible way. This thought brought me to the idea of near-death experiences and how many people believe them to be real and that they allow an individual to experience or eye-witness the afterlife, thereby ensuring to that individual that Heaven/Hell do exist. I would like to share a bit of information on a biological theory relating to this idea.

In the 90's, a scientist named Dr. Strassman came up with a theory relating near-death experiences to DMT (dimenthyltryptamine). DMT is a powerful hallucinogen and recreational drug that gives the user a 5-10 minute trip that makes the user feel as though they are in another world altogether: in short, it is the most powerful psychoactive drug currently known to man. DMT, however, is also a natural chemical that is produced by the brain in the pineal gland. Upon death, a large amount of DMT is naturally released by the brain; the individual never remembers the experience, however, because they die shortly after. When a person experiences a "near-death experience," in truth, all that is happening is the brain becomes confused, believes that the person should be dying, and prematurely releases a large amount of DMT. When the individual is resuscitated, they remember the trip and rationalize it as witnessing Heaven/Hell/or some other version of the afterlife.

Just something to consider...

Perceiving Worksheet

1) Photos and videos show truth but they also show a slightly skewed version of the truth that is meant to influence others. The shots that photographers take are supposed to not only display an event that has actually happened but also portray it in a light that supports the artist's intent. Photos in journalism, for example, can be very reliable as a look into an event, but one must also be sure to have a discerning eye.

2) I am not sure if there is anyone who can describe a situation without perception factoring into it, therefore I am not sure if fact ever actually begins. Anyone who views, lets say, a robbery, views it in their own way: they all agree a robbery took place, but the details will change slightly from person to person. Fact can only be fact if every witness agrees on what happened, but this is often rare. So I am not sure if I have a true answer to this question; there are too many factors to answer it definitively.

3) Fact is what actually happened whereas perception is what we think happened based on our views, our preconceptions, our biases, and based on how much of the situation we actually viewed or took part in. But since fact is always altered by perception (since everyone has their own perceptions of reality and every situation they are involved in), I am not sure if there truly is a difference between the two. They very well might be one in the same. Therefore, truth (may just be) what you make of it.

Colugos ("Flying Lemurs") Linked to Humans

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7073807.stm

This article from BBC News describes how scientists have discovered that Colugos (also known as flying lemurs, for their large flaps of skin connecting their arms and legs that allow them to glide) are the closest relatives to humans after primates. This is an interesting study which shows that colugos share 7 similar genetic mutations with primates which links the two species very closely together. More research into this species could, in the future, tell us more about ourselves.

AA

Recently I was discussing the topic of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) with a family member who is a recovering alcoholic and I decided that AA is one of the worst things to happen to our society and our views on rehabilitation. There is nothing wrong in seeking a community and commonality when one is trying to overcome a problem; in fact, it can be incredibly beneficial which is understandable that it is one of AA's biggest appeals. However, the fact that AA forces its members to believe and sacrifice all power over to a higher power is dangerous, ridiculous, and completely counterproductive. In order to get over a problem as damaging as alcohol addiction, one must believe that they have the power to do it; one must believe in oneself and not some higher power that they may not even believe in. Furthermore, telling addicts that they have no power, that only God has power to help them, makes a person (who is already vulnerable) feel as though they have no hope, no real self-control. In addition, it is ridiculous that AA is forced upon addicts who are sentenced in court and that AA is seen as the only option for recovery in our society. The statistic still stands: 5-10% of addicts will recover, with or without AA. I feel that people should try to recover on their own; they should try to find the strength within themselves to overcome rather than become dependent on a God or "higher power" that they may not even have faith in.

Cancer and Weightloss

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7069914.stm
According to this article from BBC News, there is apparently a close relation between weight and cancer risk. Apparently, people who are overweight are more at risk (especially after the age of 25) and that all people should try to remain at a good weight for their height without becoming underweight. This seems to me to be like good advice in one respect (as being conscious of one's health is always important) however they do use the body mass index to determine what weight everyone should be and this scale is highly skewed.