Meditation May Protect Your Brain | Miller-McCune Online For thousands of years, Buddhist meditators have claimed that the simple act of sitting down and following their breath while letting go of intrusive thoughts can free one from the entanglements of neurotic suffering. Now, scientists are using cutting-edge scanning technology to watch the meditating mind at work. They are finding that regular meditation has a measurable effect on a variety of brain structures related to attention — an example of what is known as neuroplasticity, where the brain physically changes in response to an intentional exercise. A team of Emory University scientists reported in early September that experienced Zen meditators were much better than control subjects at dropping extraneous thoughts and returning to the breath. The same researchers reported last year that longtime meditators don’t lose gray matter in their brains with age the way most people do, suggesting that meditation may have a neuro-protective effect. Where does all this lead?
Abundance Tapestry — Creating A Life Of Abundance Dreams: Night School The Dream Robbers What happens when a rat stops dreaming ? In 2004, researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison decided to find out. Their method was simple, if a bit devilish. Step 1: Strand a rat in a tub of water. In the center of this tiny sea, allot the creature its own little desert island in the form of an inverted flowerpot. In this uncomfortable position, the rat is able to rest and eventually fall asleep. Step 2: After several mostly dreamless nights, the creature is subjected to a virtual decathlon of physical ordeals designed to test its survival behaviors. The dream-deprived rats flubbed each of the tasks. The surprise came during Step 3. What Dreams Are Made Of Dreaming is so basic to human existence, it's astonishing we don't understand it better. Later came the idea that dreams are the cognitive echoes of our efforts to work out conflicting emotions. A Theater of Threats Better to bend your knees and lower your center of gravity so you're harder to lift.
Relationship Rules Human beings crave intimacy, need to love and be loved. Yet people have much trouble doing so. It's clear from the many letters I get that lots of folks have no idea what a healthy relationship even looks like. From many sources and many experts, I have culled some basic rules of relationships. Choose a partner wisely and well. What is Vedic Mathematics This website underwent a major update in August 2013. Therefore all the locations of web pages have changed! So Old links referenced in Search Engines Other sites linking to the old website Will no longer work! Links for the main of areas of the website can be found below Home PageTutorials (HTML5 Applications)Original Tutorials (Java Applications)CoursesIntroduction to Vedic MathsShop ( Books DVDs)NewsletterOnline International Journal of Vedic MathematicsSite Map If the above is not immeadiately helpful, go to the home page and use the Search facility on the right. N.B. any links to web pages ending with the extension ".asp", will no longer work (although some have been automatically redirected to the correct page on the updated website)
BrainWave Generator The Roots of Consciousness: Theory, The Biological Perspective The Biological Perspective In the Introduction, I discussed the evolution of organized matter from the photon through particles, atoms and molecules to living cells which begin to differentiate in structure and function forming a wide variety of tissues and organs that play a specialized function in the human body. It is reasonable to assume all these levels of organization including the whole human being play a role in shaping consciousness. Particularly important are the nervous system, comprising brain and spinal cord, and the endocrine system, comprising a number of ductless glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream. The Nervous System Neuron cells are the principle units of the nervous system. The process by which pulses transmit across the neural membrane is electrochemical. Multi-Polar Neuron Bipolar Neurons Neurons are stimulated to fire by either sensory receptors or other neurons. Neuron cell body with synapses from other neurons Cross-section of the human brain Serotonin
Self Comes to Mind: Constructing the Conscious Brain by Antonio Damasio - review Consciousness has become a hot topic for brain scientists. Once, we were content to leave the interminable mind/brain problem to philosophers and theologians. Speculation remained a CLM – a career-limiting move — for ambitious young researchers. No longer. Armed with novel tools, from genetic manipulation to brain imaging, flush with funding, and convinced that neuroscience has the key to the human condition, the hunt is on. Neuroscientists, especially those of us trained in the Anglo-American tradition, tend to be as mechanically materialist as was "Darwin's bulldog", Thomas Huxley, in the 19th century, when he remarked that mind is to brain as the whistle is to the steam train – a mere epiphenomenon. Consciousness is a term with multiple meanings. For biologists though, consciousness, if not an accidental epiphenomenon, must be an evolved property with a function of some benefit to its possessor. This, briefly summarised, is the latest version of Damasio's theory.
The Death Delusion « Kensho By Bard Canning “Afraid of dying? Don’t be. It’s never going to happen to you, and I can prove it.” It’s said that Albert Einstein once commented that the most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile. Surely death is the greatest threat that we all face. I do not agree. Before outlining my hypothesis, I should make it clear that the aim of my writing is the excavation and study of the truth. To put it simply: I do not believe in death. I do not think that we are immortal, far from it. It has been my experience that once the spectre of death is stripped of its shadowy mask it becomes much easier to contend with as a concept. The Alpha and the Omega “Death, in itself, is nothing; but we fear, To be we know not what, we know not where.” John Dryden Everyone eventually reaches the point in their lives where they become fully aware of the inevitability of their own death. It’s All in Your Mind Morpheus – The Matrix Mark Twain
You Are Not So Smart 10 Brilliant Social Psychology Studies | PsyBlog Ten of the most influential social psychology experiments explain why we sometimes do dumb or irrational things. “I have been primarily interested in how and why ordinary people do unusual things, things that seem alien to their natures.Why do good people sometimes act evil?Why do smart people sometimes do dumb or irrational things?” –Philip Zimbardo Like famous social psychologist Professor Philip Zimbardo (author of The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil), I’m also obsessed with why we do dumb or irrational things. The answer quite often is because of other people — something social psychologists have comprehensively shown. Each of the 10 brilliant social psychology experiments below tells a unique, insightful story relevant to all our lives, every day. Click the link in each social psychology experiment to get the full description and explanation of each phenomenon. 1. The halo effect is a finding from a famous social psychology experiment. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
The Ten Most Revealing Psych Experiments Psychology is the study of the human mind and mental processes in relation to human behaviors - human nature. Due to its subject matter, psychology is not considered a 'hard' science, even though psychologists do experiment and publish their findings in respected journals. Some of the experiments psychologists have conducted over the years reveal things about the way we humans think and behave that we might not want to embrace, but which can at least help keep us humble. That's something. 1. The Robbers Cave Experiment is a classic social psychology experiment conducted with two groups of 11-year old boys at a state park in Oklahoma, and demonstrates just how easily an exclusive group identity is adopted and how quickly the group can degenerate into prejudice and antagonism toward outsiders. Researcher Muzafer Sherif actually conducted a series of 3 experiments. 2. The prisoners rebelled on the second day, and the reaction of the guards was swift and brutal. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Healing the Body with Mindfulness of Breathing « Metta Refuge This excerpt from a talk by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh explains how to use mindfulness of breathing to bring loving-kindness to our dear bodies. The physical effect of this can be truly remarkable. As Thây says, “You should really love your body. The First Exercise of Mindful Breathing My dear friends, yesterday I spoke about the first exercise proposed by the Buddha concerning mindful breathing: “Breathing in, I am aware that I am breathing in; breathing out, I am aware that I am breathing out.” We should always start with our physical bodies, because our physical bodies also needs peace, harmony and rest. We should realize a true rest. Animals in the forest, every time they are wounded, know how to rest. Deep relaxation here is one of the methods of resting. The Second Exercise of Mindful Breathing The second exercise: “I breathe in, and I am aware of the length of my in-breath; breathing out, I am aware of the length of my out-breath.” The Third Exercise of Mindful Breathing Like this:
Six Steps to Meditation This meditation lasts 15 to 20 minutes. It is a meditation of SIX steps. Each step will take roughly two and half to about three minutes. The FIRST is the step of rhythmic breathing. The SECOND is the step of detached observation. Then we come to the THIRD step. Then we come to the FOURTH step. The FIFTH is meditation on your immortality. And now we come to the FINAL, the last, the SIXTH step. And now if you are ready, we shall begin with the meditation. The FIRST step, the step of rhythmic breathing. Now we come to the SECOND step; it is the step of detached observation. We move to the THIRD step. We now come to the FOURTH step: It is the step of realizing the oneness with all that is; all human beings, all creatures, all birds, all animals, fish and foul, insects, even mosquitoes, all trees and shrubs and plants. And now we come to the FIFTH step. By GOD’S grace, our period of silence is over.