AIMC Biology

My last statement on this Blog - Thanks for a great semester

2008-08-07T14:42:00.000-07:00

"ONLY WHEN THE LAST TREE HAS DIED, THE LAST RIVER HAS BEEN POISONED, AND THE LAST FISH HAS BEEN CAUGHT, WILL WE REALIZE THAT WE CANNOT EAT MONEY" -Native American Saying

FINAL ASSIGNMENTS

2008-08-04T11:50:00.000-07:00

WHAT SIGNIFICANCE WOULD YOU ATTRIBUTE TO CHIMPS "MAKING TOOLS"?

It is not new, but is of great significance. Not only for their survival, but for the survival of future generations. The more creative these animals become the more their brain stimulates and enhances and grows. The more it grows, the more they will be able to do and make more intelligent decisions. Lord knows with the way we are destroying their land, they will need an advantage in the decades to come.

GIANT TOADS AND COLOSSAL SQUID - WHATEVER NEXT?

We have not even discovered all that there is to discover; probably haven't even touched the surface. For example now that the antarctic is melting we are discovering newer species we probably never would have seen with out the climate change. Lets not forget about the oceans, and all that untapped area. I could only imagine the amount of undiscovered species there.
I'm wondering though, maybe it's best if we do not try to discover them all. Some things are best left a mystery.

All quotes 100% authentic, and courtesy of George W. Bush.

2008-07-22T11:57:00.000-07:00

Just for Laughs.

{All quotes 100% authentic, and courtesy of George W. Bush.}

"I think we can agree. The past is over."

"I have learned from mistakes I may or may not have made."

"It was just inebriating what the Midlands was all about then." (A slip on exhilarating)

"It's clearly the budget. It has a lot of numbers on it."

"The most important job is not to be governor, or first lady in my case."

"Will highways on the Internet become more few?"

"Like your neighbor just like you like to be liked yourself."

"Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning? Laura and I really don't realize just how bright our children is."

"I was raised in the West. The West of Texas. It's pretty close to California. More so than Washington, D.C. is close to California."

"I propose that every city have a telephone number 119 -- for dyslexics who have an emergency."

"There ought to be limits to freedom." Said about parody websites of him.

"I believe that we are on an irreversible trend toward democracy and more freedom- but that could change."

"One word sums up probably the responsibility of any governor, and that one word is 'to be prepared.'"

"Verbosity leads to unclear, inarticulate things."

"I have made good judgements in the past. I have made good judgements in the future."

"A low voter turnout is an indication of fewer people going to the poles."

"Illegitimacy is something we should talk about, in terms of not having it."

"We are ready for any unseen event that may or may not occur."

"For NASA, space is still a high priority."

"We have a firm commitment to NATO; we are a part of NATO. We have a firm commitment to Europe; we are a part of Europe."

"Who is to blame for riots? The rioters are to blame."

"The Holocaust was an obscene period in our nation's history. I mean in this century's history. But we all lived in this century. I didn't live in this century."

"Quite frankly, teachers are the only profession that teach our children."

"It isn't pollution that's ruining the environment; it's all the impurities in the air and water that's doing it."

"It's time the human race entered the solar system."

AS LONG AS PEOPLE CAN CHANGE, THE WORLD CAN CHANGE.

2008-07-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

WEEK ELEVEN ASSIGNMENTS

2008-07-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

IF YOU HAD ACCESS TO ALL RESOURCES, HOW WOULD YOU DEAL WITH "THE GLOBAL CRISIS IN DIET"?

Would all the resources you mention include money? It would probably take lots of it.
Besides education on television, the media and in the classrooms (to make the layman more aware how their poor diet can affect their health and the environment); we need to figure a way to convince the FDA, and politicians and "stars" that this issue is of great importance.

Regretfully in our society we tend to believe our leaders and our so called "stars", and/or follow the norm. Therefore since the ones in power and stardom have such influence in our thinking, why not utilize the power they have for doing some good.

Like the "Got Milk" commercials, we can advertise, get them out there, have concerts. Do whatever it takes because ultimately the more voices heard the more likely there will be change.

Could you imagine how quickly the world leaders of the food industry would change if their stocks tanked?

WOULD YOU EXPECT "CARBON OFFSETS" TO WORK EFFECTIVELY?

Sounds interesting, but have they made an analysis of exactly how much money is sent abroad to help them cut their emissions?
Does it really break even? Are they lessening the same amounts of emissions through their funds to other country's to off set the amount of usage they are using?

DO YOU AGREE THAT "LAUGHTER REALLY IS THE BEST MEDICINE"?

Absolutely!

I found this on the Internet and found this interesting. Refer also to the link, it's an interesting article.

In the 1950’s people used to laugh 18 minutes a day, but today we laugh not more than 6 minutes a day, despite the huge rise in the standard of living.

Children can laugh up to 300-400 times a day, but when we grow up to be adults this frequency comes down to less than 15 times a day, if at all.

Why not put a smile on your face, or laugh when it does such good to our bodies?

Laughter:
• Enriches the blood with plentiful supplies of oxygen
• Boosts the immune system and bring relaxation
• Counteracts harmful stress chemicals
• Releases endorphins, the body’s pain-killer hormone, and give a sense of well-being
• Counteracts depression, anxiety and psychosomatic problems
• Ensures good sleep
• Brings a happy glow to your face and make your eyes shine

So pick out a funny video, go to a comedy club, talk to old friends about great stories. GET OUT THERE AND LAUGH!!!

http://www.hc2d.co.uk/content.php?contentId=1960

WEEK TEN ASSIGNMENTS

2008-07-15T11:37:00.001-07:00

HOW WOULD YOU PRIORITIZE THE RE-INTRODUCTION OF THE AMERICAN BISON.

Educate both in media and in schools as historical facts, would be my first priority.

I believe most people like myself are unaware of the Bison, let alone it's execution and near extinction.

The Bison are such a big part of American history.

The American Indians respected the land, respected nature and it's creatures.
So when I heard that the Bison had a history of sacrificing one of it's own to the Indian tribe when they needed them; and that the Indians had felt that spirit around them, that just blew me a way. What an amazing spiritual connection between animal and human.

I can't help but think of how important it is to bring back the Bison and educate people of the it's importance in America. But I also think of how incredibly important is is to the American Indians.

What the newer settlers did to the American Indians and Bison is unforgivable.

So wouldn't it be incredible to bring back history as it once was. As Fred Dubray, Cheyenne River Sioux so eloquently states; "We recognize the bison is a symbol of our strength and unity, and that as we bring our herds back to health, we will also bring our people back to health".

HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE "NEW PILL PROMISES TO REDUCE BREAST CANCER RISK"?

I don't trust it. Cancer is just a word for a type of imbalance in the body. It is and should be understood as an individual problem. No pill can cure everyone, and I have never trusted these "cure all" claims. It has been proven time after time that when you put something synthetic in your body, the body tends to reject it one way or another. Like vaccines, I find most FDA approved drugs are more harmful than helpful.

NICE QUOTES

2008-07-10T22:03:00.000-07:00

" Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense." - Buddha

"If you cut the wings of your dreams, you will never experience the thrill of life!" - Anonymous

LIFE IN THE 1500's. NOW WHO SAID HISTORY WAS BORING?

2008-07-09T21:05:00.000-07:00

LIFE IN THE 1500'S:

The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be . Here are some facts about the 1500s:

Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it. Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water..

Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying, It's raining cats and dogs.

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.

The floor w as dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence the saying a thresh hold.
(Getting quite an education, aren't you?)

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old..

Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and chew the fat..

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.

Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust.

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a cou ple of days and the fam ily would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake.

{ Monty Pythons: "Bring out your dead" clip from youtube.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=grbSQ6O6kbs }

England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell or was considered a ...dead ringer.

And that's the truth. Now, whoever said History was boring!!!

WEEK NINE DISCUSSIONS & QUESTIONS

2008-07-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

1) WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE EIGHT POINT DEEP ECOLOGY PLATFORM?

I saw this online while researching this further. If I cannot say it any better, I will usually forward to you what I read and am enlightened by. The eight point deep ecology platform seems to be a very important framework to guide ourselves by and because it was developed by different modes of thinking, cultures, beliefs, it makes it all the more powerful.

"The eight point deep ecology platform was proposed platform principles of the deep ecology movement as originally formulated by Arne Naess and George Sessions in 1984 while on a hiking trip in Death Valley California:
Not many people appreciated that Naess was characterizing a grass-roots social movement.
Naess and others have proposed a set of eight principles to characterize the deep ecology movement as part of the general ecology movement.
These principles are endorsed by people from a diversity of backgrounds who share common concerns for the planet, its many beings and ecological communities.
In many Western nations supporters of the platform principles stated below come from different religious and philosophical backgrounds. Their political affiliations differ considerably.
What unites them is a long-range vision of what is necessary to protect the integrity of the Earth's ecological communities and values. Supporters of the principles have a diversity of ultimate beliefs.
"Ultimate beliefs" here refers to their own basic metaphysical, personal and religious grounds for their values, actions and support for the deep ecology movement.
Different people and cultures have different mythologies and stories. Nonetheless, they can support the platform and work for solutions to our shared environmental crisis. A diversity of practices is emerging, but there is considerable overlap, as can be seen in hundreds of environmental conflicts all over the world.

Supporters of the platform principles stated come from all walks of life, and a wide variety of cultures and places.
Because they live in different places, the courses of practical action that follow from commitment to the platform are also diverse. Each person has something unique to contribute by living their own ecosophies. "

2)CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHY "ECOSYSTEMS ARE BOTH STRONG AND FRAGILE"?

As in all aspects of life we have both a strong and fragile part. It is that Yin and Yang balance. The good with the bad, the strong with the weak, the day with the night.

As is with a spiders web, being strong, intricate, complicated, the source of livelihood; everything with strength has a weakness and if we are to pull off just one of those strands of the web, the whole connectedness of the web would be destroyed.

It is because of this that we must have respect, and take care of how nature is intended to be and to not change it to suit our needs.

3) HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE "END GOALS" OF SOCIAL ECOLOGY?

The goals are the balance. That equilibrium needed to keep the world level, and stable. I understand that our EGO's can supersede our common sense at times and we cannot look toward the future outcomes, so these goals can be our guide lines one person at a time.
We can see the world changing before our eyes now. Glaciers melting, hurricanes and other natural disasters more powerful; etc.
For if we do not take care (as we have not been) then the world will find a way to balance out, with our with out us, and maybe without the best interest of us in mind at the time.

High Court goes on the side of Big Business (again) in the Exxon Valdez Spill

2008-06-26T11:24:00.001-07:00

The residents of Anchorage, Alaska have been waiting 19 years for a settlement in what has been called the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

After 19 years they are still recovering from the detrimental environmental injuries, injuries to the bird and marine life, injuries to the economy IE: fishing industry, disastrous changes for the native life styles.

Once again big business wins. Exxon only has to pay what they get in 4 days revenue.

"It gives big business the formula they need to calculate the cost of their actions when they destroy the environment. This gives them the formula to calculate their risk, period."

And some politicians want to start drilling in Alaska?

What do you think?

See story by clicking on link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080626/ap_on_go_su_co/scotus_exxon_valdez

Whose antibodies are they anyway?

2008-06-23T12:56:00.000-07:00

Factors known to cause false positive HIV antibody test results link below:

Whose antibodies are they anyway???

href="http://www.virusmyth.com/aids/hiv/cjtestfp.htm">

New updates!

2008-06-23T12:28:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,

Below my week eight assignment, I have added three different points of interest for your viewing pleasure. Ha Ha!

I especially like the quote from Dr. Hammer.

Cheers!

WEEK EIGHT ASSIGNMENTS

2008-06-22T21:50:00.000-07:00

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WESTERN APPROACHES TO HIV/AIDS?

One of my goals after I graduated was to join doctors without borders and travel to third world countries to learn more about HIV/AIDs and to help. But had I not been introduced to this information, I may have gone under a different mind set. I still plan on going, but the more I am aware of things, I feel the more that (if allowed) I can help in better ways than are currently being done now.

What is she talking about you may be asking? Well let me tell you a little story; then I'll make some comments (verbatim by others) and I hope you will take some time to view this video.

When I went to the Dragon Rises school of Oriental Medicine in Gainesville, Florida, I met a classmate that I was very intrigued by. He was a younger man, maybe in his twenties. Has a baby face, he is tall, has strong black eyes, thick strong black hair. He was always somewhat distant to people and never really looked you in the eyes, but he also had an air of confidence about him. I couldn't quite figure him out so my first impressions were that he was someone who was very egotistical and very linear, and I thought to myself how can someone so young seem this way?

Later I found myself feeling very ashamed for judging a book by it's cover per say and I vow not to do that again.

One day I joined him for lunch and we found ourselves talking to one another for what seemed like hours. I now noticed a man with a very old soul. Someone who was very passionate about the subject of HIV/AIDS. Someone who although young in his years I felt was one of the most intelligent men I have met in many, many years. He wasn't afraid of thinking out of the box or challenging existing ways of thinking. That impressed me and I asked for more information.

It was through these discussions & revelations that I was brought into a different realm of thinking myself.
Of the possibilities of things that could be and felt that I would share this with you and let you judge for yourself.

Nothing is ever black & white in this world, we just always seem to be in a semi-delusional realm of greyness. Ha Ha!

So if you'd like, why not take a look at this video. It is long, but informative and if you want more information I'll gladly provide it to you.

If there is time or interest, why not open up a dialog?

"More than 200 million Americans are suffering from some sort of disease or medical condition at a cost of two trillion dollars per year.

In 1984 we were told that HIV was the cause of AIDS.

The Original definition of AIDS has nothing to do with today's definition of AIDS.

Does HIV cause AIDS?

Were we chasing the wrong paradigm for the past 20 years?

Are we dumping our abandoned HIV drugs to third world countries?"

Deconstructing the Myth of AIDS.

href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3983706668483511310&q=gary+null+AIDS&ei=4NZeSKL-KaXoqALXn5HHCQ">http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3983706668483511310&q=gary+null+AIDS&ei=4NZeSKL-KaXoqALXn5HHCQ

CAN TCM STRENGHTEN OUR IMMUNE SYSTEMS?

YES, YES, AND YES.

As per my prior assignment, the wording is the same.

In our bodies, we have channels of energy that run in regular patterns through out the body. These energy patterns some call "meridians".
Our merdians are like rivers flowing through out bodies to irrigate and nourish them.
If there is an obstruction in the movement of these energy rivers; that energy stops flowing. When movement stops (think of what happens to stagnant water), then disease occurs.

Acupuncture, Oriental, Indian medicine (etc.) are methods of encouraging the body to promote it's natural healing abilities, as well as promote our physical, spiritual and emotional well-being. Therefore, helping our bodies internal organs to correct these imbalances and to get that river of energy to flow normally again.

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF "THE DEAL THAT SAVED THE WHALE?"

Of course in the perfect world we would hope that all people would stand up for what they believe in all the time irrespective the the exchange of money.
But people did stand up, and if they get $$ for helping save the whales and environment for extra incentive, then great. Keep it up. Let's hope it will stay that way.
Take a look at what Carol and her neighbors did. I really commend her. I guess there really is power in numbers.

SCIENCE CANNOT DENY WHAT WORKS

2008-06-22T10:57:00.000-07:00

"MEASURE THE SPIRIT OF A PERSON BY THE LIGHT IN THEIR EYES, THE BRIGHTNESS OF THEIR SKIN AND THEIR POSTURE.
MEASURE HOW YOU FEEL AROUND THEM IN A WAY NO MACHINE EVER CAN, YET EVEN A CHILD KNOWS HOW.
THE STATE OF THE SPIRIT CANNOT BE DISTINGUISHED SEPARATELY FROM THE STATE OF QI.
SCIENCE CANNOT DENY WHAT WORKS"
- Leon Hammer M.D.

OUR OCEANS ARE TURNING INTO PLASTIC! ARE WE?

2008-06-20T14:38:00.000-07:00

A vast swath of the Pacific, twice the size of Texas, is full of a plastic stew that is entering the food chain. Scientists say these toxins are causing obesity, infertility...and worse.
(To find out more, please click below. )

href="http://www.bestlifeonline.com/cms/publish/health-fitness/Our_oceans_are_turning_into_plastic_are_we_2.shtml">

ORGANIC DESIGN TACKLES CLIMATE CHANGE.

2008-06-20T14:28:00.000-07:00

COOL!!

NanoTechnology in Action
(click link for more info.)
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/06/19/nanoventskin/index.html#cnnSTCText

WEEK SEVEN ASSIGNMENTS

2008-06-16T18:12:00.000-07:00

HOW SOPHISTICATED IS OUR UNDERSTANDING OF CANCER?

In the western aspect, we are trying very, very hard to figure out something that may never be explainable in "scientific terms".
Scientists goal seems always to try to find black and white "scientific data"; and then call it a break through. But is it really?

In the mean time there is a label placed on that data, and and the pharmaceutical companies race to start getting their hands on the so called fix for their profit. The FDA gets paid off or the politicians (or both), and then boom, there's a new patents pill or technique on the market.

Later they find out that they were either incorrect or have only touched the surface of why Cancer occurs. But it's too late now, the drugs and techniques are already out there, usually causing many more problems than need be.

Cynical? Maybe, but history seems to repeat itself over and over again.

How can you put a name and label on something that is ever changing. Something that is unique to each individual? Something that has been with us since the beginning of time.

On a fun note. One thing I would like to see a reality in our life time is something they are working on now. Little robots going into our bodies to zap out the individual cancers without damaging the rest of the body.

It reminds me of the movie "The Fantastic Voyage" that I saw many years ago.

Good movie
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=3o8vsU0Dw-4

HOW DOES A TCM APPROACH TO CANCER DIFFER?

I would say not only TCM but other names such as CAM(Complementary alternative medicine), Arurveda; and shifts of changing in thinking from the ancient texts like COM (Contemporary Oriental Medicine - Leon Hammer) and 5 Elemental theory (J.R. Worsley), etc.

Whatever name you want to place on the medicine and techniques (and whatever form of thinking you believe in), these methods have been around for thousands of years. And is the third oldest form of medicine.
Only Egyptian and Babylonian medicine predates it.

Our ancestors knew long before us that if our bodies are out of balance whether, mentally, physically, spiritually it will cause disease.

In our bodies, we have channels of energy that run in regular patterns through out the body. These energy patterns some call "meridians". Our merdians are like rivers flowing through out bodies to irrigate and nourish them. If there is an obstruction in the movement of these energy rivers; that energy stops flowing. When movement stops (think of what happens to stagnant water), then disease occurs.

Cancer is just a name of the manifestations of those imbalances.
Acupuncture, Oriental, Indian medicine (etc.) is a method of encouraging the body to promote it's natural healing abilities, as well as promote our physical and emotional well-being. Therefore helping our bodies internal organs to correct these imbalances and to get that river of energy to flow normally again.

It's hard to dispute thousands of years of experience, and even the World Health Organization endorses this form of medicine.

So let's not be so afraid of the word "Cancer". You may be surprised at what our field of medicine can do.

ARE OUR GENES STILL BEING SHAPED BY NATURAL SELECTION?

I believe our genes are ever changing. Ever changing by every breath we take, by every toxin we are exposed to, by every food we place in our mouths, by every emotion we feel. All this information gets passed down to our DNA and to other generations and so on.
Our bodies will change to adapt to the current world and environment which is constantly changing for us and our future ancestors to adapt to.
And we can reshape our genes for the betterment or for the worse for our body in our life time. By the foods we eat, by the toxins we are exposed to etc.

What we choose to do with our bodies and environments I feel have a significant impact on how our genes will change.

WEEK SIX ASSIGNMENTS

2008-06-16T17:44:00.000-07:00

HOW DO YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN LIVING AND NONLIVING SYSTEMS?

Thats a hard one. What we may have thought was a non-living organism in the past, we now see is a living organism.
I do like the description that there needs to be some type of organization involved, some sort of pattern, structure, life process.
But what we may even feel are factual today, is that reality?
What about life in other planets? We are searching for life on Mars currently. But are we looking for the right things?
We may only be touching the surface of what we know life to be; so I can only believe what I read for now, and the Key criteria of a living system makes sense.

WHAT DO YOU FEEL IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE USE OF LANGUAGE AND TOOLS IN CHIMPS?

Language in all species, that sense of communication and community is an important factor in survival in many species. All species have their own forms of communication and humans and chimps are not the only ones that use tools. There is an interesting video on a crows using tools to capture food where they may not have otherwise.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=esfo6Wh-Ty8

HMMM... "CHINESE MEDICINE GAINING RESPECTABILITY IN THE WEST"...

It's about time. I can see that as the American health care system begins to collapse Chinese medicine and other "so called" alternative medicines will come more to light. I'm sure not without a fight though. Eventually the pharmaceutical companies will somehow either force our industry to it's knees or they will try to get a hand in the herbal market for their own greed.

Links to the Videos and Websites from my presentation

2008-06-11T09:45:00.000-07:00

Below are the links to the videos you saw in class from my presentation, just in case you wanted to view them again. And for the purpose of time, I cut and paste the resource list (as you recommended) showing where you can get further information about the World Food Crisis and what you can do in your local area to help yourself, your community and the world.

I know I was nervous and made some mistakes, but thanks for taking the time to listen.

1st in our local area:
Video on Salmon Season Canceled.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/05/16/simon.salmon.shortage.cnn

2nd Video on "The future of Food" (please note, this is a 10 minute video that touched on the important subjects, but it is a 2 hour video that you can see by either renting from Netflex, or Carol was so kind to offer to lend it.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNezTsrCY0Q&eurl=http://www.mercola.com/future-of-food/index.html

Lastly, here is the websites for local farmers, more information about the crisis, and how to support our local area and be healthier doing so.
Long list, so I headlined each one for a quick review.

RESOURCES:

Weston A. Price Foundation
http://www.westonaprice.org/

The Foundation is dedicated to restoring nutrient-dense foods to the human diet through education, research and activism. It supports accurate nutrition instruction, organic and biodynamic farming, pasture-feeding of livestock, community-supported farms, honest and informative labeling, prepared parenting and nurturing therapies.

Slow Food
http://www.slowfood.com/

The association's activities seek to defend biodiversity in our food supply, spread the education of taste, and link producers of excellent foods to consumers through events and initiatives.

Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance
http://farmandranchfreedom.org/content/

The Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance is an advocate for the many thousands of independent farmers, ranchers, livestock owners, and homesteaders in this country.

Eat Wild
http://www.eatwild.com/

Eatwild.com is an excellent source for safe, healthy, natural and nutritious grass-fed beef, lamb, goats, bison, poultry, pork and dairy products.

The Meatrix
http://www.themeatrix.com/

An excellent flash presentation about factory farming and links about what you can do about it.

Food Routes
http://www.foodroutes.org/

The FoodRoutes Find Good Food map can help you connect with local farmers and start eating the freshest, tastiest food around. Find your local food on their interactive map, listing farmers, CSAs, and local markets near you.

Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
http://www.gracelinks.org/

Grace Factory Farm Project
http://www.factoryfarm.org/home.php

The GRACE Factory Farm Project (GFFP) works to create a sustainable food production system that is healthful and humane, economically viable, and environmentally sound.

Eat Well Guide: Wholesome Food from Healthy Animals
http://www.eatwellguide.org/i.php?id=Home

The Eat Well Guide is a free, online directory of sustainably-raised meat, poultry, dairy and eggs from farms, stores, restaurants, inns and hotels, and online outlets in the US and Canada.

Sustainable Table
http://www.sustainabletable.org/

Helping consumers make healthy food choices to create a sustainable system.

Sustainable Food In Schools
http://www.sustainabletable.org/schools/dining/

If you don't like the food being served in your or your child's cafeteria, do something to change it! Includes guidelines on what to do, how to do it, and examples of successful initiatives underway around the country.

Local Harvest
http://www.localharvest.org/

This website will help you find farmers' markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably-grown food in your area, where you can buy produce, grass-fed meats, and many other goodies.

Farmers Markets
http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateC&navID=FarmersMarkets&rightNav1=FarmersMarkets&topNav=&leftNav=WholesaleandFarmersMarkets&page=WFMFarmersMarketsHome&description=Farmers%20Markets&acct=frmrdirmkt

National listing of farmers markets.

Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture
http://www.kerrcenter.com/

The Kerr Center was established to provide farmers and ranchers in the area with free technical assistance and information on how to improve their operations. Wise stewardship was emphasized.

National Farm to School
http://www.farmtoschool.org/

Farm to School programs are popping up all over the U.S. These programs connect schools with local farms with the objectives of serving healthy meals in school cafeterias, improving student nutrition, providing health and nutrition education opportunities that will last a lifetime, and supporting local small farmers.

Farm to College
http://www.farmtocollege.org/

This site presents information about farm-to-college programs in the U.S. and Canada collected by the Community Food Security Coalition.

Center for Food and Justice: Farm to Hospital
http://departments.oxy.edu/uepi/cfj/f2h.htm

The CFJ has a program Farm to Hospital: Promoting Health and Supporting Local Agriculture.

Farm to Cafeteria: Community Food Security Coalition
http://www.foodsecurity.org/f2cconf2005.html

Putting Local Food on the Table: Farms and Food Service in Partnership
Farm to school programs have been addressing the dual issues of improving children's health and providing new marketing options for family farmers.

Food Security Coalition
http://www.foodsecurity.org/

The Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC) is a North American organization dedicated to building strong, sustainable, local and regional food systems that ensure access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food for all people at all times

The True Food Network
http://www.truefoodnow.org/

The goal of the True Food Network Working is to create a socially just, democratic and sustainable food system.

Acres USA
http://www.acresusa.com/magazines/magazine.htm

Acres U.S.A. is the only national magazine that offers a comprehensive guide to sustainable agriculture. Drawing on knowledge accumulated in more than 35 years of continuous publication, we bring our readers the latest techniques for growing bountiful, nutritious crops and healthy, vibrant livestock. Acres U.S.A. has helped thousands of farmers feed the nation's growing appetite for clean, delicious food.

Ecological Farming Association
http://www.eco-farm.org/

Eco-Farm supports a vision for our food system where strengthening soils, protecting air and water, encouraging diverse ecosystems and economies, and honoring rural life are all part of producing healthful food.

National Family Farm Coalition
http://www.nffc.net/

The National Family Farm Coalition (NFFC) provides a voice for grassroots groups on farm, food, trade and rural economic issues to ensure fair prices for family farmers, safe and healthy food, and vibrant, environmentally sound rural communities here and around the world.

Rural Coalition
http://www.ruralco.org/

The Rural Coalition is an alliance of regionally and culturally diverse organizations working to build a more just and sustainable food system which: brings fair returns to minority and other small farmers and rural communities, ensures just and fair working conditions for farm workers,
protects the environment, delivers safe and healthy food to consumers

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
http://www.iatp.org/
The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy promotes resilient family farms, rural communities and ecosystems around the world through research and education, science and technology, and advocacy.

Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture
http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/

The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture explores and cultivates alternatives that secure healthier people and landscapes in Iowa and the nation.

Rodale Institute
http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/

The Rodale Institute works with people worldwide to achieve a regenerative food system that renews environmental and human health working with the philosophy that "Healthy Soil = Healthy Food = Healthy People ®

New Farm (Rodale Institute)
http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/

Helping consumers, brokers, restaurateurs and other farmers find the farm services they're looking for.

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
http://www.sare.org/

The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program has helped advance farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound and good for communities through a nationwide research and education grants program.

National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture
http://www.sustainableagriculture.net/

The National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture is a diverse nationwide partnership of individuals and organizations cultivating grass roots efforts to engage in policy development processes that result in food and agricultural systems and rural communities that are healthy, environmentally sound, profitable, humane and just.

National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service
http://attra.ncat.org/

ATTRA provides information and other technical assistance to farmers, ranchers, Extension agents, educators, and others involved in sustainable agriculture in the United States.

Family Farm Defenders
http://www.familyfarmdefenders.org/Main/HomePage

The FFD mission is to create a farmer-controlled and consumer-oriented food and fiber system, based upon democratically controlled institutions that empower farmers to speak for and respect themselves in their quest for social and economic justice.

ETC Group
http://www.etc.org/
ETC group is dedicated to the conservation and sustainable advancement of cultural and ecological diversity and human rights.

The Center for Food Safety
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/

The Center for Food Safety (CFS) is an interest and environmental advocacy membership organization established in 1997 by its sister organization, International Center for Technology Assessment, for the purpose of challenging harmful food production technologies and promoting sustainable alternatives.

Environmental Working Group
http://www.ewg.org/

EWG specializes in environmental investigations. They have a team of scientists, engineers, policy experts, lawyers and computer programmers who pore over government data, legal documents, scientific studies and our own laboratory tests to expose threats to your health and the environment, and to find solutions.

WorldWatch Institute
http://www.worldwatch.org/

WorldWatch is an independent research group working for an environmentally sustainable and socially just society. An excellent book published by WorldWatch institute is by Brian Halweil, Eat Here: Reclaiming Homegrown Pleasures in a Global Supermarket, 2004.

Union of Concerned Scientists
http://www.ucsusa.org/

UCS is an independent nonprofit alliance of more than 100,000 concerned citizens and scientists. We augment rigorous scientific analysis with innovative thinking and committed citizen advocacy to build a cleaner, healthier environment and a safer world.
Institute of Science in Society
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/index.php

ISIS promotes science responsible to civil society and the public good, independent of commercial and other special interests, or of government control and a science that can help make the world sustainable, equitable and life-enhancing for all its inhabitants.

Organic Consumers Association
http://www.organicconsumers.org/

OCA is building a national network of consumers promoting food safety, organic agriculture, fair trade and sustainability.

Organic Center for Education and Promotion
http://www.organic-center.org/

OCEP generates credible, peer reviewed scientific information and communicate the verifiable benefits of organic farming and products to society.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
http://www.peta.org/

Wegmans Cruelty
http://www.wegmanscruelty.com/

Video showing what goes on inside a factory chicken farm. Includes news and events

Food and Water Watch
http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/

FWW is working on issues such as food and water safety, mad cow, sustainable agriculture, irradiation. Also has a factory farm campaign which aims to change government policies that promote factory farms, fight corporate control that forces farmers "to get big or get out," and encourage sustainably raised meat.

United Poultry Concerns, Inc
http://www.upc-online.org/

UPC is dedicated to the compassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl.

Sierra Club
(Including a toolkit for Factory Farm Pollution Activists)
http://www.sierraclub.org/factoryfarms/resources/

The Sierra Club's mission is to explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the earth. Practice and promote the responsible us of the earth's ecosystems and resources. Educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment. Use all lawful means to carry out these objectives.

Grain.org
http://www.grain.org/front/

GRAIN is an international non-governmental organisation which promotes the sustainable management and use of agricultural biodiversity based on people's control over genetic resources and local knowledge.

Beyond Factory Farming
http://www.beyondfactoryfarming.org/

Beyond Factory Farming is a coalition of citizen's organizations from all across Canada that share a vision of livestock production for health and social justice. Their mission is to promote livestock production that supports food sovereignty, ecological, human and animal health, as well as sustainability and community viability and informed citizen/consumer choice.

Humane Society of the US
https://community.hsus.org/login/login.tcl?return_url=%2flogin%2fcms%2dlogin%2dchain%2etcl%3fdomain%3dhumane%26host%5fid%3d27208331%26return%5furl%3dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww%2ehsus%2eorg%252Ffarm%5fanimals%252Ffactory%5ffarms%252Findex%2ejsp&domain=humane&message=Please+login+to+access+this+page%2e%2e%2e

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has worked since 1954 to promote the protection of all animals.

Humane Farming Association
http://www.hfa.org/factory/index.html

HFA is an animal protection organization. Campaigns against factory farming and slaughterhouse abuse. Also home to the world's largest farm animal refuge.

Here is a prelude to my presentation on "World Food Crisis"

2008-06-09T08:45:00.000-07:00

'Everyone's starving' in Ethiopia, aid worker says

* Adults and older children increasingly stricken by severe hunger, health workers say
* Drought is disastrous in Ethiopia; more than 80 percent of people live off the land
* Ethiopia receives more food aid than nearly every other country in the world

SHASHAMANE, Ethiopia (AP) -- Like so many other victims of Ethiopia's hunger crisis, Usheto Beriso weighs just half what he should. He is always cold and swaddled in a blanket. His limbs are stick-thin.

But Usheto is not the typical face of Ethiopia's chronic food problems, the scrawny baby or the ailing toddler. At 55 years old, he is among a growing number of adults and older children -- traditionally less vulnerable groups -- who have been stricken by severe hunger because of poor rains and recent crop failure in southern Ethiopia, health workers say.

"To see adults in this condition, it's a very serious situation," nurse Mieke Steenssens, a volunteer with Doctors Without Borders, told The Associated Press as she registered the 5-foot, 4-inch Usheto's weight at just 73 pounds (33 kilograms).

Aid groups say the older victims suggest an escalation in the crisis in Ethiopia, a country that drew international attention in 1984 when a famine compounded by communist policies killed some 1 million people.

This year's crisis, brought on by a countrywide drought and skyrocketing global food prices, is far less severe. But while figures for how many adults and older children are affected are not available, at least four aid groups interviewed by the AP said they noticed a troubling increase.

"We're overwhelmed," said Margaret Aguirre, a spokeswoman for the International Medical Corps, a California-based aid agency. "There's not enough food and everyone's starving and that's all there is to it." iReport.com: Share your photos, videos and stories from Ethiopia

"Older children are starting to show the signs of malnutrition when normally they might be able to withstand shocks to the system," Aguirre added. "What's particularly concerning is that the moderately malnourished are soaring. It's increasing so much that it means those children are going to slide into severe malnutrition."

Ethiopia is not alone in suffering through the worldwide food crisis, which is threatening to push up to a billion people across the globe into hunger. Last week, a U.N. summit of 181 countries pledged to reduce trade barriers and boost agricultural production to combat rising food prices.

Drought is especially disastrous in Ethiopia because more than 80 percent of people live off the land. Agriculture drives the economy, accounting for half of all domestic production and 85 percent of exports.

The U.N. children's agency has characterized this year's food shortage -- in which an estimated 4.5 million people are in need of emergency food aid -- as the worst since 2003, when droughts led 13.2 million people to seek such aid. In 2000, more than 10 million needed emergency food.

Studies by the International Medical Corps in southern Ethiopia -- the epicenter of the crisis -- show that up to one in four young mothers is showing signs of moderate malnutrition.

Ethiopia's top disaster response official, Simon Mechale, insists that the food situation is "under control" and will be resolved within four months. But in the countryside, there are signs that drought has taken a more serious toll.

At a recent food distribution in a village some 250 kilometers (155 miles) southwest of the capital, more than 4,000 people showed up for free wheat and cooking oil, but only 1,300 rations were available.

Harried health workers picked through the impatient crowd, sorting out the sickest children. Frantic mothers proffered their withered infants, hoping the children's poor state would earn some food for the family.

Ayelech Daka said her 6-year-old son, Tariken Lakamu, has been living on one meal a day for the past three months.

"He was very fat three months ago," said his mother, Ayelech said. "He was normal."

Now, he's a pile of bones and skin; he vomits just seconds after taking a bite of a biscuit offered by an aid worker.

"I'm weak," the child said. "I feel sick. I don't get any food."

Another mother, Ukume Dubancho, rocked a listless infant, trying to squeeze out drops of breast milk for her children, ages 4 months and 4 years, both of whom show signs of severe malnutrition.

"I am not able to walk, even," Ukume said. "I walk for one kilometer and I have to rest."

Villagers said they can't afford the food on the market. The few mature ears of corn in the market were selling for about 11 cents per ear. Last year, when the rains were good, that money would buy six or seven ears of corn.

Aid agencies are issuing desperate appeals for donor funding, saying emergency intervention is not enough. Ethiopia receives more food aid than nearly every other country in the world, most of it from the United States, which has provided $300 million in emergency assistance to relief agencies in the past year.

But despite the international help, the country is again facing hunger on a mass scale. Part of the reason, according to John Holmes, the top U.N. humanitarian official, is the country's climate, chronic drought and the large population -- some 78 million people. He said the U.N. was hoping to boost the number of people it helps here.

"The World Food Program feeds some 8 million people already, together with the others in Ethiopia," he said. "But we may need to increase that, because of drought."

Your own perfect medicine- Urine Therapy

2008-06-08T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hey Class,

I am attaching some websites to view if you have any interest in urine therapy for yourself or your patients. I don't know the legalities if any in California, but it certainly has many advantages.

There will be many books out there on urine therapy but the one book I own is called Your own perfect medicine by Martha M. Christy. I do it a bit more aggressively than she recommends, but it's a good informative book.

I also recommend everyone read the PH Miracle by Robert O. Young and Shelley Redford Young.

So here are some websites if you are interested.

http://www.lightbalance.com/articles/urine03.htm

http://www.satori-5.co.uk/downloads/dlf_051.doc

http://naturinologie.info/english.html

http://naturinologie.info/shivambu.pdf

http://www.lifepositive.com/Body/traditional-therapies/urine-therapy.asp

http://users.mrbean.net.au/~wlast/urine.html

http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/urine.htm

http://www.overcome-diabetes.com/urine-therapy.htm

http://www.hps-online.com/hurine4.htm

Debbie

Week Five assignments

2008-06-02T14:22:00.000-07:00

CAN DIVERSIFICATION SAVE THE SPECIES?

Yes I believe it can. In each country the native person(s) becomes adapted to that environment. Their DNA changes with each generation, so they are able to thrive.

But what if something happened to that environment? What if that person was exposed from a very hot environment to a very cold one. Where there was an abundance of sunshine is now little to no sunshine; from a very hot environment into a cold constricting environment.

What if (for example), a native of Africa (including the environment) was instantly exposed to the conditions of the Antarctic? We would assume that the survival rate would be somewhat bleak.

No sunshine, no vitamins given from the sunshine that they used to get, since certain food sources were lacking. Not enough photosynthesis for the current plant species to thrive. Dying of plant species consequently produce less food for animal life; therefore less food sources needed for survival.

You may wonder, how do Eskimos do it then? If they only have a diet of Fish and meat how do they not get scurvy and other such diseases?

Well eating the meat and fish raw gives them the vitamins they need. Which would mean the way of eating food would need to be different.

For example the skin of beluga whales has as much vitamin C as oranges. Eskimos eat a lot of fat from these wild life, they have a compact build that conserves warmth, a faster metabolism, optimally distributed body fat, and special modifications to the circulatory system.

This is where Diversification and adaptation can help survival. Having the strongest characteristics, DNA, and memories of each culture I feel would help survival of a newborn mixed with both cultures vs a new born without those innate survival adaptations.

Variety is the spice of life right? So can it be that diversity can also make us a stronger individual. I think so.

DO YOU VOTE FOR THE CHICKEN OR THE EGG.

Each beginning of life starts out looking the same. It is the coding of the DNA or the mutation of the encoded DNA that makes the species what it is to become.

There has been eggs long before chickens came to existence. There has to be a starting point for life to begin. I don't believe that we just appeared.

Everything from a human, to a chicken to a rock are interconnected. There is always a process of development & growth needed, which is how I believe every thing in life developed.

I ALWAYS EAT MY BROCCOLI

Broccoli is a strong cancer fighting agent. The stem has phytochemicals and changes the way estrogen is metabolized. The broccoli stem is good for fighting against estrogen driven cancers.

I always drink my broccoli (the broccoli stem) with my 3 horse power blender.

" If you chew an apple with skin for a long time, most fibers still won't break. Look & see for yourself by spitting the chewed apple skin into a glass of water. The skin fibers haven't even been broken yet. The 3 horse power blender breaks the skins, seeds, and stems into particles that are beyond the micron level.
We can get that benefit of having chewed for several hours in a matter of minutes with this technology.
Because the studies on people living older than 120 years of age all revel people take hours to eat an apple. The blender unlocks the inner life force & nutrition of food, losing nothing in the process. "

So why just eat your broccoli, why not drink it?

CAN WE RAISE OUR LEVELS OF DOPAMINE OURSELVES?

2008-05-26T13:27:00.000-07:00

Nan Allison in her book Full & Fulfilled describes the relationship between endorphins, food, and exercise. By permission, Nan Allison, M.S., RD writes:

"Low dopamine make us feel foggy.
Mentally "foggy" at times? This just may be caused by low dopamine levels. When we don't get adequate protein, dopamine levels drop and this makes us mentally sluggish.

The best way to raise dopamine levels, get plenty of lean protein in you diet, with moderate fat and carbs, advises Nan Allison.

High concentrations of endorphins in the brain produce a sense of euphoria, enhance pleasure, and suppress pain, both emotionally and physically. When endorphins are low, people feel anxious; they are also more aware of pain. They have an appetite for fat and fatty foods, such as fries, cheese, creamy sauces, margarine, butter, fried chicken, potato chips, and chocolate, to name some of the most popular examples. Upon eating some fat, they will notice a change in mood, feeling more pleasure. This feeling is related to a higher concentration of endorphin. Exercise, by releasing fat from within the body, raises endorphins and causes the same mood changes.”

So sure we can raise our levels of dopamine in ourselves by.

Diet Management:
We can change our foods to protein based foods which boost dopamine and norepinephrine.
Healthy Lifestyle: Doing Tai Chi, Qi gong.
We can also use herbs like ginseng, dandelion and such.
Physical exersize:
We can also excersize like playing tennis, running etc.
And lastly Good Sleeping Practices

How do you think chimps and humans diverged as a species?

2008-05-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

I believe there has always been a history of new species arising from close cousins. (Which may not have begun as close cousins initially)

In my point of view this divergence may be due to help each species survive their current environmental phase.

As the environment changes, so must the species adapt.

There is a need for us to be who we are at this stage of our development, at this stage of our time in this world; and each phase that we've gone through; from protozoa to fish, from mammal to human, we all go through phases of assimilation.

Maybe one day we will become chimps again, so we should take care in treating our closest cousins humanely? Don't you think? {Planet of the Apes} Ha Ha!

I am attaching information on Waddingtons theory of genetic assimilation (refer to www.ratical.org). It may be a little hard to understand (worded as it is), but it's along the lines of what I am talking and thinking about.

“Like all Darwinian and neo-Darwinian evolutionists, Waddington wanted to explain the origin of adaptive characters, i.e., characters that seem to be fitted to the functions they serve.
First, Waddington conceptualizes the flexibility and plasticity of development, as well as its capacity for regulating against disturbances, in his famous `epigenetic landscape' -- a general metaphor for the dynamics of the developmental process…
Thus, certain paths along valley floors will branch off from one another to be separated by hills (thresholds) so that different developmental results (alternative attractors) can be reached from the same starting point. However, some branches may rejoin further on, so that different paths will nevertheless lead to the same developmental result.

Genetic or environmental disturbances tend to `push' development from its normal pathway across the threshold to another pathway. Alternatively, other valleys (developmental pathways) or hills (thresholds) may be formed due to changes in the topography of the epigenetic landscape itself.

The importance of the epigenetic landscape is that its topography is determined by all of the genes whose actions are inextricably interlinked, and is not immediately dependent on specific alleles of particular genes (Ho and Saunders, 1979).

This is in accord with what we know about metabolism and the epigenetic system, particularly as revealed by the new genetics. Hence, it has evolutionary consequences other than those predicted by the selection of individual genes. The epigenetic landscape captures the complex nonlinear dynamics of the developmental process, which has been explored mathematically in greater detail since, and its evolutionary consequences made explicit (Saunders, 1992). “

IS THERE A DRUG AROUND FOR JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING?

2008-05-26T13:13:00.000-07:00

Don’t get me started. This is a huge passionate issue for me; and this question stems out to many branches with many different answers.

Yes the questions should arise, when we have all the resources from the Earth that we need to survive, grow and stay healthy, how has it gotten so out of hand where we are now given a drug for just about everything that seemingly ails us.

So I think I will answer this with a little history and how I feel about the health care system of today.

From the ancient medicine men & Hippocrates in the B.C. years, to Claudus Galen, & Zhong Zhong Jing in the A.D. years, to the modern country doctor & the Wall Street surgeon; what we know about medicine today is a result of many discoveries made by men and women over thousands of years.

For thousands of years there have always been some types of thought processes, beliefs & laws in reference to medicine and its procedures; however, the most famous documented principles were that of the Hippocratic Oath from Hippocrates, “the father of medicine.”

Quoted from a PBS documentary “The Hippocratic Oath is one of the oldest binding documents in history. Written in antiquity, its principles are sworn in by doctors to this day. Treat the sick to the best of one's ability, preserve patient privacy, and teach the secrets of medicine to the next generation, and so on. "

In my opinion, as per the American health care system of today, I feel that the Hippocratic Oath is a paradox.

The American health care system has too many inconsistencies, and too many problems that stem from the Pharmaceutical companies that rule the world, to the insurance companies; from the Lawyers to the Justice system; from the hospital administrators to the doctors. I can go on and on…

A perfect quote from a PBS documentary states; “the Hippocratic Oath is inadequate to address the realities of a medical world that has witnessed huge scientific, economic, political, and social changes, a world of legalized abortion, physician-assisted suicide, and pestilences unheard of in Hippocrates” time.

With the powers at hand, and the domino effect it causes, there seems to be very little answers in the way of change. Doctors and hospitals are governed by the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies. Focus seems to be more on the organizations, whereas there seems to be little to no focus on the patient.

Medical establishments have become like fast food restaurants, they want you in and out with little regard to quality, performance and customer satisfaction.

To doctors, “time” seems to be the enemy. They bring in the most amounts of patients at one time, get as much money as possible in the shortest period of time, and utilize the least amount of their resources.

That is why they give us a pill to pop. The FDA and pharmaceutical companies say they are O.K. So they must be right?

Absolutely not.

One of the beauties of Oriental medicine is that they understand that we are all individuals. If two people are experiencing the same symptoms should they treat them the same?

Our health care system seems to believe so. Do a little research, wrap it up in a pretty box and bow and pass it on to the doctors to their patients.

But we are all individuals not an assembly line of similarities.

Luckily for us, some health insurance companies seem to realize that their bottom line, their financial gains, seem to improve with Oriental Medicine –vs.- Western Medicine. Change although slow is seems to be happening.

However, I can’t help but be a bit skeptical that the American Health care system with it’s powers at hand (the pharmaceutical companies), will do everything in its power to hinder the growth of Oriental Medicine in America.

I believe it will be up to all of us in this field of Oriental Medicine to stand up and to make those changes. If we do not get together as a team and make changes, no one is going to do it for us.

OUR OCEANS ARE TURNING INTO PLASTIC, ARE WE ?

2008-05-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Our oceans are turning into plastic, are we?

Please refer to link.

http://www.bestlifeonline.com/cms/publish/health-fitness/Our_oceans_are_turning_into_plastic_are_we_2.shtml

Week Three Assignments

2008-05-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

1a. 99.4% of the most critical DNA sites are identical in human & chimp genes. What do you make of this?
When we look at Oriental medicine. The Yin & Yang aspects; it has been expressed that it was when we were on "all fours", that the Yang of the sun hit our backs, and the Yin of our bodies faced the earth. This was seemingly the premise of how they looked at the Yin and Yang aspects of the body. So with that in mind and with chimpanzees being so close to our DNA and Oliver being even a link closer, it just makes sense.

1b. Prokaryotes, Eukaryotes & Viruses.

I like the statement "Humans think this is their era. A more truthful statement would be that we all live in the age of bacteria."
I'm glad that the P,E & V are on our side.

2. Human Genetic Evolution.
It was very interesting to read the P,E & V and then go on to the Human Genetic evolution. On the part on Mitochondrial DNA they mentioned "There are many versions of mtDNA today, all of which descended from a single female who lived some 200,000 years ago."

After reading Chapter Eight: Adam and Atlas―Eden and the Fall of Atlantis & Neros.lordbalto.com
Just some things that came to mind with relation to Mitochondrial DNA and Human Genetic Evolution. (and some things I cut and paste because I couldn't have said it any better.)

Legend says there was a "garden of eden" type of world called Atlantis. Ruled by women, and maybe began with the woman?

Did we start out as women? Did we begin life in Africa or Asia, were both continents linked, or did we come from somewhere else?
My blog has nothing to do with religion.
Just some interesting info. as I try to connect the dots, if you are so inclined.

From the legend, Heracles sailed between the Pillars
to reach the garden of the Hesperides
from which he was to bring back the golden apples.
Many commentators think the garden
is a reference to the Canaries.
We are, in fact, on the ancient gold trail
that came up from Senegal and followed
a sea route along the African coast.
―Gilbert Pillot, The Secret Code of the Odyssey

A team of experts believes it could be close to unravelling the millennia-old myth of the Lost City of Atlantis and is launching an expedition to the seas west of Gibraltar to test its theory.

They believe that using a combination of literary pointers and geological evidence they have pinned the lost city's location to just west of the Straits of Gibraltar, on a submerged mud shoal now known as Spartel Island

Plato made the first written references to Atlantis in 360BC:

"There was an island situated in front of the Pillars of Hercules; the island was larger than Libya and Asia put together," he said in his Timaeus dialogue.

He explained that the island "was the way to other islands, and from these you might pass to the whole of the opposite continent".

Ancient archipelago

Professor Collina-Girard says that whilst researching patterns of human migration from Europe to North Africa 19,000 years ago during the last Ice Age, he became convinced that in pre-historic times a land bridge linked the two continents.

He says that by making a map of the ocean floor as it would have appeared at that time, when the sea levels were much lower, he discovered an archipelago just in front of the Straits of Gibraltar, or as Plato referred to them - the Pillars of Hercules.

The professor believes that about 11,000 years ago the rapidly rising seas submerged the archipelago - not in one day as Plato describes, but nonetheless at a rapid rate in geological terms - some 2 metres per century.

If correct, the timing is a match for what Plato describes in his Timaeus and Critias texts as he, a figure from over 2,000 years ago, recounts a story from 9,000 years before.

Polar Bears on the Threatened species list

2008-05-14T19:49:00.001-07:00

Oh my God. Look at those ice caps. Nothing but slush now.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080514/sc_afp/japanitalyaviationhistoryoffbeat

Underground Lab hopes to replicate Big Bang

2008-05-12T12:45:00.001-07:00

Interesting Video.

http://www.yahoo.com/s/878839

WEEK #2 / Evolutionary & Developmental Biology

2008-05-12T11:15:00.000-07:00

I am very passionate and curious of the possibilities of why we are here, where we are going, and what will become of us when we depart this shell of our human anatomy.

If you do not believe in some things that I write, please note, that I respect everyone’s beliefs. Regretfully none of us really know the realities of why we are here, we can only speculate and become comfortable with what makes sense to us.

I’ll start a little out of order from Evo–Devo.

HOW DOES DARWINISM MATTER TO ME?

Darwin was a progressive thinker. Someone who thought out of the box and wasn’t afraid to share his thoughts. As with all progressive thinkers before and after him, Darwin helped lead us to think in different ways. Helped us expand our minds to the possibilities.

WHERE WILL EVOLUTION TAKE US:

Many things come to mind, but to save time and space I will talk about a couple of things with what is going on today. I will talk a little about today’s world of computers with its wi-fi technologies, cellular texting, e-mail, the internet, etc., and also about today’s world of environments changes affecting our food supply.

When we look at the technology of today, with the invent of computers with its form of communications within blogs (ha ha), on line dating, email exchange etc.; we are becoming more and more accustomed to non verbal communications.
What if we had no more need for verbal communications?

I personally feel that this lack of verbal communication (as only a grain of salt of all the deserts in the world); as only the beginning steps of is what to become. The beginning of what can be.

Lets also look at the food crisis in the world. As we continue to grow in population, we will need to find other ways to make more food. If we continue contaminate the waters, the air, and the grounds as we have been, if we continue to destroy the original DNA in our food supply, we will eventually begin to realize that our current foods cannot give us what we need to survive as a species. Then what?

Then we will probably have to make some other forms of food substitute, some form of vitamin & food substitutes in order to live and thrive as a species.

For a Sci Fi version of what I mean you can refer to one of my favorite movies “the Matrix” (the first Matrix movie), and in a non sci fi version think of what the astronauts eat in space.

Let’s say we no longer need to chew our food; then theoretically we will no longer need our molars and other teeth right? What will become of them then if we don’t need them any longer?

If we no longer need to verbally speak to communicate, we will no longer need our jaws, or our tongues. If we no longer need to hear people speak to us, then do we need our ears? If we no longer need certain parts of our anatomy to communicate, then how can we communicate?
The brain is a powerful tool for change. We only use 10-12% of our brains. The less we need the physical us, the more we will need to use the power of our brains.

The power of our mind can enhance powers that everyone possesses to adapt. In the instance of communication we can all grow to use powers such as telepathy, telekinesis etc.

Wi-Fi / Telepathy - just merely different forms of energy used for communication. (smile)

So I’m starting to see an evolutionary change now; a larger brain, a smaller jaw, smaller ears.
Are you picturing what I’m picturing?

Whether we as a species destroys our planet, or our planet becomes too old for livable conditions, we will eventually need to progress to the next level. As our evolutionary future ancestors have done before us.

What some find unbelievable of having life on other planets, I see only as a necessary part of our being, just a much more advanced form of ourselves, a future cousin per say.

I see that every thing in life has an evolutionary process. Even the stars, and the planets, when their time has come to an end, gets sucked into a black hole. But does that mean total destruction? I feel it just means it gets recycled, get gets put back to it’s original molecular structure, and begins a new cycle to create the next thing in the universe. Whether it is another planet, another species of being, or another star.

I feel that there is not necessarily a past, or future. I feel that there is just the present state of being with constant progressions.

And remember, this really is just the beginning. Evolution is just a word of things we need to place a label on for security and our own personal beliefs. It goes much, much further than we can ever imagine.

What we are considering when we currently speak of evolution we speak about the physical, material us. When we die, it is the energy of our thoughts; feelings etc. that are saved and we continue to advance to the next level. Whatever that may be.

HOW DID WE GET HERE THEN?

We started as the first step of making life, when all the biological compounds formed together to make it what it is supposed to be.

When we think of the beginning of life and end of life, as we know it, we see the same processes unfold. I think of the similarities of an infant and a very old person; how from the beginning of life and toward the end of life, the physical aspects of us become so similar. (Bald, incontinent, no teeth etc.)

Rather than take up any more of your time, I will say that if you are interested to know what I think, I have put the link from Wikipedia below. How 4 million years ago life emerged from non life (per say). Evolving from the earliest form of life, to fish, to reptile, to mammal etc. It’s a very interesting look at how life could have formed.

My last words are reptile. UFO researchers have indicated that other beings have looked “reptilian like”. Just something else to ponder.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_human_evolution

Families will make case for vaccine link to autism

2008-05-11T21:07:00.000-07:00

If interested in this article, click on link below: (something else to ponder about)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080512/ap_on_re_us/autism_court_case

The Kanzius Machine: A Cancer Cure?

2008-05-10T07:28:00.000-07:00

When technology destroys technology can also cure.
Just another reiteration that is is up to us to chose how we use it.

Good article on a possible cancer curing machine. (Pretty Sci-Fi huh?)

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/current.aspx

Humanzie "Oliver" the chimpanzee

2008-05-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

Here is a good website and video on the chimpanzee "Oliver"; "The missing link"

http://paranormal.about.com/library/weekly/aa022800a.htm

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/2312911/7269052

2008-05-04T16:10:00.000-07:00

My beliefs lie in the certainty that each person chooses many paths in one lifetime. Whether one chooses to listen to one’s intuition or to others, those choices help mold each person into whom he or she is today.

In my life, I believe that the choices I have made and continue to make lend themselves to my being ever-changing and growing.

I was a student of Dragon Rises School of Oriental Medicine in Gainesville, Florida. I had transferred there from FCIM in Orlando due to the passionate teachings from Karl Brandt Stickley about Dr. Leon Hammers work on the Pulse and Contemporary Oriental medicine diagnostics.

I understood how powerful this was, and I wanted to learn more than just T.C.M.

Throughout my time at DROM, I was honored to work with Dr. Hammer and it has been a great experience. However, the school was not California accredited and after several trips this year to San Francisco, I fell in love with the Bay area and found myself dreaming of practicing here.

I will continue to learn the Dr. Shen/Dr. Hammer pulse diagnosis and C.O.M. diagnostics; but will do this on my own time.

I am honored to be a part of this school and hope to get to know all of you.

Week One Discussion:
How might our technology help shape our future path?

From the times of the Etruscan civilization building bridges, paved streets, sewer systems, air trenches etc. to Einsteins theory of relativity; we are destined to grow and progress. How we use this progression will determine if we are to succeed in this world or if we are to destroy it.

We as humans are innately reared to survive (survival of the fittest) as we are also innately reared to destroy.

"Nietzsche believed that humans were innately good and that the essence of humans lied within their will. Freud believed that humans’ innate qualities were bad and it was society which was needed to suppress these qualities."

Technology is inevitable and necessary for our survival as a civilization. How we choose to use these technologies is up to us.

We cannot necessarily change others view points or beliefs to our own. The best we can do is make the best decisions for our selves, one person at a time; and hope that it will be in the best interests of all.