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Constituents of the Mind

Constituents of the Mind

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

We now present the basic Constituents of the Mind (CoM):

1.    Event/s (E)


The Say of the Week

The Say of the Week

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

"I am somehow less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einsteins' brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops".

Stephen Jay Gould
Cytomegalovirus restricted in New Jersey

Cytomegalovirus restricted in New Jersey

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

The past few times I've driven in New Jersey (in NJ for work, through NJ to get to fun places), I've noticed a sign that says "Restricted CMV."

To me this means HLA-restricted cytomegalovirus. I doubt this is what the DMV is telling drivers. Then again, it is New Jersey, so you never know.

(N.B. I did a quick search and discovered that NJ has a law requiring Commercial Motor Vehicle drivers to obtain a New Jersey Commercial Driver's License. Mystery solved?)
Smart Houses And Contextual Patterns

Smart Houses And Contextual Patterns

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

A few years ago, I was spending a good bit of my time on context-based services. User context — also called “presence” — is information, which changes over time, about the current state of a user or other thing (it could be a car, say, or a sensor, or a computer system; the presence people call it a “presentity”).

Is There A Red Environmentalism And A Blue Environmentalism?
By Laura Martin | September 24th 2009 06:27 AM | Print | E-mail
Now picture an environmentalist in your mind. You may be imagining a man or a woman. That man or woman may be in a city chained to a tree, on a campus distributing pamphlets on the evils of capitalism, or in the rainforest studying parrots— regardless, you are definitely imagining an individual that votes Democrat.
Unlocking Oxygen Trapped Inside Luna's Soil

Unlocking Oxygen Trapped Inside Luna's Soil

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

The moon has no has no atmosphere like Earth's but oxygen which can be used for people, growing food, creating water and even burning rocket fuel is trapped in its soil.
The Downside To Antioxidants? They May Be Hurting Your Immune System

The Downside To Antioxidants? They May Be Hurting Your Immune System

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

Antioxidants are a big buzzword these days - everyone claims to have them and that impresses buyers but most don't really know what that means.

Health conscious people know that taking antioxidants to reduce the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) - ions or very small molecules that include free radicals - in blood can prevent the DNA damage done by free radicals, which are the result of oxidative stress.  What fewer people know is that excessive use of antioxidants depletes their immune systems.
P.S. Maybe the Giant Squid Was Dead Already

P.S. Maybe the Giant Squid Was Dead Already

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

Not to beat a dead squid, but a reasonable question came up in a conversation with one of my labmates today: Who's to say that the Architeuthis collected in the Gulf of Mexico this summer was alive and kicking to begin with?
Scientists assume the rapid ascent through the changing depths caused the squid to die.
Mind Reading Gets A Step Closer Using Functional Imaging

Mind Reading Gets A Step Closer Using Functional Imaging

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

Patterns of brain activity allow researchers to know what number a person has just seen or how many dots a person has been presented with, according to a report published in Current Biology.

The findings confirm the notion that numbers are encoded in the brain via detailed and specific activity patterns and open the door to more sophisticated exploration of humans' high-level numerical abilities. Although "number-tuned" neurons have been found in monkeys, scientists hadn't managed to get any farther than particular brain regions before now in humans.
In Language, 'Use It Or Lose It' More Like 'Riding A Bike'

In Language, 'Use It Or Lose It' More Like 'Riding A Bike'

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

If you learn a foreign language when you are young but the exposure to that language is brief and you don't get to hear or practice it subsequently, does the neglected language fade away from our memory?

Yes, forgetting is forgetting, has been the belief ... you 'use it or lose it' ... but language learning may instead be more like 'riding a bike' and even a "forgotten" language may be more deeply engraved in our minds than we realize.
The New Make: Science Room for At Home Amateur Research

The New Make: Science Room for At Home Amateur Research

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

The ultimate do-it-yourself and hack-your-way-to-happiness magazine, MAKE, recently launched a new section to their Make:Online website just for supporting the at home citizen scientist.
Genetic Discovery Could Accelerate Grapevine Breeding - And Bring Back European Vines From 150 Years Ago

Genetic Discovery Could Accelerate Grapevine Breeding - And Bring Back European Vines From 150 Years Ago

Sep 24 2009 | comment(s)

European-tasting wines from American species and cultivars?  It could happen, say German researchers who have unraveled an unexpected twist in grapevine DNA.
Tribals of Jaipur district's Gods and Goddesses correspond to plant species

Tribals of Jaipur district's Gods and Goddesses correspond to plant species

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Tribals of Jaipur district worship all the God and Goddesses of Hindu religion along with number of local deities. These deities are associated with a number of plant species. During the present survey 16 plant species have been recorded to be scared and auspicious, important one being of genus Ficus and Acacia. Ocimum sanctum and Aegle marmelos being sacred. Similar informations about herbal medicinal plants were provided by number of workers from various parts of country (Kirtikar and Basu, 1935; Nadkarni, 1954; Chopra et al., 1958; Sharma, 1982, Mishra and Kumar, 2001; Kumar and Roy, 2006; Kapil and Roy, 2007;Kumar and Sopory, 2008;).


These plants may serve as source of some important medicine against some major diseases. Therefore, these tribal and rural claims should be further validated scientifically.

These plants may serve as source of some important medicine against some major diseases. Therefore, these tribal and rural claims should be further validated scientifically.

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Traditional medicines are used in all civilizations and cultures in health care systems worldwide. Since the beginning of civilization, people have used plants as medicine. Ethnobotany is the study of use of indigenous plants by particular culture and region. Ethnobotanists explore how plants are used for food, shelter, medicine, clothing, hunting, and religious ceremonies. Perhaps as early as Neanderthal man, plants were believed to have healing powers. The earliest recorded uses are found in Babylon circa 1770 BC in the Code of Hammurabi and in ancient Egypt circa 1550 B.C. In fact, ancient of their pharaohs. Plants have been recovered from the Giza pyramids as Egyptians believed that medicinal plants to have utility even in the afterlife.
The tribal people and ethnic races throughout the world have developed their own culture, customs, cults, religious rites, taboos, totems, legends and myths, folk-fores and song, foods, medicinal practices, etc.

The tribal people and ethnic races throughout the world have developed their own culture, customs, cults, religious rites, taboos, totems, legends and myths, folk-fores and song, foods, medicinal practices, etc.

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

The intimate relationship between the human and plant world has evolved over generations of experience and practices. The tribal people and ethnic races throughout the world have developed their own culture, customs, cults, religious rites, taboos, totems, legends and myths, folk-fores and song, foods, medicinal practices, etc.
Are invasive species bad?
By Laura Martin | September 23rd 2009 07:04 PM | Print | E-mail

Ask the question “are invasive species bad?” to a group of ecologists and you are sure to raise some eyebrows.

The Unity Of The Mind - Or Not?

The Unity Of The Mind - Or Not?

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Let us take an Observer (O) who is sitting on a chair and in front of him is a table, upon which sits an apple. Now, if (O) decides to pick up the people, we can say that his ‘Mind’, his ‘Self’, his ‘Consciousness or his ‘I’ decided to pick up the apple and he acted upon his desire.

Next, let us say that Observer picked up the apple without thinking about it. In other words, he did not think about it or visualize the act in any way. What happened, was that his hand simply moved and picked up the apple. What can we say here? Well, the first question to ask here is this: ‘who’ exactly ‘decided’ to pick up the apple?

Death Of Man

Death Of Man

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

For many the turbulence of life are inexplicable and profoundly frustrating our faith in goodwill. What is the essence of personal meaning in a world where human relations are becoming increasingly fragile? What is the meaning of this world when only one in a thousand will succeed in his lifestyle? And what of the majority others left stranded by forces that apparently none can escape from? What is the meaning of this world where millions upon millions are forced to work in underpaid tiring jobs? While the extravagances of wealth are accepted, tolerated, applauded and esteemed, where does that leave the rest of humanity?


A Study Of Someone You Know

A Study Of Someone You Know

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

My eyes open, and as usual, I don’t feel like getting up. I’m still sleepy, feeling lazy and bored to do anything. But I’ve got to get up, because I have something called work. And work gets my rent paid and gives me food to stay alive.





So, these are serious enough reasons, I think, to go to work, and that means that I’ve got to get out of bed.




Yucky Science

Yucky Science

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

I had occasion last week to tell the story of my high school friend Allen (name changed to protect his by now certainly stellar career). We had met again back in Evanston, before starting our sophomore years in college. I’d just finished a summer job as camp counselor in Wisconsin’s north woods; Allen had worked for Searle laboratories in Skokie.