Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Speedlinking 4/3/07

Quote of the day:

"I am returning this otherwise good typing paper to you because someone has printed gibberish all over it and put your name at the top."
~ An English Professor

Image of the day (Tristan Campbell):


BODY
~ Strength Exercises That Work Your Core -- "Real "core" training - not that Bosu Ball crap - with cool videos. What else do ya' need?"
~ Trigger Points: What They Are, What They Mean -- "When muscles and other soft-tissues such as tendons and ligaments are placed under increased stress due to overuse, postural strain, etc., they have a tendency to develop localized areas which become hyper-sensitive, irritated and painful. Many of these localized areas are known as trigger points (TP’s). Trigger points have been shown by researchers to be the cause of much of the pain people feel on a day to day basis."
~ Perfecting the Plank -- An article on one of the most beneficial core exercises.
~ Health: Polyphenols On A Plate -- "Polyphenols have much better antioxidant properties than vitamins, and have been the object of growing interest on the part of nutritionists, epidemiologists, agrifood firms and consumers over the past decade or so. Their main advantage is that they protect against numerous diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular disease. In particular, they help fight the formation of free radicals in the human body and thus slow cell ageing."
~ Omega-3 Fatty Acids Affect Risk Of Depression, Inflammation -- "A new study suggests that people whose diets contain dramatically more of one kind of polyunsaturated fatty acid than another may be at greater risk for both clinical depression and certain inflammatory diseases. The report, published online this week in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, suggests that we need to balance out our intake of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids." I've been saying this for years.
~ Moderate alcohol intake may boost aneurysm risk -- "Drinking alcohol at moderate levels — two or more drinks per day — appears to be a risk factor for abdominal aortic aneurysm in men, researchers found."
~ One In Five Americans Are Either At High Risk For Developing Type 2 Diabetes Or Are Unaware That They Already Have Diabetes -- "Diabetes has become the greatest public health crisis of the next quarter century. To address the burden of this disease, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) is issuing an urgent call-to-action for Americans to find out their risk for type 2 diabetes during the 19th annual American Diabetes Alert® Day. More than six million Americans have diabetes, but don't even know it."
~ Less Sleep May Lower Testosterone -- "Men's testosterone levels typically decline with age, and in some men that drop in male hormones can lead to a lack of energy or libido as well as an increased risk of falls with broken bones." Crap, I need to get more sleep.
~ Sleep Disturbance Increases Spontaneous Pain In Women -- "Sleep continuity disturbance impairs endogenous pain-inhibitory function and increases spontaneous pain in women. This supports a possible pathophysiologic role of sleep disturbance in chronic pain, according to a study published in the April 1st issue of the journal SLEEP."
~ Pregnancy weight can lead to fat toddlers -- "The standard advice for how much weight a woman should gain during pregnancy may need to changed, concludes a rigorous and provocative study suggesting that even accepted weight gains may raise the risk of having an overweight toddler." Pregnant women who train with me and adhere to my diet advice only gain 25-30 pounds -- and are back to pre-pregnancy weight in less than a month.


PSYCHE
~ The Mystery of Consciousness -- An essay/review on the new book by Nicholas Humphrey, Seeing Red: A Study in Consciousness.
~ Women Of All Sizes Feel Badly About Their Bodies After Seeing Models -- "The rail-thin blonde bombshell on the cover of a magazine makes all women feel badly about their own bodies despite the size, shape, height or age of the viewers."
~ Seven Signs of Relationship (Dis)Satisfaction -- "Unlike 'love' and 'commitment', the words 'relationship satisfaction' are unlikely to strike fear into the heart of the unreconstructed man (or reconstructed woman). But once a relationship has become long-term, although we still talk about love and commitment, in some ways it's satisfaction that comes to the forefront."
~ Memory Suppression? How Inhibition May Allow for Flexible Control [Developing Intelligence] -- "Everyone does something they later regret. Can you ever intentionally forget that you did it? The idea of memory repression has rarely been considered within scientific psychology, but the processes involved in intentional forgetting (also covered last week) are the focus of a recent article by Michael Anderson."
~ Survival of the Steadiest -- "There is broad consensus today that personality is an amalgam of traits called the “Big Five”: Extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience. Each of these broad measures can be broken down into smaller ones, but in general this taxonomy appears to take in most of what we think of as personhood. When you think of someone as basically “steady” or “flaky” or “gloomy” or “daring,” what you’re really doing is unconsciously taking a measure of these five traits and crunching them together."
~ Stolen Kisses -- "According to one study, up to 20 percent of long-term relationships begin when one or both partners are involved with others. Evolutionary psychologists call this "mate poaching." This figure holds steady across age groups and among couples who are married, living together or dating, according to psychologists who polled some 16,000 individuals in 53 countries as part of the International Sexuality Description Project." Hmmmm . . . .
~ Managing Your Moods Can Benefit Your Health -- "Learning how to deal with negative emotions and create positive ones may help you avoid many health problems. Your emotions may originate in your brain, but they don't confine themselves to your mind. They express themselves in your body as well in your heartbeat, your respiratory rate, your blood pressure and many other physical functions.Usually, strong emotions come and go, and normal physiological equilibrium is restored."
~ What is the relation between emotion and consciousness? -- "What is the relation between emotion and consciousness? In their recent paper in TRENDS in Cognitive Sciences, Tsuchiya and Adolphs review recent studies that address this question. Focusing on domains where emotion and consciousness overlap and interact, Tsuchiya and Adolphs suggest that each (emotion and consciousness) is necessary for aspects of the other."


CULTURE
~ Up to 30 percent of workers bullied -- "The office bully has an array of weapons at his disposal, ranging from the subtle silent treatment to not-so-subtle verbal ridicule, the effects of which can ripple through the workplace."
~ The ethnobiology of the Haitian zombi -- Finally, a user's guide to zombification.
~ Gospel according to Judas -- "The Gospel of John says that he told Judas to go out and do what he had to do, which Jesus knew was to betray him. So the Gospel of Judas just takes the suggestion one step further. Jesus not only knew what was going to happen but initiated the action." An interview with Elaine Pagels about her new book on the Gospel of Judas. For an attempted, but ignorant refutation of Pagels, see Hiding from religious reality [Pharyngula].
~ Kissinger Declares Defeat In Iraq -- "AP reports: "A 'military victory' in the sense of total control over the whole territory, imposed on the entire population, is not possible," Kissinger told The Associated Press in Tokyo, where he received an honorary degree from Waseda University. He also said the other thing Bush really really really just doesn't want to hear. Kissinger said the best way forward is to reconcile the differences between Iraq's warring sects with help from other countries."
~ Bangkok vice: Buddhas, boxers, and bar girls -- "In the beginning there was Jon Stewart irony, and it was good. And then there was Steven Colbert meta-irony, and it was better. But then I discovered meta-meta-irony, and it scared me straight." A funny travel piece.
~ Back From the Wilderness, Left-Leaning Thinkers Are Having Their Day -- "Democratic policy wonks just can't seem to publish fast enough these days. Early this year, the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank, put out its Agenda for Shared Prosperity, a broad economics blueprint developed by some 50 economists that tackles everything from healthcare to retirement security to trade."
~ Supreme Court Denies Detainee Habeas Cases... For Now -- "The Supreme Court on Monday denied review in two new Guantanamo detainee cases. Three Justices dissented, and two others wrote separately about the denial. Had any combination of four of those Justices voted for review, of course, the cases would have been granted."
~ Random Knowledge: Twinkies! -- "Twinkies are as amazingly good as they are disgusting. But do you know why?"
~ Norman Solomon: While McCain Walks in McNamara's Footsteps -- "Awakening from a 40-year nap, an observer might wonder how much has changed since the last war that the United States stumbled over because it could not win."


HABITATS/TECHNOLOGY
~ Online TV: Still Finding Its Way -- "Online TV offers the ultimate in a la carte programming-entertainment slices instead of cable and satellite bundles. But watching it on the living room set means bridging the gap between the Internet, with its do-everything PCs that demand close attention, and television, which does one thing well while we relax."
~ Chinese discovery casts doubt on 'Out of Africa' theory: study -- "The ancient remains of an early modern human found in Beijing suggests the "Out of Africa" theory of the dispersal of humans may be more complex than first thought, a study released Monday said."
~ Why the Rich Get Richer -- "A new theory shows how wealth, in different forms, can stick to some but not to others. The findings have implications ranging from the design of the Internet to economics."
~ Engineers create 'optical cloaking' design for invisibility -- "Researchers using nanotechnology have taken a step toward creating an 'optical cloaking' device that could render objects invisible by guiding light around anything placed inside this 'cloak.'"
~ Supreme Court Rebukes Bush on Carbon Dioxide Policy -- "The U.S. Supreme Court ordered the federal government on Monday to take a fresh look at regulating carbon dioxide emissions from cars, a rebuke to Bush administration policy on global warming."
~ 'Self-healing' house in Greece will dare to defy nature -- "A high-tech villa designed to resist earthquakes by ‘self-healing` cracks in its own walls and monitoring vibrations through an intelligent sensor network will be built on a Greek mountainside."
~ Week in Photos: Living Goddess, Albino Wallaby, Japan Earthquake, More -- National Geographic -- "This week: Nepal's "living goddess," India's Muslims flee ethnic violence, busload of iguanas seized, and more."
~ Houses of the Future Could Be Made from Trash -- "New building blocks made of waste products could revolutionize home and office construction."


INTEGRAL/BUDDHIST
~ More on Integral Relationship -- Gary at Integral in Seattle responds to ebuddha's response to me.
~ knowing and KNOWING from Brad at Hardcore Zen.
~ Wu Tsu's Buffalo -- From Lin Jensen at Tricycle -- "Zen master Wu-tsu once presented his students with an odd and troubling koan about a buffalo passing through a window. Wu-tsu said, “It is like a buffalo that passes through a latticed window. Its head, horn, and four legs all pass through. Why can’t its tail pass through as well?” The image is one of an unsuccessful attempt to pass from one circumstance to another."
~ Interfaith Blog Event #5: The Role of Forgiveness -- Mike's essay at Unknowing Mind.
~ Subtle Energies Accessible to Complex Physical Structures -- elamb at Source of Miracles looks at Wilber's theory of subtle energies.
~ Self-Help Junkies -- Steve Pavlina disses the self-help crowd, but offers an almost integral selection of areas to focus on personal growth.


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Long winded blither... yawwwwwwwn.

william harryman said...

Did you mean to actually say something?