senexa

I think my most boring assignment was in helping to draft the HazMat transportation laws. It went on ... and on .... and .... zzzzzzzzz I tried separating into smaller and more manageable units, but even some of those were really good analgesics. Eventually I used 5x8 index cards and hand-wrote the basic premise of each subheading, then broke that into more cards, referencing and cross-referencing as I went. It was then quite easy to write the final report by flipping through the cards. I personally find that hand-writing in that way does far more to organize my thoughts than using the computer, taking them into long-term memory. Using a computer basically skips sensory memory and you spend most of your time in working memory, so it is easy to drift away or be distracted. A good article on how memory functions: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/classes/cs6751_97_winter/Topics/human-cap/memory.html I would be very, very careful of self-medicating; your liver could be permanently damaged by what you are taking now.

The answer to your question is "Of course." I would recommend the following article as a starting point as Fellous has done some remarkable research in that area: The Neuromodulatory Basis of Emotion http://www.cnl.salk.edu/~fellous/pubs/emo.pdf

Actually, it is probably mild sleep apnea and you are not getting enough oxygen due to poor posture causing pressure on the airways. If you really must sleep without lying down, at least rest your head on your fist or scoot down in your chair enough to support your head. You could also take a nondrowsy sinus/allergy pill to ward off congestion caused by the dryness in the room. .... the same thing usually happens when you are flying or on a train because the air gets too dry and there are too many people using the oxygen in a nonventilated room. .

I am confused, but then that isn't new. The original question was about a life form more intelligent than human beings, correct? How did the thread get sidetracked into body functions? If your assumption starts with the supposition that all intelligence must be essentially the same as ours then you would look for similarities in biological structures. But intelligence is the ability to learn and use what you learn and to reason without physical assistance. It is not exclusive to human beings, even on this planet. The assumption should be that we have already been exposed to many forms of intelligence, and that the fault of recognition lies in our limited abilities to think outside the box. .

Two helpful links for you: Instruments for measuring the magnetic field: http://www.mines.edu/fs_home/tboyd/GP311/MODULES/MAG/NOTES/instover.html Map of current measuring stations: http://www.ocean.washington.edu/people/grads/mpruis/images/magobsmap.gif

You most likely have Strep throat, which could indeed be causing the aching joints. Alphamox is a new generation antibiotic, so continue taking it as prescribed until it is gone. If you do not feel much better after three or four days, go back and see your doctor, asking for a culture and sensitivity of cultures (if not already obtained), as the strain may be penicillin resistant. Meanwhile, sleep a lot if you have time, drinks lots and lots of fluids (SmartWater with electrolytes), eat only small soft meals, and Tylenol if the aches get too bad. Good luck

Pardon me for intruding here, but what exactly is the purpose of this thread? ... or, for that matter, the many other threads on this subject? If it is, in fact, a serious inquiry into the biology of same-same sexuality, I would recommend this paper: http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/Research/HNatureProposalsArticles/Final1.HOMOSEXUALTIY.biol.html with its bibliography as a starting point. If it is about coming to grips with personal views regarding homosexuality, then I would suggest taking this test: http://www.tolerance.org/hidden_bias/index.html Either way, homosexuality has been referenced from the earliest known histories. There are many cultures who view it as acceptable. So my strongest input here would be to say that you first need to remove the Anglo mindset and social parameters from any research project.

Thought some of you might enjoy this article from the Telegraph newspaper. You have to register to read it, but the registration is free. Strange beasties of ancient Scotland (Filed: 30/06/2004) A village in Aberdeenshire is providing an exquisitely preserved slice of life in a tropical paradise lost, reports Roger Highfield Rhynie, Aberdeenshire, 410 million years ago: you are standing in a tropical paradise south of the equator that is crawling with strange life forms and drenched from time to time with boiling mineral water from hot springs. http://www.telegraph.co.uk

One experiment I would like to see run is a Kirilian photograph of an entire human being, as well as one of a human embryo. If a salamander embroyo has a resulting photograph not of the embroyo itself but of the adult salamander, what would ours show? Maybe nothing unexpected, but I certainly would like to find out ... it just might show where we are heading as a species. Or, then again, it might just show what we are now. In terms of human evolutionary speculation, I would assume that the lower extremities of the physical body would weaken and become secondary, with the upper torso, glutii and upper extremities becoming more pronounced, especially the hands. The frontal lobes would increase with a corresponding decrease in the reptilian brain.........should computers continue becoming our major interactive mode and the corresponding success rate for computer users versus snailpersons. On the other hand, given the proclivities of computer addicts, it is quite likely that they will never find the time or opportunity to reproduce at all, leading to a complete cessation of the species and/or a recession to a Cro-Magnon state.

Time Reversibility. I think Feynman was essentially on target, except for separating time and space into separate axes. If you visualize time/space as a Mobius, the Diagram makes grand sense and is elegant.

Use a protractor or compass to measure three points on the circumference of the circle, 120 dg apart. Draw a line from each toward the center, where they meet is the true center.

I'm an old Seneca granny, and to me life is breath ... the breathing in of all of creation and the breathing out of the accumulation of experience. Not being separate from the rest of the breath of creation, each individual life has meaning only within the context of the great hoop of all living beings who share in the purpose of the Creator, which is the great mystery. The purpose of life is to become as elegant as possible, achieving the neverending balance of chaos and statis in perfect harmony.

I take courses from The Teaching Company. They are taped college courses. Right now I'm working my way through a 60-hour Joy of Science course taught by Robert M. Hazen (PhD, Harvard University) to brush up on all I missed in the past 40 years. My one before this was Einstein's Relativity and the Quantum Revolution by Richard Wolfson (PhD, Dartmouth College). My next one will be either anatomy or mathematical thought. Here's link to their current curriculum of science courses, which come with all course materials and are available on DVD, video and audio. Every course goes on sale once or twice a year. I wait and get them on sale for about $100-120. http://www.teach12.com

Parts is an old expression used for any equation or recipe using measurement. It equals "X". So if you have 500 lbs of A, 400 lbs of B and 100 lbs C, you can convert it to 5 parts of A + 4 parts of B + 1 part of C, with 100 pounds being the "part". This is used a great deal in old chemical formulas, cooking recipes and medicinals.

Hebrew numerology http://www.inner.org/gematria/gematria.htm

Would it not be more valuable to discuss what is 'being' rather than what is 'life'? In seeking a definition of life, the very use of the term crowds the mind into looking for stasis, when in fact there is only the constant chaos of change in that which is alive ... which is a being, or that which is being or becoming or transforming. In one sense, every thing is alive and exchanging portions of itself with the rest of existant others, be it star or rock or virus or water. In a stricter sense, being implies consciousness of self, an adaptive response to stimuli, reproductivity or replication, metabolization, and a sense of community. Personally, I believe the last is the most important criterion. Does the being recognize others of its kind and respond to them? Does it seek out optimal conditions for further growth, including joining a community or creating one? Can it communicate with others of its kind? Will it reach stasis without such a community? Finally, does the being recognize 'otherness', for in order to seek that which is different, one must have/become being.

Have a little faith, you guys. I remember when Kennedy said we would be on the moon in ten years, and we did it. With the backing the private spaceship has and the interest of a lot of monied people, it is almost probable that tourism to space will be available in five years or less. The profits are too big for it not to happen.

Have you looked into Simon's Rock College in Great Barrington, MA? It is an affiliate of Bard College, and was created just for younger people who need or wish to bypass high school and feed their brains. My younger daughter went there and it was an extremely good experience for her.

My husband suggests unhardened stainless steel, 1/32th thick x 1/8 inch wide. It won't wear down and you usually get it at a lumber yard or machine shop for cheap. You can also use any stainless steel scrap ... like from knives, etc., using verniers if you have them to measure the correct thickness, etc. (he is a master toolmaker)

Molecular Expressions has a really good article on the history of measuring the speed of light and its properties in vacuum and other media. But, the article concludes, "Physicists point out that the actual speed of light as measured by Roemer and his followers has not significantly changed, but rather point to a series of refinements in scientific instrumentation associated with increases in precision of the measurements utilized to establish the speed of light." http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/lightandcolor/speedoflight.html

Well good for you. Do not allow anyone to tell you that you cannot add to the research in this, or any other, area. Age and formal education are no longer barriers to acquiring or diseminating knowledge. Here are some links you might find helpful: American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association http://www.aarda.org/patient_information.php National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases http://www.niaid.nih.gov/final/immds/immdeff.htm Life Extension abstract http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-017.shtml

Registering at their site is the first step. I was invited to participate in the last one, and enjoyed it. You receive the magazine each week, and then log on to the review site to add your opinion of whatever articles you choose. As far as I know there are no academic creditials for the general readership reviews, although the editorial peer reviews are, of course, limited. As I have no academic credentials, it was a wonderful opportunity for me and enabled me to receive Nature at a price I could afford.

That was good advice, no matter where it came from. My husband is retired now but was a methods engineer. I spend at least 10 hours a day at my computer, and he employed much of the above information to make my workspace comfortable. If you require glasses, you should consider having glasses made especially for computer work. He measured the distance from my eyes to the computer screen, and then my ophthalmologist used that measurement in assessing my vision, adding my regular bifocal prescription. A glare screen helps a great deal as well. Isometric foot exercises relieve back strain better than a foot stool, although you should never sit for more than two hours at a time. I use a barley husk pillow and squinch it with my toes throughout the day, alternating with using a roller massager for the feet.

Nature also periodically has a review board. If you are willing to write opinions on articles for four to six months, you will receive a vastly reduced subscription to Nature itself and portal access to the others online.

Well, rats! I loved that game.