Ugly Bags of Chemical Cocktails
Quote of the Day:
"Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there." ~ Thomas Fuller ~
Does anyone remember the episode from the original Star Trek where an advanced alien race calls the crew of the Enterprise "ugly bags of mostly water"? Although i never watched the series when it was on prime time, this episode, caught as a rerun, really made me laugh. At the time I was studying anatomy and physiology and, lo and behold, actually understood exactly what the aliens meant. On the show, the crew needed an explanation from good ol' Doc McCoy the yes, the human body was mostly water. Well, I knew that and, as childish as it now seems, it felt good to be a bit ahead of the advanced civilization know as The Federation. Yep, it felt good, which brings me to the subject of today's blog.
The BBC has reported on an experiment being conducted by the Oxford Center for Science of the Mind which will attempt to discover if religious faith has any bearing on how a person tolerates pain. A painful stimuli in the form of heat will be applied to the back of a subjects hand. Religious symbols, such as the Virgin Mary, Jesus and crucifixes will then be shown to the subjects to see if there is any change in the perception of pain. The study hopes to see a change in brain scans which might lead to how 'consciousness' interacts with the physical experience. Dr. Alyson Gray, of the Royal College Psychiatrists, says people with strong faith have been selected as test subjects because "We know anecdotally that religious believers can tolerate great pain when there is a specific purpose, and I would speculate that this would operate via endorphin release. Religious practices such as prayer and meditation release endorphins and would in theory increase the pain threshold." Although the tests of believers may prove to be inconclusive, the study could also be applied to 'survivalists' or Special Forces to identify people with high pain thresholds.
Another view of this story, found in Yahoo News, highlights the ability of fundamentalist beliefs to influence the ability to choose a direction or come to a conclusion which defies logic. "What is it in the brain that, in the presence of evidence, refutes that evidence?" asks Dr. Susan Greenfield, the founding director of OXSCOM.
Back in the seventies, neuropeptides, also known as ligands, were discovered. These substances, the chemical messengers of cellular communications, were found to be a sort of chemical lock and key to certain physical responses. In particular, they act to effect emotional or physical responses to stimulation. There are hundreds of known neuropeptides and each of them acts to support functions which are usually beyond conscious control. There are documented techniques, such as biofeedback, meditation, and yoga, which can be applied to enhance physical control. Prayer or faith can be easily be added to the list.
It is really easy to confuse an emotional response with consciousness. However, the chemicals which instigate emotions only reflect what a person perceives in the world and are not consciousness. Consciousness is defined as "an alert cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation." Please note the word cognitive in the sentence. Cognition is related to thinking and the application of knowledge and to be cognizant is to be aware or understand something. In other words, the quote from Renee Descartes which says, "I think; therefore I am" is not the same as I feel, therefore I am. Emotions are a reaction to a thought or a perception which stimulates a chemical response.
Do dogs laugh? Some might think so, myself included. Can the consciousness of a dog be compared to a human? If we don't know what consciousness is then who is to say whether or not the consciousness of a dog is equal to or lessor than a human? In some instances, you could say that the dog is superior to humans. At least the dog doesn't commit genocide. While dogs may not be as 'conscious' as a human, they seem to have a greater conscience.
The average person is a captive of the chemical cascade which causes emotions. Using some of the tools mentioned above, including prayer or 'faith' does not really change consciousness. The thought of fear or pain persists. It is the reaction, being influenced by another stream of chemicals, which changes. We flatter ourselves by thinking we have more 'consciousness' than animals. Yet, we can not even choose a flavor of ice cream without being influenced by these infernal, internal chemicals.
People fluctuate between what they like and what they don't like based upon a chemical process. It is almost like flipping a coin. When an incident or a situation occurs our systems function automatically. Like a mechanical robot we either snort or smile. If insulted, we could attack the perceived origin in order to protect our precious identity or belief system. Religion and politics are, in my opinion, two of the biggest Sacred Cows on the face of the earth. Both of them can be used to whip the emotions into a frenzy. Maybe they could wire some Fundies in the United States, play the 'my god's better than your god' song and show pictures of the "man" who lives in the White House, GW Bush. I bet that would give them some great results.
Think acid/base reaction, vinegar and baking soda, chemical volcanos. Yep, religion should provide some fascinating study material. Add politics to the mix and you could get a brew almost nuclear in nature.
People whose choices are based upon their faith often view the reality of the world from their safe and comfortable perspective. If what they believe does not match what they think they see, they often times give up any reasoning or thinking and attribute it to 'The Will of God' or 'Satan.' Thinking of God makes them feel good. Thinking of Satan is unpleasant. It's a decision based upon endorphins and opening the gates of that particular neurochemical can chase away any pain or experience of unpleasantness in a jiffy. So, what exactly is the study of faith going to reveal when applied to consciousness?
Deciding to see the world for what it really is can expose exquisite beauty and revolting rot. Most people are not inclined to wake up to reality. They will do everything in their power to continue to blindly believe in what ever cold, composted muck is thrown their way. The decision to choose is made even more difficult by the addiction to the chemically based emotions swirling around in our bodies. Our consciousness, if it exists, remains enthralled to the triggers which drive us like machines and remove any ability to consciously choose.
I think that the researchers will find something but not necessarily the 'consciousness' they are looking for. Images from brain scans will show what part of the bran is being utilized to process the information. If this is consciousness then maybe heaven can be created and distributed in pill form to all the nonbelievers. Wouldn't that be great? Then all the ugly bags of mostly chemically infused water know as humans could sing the 'so happy together' song while the world burns.
Have to go. My dog just asked me to let him out. He is so polite. He even says thank you.
"Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there." ~ Thomas Fuller ~
Does anyone remember the episode from the original Star Trek where an advanced alien race calls the crew of the Enterprise "ugly bags of mostly water"? Although i never watched the series when it was on prime time, this episode, caught as a rerun, really made me laugh. At the time I was studying anatomy and physiology and, lo and behold, actually understood exactly what the aliens meant. On the show, the crew needed an explanation from good ol' Doc McCoy the yes, the human body was mostly water. Well, I knew that and, as childish as it now seems, it felt good to be a bit ahead of the advanced civilization know as The Federation. Yep, it felt good, which brings me to the subject of today's blog.
The BBC has reported on an experiment being conducted by the Oxford Center for Science of the Mind which will attempt to discover if religious faith has any bearing on how a person tolerates pain. A painful stimuli in the form of heat will be applied to the back of a subjects hand. Religious symbols, such as the Virgin Mary, Jesus and crucifixes will then be shown to the subjects to see if there is any change in the perception of pain. The study hopes to see a change in brain scans which might lead to how 'consciousness' interacts with the physical experience. Dr. Alyson Gray, of the Royal College Psychiatrists, says people with strong faith have been selected as test subjects because "We know anecdotally that religious believers can tolerate great pain when there is a specific purpose, and I would speculate that this would operate via endorphin release. Religious practices such as prayer and meditation release endorphins and would in theory increase the pain threshold." Although the tests of believers may prove to be inconclusive, the study could also be applied to 'survivalists' or Special Forces to identify people with high pain thresholds.
Another view of this story, found in Yahoo News, highlights the ability of fundamentalist beliefs to influence the ability to choose a direction or come to a conclusion which defies logic. "What is it in the brain that, in the presence of evidence, refutes that evidence?" asks Dr. Susan Greenfield, the founding director of OXSCOM.
Back in the seventies, neuropeptides, also known as ligands, were discovered. These substances, the chemical messengers of cellular communications, were found to be a sort of chemical lock and key to certain physical responses. In particular, they act to effect emotional or physical responses to stimulation. There are hundreds of known neuropeptides and each of them acts to support functions which are usually beyond conscious control. There are documented techniques, such as biofeedback, meditation, and yoga, which can be applied to enhance physical control. Prayer or faith can be easily be added to the list.
It is really easy to confuse an emotional response with consciousness. However, the chemicals which instigate emotions only reflect what a person perceives in the world and are not consciousness. Consciousness is defined as "an alert cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation." Please note the word cognitive in the sentence. Cognition is related to thinking and the application of knowledge and to be cognizant is to be aware or understand something. In other words, the quote from Renee Descartes which says, "I think; therefore I am" is not the same as I feel, therefore I am. Emotions are a reaction to a thought or a perception which stimulates a chemical response.
Do dogs laugh? Some might think so, myself included. Can the consciousness of a dog be compared to a human? If we don't know what consciousness is then who is to say whether or not the consciousness of a dog is equal to or lessor than a human? In some instances, you could say that the dog is superior to humans. At least the dog doesn't commit genocide. While dogs may not be as 'conscious' as a human, they seem to have a greater conscience.
The average person is a captive of the chemical cascade which causes emotions. Using some of the tools mentioned above, including prayer or 'faith' does not really change consciousness. The thought of fear or pain persists. It is the reaction, being influenced by another stream of chemicals, which changes. We flatter ourselves by thinking we have more 'consciousness' than animals. Yet, we can not even choose a flavor of ice cream without being influenced by these infernal, internal chemicals.
People fluctuate between what they like and what they don't like based upon a chemical process. It is almost like flipping a coin. When an incident or a situation occurs our systems function automatically. Like a mechanical robot we either snort or smile. If insulted, we could attack the perceived origin in order to protect our precious identity or belief system. Religion and politics are, in my opinion, two of the biggest Sacred Cows on the face of the earth. Both of them can be used to whip the emotions into a frenzy. Maybe they could wire some Fundies in the United States, play the 'my god's better than your god' song and show pictures of the "man" who lives in the White House, GW Bush. I bet that would give them some great results.
Think acid/base reaction, vinegar and baking soda, chemical volcanos. Yep, religion should provide some fascinating study material. Add politics to the mix and you could get a brew almost nuclear in nature.
People whose choices are based upon their faith often view the reality of the world from their safe and comfortable perspective. If what they believe does not match what they think they see, they often times give up any reasoning or thinking and attribute it to 'The Will of God' or 'Satan.' Thinking of God makes them feel good. Thinking of Satan is unpleasant. It's a decision based upon endorphins and opening the gates of that particular neurochemical can chase away any pain or experience of unpleasantness in a jiffy. So, what exactly is the study of faith going to reveal when applied to consciousness?
Deciding to see the world for what it really is can expose exquisite beauty and revolting rot. Most people are not inclined to wake up to reality. They will do everything in their power to continue to blindly believe in what ever cold, composted muck is thrown their way. The decision to choose is made even more difficult by the addiction to the chemically based emotions swirling around in our bodies. Our consciousness, if it exists, remains enthralled to the triggers which drive us like machines and remove any ability to consciously choose.
I think that the researchers will find something but not necessarily the 'consciousness' they are looking for. Images from brain scans will show what part of the bran is being utilized to process the information. If this is consciousness then maybe heaven can be created and distributed in pill form to all the nonbelievers. Wouldn't that be great? Then all the ugly bags of mostly chemically infused water know as humans could sing the 'so happy together' song while the world burns.
Have to go. My dog just asked me to let him out. He is so polite. He even says thank you.
posted by Nola @ 9:33 PM
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