IQ Adult

Fix this Language.

2008-04-19T05:51:00.000-07:00

Hi, thanks for your visit.

Recently the London newspaper, The Independent ran an article on use of language. You can read it here.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/miles-kington/mind-your-language-or-

he-word-squad-will-have-kittens-803134.html

The idea of keeping the language intact has been put into practice by the French who value it but English has just grown unchecked from the day grunts were associated with meaning.

Now it is a conglomerate of whatever language the many invaders used. Words were modified to fit the mispronunciation of travelers or coupled with other words already distorted to form hybrids. This mixing and adopting continues today.

This island where nothing is far from anywhere else except in language is unique. The Scots, Welsh and English speak different languages. In many cases the English from one county speak differently than the next. London English is the “official” language yet this is constantly changing.

When the brave dissidents left England for The New World they brought their Puritan speech and writings with them. After a while the word spread back home and further abroad. Soon the French, Spanish and who knows who wanted a part of the action with free land and no taxes. They all contributed to the lingo.

By the way there was not a time when German was almost the official language of America. It is a myth. Go to http://german.about.com/library/weekly/aa010820a.htm

Australia was settled by brave and brutal jailers and brave and desperate prisoners. It was so far from home there was no way back. The prisoners who didn’t die in confinement settled in the sunnier shores along with the governors. But the language stayed more or less proper English despite the gold rush influx of nationalities. Even in the 1950s Australians felt British.

The influx now is being made by texting, slovenly Americanisms, youth ignorance because they weren’t taught well and a need for brevity that often takes longer to interpret than proper words.

The article up top was an April fool’s day joke. Did you notice? But English is changing rapidly and increasing pace. There really is a need for some official body to give it direction to stop it splintering into tinder. The French, Italians and Dutch have them.

Obviously easier, more phonetic English is desirable. Where ‘c’ is pronounced like ‘k’ use ‘k’ as in ‘kake’ not ‘cake’. Similarly with ‘g’ when it has a ‘j’ sound as in the suffix ‘ology’. It hasn’t got the sound as in ‘gear’. Does ‘oloji’ seem too daunting? How about ‘f’ instead of ‘ph’ as in ‘fone’? That would be easy to get used to.

The ‘ough’ puzzle is a hurdle to students of English; bough, trough, through, etc.

Why use silent letters that need to be written but ignored by the reader?

This article from Wikipedia gives a summary http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_reform. Please read it.

America seems to be the worst offender in corrupting its native tongue. This is mostly due to the hopeless education system where spelling was ignored as long as it made some sense. Now we have words like ‘gonna’ (going to), ‘wanna’ (want to), ‘thet’ (that), and misuse of words. “It’s bigger then that.” “It flew by it’s self.” “It was plane wrong.” He put it their. “He became a where of”

I’m not concocting these. I read them and cringe every day.

Some of it makes sense. Replacing ‘a lot’ with ‘alot’ is amusing and somehow valid.

Texting is abbreviated phonetics. Let’s hope it remains a second language or at least a fad like teentalk. I used it once in my own way in a forum. A girl replied that she couldn’t understand what we were saying. That was the whole point. I think ‘sumfin’, for ‘something’ is going too far.

The scary bit is that these people are teaching others by example.

Start by correcting your own bad habits and then teaching kids the proper way to speak and write. You don’t have to speak like the Queen of England, just sound a bit better educated or at least like a news reader or TV host. You’ll be treated better if you don’t seem like a brainless yobo.

Language is there to communicate! That’s its purpose. If your reader can’t understand you; why bother? English speech is easy enough to learn but the spelling is woeful. We need to change it.

I was a founding member of SR1 many years ago. You can look it up on that previous link. It wouldn’t work now. Changing the language bit by bit would be totally impractical. A full change would still take many decades.

Australia changed to the metric system of weights and measures in 1970 to ‘77 but we still hear of miles and inches after all this time. I do blame the prevalence of American TV and movies partly for this. Fortunately moves to change this U.S. attitude are looking promising. Let’s hope it happens. Imagine if there were 12 dimes to a dollar. Why work with 12 inches to a foot or 5280 feet in a mile? Surely 1000 meters in a kilometer is simpler. If you can influence this or a more phonetic English; please do so.

This language is the most widely spread and looks like being the planets’ world language. It outstrips all other attempts at invention. We can put it into gear by making it phonetic.

We can ensure this extremely adaptable language will establish itself as the world standard if we correct its faults.

We see massive constructions and mind bending projects across the planet. Some of them are astonishing. This is another one that the future will hail as a great leap for mankind. It will still take decades but it starts with one step. Let’s take that step in this generation.

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Stimulate your toes for thinking?

“Jay, have you gone nutty or been smoking some of that stuff again?”

“No, listen to the explanation and give it a chance.”

Reflexology states that acupuncture meridian points for the head and neck are located in the foot; particularly in the big toe. These can be stimulated to enhance mental clarity.

You can play with your tootsies and feel better for it. What have you got to lose by trying?

Put your right foot over your left upper leg and stimulate the area below the toenail with your thumb. Use a firm circular pressure but don’t hurt.

Continue this down both sides of the toe but pay most attention to the area you started on. Keep this up for about three minutes.

This has benefits for the master glands – the pituitary, hypothalamus and pineal.

Just type these into Google for a stack of information.

Do this with the other toes but only for a minute or less for each toe.

Now it is only a matter of swapping feet and repeating.

You can do this anywhere you can take your bare feet and it feels good. Get into the habit of doing this after a shower or during a work break. You can even do it at the park. That’s a good place to be to get away from the everyday work load.

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Keep well and if you see somebody without a smile give them one of yours.

Jay Ross.

Study and Environment.

2008-03-31T19:56:00.000-07:00

Hello again,

IQAdult has strayed from the original idea of a learning site to one of social comment. One thing has stayed the same though; the lack of feedback, comment.

Even when I have been deliberately controversial it has passed unnoticed.

This is in spite of the fact that there are readers.

What does it take to get you to put hairy or delicate fingers on the keyboard to give your opinion?

None of us is right about everything and we all should be trying to see the other side in any debate. So please tell me when you believe something opposing what I say. Give some reason and we’ll take it from there.

We’re not going to fall out over it. A healthy debate should stimulate thinking.

There are enough somnambulist proles walking this planet who will never consider the other side of any topic. Many stop at the gate and say there is no other side.

Let’s hear your side.

As a bonus I’ll advertise your blog or site if you have one. Maybe you have an opinion that gets a lot of replies. If so you can use this as a testing ground for a blog of your own.

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Want to save some reading time?

The way to do it is the way good students do it.

What is your purpose and that of the author? All of us have found at times we need to reread something because it just didn’t sink in. That can be tiredness or disinterest in the topic. It happens often with students because they don’t really care for the subject. Maybe it’s bad writing; too many words or dry language.

The key here is to identify the reason. Why am I reading this?

If it is an article in a newspaper or magazine it will be written with the topic and main point at the beginning so read the first two paragraphs. The evidence and padding fills the article and the conclusion is given. So if you get the drift of the article after the intro just go to the end.

Go back to get any detail you need for your purpose in reading.

If you need to comment on what you’ve read, look for the key words. Often a thousand word ‘piece’ can be reduced to fifty words and if you understand the topic, reduced even further. These become your notes, whether written or mental. Take a little time to organize this summary when you’ve finished. This helps your understanding.

So many books and movies have been made with the “Boy meets girl. Boy loses girl. Boy gets girl back again,” plot. That need not detract from a good novel. The plot takes second place to the author’s skill in his craft. A page can transport you to heaven or hell.

In a movie we have come to be more concerned with the content (effects, drama, spectacle, emotion, etc.) than the plot.

But with non-fiction it’s different. Pick what the author is saying.

Do you agree or think he’s missed important information?

Is the article logical or has there been screw ups in his thinking?

Are you wrong? Both you and the author are vulnerable to mistakes.

Question the article. If you are doing this for an exam the teacher will be more impressed with a well thought out reply than a copy of main points. Besides, by questioning you start to think for yourself. That’s what learning is about. It’s not to become a parrot.

A lot of books have an end of chapter summary. These are so useful. Read these and fill in the details of vague points from the text. Very often the whole book can be mastered in a very short while.

If there is no summary read the ‘contents’ to see what ground is covered, then the conclusion. Go to the index to pick areas you need further explained.

Learning depends on your attitude and relevance to you. New information must be linked to something you already know. A bad student may be able to remember every goal and name of every footballer of a team for the past ten years but not be able to remember anything about school taught history. Its relevance, interest is not there.

If you can link history to football; he’d remember it.

You are reading for a purpose. What is it?

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This has been mentioned before but it has relevance not just to learning but to life in general. It’s your immediate environment. Where is your computer? Where do you study or read? How is your family life?

Your surroundings influence you in so many ways. Nobody can say that growing up in a Brazilian slum, uptown New York or a country town doesn’t make a difference to the way you think. Of course it must.

The wellbeing of our home planet is being degraded by people without ethics. Too much needs to be done to change that but you can change your personal environment. All it takes is to see the benefits and act on it.

We can’t all live with a seascape or hilltop view; or can we? There is an increasing number of professional people moving out of the city and living a healthier life in rural settings. The communications revolution means so many jobs can be done at home so why not make your home where you want to live? Cleaner air, less noise, fewer distractions, less crime and more scope for a healthier lifestyle make it an attractive option.

A rural setting may not provide the wealth of social opportunities available in city life but weigh the benefits against the occasional traveling. Is the party, concert or bar life worth more than your health? Start to think about your environment.

I’ve talked about study conditions before but if you spend a lot of time with the P.C, get the best conditions. Your chair needs to be comfortable, with arm rests and adjustable height. Keyboard needs to be easy to use. I found a cordless keyboard works well for me because it can be relocated when a small change in view is needed. It’s all part of refreshing the mind.

Get rid of distractions like noisy kids, annoying music or visitors. Make it your corner of the world and your time. Let people know you’re ‘at work’ even though you’re at home. Have some plants in the room and make sure lighting is comfortable.

Another aspect is important. Your household environment influences your personal relationships. It must feel like home and be a place to relax. If there is conflict at home it may not be only incompatibility. The place may be depressing, dull and lifeless. Family members can be brought together in a cooperative effort to achieve a redecorating. An ugly view can be covered by a few lush plants. A paint job can do wonders. A ‘throw-over’ will change a couch. Coordinating colors or fixing annoying faults can do a great deal for morale.

Get rid of objects that obstruct movement. Never leave things dropped on the floor. Ease of movement is essential especially in hallways. Let sunlight in. We often have either too much or too little furniture. Make it right. Be innovative. Take some wall hangings down and put up shelving to get organized. Have a yard sale to get rid of stuff or go to them to buy stuff.

Hopefully a strengthening of family ties will provide the impetus for more unity if you get to work on a common goal. These ideas are easily found in decorator mags or on TV so there is no excuse for ignorance. Believe me, your environment does influence your thinking and emotional state. Make yours friendly. It’s easy to do.

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Stay well,

Jay.

Mail iqadult@gmail.com to get in touch personally.

Laws and You.

2008-03-03T17:10:00.000-08:00

This piece first appeared in IQTeens some issues ago. I’ve represented it here with a lot more added because it fits.

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Society has a lot of rules and laws; too many in fact. The rules change while you’re playing and nobody tells you them before the game anyway. It can be a mess.

You’re taught one set of rules by whoever you grow up with and obviously there are sets of rules used by other people that don’t match yours. You will, and probably still, believe the first set of rules whether they’re right or wrong because that’s what you were taught by your parents.

Your parents are good people, hopefully, but they are still fallible like the rest of us. They believe something from their era and its evidence or just because they were taught by their parents. They’ve probably never analyzed it.

There can’t be impartiality in a one sided teaching. You have to realize this and weigh the evidence. But you can’t compare it to what you’ve been taught. It must be weighed against reality. Anything that is only opinion must be seen to be just that. You have to think for yourself. Question everything.

Just changing neighborhood can change the rules. Go to a different country and they change again. What’s good here can be bad there and vice versa.

There are different ways to dress, words to say or not say, manners to abide by, rituals to go through, and while a lot of it is made to ensure society runs smoothly, a lot of it is man made rubbish to protect the people who can’t handle change. Either that or they have a position of power and don’t want to lose it.

Some rules are necessary so we don’t have chaos. Imagine having no road rules. If everybody just drove where they wanted like shoppers walking in a busy mall we’d all end up with battered ball shaped cars.

Thou shall not kill is a rule but sometimes it happens without intent so we have rules about that too. When soldiers go to war we forget about the rule and encourage them to kill. Indeed we make sure they want to kill other Mother’s boys. Both sides say God is on their side. What is right? When someone does kill and we sentence them to death aren’t we committing the same crime when we execute them?

There are rules to protect the frail or innocent people in society. We don’t live in the “Minority Report” movie world but often the police can’t do anything until a crime against these people is committed. By then it can be too late so what can we do?

Thou shall not steal is obviously a good rule for anybody who has something worth stealing. For those who don’t have; it may be the only way to eat. But for most theft the punishment is wrong. If Fred steals your car and smashes it, he is put in jail. What happens to you? You haven’t got a car. Putting Fred in jail is no use to you. Fred should be made to pay for a new car and all expenses on the way to getting it.

If vandals burnt down a shop they should pay back the insurance company or shop owner for restoration.

Our prisons are overloaded with minor criminals and the most “freedom” loving country on the planet puts more of its citizens in jail than any other country. Something is wrong there.

How many of the rights your forefathers fought for are you willing to give up for so called “Security’? So much information about you is stored and available for anybody to use if they know where to look or have the right gadget or money for a bribe. Laws of privacy are being eroded every day.

How about victimless “crimes” like smoking marijuana? Does the government have a right to deprive liberty from someone who isn’t hurting anybody? We allow alcohol but only arrest a drunk when he becomes violent or a threat to others. I’ve never seen someone high on pot smashing someone’s face.

Does the government have any rights to tell you what you can do sexually with a consenting adult in private? If “public morals” are the guide line; we know what they are because of the internet. Sexy photos and movies are a massive market. Should the laws be changed to reflect reality?

We know that ‘speed cameras’ are used for revenue raising, not to protect the public. The facts support this. Yet we put up with the fines rather than band together to fight them. At times in various parts of the world, there have been no traffic cops or lights and the result was fewer accidents, safer road courtesy and better traffic flow.

By far the majority of people are law abiding and will take care of each other. We don’t need so many laws.

There are a lot of corrections to be made in our legal system. The need for so many laws has to be reexamined.

If you are thinking of a career in the legal profession or just want to make some changes, get active, because there is a lot to do.

Maybe you could bring up this topic at work or with friends to get their opinions or send a comment to the world via this site. Don’t listen to the ones who say “Forget it; you’ll never change the law”. It only takes one to start anything.

Are there any Legal people out there who would like to make a comment?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

IQTeens has opened and if you have anything constructive, naturally, to say, please tap on the keys.

Keep well and alert,

Jay Ross.

2008-02-11T18:47:00.000-08:00

Hello again,
Evan Hadkin has made a couple of comments about matters
raised on IQAdult and while I had read some of his blog "Livingauthentically.org " I put off an in depth reading because of time constraints.
I wish I hadn't. It is well worth spending time there.
There are several valuable downloads and lots of other interesting blogs are mentioned.
Here is a piece from his blog.
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"You know those arguments where you feel you have been there before? Where you feel that you can predict what is going to be said next? As if the people were following a script?

At times like this we have often slipped into a role. One of the simplest ways of looking at these roles comes from analysing stage drama. In this analysis (and there are many others) there are three basic roles: persecutor, victim and rescuer. The dramatic element is the switching around of these roles.

Here’s an example to explain what I mean. Imagine a Western. The hero (rescuer) rides in to save the fair damsel (victim) from her evil uncle (persecutor) plotting to take her farm from her. Imagine the scene where the evil uncle (now victim) is held at gunpoint by the hero (now persecutor) and the fair damsel (now rescuer) pleads for her uncle’s life. The hero is distracted by the fair damsel allowing the evil uncle (now persecutor) to gain possession of the gun and hold at gunpoint both the hero and fair damsel (now both victim). At this point for there to be more drama a rescuer needs to be introduced (cue the cavalry).

These roles can be found in pretty much any dramatic work, a detective story, a comedy, science fiction or romance, the list is virtually endless.

Often in those moments where we feel that know what is going to happen next we have slipped into these kinds of roles. The challenge is to step outside of the role and this will be the topic of my next post.

This way of analysing relationships was developed by Stephen Karpman in the early days of Transactional Analysis. The best introduction to Transactional Analysis (and the best self-therapy book I know) is Born To Win by James and Jongeward. It includes a chapter on games.

To reflect on:

Choose a situation that you don’t like and you feel like “I’ve been here before” or “I know what is going to be said next”.

Look for the switch.

Ask yourself who is playing what role.

Ask yourself what is it that I get from playing this role. (It may confirm ideas you have about yourself and others).

Once again here is Evan's edress. "Livingauthentically.org ". Do read the "About us" section at the top left.

Loads of books and studies have been compiled about role playing. It's not surprising seeing it happens in every aspect of interpersonal contact. It's in the office, at the shop, within families, among lovers and with authority figures.

Knowing what role we are playing consciously or unconsciously is an insight into our character and motives behind our actions. Knowing yourself is the key to understanding others. If you realize you are taking the victim role or persecutor: ask yourself why. What do you want, or more importantly lack?

Do you lack courage or belief in yourself so you take the victim role? Do you feel angry and emotionally deprived, so you take the agressor role? Recognizing this is the beginning of understanding the most important person in your life - you.
If you are struggling mentally or emotionally; analyze the role you play.

If you can see the roles others are playing it may very well save you pain in the future or deepen a friendship. In any case it will make you more aware of how to treat situations by the role you consciously take rather than simply react to their role. This can be a valuable asset.
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So many people join chat forums and start their own blogs so it puzzles me why so few bother to comment on blogs that are already going.

Look at the blogs you visit and note how few comments there are. Did you know you can get a training and make your name on someone elses blog? Just have your say about the topic and make it more than one or two sentences. You can start a whole new section that will be yours if you want it.

We get things done in life by colaborating with each other. Say something to me and I'll publish it. I'll promote your blog if it is of value to my readers. I'll help if you are sell something. Get in touch. http://iqadult.blogspot.com
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IQTeens is up and running now so if you know a teenager or have raised young adults or have advice for teens ( other than "grow up!") get on board.

The free book for a sign-up is still available. So far I've only sent out six! It's all explained two blogs ago.

Learn something new today,
Jay Ross.

God or chemistry?

2008-01-26T18:06:00.000-08:00

The original Hippies were embracing the essence of Christianity. “Make love, not war,” isn’t really different to “love thy enemy”. Instead of fighting the cops, it was good to give them a flower. This was Gandhi, Jesus, Mother Teresa, philosophy with a novel twist. The idea of today’s open source PC programs and freeware came from the same attitude.

When the ignorant pleasure seekers got in on the idea of unrestricted drug use and “make love” became “have sex” it was ruined. The ‘weekend hippies’ had a new participatory entertainment. The establishment, when they weren’t making money from it, (Hippy kits were being sold.) became frightened about the social revolution. The times were indeed a-changing. Something had to be done.

The real Hippies had moved out to the collective farms. So many of those who stayed, debased the original idea with sex, drugs, pounding heartbeat ‘music’ and gave Hedonism a new meaning.

But something else emerged; the psychedelic drugs that mimicked the effects of meditation. They gave many people a new and lasting awareness of their inner Self. It was spiritual without being religious in the common sense.

My question here is;

If chemicals like LSD, psilocybin and mescaline can awaken areas of the brain in such a way, what is the nature of the experience?

Are we and our thoughts merely products of chemistry?

Is what we call “Reality” only an outcome of what we ingest?

It’s not a new idea. But now it’s no longer only in the realm of philosophy or laboratory.

Alcohol changes our mood and even personality in many cases. Several natural drugs stimulate our pleasure centers. Genes carry traits and hereditary factors that not only control our bodies but also our minds.

Food substances have an effect for good or bad on our thinking and bodily functions.

Cannabis stimulates appetite and calm awareness with time slowdown.

We are dependent on water and food to live. We need these chemicals to survive.

Now look at techniques aimed at ‘enlightenment’ used in religions. The swirling of the Dervish, the constant beat of drums and dancing, chanting, are all designed to attain trance states that have surrendered the everyday ‘self’. This surrendering of the ‘self’ leaves you open to suggestion. You’ll now accept the ‘message’ whether it’s political or religious.

Modern day evangelists use group psychology and powerful emotional displays to persuade people to lose the ‘self’ in the group. The mass singing, grand buildings, repetitive mottos (Praise the Lord! – Allah is great, Hare Krishna, etc.), replace individual thought.

Ritual and robes give it authenticity and historic legitimacy too. All this is to make you open to suggestion.

Techniques of manipulating beliefs are many. The bad cop/good cop system still works and people have been subjected to so much pressure that they ‘confess’ to a crime they did not commit. But for more serious conversions, stripping the individual of ‘self’ is the first step. This can be in the form of torture, deprivation of sleep, food, hygiene, rights, status, etc. It’s a matter of creating a problem and then offering a solution.

Unfortunately the vast majority of people are too distracted by day to day living to see they are being manipulated. They are filled with sport, celebrity, mindless TV and earning a living. This is intentional.

If you thoroughly convince someone they are sinners and offer the solution to being redeemed, saved; it is the same technique as deprivation of self belief. If you put fear into the mind, increase suggestibility and offer a solution they will accept it. This fear could be of burning for eternity in hell (itself a construction), threats to security or lifestyle (personal, loved ones, home, homeland), or being rejected by peers for any reason (status, bad breath, fashion).

Repetition reinforces the instilled belief.

Religion and spirituality are different in so many ways. Were we taught when we were young and unable to question the information? This is why children born to adults of a particular faith become adults of that faith.

If American Christians grew up in Iran or India they’d be Moslem or Hindu.

Did we get the belief in a highly emotional state, after the death of a loved one, facing our own death or at a time of great stress, suggestibility?

If so, you can see that the belief was induced.

But then people have worshiped sun gods, tree gods, ancestors, snakes, spacemen, and devils with the firm belief that their religion was the only true religion. They have even died defending these beliefs.

So it is easy to instill a belief.

But there is another way that beliefs alter. The chemical way is faster and more permanent.

At this stage I must warn you that irresponsible use of drugs without preparation and experienced guidance could completely stuff up your life. You may end up in an asylum.

The purpose of this issue is to raise questions about the nature of our beliefs.

The fact that we are profoundly influenced by chemicals is incontestable.

The fact that some synthetic and natural substances can give rise to profound religious feelings and convictions must challenge the validity of such beliefs.

When a cherished, secure, ‘fight to the death’ belief can be altered by a chemical action I wonder at the worthiness of the original belief and the second, replacement belief.

The chemicals’ effects are also dependent on external stimuli. The same amount given to the same person under different settings and expectations will cause vastly different reactions.

The ‘bad trip’ can be set up or happen because of bad organization, environment or company. The spiritual or insightful voyage is the same, open to suggestion and influence. So what are we to trust?

There is no ‘outside reference’. How can there be?

Tryptamines (LSD, psilocybin, etc.) and phenethylamines (mescaline, etc.) seem to be a quick way to gain insight if directed properly. Mescaline has long been used by Mexican Indians for spiritual enlightenment. There is careful preparation and supervision during the experience.

Back in the sixties a properly planned trip included ‘ground control’ (an experienced guide who stayed ‘straight’) and a safe natural environment.

Meditation involves guidance and a lot of work on your self; always a difficult thing to do without instruction. But those who attain this profound state KNOW it is real.

Mario Beauregard of the University of Montreal put 15 nuns through functional magnetic resonance imaging ( continuous two minute brain scans) while they relived “intense union with God” experience.

He and others have found the prefrontal cortex, right anterior insula, parietal and temporal lobes and a few other minor spots are all involved in some way with profound spiritual states.

It’s not yet a simple case of stimulating these areas electrically or chemically. It is a complex arrangement but like the first aircraft; it will some day be possible. The psychedelic drugs have already shown us that. What does this say about spiritual and religious beliefs?

Curiously there are various views on this. One side says it shows there is no God, only brain functions; another says here is the door to a higher state of evolution and the nuns said that this is proof of how God speaks to us.

Have the Buddhists got something in saying this is all an illusion, a state we are trapped in?

An interesting article on these experiments can be found here http://www.sciam.com/search/index.cfm?q=searching+for+god+in+the+brain&submit.x=21&submit.y=7&submit=submit

I want to know what you think. iqadult@gmail.com or the comment button below.

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If you’d like notification of each issue of IQAdult just send your edress with “send IQAdult” in the subject line.

There’s a free book if you introduce a friend to IQAdult. See last weeks issue on meditation.

©. Jay Ross.

Meditation ummmm

2008-01-19T16:27:00.000-08:00

Hello folks,

There is an important message at the end of this segment. But let's get on with the job.

Meditation has been mentioned a few times on this blog. Most people think of it as a quick way to relax during their hectic lifestyle. While it does fulfill this function, that is not real meditation.

If you practiced true meditation, you wouldn’t need to find ways to relax.

Yoga and meditation became widely known to the western world in the 1960s via the Hippy movement. Alternative religions and lifestyles came to be considered. The use of valuable psychotropic substances like LSD left the realm of psychiatry to enter the real world. And it was quickly discovered that they gave intimations of states of mind only fully available through deep meditation.

By that is meant, they opened the doors of perception to the real Self as opposed to the temporary ‘self’ that we think we are. The ‘self’ is something we have just like the physical body. The Self, with upper case S, is eternal and constant.

If you think meditating is sitting down with a whisky and letting uncontrolled thoughts rampage through your non-disciplined mind, you’ve been mislead. Concentration is essential to clear the muddy waters so you can see without the distortion.

The object is to concentrate awareness on a particular theme or subject so that you become part of it. In the process you lose your ‘self’ to the subject. You become mind-less, beyond words and ideas, and experience unrestrained Consciousness.

A Mantra http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantra is a sound that is repeated often to aid concentration. The favored sound for beginners is “Aum” or “Om”. It represents the eternal or ultimate and is also the sound this planet makes. Users of LSD in natural settings like beside forest streams or Rocky Mountain highs know the sound as a huge choir somewhere over the horizon.

This is by no means advocating illegal use of these substances. It is to understand the historical setting and it returns later in this article.

A mantra can be anything from your own name to the Deity you believe in or a concept like ‘love’. Whatever it is, you need to be guided through concentration first. It is useless to think that meditation is just a way to have a pleasant interlude letting the mind drift aimlessly. Go have a nap. It will do just as good.

The Mandala http://www.google.com.au/search?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-GB%3Aofficial&channel=s&hl=en&q=mandala&meta=&btnG=Google+Search is a visual aid to do the same thing. You can combine them.

“Yoga” means ‘union’. Naturally the greatest desirable union would be with the Supreme Being; whatever you understand as that. So meditation is of use to all and any religion. It is of great help in understanding yourself, your motives, fears, passions, needs and mental or emotional conflicts because it surpasses them. They become insignificant in the light of the greater awareness.

There are so many techniques but all involve stilling the mind of thought so that you become empty. It’s not an easy task. The idea is to become, not think.

When you relax thoughts run through your head. You either don’t bother with some of them or dwell on some that you are concerned with, and let others carry you into interconnecting areas of total irrelevance. This has to stop.

All these thoughts have to be marshaled into a stream and let flow away from you. Sink below the stream where thoughts can’t enter. The mind must remain free of thought. You must get rid of brain and mind, to achieve a state of ‘essence’ of simply “being”.

You must take off your clothes to put on new clothes and so your mind must be empty to be filled with a new understanding.
This freeing of the mind is difficult for some people. They think they won’t have control and may do some psychological harm but it is exactly the opposite. The Christian Bible says to give your burden to Christ. The very act of letting go is healthy. That mental release flows to your physical body too.

You’ll find anguish disappears and some habits like over-eating (caused by a mental problem) taking the same path. As you continue, more changes will occur.

Surface benefits include sound sleep, less stress, greater self confidence, greater self respect, more understanding of, and therefore empathy with other people, a realization of wholeness and unity with life.

You will find that God is not some anthropomorphic bearded gentleman watching each of us from a throne in some mystical paradise. Only the briefest realization of the union of your Self and God/the universe/supreme consciousness/universal force/the eternal ‘IS’ will change you for the better.

You can tell if someone has been there. They are calm. They have a quiet knowing that sees where you are in your development. They also see what you can become. If you see this in a person, you are on the road too.

There are books galore about meditation techniques. You really don’t have to sit in an uncomfortable lotus position. Sit upright with a ‘straight’ spine. Breathe in deeply through the nose, filling the whole lungs, hold, and forcefully blow out through the mouth. Do this three times.

Concentrate on your single word mantra until you merge with it. Stay there in conscious no thought awareness.

It’s that simple and that difficult.

There are many variations in ways to meditate because there are many types of people. Many paths, one heaven.

If you want something thorough, two books by Mouni Sadhu are recommended – “Concentration” and “Meditation”.

There are many free courses around. Here is one you should investigate. http://meditation.org.au/

I’ll have to save that link to LSD ‘till next week.

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SUGAR and WELLBEING.

2007-12-16T04:00:00.000-08:00

As consumers of roughly 160 pounds of sugar per person annually, according to recent reports, we need to be asking what the cost of our consumption is on our bodies and our health. Whether it's the sugar in what we eat or drink, and this includes the lattes, juices, sodas, and some alcoholic beverages-we owe it to ourselves to understand that sugar is making us fat and disrupting our body organs. Another more subtle but equally detrimental effect is sugar's action on the brain.

For many of us, sugar has an addictive pull that rivals cigarette smoking or heroin addiction. It may seem a bit outrageous to compare our sugar love affair to these drug addictions-I mean, doesn't just about everyone on the planet eat the stuff? Hasn't it been around-well, practically forever? If that's your brain talking, read on even if you don't have a weight challenge, because you'll add years to your life by becoming educated on the topic. And while it takes more than knowledge to change one's habits, the tragic truth is that most people never learn the facts or the solutions to food challenges they could otherwise overcome.

The first step to getting a handle on your sugar habit is to take a look at the science of sugar and its effect inside your body. But before we take a look at what happens when we eat this non-food called processed sugar, let's talk about the law of sugar, which many of you have experienced first hand.

What happens when we consume it? For most people, it sets off a craving for more sugar. This is the law of sugar in action. There are very few of us who haven't felt the urge for more cookies or chocolate, after just having one. I have met a few individuals who don't eat sweets at all and generally these folks fall into three categories. They've either gotten a handle on their sugar consumption and avoid it entirely or they never had an issue with it in the first place. Other people consume alcoholic beverages regularly and get their daily sugar from that source. It makes sense: most recovered alcoholics will tell you they discovered a significant sweet tooth after they got off the alcohol. That's because many alcoholic beverages already contain a high sugar content.

Now, why exactly does eating sugar trigger a strong desire for more sweets or calories? Eating sugar triggers the release of opiates in the brain. Opiates are chemicals which make you feel good. For anyone who isn't sure what opiates are, understand that they are the in the same class of drugs as heroin or morphine. Eating sugar will also begin a cycle of craving or compulsion for more of the same feeling that was caused by the release of the opiates. You may not "get high" the way you would with a powerful narcotic, but that doesn't mean it doesn't impact your mood or your brain.

Sugar consumption has been linked to challenges such as depression, CFS, ADD and ADHD, PMS, as well as overall poorer cognitive functioning. Most of us know about sugar's link to diabetes, but have you considered its possible connection to cancer as well? What if excessive sugar consumption was indirectly causing something as frightening as cancer? If it were possible, would you take the risk?

It's not surprising that we have such a terrible rise in obesity over the past twenty years when we have manufactured sugars like high fructose corn syrup being put into so much of our food. HFCS is literally manufactured in a laboratory to be much sweeter than natural sugar.

If you have ever heard the term "sugar blues," all you need to know is that your blood sugar and your health will rise and fall like the Roman Empire if you eat like a king when it comes to sugar. Sugar's effect inside our bloodstream is even more straightforward: when we eat or drink sugar our blood sugar goes up, our insulin goes up, and we throw that metabolic switch that says store body fat. Meanwhile, as we get fatter we continue to overtax the pancreas and develop insulin sensitivity, which leads into diabetes. The picture being painted is not so pretty, is it?

Here's something amazing: even thinking about a sweet food we love can trigger a chemical response in our brains to eat it. Essentially, the chemical response and memory trace which eating sugar creates inside our brains urges us to go back for more. Meanwhile, that false sense of comfort we achieved from eating our sweets keeps us returning to the source over and over again and we form the insidious habit of associating comfort with food.

This "comfort" food is anything but friendly to our health.

The truth is that most of us avoid thinking about the harm sugar or similarly damaging high-carbohydrate diets are causing to our bodies. We do this because of the pleasure it gives us. It's even more pronounced when we use it as a reward or as a release from our busy, stressed-out lives. Sugar does make us feel better for a brief while, perhaps. But nearly all of us have at one time or another experienced the downside that comes with the crash, even if we didn't know what was going on exactly inside of us to make us crash. The ultimate tragedy is that while we might acknowledge that we have a sugar challenge-some of us might even be self-proclaimed addicts-we also tend to feel powerless to do anything about it.

But we're not entirely powerless. If more people looked at sugar's opiate triggering power and treated it like an addiction, doesn't it stand to reason that they'd have a better chance at overcoming their sugar habit? Yes, ignorance is bliss. But this kind of ignorance is literally destroying our health and the health of our children.

Commit to yourself now that you will continue to educate yourself on both the problem and the solution. Books on sugar abound, so the good news is that there is an in-depth solution you can read up on further if you're serious about overcoming sugar addiction. If you're serious about kicking the habit, consider working with a naturopath or health coach. A great way to kick off your new resolve is to embark on a low-glycemic diet, especially if you can join a group that is doing it together.

Just be aware that if you take up the challenge, you'll have to step out of your comfort zone for awhile. For awhile, you'll miss it like an old friend who has moved away, but like anything else, you'll get used to it. And I promise you, once you experience the wonderful clarity of mind and feel the natural energy your body provides without sugar's artificial high, you will never want to go back.

Maria Calidonna is a weight management coach and writer who lives in Westchester County New York. She is married with five children and in training for the 2009 Track and Field World Master's Championships in Finland.

You can visit Maria's product website at http://www.marketamerica.com/bodyandmind and order your Low Glycemic Transitions Weight Management Kit and other related health supplements and products. She also invites you to visit her weight management coaching blog at http://www.mariacalidonna.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Maria_Bleasdale-calidonna

It’s nice to have somebody else write my issue this time. It won’t become a habit but with Christmas feasting coming up this is a timely reminder. When you look at those sweets remember what they can do to you, and your children.

All the best for the holiday season. Take this time to reflect on what you have achieved this year and plan for what you want to achieve in 2008.

Where do you want to be when 2009 is looming? This year can change your life.

All of us have some aspect of life we would like to change so take some quiet time to sort things through and write down goals.

Do it any way you want but make subheadings of actions you will take. Divide these into further do-able strategies.

Above all, be practical about your time scale and actually DO work toward your goals.

It may sound like a lot of thinking but planning is essential to goal achievement. If you only do some of them you’ll be better off.

NEWS. I’ve got an ebook out! It deals with a proven strategy to overcome psychological addictions like smoking, over-eating, gambling etc. It does deal with alcohol too but AA already uses part of this method.

I say “proven strategy” because it is just that. It does work.

Price is just $5.00. How many cigarettes or spins on the slots can you get for that?

Just email IQAdult@gmail.com and I’ll send details.

Visit or recommend IQChildren.blogspot.com to someone. The most recent issue is about the Santa lie.

Stay safe,
Jay Ross.

A CLEAR MIND

2007-11-10T17:23:00.000-08:00

Look for the Special Offer at the bottom of the page.
Hello again.

We broached this topic once before but I thought it might need elaboration. Both study time and work time need to be broken in a way that refreshes the mind. Many people know about having a break and yet they push on without it in some martyr fashion or don’t do it properly.

It’s not only the small breaks that are necessary, we need larger breaks to get the big picture of where we are. It’s usually called a holiday. But then Sir Richard Branson is (in his own word) “fortunate” in having an attitude that spawned wealth and a life style that doesn’t need a holiday. Life is one long happy ride.

Let’s have a look at both of these.

If you went to work eight hours a day, seven days a week you’d be running low on ideas and enthusiasm. You’d be stale. As an employer I wouldn’t get the freshness needed in an employee. You’d go home grumpy, yell at the kids, kick the dog and have an argument with your partner. You’d be doing this because of not having time alone to rest or encounter something new.

We all need outside stimulation.

If you arrived at work one day and your boss said to fix up any urgent work quickly because we are all going to the beach or a theme park for the day, you would probably think he was nuts. But when it hit you he was serious how quickly would you get through the next job? You’d get through it without a gripe or hitch or stop. You’d work flat out to get the job done.

How much more enthusiasm would you take home and bring to work the next day?

I wonder if there is a boss out there who does this. It would be great for morale.

Working alone or studying needs to take you places to keep your mind fresh. Take a pad and biro but don’t try to get ideas or draft sentences, just go and let the mind free to enjoy new surroundings. Don’t go to the same park or coffee shop or quiet spot you usually go to.

Do something different. That’s the whole idea of having a break. Get on the river ferry and go somewhere you haven’t been or take a train ride to ten suburbs away.

This is a mental holiday wherever you go as long as it is out of the ordinary.

If there is some reason why this can’t be done then you have your own perfect mental health Eden inside your head. Just like ‘Second Life’ but without the cost or fear of being attacked you can create a rejuvenation mini world nobody else can enter.

Here’s how. Just sit back and relax with a straight back. Take a few deep breaths through your nose, hold and exhale quickly through your mouth driving out all the air you can.

These breaths should alternatively fill your lungs as full as possible and then empty them as much as possible.

Then sit and picture as vividly as possible a totally relaxing place. It may be a forest glen, a deserted beach, a hillside overlooking a green valley or sitting in a boat on a placid lake at sunrise. What color is the sky; light or dark blue or streaked with sunlit clouds? Maybe it’s the colors of sunset or sunrise.

It’s your place. Try to imagine that place now. It doesn’t matter if you change it later but it is good to go with your first choice at this stage so you get the hang of it..

Now become totally aware of how you feel. You feel at one with your surroundings. This is where you can relax. Feel the soft breeze on your face and body; notice the temperature and the scent of the place. Is there freshly mown grass or the aroma of flowers blooming? Maybe you can smell the ocean breeze or crispness of the mountain air.

Do you hear any sounds, like crickets or bird calls? Maybe there is a waterfall nearby and you hear its water cascading over the mossy rocks to a pool below. Can you hear that celestial choir over the horizon? Maybe you can hear the silence.

What are you dressed in? Are you barefoot or in comfortable soft shoes? Loosen any tight clothing. If you have long hair, let it flow.

Touch the elements in your surroundings. Feel the hardness or softness of them. Let the sand run through your fingers or roll in the grass and look at the clouds as they pass slowly.

Walk a while and taste the delicious fruit nectar or drink the crystal water. Wipe the sweet smelling herb on your arm. Are there butterflies? Can you see that little animal watching you? Do you want to say “Hello” and pat it? There is nothing here that can hurt you. This is your place.

Gaze at the pastel shades of the plants and marvel at the crimson of others.

Relax like you have not relaxed before. You can always relax here and the more times you come here, the more you will be able to relax.

Take a few breaths to get back to the jobs at hand.

As you become more familiar with this place you will be able to go to it whenever you want to rejuvenate. Nobody can take this from you. The only secret you need is to DO it.

Now let’s look at Sir Richard Branson. He has obviously got a fertile mind interested in a whole range of topics. That very fact is what makes his life a joy to live.

He would be bored to distraction watching TV. A regular job would offer nothing to stimulate his mind. So why do so many people kill their lives by accepting monotonous, dead end occupations?

Maybe it’s fear of loss or of success; ignorance of what they could achieve; just plain dumb ignorance; laziness; childhood teaching; apathy or inability to think beyond their immediate world. Who knows?

Several facts stand out. Branson is not interested in what Mrs. Jones next door is doing. He has a wide view of the world. He has his own life. He looks at what he does as an opportunity not a chore. He analyses situations. He has faith in his judgment. He makes decisions and he DOES something about it.

It is a fact that less than 5% of people will actually do something to achieve any major lasting improvement in their life.

If you got the magic words “Open Sesame” there is only a 3-4% chance that you would bother going to the cave. Ask yourself why.

Branson’s first venture into the aircraft business came about when he realized it was cheaper to hire a plane to get to his destination than pay for a ticket. He simply filled the plane with paying customers and made a profit.

Here is a very short summary of his life http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3693588.stm

His attitude is positive and he finds joy in newness. His self confidence is rampant but with a good deal of research behind it.

He will follow an idea no matter how silly it may be just to see where it could lead. He will give it a try, after all what can happen? We all started with nothing.

If he lost all his money he would make more to replace it.

How does his attitude differ from yours? He is willing to try! If you do nothing you will get nothing. It is simply a matter of mind. You probably will make mistakes. We all do at some time but the trick is to anticipate them.

His break from work is the challenge of the new; the freshness of a new venture. He stimulates his mind with further challenges..

You may not be able to start a Virgin Galactic but you can start a home business or tune a hobby to be financially rewarding. Try to make an extra $5 per day for the next month. Start tomorrow and mark the calendar. If you don’t get it find out why and try again.

Try for ten dollars per day when you have got it right.

If you can make five or ten per day; can you repeat the idea to make ten or twenty per day?

There is a need for volunteers in so many groups in your area. Helping can change your life. You can make a difference and be rewarded with new friendships.

Anything you can do to refresh the mind is going to help you. It provides an increasing confidence, happier nature, better mental and physical health and expands your interests.

We could talk about epinephrine, alpha waves, biofeedback or meditation but these are all available on the net so if you have a particular curiosity type them in.

For any artists wanting to start a project Your Eden is a great place to put you in the mood.

*****

Thanks for the comment about the previous issue, Evan.
Click on Evan’s blog about acupuncture at the bottom of that issue.

http://iqchildren.blogspot.com is only a click away. Call in.

Want your blog mentioned? Make a comment. I'll be glad to include you.

SPECIAL OFFER. Beat bad habits like smoking, alcohol dependence and overeating with this Excellent book priced at only FIVE dollars. Yes, only $5.00. Just send your edress (e-mail address) to iqadult@gmail.com I'll send you an invoice. This is real value. Get it now.

Bye for now,

Jay Ross.

BODY HEALTH FOR MENTAL WELLBEING.

2007-10-12T22:29:00.000-07:00

Your physical health is important to your mental health. You can’t operate as well mentally when you are sick or tired or in distress. But just as important are exercise, cleanliness, proper breathing, eating correctly, clear blood flow and freedom from mind numbing drugs.

Here is a quick run down of a few things we should consider to help our body so our minds work better.

You have one of the greatest inventions ever in your bathroom – soap. Simply washing your hands after being in contact with anything that may harm your body internally should be as routine as balance when walking. I shared a house once with a cook who didn’t wash his hands after sitting on the toilet. He is dead now; not surprisingly after all the problems he had.

Wash hands after gardening. You wouldn’t eat potting mix so get it off your hands before touching anything that may go into your mouth.

Changing diapers requires the same thing; so does handling poisons like insecticides or herbicides, petrol or cleaning fluids. Use sense.

Use your own towel after washing or, after touching dangerous material and washing, use a disposable rag. Have your own bathroom satchel with hair brush, razor, toothbrush etc. Bad bacteria can be greatly reduced simply by washing with common soap. It is the front line attack.

Bacteria build in your body and the bad ones cause illness that is often treated with antibiotics. But bacteria are becoming resistant to antibiotics. One reason is that people don’t take the full course prescribed. So the bacteria become immunized instead of eradicated and they can pass this on (via DNA bundles called ‘plasmids’) to other bacteria and viruses, helping them to become stronger. We get ‘Super bugs’.

If you have been prescribed antibiotics; take the full course.

Getting sick in the first place is largely your fault. Wait a minute – I said “largely” not “always”. Taking pills for every ailment that you think may be happening to you can cause illness. Start getting away from pills and into a healthier lifestyle.

You don’t have to join a gym to exercise. Do a few pushups at home. Leg raising or sit-ups, squats and stretches are the same. Lift a couple of bricks ten times sideways away from the body, then in front once or twice a day. Walk up and down stairs more often. Old people have trouble with their legs. Prevent it. Go fast walking and later jogging once a day. It all builds till you notice a difference and then you feel encouraged to keep going. That’s the point to get to. From there it takes on a life of its own. You’ve broken that “start barrier”.

Most people don’t know how to eat – seriously. Shoveling food into a mouth and swallowing it is NOT eating. Chew the stuff. Chew it over and over so that saliva fills your mouth and the food is reduced to almost nothing. Savor the flavors. You’ll discover different tastes you didn’t know were there. The saliva is essential for digestion and you’ll need less food because you won’t be overloading the stomach. Less food properly digested means more nutrition and less fat.

In general, water and fruit clean the body; vegetables build the body. But you also need protein which is available from various plants but we mainly get it from animal meat. I won’t go into the vegetarian debate here. Suffice to say eat much more fruit and vegetables; better still grow some of your own. It’s easy, they don’t have poisons and they taste better. Anybody can grow tomatoes, capsicum, beans etc. All you need is a sunny window or small plot of ground. A dwarf Orange tree is a great decorator idea.

Fasting is going without food to clean the body. “Break-fast” is the morning meal after not eating overnight. When you fast longer than overnight your body eventually starts using the poisons in your body for fuel. That’s why you can feel week or not in top form. You may develop bad breath or feel headachy. It’s because the rubbish is being put into your blood stream to flush out.

After fasting about three days your body starts using the fat reserves for fuel and generally you feel better. Water or diluted fruit juice helps the process. Do not drink alcohol.

Consult your doctor about fasting. A seven day fast every three or four months usually does a great deal of good for the body. Avoid heavy exercise but do not just sit. The idea is to get rid of baggage so do light exercise to turn fat into body toning.

When finishing a fast, start with a light meal of vegetables. Gradually increase this to eating a proper meal but not the type that gave you a reason to fast in the first place. From here start to eat with regard to what you eat.

Breathing fresh air and breathing it to full benefit is a lost ability for many. The bigger the city you live in and the closer to the ground you are have a great deal to do with the quality of air. Carbon monoxide kills. So do other pollutants that your body has to live with.

Breathe through your nose! Keep your mouth shut is often good advice and particularly when it comes to breathing. Sit and walk upright. Slouching diminishes the amount of oxygen getting to your lungs and causes stale air to stay. This opens the gate for infection. Every so often lift your chest up and breathe in deeply (nose), hold it and quickly blow (mouth) as much air out of your lungs as possible. Do this about five times. Try it right now.

Go to the beach or mountains or countryside every so often. It’s not only good for your physical health; it’s good for your mental outlook.

How many people live in a state of permanent sedation? Popping mild sedatives can become a lifestyle habit. It dulls your mind, preventing your dealing with problems. It enables others to take advantage of you.

Do not use drugs that diminish your thinking capacity. Be wary of all drugs including medications. Type their name into a search engine and learn about them. It’s your one and only body you’re playing with so know what you are doing.

Escapism is not the way to cope. Party drugs supplied by strangers can contain substances that kill brain cells or induce psychological states that are not easy to cope with. These can tip the balance in a person who is already unstable or having problems. You need only look at what people have done on alcohol to see lives destroyed.

I think it was an American president who said, “I tried whiskey once and liked it so much I never had it again.” There is wisdom.

What has your nose got to do with bad breath?

All of our close social contacts can be adversely affected by bad breath. In intimate encounters it can be disastrous.

Mucus from your nose can run down the back of your throat and settle on the back of the tongue. It can stay there for days. So keep your nose clear. This is just one factor in the world wide concern that confronts us every so often. Other causes are dental problems, tonsils, food scraps in the mouth and various medical conditions. But bad oral hygiene can create medical conditions that affect the rest of the body.

What happens? Bacteria munch away on dead cells like mucus and food scraps and at the end of the feast they have sulphur and nitrogen gases that stink. Unlike body odor which can appeal or disgust, bad breath always turns people off. It is the odor of faeces or decayed meat.

What can we do about it? Use your toothbrush often and have dental problems fixed. (Dentists don’t use a pair of pliers and a foot on your chest any more.) Use a mouthwash before going to bed to be effective overnight. When using a mouthwash stick your tongue out and gargle so you get to the back of the mouth where the main problem lies. By the way; those mouthwashes that sting do not mean they are more effective. It’s just that people think they are. A disinfectant does not have to smell like ammonia to kill germs.

Don’t use mouthwash after toothpaste because you’ll diminish the effect.

We’ll have a quick rundown of other matters another time.

Comments are welcome and you can contact me at iqadult@gmail.com

Check IQChildren if you have children and if you think you may have something to say in the upcoming IQTeens please get in touch.

Be good to each other.

Jay Ross.

Tags. Health, Wellbeing.

SEX , LAW, REALITY.

2007-09-27T21:30:00.000-07:00

Recently, here in Australia a young man was awarded damages after he alleged he was molested by a Scout master when the boy was 14 y.o. He and four other men are saying the same thing.

He said he suffered mental and emotional trauma ever since and described various nasty events in his life that he maintained were an outcome of this molestation.

OK, these things happen and we have to address them.

What got me interested was the fact he was awarded well over one million dollars in compensation.

I’ll cut to the bottom line. I think this is encouragement to accuse any older male who some guy has a gripe with or even someone he knows is gay and it is a sure fire way to set himself up for life.

He can own a home and invest enough to live comfortably till his dying days. It’s a very good business and it can all be done in about six months.

Teenagers face all sorts of challengers in those developmental years. Suicide rates among teens are high. Read some of the morose and frightening stuff they write in forums.

Sexuality and puberty can cause massive upheavals.

The stealing and vandalism stage sets in. They push every boundary to test it. Alcohol and drugs offer their invitations and peer group pressures take hold.

A lot of them do get into trouble.

Boys will get erections anywhere; on a buss, in a parade, walking along a street, just sitting or playing with the dog.

Testosterone driven boys will stick their new found manhood anywhere that might feel good. They experiment. It’s all part of growing up.

Now there are two types of adult male who can take advantage of this.

The first is the type who provides an alternative to masturbation. He is usually family or a family friend, therefore trusted. His role is an extension of an older brother model. If you think brothers don’t experiment then you are wrong. It depends on the years between them; more years, less interaction.

But this relationship, which happens to involve sex, is generally a stabilizing factor in growing up. When the boy discovers girls the relationship usually dissolves but they remain friends.

The other type is the predator who coerces and takes over the master/slave role. He uses fear to keep hold of his prey. This guy is sick and needs help. This is the guy who beats people and has an insecurity problem.

He or she (it’s common for women to do this but less than men. Women use a slightly different method) uses the ‘partner’ as an owned object to do their bidding like a trained dog.

This is the personality regardless of sexual orientation that beats his partner and kids and is cruel to animals.

He usually puts on the face of exactly the opposite, being friendly and kissing babies. Any relationship based on fear or insecurity is destined for disaster.

A youngster in such a situation will be scarred emotionally and grow up to repeat it if he does not get psychiatric help. I can’t see how giving him a million dollars will stop him from carrying the mentality of a future abuser.

I can see other men saying that father O’Leary or Scout Master Smith or any prominent, well moneyed male who would fit the profile, forced me to have unwanted sex with him all those years ago when I was 14. Therefore the traumas I have faced in these turbulent years are because of him.

(He is the reason I take these tripy, er I mean medication and why my marriage to that slu..er beloved wife broke up and why I’m too laz..er can’t hold a job and…Yes, I know I’m making fun of it now)

But it has been happening with women for ages. Notice how few paternity cases there are now that DNA testing is here.

Molestation is difficult to prove. It usually relies on others agreeing to the same facts or story. These men knew each other for years.

Quite frankly if I didn’t have any scruples, I would spend a week or two getting my story straight for a million dollars.

Throw in a few tears and a good deal of indignant anger and maybe some rewritten lines from an obscure movie and you’ve got your last payday. Just hold the “yippee” till you get back home.

This is by no means support for any abuser but if this enticement to wealth continues the system is wide open for abuse.

**Men are usually the ‘baddies’ in the teacher/ student relationships but in recent years women have been put in jail for having affairs with male students. I used to think like most people; that the guy was getting his good times by taking unfair advantage of the girl. But when women got into the picture I reconsidered.

I would have loved to have been shown the ropes by a mature aged woman.

It would have made me much more mature. Heaven knows at that age a guy can handle the physical side of things with flying colors. It’s all that painfully slow growing up that hurts.

Establishing such a relationship would have kept me off the streets with the lads on Friday and Saturday nights seeking alcohol and girls who would drop their knickers if we filled them with cheap bubbly.

The aimless “nothing to do” vandalism would disappear.

The age of maturity comes in here too. Girls mature before boys. Some boys mature physically at 12, others at 18. Emotional maturity is anywhere. Many adults are not emotionally mature.

I don’t think adults should go so far as having sexual relationships with teens but it is obvious that a more complete open relationship is beneficial.

Parents should be more like big brother/ big sister than law makers and authority figures.

Find out more about what is happening in the young world today. Asking them questions not only informs you but brings both of you closer to mutual respect.

**Here’s another case that can stimulate discussion. Recently “60 Minutes” TV told the story of a boy in a forum or chat room on his PC who was offered $50 if he took off his shirt while on camera.

He did and was paid the money. Soon there were many other offers of the same amount and the money duly paid.

Naturally this moved on to pants, undies and eventually masturbation for the camera. All this while collecting lots of money. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in fact. $?00,000!

He got all this money for doing what he would normally do in private but he had the camera on.

He was still in his room, untouched, unafraid, able to stop any time, safe, with no ‘manager’ to pay and laughing all the way to the Pay Pal account.

He was exploiting people who got their thrills watching what they needed for stimulus to pleasure their selves.

This is the same thing as strip shows or exotic dancers or full Monty male shows only going the extra distance. He could do that because he was safe from harm.

You could say he prostituted himself but nobody touched him.

Where did the money go? Did he blow it all on good times when he should have invested in rental property? Or he could have started several high yield businesses while honing his entrepreneur skills. He could have been set for life with a start like that.

Now what about the people who paid him?

What is society doing to create people who need to pay to see this? Shouldn’t we be more open and less Victorian or Puritan?

If we keep looking at porn we get bored with it. There’s only so much can be done with the body. When you’ve seen enough, you’re done. It’s gone. Keep hiding it and we want to seek it out.

Your views on these issues are welcome. Click the ‘comment’ at the bottom and have your say.

Understanding breeds love.

Jay Ross.

Check IQChildren while you’re in the neighborhood.

Permission to use parts of these blog issues will be given if you give me details, and credit Jay Ross at http://IQAdult.blogspot.com otherwise all content is copyright. ©

Write to iqadult@gmail.com

STATES OF MIND ARE PERHAPS ...

2007-07-26T07:06:00.000-07:00

States of mind are perhaps the secret to life.

Without getting into the philosophical or scientific aspects of that statement, this article by Steven Barnes provides a solution to the problem a lot of us face.

Many people have to write as part of their job, and many make a living writing. Writer’s block is a serious affliction and there are many ways to combat it. Here is one of the best because, mastered, it leads on to greater heights mentioned in the later half of the piece.

Turning Writer's Blocks Into Stepping Stones

Years ago at a presentation at the UCLA Extension Writer’s Program, I promised an audience to teach them to conquer this beast once and for all. Later, another instructor approached me and said “why did you say that to those people? It’s not possible.”

Poor woman. All she was saying is that SHE cannot break writer’s block, which told me all I need to know about her career. In all likelihood a promising beginning, perhaps an award-winning poem or book…and then pain.

It is not only possible to end writer’s block forever, but you can actually use it to your advantage!

First, let us define it in some useful way: Writer’s block is the inability to:

1) Produce new text.
2) Edit and polish existing text
3) Finish projects on a reasonable schedule
4) Send those projects out for editorial judgment.
5) Continue sending them out until they are sold.

Accepting the above, I’m going to give you a definition of the root cause of Writer’s Block that will actually help you in every arena of your life.

“Writer’s Block is nothing more than a confusion of two different states of mind: the Flow state, where you produce new text, and the Editing state, where you evaluate and polish what you have written.”

The reason WB is such a killer is that most of us have done far more reading than we have writing, and spend far more time in critical analysis of finished, polished work of the masters than in experiencing our own early drafts. So when we try to create text, we measure our first draft efforts against the polished work of the world’s great writers. Immediately, that “this is garbage!” voice goes off in your head, and you have a block.

It is said that novice writers must work through a million words of garbage before reaching their true voice. How in the world will you ever get through it if you constantly judge every word? If you will learn to turn that voice off, you will learn a massive and important lesson about the structure of the human psyche.

But what exactly is “Flow”? It is the psychological state where time seems to vanish, where you “fall into the page”, where the rest of the world floats away as you concentrate. This is similar to the “hypnogogic” state experienced just prior to sleep, and the first thing in the morning. It is experienced in distance running, dancing (remember the lyrics to “Flashdance”? “She’s moved into the danger zone, where the dancer becomes the dance”) and, to be perfectly frank, it is experienced during sexual relations in the moments just prior to orgasm. It is the dissolution of the subject-object relationship sought by numerous schools of meditation.

1) Alternate days (or work sessions) between flow and editing. If necessary, wear different hats, or sit in different chairs for each. NEVER DO BOTH IN THE SAME SESSION

2) Set yourself a daily output that will get you to your goal of one million words in less than 5 years. 1000 words a day will do it in three years. That’s roughly comparable to earning an AA degree. Not too shabby!

3) Explore and specifically study “Flow State” as a discipline. Do your internet searches and find a physical or mental activity (running, dancing, meditation, Tai chi, yoga, etc.) that opens a doorway to this inner world.

4) Listen to largo rhythm, sixty-beat per minute string music. Vivaldi is perfect for this, and induces “Alpha” (flow) state rapidly and effectively. Stay away from music with lyrics, but soft jazz is also terrific.

5) Practice making pictures in your mind, and then writing down what you see WITHOUT judging the quality of your descriptions. You want to enhance the connection between your deep consciousness and your typing or writing.

6) If you can’t find a good meditation technique, just sit and “listen” to your own heartbeat for 15-30 minutes a day.

There are many other ideas, but these will get you started. The most valuable thing you will learn is to “turn off” or ignore the negative voices in your head. And an artist who learns to do this on demand is on the way to integration of the deep levels of the unconscious…and greater joy in the act of creation.

About the Author
NY Times Bestselling author Steven Barnes has published over three million words of fiction, been nominated for Hugo and Nebula Awards, and wrote the Emmy-winning "A Stitch In Time" episode of the Outer Limits. He is the creator of the Lifewriting™ high performance system for writers. Get a free daily Lifewriting tip at: www.lifewriting.biz

The “Flow” is similar to the athlete’s “Zone” but to a lesser degree. It is an altered state of consciousness that can be achieved with some practice.

But the real benefit comes with what is learned via meditation. I don’t mean relaxation technique. Real meditation embodies sustained focus as well.

What Steven is saying here too is the separation of the right-left brain activities.

Let the creation happen. Organize it later.

Actors talk about “the Stage Doctor”. Many great performers suffer nervous attacks before a performance. But upon walking onstage they enter the Flow or Zone. They become the part. It is a merging with the role.

This is a secret that can be used repeatedly in all aspects of life. When we learn to slip into the appropriate state of consciousness for the activity we are involved with, it flows with an astonishing intensity and ease.

This UNION with the act is what he means by “becomes the dance”, as the actor becomes the role, as the love making transcends the physical to become cosmic.

Whether it’s writing, building a box, gardening, eating, shooting pool or listening to a concerto, become that activity.

Your life will be so much richer.

*****
You can have your say by sending a comment. This is your blog too, without the work. From now on I’ll pick a comment and post it here (without your edress) and that person will get a gift if they give me their edress to send it to.

The reason for this is to get comments. Six billion people and only 3 comments! Is it that tame? Have you told anybody about IQ Adult?

*****
"People who believe in predestination still look before they cross the road." Maybe Steven Hawking said that. ?

Keep the blood pumping,
Jay Ross.

SEXUAL INTELLIGENCE.

2007-07-05T06:04:00.000-07:00

There is a great divide in how we think about sexual matters. One side says that it is evil to indulge in carnal pleasures while the other says we were given bodies to enjoy.

The first side says that physical pleasure distracts us from the spiritual life yet Tantra Yoga uses sexual union as a means to obtain spiritual enlightenment.

We have nudity seen as obscene yet everybody knows exactly what a body looks like nude because we all inhabit one.

We are told to protect children. Against what?; knowing what nature gave us? They know what nude is. They don’t care. What we teach them taints their innocence.

Little boys get erections and little girls put their fingers in “there”. Any parent can see that. To say that it is “dirty” is a denial of what naturally happens. Children explore their bodies. Repressing this only leads to mental conflict. The right idea, surely, is to let it happen so they feel comfortable with it. Telling them their natural functions are dirty or wrong, is wrong in itself.

Some people have neglected bodes that are displeasing to see, nude or otherwise; others have bodies that we envy. Chances are if you had to appear nude, you would take more care of your body, not cover your neglect with fabric.

It seems youth holds the mirror. The Aphrodite and Adonis are icons. Yet we can all have great bodies if we take care of them.

Throughout history art has continually represented the human nude of both sexes. It has been exalted as sublime beauty and in another era great art has been disfigured as being sinful. Even cupids’ genitalia have been covered for reasons that escape me. There was even a movement, started as a joke, to clothe animals. Some people actually took it seriously, wanting to put skirts on cows’ udders and pants on bulls. I wonder how they bath themselves.

You can see people at the zoo protect their children from seeing an animal with an erection. Why? It only makes the child more curious. Wouldn’t it be better to say the animal was feeling sexy? Most children have seen dogs “at it”.

Our adult attitudes about sex come from childhood teachings. These precepts are established in our minds before we can think or test for ourselves. They are instilled before we even experience sex. We have an attitude about something before we know what we have an attitude about.

Doesn’t that mean we should re-evaluate our information in light of the new evidence presented by our body and societal changes?

Back in Pompeii sex was a part of life just like sport or the movies are today. The erect penis was revered. The many legal brothels offered men and boys as well as girls and women. English and French Kings openly had concubines. There have been gay Popes. Catherine the Great chose one-night-stands from her palace guards. Women have “toy boys” just as men have “Lolita” women. Movie stars have hidden their sexual natures because of public mood at the time. Evangelists have been “outed” for infidelity and gay sexual liaisons. A prominent actor was caught with a street prostitute giving him oral sex. How many pages do you want me to fill?

Yet in Queen Victoria’s’ reign “a glimpse of stocking was looked on as something shocking”. Women thought it was wrong to even examine their breasts for telltale lumps that could signal cancer. Many died because of a social taboo. Oral sex, however clean, was considered filthy. Women with broad hips, slim hips, long legs, small breasts, large breasts, blonds, brunettes, redheads, tanned skin, white skin, painted or plain etc have all had their place in the desirable basket. Nobody can claim “The Sexiest Woman/Man Alive” title. What a joke.

REALITY is what happens. If you don’t acknowledge it, you get a problem or warped idea of life.

You have to weigh your teachings against what IS; what is actual. To do this we have to look with innocent eyes. Not easy. “You must become as children”.

Twisted sexual outlets come about because of twisted emotional states in childhood and adolescence; this fight between teaching and reality. All of us have sexual urges and needs. Repression causes dysfunction. That’s why child rapists exist. They haven’t learnt to relate maturely and express their emotions. They are still children but in adult bodies.

This is not talking about experimenting. Most people who are not clouded by dogma will experiment. It is talking about those who want to be humiliated or whipped or can only have sex without making love.

It seems obvious why a woman may find a form of pleasure with another woman; the tenderness, patience, understanding. It’s the type of care only an unselfish, experienced man would provide.

With men, the need to submit or feel raw masculinity may be what is needed to balance their psyche. Fatherless male children often go this way.

Prostitution is the oldest profession. Whoever thinks they can rid the world of “harlots, scarlet women, whores” is deluded. In countries where it is legal the girls (and guys) pay taxes, have regular health checks and provide a service. Speak to the better prostitutes and they’ll tell you of the surprisingly high number of men who just want to talk; to bare all in that respect.

Men are the sowers of seed. Most men can have sex and that’s all it is to them, simply having sex. Women think it’s a betrayal of their love. It’s not. Maybe the idea of monogamy came about at a time when there were few women. It was a necessary social convention to ensure enough women for each man. Today it is upheld because we don’t want men to sow their seed. “Go forth and multiply” certainly is not good advice in an overpopulated world.

Pornography is another crazy topic to visit. One person may see a tower or minaret but another may see it as a phallic symbol. Photograph a closed armpit at close range and it looks like the hairless erogenous region between a woman’s legs. Movie makers use shadow to create ‘erotic’ scenes where he may be licking the inside of her thigh but it’s really her upper arm.

The idea that pornography urges a man to rape is false; most of them will masturbate right then. You’ve heard of the ‘pages stuck together’ or found a tape only partly viewed or disc left in the player. It’s because after that release, it’s all over.

For the sake of teenagers’ mental and emotional maturity, do not tell them their urges are wrong. As a teenager, a school friend told me his Mum got him aside one day to ask him something serious. He was worried, nervous and ready for anything except what she said. “John, your father wants to borrow some of your pornos but is too afraid to ask. Could you have a talk to him?”

He was dumbfounded.

She knew! She accepted! She took any guilt away; she opened the way for closer ties with Dad; she treated him as a capable mature individual, and he loved her more than anything.

I’ve never forgotten that couple and the solid base they provided.

Think about your sexual attitudes. Don’t let them master you.

*****

"You cannot be what you are not, but you can become what you are not." Anon.

Jay Ross. iqadult@gmail.com

REAL WORLD INTELLIGENCE

2007-06-26T02:41:00.000-07:00

Here come the charlatans

It doesn’t take long for the rip-off merchants to get in on any thing they can make money from. Now we have people selling pendulums and psychic crystals by using the Law of Attraction as an excuse. Soon there’ll be Tarot cards and “your future revealed” hype making a claim to scientific validity.

Can you see it?

“This power packed 6 week course to effortlessly change your life can be yours! Backed by data from the lost writings of Professor Ripemoff, head of quantum archaeology research at the University of Neanderglob in Loopyga. Learn the Hidden Secrets of the Ancients. Avalanches of Wealth, Romance, Good Luck, flood your life to the envy of all your new friends. Never be lonely again in the arms of your lover as you cruise the islands till sunset. Send only $167 for this unbelievable offer. But be quick! This definitely won’t last! “

That’s the type of CRAP they insult you with. Sadly, some people fall for it. Those who do fall for it, need protecting or to be taught.

That is one purpose of this blog. It’s to make it easier to live by learning skills we can all learn but maybe not know about. It’s to clear the cobwebs of ignorance.

It’s to help prevent naïve people succumbing to the rip-offs of these cretins.

Pendulum Power will not replace informed decisions. You are the master of your destiny.

The I Ching does not know how to direct your life. You are the master of your life.

Tarot cards will not tell your future. You make your future with your beliefs and actions.

Anything can be ‘proven’ by numbers. Numerology is a farce. Look deeply enough and numerical ‘proof’ can be made for any belief.

Do not believe this junk!

DO NOT SEND MONEY!

A ‘hidden message’ can be found in any large enough text. The Bibles’ secret code can be found in Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace’ or Melville’s ‘Moby Dick’. You can find ‘Elvis Presley is dead’ or ‘King Kong likes blonds’ in the Koran.

“You’ve got to believe in something.” is a stock sentence from a misled friend who believes in all sorts of rubbish. I keep telling him to believe in the truth.

Investigate! Test what you are told. Someone said there were invisible little critters passing on infections from patient to patient after surgery. She was laughed at as being off the rails. But someone tested it. Now I don’t have to tell you about hygiene.

There could be fairies in the garden. People of various cultures have spoken of Nature Spirits etc for a long time, but I don’t know how to test it so it remains a theory to me. I’m not going to believe it just because I’ve been told.

Recently a woman I have some respect for sent this…I’m not of the Muslim faith so don’t make an unfounded assumption…

“The following verse is from the Koran, (the Islamic Bible)

Koran (9:11 ) - For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced; for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah;

and there was peace.”

Well, I looked up the reference.

There is no such thing as 9:11. As with all chapters, there is just Chapter 9. So there goes the magic number. In the 21 pages with notes, there is no mention anywhere of an Eagle. The entire thing is a lie.

Whoever wrote this is a liar. He/she may be a Patriotic Christian American but still a liar. Whoever didn’t investigate this is being misled.

How many lies do you believe?

How much do you toss away without any consideration?

Do you toss away fact because somebody lied to you?

Are you acting on false beliefs?

Investigate!

Challenging mental decay in old age is a process that should begin now. Listening to new ideas and keeping an open attitude to change is vital to your well being later in life. Analyze what you are told. Being prepared to think that there could be invisible little critters that transmit diseases, or trying to test if there are really plant fairies (?) is ensuring you will still have an active mind when others of similar age become vulnerable.

You can change your latter life now by exercising body and mind now. Remember, it’s a lot harder to get back in shape than to stay in shape.

YOU, ONLY YOU Can Change Your Life.

You are where you are because of your’ doing! (or Not doing) You can be anywhere you want if you decide to, then take steps to get there.

You may need help at the start so get it. Stuff those excuses into a bin.

Get up from this monitor and do five or ten squats to exercise your legs. Go on; do it now. If you do; you’ve made a start. It’s as simple as that!

If you did do that just now; you feel happier, don’t you? Yes. Yes, Yes.

Now start to get some real advice, not by making some pendulum power prophet richer. By the way; I’ve got this bridge you might like to buy …

*****

Wit or Wisdom.

“Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge…” Charles Darwin

"It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are 20 gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg." - Thomas Jefferson

*****
Contributions are welcome. Would you like to write a paragraph each week? Email to iqadult@gmail.com

Jay Ross.

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

2007-06-10T00:45:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest tools you can have is impartial self observation. This means looking at what you do from an outsiders’ point of view and understanding why. Even the lightest application of this, done honestly, is a boon. See why you did that, or want that, or are as you are.

Motive comes into it and you may discover a lot about why you behave in a particular way. There are deep reasons why we act. Some are to get sympathy, some to establish our importance, some to be mothered or be dominated. Seeing these motives is not always easy.

There will be times when you can’t explain your actions. Analyze these as an observer. Use your intellect to look at your emotions. If you can do this impartially you’ll discover so much about yourself. Some of it will hurt but you are doing this to become more complete. Knowing yourself is the keystone to knowing others.

Inside you is that essential “I” that was born. It doesn’t change. That ‘real you’ can see the scars and qualities of what you have responded to over the early years of your life. It watches how you deal with the influences of your environment, successes and failures, parents, friends, or those who harm you.

Don’t blame anyone. People who do harm are simply still lost. They haven’t seen yet.

Once that knowing starts to build, your self respect and respect for others will start to grow. You can’t really know anybody without knowing yourself. “Know Thyself” is one of the oldest teachings.

Your self respect is basic to how you treat others. An angry person, who can’t identify the cause of their anger, and deal with it, treats others with disrespect. Most of the time the person we’re angry with, has done something without malice or even nothing at all. The worker who comes home and lets his anger out on his partner is an example.

Children don’t know. They may wash your laptop in the sink, thinking you’ll be pleased. What can you do? Anger won’t bring it back. Why did the child have access to it? Why was the child alone? Have you backed up your files? It could have been stolen or lost. The result would be the same.

We get bashing of children even leading to death because the child was crying too much or kept making a mess with its food.
Somebody may ‘snap’ over an otherwise casual remark by a partner or fellow worker.
Hospitalization or worse can follow a minor road incident or next doors’ loud TV.
The person who does this has lost control.

Defeating emotional impulses needn’t be long struggle. It just means realizing that you have been influenced by the things you were taught. It’s your job as an adult to clean out the dross that hurts, or is in conflict with what you really feel.

Self observation is part of emotional intelligence. Your IQ is not only a genetic thing. Adaptability and intelligence are linked. Adaptability is learned through self observation.

Intelligence does mean being in control of your body, mind and emotions. You won’t gain control unless you observe how and why you do things.

Being a slave to emotions is not smart. Every time you react instantly, you’re showing a conditioned response. When you start to see this, you’ll see how easy it is for others to use you, or how others won’t go there because they’re afraid of your response.

When you fully realize it, you’ll see others with the same characteristics. You may wonder how they don’t see it too, just like you didn’t.

When you do know; it’s very obvious. I think it was Cary Grant, the actor, who tried an LSD trip under controlled conditions back in the late ‘60s, early ‘70s. He is reported as saying, “Now I know why I hurt every woman I ever loved.”

This is not an endorsement of LSD or similar psychotropic drugs. It was under controlled conditions. The drug helped him see an inner fault/need that drove him.

All of us have these unresolved needs that make us operate in certain ways. Seeing them yourself is sometimes painful but always liberating.

Becoming a complete person is a learning thing; often an un-learning process to rid us of falsehoods we were taught. You’re intellectually and emotionally sound if you can change beliefs when you find them to be wrong. Blindly holding on only leads to more pain.

When we talk about IQ we are only talking about the processes of clear logical thinking. But we are not simply a data base. Decisions are made with the influence of emotions. We should talk about EQ as well.

Your Emotional Quotient takes into account how you take responsibility or let go of responsibility, giving and receiving, ability to lead or follow well, how you dominate or accept dominance or rules.

You’ll only understand all this if you are self aware, observe yourself, be introspective, see why a need is there.

*****

I’m trying to get this auto-responder working so you can get instant info articles and eBooks quickly. Can anybody help with auto-responders? I’m at iqadult@gmail.com

Would you like to contribute a paragraph or two each week? Mail me.

*****

Wit or Wisdom.

Opportunities always look bigger going than coming.

Obstacles always look bigger coming than going.

*****

Visit the NEW SITE – IQChildren.blogspot.com It has just been born. If you like it as a baby, tell some friends but if not please email iqchildren@gmail.com with constructive comment. Your input is welcome here too.

*****
If you see someone without a smile today, give them one of yours.
Jay Ross.

Law of Attraction - money.

2007-05-26T00:31:00.000-07:00

Let’s get a bit more serious about the Secret. My previous post gave you a link to see the movie and said to also go to “How to Manifest…” Here is the link. It’s a 24 minute video. You’ll benefit from it. Go there now then return for comment.

Ok? The guy seems genuine and further investigation has won me. But there is something I disagree about in the film. His disdain of money should be clarified.

Money is necessary. It’s easy to get, using the law of attraction, provided your motive is just. Remember this is about thought. What he’s talking about is acquiring money for its own end -- greed, self aggrandizement, selfishness.

The good Samaritan of the Bible was able to help because he was wealthy. So don’t knock the value of money, just check why you want it – your motive.

There is a limit to how much you need. You don’t need three stereos in each room. You can only sleep in one bed at a time. More is just waste. If you’ve got more than you can use, spread it around. Help somebody.

The Law of Attraction is not new. Its previous big revival was in the 1960s with “New Age” thinking, vibes etc. There were so many books on Cosmic Mind Power, Cosmic Law, Mystic Path to the Infinite, At One with the Universe. The terminology has changed a little but the message is the same.

Basically it seems like “like attracts like” but it’s a matter of faith in action. We’re aware what religions say about faith. It’s virtually “Ask and ye shall receive”. Look at John 14 in the Bible. It says all this and more you will do.

The attitude in your mind determines what happens to you. You are what you mentally eat. Your imagination is the building material.

The subconscious will accept and act upon any belief you give it.

It’s easy enough to prove. Just do it.

That doesn’t mean to wish for a million dollars in your letterbox tomorrow morning. As the makers of “The Secret” said on Oprah, it involves “thoughts, feelings and actions”.

The Biblical statement is to ask in “my name”. This presupposes faith—thoughts, feelings, belief. If you believe, have faith, without doubt, it will work. When that happens you will act differently, thereby fulfilling the requirements.

What the law of attraction teaches is the same thing. Instead of Jesus, Muhammad, the Great Pumpkin or whatever deity you believe in, it says you can do this yourself. That is not detracting from your religious beliefs. It’s simply saying this works regardless of your explanation for how it works.

It seems to be that he sun rises and sets. It doesn’t. You can argue the point, saying any fool can see it does. It certainly seems that way but it’s only relative to your position- your viewpoint.

You can say that Ra drives his fiery chariot across the sky every morning till night or accept that the sun’s light gets to your part of the planet because the Earth revolves once in 24 hours while orbiting the sun. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_Galilei

Your religious focus, icon, symbol, serves the same purpose as a mandala.

You must first know what you want and your motive behind wanting it. Your faith, full belief, without doubting, will set the wheels turning. Now build in action. Actively set about preparing for the result.

If you want to be free of debt and on the road to a healthy financial future; start being that way. Prepare for it. Get free help from the many good people who offer it via the net or in person via charitable organizations in your area.

Start looking richer in a way you can afford. Wear your good clothing; keep well groomed. Your new life is here. You only have to change into it. Use your imagination. It IS the stuff of life.

Great thinkers as diverse as William Blake and Albert Einstein have said that the imagination is everything. Emerson said, “A man is what he thinks.” Aristotle and Plato wrote of it. Mark Twain said that life is a sum of the thoughts flowing through one’s head.

“The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.” – William James.

“We are what we think. All that we are, arises with our thoughts, we make our world.”- Buddha. “… believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”- Jesus.

It’s easy to fill a page with similar quotes but why, when you can prove it for yourself. You ARE already using this force. You have made your life. All you need to do is realize it and start using it in a conscious manner. Direct it. That’s the secret.

It won’t cost you anything to change your mind. If you’re unhappy at least you’ve got the good fortune to know it. There are people who think misery is all life is. They may never know the truth. How sad is that?

You have already got everything you need to change your life and help others do the same. What you need is already in your heart and head. The force is with you. Use it for good.

*****
Send an email to iqadult@gmail.com to ask for the Wattles' book on money. It's free.

*****

Jay Ross.

Decisions, and "The Secret".

2007-05-16T00:26:00.000-07:00

Do you make decisions easily? Do you weigh the facts logically and intelligently, choose, then pat yourself and say, “I’m a darn genius.”? “I’m so clever I could kiss me.”

Maybe you have trouble deciding which shoe to put on first. It was the right shoe yesterday so it will have to be the left shoe today, for balance. And naturally the socks follow the alternative routine. Or should they be the same? Oh why is the world so complicated?

You know what I’m getting at. Some things are important and some not worth thinking about. So what is important and how do we decide? What influences our choices?

We can be fooled. In fact, every day somebody is trying to get us to think in a particular way, their way. Do you buy that sugary flavored water called Coke or pay for that tasteless overpriced bun from Macs? You wouldn’t buy it if it was offered by the fat man in the little shop down the road.

You’ve been influenced. Advertising is an art. It’s designed to guide your thinking.

So is any political speech. Manipulation of your mind is what it’s all about. Look for the reality behind everything people say and do.

It’s easy to lay down the guidelines to start thinking for yourself but it takes a lot of thinking to build them into your habit pattern. Even then we’re open to the bug of emotion, but that can work for us too.

In pre-school kids play a game about where to get something. The idea is for the teacher to call out a common item and the youngsters run to the spot marked as that type of store or category, e.g. “hammer” everyone runs to the ‘hardware’ spot. Or is supposed to. The last one to arrive is eliminated and eventually the one remaining is the winner.

What happens? Group psychology takes over. The group follows the leader. You may yell “hammer” and the group runs to the ‘grocery’ spot because the leader did. He was wrong but they followed. Individual decision making was surrendered. That’s very dangerous in social and political situations.

There is no need to remind you of history but maybe there is a need to take a fresh look at world events today. What are you being told? Are you being manipulated? Do you think what you think because of ’follow the group thinking’?

This is very closely associated with ‘peer group pressure’. Teenagers are not the only ones prone to fads. Emulating your peers is how we tend to think, even if it is wrong in another context. We don’t have to join a group to accept group thinking. We are born into groups whether they’re economic, national or geographic.

Be aware of how much of your thinking is based on what your associates think. People who think outside the ‘group think’ are more well balanced in deciding what is best for the group. That’s thinking ‘outside the box’.

Getting stuck in a geographic, economic, career or social mindset has its benefits but a closed mind leads to belief in a system of thoughts that, in another setting would be terribly wrong. Take the atrocities of war and consequent opinions about nationalities as examples.

If you think you’re immune to this check out the Stanford University famous experiment of 1971 where students became “prison guards”. The abuse of “prisoners” caused the whole thing to be stopped. http://www.prisonexp.org/slide-6.htm These were ‘normal’ men. What would YOU do? What ARE you doing?

If you want to get further into this, visit http://milkriver.blogspot.com/2002_08_01_archive.html

If you find yourself getting angry, keep reading. You’ll see why.

*****
Currently the films “The Secret” and “What the bleep do we know?” are making the rounds. They explain the “Law of Attraction”. Watch it here, "the secret".

You may think this is just another ‘positive thinking’ con or fanciful rubbish but it’s not. This is related to motivation and decision making. And they are right about quantum physics, but it's as much a puzzle as life itself.

The hardest part of any project is to get started. Try to convince someone to do something! People offer all the illogical excuses not to get started. So do we.

When you have that mindset, nothing will happen. When you make the decision to DO something about changing whatever you want changed; it’s more likely to happen. All you need now is a rough plan. Refine it as you go.

You can get out of, or into, the small town, if you make the decision. Start doing something about it. Keep doing it.

You can make more money than you know, if you make the decision to do it. Start trying to make an extra $5 a day, then $10, then $15. Think Rich.

There are over six billion people on this planet. Your perfect partner is there. You won’t find them by complaining about loneliness. Go out - socialize. No excuses.

There are so many examples of people who have dramatically risen above their mere birth status. You’ve heard the stories. You can do it too. That’s why excuses are illogical. They don’t count.

Start small. Aim high. Learn what you need to know and persevere. You’ll learn more. Then when you start to see results, your mindset will be reinforced. That’s when you’re doing it right. Keep going.

Adam Khoo sent me an edress to watch the whole movie but it won't work when coppied. It started -clicks.aweber.com. Can anyone help?

Enter "the secret" in Google to watch the Oprah show and other short films. DO watch the film "How to Manifest, the secret to creating the life of your dreams." Make a note of his edresses.

I'll include "The Secret of Getting Rich" by Wattles in next weeks' blog. It's free.

YOU ARE IN CONTROL of your life. If you’re in debt it is because you did it or let it happen – same thing. There is an equitable way out of the unhappy relationship, and you can work from home, or achieve inner peace or anything else that is possible. It’s only a matter of taking control and planning.

“The Secret” is a matter of tuning your mind. The radio will only give you static unless you tune it. Your mind is the same. Thoughts are forces just as real as gravity is. The millionaire mindset doesn’t see obstacles. It sees new lessons to learn from.

Tune in. Make that decision. Today IS the first day of the rest of your life.

*****

Wit or Wisdom.

"Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns. Why should we let them have ideas?" - Joseph Stalin.

*****

Intelligence only works if...

2007-05-04T21:19:00.000-07:00

Thomas Edison was no fool but he was less a genius than you might think. He was doggedly determined, patient, persistent to the point of annoyance, a hard nosed business man, ruthless in cutting down opponents and sucked up to whoever would further his interests. So why call him a genius?

Why call anyone a genius? If they’ve got a high IQ they should be leader of the pack, top dog, king of the hill, breezing through life like a warm spring breeze above the daffodils.

Well you know that isn’t so, so what happened to the IQ genius?

A lot of them got bored with an education system that didn’t recognize them. Others had a home life that prevented their talent from showing. Some had no discipline or drive to achieve anything. Some had big talent in areas they couldn’t access because of life’s direction.

“Yeah, yeah, so what about the ones that do make it; the bright sparks that get to the top?”

As Edison said, “genius is ninety-nine percent perspiration.” He was wrong in the figure but right in the message.

The people who make it big do so because of effort, with some talent thrown in.

You’ve heard of the over-night-success who took 15 years to get there. No talented performer has walked on stage to give a knock out performance without practicing often and refining their art.

No inventor ‘just did it’. It took experiment and perseverance, marketing, contacts, money, waiting, oh so much. Ask any inventor.

To make it to the top, you have to persist, believe, work cleverly, practice, ’know’ you’ll make it, and persist till you do. Talent alone won’t do it!

There are hungry geniuses walking the streets. They’ll never be known. And at the top we get those who applied their talent and learned the skills needed to be able to develop it. You don’t have to be a genius to get all you want. It definitely helps but the effort put behind it is the difference.

Common factors behind the successfully intelligent are

their environment
a teacher
study to a purpose
self discipline and
persistent effort.

Let’s clarify these to see if you can improve your life with the intelligence you have. You know you can. It’s just a matter of guidance (teacher) and action (effort).

You will get more done in an environment that you’re happy with. Damned obvious, so why do so many people try to study or work in conditions that are hopeless? Noises, interruptions, lack of space, tension, all kill your output. Do something about it.

Tell everybody what you’re doing and why, then set some rules. Don’t accept phone calls after a certain hour. Close the door, buy a latch, go to a friends’ house. Rent someone’s garage. Get the right environment.

Your purpose is to win the prize, top the class, fulfill your dream, be self employed, own your home, have a million dollars, or write songs, your call. Whatever you do; there’s a purpose, a goal behind it. Even when you go out to play, there is purpose.

Be sure of your purpose. Make it your consuming interest, your intent, your great reason. You have to be dedicated to the task. Live it. Write and repeat affirmations to help. Carry a notebook for those illuminated thoughts that come unexpectedly in times when you relax. Relaxation time after effort is when your subconscious gives you answers. Be ready. Work toward your goal. It should be constantly in mind.

Self discipline comes with the amount of dedication you have in your purpose. If you believe in your goal and ability to get there, you’ll settle into a regimen of regular times and courses of action to get there.

Your teacher is an outside observer to remind and guide you, prompt and reinforce, help keep you on track. Your information comes from your teacher and anybody else who knows what you don’t. Your teachers are everywhere. The net is your library.

It’s amazing what single mindedness can achieve. A calm determination without stress is the right attitude. Stress or worry only confuses your progress. Treat every obstacle as a minor detail to be dealt with. Obstacles are further opportunities to learn. Deal with them kindly, knowing you are the master. Obstacles are clever but their secrets will make you stronger.

Genius, intelligence, natural ability, all need direction and refinement, and this means effort to get the best from your talents.

*****
Housekeeping Dept. Not this week.

Wit Or Wisdom.

Once again from the Massachusetts Bar Association Lawyer's Journal (I haven't checked this. It was sent to me as a floating net piece.)

5. "Was it you or your younger brother who was killed in the war?"
6. "Did he kill you?"

7 "How far apart were the vehicles at the time of collision?"

8. "You were there until the time you left, is that true?"
9. "How many times have you committed suicide?"
10.Q: "So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?"
A: "Yes."
Q: "And what were you doing at that time?"

11.
Q: "She had three children, right?"
A: "Yes."
Q: "How many were boys?"
A: "None."
Q: "Were there any girls?"

12.
Q: "You say the stairs went down to the basement?"
A: "Yes."
Q: "And these stairs, did they go up also?"

13.
Q: "Mr. Slatery, you went on a rather elaborate honeymoon,
didn't' t you?"
A: "We went to Europe, sir."
Q: "And you took your new wife?"

14.
Q: "How was your first marriage terminated?"
A: "By death."
Q: "And by who's death was it terminated?"

15.
Q: "Can you describe the individual?"
A: "He was about medium height and had a beard."
Q: "Was this a male or a female?"

16.
Q: "Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a
deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?"
A: "No, this is how I dress when I go to work."

17.
Q: "Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead
people?"
A: "All my autopsies are performed on dead people."

18.

Q: "All your responses must be oral, okay? What school did
you go to?"
A: "Oral."

19.
Q: "Do you recall the time you examined the body?"
A: "The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.."
Q: "And Mr. Dennington was dead at the time?"
A: "No, he was sitting on the table wondering why I was
doing an autopsy."

20.
Q: "You were not shot in the fracas?"
A: "No, I was shot midway between the fracas and the navel."

21.
Q: "Are you qualified to give a urine sample?"
A: "I have been since early childhood."

Be good to each other, Jay Ross.

Thinking words, words.

2007-04-27T23:54:00.000-07:00

Do you want to sell more? Get your point across? Be listened to?

All animals and insects communicate. So do bacteria. It’s a fascinating area to be interested in but here we’re concerned with humans.

When you want to get a response from someone, you must express yourself clearly or risk confusion or an argument.

To do this you must use some known effective ways to say what you mean. Sentences are a better idea than grunts. Words we recognize are helpful too.

So many jokes depend on use of a word; a common statement can be said another way to sound like profound wisdom. Language can be fun. You can get people to do your bidding if you say it properly. You can defend yourself; cause a riot, make peace.

The pen can be mightier than the sword.

Language for fun? Tongue twisters use it often. Try “The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.” http://www.dyknow.info/ That’s a fun site.

“Susan Simpson,” the anonymous poem lots of children are aware of, has 20 lines of words beginning with “S”. Try that for yourself. It’s called “alliteration”.

What comes to mind with the word “kite”? Is it the children’s toy or Ben Franklins lightning experiment, or the bird (hawk), or slang for WW11 airplane, or the sail on a ship, or the glider pulled by a towline, a con man, or a fictitious check? What do we mean when we tell someone to “go fly a kite”?

What word has the most meanings? It’s one we use every day.

What simple word is the same backwards or up-side-down?

What’s a ‘palindrome’? How long can they get?

We know what ‘democracy’ is, or do we? What’s a meritocracy or oligarchy? Can you name ten forms of government? What does ‘government’ mean?

Can you see how your mind is broadened by thinking about these ideas?

So use it to its best advantage.

Just today I got these gems in email. These people are selling stuff.

· You’ll get ads that with much better.

· because we are gonna to carry are on band-width.

· jump from one to the another.

· we sent you an email asking telling your how we used …

· are their any sports channels?

· this simple stratergies is...

These people are trying to sell me something! Would you buy from them?

They won’t make a sale here so they’ve lost money.

Communication shows how you think.

Beside the usual “cuz/coz” (because), “wanna” (want to), we get sentences that go

“Yeah, no well it was kinda like you know sorta like a big kinda gobie thing, you know and yeah, hey.” What goes on in that mind? Is there ANY organization? What did they say?

The only idea they communicated was that they have no thinking process. They just lost me as a listener.

Yes, the English language has confusing spelling and needs to be more phonetic. But how do you explain people’s ignorance of very basic everyday words?

The difference between same-sound words (homonyms) is in their spelling. “Their,” means ‘belonging to,’ e.g. “Their spelling, their books, their ears.” “There” means ’in that place.’ “There is the book,” means the book is in that place. It’s stupid to say “Their on the table.” That means, “Belonging to them on the table.” Where is the book? “There.”

“Your,” means ‘belonging to’ It’s your car. “You’re,” means ‘you are.’ You can’t have a “you’re book” unless the persons’ name is “Book”. In this case that apostrophe (the thing between the ‘u’ and ‘r’) means something is missing, namely the space and the ‘a’. Just like in “It’s” where the space and ‘i’ are missing.

This gets confused with the possessive use of the apostrophe (The child’s dress.) so check it out. Spellcheck will take care of this most of the time.

“Then,” means ‘at that time.’ “Than,” means ‘in comparison.’ This is not bigger ‘then’ that. It’s bigger than that, (in comparison). Climb to the top then (at that time) jump.

If there were only a few instances of this, I’d ignore it, but it’s so prevalent. Please, please use a dictionary. You’ll gain more respect. And if you’re in sales; sell more.

Parts of a sentence are there to stop confusion e.g. “There’s a man in the house with a wooden leg.” We know this is a sloppy sentence, but assume it’s the man, not “the house with a wooden leg.” “There’s a woman and baby, with a wooden leg.” Who has the wooden leg?

This is kindergarten stuff. (Two German words - 'kinder' is 'child' and 'garten' is 'garden'). It should have been taught then, in kindy. But now it’s up to you to elevate your status. Despite the all encompassing Google and Wikipedia, I found little of value to emulate a good thick dictionary. But then you won’t look up a word if you think you’re using it correctly. “St Martin’s Handbook” by Lunsford is excellent for beginners and the serious student. Otherwise, start from the beginning and learn the bits you missed, or messed.

The best thing to do would be to get a teacher who can correct things as you go.

Understanding language gets serious when we consider legal contracts worded by lawyers in a way only lawyers can fathom. Most people don’t have a clue about what they’re signing. You don’t need to be told this is dangerous.

Politicians, products and promises (alliteration) have their own language. Keep the question in mind when listening to a politician. Notice how they tend to steer the answer to another direction? They may say a whole lot of words that, if you read them, mean nothing. Do they ever give the facts, and then who’s facts?

Advertising means telling you you’ve got a problem that can be fixed with X product. Shampoo strips hair of its natural oils, so we buy conditioner to replace them. Silly. You can’t wash your hair “too clean for dandruff”. It actually dries the scalp and produces dandruff.

This is NOT a comment on religion. It is a comment about the importance of language. The first English translation of the Bible could have been by Wycliff in 1382 or partially by Tyndale, about 150 years later or by Coverdale in 1535. The later was translated from the German and Latin not from the Aramaic – Hebrew, Greek, or Syriac. Other translations appeared and still more are appearing in our lifetime. Isn’t this important, considering the impact of the teachings?

If we aren’t being misled by outright lies we can be misled or guided by skillful use of words. A clear understanding of life involves many factors. Language and logic are two essential tools in this quest.

Wit or Wisdom.

“There are seven ages of man – spills, drills, thrills, bills, ills, pills, wills.” Anon.

For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on.

At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated,

"If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating:

If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics; (I just love this.)

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash........
Twice a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.

4. Occasionally, executing a manoeuvre such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed an Illegal Operation" warning light.

7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.

8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.

Please share this with your friends who love - but sometimes hate - their computer!

Thanks,
Jay Ross.

IQ Adult is about extending your mind.

2007-04-20T08:15:00.000-07:00

IT’S GREY, BUT IT SHOULD BE GREEN.

Your brain is the wrong color, metaphorically speaking. Yes I know it’s really the mind, not brain I’m referring to, but that doesn’t sound as good.

Q. What’s this guy talking about? A. When a tree is growing, it’s green. When it gets old and established and can’t be moved any more it goes grey. The more it loses its color, the more useless it gets. When it stops being fruitful it starts dying.

It’s the same with your mind. Ideas are your fertilizer. They nourish growth. When we stop considering other viewpoints, we stop growing.

SO. How about investigating another religion to see what they’re talking about?
Is Witchcraft all about Satan worship?
Are gay men interested in little boys?
Do lesbians hate men?
Are Negros less intelligent?
Is democracy the best system of government?
How much “freedom” do we really have?
Is robbing people the best way to get rich?
Are computers the death of society?
Will robots become sentient beings?
Are statistics irrefutable?
Can you think for yourself?
Are you always right?

We can easily make two columns there.

There is something magical in old people who embrace fresh ideas, who remember how “naughty” they were as teenagers. They see the world from a higher viewpoint. They pass on the understanding they garnered over many years yet still find room to consider how things have changed.

When you consider a holiday as sitting at a bar on a beach with other souvenir seekers, you’ve gone off track. A better holiday would be one to stretch your mind to new thinking. Go to Tibet, Zambia, live with the homeless in your own town for a month. (Don’t take any money or credit card.)

Soak up new experiences. Do you think what you call meditating is really meditating? Isn’t what you’re doing just a relaxation technique?

Do you vote for the person, party or policy? Why?

Do you respond to a serious question immediately, before giving thought to its reason or possible relevance to the topic?

Even fools have something to teach.

Life isn’t a matter of keeping mindlessly busy or sipping cocktails by the pool. It’s a voyage of discovery. The end is near when you aren’t interested or interesting any more. If you keep telling the same joke it’s time to get a joke book.

If you never tell a joke, it’s time to see the clever presentation of a fine comedian. It’s something to strive for.

Do you complain about the movies? Make a half hour thriller.

Old people tend to have leg troubles. Buy a bicycle now or start dance lessons. Meet new people.

Start a blog; you’re reading one. Tell us your story. That means you have to think about it, organize it and make it interesting. It may end up being that book you always were going to write.

FEED YOUR MIND. Keep those green shoots coming.

Wit or Wisdom.

This is really from the Massachusetts Bar Association journal.

Q: "Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?"
A: "No."
Q: "Did you check for blood pressure?"
A: "No."
Q: "Did you check for breathing?"
A: "No."
Q: "So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?"
A: "No."
Q: "How can you be so sure, Doctor?"
A: "Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar."
Q: "But could the patient have still been alive nevertheless?"
A: "It is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law somewhere."

I rest my case for promoting intelligence.
Jay Ross. IQAdult.

P.S. Wow somebody sent a comment to a previous blog! But it was anonymous, so you missed out on some goodies I was going to send to the first commenter. Any takers?

To answer your question; when some topic proves to be popular. At the moment I'm covering a wide area in the hope of garnering some interest and feedback.

The report, "How to Remember Names With Faces and Influence People" is available and there will be many more free reports as "Instant Info". Just email - iqadult@gmail.com

If you want a more comprehensive report on memory training Click Here!

2007-04-14T23:05:00.000-07:00

ATTITUDE is one of the secrets of life.

You’re sick or successful, sad or happy, mean or generous, brave or a coward, despised or well respected because of the Attitude you have. That is a fact.

It doesn’t matter if you think you can or can’t do something. You’ll be right.

Your Attitude will make you right whatever you think. Think about that.

You will succeed or fail, not because of the job ahead, but because of how you THINK.

Approaching any endeavor with “I’m not going to be able to do this.” is ensuring a bad job. You’ve made it so by the attitude you took. Yes talent and physical laws come into it but if it is possible to do, your attitude is the next major factor. And most of the time we underestimate what we can do.

SURPRISE YOURSELF WITH YOUR OWN ACHIEVEMENTS.

Attitude and motivation are twins. Motivation provides the right attitude and attitude feeds motivation. You’re the winner.

Remember the issue about Habits? (No.5) Habits of thought make your attitude. Continually complaining means you’ll get nowhere in life because you have an attitude only other losers have. Successful, happy, well adjusted people won’t want to know you. Isn’t it time to wake up to the fact?

Rich people associate with other rich people and get richer because they reinforce their ‘riches attitude’. A successful marriage or relationship requires work and understanding. It needs the attitude of ‘learning and growing’ not of getting your own way, fighting. Fighting is for self defense, not subjugation of the partner.

Where do we start with the right attitude? The answer is with its twin.

What is your motivation?

Ask yourself why you can’t hold a job for long. Is it because you were always told you were useless or an idiot? Don’t blame anyone! Just realize!

Your ‘success motivation’ has been over-ridden by low self esteem.

Get over this by making sure to do a really good job of something. It doesn’t have to be anything great, just a good job.

Trying to get control all the time is often motivated by lack. Gaining power covers that lack. Maybe if you faced the reason behind it, your attitude would change. You’d feel freer.

The health of your relationship comes from the observations you made growing up. Do you come from a broken home, one of continual fighting, or a loving, caring, nurturing environment? Chances are that your current relationship is like that.

Realize and change your attitude. Do something good for your partner today. Just a compliment can do it. Just saying “champ” to your son or “princess” to your daughter can make their attitude change.

You influence other peoples’ attitude. Do it for mutual good. It returns to you.

Treat other people as you would like to be treated.

What has this got to do with IQ? It’s smart to have the winning attitude. It’s the intelligent approach. It gets things done. .

I enjoy feeling satisfaction in achievement. I don’t enjoy depression. Your self worth is shown by your attitude. It’s there on display.

CHANGE YOUR ATTITUDE AND YOUR LIFE WILL CHANGE.

You start to become what you make in your mind, through attitude, through habits.

“We are what we think,” – Buddha

“As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”- Proverbs 23:7

Start dressing well. Be more polite. Learn something new. Change for your better.

Print this and blue-tack it to your PC.

MY FUTURE IS THE ONE I MAKE.

Say it, actually SAY it now.

Believe it and start making your future.

People are making a fortune teaching this very principal. You’ve got it right here if only you will PUT IT TO USE. They will sell a ten part course to tell you in different words exactly the same thing over and over. Some of us need repetition.

As your attitude changes; other people will respond with their attitude about you. It spreads. Just let it happen. There’s no need to push.

Now print that sentence in upper case, the one eight lines back.

Answer to last weeks' puzzle - Silence.

Witt or Wisdom?

" Be yourself. Everybody else is taken." From a Dutch transexual on TV, whose name I don't recall.

Let's have your comments.

Jay Ross.

2007-04-07T21:58:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow travelers,

Let’s have some words about what IQ and intelligence are.

Is it knowing what to do at the right time? Surely that’s experience. Is it the ability to remember things? Memory can be taught. Education? It certainly helps but a well educated person can be a complete dullard in a non academic situation.

Does age bring wisdom? Wisdom comes from experience if it is filtered. Is intelligence that filtering process, seeing the essence? Age, by itself, does not bring intelligence. Is aptitude the answer? Are we showing intelligence if we can readily adjust to various situations? An IQ test won’t show this.

If you breeze through the newspaper cryptic crossword every day, it only shows that you’re used to those answers. You’ve been doing it for a long time. Try another puzzle and it will take much longer. You may just have a large vocabulary. In the movie Rain Man, Dustin Hoffman played a savant (not really the right word but its definition is changing) with extraordinary natural memory and skill with numbers. Note “natural”. Is talent like this innate? Yes. Does environment play a part? Yes. Ah, the ‘nature v nurture’ debate, you say? No. It’s obvious that both play a role. What if Mozart grew up in the slums of Calcutta?

So can your innate intelligence be increased? No, but don’t lose hope. It can be developed. You can get far more from the wiring you already possess if you develop it! While you’re not increasing the hardware you can get the most from the software. Most people use their mind like a PC that is tuned to the net but only use the word processor and accounting charts.

How to develop it? Click your red shoes together three times after you say the magic word. If only…

It’s not that simple but it is a lot more fun. It involves exposure to a variety of stimulation, analysis (that filtering process), memory, marrying different ideas, flexibility, imagination, withholding judgment before results, honesty, listening to learn, getting baffled, recognition of a problem, treating life as a game, making quick decisions, um. I won’t go on.

One way to lead a satisfying life is to do what you want to do and make the necessary money doing it. There are two steps to this - identifying what you want and realizing your abilities. Strangely, a lot of people don’t know what they want to do! Do you really know? If you did, you’d be doing it. The first step leads to the second. Identify your abilities, your aptitude, where your innate talent lies. See the sign– Go This Way. It’s white lettering on a red background with an arrow. The arrow is angled upward.

“I want to be a paperback writer”, an actor, build a sales empire, teach, become governor, do research, whatever. Do you write well? Have you sold any writings? Can you do it? An actor – can you slip into a different personality easily, without sounding like you’re reading a script? Can it be sustained? Build a sales empire – do you sell easily, can you run a business, can you teach your talent? Teach – who, adults, children, the homeless? Where does your innate ability lie? Have you done any aptitude tests? Are you artistic or very logical? If you do it easily, you can probably make a living at it. Write a list of things you would like to do if money wasn’t a problem. It can be anything you want. Be playful with this list. Let any fancy fall onto the page. You must write it down, not leave it in your head. There’s the biro. Do it right now. Go on. I’ll wait.

You’ll find more ideas come to mind over the next few hours. Write these down as they come. The next step is to leave it for a day, then divide it into similar activities. If the majority concern dealing with people; why are you in accounting? Are they academic? Why are you a painter? Maybe physical interests; why sit behind a desk at work?

Now take action. Join an amateur theatre group or speakers’ club. Start an internet small business or write a detailed summary of your novel. If you’re going to do anything, you’ve got to start. You must let that innate talent out for your own happiness and the notice of others. You’ve got the battery and light so get connected. Shine.

Like to easily remember names with faces? Mail “names” to iqadult@gmail.com It’s a free lesson.

THIS WEEKS’ PUZZLE.

You’ve heard of opera singers shattering glass with their voice. Science has proven that it can happen in strict circumstances, but is unlikely in everyday life. What is something that can be shattered just by any loud noise?

Answer to last weeks’ puzzle – 35 minuts early.

QUOTE. “I’ve never made a mistake in my life. I thought I did once but I was wrong.

Anon.

Jay Ross. Send your input. We’d like to hear from you.

IQ Adult is about extending your mind.

2007-03-30T23:24:00.000-07:00

Now girls and boys we have a story about the Habit.

Habits are invisible creatures that grow in the maze of the magical Synaptic Mind Forest, a very spooky place that’s always growing and changing until it can’t find any more Stimuli, which it feeds on.

Stimuli wander in from the outside and are gobbled up by the Synapses to make more tentacles. They like their tentacles because they can ‘shake hands’ or make contact with other Synapses. When they do this; they get stronger, like a big social network. And that’s good.

The world wide web and internet is a big social network just like the Synapses built, but they did it first. And we couldn't have done it without them. In fact, we can’t do anything without them. Synapses rule. OK.

Now, the Habits come from the land of Potential (a very, very strange place). When Synapses join up they open the rabbit hole to Potential just a teensy bit. And every time they do, the Habits grow stronger.

Now, Synapses and Habits both have a stupid side to them. They eat any Stimulus that happens to be there. It doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad, they don’t care. So if you put bad Stimuli into your Mind the Synapses will grab them and help make the Habits stronger. And that’s not really wise.

“How come?” you say. That’s a Question and they’re great to have on your side but sometimes hurt when they’re thrown at you. Hit them with an Answer and they go away. There’s some sitting on the keyboard so have this one.

Good Habits make life easier by helping you do, or get whatever you want. Get enough of them and they’ll help you achieve anything that is possible. Yes, anything. You know they’re working because life is fulfilling and you feel happy and smile a lot. You also help other people achieve this. The more Stimuli you put in to strengthen the good Habits, the better you make your life. And the lives of those near you change too.

So what is possible? It’s very easy to say - far, far more than you know is possible. Honest. Nobody knows how much is possible.

The bad Habits work the same way but they make you feel good for a little while, but then turn on you to make you feel bad. They’re nasty critters. Some people don’t even get to feel good at all because the bad thinking Habits have taken over the Mind. Good thinking Stimuli don’t get a chance. They may come in but there are not enough of them to make a difference. Some people actually think being unhappy is normal so they make the most of it by feeding Complaints to the Habits.

They continually complain so people get annoyed and don’t want to see them, which is good for them because that’s something else to complain about. People who don’t want to see them sometime complain about them, which is making their bad Habits stronger.

The best idea is to delete them from your life and continue to associate with good Stimuli.

What can we do about this? We can starve the bad Habits and make the good Habits stronger. It’s easy to say but the bad Habits will fight back. The trick is to ignore them. When they come in say, “I know what they’re doing but I don’t want this bad Habit anymore.” That’s when you make a Stimulus for a good Habit. “Thinking makes it so”. Just by thinking about good Habits, you’re making Stimuli for them to grow. The more often you do it, the more effective they are. Keep reinforcing good Habits.

Visualize yourself bashing the bad Habit and turning to the good Habit to shake hands. Good Habits really are your friends.

What form do bad Habits take? Well Habits are invisible until they show themselves. The obvious ones like addiction, aggression are easy to see and come from unresolved conflict. Habits like low self esteem, saying “can’t”, demeaning other people, keeping nasty secrets or wanting to hurt people, and a lot more are slower to recognise but they're just as bad. The trick is to see them.

Part of an athletes practice involves visualizing the event they're training for. In essence it's making the act of winning a Habit as much as the physical training. Practice involves repetition until it becomes a strong Habit.

Use Habits because they're powerful, but make sure you make the right ones.

Housework.

Re the memory issue. I’ve been asked to say how to memorize a shopping list. It seems obvious. Visualize the shopping centre. Outside are people throwing EGGS at each other but you get past to walk through the strands of SPAGHETTI across the door. Inside, instead of checkout counters there are giant loaves of BREAD which you climb over to fall into a pool of MILK… It’s that simple.

Use the same idea for study keywords. Someone’s birth and death dates can be visualized on a tombstone with their name and a symbol of their fame. Use ‘cat’ for ‘catalyst’ etc. Most important is to USE IT often.

The free lesson on names with faces is still available at iqadult@gmail.com

I want to get you to make comments about the subjects covered here. YOU could be the very first. Let me know what you want to hear about. Only six people wrote for the free names/memory lesson but didn't post comments. Let us hear you.

The answer to last weeks puzzle is - Japan.

Puzzle - Adam wanted to go to the Sci Fi convention but he wanted to get there 10 min early. He thought his watch was 10 mins slow but it was really 15 mins fast.

How many minutes early or late was he, or did he get there on time?

IQ Adult is about extending your mind.

2007-03-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

"I'll always remember what's her name." How many of us have done that?
Memory lapses are so common, but most people don't know that the memory can be improved with some very simple exercises.

The mind responds to training just like muscles do, only it's more fun. Could you remember 100 unrelated nouns in order, backwards and forwards or from any place in between? Impossible? You will in a few moments. Read these words;

man, tree, swimming pool, elephant, sandwich, briefcase, kettle, dollar, map, hat, nose, bus, fish, rope, moon, train, rain, egg, door, spaghetti, ball, shoe, brain, comb, poem.

Look away and repeat them. Now. Yes, now. Most people will get less than six.

The magic is in association and vividness. Associate 'man' and 'tree' in a silly graphic fashion. See a tree growing men like leaves, make them naked if you want, or a man frantically trying to get a tree off his back. Visualize this with action, movement and make it silly. Nobody is looking inside your brain so let imagination run free. Next, link 'tree' and 'pool'. See a tree taking a swim in a pool. Don't bother remembering 'man'. That's taken care of.

Now leave 'tree'. Go to a tiny 'pool' with an 'elephant' leaping into it. See the huge splash. Forget 'pool'. Think of an 'elephant sandwich'. Make it funny. Spend a little time doing these associations. They'll happen faster as you practice. Next is a business man carrying a 'sandwich' instead of a 'briefcase'. He opens it to take out a steaming 'kettle' (see the steam) that pours 'dollars'.

It's ok to use a story but if it ends without going anywhere, just leave it and go on with the last word association. Instead of 'dollars', people could be paying you in 'maps' which you make into a very fancy 'hat'. Women are wearing 'hats' shaped like 'noses'. It's the latest craze. See them.

Continue this with all the words but only two at a time. Leave the previous words. There's no need to think of them. They're already remembered.

When you've finished, write them down. 'Man' was the first.

Now you'll find you can easily recite them backward or from any place in between. Get a friend to test you. Amazing? You can remember 100 words in the same way. All you're doing is taking two words at a time. Review this tomorrow, in your head, and you've got them for a long time.

Now for the hard part. People learn this and don't use it. Crazy. Remember your shopping list; your study keywords; any list of words. As you keep doing it, it will become second nature.

Congratulations.

LEARN TO MEMORIZE NAMES WITH FACES.
Email me at iqadult@gmail.com Put "names" in the subject line.
This is a free report.

PUZZLE. John has lived a third of his life in England, then a sixth of it in the USA, and twelve years in Japan. He then spent half the remainder of his time in Australia and the same amount of time as in the USA, in Africa.
Where was he on his 40th birthday? Answer next week.

Think about it.
Jay Ross.

IQ Adult is about enlarging your mind.

2007-03-09T02:57:00.000-08:00

Welcome.

Last weeks' post stated we'd look at study techniques.

Beside the usual conditions of no distractions, a set time each day, access to reference material and space to do the job, you should always start a "discovery session" with a question. What am I trying to do? Set a purpose and aim for it. Is it to understand how something works, write a precis, sort through facts to a conclusion, remember figures? The idea is to establish relevance.

* We learn by linking to what we already know. If you want to teach or be understood, link (associate) with what your audience knows. Pluto? God of the underworld? Plutocracy? The Disney dopey dog? The planetoid? How many moons does the planetoid have? If you thought of the dog, imagine three balls going around the dogs' head like in cartoons. Tell someone Pluto has three balls. You've associated and learnt.

* Get an overview. Briefly read the beginning and end of your reference works and any headings in between. A student I know who consistantly does well, reads childrens' encyclopedia articles for the simple overview. Cleaver. There's a vast amount of info in precis form on the net. Fill in the details as your understanding demands.

* Ask how, when, where, why, what and who. Why did it happen? What drove them to do this?

* Study to tell somebody. Whether it's another student, family or examiner, it forces you to organise thoughts. Find an interesting part and build your knowledge around it. If you live with a student, ask them what they learnt today. It helps them organise and review the information.

* Review within 24 hours. Go over the subject and reinforce what you know. There'll be vague bits that you can clarify. Longer than a day lets the info fade. To be really sure, skim over the lot again within 7 days.

* Look for faults. In one week I read that the population of Sydney was 3.2, 3.8 and 5 million. I also read a maths textbook that had a glaring error in a simple probability lesson. Even teachers make mistakes.

* Visualise. Make "mind maps" or family trees of relationships between facts, events,characters.

* The more senses you use, the more will be remembered. "The Nile is the longest river but the Amazon has the greatest volume." If you say it and then look in an atlas, you'll know it. Use touch, sound, taste or smell wherever you can.

Next Friday you can increase your memory. There is no such thing as a bad memory; only an unused one. This is easy and fun and you can teach others to do it.

How many moons has Pluto? Now a link - One of them is almost half as big as Pluto!

IQ Adult is about enlarging your mind.

2007-02-23T21:05:00.000-08:00

Whoo, it's been a long time since the first post but there's been a death in the family. That sort of thing can't be planed for, as far as timing goes. Anyhow, I can get back to a routine again, hopefully. This was intended to be updated every Friday.

While on the housework side of things; there was a problem with email, so if you sent anything, I didn't get it. This doesn't sound good on a site dealing with inteligence and better mental functioning. Ah well.

Being an eternal optimist, I can only say it shall be better. Mistakes are part of life so when they happen, learn what went wrong and remember the right way to do it. Definately don't blame yourself for a stuff-up.

Your self respect and attitude are major forces in your life. More about that in coming weeks.

Did you read up about Ginkgo? Are you using it?
It's taken as a pill because the natural product is not readily available, but Omega 3 fatty acids are easy to get in abundance. so what are they, what do they do and where do we get them?

Omega 3 is found in some vegetable oils and mostly in fish like Salmon, Tuna, Mackerel, Herring, Anchovies and Sardines. There are 3 types of Omega 3 - ALA, DHA, and EPA. For general purposes, that's all you need to know. These fatty acids are important for the brain, heart, eyes and nervous system and help reduce inflammation in joints.

The main benefit seems to be in assisting the heart and therefore the brain (memory) because of better blood flow. It has a calming effect with mood. Clams, mussels and flax (linseed ) oil also contain it. Interestingly eggs and meat from free-range animals contain higher amounts than just grain fed animals. Kiwi fruit also has a high level and even Cannabis Sativa has it in reasonable amounts. That doesn't mean you should chew hash for health; eat fish.

Now we can't talk about Omega 3 without Omega 6. It's because they act together and should be in the correct proportions. Ideally that is about 4 parts of Om3 to 1 part of Om6.

Omega 6 comes from raw nuts, seeds and vegetable oils and is good for healthy blood and tissue mending. So it's good for the skin too.

Now let's put this information together and get thoroughly confused.

For better mood, memory, tissue repair and blood flow we should take Fish Oil supplements and use peanut oil or sunflower oil. Right? No. Those oils are deficient in Omegas.

The only reason you need fish oil capsules is if you don't eat any of the fish mentioned; don't eat nuts, seeds or vegetables and live on grain fed beef exclusively. It doesn't matter if you fry it in sunflower oil (low in Omegas). You're not getting essential fatty acids.

Remember the ideal ratio is supposed to be 4 to 1. Well somewhere between Canola and Soybean oils is good, but to confuse things, Olive oil is 13 to 1 and generally plays a large part in the diet of the least heart disease prone European people on the planet; those on the Mediterranean diet. So are the recommendations valid?

Next; if blood flow is so essential to mental wellbeing and a healthy heart, why not just exercise? It's because we need to eat right and exercise. Nutritionists tell us we don't need supplements and the pill people say there's heavy metals in our fish doing us harm. Who's right?

Remember we were told to eat fewer eggs because of cholesterol, then told the opposite. Coffee is bad for you and then it's good. Alcohol is the devils' brew but a glass or two of red wine is healthy. Pork is riddled with bad bacteria, eat grapes to lose weight, vitamin C stops colds, Noni juice for something and snake oil for something else.

What has this got to do with learning? We must treat ourselves holistically. Our physical health is important to our mental health. Try to study while you have a headache; it's useless. Can the Omegas help with mental functioning? Yes. But so can a sensible diet that includes a variety of foods in balanced amounts. Vegetarians tend to be smarter. Is it because they don't eat meat, or is it because they're smarter, that they don't eat meat?

Carnivores, particularly those who eat a lot of red meat tend to be more aggressive. Vegetarians tend to be more peaceful, not to be confused with weak. Some of the most powerful animals are vegetarians,- elephants, giraffe, gorillas etc. It certainly makes more economic sense to grow crops rather than cows. But this doesn't mean to leave meat. Eat a variety of foods.

You ARE what you eat. Your body and brain are made from what you put into your mouth. Remember this next time you want to chomp on junk food. It's putting dirty oil in the engine.

Most of us should eat less. Eat a light breakfast and have small amounts during the day, according to your body type and level of activity. Sitting at a desk does not require much energy so do not eat much. A hearty meal is for a physical laborer. A big meal at night, when all you'll be doing is watching TV, goes down the toilet or is stored in the body as fat .

Are you carrying extra weight? Get real. Look at your energy input and output. Sluggish in thinking? What type of food and drink are you consuming?

Being fresh and clean after a shower, being in a good mood after a laugh, settling into "discovery time" (not "study time") routine are all beneficial to learning. So is your environment. Studying in a cramped, untidy room with noisy or visual distractions is self defeating.
That is for next time.

To get in touch personally email Jay Ross

As a legal disclaimer, I've got to say this is for entertainment only and no responsibility whatsoever will be taken for use or misuse of this material.

IQ Adult is about enlarging your mind.

2007-01-25T02:10:00.001-08:00

Hello and welcome,
Here I want to discuss how we can improve mental abilities

to operate smarter
with more confidence
to see things afresh
to learn quicker, and tricks to learning
to help our brain and therefore mind
get rid of sloppy thinking.

Subjects open for comment include the use of chemicals, drugs, foods, meditation, memory systems, yogic science, logic, ways of learning, savants, to name some. There are others but that's a start to get things moving.

Your input is what I'm interested in. I want to both learn and teach.

If you're a genius or member of Mensa or involved with teaching or research into intelligence, even if you're a student who wants to get away from caffeine as a study aid; you're welcome.

If you're involved in mental health or wellbeing, let us know your opinion.

Let's not make this a stale academic site. We learn a lot through humor, and clever jokes are appreciated. Try to keep the average reader involved. Please don't use 8 syllable words when simpler ones will do the job.
We don't want to hear about orthotetrachidecahedrons when you're describing beer bubbles.

The purpose of language is communication. If you want to get your message across learn how to express yourself properly. It's an aid to understanding as well. The dictionary is a friend.

The USA. in particular has let its teaching of spelling and word usage slide to annoying depths. Marketers use "your" and "you're", "its" and "it's", or "then" and "than" indiscriminately; leave off plurals, use "gonna, wanna", non-sense sentences and just don't care.

Maybe they don't know any different because their teachers are semi literate too. Here in Australia it's gone the same way.

I've had kids say "He swimed ofa" (He swam over.), TV presenters are constantly saying things like "tooa" instead of "tour". A year eleven student wanted my calculator to add $1.65 and $1.10 ! What are they being taught?

Here, the education authorities have started separating the brighter students to give them faster more ambitious programs to satisfy their thirst for knowledge. But there are people who knock the system on the grounds that it may make the students feel superior to their less gifted friends! What? They are superior!

Maybe they'd go on to be teachers if they were paid enough.

I get pissed off when I see talent left to die. OK. That's my little rant.

Back to writing and communicating; yes, typo's happen but if you want to be taken seriously at least seem competent.

C'mon, let's start.

You've probably heard about Ginkgo. or more precisely Ginkgo biloba, as a memory enhancer,
aid to concentration, scavenger of free radicals, friend of white blood cells to combat infection, and generally increase physical and mental wellbeing. It's been marketed as a study aid because it increases blood flow to the brain.

The increase in blood flow also helps lessen impotence ( a stronger erection, gents ) and the chance of minor heart strokes. Tinnitus, ringing in the ears, is thought to be a symptom of poor circulation and Ginko biloba has been effective in minimizing the effect. It's a powerful antioxidant so there is benefit all round.

I've used it for memory and concentration and thought I was better for it. A friend who used it said he found a definite improvement with concentration (hello Bert). It needs 4-5 weeks to do its job. It has no down-side like alcohol or coffee. Many students take it as a 'done thing'. It's part of breakfast or dinner.

Have a look at what google has here.

Ginkgo does increase blood flow by thinning the blood, which is good for the brain, but that's not the only way to increase blood flow. Running 'on the spot' or any form of exercise will do it too and be of more benefit physically than popping a pill. Regular breaks from a task will help keep on track.

People selling alternatives say Ginkgo has no effect when the blood flow is normal. This 'report' (sales blurb) I'm looking at mentions an allergy medicine that causes memory loss, and a relaxation technique that helps memory. It won't say what these are because it wants to sell the book about it.

Q. Does anybody know of this allergy medicine or other pharmacy products that dull the brain?
Arrrgh, I'm going to be deluged with product names - good. We'll make a list of ones to avoid.

There are plenty of breathing exercises to help.

OK, so if you want to try it; buy some from the local store. It won't do you harm. Follow the guide on the bottle and do not take more than 4.5 grams per day. I don't know of any adverse reactions but overdoing anything is dangerous.

Ginkgo biloba ( F. Ginkgoacae ) is a tree dating from dinosaur age. The leaves look like maidenhair fern, quite pretty. But it's not recommended for built up areas because of its size and the bad smell of the fruit. Cooked seeds can be eaten but no more than 8 per day. This can cause diarrhea and nausea but it's unlikely that you'll find a tree in everyday encounters.

*******

Just a little about the title "IQ Adult"; the IQ test is not a complete test of intelligence. It has faults, but it was chosen as a part of the title because of its perception by the public, and the fact that so many other names I thought of, were unavailable. It serves the purpose.

On a quiz show, a member of Mensa lost badly. The host commented sarcastically about Mensa but the reply was, "Mensa measures intelligence, not memory."

Here we will teach you memory skills too. IQ tests rely heavily on relationships and similarities between things. Seeing these relationships can be taught too, so in theory, you should increase your IQ score. In any case, the recognition of similarities has led to many great inventions (the biro) and discoveries that have made the world and their discoverers far richer.

Deduction is another aspect we need to look into. A lot of people can see logic in
If A = B, and C = B, then A = C, because they are both equal. So let's put it another way. If horses are quadrupeds, and cows are quadrupeds, then horses are cows.

It's school child logic but sadly 'the masses', including you and I are easily fooled by speakers or writers who are either fooling themselves or intentionally trying to fool us for a sinister or selfish end. We need only look at politics or any emotive issue.
Stay tuned and you'll be better equipped to see that soon.

*******

This is the very first issue of my very first blog so I'll keep it short. Please tell a friend, or twenty, about it and watch the baby grow. I'm excited.

Have you used Ginko, are you using it, or do you want to?


Does somebody know how to squish these boxes closer?

By the way,"edres" or "edress" is "e-mail address".
So much easier.







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