17 replies to this topic

[Rogerdodger]

I like Snickers, instant coffee and smoked spare ribs.
But I watch friends of mine who try to be pure.
I have a friend who is a cardiac nurse in a speciality heart hospital.
She buys "special" foods and pays double.
She takes all manner of herbs.
She avoids McDonalds like the plague.
She separates her trash and recycles.
She refuses to use bug sprays.
She does all of this religiously.
She also smokes and drives an SUV to work.

In a way it reminds me of the small town gossip who sits on the front row at church.
It just don't make no sense to me.

But I have observed similiar proclivities in many others and always find it fascinating.

Well last week I heard some remarks that the author Michael Crichton made in a speech to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco on September 15, 2003.
He questions some commenly held "truths" but I think he goes a long way to explain some human behavior and the desire to return to "the romantic view of the natural world as a blissful Eden" as he calls it.

So grab a rib sit back and enjoy his off-beat view:

Michael Crichton

[andie]

Very interesting. Thanks. Andie

[Rogerdodger]

I thought it was.
It's amazing how we humans can think so logically yet the emotional aspect is always there, directing (or mis-directing) our conclusions.
Isn't it funny how intellegent humans can NEVER discuss religion or politics because of the emotional influence.

Psychology influences perhaps all we do.
So it's logical that one of the first books I ever read on trading was written by a Psychiatrist, Dr. Alexander Elder. I don't know if he treated people before or after they began trading.

[PorkLoin]

Psychology influences perhaps all we do.  So it's logical that one of the first books I ever read on trading was written by a Psychiatrist, Dr. Alexander Elder.

Roger, no doubt. (And coffee is our friend.) Surely we are all our own worst enemies when it comes to trading. If we get to the point where we're not really our own enemy, then the market will not be either.

Even though I've heard it said that most traders lose, there are a ton of good traders who follow sound systems in an unemotional manner, and who make money fairly consistently. They don't put all their eggs in one basket, don't pick tops and bottoms, etc.

Okay, great, but that's not much fun for me.

Best,

Doug

[TechSkeptic]

Very thought-provoking article, Roger. Thanks for posting.

[Rogerdodger]

PorkLoin:

And coffee is our friend

Coffee has been heralded THIS MONTH ANYWAY as being a health plus.
A couple of years ago it was bad for you. Bad, good, bad, good.
But pork spare ribs will always be killers! Bring 'em on.

PS: If eating natural organic food is so good for you, why are all the cavemen dead except for those two on the Geico commercial?

Edited by Rogerdodger, 03 October 2005 - 10:09 PM.

[Rogerdodger]

We know so little!


New source of global warming gas found: plants
Wed Jan 11, 1:06 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - German scientists have discovered a new source of methane, a greenhouse gas that is second only to carbon dioxide in its impact on climate change.
The culprits are plants.
They produce about 10 to 30 percent of the annual methane found in the atmosphere, according to researchers at the Max-Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany.
The scientists measured the amount of methane released by plants in controlled experiments. They found it increases with rising temperatures and exposure to sunlight.
"Significant methane emissions from both intact plants and detached leaves were observed ... in the laboratory and in the field," Dr Frank Keppler and his team said in a report in the journal Nature.
Methane, which is produced by city rubbish dumps, coal mining, flatulent animals, rice cultivation and peat bogs, is one of the most potent greenhouse gases in terms of its ability to trap heat.

Concentrations of the gas in the atmosphere have almost tripled in the last 150 years. About 600 million tonnes worldwide are produced annually.

The scientists said their finding is important for understanding the link between global warming and a rise in greenhouse gases.

It could also have implications for the Kyoto Protocol, which calls for developed countries to cut their emissions of greenhouse gases by 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2008-12.

Keppler and his colleagues discovered that living plants emit 10 to 100 times more methane than dead plants.

Scientists had previously thought that plants could only emit methane in the absence of oxygen.

David Lowe, of the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand, said the findings are startling and controversial.

"Keppler and colleagues' finding helps to account for observations from space of incredibly large plumes of methane above tropical forests," he said in a commentary on the research.

But the study also poses questions, such as how such a potentially large source of methane could have been overlooked and how plants produced it.

"There will be a lively scramble among researchers for the answers to these and other questions," Lowe added.

[calmcookie]

Roger, Thanks for article. Interesting, and I agree with most of what he said. The emotional idea that anything "natural" is better for our health is absurd. Afterall, the hemlock is a perfectly "natural" plant, but eat at your peril. Unfortunately, the public laps up this "health food" nonsense. My best friend's sister was a devout vegetarian and obsessive health nut who always bought "organic" and spent twice as much on food, as anyone else. She died of ovarian cancer at age 28. Linda McCartney was also a devoutee to "au naturel" and surely had the means to buy whatever quality she preferred. She also died, of cancer, well before her time. Only two anecdotal examples, but I could site many other reasons for poo pooing vegetarianism. There is so much garbage espoused in the world of health by people who have no scientific training and are merely repeating something they've read or heard, without any logical evidence for their beliefs / views. People rarely ask for "EVIDENCE," because that would require that they THINK. Fortunately, the world of health can be NUMERICALLY assessed. There is absolutely no doubt that high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol, high fasting insulin levels, high triglyceride levels, resting tachycardia, low hemoglobin and hematocrit, abdominal obesity and a few other factors that CAN BE MEASURED are associate with poor health, several chronic illnesses and the likelihood of a shorter life span. I think if people have decent health numbers, sufficient energy to enjoy their life and no disease symptoms, then just keep the same eating and lifestyle habits ... you're probably doing fine. It's when people have numbers that are way out of wack, are tired all the time and / or have a variety of disease symptoms (such as headaches or other pain) THEN they should start experimenting with lifestyle changes. As for the coffee ... well, if you function fine with it ... then drink up and keep enjoying life ... but, if you're having health problems, consider the scientific fact that coffee is a central nervous system stimulant that increases adrenaline / cortisol and insulin levels ... and maybe, just maybe you'd function better without it. It's all about experimenting with what works for the individual. What gets my dander up is when people complain about poor health but are unwilling to at least TRY to make changes and stick with it long enough to see if the change was good or not (typically 2-3 months). Enough of this ... but, you got me going Roger ... and I have no need for coffee . C.C.

Edited by calmcookie, 14 January 2006 - 10:46 AM.

[Tor]

It's all out the selfish gene IMO. True philanthropy is also over, certainly amongst the majority. The rest is about doing things which either suit us better or make us feel better or look better. Maybe people don't like to talk about their religion because they know they fall short but it is more comfortable not admitting it.

[calmcookie]

It's all out the selfish gene IMO. True philanthropy is also over,.

Dear TR ... you're entitled to your opinion, however, I respectfully disagree. There comes a point in life when true philanthropy is the only meaningful activity ... for your life to have purpose and meaning outside yourself. To do something because you believe in it ... and believe that it will somehow leave the world as just a tiny tiny bit better off ... that is fulfilling. The journey to discovering that point is pure fluff. Selfish pursuits can only carry you so far ... and that's not far at all, IMHO.

I sincerely wish you well, C.C.

Edited by calmcookie, 15 January 2006 - 12:45 PM.