Tao Parrot

Could you explain the "live out the story" and "experience unity" parts a bit more?

What do I do next? Isn't that why we ask the other questions? Perhaps not very useful, though.

Okay, so what is free will, exactly? Does it mean there is a magical soul somewhere that is completely non-deterministic? Something that acts chaotically, randomly? Would that even be a good thing? Putting that aside, you have a brain. If bits of your brain are damaged, you stop being able to do things. It's not just about losing motor control, in some cases you stop being able to even think about certain things. So, just where does this free will live? The being that is you that is (hopefully) still reading this post is a collection of cells, which are a collection of molecules, which if you dice it down far enough are tiny little packets of the universe. You are a lump of universe. Does the universe have a free will? Hey, here's the good part: when you die, all that happens is the little packets get separated. We'll all be around for the life of the universe, we'll just...not be looking for food anymore.

Depends on what definition of "shadow" we're using here. Assuming the first definition you find at dictionary.com (which lists over twenty): "a dark figure or image cast on the ground or some surface by a body intercepting light." In this case a shadow is an image, and therefore an artifact of human perception, and you can decide how real you think that is. For example, a scientist might say there is no such thing as cold, just heat. Cold is a human perception of a difference in temperatures. Likewise shadows are a perception of a difference in light levels. Is a difference something? It's a measurement, of course, but because we often perceive a shape in the measurement we are tempted to assign greater meaning to it.

Allergic reactions are caused by an over-enthusiastic response from the immune system, so I don't think strengthening it would be a good idea. One of the current theories about allergies is that the inappropriate immune response was previously countered by parasitic worms in the GI tract, which we no longer have because we are so hygienic. Not that I'm recommending you go out and infect yourself with parasites, but I thought it was sort of interesting.

That's a funny paradox, really. If you call yourself a taoist, you're not.

Something I want to be clear about in my earlier posts is that they were not intending to say anything about "energy" except in scientific terms--Calories (kilo calories) in the case of nutrition. I just wanted to point out that two substances are equivalent by the time they are actually absorbed by the body, and how this would affect one's chi is left for the reader to interpret. Karen, feedback on your article: It feels to me that you are trying to bridge multiple models of how the body functions--western physiology and various Eastern models (chi, etc). I'm not certain these models can and should be bridged. It's a bit like the wave/particle duality. You can look at something as a wave, or as a particle, but trying to mix the two isn't going to necessarily produce a model that is as accurate as the separated versions.

Not sure about raw milk, but as far as honey goes it's actually far more likely to contain some weird unknown substance, a pollen spore or something, which you might be allergic to. It's best to avoid giving it to babies, as a matter of fact.

Not sure if this would help. Honey is mostly glucose and fructose, while table sugar (sucrose) is glucose + fructose, which gets quickly split apart in your small intestine into glucose and fructose. So by the time you've absorbed it, it's pretty much the equivalent.

Nothing, actually. Well, when I drive I sometimes try to not think. Stop the word flow and so on. Of course, it just gets me thinking about stopping thinking. Every once in a while I manage to maintain no-chatter for a couple of seconds. Seems like something I should put more time into, though.

I would say that health journalism is far more confused (or disinterested) on the difference between correlation and causation. Practitioners of alternative medicine seem to be just as guilty...heck, just about everyone is. Not sure why it's such a common error. We have a symbiotic relationship with many bacteria. Viruses, though?

Trust me, doctors understand that proteins get denatured by heat. You can't even get through the most basic physiology course without that being pounded into you. What specifically are you referring to, though? It sounds more like some sort of FDA thing?

Wow, this is really terrific! Thanks!

Health-care workers do make mistakes. Old joke: You know what you call a doctor who got Cs in medical school? A doctor. On the other hand, modern Western medicine has done a lot to improve quality of life. Yes, there are counterexamples, but come on, it's a net positive. Get the vaccines and go to the emergency department when necessary. Disclaimer: I have aspirations to be in health care myself.

Someone told me today that even with long practice in meditation, you don't really stop the constant mind chatter, you merely step back and observe it happening. I had always thought the object was to shut it down. Anyone want to give me their experiences in the matter?