Brian


Have your own computer brain.

Well not your brain. A mouse brain actually.

Yes for your personal enjoyment you can have an open source, downloadable, multi-scale, virtual catalog of the mouse brain and its cellular constituents sitting on your computer.

Are you excited?

Animated by Drew Berry, The Whole Brain Catalog™ allows users to integrate data in a common multi-scale spatial framework.

You can slice through the brain, check out 3D representations of brain parts as well as cell and molecule models.

Of course if you’re not into 3D then go 2D as well. It certainly beats the old brain anatomy program I have here at home.

So if you want to watch high resolution brain imagery. Observe accurately simulated neuron, readily reseach neurology data or add your own brilliant research, then check out The Whole Brain Catalogue.

I wonder if it will reveal anything of Dr. Anna Katharina Braun's research demonstrating that growing up without a father actually changes the way your brain develops.

Hey whatever turns you on. Although if you are a little macabre and into Halloween (I'm not) you could make your own indestructable brain cake.


“If you always cherish peaceful thoughts, the whole world will appear cool to you, but if your negative thoughts have spread their influence, then the world will seem to be a hot furnace. No circumstance compels you to cherish evil thoughts. Do not ruin yourself through imagination. It has no reality of its own.”

-—Sri Swami Sivananda

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Prenatal sex-based biological differences extend to genetic expression in cerebral cortices. The differences in question are probably associated with later divergences in how our brains develop. This is shown by a new study by Uppsala University researchers Elena Jazin and Björn Reinius, which has been published in the latest issue of the journal Molecular Psychiatry. Professor Elena Jazin and doctoral student Björn Reinius at the Department of Physiology and Developmental Biology previously demonstrated that genetic expression in the cerebral cortices of human beings and other primates exhibits certain sex-based differences. It is presumed that these differences are very old and have survived the evolutionary process. The purpose of the new study was to determine whether they appear during the process of brain development or first upon the conclusion of that process. Identifying the initial genetic mechanisms that prompt the brain to develop in a female or male direction is a long-range research objective.

The Uppsala University researchers analysed data, on the basis of sex, from another extensive study of the prenatal human brain.

"The results show that many of the genes situated on the Y chromosome are expressed in various parts of the brain prior to birth and probably provide a developmental basis for the sex-based differences exhibited by adult brains," according to Elena Jazin.

More than a third of Y-chromosomal genes appear to be involved in sex-based human brain differentiation. Some of the genetic activity in question is evident in the adult brain, while other of it only appears at earlier stages of brain development. It is yet unknown whether the differences in genetic expression among female and male brains have any functional significance.

"The findings are consistent with other factors, such as environment, also playing a role in how we develop," emphasizes Elena Jazin.

Knowledge of the development of sex-based brain differences is of potential significance for the treatment of brain disturbances and diseases. A large number of psychiatric illnesses, including depression and autism, affect men and women differentially.

"Taking account of sex-based differences is crucial to the study of normal and abnormal brain activity," according to Elena Jazin.






“If you always cherish peaceful thoughts, the whole world will appear cool to you, but if your negative thoughts have spread their influence, then the world will seem to be a hot furnace. No circumstance compels you to cherish evil thoughts. Do not ruin yourself through imagination. It has no reality of its own.”

-—Sri Swami Sivananda

Mind Power Masters

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Brian




Kabbalah Congress in Antalya, Turkey A first Kabbalah congress of its kind, the EurAsian Kabbalah congress will bring two continents together under the common theme of "A United World Is The New Reality."

Eurasia Congress

This congress is open to absolutely everyone, whether new to Kabbalah or studying for years.

We especially encourage anyone who is studying with Bnei Baruch via the Bnei Baruch Learning Center on their own or through www.kab.tv.

In otherwords, go to kab.tv and watch or listen for fee!

The Kabbalah congress experience includes lessons with Michael Laitman, cultural evenings, games for everyone, meals, songs, dancing and most importantly, multitudes of people from different ethnicities, languages, and background coming together at a common point of human unity! Also, the 7-star conditions will guarantee a most comfortable and enjoyable stay at the hotel for both adults and children.

The congress is taking place the Kremlin Palace, Antalya Turkey. We are expecting between 1500-2500 participants so make sure you register as soon as possible because places are limited!



“If you always cherish peaceful thoughts, the whole world will appear cool to you, but if your negative thoughts have spread their influence, then the world will seem to be a hot furnace. No circumstance compels you to cherish evil thoughts. Do not ruin yourself through imagination. It has no reality of its own.”

-—Sri Swami Sivananda

Mind Power Masters

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Oxford University Press Release

Scientists have used light to program the memories of fruit flies. The results of the Oxford University-led study are published in the journal Cell.



The research team, funded by the UK Medical Research Council, genetically engineered the fruit flies so that a small set of nerve cells in the brains would ‘fire’ in response to a flash of laser light. This showed which cells are involved in how a fruit fly learns and remembers what to avoid, and offers an exciting new opportunity to investigate how memories are formed.

‘Remote-controlling these cells and turning them on using light creates an illusion in the brain of the fly that it is experiencing something bad. The fly learns from the “mistake” it never really made and improves its actions the next time,’ explains Professor Gero Miesenböck of the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics at Oxford University, who led the work.

The Oxford scientists, with colleagues at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, demonstrated that they could use flashes of laser light to train flies to dislike a certain odour.

‘We tracked the flies using a video camera as they moved around a small chamber while two different odours were fed into the chamber from either end. We found that we could implant a lasting preference for one odour over the other by remotely activating a specific set of brain cells each time a fly strayed into a particular odour,’ says Dr Adam Claridge-Chang, who is now at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at Oxford University.

Using this method, the researchers were able to pinpoint the precise nerve cells that are responsible for telling the flies that they’ve done wrong, narrowing down the search from the 100,000 cells in the brain of a fruit fly to a set of just 12 neurons.

‘Surprisingly, the source of these signals is in a limited number of cells – just twelve,’ says Professor Miesenböck. ‘These cells send the signals that train the fly to associate the odour with something bad, so wherever their signals go must be the seat of memory. We can now follow this up and start to characterise the process by which memories are formed and organised.’

While this work has been done in fruit flies, general lessons about how actions are learned and memories are stored should hold true for humans.

‘Biology teaches us that fundamental mechanisms tend to be conserved. Learning about the storage of memories from brain cells in flies should tell us a lot about how they are stored in humans,’ says Professor Miesenböck.

Professor Miesenböck has pioneered this method of genetic engineering to remote control the action of specific cells within tissues, or whole organisms like worms, fruit flies, fish and mice, using light from the outside. These efforts have given rise to a new field sometimes called ‘optogenetics’, to indicate that sensitivity to light is encoded genetically.

A separate paper by Professor Miesenböck summarising the status of this new field is to be published in Science the same day. As the ability to write memories directly to the brains of fruit flies demonstrates, optogenetic techniques have particular power in neuroscience.

‘The great advantage is that we are no longer just passive observers of processes in the brain. In the past, neuroscientists had to be content with recording the chatter of brain cells and trying to infer what it all meant. The ability to talk back and influence behaviour directly is proving quite valuable,’ says Professor Miesenböck.

“If you always cherish peaceful thoughts, the whole world will appear cool to you, but if your negative thoughts have spread their influence, then the world will seem to be a hot furnace. No circumstance compels you to cherish evil thoughts. Do not ruin yourself through imagination. It has no reality of its own.”

-—Sri Swami Sivananda

Mind Power Masters

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http://www.kabbalah.info Yashar Kel, a contagious, upbeat song about finding the road to something greater than this world.
"Yashar-Kel" means "Directly to G-d".
All humans who have the will to know their creator are called Yashar-Kel.
Knowing your creator means understanding his ways - to love and bestow to all creatures in his creation.

"Kavana" means "Intention".
Praying means - wishing to change your intentions from your selfish intentions - to bestowal to your fellows.



People, don’t worry! The U.S. economy will rebound! As a nation of consumers, our bad habit will be our good fortune! Shopaholics across the country will simply adjust their buying habits according to market trends: Bad economy? Say hello to Frugal Chic! Global warming? It’s hip to Go Green! Armageddon? AWESOME! Imagine the "End Of Times Sale!”


- reikoeoh.com

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Denis Cummings
An Oxford University study has found that practicing a task such as juggling can alter the structure of the brain, indicating that the plasticity of the brain is greater than previously believed.
Juggling Increases White Matter
Researchers tested the brains of 48 volunteers, half of whom were given weekly juggling lessons for six weeks. At the end of that period, their brains were tested again. Those who had juggled—regardless of whether they had become good jugglers—had a 5 percent increase in their brains’ white matter, the nerve strands that connect different parts of the brain. Those who hadn’t juggled had little change.

Previous studies have found that juggling and other mind tasks—such as cabbies memorizing the streets of London—increased the amount of grey matter, the portion of the brain that contains neurons. This is the first study to find that white matter is affected.

Lead researcher Dr. Heidi Johansen-Berg said that the research shows “the structure of the brain is ripe for change.” It raises hope that scientists can design treatments to improve brain function for those with dementia or neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

“Knowing that pathways in the brain can be enhanced may be significant in the long run in coming up with new treatments for neurological diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, where these pathways become degraded,” said Johansen-Berg.
The study, “Training induces changes in white-matter architecture,” is published in Nature Neuroscience.

Background: Strengthening the brain
The Oxford study also found that the white matter of the jugglers did not change and the grey matter did not decrease after four weeks of not juggling. This finding conflicts with a German study released in 2004 that found the amount of grey matter produced by juggling had decreased after three months.

“The brain is like a muscle, we need to exercise it,” said Dr. Arne May, lead researcher of the German study.

There have been studies showing that games and puzzles such as Brain Age and Sudoku keep brains healthy and improve mental skills. Several studies have had promising results giving brain games to the elderly, people with forms of dementia and children with ADHD.

However, the findings on brain training can be misleading, according to Dr. Adrian Owen of the BBC’s Lab UK, who writes that many studies aren’t peer-reviewed, and don’t have a proper control group. He also says that brain imaging, which was used in the Oxford and German juggling studies, “only shows how hard the brain is working, rather than how effective the training is.”

Lab UK is organizing an experiment, called “Brain Test Britain,” that allows Internet users to take online brainteaser tests, use brain training games for at least 6 weeks, and then take the tests again to see if there is an improvement. The study will run for the next year and be published in 2011.

People, don’t worry! The U.S. economy will rebound! As a nation of consumers, our bad habit will be our good fortune! Shopaholics across the country will simply adjust their buying habits according to market trends: Bad economy? Say hello to Frugal Chic! Global warming? It’s hip to Go Green! Armageddon? AWESOME! Imagine the "End Of Times Sale!”


- reikoeoh.com

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“Confidence in the healing powers of God through prayer and contrition is encouraged, provided that the patient uses prayer alongside traditional scientific medicine, not as a substitute for it” stated Dr Fred Rosner, Professor of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine in 1999.

“In Jewish tradition, physicians are obligated to heal the sick and patients are obligated to seek healing from physicians. Judaism also sanctions certain complementary therapies such as prayers, faith healing, and amulets, when used as supplements to traditional medical therapy” said Rosner in his article Complementary Therapies and Traditional Judaism.

The following material is a summary of this article:

In Jewish tradition, a physician is given specific divine license to practice medicine. According to
MosesMaimonides (1138–1204) and other codifiers of Jewish law, the physician is obligated to use
hismedical skills to heal the sick. Not only is the physician permitted and even obligated to minister
to the sick, but the patients are also obligated to care for their health and life.
“Men and women do not have title over their lives or bodies, since they are charged with preserving, dignifying and
hallowing these” writes Dr Rosner.

Healthcare givers are obligated to heal the sick and prolong life. Physicians are not only given divine license to practice medicine, but are also mandated to use their skills to heal the sick. And a patient has a co-responsibility to maintain health.

Human life is of supreme value and religious observance, such as the Sabbath, can be suspended to preserve it.
“Nor may a person turn to treatments known to be ineffective, since this would, by inference, be shortening life” wrote Dr Rosner.

What about Alternative medicines?
Although the concepts of “science” or “scientific” as we know them today first emerged in the nineteenth century, Moses Maimonides, seven hundred years earlier, clearly distinguished between “therapies which heal by nature and whose efficacy is proven by
clinical trials” and “therapies of unproven efficacy” (M. Maimonides’ Mishnah Commentary on
Tractate Yoma 8:6).

In talmudic times (2nd – 6th centuries, CE), healing arts were taught primarily through apprenticeships and from medical books, some of which were written by famous Greek and Persian physicians. None of these precluded a search for other healing modalities.

Prayer
On the one hand, the bible reports instances of health being restored following prayer (Genesis 20:17, 2 Samuel 12:16, 2 Kings 4:33, 2Chronicles 32:24, Numbers 12:13), yet Jewish law does not encourage praying and just expecting a miracle.
“...while every encouragement was given for the sick to exploit their adversity for moral and religious ends and to strengthen their faith in recovery by prayer, confidence in the healing powers of God was never allowed to usurp the essential functions of the physician and of medical science. ”

Amulets
“According to most rabbinic authorities, there is little or no objection in Jewish religious
law to the use of amulets for healing purposes” writes Rosner.

Rabbinic literature lists amulets to ward off the “evil eye,” to avert demons, to prevent abortion, and to cure a variety of diseases such as epilepsy, lunacy, fever, poisoning, hysteria, jaundice, and colic .

Even Maimonides, who seriously questioned the efficacy of amulets, allowed them to be worn and/or carried, even on the Sabbath, because of
their possible psychological and placebo effects on the patient’s illness (Code of Maimonides, Laws of the Sabbath 19:13–14).

Astrology
In Judaism there seems to be conflicting voices over astrology.
Rabbi Solomon ben Abraham Adret, known as Rashba, writes that people used to engrave the image of a tongueless lion on a plate of silver or gold to cure pains in the loins or in the kidneys (Response Rashba 1:167).

Yet Moses Maimonides branded it as a superstition akin to idolatry and denounced it as a fallacy and delusion , absurd . an irrational illusion of fools who mistake vanity for wisdom, and superstition for knowledge

Yet “traces of the belief are found in words and phrases such as mazal tov
(meaning a good star or planet), still used by Jews today”.

Medical Charms and Incantations
An incantation is a recitation over a patient, designed to neutralize harm or illness, and intended to induce healing.
Classic Jewish writers never doubt the effectiveness of incantations, even allowing their use to heal scorpion bite on the Sabbath.

Nevertheless, “The Codes of Jewish Law of Maimonides and of Joseph Karo (1488–1575) point out that such incantations are absolutely
useless, but are permitted because of the patient’s dangerous condition, so that he should not become distraught.”

However, Jewish law does prohibit using ‘forbidden heathen practice” (Leviticus 18:3).

“Some talmudic sages declared that if one whispers a spell over a bodily illness, one is deprived of everlasting bliss” writes Rosner. “On the other hand, the Talmud clearly states that whatever is used for healing purposes is not forbidden.”

Diseases listed as curable by incantations include eye diseases, headache, infertility and epilepsy

Nostrums
Another procedure, that we today would put down to the placebo effect, is “ transference, whereby an illness can be transferred to an animal or a plant by a certain procedure with or without the recitation of an Incantation”. This type of remedy is called a segulah or nostrum.

For example, patients with jaundice were told to put live fish under their soles to transfer the jaundice to the fish.

“The current popular belief among some Jews of the therapeutic efficacy of pigeons in the treatment of jaundice is based on the concept of organic disease transference from the patient to a non-human living animal; it has its parallel in the transference of sins from humans to animals in certain religious rituals” writes Rosner.

Rabbis are divided as to their efficacy or scriptural correctness while others suggest they do no harm.

Quacks and Quackery
Quackery is not condoned in Judaism, even when it is practiced by physicians.
Jewish law requires a physician to be skilled, well educated and ethical. The “faithful physician” is praised and held in high esteem.
Quacks are those who lie and deceive by pretending to have knowledge and skills and falsely claim to be “the best of healers is destined for Gehinnom” (Tractate Kiddushin, Chapter 4:14).
“Physicians are among a group of communal servants who have heavy public responsibilities and are warned against the danger of negligence or error. The talmudic epigram with its curse is limited to physicians who are overly confident in their craft, who are guilty of commercializing their profession, who lie and deceive as do quacks, who fail to acknowledge God as as the true Healer of the sick, who fail to consult with colleagues or medical texts when appropriate, who perform surgery without heeding proper advice from diagnosticians, who fail to heal the poor and thus indirectly cause their death, who fail to try hard enough to heal their patients, or who otherwise fail to conduct themselves in an ethical and professional manner” writes Rosner.

Conclusion
On the other hand, Judaism seems to sanction certain complementary or alternative therapies such as prayers, faith healing, amulets, incantations and the like, when used as a supplement to traditional medical therapy. However, the substitution of prayer for rational
healing is condemned. Quackery, superstition, sorcery and witchcraft are abhorrent practices in Judaism. However, confidence in the healing powers of God through prayer and contrition is encouraged and has a place alongside traditional scientific medicine.


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Paramhansa Yogananda

God, who is love, created man through the love of two souls, and
through love alone man can find his way back to God.
Parents and children should understand that their relationship is not
fortuitous, but is due to a divine plan. Family life is the laboratory in which human love
can be transformed into God's perfect love.
Loving guidance, not harshness
Parents should look upon their child as the honored temple where their conjugal love can
be purified and expanded into filial love. They should feel that they are serving God in
that little temple.
Children, in turn, should look upon their parents as visible representatives of God on
earth. Obedience and respect should activate their behavior.
For parents, kindness and loving guidance should prevail, never harsh treatment. If
parents are harsh or unkind to their children, owing to a lack of self-control, they will
surely prevent God from expanding His love from the parental heart to the heart of the
child.
Parents should take care never to scold their children before others, or to bring an erring
child to rebellion by continuous harshness. Strong, loving suggestions, alongside their
good example, will do more to change a child than anger or harsh words.
The reforming power of love
Some time ago, I accepted a boy into my school in India who was much older than most
of our students. He had been causing difficulties because his parents did not know how to
discipline him properly.
Before accepting him, he and I had a heart-to-heart talk. I said, "You have made up your
mind to smoke, but your parents do not want you to smoke. You have succeeded in
defeating your parents, but you have not succeeded in defeating your misery—think of
what you have done to yourself." My "arrow" struck him and he began to weep. He said,
"They are always beating me."
I told him, "I will take you on one condition. I will be your friend but I will not be a
detective. As long as you are willing to correct your mistakes, I will help you, but if you
tell lies, I will do nothing for you because lying destroys friendship. You may decide not
to tell me everything but do not lie." Then I said, "Anytime you want to smoke, I will get
you the cigarettes."
One day he came to me and said, "I feel a terrible desire to smoke." When I offered him
money to buy cigarettes, he could scarcely believe his eyes. He said, "Take back the
money." I kept pressing him to take it, but he did not want it. At last, after a tug-of-war,
he said, "You will not believe me, but I don't want to smoke any longer."
The result of this discipline was that he finally became a saint. Spiritual growth lies in
making a strong inner effort to resist bad tendencies and to go upstream toward real
lasting happiness.
Give children necessities only
This is why wealthy parents should not leave too much money to their children. More
often than not, it chokes the development of initiative and self-earned success and
happiness.
Give children necessities only, not luxuries. Take care not to enslave them to material
things or selfish greed by too many possessions or too much money.
A child's exercise of will power
Parents often impose their wills on their children. Don't break your child's will by always
denying his inconvenient requests. It's important that your child develop his will power.
As a child, when I made up my mind that I wanted something that could dome no harm,
the members of my family had to consent. I always listened to reason; if ever I was
wrong I was willing to be corrected. When I was right, however, I remained firm even if
the whole family united against me.
I will tell you of an experience I had as a baby. A baby usually cries because it feels a
physical need. This first expression of will, arising from that need, is called
"physiological will." As the baby grows, and the mother directs its will, it expresses
"mechanical" or "unthinking will."
I remember being in that state of mechanical will, always doing just as mother told me.
Everyone called me an angel. One day when with my nurse, I saw some little orangecolored
candies at a drug store, and I asked my nurse to buy some for me. He refused and
took me home.
At home, after having my dinner, I told my mother I wanted some candy. She said, "No,
go to bed." A little later I said, "Mother, I want those little, orange-colored candies." "Go
to bed," Mother said. Thereupon I cried all the more loudly: "I want those orange-colored
candies!"
I continued in my determination to have my way, unheeding of her appeal. Mother finally
had to go and wake up the drug store owner to obtain those candies for me.
I was happy. Why? Because I had exercised my own will power. I found it the most
wonderful feeling. The next morning I was called a "naughty baby," but only because I
had exercised my will power.
Give your child freedom
Remember, when you're young children are self-willed about something that isn't wrong,
don't call them naughty. Listen to their little desires and offer suggestions based on love
and understanding. Reason with them, but don't curtail their freedom.
If they insist, don't say anything. Let them have their own little hard knocks, if necessary.
In that way, they'll learn much sooner what is right. Try not to ask anything of your child
that you can't back with a good reason.
Quicken your child's evolution
Children should be taught to concentrate and meditate. By practicing the scientific
techniques of meditation, they will, from early life, reveal intuitive faculties that will
enable them to grasp knowledge with extraordinary quickness.
Education does not consist of pumping ideas and facts into the brain. It consists of
developing one's intuitive faculties and bringing the hidden soul-memory of all
knowledge onto the plane of human consciousness. All new truths are simply the hidden
truths of the soul; they give us joy upon rediscovery.
By developing intuition, you also quicken your evolution. Teach children to quicken their
own evolution through meditation. Have a little family altar where parents and children
gather to offer deep devotion to God, and to unite their souls in meditation.
Excerpted from: Spiritual Relationships, Crystal Clarity Publishers and the Praecepta
Lessons, 1934-38. Article Index This article from Clarity Magazine - Spring, 2008;


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