Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Notice Where You Are Going - Knowing When to Improvise

Knowing When to Improvise
by Patricia Ryan Madson
http://www.ijourney.org/?tid=544

A successful life involves both planning and improvising. Sometimes we actually do need a script. Those scripts that are working well for us (positive habits, for example) should be preserved and treasured. Spontaneity for its own sake is never the key. Knowing which strategy to use involves examining things clearly. Our moment-to-moment experience is improvisational, even though it exists within a structure or plan. That is, life brings us opportunities, question, and problems to solve, and we respond in real time, trying to make sense out of each challenge or offer. How we live our lives within the structure of our day is an eternal improvisation.

The invitation to improvise is not a prescription for a careless approach to life. True improvisation is always an act of responsibility; it implies a conscious morality. We may know individuals who flaunt spontaneity as the supreme virtue and excuse thoughtless or selfish behavior in the name of “going with the flow.” I am reminded of an inscription on a gold-lettered plaque over an oak bar in a Welsh bar: Pisces Mortui Solum Cum Flumine Natant. (“Only dead fish go with the flow.”) Failure to plan can have real consequences. Scheduling medical checkups is important. It is important to buy airline tickets in advance, fill up the gas tank before the fuel gauge signals empty, and pay a parking ticket the day you receive it. [...]

You are always the one steering the canoe, however. Sometimes on the white-water-rapids course it is both relaxing and exhilarating to be swept along by the swells, oars at rest, watching the scenery and marveling at the ease of it all. And sometimes we must paddle [...] against the current in order to take a fork in the river.

In 1982 I took a year off from teaching to circumnavigate the globe. I bought a one-way around-the-world airline ticket. I was allowed to make as many stops as I liked, in the line of direction, but couldn’t backtrack or go too far north or south of my last stop, and I had to complete my journey within twelve months. Buying the ticket gave me a sense of stability (planning); experiencing all the places was the great adventure. Planning provided a platform for me to improvise. Taking an improvised step always leads you somewhere.

Notice where you are going.

--Patricia Ryan Madson, From "Improv Wisdom"

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Saturday, September 27, 2008

Children Learn By Success Not By Mistakes Especially Before Age 12 - More Successes More Learning

Children of eight may well be able to learn extremely efficiently, only they do it in a different way.'
learn primarily from positive feedback - [by noticing what works, what is successful]

scarcely respond at all to negative feedback.
eight-year-olds respond disproportionately inaccurately to negative feedback.

the brain ... responds strongly to positive feedback: ... It remains active in all age groups
Learning from mistakes is more complex ... You have to ask yourself what precisely went wrong and how it was possible.' [the brain is better 'wired' to learn from mistakes after age 12, the brain doesn't full mature until after age 21 or so]

['Here's what works' gets much better results than 'that doesn't work' - no matter what age.]

[So create many more learning situations where children can be successful, where learning is positive, affirmative, enjoyable. And be acknowledged for their successes. This works well for everyone no matter what age. After age 12 or so, the ability to sort out what didn't work and how to get it to work comes into play also.

Apparently the brain is 'wired' to remember what actually works. Thus the more successful positive affirmative experiences the more that can be learned.]
+++

Learning From Mistakes Only Works After Age 12, Study Suggests

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080925104309.htm

ScienceDaily (Sep. 27, 2008) — Eight-year-old children have a radically different learning strategy from twelve-year-olds and adults. Eight-year-olds learn primarily from positive feedback ('Well done!'), whereas negative feedback ('Got it wrong this time') scarcely causes any alarm bells to ring. Twelve-year-olds are better able to process negative feedback, and use it to learn from their mistakes. Adults do the same, but more efficiently.

Brain areas for cognitive control

The switch in learning strategy has been demonstrated in behavioural research, which shows that eight-year-olds respond disproportionately inaccurately to negative feedback. But the switch can also be seen in the brain, as developmental psychologist Dr Eveline Crone and her colleagues from the Leiden Brain and Cognition Lab discovered using fMRI research. The difference can be observed particularly in the areas of the brain responsible for cognitive control. These areas are located in the cerebral cortex.

Opposite case

In children of eight and nine, these areas of the brain react strongly to positive feedback and scarcely respond at all to negative feedback. But in children of 12 and 13, and also in adults, the opposite is the case. Their 'control centres' in the brain are more strongly activated by negative feedback and much less by positive feedback.

Three-way division

Crone and her colleagues used fMRI research to compare the brains of three different age groups: children of eight to nine years, children of eleven to twelve years, and adults aged between 18 and 25 years. This three-way division had never been made before; the comparison is generally made between children and adults.

Unexpected

Crone herself was surprised at the outcome: 'We had expected that the brains of eight-year-olds would function in exactly the same way as the brains of twelve-year-olds, but maybe not quite so well. Children learn the whole time, so this new knowledge can have major consequences for people wanting to teach children: how can you best relay instructions to eight- and twelve-year-olds?' ’

Ticks and crosses

The researchers gave children of both age groups and adults aged 18 to 25 a computer task while they lay in the MRI scanner. The task required them to discover rules. If they did this correctly, a tick appeared on the screen, otherwise a cross appeared. MRI scans showed which parts of the brain were activated.

Learning in a different way

These surprising results set Crone thinking. 'You start to think less in terms of 'good' and 'not so good'. Children of eight may well be able to learn extremely efficiently, only they do it in a different way.'

Learning from mistakes is complicated

She is able to place her fMRI results within the existing knowledge about child development. 'From the literature, it appears that young children respond better to reward than to punishment.' She can also imagine how this comes about: 'The information that you have not done something well is more complicated than the information that you have done something well. Learning from mistakes is more complex than carrying on in the same way as before. You have to ask yourself what precisely went wrong and how it was possible.'

Is it experience?

Is that difference between eight- and twelve-year-olds the result of experience, or does it have to do with the way the brain develops? As yet, nobody has the answer. 'This kind of brain research has only been possible for the last ten years or so,' says Crone, 'and there are a lot more questions which have to be answered. But it is probably a combination of the brain maturing and experience.'

Brain area for positive feedback

There is also an area of the brain that responds strongly to positive feedback: the basal ganglia, just outside the cerebral cortex. The activity of this area of the brain does not change. It remains active in all age groups: in adults, but also in children, both eight-year-olds and twelve-year-olds.

Journal reference:

Anna C. K. van Duijvenvoorde, Kiki Zanolie, Serge A. R. B. Rombouts, Maartje E. J. Raijmakers, and Eveline A. Crone. Evaluating the Negative or Valuing the Positive? Neural Mechanisms Supporting Feedback-Based Learning across Development. The Journal of Neuroscience, 17 September 2008 [link]

Adapted from materials provided by Leiden University.

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

Doctors Find - Plant-Based Diet & Exercise & Relaxation Helps Reduce Premature Aging and Disease Risk

Plant-Based Diet Helps Reduce Premature Aging and Disease Risk
posted 9/16/08
http://www.pcrm.org/news/archive080916.html

In a study released today by The Lancet Oncology, Dean Ornish, M.D., and colleagues found that comprehensive lifestyle changes, including a low-fat vegan diet, increase the body’s ability to fight premature aging, cancer, heart disease, and other chronic diseases.

Twenty-four men participating in a prostate cancer study switched to a plant-based diet and added daily exercise and relaxation techniques. Among other beneficial effects that were previously reported, the intervention led to increased levels of telomerase, an enzyme that protects and repairs DNA. Blood levels of telomerase increased by an average of 29 percent during the study.

Ornish D, Lin J, Daubenmier J, et al. Increased telomerase activity and comprehensive lifestyle changes: a pilot study. Lancet Oncol [advance online publication]. September 16, 2008; DOI 10.1016/S1470-2045(08)70234-1.
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Increased telomerase activity and comprehensive lifestyle changes: a pilot study

Prof Dean Ornish MD a e , Jue Lin PhD b ‡, Jennifer Daubenmier PhD a ‡, Gerdi Weidner PhD e, Elissa Epel PhD c, Colleen Kemp MSN e, Mark Jesus M Magbanua PhD d, Ruth Marlin MD e, Loren Yglecias BA e, Prof Peter R Carroll MD d and Prof Elizabeth H Blackburn PhD b
‡These authors contributed equally
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470204508702341/abstract?isEOP=true

Summary

Background

Telomeres are protective DNA–protein complexes at the end of linear chromosomes that promote chromosomal stability. Telomere shortness in human beings is emerging as a prognostic marker of disease risk, progression, and premature mortality in many types of cancer, including breast, prostate, colorectal, bladder, head and neck, lung, and renal cell. Telomere shortening is counteracted by the cellular enzyme telomerase. Lifestyle factors known to promote cancer and cardiovascular disease might also adversely affect telomerase function. However, previous studies have not addressed whether improvements in nutrition and lifestyle are associated with increases in telomerase activity. We aimed to assess whether 3 months of intensive lifestyle changes increased telomerase activity in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC).

Methods

30 men with biopsy-diagnosed low-risk prostate cancer were asked to make comprehensive lifestyle changes. The primary endpoint was telomerase enzymatic activity per viable cell, measured at baseline and after 3 months. 24 patients had sufficient PBMCs needed for longitudinal analysis. This study is registered on the ClinicalTrials.gov website, number NCT00739791.

Findings

PBMC telomerase activity expressed as natural logarithms increased from 2·00 (SD 0·44) to 2·22 (SD 0·49; p=0·031). Raw values of telomerase increased from 8·05 (SD 3·50) standard arbitrary units to 10·38 (SD 6·01) standard arbitrary units. The increases in telomerase activity were significantly associated with decreases in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (r=−0·36, p=0·041) and decreases in psychological distress (r=−0·35, p=0·047).

Interpretation

Comprehensive lifestyle changes significantly increase telomerase activity and consequently telomere maintenance capacity in human immune-system cells. Given this finding and the pilot nature of this study, we report these increases in telomerase activity as a significant association rather than inferring causation. Larger randomised controlled trials are warranted to confirm the findings of this study.

Funding

US Department of Defense (US Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity W81XWH-05-1-0375, Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD, USA); Henry M Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine (contract 56422; Rockville MD, USA) from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) of the National Institutes of Health (grant number K01AT004199; Bethesda, MD, USA); Bahna Foundation (Stamford, CT, USA); DeJoria Foundation (Los Angeles, CA, USA); Kerzner Foundation (New York, NY, USA); Bernard Osher Foundation (San Francisco, CA, USA); Walton Family Foundation (Bentonville, AK, USA); Jeff Walker Family Foundation (Wilton, CT, USA); Safeway Foundation (Pleasanton, CA, USA).

Affiliations

a. Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
b. Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
c. Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
d. Department of Urology, The Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
e. Preventive Medicine Research Institute, Sausalito, CA, USA

Correspondence to: Prof Dean Ornish, Preventive Medicine Research Insitute, Sausalito, CA 94965, USA

Friday, September 12, 2008

Dancing Queen - An intimate tribute to the joy of dancing


Sep 12, 2008
	Dancing Queen An intimate tribute to the joy of dancing, this short film by Sumit Roy was shot entirely on a Nokia cell phone--and selected from over 2000 submissions for showcasing on Pangea Day, a day-long global event aimed at bringing the world together through film. Prepare to be delighted.

KarmaTube is a repository of inspiring online videos coupled with small, be-the-change actions that everyone can engage in. Our weekly videos reach 20755 active subscribers. about us \| more videos

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

The Cancer Project - Remove Hot Dogs & Other Processed Meat From Schools - Protect Our Kids

The Cancer Project Launches Major Processed Meat Campaign

girl with school lunch Schools should stop serving hot dogs and other processed meats because even small amounts increase the risk of adult cancer, says a provocative new commercial airing on TV stations around the country. The spot is produced by the Cancer Project, an affiliate of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

The Cancer Project is launching a major campaign to educate the public about the cancer risk found in hot dogs and other processed meats. The campaign includes a provocative new national TV commercial, a survey of processed meat found in the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs, and a grassroots effort to reform federal food policy.

The Cancer Project’s campaign is based on a comprehensive report released late last year by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund. After reviewing all existing data on nutrition and cancer risk, researchers concluded that processed meat increases one’s risk of colorectal cancer, on average, by 21 percent for every 50 grams consumed daily. (A 50-gram serving is approximately the size of a typical hot dog.) The landmark report clearly states that no amount of processed meat is considered safe to eat.

Each year, 160,000 Americans are diagnosed with colorectal cancer. About half of all cases are already incurable when found. Approximately 50,000 Americans are expected to die of the disease this year.

This summer, The Cancer Project debuted a new 30-second television ad based on the report. “Protect Our Kids” features three children at an elementary school who describe their lives from the perspective of adults with cancer. The ad intersperses their stories with shots of hot dogs, deli meats, and other unhealthy foods so often found on school lunch lines.

"Cancer risk starts early," says Neal Barnard, M.D., president of the Cancer Project. "If we don't protect our kids by removing hot dogs, sausages, and deli slices, and pepperoni from our schools, we're stacking the cards against them. Lifetime cancer risk is already one in three for women and one in two for men. Given the terrible eating habits of so many American children, we're setting them up for even worse odds down the road."

As with tobacco, the cancer risk associated with processed meats seems to increase with long-term exposure, so processed meat consumption that begins in childhood poses a profound concern.

The Cancer Project is currently campaigning to reform the federal Child Nutrition Act, up for renewal in 2009, which determines what foods are served in the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture currently includes processed meats in the lists of commodity foods available to schools.

A new Cancer Project survey of 29 U.S. school districts shows that many school menus are packed with processed meats. All breakfasts offered in Minneapolis elementary, middle, and high schools, for example, contain sausage and other processed meats. The same is true for all regular breakfasts offered in Philadelphia schools.

Sixty percent of all elementary school breakfasts, 80 percent of all middle school breakfasts, and 80 percent of all high school breakfasts in the Los Angeles Unified School District contain processed meats. Half of all elementary and middle school breakfasts in the Chicago Public Schools offer processed meats, as do 100 percent of its high school meals. Eighty-eight percent of breakfasts in D.C. middle and high schools contain processed meats.

School districts with the most processed meat at lunch include Atlanta, Chicago; Clark County, Nevada; Prince George's County, Maryland; Columbus, Ohio; Hancock, West Virginia; New York City; and Detroit.

The Child Nutrition Act, which determines what foods are served in the National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs, is up for reauthorization next year. The USDA is holding these listening sessions around the country. Cancer Project and PCRM representatives are asking for various improvements to the program, including more vegetarian foods, equal reimbursement for nondairy beverages as for cow’s milk, and a removal of processed meats from the list of commodities available to schools.

If you are a parent, teacher, student, or concerned citizen who wants to see processed meats removed from your local school, please get involved in our campaign. Contact Caitlin Breen at 202-686-2210, ext. 325, or cbreen@pcrm.org.

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