Op-Ed: True roos — Kangaroo intelligence and social skills proven

BY PAUL WALLIS DEC 18, 2020 IN SCIENCE

Sydney - Aboriginal stories have a lot to say about kangaroos. If you’ve ever met one in the wild, they make a lot of sense. Now, finally, European science is starting to agree… In a sort of oblique way.

Researchers from the University of Roehampton (UK) and the University of Sydney have found that kangaroos can communicate in a similar way to domesticated animals. They were required to get food out of a locked box, which they couldn’t get without help, and they did ask for human help.

They looked at the researcher, then at the box, then at the researcher again. They came closer and sniffed and pawed to get attention. There was no doubt that they were trying to get his attention specifically to open the box for them.

(The kangaroos in question are grey kangaroos, not the big red guys which can kick someone straight back up his ancestry as far as he’d like to go. Do NOT approach any kangaroo in the wild and expect a research thesis to be proven. Leave it to the experts.)

A personal story about roos

I have no difficulty believing this. I’ve met roos in the wild and they’re generally pretty cool. One grey roo, in particular, was more than friendly. He was trying to help me. I was in the bush about a kilometre from my place, when I saw him, about 100 metres away near a dried-up wetland. He saw me, and came hopping over. He went well out of his way. He raised a paw, like a traffic cop. I didn’t get it. He was obviously trying to communicate, but I simply didn’t understand.

…I then went on my bush walk and for the first and only time in my life, got lost in the bush. If it hadn’t been for a fallen tree the size of a road train, I’d probably still be there. I have no explanation whatsoever for what or why the roo was trying to communicate, but that was what happened. I never get lost in the bush. That time I did, and that roo was obviously trying to tell me something. This was totally atypical behaviour for a roo. They don’t go out of their way to mix with people. This one hopped 100 metres to do that.

Aboriginal stories about kangaroos

The aboriginal stories don’t doubt kangaroo intelligence. They emphasize it. There’s a classic story in a book called I, the Aboriginal, in which an Alawa boy being taught to hunt is shown a kangaroo. The teacher/hunter tells him that kangaroos will catch flies in their paws, and if they smell humans on the flies, they shoot through. (European science isn’t exactly informative on how roos use their forepaws at all.)

I’ve never seen that myself, nor heard it from another source, but familiarity with bush animals tells me:

• The more mindblowing the information about Australian animals, the more likely it is to be accurate.

• Australian animals do not give a damn about “animal behaviour theory”, never have, and never will

.
• Birds, marsupials, reptiles, and everything else have their own perspectives, and in the bush, you’re very likely to find out what those perspectives are.

Kangaroos are quite smart by any standards

Kangaroos are naturally alert. They have to be. They travel far and fast, and they need situational awareness to manage rough country, (Any leg injury can be catastrophic for a roo, so they need to watch where they’re going, at 40mph cross-country.) many different types of predators, and humans. They need to get a lot of information to find food and water, so they have to be observant. It’s no surprise at all to me that a group of them would try to get someone to help them.

The researchers are possibly slightly off track in one respect. Kangaroos are “social”, to a point. They don’t necessarily herd like other herbivores. In the bush, they will forage for themselves often many in the same place, but they follow the food, not the script. There is usually a local population which groups or doesn’t group around food.

Social groups are far more likely during mating season when they have to interact with each other. Red roos are decidedly antisocial at that time, and male roos do fight. Otherwise, they’re about as social as they need to be. I think it’s underestimating the natural smarts of kangaroos to think they wouldn’t figure out how to get help with something like getting help to open a box. Australians wouldn't be totally surprised if a few roos fixed a broken down truck. Ah well, science has to catch up sometime.


Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-and-science/science/op-ed-true-roos-kangaroo-intelligence-and-social-skills-proven/article/582819#ixzz6i5m7sHPb

Leader of 'virus-free' Turkmenistan champions herbal defence

BY ANTON LOMOV, WITH CHRISTOPHER RICKLETON IN ALMATY (AFP) DEC 18, 2020 IN HEALTH

Ayna Garayeva, a school teacher in the capital of authoritarian and secretive Turkmenistan, began taking extra sanitary measures in her classroom when the government issued new guidelines in August.

As well as standard coronavirus precautions like temperature checks for students, she started fumigating her classroom with the smoke of a herb beloved by the ex-Soviet country's leader.

"We are following the instructions as they are laid out," 42-year-old Garayeva told AFP.

In tightly controlled Turkmenistan, which still insists it has no virus cases, the pandemic has led to a boom in a herb whose Turkmen name translates as "medicine for a hundred illnesses".

Wild rue -- known locally as yuzerlik -- has for millennia been popular in North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia as a panacea for sickness and ill fortune.

But in Turkmenistan, strongman leader and ex-dentist Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has gone a step further.

In March, he ordered wild rue burning on a "systematic level", trumpeting the bacteria and infection-killing qualities of its faintly intoxicating smoke.

At the same time, authorities continued to hold ostentatious mass events and deter citizens from wearing masks.

Since the diktat, the cost of a wild rue bundle has grown five-fold to five manats ($1.43).

In neighbouring Uzbekistan, top sanitary doctor Bakhrom Almatov cautioned the herb has "no direct effect" on viruses, despite having healthy properties.

"After use, many people start sneezing. When they sneeze, the body expels dust that has fallen into it," Almatov told local media.

- Locking down with zero cases -

The World Health Organization declined to comment on wild rue specifically, but said traditional medicine in many countries "is often an important health resource with many applications".

Berdymukhamedov joins the leader of Madagascar, who gained notoriety for promoting a scientifically unproven herbal virus remedy at home and abroad.

Herbal remedies have been widely used during the pandemic in countries with struggling public health systems, like Yemen and Sierra Leone.

Yet Berdymukhamedov's approach to the pandemic changed after the WHO visited in July.

The delegation stopped short of dismissing his boast that that country had zero cases, a claim now only shared by North Korea and a handful of island states.

But it recommended that Turkmenistan adopt measures as if the virus "were already circulating".

WHO Europe chief Hans Kluge tweeted weeks later that the group had "expressed serious concern about (a rise) in #COVID19 negative pneumonia" in Turkmenistan during a teleconference with Berdymukhamedov.

Kluge said Berdymukhamedov had agreed to allow the WHO to sample virus tests "in-country" and send them to WHO labs for analysis.

Since the July visit, non-food shops and restaurants across the desert republic have been shuttered. A ban on passenger trains and cross-country bus travel has been extended into next year.

A mask-wearing regime was put in place in the summer to counter "dust" and unspecified "pathogens".

Turkmenistan has yet to cooperate with the WHO's request for confirmatory testing, however.

- Mutant-green sanitiser -

The WHO told AFP that the request has proven impossible to facilitate due to "travel restrictions".

Turkmenistan has indeed paused inbound flights, but state media last month said several German doctors unaffiliated with the WHO visited Ashgabat to meet with Berdymukhamedov and receive state awards.

Berdymukhamedov's instructions for fumigation are typical of his championing of indigenous fauna and flora.

The all-powerful leader has also feted a national horse breed and a local shepherd dog in statues and various books he reportedly penned.

His wild rue drive has caused a rare spurt in innovation in an economy dominated by the state and crushed by a six-year depression in energy prices.

An AFP correspondent this month visited a trade exhibition where a state-owned company demonstrated new, cigar-shaped briquettes of dried rue that can smoulder for up to 45 minutes.

At 10 manats for six blocks, "they should be affordable to the local population," said a representative, who did not introduce himself.

At an exhibition in October, a representative of the private company Tach, who wished to remain anonymous, showed AFP an alcohol-based sanitiser with a mutant green hue resulting from a wild rue infusion.

The sanitiser, which claims to kill "99.9 percent of bacteria" is yet to go on sale in pharmacies.

PHOTO © Provided by Khaleej Times

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/leader-of-virus-free-turkmenistan-champions-herbal-defence/article/582817#ixzz6i5iLJRmk

How US cities have stepped up to help the homeless
LISTEN | PRINTBY TIM SANDLE DEC 22, 2020 IN HEALTH
Across the U.S. numerous cities have stepped up to hep tackle homelessness in their districts, stepping in where the federal government has failed to act. The actions contain a mix of community inspired activities and more joined up responses.

Despite the lack of a coordinated national response, local communities in the U.S. are making moves to help tackle the biggest blight upon the capitalist model – homelessness. Digital Journal looks at some examples of direct action being taken over the Holiday period.
Tulsa launched A Better Way to help people who are impacted by mental illness and homelessness get jobs and tasks that can provide a full-day wage up to three days per week. The city has also spent more than $.15 million of CARES Act funds to convert a former Tulsa County juvenile detention center into a full-service shelter for the area’s homeless.

Cincinnati passed a law allowing alternatives to pay a security deposit, such as a deposit of smaller installments, or a low-cost insurance company instead of a traditional deposit. The idea is to open the door for low-income individuals who can’t pay the deposit but might be able to afford first month’s rent. Retail giant Kroger’s data gurus are analyzing data collected by nonprofits and government bodies to help address specific challenges that homeless people face, predict homelessness and prevent individuals who are at risk of becoming homeless.
Chattanooga brought together more than a dozen local groups – combining city, county and non-profit resources – in a comprehensive plan to protect the region’s homeless community. The city’s strategy included continued street outreach to share public health information and look for symptoms of COVID-19, donations of food and sanitation supplies and the establishment of an additional quarantine location for patients.

Fort Wayne allocated approximately $1.7 million in CARES Act funding for emergency housing and a regional quarantine shelter set up by a coalition of local non-profits. The funding also helped establish a temporary shelter for homeless women without addictions, and those who are not victims of domestic abuse, which is a major milestone for the community that they hope will eventually become permanent. The city also provided funds to area non-profits for shelter, meals and sanitizing supplies and services.


Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/life/health/how-cities-have-stepped-up-to-help-the-homeless/article/582968#ixzz6i5hkD79l

Machu Picchu to reopen after train protests
BY AFP DEC 18, 2020 IN TRAVEL


The mountainous Inca citadel of Machu Picchu in Peru will re-open to tourists on Saturday after an agreement was reached to halt protests by locals over train services, officials said.

The protests had forced the site to close on Monday, just six weeks after it reopened following an almost eight-month closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Residents of the towns of Machu Picchu and Ollantaytambo have been demanding cheaper fares and more frequent trains on the route between Cusco and Machu Picchu.

The train is the only means of transport for tourists, but it is also widely used by locals.

Protesters occupied the tracks, which sparked clashes with the police and threats to occupy the tourist site.

Authorities in the Cusco region said in a statement on Friday that "social order has been reestablished."

Activists said no long-term deal had been agreed, but that the protests and blockades had been halted until next year.

Machu Picchu was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1983. Visitor numbers are restricted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.



Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/machu-picchu-to-reopen-after-train-protests/article/582825#ixzz6i5h3spNG

Climate change ravages Kashmir's 'red gold' saffron crop

BY PARVAIZ BUKHARI (AFP) DEC 21, 2020 

On sweeping fields once blanketed in lush purple, a thin and bedraggled crop of flowers is all farmers in Indian-administered Kashmir's saffron-growing region Pampore have to show for this year's harvest.

Dry conditions blamed on climate change have seen yields of the world's most expensive spice halved in the past two decades, threatening the future of a cash crop that has brought wealth to the region for 2,500 years.


"These fields used to be like goldmines," said Abdul Ahad Mir in Pampore, just south of Indian-administered Kashmir's main city Srinagar.

The saffron fields in this region were once completely covered in lush purple during the harvesting season
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

Saffron has long thrived there, and Mir's family was reared in the delicate work of plucking the lucrative but tiny crimson threads from purple crocus flowers.

"In my childhood we needed 80 men over a week to pick the flowers," Mir told AFP.

"Today our family of six finish it in a day."

Warming temperatures caused by climate change have made rainfall erratic, depleting the thirsty saffron fields of water. Shrinking glaciers across the Himalayan region have also cut water flows to the foothills downstream.

Saffron is the world's most expensive spice; collecting it involves plucking the crimson threads from inside purple crocus flowers
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

It takes around 160,000 flowers to yield one kilogram of the precious spice, which will sell for around $1,350 in local markets.

But official figures show that harvests of the so-called "red gold" were just 1.4 kilograms per hectare in 2018 -- half the figure recorded in 1998.

Mohammad Ramzan Rather says his acreage in Pampore only produced around 30 grams of the crop this year, down from two kilograms 12 years ago.

The harvest season this year has also been disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic and unrest in the region
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

The harvest season -- which lasts for just two weeks at the end of autumn -- has also been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic, as well as recent security lockdowns in response to a long-running insurgency in the disputed territory, claimed by both India and arch-rival Pakistan.

- Ancient pride -

Historians say saffron has been cultivated in Kashmir since at least 500 BC.

Saffron -- used for tea, cooking and cosmetics -- can cost more than $10,000 per kilogram on the international market
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

Locally the spice is added to traditional dishes and used as an ingredient in Kehwa, a sweet drink served during special occasions such as marriages.

Elsewhere in the world, it is prized for its use in cooking and cosmetics and can fetch prices of more than $10,000 per kilogram on the international market.

Nearly 90 percent of the world's saffron is grown in Iran, but experts consider Kashmir's crop to be superior for its deep red colour and distinct aroma.

Farmers on the ground say the Indian authorities' attempts to introduce modern agricultural technology have been largely unhelpful
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

In 2010, Indian authorities sought to halt the impact of climate change by launching a $54 million fund to introduce modern agricultural technology to farmers.

Authorities have touted it as a success, claiming it has rejuvenated Kashmir's 3,700 acres of saffron fields.

But farmers disagree. They have ripped up plastic irrigation pipes that are now strewn across fields, saying they bring little water and make it harder to till the land.

Others say high-yield seed varieties introduced under the scheme have ruined their crops.

Some farmers are converting their land to apple orchards to use less water; but some still think with traditional methods, there is hope for saffron farming
Tauseef MUSTAFA, AFP

Jalal-ud-Din Wani said some farmers were turning their land into orchards because apples need less water.

Though he said the government's intervention had failed, Wani believes that the luck of some farmers may improve.

If they stick to traditional methods of farming the crop, he said, "there is still a sliver of chance to revive it."


Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/climate-change-ravages-kashmir-s-red-gold-saffron-crop/article/582941#ixzz6i5fm6Epw

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

Odebrecht fined $50 mn in Colombia over corruption
 AFP DEC 28, 2020

Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, which recently changed its name to Novonor, must pay a $50 million fine over corruption related to construction of a highway in Colombia, authorities announced on Monday.

The company was fined "for implementing a system restricting free competition" related to a 520-kilometer (325-mile) section of the Ruta del Sol highway from the center to the north of the country, Colombia's industry and commerce regulatory agency said.

Odebrecht and its local partners Corficolombiana and Episol "diverted resources from the execution of the contract" to pay a $6.5 million bribe to Gabriel Garcia, a government official who helped them win the contract, the agency said.

The move was part of a "corruption scheme deployed by Odebrecht on a global scale, that lasted more than a decade and resulted in the payment of hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes in different countries," it added.

The investigation was based on a plea deal the company reached with the US Department of Justice in 2016, and testimony from Garcia, who is serving five years under house arrest.

Odebrecht executives Luiz Bueno, Luiz Mameri and Yesid Arocha must pay fines totaling $900,000 for "having collaborated" in the Colombian highway corruption scheme.

Odebrecht was at the center of the Operation Car Wash corruption scandal that resulted in dozens of top businessmen and politicians in Brazil and elsewhere in Latin America being sent to jail.

From its launch in 2014, the investigation into Operation Car Wash uncovered a vast network of bribes paid by large construction companies to politicians in several countries to obtain major public works contracts.

The case sparked political crises in several countries. In Peru, three former presidents are under investigation while a fourth, Alan Garcia, committed suicide in 2019 when police arrived at his home to take him into custody.

Odebrecht was ordered to pay multiple fines including one worth $2.6 billion to the governments of the United States, Brazil and Switzerland.

Earlier this month Odebrecht changed its name to Novonor to try to distance itself from the corruption scandals.



Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/odebrecht-fined-50-mn-in-colombia-over-corruption/article/583140#ixzz6i5eBu4tq

Rachid Alexander Male Belly Dancer

 

Rachid Alexander is dancing a classical Oum kalthoum piece and drumsolo during the IMSDC festival in Batumi Georgia 2018

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sashdi/ You may also like these performances: Oriental song: https://youtu.be/rewpFPqk0fQ Drum Solo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEGef...

Foreigners shake up Egypt's belly dancing scene
BY MENNA ZAKI (AFP) DEC 23, 2020 IN LIFESTYLE

At a Cairo wedding hall, Russian belly dancer Anastasia Biserova shimmied to the dance floor in a bright, high-slit skirt and an elaborately sequined bra top.

She swirled her diaphanous pink shawl and glided through the hall as a band pumped out music, while the crowd broke into rapturous applause -- all captured in a video posted online.


"There is no country around the world that appreciates belly dancing like Egypt," she later told AFP.

"Here, there is a growing trend to invite foreign belly dancers to weddings, nightclubs and other events."

Biserova came to Cairo more than four years ago and has built a solid name for herself.

Belly dancers from Eastern Europe, Russia, Latin America and elsewhere have dominated the scene in recent years in Egypt -- long regarded as the birthplace of belly dancing.

But the North African country has seen its community of homegrown dancers shrink, largely due to the profession's increasing notoriety as the country has become more conservative over the last half-century -- and to a broadening crackdown on freedoms.

The profession took a further hit as Egypt's novel coronavirus outbreak forced the temporary suspension of large weddings and the shuttering of nightclubs -- though many dancers continued to enthral audiences with online videos.

- Conflicted views –

Belly dancer Maria Lurdiana Alves Tejas said it took her some time to come to terms with Egyptians' conflicted view of her profession.

Moroccan belly dancer Maya Dbaich in 2014 -- Egypt has seen its community of homegrown belly dancers shrink
Amir MAKAR, AFP

The Brazilian, known as Lurdiana, said she had performed to enthusiastic crowds at weddings and nightclubs, and had even taught at gym classes.

"But there are some who do not see me as a professional -- or (who think) that I did not have a proper education and am only doing this to show my body for money," she said.

"It was very difficult and sad because I spent years learning."

Egypt's belly dancing scene thrived last century, when icons like Samia Gamal and Tahya Carioca rose to fame on the silver screen.

But researchers say Egyptian society has largely seen the dance as entertainment, to be watched but never taken up as a profession.

"This view was bolstered by popular culture, and movies which depicted belly dancers as coquettes, prostitutes or home wreckers," said Shaza Yehia, author of a 2019 book on the history of the dance.

Arabic terms for dancers -- raqasat and awalem -- now often bear offensive and racy connotations.

Recently, authorities have targeted dancers, pop divas and social media influencers who have posted videos online.

Often loosely worded charges against them have included violating "family values" or "public decency".

Foreigners have not been spared in the crackdown.

In 2018, Russian belly dancer Ekaterina Andreeva -- known as Johara -- was briefly arrested for donning a costume deemed too revealing, after a video of her performance circulated widely.

- 'Stirred imaginations' –

According to Yehia and other researchers, belly dancing in Egypt is believed to have especially flourished during the 19th century.

Arabic terms for dancers -- raqasat and awalem -- now often bear offensive and racy connotations
PATRICK BAZ, AFP/File

"Performers at the time were called 'awalem', or the knowledgeable, in reference to their ample knowledge in the arts of singing and dancing," Yehia said.

Its modern-day manifestation was in part shaped by Westerners during colonial times, she added.

Some even argue that the term "belly dance", or "danse du ventre", was originally coined by the French.

"Foreign writers and painters portrayed their own fantasies about Eastern belly dancers," Yehia said.

"These views stirred imaginations in the West, which later sought to turn them into reality."

International dance moves were incorporated into the Oriental dance, and costumes altered to appeal to popular tastes.

Now, conservatives and traditionalists view belly dancers' gauzy skirts and glittery bra tops as too revealing, and often accuse them of being "vulgar" and "overtly sexual".

Dancers performing to classical Arabic music have also become a rarity, instead usually preferring popular electro street music, known as mahraganat -- a genre with fast beats and improvised vocals that purists view as overstepping moral boundaries.

A Russian dancer performs during a belly dancing festival in the Egyptian capital Cairo on December 12, 2012. Egypt's belly dancing scene thrived last century
PATRICK BAZ, AFP/File

Despite the apparent contradictions, foreign belly dancers in Egypt say coming to the country was the right choice.

"Foreigners have to come here to fully understand, perform and practise," said Ukrainian belly dancer Alla Kushnir.

"Egypt is simply the land of belly dancing."

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/foreigners-shake-up-egypt-s-belly-dancing-scene/article/583028#ixzz6i5adTV58

 

Op-Ed: The universe is just a thought, says new theory — Or maybe not BY PAUL WALLIS     DEC 25, 2020 IN SCIENCE Sydney - If the idea that the universe was a big computer simulation was about the equivalent of science fiction B movie, this is the mystic version - The universe simulates itself for information and meaning. Do tell. This idea is promoting itself quite nicely. It’s based on a version of quantum mechanics. So far it has all the pizazz of a quaint new terminology (“panconsciousness”, “panpsychism”, “strange loops”, “not physically there”, etc., and a certain smugness which looks pretty damn lazy to me. If you’ve never read anything in your life, this would be mindblowing. If you have, it’s anything but. The key thing is that “everything is information, expressed as thought.” On that basis, humanity’s claims to existence are in question, as the theory goes on to prove to itself. The universe is supposed to be a self-sustaining mental process, with subconscious micro routines, pure thought, and no advanced beings running the equivalent of a game program. It could even be the past rebooted by future people. Wow, eh? No. It’s bordering on religion, almost psycho-creationism. It’s not exactly a new take on anything much. Anything can be dogmatized into a self-fulfilling prophecy system. “There are carrots; therefore there will be more carrots, because that’s what the system predicts,” aka “God makes carrots.” Never mind the fact that carrots don’t need a system or a theory to reproduce more carrots. They’re not likely to do much else, are they? Ask any vegetable grower how theoretical carrots are. Remarkably few carrots go to church, either. Even evolution is roped in to this remarkably not-very-new theory as “experimentation” by this universal quasi-consciousness. That’s very old science fiction. It goes back to at least Olaf Stapledon’s books circa the 1930s. All you need is a reality, you dumb bastards Quantum physics, which is interesting, unlike this plodding series of self-supporting justifications, is also involved. Quantum physics, if nothing else, is efficient. It works. Quantum reality, in fact, creates its own loops. Quantum entanglement, one of the most significant discoveries of the last century or so, is a case in point. The point being - Everything can have a direct relationship over vast distances, regardless of space and time constraints. Imagine Jewel on a vast scale. Can thought, on whatever level an on whatever scope, manipulate quantum reality? Why not? The human brain generates enough energy to have subatomic let alone quantum particles rattling around all over the place. A universal panconsciousness, or some equivalent, wouldn’t have much trouble doing that either. This is where plausibility meets an obstacle called reality. Horribly (and remarkably ineptly) defined as reality is, you need a medium like existence for all this to work efficiently on any level. In this theory, thought stands in for reality. …Or does it? You have a monoculture of thought creating realities for itself? What about the reality in which this universal mind exists? Can it be one omnipresent thing? If so, where did it come from, as every child quite rightly asks? A reality is a set of applicable integrated functions. (A definition in progress, there.) However, without functionality you don’t have a reality in a functional form. A “self-actualizing” universe could be said to be a tautology – it exists because it exists. How helpful. Particularly to a theory which needs way more legs than this one has. A simulated existence also has a few holes in it. Simulated in relation to what? An underlying existence? An arbitrary existence? This theory has to presuppose the existence of way too many things. Assuming it is mentally possible to create an existence, and many ancient scripts say it is, how do these mental creations fit in with an underlying existence? Not too well, at this point. The properties of the observed universe indicate a lot of things that go boom, much quasi-chaotic behaviour, etc. …And some pretty iffy parameters for what’s doing what, when and where. Superimposed on this almost-slandered reality are things like entropy, cosmic attractors, black holes, and other consistent, if irritating, things rightly or wrongly based on observation. Does this universal panconsciousness have nothing better to do? Consciousness is systemic, systematic, and pretty efficient overall in basic functions. Highter thought is more demanding and often far more complex This state of existence, the electromagnetic circus, doesn’t seem too focused on much more than physical processes. Panpsychism, which links everything to thought, is truly ancient. It goes way back in recorded history. Bigger thinking, like the Tao, start with the premise that the entire process is indescribable. The theory that the universe simulates itself seems more than a little redundant on that basis. Is the universe thinking about what it’s going to do next, before it breaks into showbiz? Chat show opportunities? Blecch. How much of this absolutely requires a universal consciousness to exist? None of it. Basic physics seem to work OK without a dogma attached to each electron. Even if you assume a mind is able to create its own universe, (and there’s precious little reason to believe it can’t or doesn’t at the slightest excuse), so what? Must we have an overarching theory to explain that? This theory also degenerates into some pretty tacky sophisms – “How do you know you’re not dreaming?”, and other paraphrased quotes. “Am I a butterfly dreaming I’m a man”, etc. “Minds that do not require matter”, and other open door non-statements are also included in this delightful package. Do better than that, guys. Very old, and much better expressed centuries ago. This go-nowhere theory achieves its purpose of reiterating millennia of prior thought. It just happens to do so very unimpressively. The ghost of von Daniken is obviously looking for company, so be very very quiet if you’re hunting rabbits.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-and-science/science/op-ed-the-universe-is-just-a-thought-says-new-theory-or-maybe-not/article/583084#ixzz6i5YXgqeT

 

Op-Ed: COVID — 'Transmissible psychoses?' Another disaster? BY PAUL WALLIS     DEC 28, 2020 IN HEALTH Sydney - One of the complications of COVID is “brain fog”. In some cases, it’s actual psychosis and it’s pretty severe. These symptoms are being reported by people who had physically mild cases of the virus. This situation could get very ugly. The psychoses and delirium had been reported previously, notably among ICU cases. The psychotic states could also pose a real risk to others, like family members. Reported cases make rather grim reading. Cases of extreme paranoia and wanting to kill family members have been reported. Conventional anti-psychotic treatments seem to work, but it’s a question of which treatment is appropriate for specific patients. The solutions take time and assets to find. To perhaps oversimplify the issues, let’s explain: • “Psychosis” is a state of severe mental dysfunction where perceptions of reality and unreality are chaotically mixed. • Psychotic people are a risk to themselves and sometimes others. • Psychotic behaviour can include extreme uncontrolled violence at any time. • It’s not at all clear how the virus causes these conditions. Does it flip a genetic switch? Does it do brain damage? Can other viruses cause these problems? There’s a very long list of questions here, none of which currently have effective answers, let alone solutions. The other big, global, problem Given the dubious state of the world’s current mental health, there’s a glaring problem: • Approximately 81 million people are known to be infected. The general consensus is that since many cases are asymptomatic, no symptoms, in fact. Some people simply don’t even know they had COVID. So the real number of infections could be significantly higher. • The people with the lesser physical symptoms seem to be the ones getting the psychotic issues. That may be an indicator of something, but of what? Different types of infection pathology? • Not everyone gets the psychoses, either; that’s obvious. It’s a minority, but it’s an unassessed minority. It could be a million people, and the disease is still spreading, more rapidly than ever. • Psychosis diagnoses may not factor in COVID. About a quarter of the world’s population has some sort of mental issue at some time during their lifetimes. So the virus-induced form can fly under the radar easily. The problem – • There’s no way of accurately assessing who’s at risk, either from the virus or the psychoses or both. • Overloaded health systems may not be able to manage more patients with these symptoms. • Treatments for psychosis are typically much longer-term. Large numbers of people could be incapacitated by the virus for years. • A “transmissible psychosis” could be another catastrophe on top of the existing disaster. There are multiple potential serious dangers if people act on the basis of psychoses. • Reporting systems haven’t been categorizing conditions arising from COVID. It’s debatable whether they can, and how long it would take to have an effective reporting system up and running. The “transmissible psychosis” problem Spread of coronavirus Simon MALFATTO, AFP The idea of a “transmissible psychosis” isn’t so much new as it’s the first actual example; if that’s what this is. Given the rampage of infections worldwide and the generally poor state of mental health management, it’s a gruesome prospect. There are no statistical models, or precedents, for this situation. It’s all going to have to be learned, in the middle of a pandemic. That will be difficult, and time-consuming, and have to be done in the face of rising infection numbers. The relatively low incidence of psychoses looks reassuring; but if nobody knows exactly how many people have the condition, that means nothing. Even the terminology is a hiding place; human behaviour is pretty weird these days. The definition of “not knowing the difference between reality and unreality” could apply to a lot of people, with or without the virus. Even developing tests for these effects could be difficult. Testing would have to be standardised, subjective/objective, to map and positively identify the psychosis. (This also adds more weight to the medical load in managing the disease.) The fact that people have had COVID doesn’t simplify or make it easier to define the medical and psychological issues. The psychoses are separate conditions, “collateral damage”, requiring separate treatment. This is a serious challenge to medical science and to humanity. Viruses have long been suspected of causing additional major medical conditions. How they do that, and how to prevent it, has to become a top priority. The good news, such as it is, is that finding out how to manage this situation could be highly productive. It could create a working method of managing psychoses before they become full-blown. As a parting gift from 2020, however, I think we can say “transmissible psychoses” are up to scratch. What a year

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