PHILADELPHIA — Elin Danien quietly listens to a meditation tape, eyes closed, as the radioactive tracer is injected into her IV, freezing a picture of the blood flow in her brain. As a research associate at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Danien is sharp enough to organize an upcoming exhibit on the Mayans but finds herself increasingly forgetful. Now she is part of a study to determine whether meditation can improve brain functioning — to measure how traditional spiritual practices alter the structures of the brain itself. It is typical work for Andrew Newberg of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine — perhaps the nation’s leading expert on the biological basis for religious experience. More exotic subjects of his brain scans have been nuns at prayer, Buddhist monks during meditation, Pentecostals speaking in tongues and entranced Brazilian mystics who write out messages from the other side. These subjects have little in common theologically. But the activity of the brain during intense religious experiences is often (though not always) similar. The frontal lobes are activated, indicating attention and focus. The thalamus shuts down normal sensory input. And the parietal lobes — which ground us […]
The waves of mass psychedelic utopianism have come and gone, but the hippie movement of the late ’60s echoes in the rave scene of the ’90s. And there’s a small but devoted community of scientists, spiritual seekers, artists and grown-up hedonists exploring the value of these drugs. The ‘Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics’ conference, held in New York Sept. 19-21, sought to present an older and wiser psychedelic movement, focusing on medicine, art, spirituality and culture. It drew around 300 people, a mix of academic and hippie types, with the white button-down shirts slightly outnumbering the dreadlocks and the NASA T-shirts. Psychedelics are ‘the most powerful psychiatric medicine ever devised,’ said psychotherapist Neal Goldsmith, who curated the speakers. But because the way they work as medicine — when used in the proper setting — is by generating mystical experiences, ‘science has to expand.’ Solid research, he added, could change government policy, which classifies psychedelics as dangerous drugs with no accepted medical use. The most promising current medical research, said Rick Doblin of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, is in coupling MDMA (Ecstasy) with intensive psychotherapy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. Preliminary studies, he said, have had ‘very […]
Web radio stations live to fight another day. The House of Representatives has unanimously passed a bill that Web radio stations have painted as life or death for their services. The Webcaster Settlement Act, which would allow Internet radio stations to negotiate with the music industry for a royalty rate lower than what Congress mandated last year, passed the House by a voice vote on Saturday. Proponents of the bill had predicted a close vote. Tim Westergren, founder of Net music service Pandora, said he was elated about triumphing in the House, which came after traditional radio broadcasters withdrew their opposition. Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters, said Saturday night that Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) had met with representatives of the group and addressed some of their concerns. As a result, the NAB dropped its opposition in the House and will not oppose the bill when it moves to the Senate for a vote, either Sunday or Monday. ‘The bill having passed unanimously in the House certainly gives it momentum heading into the Senate,’ Wharton said. Webcasters are fighting for the right to negotiate with the music industry […]
WASHINGTON — The seeds of the House Republican revolt over the financial industry bailout were sown in an e-mail message circulated Monday night as internal animosity built quickly over the Bush administration’s request for $700 billion to prevent an economic collapse. In a message to members of the conservative Republican Study Committee, leaders of the bloc of more than 100 lawmakers solicited ideas, calling for a ‘free-market alternative to the Treasury Department’s proposal so that, regardless of how individual R.S.C. members vote on final passage, House conservatives have something to be for.’ As the week progressed, it became abundantly clear that one thing conservative Republicans were most certainly not for was the Treasury plan, prompting them to begin searching for an alternative to avoid the perception of strictly being naysayers. By the end of Friday, at least a portion of their alternative seemed likely to be included in the broader proposal as a sweetener for Republicans, although closed-door negotiations continued into the evening on Friday, and the contours of the final package remained in limbo. After years of acceding to the White House on a variety of initiatives despite deep misgivings, House Republicans found the administration’s […]
MOGADISHU — A Russian warship headed for the seas off Somalia Saturday after pirates seized a Ukrainian freighter carrying 33 tanks, munitions and other weaponry, officials said. The Faina, with a crew of 21, including three Russians, was hijacked on Thursday as it neared the Kenyan port of Mombasa with a cargo of T-72 battle tanks, grenade launchers, ammunition and spares for the Kenyan military, they said. The frigate Neustrashimy (Fearless) was ordered to the region in response to ‘the rise in pirate attacks, including against Russian citizens,’ Russian navy spokesman Igor Dygalo said Friday. ‘Russia’s navy will send ships for temporary missions to areas made dangerous because of maritime piracy to protect Russian citizens and guarantee the safety of shipping,’ he said. The frigate, armed with missiles and guns and carrying a crew of up to 200, will stay near Somalia ‘for more than two months in order to guarantee the safety of Russian ships,’ RIA Novosti news agency quoted the commander of the Baltic Fleet, Viktor Mardusin, as saying. Ukraine’s foreign ministry said late Thursday there were 17 Ukrainian nationals, three Russians and one Latvian aboard the Belize-flagged vessel. ‘The captain reported […]
Remote Viewing the Year 2060
