Derek Lowe, an Arkansan by birth, got his BA from Hendrix College and his PhD in organic chemistry from Duke before spending time in Germany on a Humboldt Fellowship on his post-doc. He's worked for several major pharmaceutical companies since 1989 on drug discovery projects against schizophrenia, Alzheimer's, diabetes, osteoporosis and other diseases.
To contact Derek email him directly: derekb.lowe@gmail.com
Twitter: Dereklowe
2. DepressedPsychologist on December 21, 2012 5:49 PM writes...
Ok, but seriously. Time is a strange thing. I suspect some Mayan with a brilliance started this calender from an intuitive understanding of his own mind. It's actually quite an organic idea, actually the only Organic idea in a sense. Ideas are products of time, much like motion is, the difference being in the fractal-like symmetry across the modularly functioning brain, thoughts spread out across the brain and can be retrieved via different modalities but only if the thought has propagated across the brain, And can only be retrieved with identical 'base' timing, think 'tip of the tongue'. Our ability to accurately estimate time decays with age as does our memory. Chronometry is central to CNS function in all it's forms.I suspect that such time keeping eventually becomes apparent to the most brilliant in a sect/society at least instinctually. Take newgrange in Ireland, it's a timekeeping masterpiece. A little understanding must have given such priests/'druids' great power, I have no doubt that time keeping in mayan culture did the same and was probably central. One of many ways a little knowledge can be abused or used. What about today, are we still limited to our biology in our sensation of the passage of time, is it still being abused. I imagine substance abusers are being abused by it most. But wow, TV news reports today, what power they must have wielded then. Are there other examples?
The real apocalypse:
Boom and doom: Revisiting prophecies of collapse, New Scientist issue 2846, Jan. 7, 2012, p. 38 (currently available free with registration).
One of the most important - and scariest - articles I've ever seen.
1. anon2 on December 21, 2012 5:08 PM writes...
Oh, come on now.
Permalink to Comment2. DepressedPsychologist on December 21, 2012 5:49 PM writes...
Ok, but seriously. Time is a strange thing. I suspect some Mayan with a brilliance started this calender from an intuitive understanding of his own mind. It's actually quite an organic idea, actually the only Organic idea in a sense. Ideas are products of time, much like motion is, the difference being in the fractal-like symmetry across the modularly functioning brain, thoughts spread out across the brain and can be retrieved via different modalities but only if the thought has propagated across the brain, And can only be retrieved with identical 'base' timing, think 'tip of the tongue'. Our ability to accurately estimate time decays with age as does our memory. Chronometry is central to CNS function in all it's forms.I suspect that such time keeping eventually becomes apparent to the most brilliant in a sect/society at least instinctually. Take newgrange in Ireland, it's a timekeeping masterpiece. A little understanding must have given such priests/'druids' great power, I have no doubt that time keeping in mayan culture did the same and was probably central. One of many ways a little knowledge can be abused or used. What about today, are we still limited to our biology in our sensation of the passage of time, is it still being abused. I imagine substance abusers are being abused by it most. But wow, TV news reports today, what power they must have wielded then. Are there other examples?
Permalink to Comment3. gippgig on December 24, 2012 1:36 PM writes...
The real apocalypse:
Permalink to CommentBoom and doom: Revisiting prophecies of collapse, New Scientist issue 2846, Jan. 7, 2012, p. 38 (currently available free with registration).
One of the most important - and scariest - articles I've ever seen.