Welcome to Part-Time America

Written by: Sal Pezzino -@sp1989

If you were to look at the state of the United States economy, on paper it would seem as though everything is OK. The Dow Jones has been flirting with 16,000, stock prices are soaring, and the unemployment rate keeps going down. The truth is that it is all entirely artificial. Read more of this post

Am I Getting Old, or Are We Just Screwed?

Written by: Sal Pezzino @sp1989

I am 23 years old and have grown up appreciating all of the music, pop culture icons, toys, technology, and the like. The past few years have been strange, I would say it started around the time I started college but I don’t think that has any correlation with the way I have been feeling over the past few years. I have just grown completely dissatisfied with my generation and the things going on around me. Read more of this post

A Vacation Away From The World

A vacation away from the world.

Let your cell phones die, and let your addiction to your favorite social media just pass away right along with it. It’s a place where you’re only there if you want to be, and only joined by people who want to join you. This place does not have an exact location because it is more of a state of consciousness that your mind and body are entranced within. Read more of this post

It Doesn’t Take Common Sense to Know That…Mitt Romney Won the First Debate

So I went into the debate with an open mind. Not knowing really what to expect, but after watching the debate, I must say that it was a decisive victory for Mitt Romney. The mainstream news and media will undoubtedly take sides but coming from a person in the middle I can say that Romney clearly won. Read more of this post

The Universal Currency

the universe

Universal Currency of Knowledge

When you hear of the word currency, the first word that probably comes to mind is money.

The problem is, money isn’t a real currency.

The only true currency in this universe, is knowledge.

Knowledge that money is an irrelevant object in the grand scheme of things, and knowledge that we don’t exactly have the knowledge of why we are even here in these “lives.”

Life is a complete mystery, and has yet to be completely explained by anyone in our race who has ever lived. No one has the true answer for our existence, or even where “we” fit in the picture of the rest of the universe.

What are the implications of this? Read more of this post

The World’s 5 Most Futuristic Artifacts

The Baghdad Battery:

This vase looking structure was completely designed to the specifications of how a battery would work. Found in Baghdad in deep soil and happens to be 2000 years old! What kind of person in that era would have the sophistication to develop such an advancement like a battery? Read more of this post

Most Expensive Food In The World Smuggled Like Drugs

For those of you who do not know, truffles happen to be the most expensive delicacy in the entire world, and they are beginning to create what some call “The Truffle Mafia”.

Italian White Truffle

To be specific, “The Italian White Truffle” which goes for about $3,600 per pound is extremely rare and must be cleaned and cut prior to consumption.

The best example of their value is when in 2007 a man bought a 3.3 pound white truffle for a record-breaking $330,000 dollars…only to be consumed. I personally don’t see what the craze is all about considering that a truffle is technically a mushroom, and paying a good amount of money for a fungus (with the exception of psychedelic mushrooms of course) makes little sense to me. Regardless the rarity pertains with the price as these truffles are subject to an annual worldwide crop of only 30 tons per year.

However, their has been a creation of a black market of truffle selling of a different caliber, namely “Chinese Black Truffles”. Individuals get a white truffle then cut them with black truffles and market them as the rare Italian white truffles to unknowing consumers at high prices. Many complications have come from this, as a huge increase in crime just to obtain the majestic mushroom has risen in France.

Truffle Farmer Using Dog To Sniff Out White Truffles

 

The “Truffle Mafia” as they are called, have done the following in order to obtain these truffles:

  • Raid crops
  • Steal truffles directly from restaurants
  • Car-jacking truffle farmers
  • Beaten truffle farmers
  • Murder truffle farmers
  • Steal truffle farmers dogs that detect truffles
  • Steal the trees that produce the truffles
The scarcity and high prices of these truffles have left an extremely similar resemblance to modern drug trades and practices associated with them.
The reality of the situation that is it a dangerous world and the more scarce something is, the more it is desired and some people are willing to do anything for money.
France alone gets in around 28 tons of the fake “Chinese Truffles” and are passed off through restaurants or wealthy tasteful individuals. These fakes have a value of around only $20 per pound whilst the real ones, as stated earlier, go for a hefty $3,600 per pound.
Who would have thought farming an expensive delicacy would be comparable to illegal drug trades one day? Can’t say I would have seen it coming…

 

Creating Your Ideal Reality

The main problem that arises for many people in the area of self-development is that they feel at effect to their current condition rather than working courageously to AFFECT their current reality.

Many of us feel effected by outside external circumstances instead of deciding to AFFECT them. When you choose to affect your current state of reality, you can reap the rewards effectively.

The universe will deliver whatever you want, you just have to set out your intentions and work towards creating them. You set your intention, and the universe will respond to your thoughts by guiding you along the way as you consciously create.

Subconsciously, without you knowing the exact way, the universe will do its work if you allow it to.

Create Your Own Reality.

Nothing is going to fall in your lap.

If your intention is to earn $1,000,000 dollars, it is not going to fall from the sky.

If you stick to your intention everyday and work at it as hard as you can, the universe will open up channels of opportunities to make your thoughts a physical reality. If for one second you don’t trust in the universe, it will respond to that distrust, and close up the channels.

You will face setbacks along the way, but treat those as learning experiences rather than failures. If you get upset over failing, the universe will tune into that frequency you are vibrating in, and attract more and more failure and discontent.

You have to know that it will not be easy to change your current state of reality.

If it was easy, you would already have what you want.

But most of us don’t, right?

It wouldn’t require any effort on your part, and everyone would have what they want.

It doesn’t work that way, but if you understand the Law of Attraction, you can use it to your advantage on your creative journey of life.

You are the master creator of your reality.

You are the manifester.

You are the alchemist of your own life.

Everything you create has stemmed from yourself.

Everyone else is simply an avatar in your reality, they don’t have to exist in it if you don’t want them to.

You can turn away from people who negatively effect you, and turn towards the positive people who can help you and embrace the entire experience with you.

You have the conscious choice.

There is no one telling you a certain way to act unless you are WEAK and give into the desires of others for their advantage.

Be STRONG and overcome the influence of others if it is guiding you in a wrong direction. You subconsciously know what is right and what is wrong, but too many times you might fall into the trap of doing the wrong thing.

The “right” thing is spreading positive energy and positive ideas to every single person or “avatar” you meet in your reality.

If you try to impose positive energy into other people’s lives, they will respond equally with positive energy.

If they are stuck in a rut of negativity and don’t respond well to positive energy, you can just let them suffer by themselves and consciously find other people to help you on your trip.

If you treat everyone you meet as you would like to be treated yourself, you will be amazed at the results.

Most people will return the energy you project on to them and help you as you help them.

It works hand in hand.

Two minds are better than one and two people working towards achieving a goal is a lot easier than one.

If you have big dreams and goals, don’t feel alone.

A lot of us have deep desires that we wish we could achieve, but we limit ourselves in our beliefs. There are many people out in this world who would love to help you and join team as you both work towards building a great future.

Don’t feel isolated because you don’t think anyone else will help.

If you can inspire people to think the same way you do, they will join your team and the goals will be easier to achieve.

If I thought no one would appreciate this website and what we have done, I would not have even bothered to create it.

It has become what it has become due to a TEAM effort of conscious individuals looking to grow and prosper and share those ideals with everyone who is interested in growing themselves.

If I for one second was fearful of what people thought of us, I wouldn’t have even bothered to create this.

I would have let the fear take over and I would be too scared to even try it.

Good thing that didn’t happen.

If I can leave you with one thought, it would be to stop thinking about what you want and START ACTING ON IT.

Stop dwelling on what you DON’T want and start moving towards what you DO WANT.

TAKE ACTION!

Stop being lazy, and stop expecting things to happen overnight.

They won’t.

Take baby steps and set baby goals at the beginning of your journey.

It will be easy to achieve these goals, and you will build confidence in yourself once you achieve some little steps.

After that, you will trust in yourself that you can achieve ANYTHING you set your mind to.

This is where its gets to be A LOT OF FUN.

Share the experience with everyone you think deserves it, and you will attract some more positive opportunities and people along the way.

We did, and we continue to each day.

So what are you waiting for?

GET MOVING! 🙂

The Courage To Live Consciously

The Evil Eye of Fear

Living consciously is all about the elimination of FEAR.

Fear restricts us from truly going after what we want.

When you fear something, you resist it.

By resisting it, you avoid things you would normally attack and go after if fear wasn’t a factor. Fear is what keeps your evolution and growth as a conscious human being STAGNANT.

Fear of being broke, fear of rejection, fear of trying something new, fear of what others think, fear of failure, fear of humiliation, fear of being alone, and fear of public speaking are a few common fears we all experience.

How many of these fears are holding you back?

As human beings, our main concern is SECURITY.

We are taught at a young age to not take unnecessary risks, not draw attention to ourselves in public and follow family traditions. We are taught not to talk to strangers, and keep an eye out for very suspicious people. Stay safe, don’t take ANY risks.

Well as you grow up in life, you might never realize that the only way to be OUTSTANDING at something is to STAND OUT from the rest.

This involves taking RISK.

The ones who take risks, are the ones who succeed. You cannot simply sit back in your secure little world and expect to get ahead. You should have the courage to meet strangers, speak out in public and  draw attention to yourself if it is for a good cause.

By doing this you create OPPORTUNITIES for growth through new experiences, new people and new ideas that your secure old little self would never get to even scratch the surface of.

Too many of us have LIMITING BELIEFS about what we can or cannot do. Those are just illusions you have created for yourself. There is no such thing as a limiting belief if you don’t believe in limiting beliefs. Quite the concept to grasp if you aren’t experienced in the field of psychology.

Courageous people are still afraid, but they don’t let that fear paralyze them. Instead of letting fear attack their beliefs, THEY ATTACK THE FEAR and overcome their own limiting beliefs.

Eliminate Fear, Grow as a Conscious Human Being

Most people are too weak, and simply give into fear. It is hard when you have been conditioned your whole life to stay safe and stay out of harms way. While this makes sense when you are crossing the street, it doesn’t make any sense in your career and self-development.

If no one took risks, we would all be on the same page. We wouldn’t evolve either. You can’t get better if you don’t take risk. You stay the same, or even worse, you move backwards into a more self-conscious hole of security that doesn’t have room for opportunity to grow.

The courage to live consciously involves recognizing fear, learning about what fear is and how it affects you, then consciously working to eliminate it.

It is not an easy process, but it is certainly doable. If it was easy, there would be no fear in the world, and we would all be successful. That is not the case, because we value security over risk way too much as a society.

As an individual, you have the choice to take risk. It is your life, you get to do whatever the hell you want with it.

Don’t let anyone hold you back and don’t let any limiting beliefs hold you back. Once you can let go of all fear and worry, you create channels of opportunity to grow as a conscious human being.

Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.
John Wayne

How to Manage a Poker Bankroll

Your Poker Bankroll: Manage it, or Lose it.

In poker, you have one lifeline, your bankroll.

Without it, you can’t buy into any tournaments or cash games.

For this reason, the most important thing as a poker player is to protect your life. Protect your money by learning how to manage it correctly.

The basic rule of thumb in bankroll management is to not put more than 5% of your entire bankroll into a cash game or single table sit n go. For multi-table tournaments, you should not be putting more than 1-2% of your roll on the line for a buy-in.

Under these rules, if you have a bankroll of $10,000, you should not be buying in to any cash game for over $500 and no tournament over $100.

At times, there will be opportunities to stretch these limits slightly but only if the games are VERY JUICY and you know you have an advantage.

Even having an advantage in a game doesn’t GUARANTEE that you will win. Luck is always a factor in poker and if you get unlucky, it can take a huge chunk out of your roll that you will slowly have to rebuild.

I will take shots in multi-table tournaments for up to 5% of my roll if I see that the player list is very weak. I want to invest in games I know I have the opportunity to make a lot of return on my investment.

The downfall of a lot of successful players is not managing their roll correctly. They hit a big score in a tournament and then dump it off in the cash games. Keep in mind, as the stakes get higher, the competition gets better.

I use a program called PokerTracker 3 to track all of my winnings and statistics of each of my individual opponents at the tables.

With PokerTracker, I can see how much I have won/lost at a certain stakes so I can determine my long term average win rate. If you are not beating a certain stakes after 10,000 hands, you will probably never beat it until you improve your game.

Find the stake that nets you the best return, and stick to it to build your roll.

You will lose money and win money on any given day depending on a variety of factors. ALWAYS manage your roll and make sure you are playing your A+ game or don’t bother sitting down. If you are not in the right mental state, YOU WILL LOSE MONEY, and losing money causes a lot of people to LOSE EVEN MORE MONEY. They like to chase their losses hoping to win their money back and in the process, rip their entire roll to shreds.

INCORRECTLY Manages a Bankroll

Just ask Viktor “Isilidur1” Blom about bankroll management. This gentlemen might be one of the top 5 No Limit Hold’em players in the world, but he simply cannot manage a bankroll.

I am sure he is being staked and he makes some money from his Pokerstars sponsorship, but he is the complete opposite of an example of how to manage a bankroll!

Blom has won $5,000,000 in a week, then lost it all the next.

He is a complete sicko, but that is what separates him from the others at the high stakes.

His problem like many others is TILT.

He goes on big winning streaks, but can’t cut off his losing streaks.

He is only 21 years old, so I don’t blame him.

It must be tough being a millionaire at his age!

If you are serious about developing your game, I suggest checking out some of my other articles I have written:

The Poker Trance: The Ultimate Poker Mindset

Top 10 Reasons You Should Play Poker

Top 5 Reasons You Lose at Poker

My Multi-Table Tournament Strategy

Booking The Win at Final Tables

The $3,000 Guarantee Final Table Takedown

Top 5 Heads-Up No-Limit Cash-Game Strategies

How to Develop Into a LAG (Loose-Aggressive) Player

My Most Profitable Session of Online Poker

Using a Rubberband To Squash Negative Thinking Patterns

Good luck at the tables! :)

My Top 5 Writing Tools

I have been wanting to do this post for a while and share what I use to do some of my writing and blog posts.

Here are my top 5 tools and instruments for writing!

Music is a Must.

1. Music

Music is an absolute must when I am writing.

I need to have something to have my mind flowing and in a positive state. This is easily achieved through putting on my Bose AE-2 headphones on full volume and tuning out of the outside world. It gives my mind a chance to go completely nuts and spit out anything that I have stored in the back of it.

The type of music doesn’t matter.

What matters is that you enjoy the music and it is putting you in a good mood. When I am in a good positive mood and writing, it doesn’t feel like I am writing, it is more a flow state of my fingers hitting the keys and words being produced in a well structured fashion.

If you don’t feel like that when you are writing, you are not writing in a state of your full potential.

Blast some music and just have at it. Don’t expect anything.

Just write.

DIESEL Runs on Dunkin.

2. Coffee

I need some stimulation to get all of my thoughts out quick and easy.

Coffee is a big help due to the caffeine contained in coffee.

I choose coffee because I like the taste and the hot temperature tends to wake my brain up.

Caffeine releases dopamine in your brain which gives you more motivation, focus and drive.

I take a lot of other supplements as well.

For my full list read: The Ultimate Supplement Stack.

Free Your Mind.

3. Meditation

Meditating right before I write lets me explore every single angle of what I am about to write about.

It is a great feedback method and a way to formulate my thoughts before I sit down to pound them out.

I have a lot of articles written on meditation if you would like to explore the amazing practice:

Top 5 Reasons You Don’t Meditate

Top 5 Reasons You Should Meditate

The Seven Human Energy Chakras

How to Crack Your Intuitive Third-Eye Chakra

The Power of The Subconscious Mind

Out-of-Body Experiences

The Power of Positive Thinking

4. Marijuana

Marijuana: Hey at Least its Not Meth Either.

The ultimate creativity tool.

If you have any objection to pot, and you believe it is a harmful substance, you have been misinformed and lied to.

It simply isn’t.

I am not going to lie, a majority of this site and my writing was created and written while under the influence of marijuana.

I guess it makes me lazy and not want to do anything…

I even work out on pot.

Paranoia? It’s an illusion. Check out this video.

Pathetic propaganda you have been conditioned with.

Try these three easy steps to live the ZazenLife we live.

5. Alpha Brain

Probably one of the best supplements I take.

Alpha Brain is a nootropic which basically means it is a brain enhancing supplement full of great vitamins and minerals

For a full review of this product, please visit Onnit.com and if you are interested in ordering, use keyword “ZENLIFE” when completing you purchase to receive 10% off your entire order!

I am not going to lie, we receive commission from your orders, but all proceeds go towards web hosting, web storage, web design and overall site maintenance.

The Most Advanced Nootropic on The Market.

I hope you try some of my tools and ideas out and give writing a shot if you aren’t already interested in it.

It is a great way to release your thoughts, express yourself, and share what you have to say with the world.

I am going to keep doing it, and I encourage you to as well! 🙂

Panic Attacks: Stop Scaring Yourself!

WHAT IS A PANIC ATTACK?

Panic Attack!

A panic attack is a period of intense fear and worry that a person experiences with or with out an identified trigger that appears to come out of nowhere.

A panic attack usually does not last for more than 10 minutes.

People who have experienced a panic attack at some point in their lives have described it as the most terrifying and uncomfortable situation they have ever been in, especially if the person was having a panic attack in a public/social situation.

More times than not, panic attacks are mistaken for heart attacks and many people rush to the ER for medical attention. People usually are diagnosed with panic attacks when the doctors find absolutely nothing wrong with them. It takes a lot of time for most people to accept that what they experienced was “just” a panic attack because of how intense the feeling could be.

A panic attack can be seen as some kind of a “glitch” in our autonomic nervous system which is responsible to send a general “alarm” to our bodies to either “fight or flight” when we are in a dangerous situation. People who experience panic attacks may have an over sensitive or hyper-reactive autonomic nervous system.

TWO TYPES OF FEARS:

During a panic attack a person will experience two types of fears.

The primary fear is the initial and physical experience of pure panic; racing heart, interrupted breathing, sweating, etc.

SYMPTOMS THAT COMMONLY OCCUR DURING A PANIC ATTACK:

1.) Numbness/tingling sensations

2.) Dizziness,faintness, difficulty balancing

3.) Racing and/or Pounding heart

4.) Chest Tightness

5.) Sweating

6.) Shaking

7.) Hot Flashes

8.) Feeling unreal or as if you’re in a dream

9.) Nausea or abdominal discomfort

10.) Shortness of breath

11.) Fear of dying

12.) Fear of “losing it”

13.) Fear of losing control

14.) Intense need to flee or escape

The secondary fear are the thoughts that follow these physical sensations a person experiences during a panic attack.

THE CYCLE:

Treating individuals who experience panic attacks and a variety of different anxiety disorders, I’ve come to learn that addressing the secondary fears (thoughts) first have been extremely helpful in decreasing the intensity of the attacks. Let’s take a look at some of the very common false beliefs and thoughts that most people have during panic attacks.

“I’m going to stop breathing”

“I’m going to pass out”

“I’m going crazy”

“I’m going to embarrass myself”

“I’m going to fall”

I’m going to have a heart attack”

“I’m going to die”

These thoughts and internal dialogue will only intensify your panic attack, so cut it out!

Not so easy right?

Well here are some facts about panic attacks that may help you negate these thoughts and help you kick panic attacks in the ass.

MYTH BUSTING!

Busted!

You will NOT suffocate because of a panic attack:

When distressed, your body tends to tighten the muscles, and that includes your neck and chest muscles which reduces the extent of your respiratory function. This does not mean there is anything wrong with your lungs or breathing at all. If you are not taking in enough oxygen, your brain will utilize it’s built in mechanism to force you to take deeper breaths or gasp. Yes, the feeling of suffocating IS NOT PLEASANT, but trust that you will not actually suffocate. There are no recorded deaths of suffocation during panic attacks 🙂

You will NOT faint because of a panic attack- Due to hyperventilation, (fast,fast breathing) during a panic attack, you may feel light headed which may give off the impression that you are going to faint. NO! Your blood circulation to your brain has slightly decreased. This is far from deadly. Allow the light-headed feelings to diminish, they will with time, along with slowed breathing.

Guess what!!? During a panic attack your heart is beating a little quicker; people usually faint when their hearts slow down.

So Much Panic!

You will NOT fall during a panic attack:

Sometimes you may feel as if your legs are too weak to hold your body which triggers the thoughts “I’m going to fall”, which then leads to “I’m going to embarrass myself or get hurt”.

Adrenaline is released during a panic attack which sometimes causes dilation in blood vessels in your legs. This feeling is JUST a feeling. Your legs are not actually weaker, they are just as strong as they were before the panic attack.

You will NOT go CRAZY during a panic attack:

A common reaction to rapid breathing is the sensation of feeling “not in reality”. Again, this is JUST a sensation. If you experience a feeling of disorientation or “dream like”, tell yourself that this is just a reaction to a change in your breathing. People do not go crazy from a panic attack. Mental illnesses are complex and usually progress slowly over time. There are no recorded “psychosis” due to a panic attack.

Stay Strong!

You will NOT have a heart attack during a panic attack- A healthy and strong heart can beat 200 beats per minute for as long as several weeks without a problem! Your heart can withstand a lot more than you think it can. There is a MAJOR difference between what your heart feels like during a panic attack and during a true heart attack.

THE DIFFERENCES:

During a panic attack your heart may pound and beat more rapidly and sometimes people complain of some pain. This pain quickly subsides.

During a true heart attack, there is much more consistent pain involved and intense pressure against the chest. This pain gets worse and worse.

EKG research indicates that during a panic attack, there are no abnormalities in the heart other than rapid beating. EKG tests indicates quite a few abnormalities in the heart during a heart attack.

APPLYING IT:

Now that you have learned a little more about the realities of panic attacks, try to replace your catastrophic thoughts with your knew FACTUAL knowledge. You are not going to die from a panic attack. Yes, they are scary, traumatic, and serve as interruptions in the lives of many, but don’t give them THAT much credit.

You may tell yourself, even after learning and knowing all of this, that during your next panic attack, that this one is different. you may tell yourself, “This time it’s really a heart attack.”

Well now you will know that that is one of the most common thoughts people have during panic attacks.

A last piece of advice- Embrace the symptoms. The more you try to avoid these symptoms,  such as isolating yourself, constantly seeking medical attention, avoiding walking,talking and just being during a panic attack, the more you will reinforce your false beliefs that they are dangerous. You are stronger than a panic attack. Laugh at it. Millions of people experience panic attacks.

THERE ARE NO RECORDED DEATHS DUE TO PANIC ATTACKS!

You will NOT go CRAZY during a panic attack:

A common reaction to rapid breathing is the sensation of feeling “not in reality”.

Again, this is JUST a sensation. If you experience a feeling of disorientation or “dream like”, tell yourself that this is just a reaction to a change in your breathing. People do not go crazy from a panic attack. Mental illnesses are complex and usually progress slowly over time. There are no recorded “psychosis cases” due to a panic attack.

You will NOT have a heart attack during a panic attack- A healthy and strong heart can beat 200 beats per minute for as long as several weeks without a problem! Your heart can withstand a lot more than you think it can. There is a MAJOR difference between what your heart feels like during a panic attack and during a true heart attack.

ATHLETES WOULD BE DROPPING DEAD:

If our hearts could not sustain some rapid beating once in a while, don’t you think athletes would be dropping to the floor left and right?

You may tell yourself, even after learning and knowing all of this, that during your next panic attack, that this one is different. you may tell yourself, “This time it’s really a heart attack”. Well now you will know that that is one of the most common thoughts people have during panic attacks.

A last piece of advice- Embrace the symptoms. The more you try to avoid these symptoms,  such as isolating yourself, constantly seeking medical attention, avoiding walking,talking and just being during a panic attack, the more you will reinforce your false beliefs that they are dangerous. You are stronger than a panic attack. Laugh at it. Millions of people experience panic attacks every day.

No One Dies From Panic Attacks!

THERE ARE NO RECORDED DEATHS DUE TO PANIC ATTACKS.

Where Does The Sky End?

When you look up in the night sky, you might see some pretty stars and cool constellations, but how many of us actually realize that we are looking at something that goes on FOREVER?

Do you know what forever even means?

I mean we like to describe space as being infinite, but how do you even explain that?

We can say infinite means it never ends, but what does never ends mean?

It means we can’t possibly ever explain it.

Where Does The Sky End?

We know it never ends, it keeps expanding and never stops, but what is it expanding into?

What does the universe keep expanding itself into? Another infinite realm? How many possible “infinities” are there?

I bet in 1,000,000 years we wont even be able to explain it.

As a race we like to describe some of our members as “geniuses” but how smart do you have to be, to be able to crack the entire mechanics of the universe?

I don’t think it is possible with our current biological structure.

We have come a long way in brain size and power in the last 2,000,000 years but we still can’t explain everything. We are the only species on the planet that can gaze into the night sky and contemplate these types of things, but we are never going to have a full explanation.

We are going to have to evolve into something else before that ever happens. That’s the point of evolution, to adapt, get smarter, and keep figuring things out slowly.

That is what our purpose is.

As we keep creating new things, new innovations and new technologies, our biology will eventually keep evolving to adapt.

It has to, survival of the fittest, the weaker genetics in our species will die off and in time, a whole new “race” will be born.

It will just take too long for “us” to see, we only are here for a temporary time.

The next time you think you have a problem here on earth and you are stressing over it, just look up.

The Idea of Infinity is Too Difficult to Possibly Fully Explain.

Look up and think about the vastness of this whole thing we are a part of. It’s fucking crazy if you really sit back and look at the big picture.

It might be scary at first to realize how much of an insignificant role you play, but that is only a limiting belief you have about yourself.

The universe is infinite already, and it keeps expanding?

You are already infinite too in your potential, and you can keep expanding and evolving, so don’t EVER limit yourself to something you “think” you can’t do.

We are moving into an age of truth, everything will be exposed and there will be no more lies.

I think in due time, we will be able to read each others minds and there will be no more secrets to hold. Maybe in a time like this, there won’t be any more lies and deceit, and we can evolve even faster towards our predetermined outcome.

What that outcome is, remains to be foreseen, but lets enjoy the fuck out of this temporary life while we have the chance. 🙂

Online Gamers Solve Decade-Old HIV Puzzle In Three Weeks

In just three weeks, online gamers deciphered the structure of a retrovirus protein that has stumped scientists for over a decade, and a study out Sunday says their breakthrough opens doors for a new AIDS drug design.

The protein, called a protease, plays a critical role in how some viruses, including HIV, multiply. Intensive research has been underway to find AIDS drugs that can deactivate proteases, but scientists were hampered by their inability to crack the enzyme’s structure.

Looking for a solution, researchers at the University of Washington turned to Foldit, a program created by the university a few years ago that transforms problems of science into competitive computer games, and challenged players to use their three-dimensional problem-solving skills to build accurate models of the protein.

Within days, the gamers generated models good enough for the researchers to refine into an accurate portrayal of the enzyme’s structure. What’s more, the scientists identified parts of the molecule that are likely targets for drugs to block the enzyme.

Within days, the gamers generated models good enough for the researchers to refine into an accurate portrayal of the enzyme's structure.

“We wanted to see if human intuition could succeed where automated methods had failed,” said Firas Khatib, a lead author of the study, published in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.

The researchers were hopeful that their finding would open further possibilities of crowd-sourcing and online game-playing in scientific discovery.

“The ingenuity of game players is a formidable force that, if properly directed, can be used to solve a wide range of scientific problems,” Khatib said.

Seth Cooper, a co-creator of Foldit, added, “People have spatial reasoning skills, something computers are not yet good at. Games provide a framework for bringing together the strengths of computers and humans. The results in this week’s paper show that gaming, science and computation can be combined to make advances that were not possible before.”

source: io9.com

First Step Towards A Truly Immersive Virtual Reality

Monkeys can now feel virtual objects using a brain implant.

This could be the first step towards virtual reality where you can feel the computer-generated world around you.

An international team of neuroengineers has developed a  bi-directional brain-machine interface. That means the monkeys can use this brain implant not only to control a virtual hand, but also to get feedback that tricks their brains into “feeling” the texture of virtual objects.

"Feeling" the texture of virtual objects.

How it works:

When you’re wearing a pair of big bulky gloves, the sensory information usually provided to your brain by your fingers is deadened by the barrier between your hand and your keys. The result is a one-way interface; your brain can tell your fingers what to do with the keys, but communication from your fingers back to your brain is effectively cut off. As a result, you have to rely on another sense — usually vision — to tell if you’re currently pinching one key, three keys, or no keys at all.

To really make the most of your fingertips, there needs to be a two-way interface between your brain and your hands. When your brain can receive tactile information from your hands about, say, the texture of the key you’re handling, it can make near-instantaneous adjustments that give you better dexterity, or help you choose the right key.

Brain-machine interfaces have come a long way in recent years, but, with few exceptions, these systems have depended pretty much exclusively on one-way interfaces.

To demonstrate the power of a two-way interface, a team of neuroengineers at Duke University designed a brain-machine-brain interface (BMBI) to test on monkeys.

“This is the first demonstration of a brain-machine-brain interface that establishes a direct, bidirectional link between a brain and a virtual body,” said Miguel Nicolelis, who led the study. “In this BMBI, the virtual body is controlled directly by the animal’s brain activity, while its virtual hand generates tactile feedback information that is signaled via direct electrical microstimulation of another region of the animal’s cortex.”

Here’s how it all works: the BMBI takes movement commands from 50—200 neurons in the monkey’s motor cortex and uses them to control the operation of a virtual, “avatar” hand, not unlike a classical one-way interface. But the new interface also implements a feedback mechanism, wherein information about a virtual object’s texture is delivered directly to the brain via something known as intracortical microstimulation, or “ICMS” for short. When a monkey receives feedback in the form of ICMS, thousands of neurons in its brain (neurons that actually correspond to tactile feedback in the hands) receive electrical stimulation via carefully placed electrodes.

This two-way interface allows for the monkeys to engage in what the researchers call “active tactile exploration” of a virtual set of objects. Using only their brains, monkeys were able to direct their avatar hand over the surfaces of several virtual objects and differentiate between their textures.

To prove that the monkeys could pick out specific objects based on tactile feedback, the researchers would reward monkeys for selecting objects with a specific texture. When they held their virtual hand over the correct object, they were given a reward. The study looked at the performance of this task by two monkeys. It took one monkey just four attempts to learn how to select the correct object during each trial; the second, only nine.

Source: www.io9.com

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