>To: ssread-l@newciv.org >From: viking@cpcnet.com (George Kurien) >Subject: Chapter X >Date: Sat, 6 Jan 1996 17:51:40 -0500 Summary, srs, etc,., related to Chapter X - The 'Organism-As-A-Whole' AK divides this chapter into 3 sections, A, B and C. Section A: relates to Illustrations from biology. ------------------------------------------------- He refers to examples of various animals and how they react, behave, etc responding as an 'orgainism-as-a-whole' response to various stimuli, operations etc,.,. A worm, he explains, rights itself slowly when placed on its back even after the removal of its brain. The nervous system only facilitated a quickeer action. If we sever the worm partly into two leaving only a thin piece of tissue holding it together, the two parts move in a co-ordinated way, as if not cut. A fresh water planarium, when cut transversely into two, both parts with and without the brain move about just as well. Both parts respond similary to light except that the part without the brain reacts slowly. He explains the effect of Na an Ca ions on locomotor activities of the jellyfish, increasing and decreasing contractions respectively. The orientation to light in a number of marine animals changes with lowering the temperature of the sea-water or by increasing the concentration of salts. Frogs, etc can be parthenogenetically produced artificially without being fertilized by a spermatozoon. The means used vary from special chemicals to merely puncturing the egg. An interesting experiment show how a worm retains an acquired habit even after its beheaded. A beheaded moth lives as long as a normal moth. This way AK explains various ways of how the organisms work-as-a-whole. Section B: Relates to illustrations from nutrition experiments. --------------------------------------------------------------- Here AK shows the deficiency of vitamins and sunshine, leads to many widely wide spread and pernicious diseases. For instance cod liver oil OR sunshine cure Rickets. Note the different 'causes' produce similar 'effects' showing a many-to-one relation instead of one-to-one relation in life. Lack of very minute amounts of vitamins produce a most varied, pronounced and seemingly unrelated consequences. The diseases manifested by the lack of vitamins show up in a variety of different tissues. These illustrations indicate the reaction of the how the body reacts as an organism-as-a-whole to vitamin deficiency. Section C: Relates to ilustrations from the 'mental' and nervous diseases. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here he shows how the 'mental' factors produce the same effects as those caused by allergy to certain stimulants. He mentions the production of an attack of hay fever even when exposed to roses made of paper. Simply the belief that the roses were genuine produced this anaphylactic reaction. He expains how Migraine manifests itself from a wide variety of stimuli ranging from physical, to chemical to endocrinal etc. AK mentions also about the phenomenal variety of effects produced by the over/under production of the various hormones. In the various instances, the excess or deficiency of the hormones affect various tissues. To sum up: The NON-EL principle formulates a structural character inherently found in the structure of the world, ourselves, our nervous system on all levels; the knowledge and application of which exists unconditionally necessary for adjustment on all levels, and, therefore, in humans, for SANITY. STRUCTURALLY every organism depends on its environment; and, therfore, in building our languages, we ought to coin non-el terms which treat the organism-as-a-whole without splitting it up. Lastly, AK notes that we do not habitualy apply what we 'know'. The STRUCTURAL implications of language work UNCONSCIOUSLY. He stresses that we need to TRAIN oursleves in THE USE of non-el terms to expect maximum semantic results. GK. (960106) =========================================================================== >From: ceclark@students.wisc.edu >Date: Mon, 8 Jan 1996 21:34:29 -0600 >To: ssread-l@newciv.org >Subject: questions on Chapter 10 Sometimes I don't know how to take K, and I don't think I'm the only one. :) I think Chapter 10 establishes that colloid stuff exists not just in the brain, but that the brain is a specific part of the nervous system that enhances certain nervous functions. As the organism gets more sophisticated, so do the functions that the brain enhances. And the brain contributes, he points out, to the well-being of the organism as-a-whole, both psychologically and physically by producing chemicals it needs, but it needs raw materials like vitamins and chemical environments and so on from the outside, even temperature, saltiness, etc. So then he seems to be transferring, to be making a parallel with the semantic environment. This is where I get a little sketchy. I think if I were making a direct parallel, I might say that the stuff of absolutist thought exists structurally in all the words we use, not just a few main ones about a thought directly. Could anybody comment more on the semantic parallels involved here? Or is he setting this up for the next few chapters? I would then say that, paralleling the egg memberanes and that section, we function differntly depending on the language environment we live in. [I would now add symbols to that, even though K didn't say that. I think if somebody were revising _Science and Sanity_ they would add symbols. Yes? I would, anyway.] So if we are in certain semantic environments, we might respond differently. But it's all connected. Also, the psychological creation of chemicals or even migrane headaches can be stimulated by symbols or words. This relates to the sticks 'n stones discussion. Is that what he's saying in Chapter 10? So we have several relationships set up, I think: 1. The human interacting in many physical ways with its environment. 2. The human interacting in many psycho-biological ways with its environment. 3. The human interacting in many ways as a sum of synchronized parts, but also by having colloid stuff floating around in its nervous system that reaches the entire body, and by chemicals carried in the blood, and by hormones carried in the blood, and so on. So much of our behavior functions sort of free-flowing throughout our body, not just in our head. We look at ourselves and identify heads, hands, ears, elbows, legs, etc., yet those parts elementalize our oneness as organisms. In a simple sense, we function as nervous system-organs-circulatory system, throughout, with some etceteras. Is this what K is saying on a different level of abstraction? And comments appreciated. Carmen =========================================================================== >From: ceclark@students.wisc.edu >Date: Tue, 9 Jan 1996 20:15:12 -0600 >To: ssread-l@newciv.org >Subject: Chapter X ssread-ers, This message came from Rich Dovgin, who joined our list about a month ago. I think it's for you, too, because it refers to thanking Milton and has a neat book list. ciao - Carmen **** I have been trying to catch up with the group's summaries and discussions of S&S and have been hesitant to toss in comments, but here goes. The last paragraph of Ch. X, after the cumulative effect of all the ssread stuff so far, connected to other writers from my experience: Albert Ellis, A New Guide to Rational Living; Alexander Lowen, Bioenergetics; David Burns, Feeling Good; Wilhelm Reich, Character Analysis; Moshe Feldenkrais, Awareness Through Movement;F.Mathias, The Alexander Technique;etc. All aim at the same goals that A.K. seeks, namely, becoming aware of "structural implications which work unconsciously' and changing habits, inappropriate maps/belief systems and our physicial responses to those faulty maps through habitual application of more accurate maps: training ourselves "in the use of the new terms." We need to pay attention to how we talk to ourselves and how we talk to others. The structures we use can make/keep individuals insane (unhealthy, irrational), screw up relationships, affect "life,...a form of colloidal behavior." I appreciate the work members of this group have shared, and I hope I will find something perhaps more substantial to contribute as ssread continues. Thanks to you Milton Dawes for Isness and Down to Earth Epistemology. Rich Dovgin I apparently haven't gotten this message sending figured out yet. ===========================================================================