The Journey of the Open Mind
Grand adventures await us this week. Are you ready? Have a nice hot cup of tea all set?
Thank Yous
First, let me start off by thanking Debbie Lane again for taking on the Sunday Question yesterday. And do keep up with her; I believe she mentioned she would be releasing a new CD in the near future. Her blog is at www.wisdomhypnosis.blogspot.com.
Guest Bloggers
I am on travel for the next little bit and rather than counting on coffee shops and time to keep up this blog, you will find others being transparent for me (though I will check in for quick hellos and such). Tomorrow Josh Houghton will be posting and then Michael Raugh will be handling the blog until next Monday. Also, our 10 Question Friday will be with Robert Hughes. So, please, continue to stop by and comment.
The Poll
On the poll front - it has been a bumpy ride. No more SodaHead for us. Check back in a bit. I have some other tricks up my sleeve.
The Turning Girl Controversy
And, as the turning girl has continued to create stir on my blogs (nothing like a good controversy, eh? LOL), perhaps I should recap the recent goings on. If you will recall, as it turns out, she is an optical illusion that I mentioned a while ago in my exploration of Betty Edwards’ Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, posted on The Unwinding Path. I posted the turning girl as a fun little experiment to illustrate points in Edwards’ book. The theory behind this particular book is based on the state of consciousness needed for competent drawing (much like a state of hypnosis). The original premise is that the asymmetry of the brain and how it functions is the reference to left-brain or right brain.
Well some of my readers have gotten caught up in it and have begun to debate brain science on this blog. A gentleman with a Harvard email address checked in. Yet, poor Nick, if indeed you are from Harvard, when attempting to email you, my note was returned saying there is no such address. Please check in again if you are reading this. Is it possible we have someone merely using the intellectual property of reputation the Ivy-league? Another, tending to agree with Nick, accuses me of passing on misinformation. So, I though it would be fun to get on the Ellie soapbox.
Science definitely has its place. It is ever changing. New things are discovered. Old ideas are disproved. Old disproved ideas are looked at and proven again. Science is not absolute. That is the beauty of it. We try so hard to pinpoint and grasp the tangible in our egoic needs for structure. But, we cannot rest on these structures. The foundation is air. We have to keep questioning and re-examining. If we did not continue to do this, we would still be using lobotomies to subdue those who suffer mental maladies, not to mention some of the harsher medications that were used for the same purpose.
And science suffers the same issues as everything else - how the results are spun. There are studies upon studies, one proving one thing, another saying something different (and the results may be the same interestingly enough). In the realms of current thought (and it is thought), the two hemispheres of the brain are different. They work hand in hand to create a balance of some sort. It may not be as pretty as logical and creative, but it depends what you read and whom you believe - or on personal experience. The methods Edwards (which is what we are talking about) uses to teach drawing consciousness work (unless you are determined to make it not work). There is a consciousness shift that occurs, much like that felt and observed in hypnosis. It is a different state of mind. It is valid. For those who want to read more about the studies, by all means, please do so. If you enjoy reading abstracts and such, more power to you. But to try to explain it and discourse about it to the laymen (who have every right to discuss what we will), if it takes ideas about left-brain and right brain to do so, it is a way to make it all understandable. For those who feel instead, that I am spreading ignorance, I am sorry you feel that way. In my way of seeing it, I am opening a door to more potential understanding. If we all sat down and bowed to what little we already know, we would be in stasis. Nothing more would be explored or learned. What a sad place this would be.
March 17th, 2008 at 10:47 am
Well, to clarify I was not making a statement about the truth of the matter. I am not in a position to know that. What I was commenting on was your attitude, which I perceived to be one that advocated spreading misinformation. Science is based on what can be proved objectively, that which cannot be demonstrated to be correct is not scientific. Any questioning or reevaluation must be on these grounds, either evidence that disproves a hypothesis, or evidence that suggests an alternative one.
In this case, it appeared that there was neither, and you didn’t seem to think either was necessary. If that was not the case I apologize, but that is how it appeared from what you said.
Science is not founded on air. It is founded on rock. Rock that must be continually checked and rechecked for validity and structural integrity, but rock nonetheless; at least in principle. An alternative to a scientific theory must have similarly strong foundations.
And I would contest that incorrect information is good because it educates. Maybe that would be the case if every time it was reproduced there was a little notice saying “This information is not actually fully correct, and is to be taken as a guide only”, then perhaps it would be of benefit. But popular psychology has already done enough damage by being taken as fact; for example the counselling profession. That profession has almost entirely been overtaken with the Humanistic Approach to psychology, which is considered by many eminent psychologists to be mere psychobabble, and has no supporting evidence whatsoever (apart from two very flawed studies that have no merit in scientific circles). However this theory is used as I said before almost universally in the counselling profession, and in corporate psychology. Why? Because the guy who came up with the theory didn’t waste time proving it, and started marketing it. Only now are scientifically validated theories starting to gain credence over his rubbish. That is a case in which a little knowledge being spread widely has done far more harm that good.
Again, this point isn’t really concerned with the facts of the matter, as I said it is out of my field and I don’t have the evidence to hand. But surely this is a valid criticism of your approach to the subject? I would love to hear your reaction to reading what I have said.
Mirehn
March 17th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
Have fun traveling, you picked great guys to fill in for you. (Of course I am so partial to Michael as you probably know by now. (I do wish he lived in my neighborhood.)
I agree you are allowing for new understandings. Although there is nothing wrong with spreading good information, when conversations stop, so does learning. Perhaps there are control issues on the part of those who would tell you how to blog?
Thanks for mentioning my blog again, yes the new release is out (Living The Lucky Life) and I am excited about it.
Come back safely and renewed to continue your hypnotic blog, Ellie!
March 18th, 2008 at 6:16 am
Thanks Debbie. And Mirehn - I do have to tell you you hit the nail on the head. I do tend toward humanistic, Jungian, and transpersonal psychology. I do not view these as pop. In my own practice (and those I have studied) I find these to be far more effective in creating positive change. I believe the humanistic side threatens those who have some innate need for pure structure, rather than actually trying to make a difference or understand the human condition.
I am sorry you have found that my attitude on this blog my not jive with your beliefs. You say science is based on rock. Rock changes because of air. It corrodes, It changes form and shape.
And if you had been reading the post, you would have read about it being an optical illusion.
Feel free to disagree with me and my philosophies. It is what makes things more interesting. And with that said, I am off to the wilds of humanity.
March 19th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Thanks, Debbie. I wish I lived in your neighborhood, too. And when I get through this whirlwind weekend, I will be in touch!
<MR>