Intuition Newsletter Published on Internet

A new "e-zine" (for electronic magazine) devoted to intuition  development is being published on the internet. The  Intuitive-Connections Network: An Online Magazine for an Intuitive  Learning Community Inspired by the Edgar Cayce Institute for Intuitive  Studies (www.intuitive-connections.net). The online magazine has  original articles, links to intuition related sites on the internet,  quick read digests of books on intuition, and other features.

To view the current issue of the magazine, go to  www.intuitive-connections.net

Peruvian Site as Old as the Pyramids

A previously discovered but largely ignored archaeological site near the  coast of Central Peru has proven to be as old as 2600BC and in full  bloom about the time scholars believe the Egyptian pyramids to have been  under construction. Remnants of public buildings, a plaza, irrigation  ditches were found, according to a report by Henry Fountain published in  the New York Times. Scholars take this new information to mean requiring  a change in the prevailing theory about the earliest civilizations in  the Americas and their movement from coastal areas to inland=20

For more information, see  http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/27/science/27PERU.html

Hopelessness Can Spell Death

Feelings of hopelessness are associated with dying sooner, and may be a  factor in causing death, according to a study of eight hundred elderly  Americans published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine. In this  study, researchers at the department of psychiatry at The University of  Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio asked the elderly  participants if they were hopeful about the future. Of the ten percent  who answered "no," twenty nine per cent were dead within seven years,  while of those who answered "yes," only eleven percent died within that  time span.

The researchers emphasize that their study does not itself prove that  hopelessness itself causes death. It is possible that these feelings do  suppress the immune system or other bodily function to increase the  likelihood of death. It is also possible that hopelessness increases =

mortality indirectly, for example, by leading to negligence about health  matters.

For more information, see http://www.cfah.org

Laughter Medicine Advances

We are gaining more evidence that laughter is good medicine. In one  study, conducted at the Loma Linda School of Medicine and published in  the journal Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine , a one hour  exposure to a comedy video led to significant increases in blood cell  immunities lasting up to twelve hours after watching the video. For more  information, request a copy of the research from  beverly.peterson@innerdoorway.com

In another study, conducted at the Unitika Central Hospital in Japan  researchers enlisted participants with allergies to stop taking their =

allergy medicine for three days prior to the study. They then showed  some participants the comedy Modern Times, starring Charlie Chaplin,  while other participants viewed a video on the weather. During the  viewing of the video, researchers tested the participants' allergic  reactions to allergens. They found that the weather watchers showed the  usual allergic reactions, but the participants watching the comedy  showed reduced allergic reaction, which continued after the viewing.

For more information, go to  http://www.independent.co.uk/story.jsp?dir=3D1&story=3D74140&host=3D1&pri ntable=3D1

Do Spirits Talk on TV?

Some people claim to have received phone calls from the deceased. Unplug  the microphone from a cassette recorder and leave the recorder in the  "record" position and the next day you may hear the voices of spirits  talking. In his book, Haunted Media (Duke University Press), Jeffrey  Sconce, assistant professor at the School of Cinema-Television at the  University of Southern California, tells the history of our attributing  spirits and consciousness to electronic media. What the animate and  inanimate worlds have in common is electricity and the author finds that  a certain amount of "superstition" arises around electronic  communication. The psychic mechanisms advance with the technology. At  the time of the telegraph, with its clicks, the Fox sisters, the young  precursors to Spiritualism, received messages from the dead in the form  of knocks. With wireless communication we perceive a form of telepathy  and communicate with the dead accordingly.

Average IQ Increases

We may be getting smarter. At least we are scoring better on IQ tests.  Surveys have shown that since 1918 IQ scores in the United States have  increased about 24 points and have increased about 27 points in the  United Kingdom since 1942. There have been comparable gains in other  parts of the world.

To explain this effect, American psychologists Bill Dickens and James  Flynn, publishing in the journal Psychological Review, point to  increased mental stimulation in our lives and, to a lesser degree,  improved education. The increased mental stimulation has the effect of  heightening curiosity, which leads to further stimulation. Whether or  not we are actually getting smarter or merely more mentally active  remains to be seen.

For further information, see  http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4173806,00.html

Our Difference from Apes is in the Mind

When the genetic makeup of the human being is compared with that of the  chimpanzee, there is only a small difference in the coding, amounting to  less than two per cent of the codes, according to an article by Helen  Pearson appearing in Nature. Svante  of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary  Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany decided to find out where this  difference lay. He compared DNA from the brain, blood and liver of both  humans and chimps. He found that the DNA qualities of the blood and  liver of the two species were basically identical. In the brain,  however, he found extrerme differences.

For further information, see  http://www.nature.com/nsu/010426/010426-8.html

Tips Provided for Overcoming Adversities

Crises and adversities are common experiences. It is a universal of the  human condition to encounter loss in several of its many, many faces.  Also universal is the spiritual opportunities for growth hiding in these  adversities. There is a developing trend in "life research" to identify  principles for turning stumbling blocks into steppingstones.

A case in point is the new book How long till my soul gets it right?:  100 doorways on the journey to happiness (ReganBooks) by the husband and  wife counselor team Robert M. Alter and Jane Alter. They present brief  case stories to illustrate the principles.

* The past must be faced, neither exaggerated nor covered up; to face  the truth of childhood experience is a path to healing.

* It is important to be aware of our feelings without becoming them--we  need to discover the silent peace of the center of the hurricane.

* Sometimes holding, or being held, is really important to healing.

* Learning to listen to another person is essential, and helps us, too,  as we learn to hear ourselves.

Volunteers Create Healing Ministries

As part of an experimental program in Florida, church members were  recruited to serve as volunteers to help bridge hospitals and religious  institutions. These volunteers named the experiment Project REACH  (Reaching out through Education to Advance Community Health). According  to the book Building Healthy Communities through Medical-Religious  Partnerships (The Johns Hopkins University Press), by the project's  initiators W. Daniel Hale, Ph.D. and Richard G. Bennett, M.D., the  purpose of the project was to facilitate the healing power of religion  by finding workable ways for the two institutions to work together. The  volunteers served as health educators, patient advocates, as well as  bridge builders. Many of the volunteers were health care providers  themselves and worked with great enthusiasm. Hospital personnel found  the project successful and gave them added satisfaction and  effectiveness to their work.

Internet Has Magazine on Science and Religion

Point your browser to www.metanexus.net and discover the online forum  for religion and science. Sponsored by the Templeton Foundation, the  site contains articles, news and book reviews as well as opportunities  to join discussion groups on selected books and other topics. Online  courses on religion and science are also available. Use of the site is  free, although it does require users to register and asks for a  voluntary donation.

Craniosacral Therapy receives recognition

In their series on "Innovators," Time Magazine recently recognized the  work of Dr. John Upledger. While involved in a spinal operation, Dr.  Upledger noticed a pulse along the spine, where none should have  existed. He later determined that the pulse was in the cerebrospinal  fluid itself. He then theorized that this life force was important to  health and that its blockage could create illness. He developed a form  of treatment using slight hand pressure on the patient's body that has  become known as craniosacral therapy. Although many doctors are still  skeptical about it, craniosacral therapy has been found useful in many  pain-control and physical rehabilitation situations.