Swarm Theory on the Mind

 Ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages ("spontaneous abortions") are not criminalized.   I had looked at a couple states' laws personally.  These personal investigations were sparked by stories of women allegedly being denied care for ectopic pregnancies or miscarriages by their doctors out of the doctors' "fear" of the law or the law's "ambiguity."  For each law I looked at, it took me maybe 5 minutes to comprehend its clear definition of abortion, that did not include or criminalize in any possible manner, care for ectopic pregnancies or miscarriages. I considered compiling something like the below linked article, but figured someone had already done so.  Lo and behold, a week or so later, it falls into my lap: https://www.nationalreview.com/2022/07/how-every-state-pro-life-law-handles-ectopic-pregnancy-and-miscarriage/ My conclusion, either the doctors are stupid, liars, lazy, or didn't do what the women said they did.  In the first three...

This is from a 2013 draft for a post: Has anyone else had the feeling recently that they're living in a dream?  Or more precisely, a novel?  Let me share a couple incidents that make me feel that way. First, Mars One .  I came across this project near the end of 2012.  Looking through this proposal to send permanent residents to Mars, I couldn't help but feel that it would work.  It was surreal to realize that I was seriously considering the plausibility of the plans that would separate humans from their primeval home and plant them on a remote sphere out in space.  I really can't lay it out better than that.  If you want to get a sense of what I was experiencing read through the pages in the Mission section of the Mars One website.  Then again, if you're not inclined to read sci-fi novels, then maybe you won't feel the same way.  However this concept ought to rouse some subtle emotions in all of us. Next, this story posted in The Bl...

As mankind stretches their understanding of the universe, both on the macroscopic and microscopic levels, a strange thing happens: people talk themselves out of religion using the theories of men.  This isn't to say that everyone does this.  I am personally very comfortable with being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and with learning science; they fit together quite nicely and science tends to confirm my faith.  So what’s the difference? Why are some people moved to agnosticism and atheism while others become firmer in their faith? Of course there can be a conscious choice there, but I want to focus on a more subtle choice; or maybe it’s more like an unconscious awareness of a specific fact about science, namely, the scientific method is based upon several fundamental philosophical assumptions.  There are three of these assumptions, any of which needs consideration on a deeper enough level that is not given a thought.  More astoun...

This is just a little disclaimer about the quality and/or content of my current posts.  I do not claim to be a great writer, which is why I'm writing.  Eventually I should be able to express the thoughts in my head clearly.  However, in the meantime my posts are written all at once and left mostly unedited meaning they may fall short of excellent wordsmithery (check MerriamWebster  for that word). Hopefully knowing this will inspire you to help me in this endeavor rather than lull you into apathy about my writing.  So, if you see something that inspires you, or something I could improve, leave comments of liberal length.  I'll read them all. Anyway, until next post, keep being wonderful!

As a chemistry major and, hopefully, an eventual teacher, I've tried to pay attention to how chemistry is taught.  One particular trend in organic chemistry confused me a little before I figured out what the truth really is. Organic chemists, or maybe just those that teach, tend to describe reactions and chemicals as if they “prefer” or “like to do” certain reactions.  This isn't particularly accurate or quantitative in the scientific sense.  I can appreciate the use of these metaphors to make reactions understandable, but it’s just not correct and, I believe, hinders true understanding of chemical systems.  Here, as in many places, honesty may be the best policy. So what’s the truth about what’s going on?  When a student asks about a potential alternate reaction and the teacher says “That doesn't really happen” what do they mean?  The truth dawned on me as I was finishing up our university’s two-semester o-chem course.  The fact of the matter...

When in need of a subject to write about it’s best to just start.  Write whatever is on your mind.  Sometimes there’s nothing specific there.  So another tactic is to keep a notepad handy throughout the day to jot down the thoughts and ideas that come your way. If you’re working on a specific story, like for a novel, much the same advice applies: just start writing.  It’s ok to draft, or even complete, specific scenes from random parts of your story.  You can wait for the narrative to catch up to them, and maybe you’ll find better ways to write the scenes or better scenes to write. Regardless, good writing takes work.  This is where I find difficulty with writing.  I’m not particularly patient with writing.  (I also have a hard time just writing and letting words flow, but that’s another problem.)  I’d like if everything in my head would just transfer to the paper and organize itself.  But that’s not the way it works.  I've f...

So, this is utterly ridiculous, but sometimes I just need the right nudge to start moving on something.  This is what has happened recently for me.  I heard about this guy and his WeaveWriter Roadmap , basically a plan to get you writing.  I haven't been able to access all the literature due to technical difficulties, but the idea that writing can be fun and simple especially if done daily, stuck around.  Well, I decided to act on it.  I'm now three days in and enjoying writing already.  I discovered that I simply need to write about something that's been on my mind recently. Having started doing that, I realized that's exactly why I created this blog, so... I'm going to start posting here again.  My goal is to post what I write each day.  However, there may be a couple days where I write something for one of my novels and don't want to put it out there for the public yet.  In that case you're simply out of luck. One other hitch.  As...

I recently ran across Seth Adam Smith's post Marriage Isn't For You .  Thinking that this was another of those worldly denouncements of all that is good in life I almost didn't read it. Well, I'm glad I did.  Especially when I read a response article on another website.  This other post  sits on the edge of what I had feared the first to be.  The author takes Seth's realization to an extreme and basically calls it detrimental to marriage. So, what am I getting at with this post? First, ideals are worth living for whether they are obtainable in this life or not.  And I believe that the best ideals are more realistic and more obtainable than society gives them credit for being.   Our society is losing the vision of living for ideals and the grace of allowing others to do the same. Second, marriage is a thing of faith and work.  No, you will not have all the answers before you get married, even if you wait until you're 99.  And, no, you w...

 Everything (and everyone) seems to be coming together in every way imaginable.  Information that was once cumbersome to find and use is now being collected and organized.  People from every walk of life, with every possible viewpoint are finding each other and driving an ongoing conversation about, well, everything.  Music is being inspired, generated, collaberated on, shared, and enjoyed completely online.  How is this happening? Or who (what) is facilitating all of this?  And what might this collaboration mean?  Or what is its cause?  Here might be a few answers.  Some of these links are now classic websites.  Some are barely breaking the surface of that ocean of data called the web.  A couple of these links explore the phenomenon of our interaction with technology, how things are changing, and what changes might be affected in the future by our continued use of this technology. The spread of this technology is...

How can we save ourselves, our families, and even our country? Desire and live a life of virtue. Whatever your faith, creed, or system of belief you must make a thorough self examination. Pare down your life to the core virtues and principles that influence everything you do. If you find yourself lacking or without any core virtues, don't despair. In making the attempt you have shown desire to do right. That is the first step and perhaps the most important. Take that desire to improve and work with it. Seek out virtues and principles that are true. Then make those the modi operandi of your life. It will take time, but it will be worth it. You will have a greater sense of fulfillment in the things you do, you will attract people of similar caliber who will become lifelong friends, and you will form such a foundation for society that it will not fail. Once you have found your core virtues and principles, stand up for them. Do not be afraid of what others w...

I'm not sure how to say this, or how to let you see, but it's as simple as the title makes it:  It's NOT about the PARTIES!!! Really people, when you think about it, saying you're a Democrat or Republican means absolutely NOTHING!!!  Those terms have been used in a completely opposite sense from how they are used now.  And technically, being a Republican should mean you are for a Republic style government (which is what the US is and what each state is.).  Democrat is a harder word.  Technically you would be for democracy, but a pure democracy would have every person voting on every issue in order to get anything done.  It just doesn't work.  As for how the term "democracy" is used in everyday language, well...  It depends on who you are and where you live...  but generally it is used as a synonym for a republic-style government with representation and certain unalienable rights and the whole bit. I digress, but for a good reason. ...

How did we come to be here, at the highest point so far in history, and yet at such a historic low.  The morals of individuals and society are together crumbling to the ground and leaving only a mockery of right in their place.  Organized religions are under attack from all quarters.  Society thinks nothing of weekend affairs, getting drunk, or half-naked women everywhere. Somewhere along the line we have also lost any common sense we once had.  It seems to go hand in hand with the degradation of society.  Decisions that once were obvious now take so much double speak and politics to make that when all is said and done the problem could have been fixed twice over but is indeed just barely getting underway. Here you may say, “But, now we are more enlightened and understand that one must be thorough when making a decision.”  It’s perfectly true that we need to look at both sides.  But when there is an obvious moral issue why does it take so much skir...

If you watch the tags on my posts, you’ll notice one or two that don’t really make sense.  One of these was on the post “Meditation.” I had added the tag “Founding Fathers.”  Now why would I do that?  Surely the Founding Fathers weren’t really into meditation?  No, they probably weren’t.  It was the last quote in my post that made me decide to add that tag: “You believe in freedom of speech; you strive for articulation. We believe in freedom of silence; we lapse into meditation.” –Proffesor Hari Dam It made me think of the couple hundred years the colonists had to exercise true freedom and live in true liberty away from the English mainland.  Having such an unrestrained use of land and their own labor gave many men the opportunity for leisure.  This leisure was used, among other things surely, for study and self-improvement.  There were many well-read people who had no pressure from war, insufficient means of living, or an established state re...

is AMAZING! I'm not talking about the Western misconception of trying to fly or have an out-of-body experience or whatever else the majority of us thinks of when we hear the word "meditation." I'm talking about moderation in all things; about temperance, self-control and restraint.  I'm talking about taking a few minutes out of the day to shut down the computer, turn down the radio, pull out the earplugs, turn off the TV and just clear your mind, let the stress of life go, evaluate your life, enjoy your blessings, give thanks for your friends and consider how you might make new friends out of old enemies. You know, this sounds a little like Christianity, doesn't it?  I have heard it posited, and believe to be true, that meditation is indeed part of Christianity.  Here's a few scriptures from the Bible: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night. (Joshua 1:8)  Let the words of my mouth, and ...

Hello and welcome to the United States of America.  Here we believe in hard work, honesty, and capitalism... Hold a minute, wrong century. Let's try this: Hi, come on in, make yourself at home. If the fridge is empty just head on over to the neighbor's house and round up some grub. (They never lock their back door.)  For your entertainment we've got pirated videos and free music, which we downloaded while at work, using company time and bandwidth.  And don't worry if you make a mess, we've got illegal aliens who'll clean it up.  We could have hired the neighbor kids, but they know what to expect from an employer and would want a "reasonable" salary. ... I could go on, but I think you get the point.  If not, you are either a completely innocent person or you're part of the problem. Having said that, just know that if you are part of the problem I am trying my hardest to love you.  Those who I know personally have my love.  It's those ...

This may be stretching swarm theory further than it actually goes, but I shall apply it nonetheless. I have just had the idea that the title of this blog is more fitting than I at first perceived.  Originally it was just an intriguing bit of science that I had read up on and noticed every once in a while.  It also became a sort of running inside joke between me and a friend.  Now, however, I posit that this blog is bound by the theory of the swarm. It is a loose binding, as I am the primary author at the moment and there are precious few posts by others, but it fits to a point. All these various posts and bits and pieces of information go to make up a sort of swarm.  They are varied and deal with several subjects.  However, like a swarm of bees or otherwise, a dominant theme appears and best theory, idea, or decision comes to the forefront as more posts come to one or another point.  If I can get a full, cohesive view of this beast I may see the best ...

I live in one of the reddest cities in America.  I am a member of a church that has a high percentage of "red."  And yet, even in these circumstances, the most insidious of ideas finds a toehold, a foothold, and sometimes even a firm place to stand. I am speaking of the mockery of natural law called socialism.  This economic and political institution claims that through its forced application men will become selfless and industrious members of a society of equals.  You don't even have to take my word for it.  Read these: "Socialism, reduced to its simplest legal and practical expression, means the complete discarding of the institution of private property by transforming it into public property and the division of the resultant income equally and indiscriminately among the entire population." -George Bernard Shaw, a Fabian Socialist   "a short and comprehensive definition is impossible. We can only say, that Sociali...

Our enemies in the fight for freedom are many and one at the same time.  Ultimately all evil is akin.  But before you get to the ultimate there are many different evils, wrongs, and misunderstandings that replace the ultimate. Some of the enemies are people like those who have made the despicable movie Fall of the Republic: The Presidency of Barack H. Obama.   This is a disgusting piece of propoganda. Not to say it doesn't have some truth.  It does, but those nuggets of truth are spread few and far between.  In the me antime there is much speculation, many claims, and many conspiracies. Worst of all, they tout the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence while denouncing Corporations and Darwin alike. They also didn't provide an organized presentation of information. They start right into a tirade of supposedly credentialed individuals stating the same thing over and over. Some of the statements are obviously made specifically to be quoted ...

C. S. Lewis had so many things right when he wrote The Chronicles of Narnia.  They do not bear repeating here but only acknowledgment.  He recognized true Christianity and embodied in a format compatible with all ages of almost any background. I am very pleased with Disney for being able to keep that theme alive in the two movies they have produced so far.  They are by far my favorite movies.  I don't know how many times I have seen The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and I don't rightly imagine there is any limit to how many times I could see it. Worth reading at least yearly.  Worth watching whenever you have can.  Worth pondering.

I think I am starting to see how we might survive as a nation.  There is the slightest chance of success. I don't know what the path looks like yet, but I can feel it's there and I can see the foundation that must be used to succeed. The format I use to organize this project will change over time.  Whether a little or a lot I don't know.  The purpose and end of this will not change however. It may take me several tries to state the end how it needs to be stated, so stick with me and try to understand. The foundation is made of correct principles and values.  The path we must take is the correct application of these principles and the living of these values.  The end is a nation properly run, righteously judged, and perfectly free. My first draft will be a compilation of ideas from others who have started the same thing.  Why not just join someone else?  I may.  Indeed I could join them all.  But first I must understand my personal bel...