Post 2 Mozart Effect

From lecture 5, the Mozart Effect argues hat listening to Mozart's music can actually increase the spatial reasoning ability in our minds. I've believe today, music is the easiest way to retain knowledge. Think of how many people can recite every lyric to multiple songs within a few times of listening. Music divides your attention just enough so that you can perform a task without feeling stress. Even though there is no proof that the effect increases spatial reasoning, it is very well known and still being talked about, which makes the effect somewhat truthful. 

Post # 3

Psychic Crime Detectives. 

Everyday, I always watch crime documentaries or shows. Even though I don't major in criminal justice, I love watching what happened to people and how detectives get the jobs done but some cases remain unsolved.  In Lecture 6, when I first read Psychic Crime Detective, it caught my eye. These kind of things just fascinate me so much. Noreen Renier was able to locate where Mr. Charles Capel was by using some of his everyday objects he would have used. Even though she didn't see exactly where he was, she knew what was around him like a creek, stones, antenna tower and a fence. Psychics aren't always thought of as real to others. It's not unusual to hear about someone having a psychic gift. I believe some people have special gifts that not even science can understand. 

Post #3: Aromatherapy and Meditation for Healing

    I often would go to spas and get massages as well as going to Philly to do some hot yoga and meditate early before class began. My perspective on how aromatherapy and meditation as a method of “curing” things was questionable but I soon realized later it's more of something that I believe is more mental than healing things directly like cancer. I can see how the idea of aromatherapy can be silly and how certain smells can help heal and rejuvenate. But the way it is advertised is probably what got lost in the message. But how it has been advertised to relieve certain symptoms may just be a small part. Maybe associating smells triggers certain memories and that is what brings us the healing depending on that certain memory. Meditation also is said to be just another yogi cult but most athletes start to incorporate it into their training routines. So although I may fall for the ideas that meditation and aromatherapy can help cure insomnia I think that everything is connected somehow and if it is something that can be natural and drug free, that is the best medicine to me. That is a mantra I would like to continue to hold especially if I am to become a Doctor of Physical Therapy. Americans are so reliant on opioids and painkillers, they fail to realize their bodies can easily heal themselves whether it is through their mind or their stem cells. 

Post #2: Darren Brown

    I didn’t know who Darren Brown was before listening to his TED talk and watching his older series about debunking other psychics, but I am so glad I know of him now. He truly is a great mentalist and has an amazing showmanship factor. The key thing for psychics really is the idea of being vague and generalizing things for their audience. Brown shows that he can match the “famous” psychics by being so vague and really “faking ‘til he makes it.” In my personal experience, I used to love getting my tarot cards read and looking up my astrology for compatibility or if I would want to know what would be my ideal career. Now I know that something like the “stars” and “signs” cannot define who I am as a person but it can generalize a majority of people who share the same birth month as me. As for the tarot reader, looking back now this old italian woman that I had met in Venice  Beach, CA was able to sell me more of an “experience” rather than answers to my future and reading of my past. I found the Ted talk enlightening because as someone who used to rely so heavily on these psychics can now see that it is a trick of just reading a person's mannerisms and more relating to humans and their habits.

Post #1: The Jersey Devil

        Although I am not a Jersey native, when I had moved to the East Coast the mention of the Jersey Devil was something I heard very often. The New Jersey Air National Guard in Egg Harbor, NJ has the Jersey Devil as their mascot. I found that appropriate considering how close to the Pine Barrens the base was to one another. Growing up in California we had similar phenomena like the Santa Ana winds and how they are said to presume earthquakes as well as allowing dissatisfied wives to undergo mayhem. Those two might not be very similar but it was something that either residence in each state would somewhat fear. Not once have I ever considered hiking in the Pine Barrens if a beast like the Jersey Devil were to attack me but learning more about the history of its origin, honestly induced more fear in me. Approaching this from a more scientific perspective, I can say this is a legend that has been continued on only because of it’s infamy and during the time, people were less educated and the media was able to sell this kind of fear. It may also allow a way to blame things and phenomena for happening just like some people like to use the unexplainable for things that are hard to solve or are just too hard to face. 

Post #2

The End of The World

Most of us have heard things about the future. In 2000 there were supposed to be flying cars. In 2012, the world was supposed to end, but as we all have known from own experiences, none of that actually happened. In the 4th lecture of our class, we learn about all the future predications that could possibly happen. Most of the claims that concurred were from religious men.  Chris McCann told the country over a radio station that the world will end on October 7th, 2015. As we all know, that was not the case. More future predictions for example, in the year 2060 according to sir Isaac Newton, the world will end for the 15th time. Today, I feel like we all hear about these claims of the world ending yet, we knew that hasn't come to the conclusion. I believe something will happen to end the human race or have the world start over again. Will it happen while we are still around and alive? 

Post #3- Isochronic Tones and Binaural Beats: Are They For Real?

As a person who has ADHD that sometimes makes it hard to sleep, I ended up resorting to YouTube for help keeping my mind calm. The results for sleep music frequently lead to isochronic tones or binaural beats, two things that I had never heard of, but it spiked my curiosity, possibly because they used such scientific names. For about two months (before this class occurred, evidently), I listened to these beats, and in fact, it did help me sleep. Many nights I would turn on the music, put my phone under my pillow, and be asleep within minutes. 

But was this because of the music itself, or just a simple placebo effect? According to an article I read by Healthline, these tones supposedly work because they make your brain align with certain wavelengths that make you feel calmer, or make your sleep deeper. The studies conducted seem to use heuristic thought to come to a conclusion, using groups of less than thirty people and making broad statements about the findings of the research. The Law of Small Numbers takes a hold here for sure. It seemed to have worked for me, but perhaps that was because the music was calming to begin with. 

Post #3 (Styles of Learning)

There are many different styles of learning. The main ones include: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. To learn visually is by looking at pictures, videos, or maps. To learn auditory is by learning through hearing sounds, lectures, and to read aloud and to learn kinesthetically involves hands on experiences, like touching or making things. Everyone has their own preferences on how they decide to learn, some students enjoy studying in the quiet scene of a library compared to other individuals who would rather have some background sound or music playing. It all depends on what helps you as a person learn better. As for myself I am definitely a visual learner, I like to be able to see the task I am trying to complete or learn through some type of picture, video, or slides. I was unaware that most learners are visual rather than auditory or kinesthetic. 

Post #2 - How I Learned About the Jersey Devil

When I was a child, I grew up in Clementon, NJ, your normal Camden County suburb. Behind my house, there was a large batch of woods I used to play in with my siblings and neighborhood friends. Around age 8, my dad took me to an even larger set of woods about a half hour away, which I later learned to be the Pine Barrens. I expressed interest in playing in this new set of unexplored woods, and Dad pulled over and stopped the car. He looked me dead in the eyes and told me a different tale than that told to me by this class's slideshow.

"These woods are haunted by a monster, with the head of a deer, body of a horse, but standing on its rear legs like a human. This creature takes young children like you and possess you, turning you into lure to bring your friends to it. There's been tales of whole groups of children being found inside out, and others simply dry skeletons within a single day of them being gone missing. This is not a place you want to play in!"

For the next few months, I deeply believed this tale, and refused to play games like hide and seek in the woods, even back home where the Jersey Devil shouldn't be. Now I know the Jersey Devil just to be a local legend, but back then, it seemed real enough to keep me from straying far from home. This tale shows how legends that mostly spread by word of mouth can change drastically in an effort to scare younger children into acting good. As a whole, I now go with a more "see it to believe it" mindset rather than just believing what I hear the first time around. 

Just your normal drive through the Pine Barrens... nothing to see here...

Post #1 - Wiccan and Native American Beliefs

In my personal life, my mother believes, and has believed, in the Wiccan religion and Native American spiritual arts. She keeps a certain gemstone around her neck, amethyst, to help ward her depression. My mother loves to burn incense when times get stressful, and even has a wolf painting pinned to her wall. When I asked her about how her beliefs affect her everyday life, she said "I believe that each stone helps out in different ways, but to science, stones or crystals are just that. No powers... but one has to believe." Mom still takes man-made medicine for her medical problems, such as her epilepsy, as she understands that proven science is just as important as spiritual beliefs. To her, the balance between spirituality and reality is what keeps her afloat, even in times of great tension. 

A wolf's head exhaling smoke in a field of flowers, with a mountain in the background.

A painting hung on my Mom's, Carol Andrescavage's, wall.

Post #1

The Jersey Devil and Bigfoot.

Growing up in New Jersey, one has to of heard of the Jersey Devil at least once their lifetime. The Jersey Devil is creature that was created upon stories that eventually turned into what we all now know as the Jersey Devil. Living near the origin of the story, I have heard many people talk about the Jersey Devil. Some will tell their children, "Don't go in the woods at dark or the Jersey Devil might get you." or the tremendous new reports that claim people have seen the Jersey Devil. Claims are big part of what keeps creatures alive. For example, how many shows are there on Bigfoot? There are claims of seeing the footprints, and some claims of seeing an entire family playing in bodies water. Claims and past down stories are what make the stories of theses creatures continue years after years. I believe that stories and claims are what makes this world so interesting. Think about all the stories we have of the past, how do we know if its true or not? What about the predictions of the future? Without it, I don't think life as we know it today, would be interesting! 

Post #1 Graphology

    Before taking this class, I believe that handwriting can reveal the personality of a person. I am surprised by the result that graphology is one of the least effective predictors. When I was younger, I watched a lot of movies with detectives using graphology to predict the personality of the criminals and solved the case. Sadly, a lot of people still believe in this kind of pseudoscience, for instance, our president.

   https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/290891469051555840?s=20

Post #3 (Ways of Thinking)

As a biochemistry major, I use slow thinking almost all the time. Slow thinking is “reasonable reflective thinking focused on deciding what to believe or do” (Robert Ennis). However, I fall victim to fast thinking sometimes since slow thinking is not the natural state of affairs. Fast thinking relies on cognitive heuristics, rules of thumb, presuppositions, biases, assumptions, and intuitive flaws. For instance, I use fast thinking when I see something I want to buy. I feel as if I truly need that item and end up buying it. After buying the item, I start to wonder why I bought the item in the first place. If I use slow thinking, I would be able to weigh out the pros and cons of the items to determine if it was essential to me. Many people fall victim to fast thinking since it’s the natural state of affairs. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiyTYGY5X3Y

post 1 (OBE)

        In the Derren Brown stages of Out of Body Experience, (OBE) I was shocked that this woman was fully convinced that she saw her death before her eyes. The events that lead up to her "death" were very questionable and abnormal. A person should have remembered the trick or treat scare because she was pulled up on by a large number of men. The scene was played out well, no one made contact with the woman who was "killed" in the crash which made her fully convinced she had died and was having an OBE. It is amazing how the human mind works when in times of shock and how gullible we can be.

Post #2 (The War of the Worlds)

Orson Welles’s broadcasts a realistic radio dramatization of a Martian invasion occurring on Earth, called “War of the Worlds”. The “War of the Worlds” was not planned to become a radio hoax and Orson Welles had no idea about the madness he was going to create. During the broadcast on October 30th, 1938 an announcer bursted into the room to share the news that explosions had been found on Mars, which then led to a huge meteor crashing into a farmer’s field in Grovers Mills, New Jersey. The reporters describe a shadow as large as a bear that glistens like wet leather, with tentacles emerging from this metal cylinder. They claim these “Martians” killed over 700 National Guards, spread poisonous gas, and fled to Chicago. The Federal Communications Commission investigated the program due to thousands of people trying to flee, but found that no laws were broken. Although, there are still some conspiracies on what had really happened after the broadcast. Psychologist Hadley Cantril believes that more than 1 million people were affected by the broadcast (stressed, excited, disturbed) but on the other hand, Sociologist Miller and Bainbridge found very little evidence of any type of widespread trauma. It was then concluded that it was more of a delusion than any type of widespread fear. 

Post #3 conspiracy theories and subliminal messagege

   I spend hours and hours watching conspiracy theories and subliminal message videos on YouTube and go on a spiral. It makes me really think about life and what is real and what’s not. And all the hidden subliminal messages that are hidden everywhere that we do not even notice in our everyday lives. These subliminal messages that are hidden in commercials, music videos, and songs that we do not realize because it so quick or so hidden are just crazy. Like commercials sexualizing advertisements. Or as you are watching a TV program and quickly a food ad pops to point where is only there for a second but your brain realized it and then all of sudden you are hungry or thinking about a fast food place. Three are even hidden subliminal messages in backgrounds of movies, that you may or may not pick up on. I think it just crazy that these companies are throwing hidden messages in our everyday lives that make us want something or think about something. I do not know much about the Mozart effect or how true it is that listening to classical music is going to make you smarter, but is an interesting study. I am very interested in all of these types of conspiracy videos and realizing what has acutely hidden from us and all the weird things that happen. Check out the video linked below and maybe watch some more videos. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hw-pTll1M_I

Post #2 (Learning Styles)

I grew up thinking that I only belonged to one learning style. The three learning styles that I have heard throughout my education career were visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles. Visual learners learn by seeing pictures or watching videos. Auditory learners learn by hearing lectures or through sound. Kinesthetic learners learn by hands-on experience. I consider myself a visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learner. I am a visual learner since I watch videos and look at pictures to learn. Watching videos allows me to keep continuous focus on the topic, whereas reading a textbook does not help me learn as efficiently as watching a video. However, videos also contain sound which is auditory learning. The combination of sound and pictures help me keep my focus on the topic while watching the video. I am also a kinesthetic learner since labs further solidify my understanding in the practical world. Many people believe that they belong to only one learning style, but that is not the case. One can have a combination of the three learning styles.

post #2 Doomsday

Post 1 Jersey Devil

Growing up in the Pine Barrens "The Jersey Devil" has always been a main topic to be talked about. Being able to learn the history of Mother Leeds and how the Jersey Devil was actually created has helped me achieve a better understanding of this topic. I have learned that Mother Leeds had put a curse on her thirteenth child due to her husband's horrible efforts with their other children, he was a drunkard. Throughout this lecture there is a picture of a strange shadow amongst the trees in Galloway, thought to be the Jersey Devil. Although I knew about the tales of the Jersey Devil I was not aware that it was used to legitimately haunt and terrorize the local towns and cities in South Jersey. The Jersey Devil has been known to be around for decades and has grown in popularity over the years, as the Jersey Devil is not only a South Jersey tale but more of a New Jersey legend. 

Post #1 (Jersey Devil)

As a resident of New Jersey, I barley heard of the Jersey Devil growing up. After taking this class, I learned a lot about how the Jersey Devil came to be. The Jersey Devil was the 13th child of the Leeds family and his mother deemed him to a devil before he was born. The characteristics of the Jersey Devil include horse like head, wings like a bat, and goat like feet. There have been many sightings of the Jersey Devil in the Pine Barrens. A security guard in Galloway township claimed to see the Jersey Devil flying across the sky. Another sighting was reported by a government official, a mayor of a New Jersey township. Many other sightings have come up, but there is not solid evidence to the existence of the Jersey Devil.

https://youtu.be/FRj-S1pC_UM

Post #1 Aliens

I have always found the thought of aliens being real and possibly on this planet very interesting and fascinating. It is always a big debate about whether Aliens are real or not and what they look like. I believe there are aliens but I’m sure they are green weird-looking creatures as everyone depicts them to look like. I think they look more like humans but maybe not quite exactly like humans. I definitely do believe there have been alien encounters here on earth and I believe in everyone’s story that claims they have seen aliens or spaceships. I believe they come to Earth to see how we adapt and function here rater then where they come from. They want to get into our brains and figure out our thinking and the way we live here to maybe take over Earth one day. There are plenty of movies, tv shows, videos, books, and real stories about aliens and UFOs and alien abductions.  Feel like these are all made in someone knowing something about aliens. So I believe someone knows something about aliens and that is why so many books, TV shows, movies, videos have been made. It would not surprise me if Aliens were slowly going to take over Earth one day. Here is a link to recent article about aliens! https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/aliens-are-out-there-new-study-suggests-they-re-more-ncna1232855