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How to Safely Use LSD – How to Use Psychedelics

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Danzig

LSD is the most widely studied psychedelic, with hundreds of published research papers (see below). An LSD experience is similar in many ways to psilocybin mushrooms, but often individuals feel like they are better able to direct and control the experience.

LSD studies have shown success in treating depression, anxiety, smoking cessation, and many other psychological conditions. LSD consistently produces powerful long-term improvements in these conditions, even with just a single dose.

Before you begin, be sure to read our safety section and see the special safety considerations for LSD at the bottom of this page.

LSD is a powerful chemical and taking the correct dose is essential. Because LSD is active at very, very small quantities and because it is typically delivered on small pieces of paper, it is difficult to independently assess the dose (this issue is less of a problem with mushrooms or MDMA). Taking too much LSD can lead to feelings of dissociation and alienation.

Be sure that you know the dose that you are taking. A single dose or tab of LSD can vary widely in strength, so make sure you know the quantity in micrograms. A 100ug dose is a good starting point if you have never taken LSD before and should provide a calm and opening experience. If you are interested in deeper psychological work or spiritual exploration, and have a lot of experience at lower does, you may decide to move up to 400 or 500ug, but only do so if you are very comfortable with lower doses. Do not use LSD unless you are very confident of the quality and dose that you have. Its best to use a source that someone you know has also used and can vouch for.

LSD will typically be delivered on small pieces of paper that the LSD is diffused onto. It may also be provided in liquid or pill form, or even diffused into a sugar cube.

Typically, people feel very free and open in the days following an LSD experience. Remember that you need at least 12 hours before you try to sleep, so if you begin too late in the day, you may have some trouble falling asleep and could be a little tired the next day.

Most people find that they have an afterglow from their LSD experience that can last days or weeks, improving their mood and outlook and keeping them very open to others. Ideas and issues that you explored during the experience will have a new clarity too them. Emotionally difficult topics, memories, and experiences are likely to feel much safer and will bring up less fear when you remember them. You are likely to feel better able to tackle challenging emotional experiences in your life.

LSD has been shown in many research settings to dramatically reduce anxiety, depression, and other psychological challenges with just a single dose. However, you may wish to repeat the experience a few times to further explore and address any emotional and psychological issues that you are working with.

In addition to our standard safety guidelines, there are two particularly important precautions for LSD use:

Psychedelics have been misunderstood and misrepresented for decades. That's changing. Please help us share safe, responsible information on using psychedelics by sending this page to friends, and posting to Facebook, Twitter, and Google:

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How to Safely Use LSD - How to Use Psychedelics

Best Nootropics (Smart Drugs) to Unlock Your True Brain

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Danzig

Nootropics sometimes calledsmart drugs are compounds that enhance brain function. Theyre becoming a popular way to give your mind an extra boost. According to one Telegraph report, up to 25% of students at leading UK universities have taken the prescription smart drug modafinil [1], and California tech startup employees are trying everything from Adderall to LSD to push their brains into a higher gear [2].

Ive been actively benefitting from nootropics since 1997, when I was struggling with cognitive performance and ordered almost $1000 worth of smart drugs from Europe (the only place where you could get them at the time). I remember opening the unmarked brown package and wondering whether the pharmaceuticals and natural substances would really enhance my brain.

They did, and Ive been a big fan of certain cognitive enhancers ever since.

Im wary of others, though. The trouble with using a blanket term like nootropics is that you lump all kinds of substances in together. Technically, you could argue that caffeine and cocaine are both nootropics, but theyre hardly equal. With so many ways to enhance your brain function, many of which have significant risks, its most valuable to look at nootropics on a case-by-case basis. Heres a list of 9 nootropics, along with my thoughts on each.

I started taking modafinil while getting my MBA at Wharton. At the same time, I was also working at a start-up that later sold for $600 million in value, so you can imagine how busy I was. I wanted a way to keep my brain running.

When I first started taking modafinil, I felt more like myself than I had in years. I took it just about every day in varying doses for 8 years (with a physicians prescription). It gave me energy and changed my life. I would not be the biohacker I am today without modafinil.

When I worked on the Bulletproof Diet book, I wanted to verify that the effects I was getting from Bulletproof Coffee were not coming from modafinil, so I stopped using it and measured my cognitive performance while I was off of it. What I found was that on Bulletproof Coffee and the Bulletproof Diet, my mental performance was almost identical to my performance on modafinil. I still travel with modafinil, and Ill take it on occasion, but while living a Bulletproof lifestyle I rarely feel the need.

Theres a slight risk (about 5 in a million people) of having a life-threatening immune reaction to modafinil. Its the same reaction that happens with ibuprofen and other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), so if you know you dont react well to NSAIDs, talk to your doctor before taking modafinil.

One reason I like modafinil is that it enhances dopamine release, but it binds to your dopamine receptors differently than addictive substances like cocaine and amphetamines do, which may be part of the reason modafinil shares many of the benefits of other stimulants but doesnt cause addiction or withdrawal symptoms. [3] [4] It does increase focus, problem-solving abilities, and wakefulness, but it is not in the same class of drugs as Adderall, and it is not a classical stimulant. Modafinil is off of patent, so you can get it generically, or order it from India. Its a prescription drug, so you need to talk to a physician.

You can also try armodafinil, which is a more purified form of modafinil with only biologically identical molecules in it. It has nearly identical and sometimes stronger effects. Its very expensive without insurance.

If you dont want to get a prescription, theresadrafinil, which has similarities, but I wouldnt recommend taking it regularly because it stresses your liver a lot.

Normally prescribed modafinil dose: 50-200 mg, taken in the morning (unless you want to be awake all night)

Normally prescribed armodafinil dose: 100-200 mg, taken in the morning

Adrafinil dose: 300 mg, taken in the morning

Nicotine can be a powerful nootropic if you take it carefully and sparingly. Heres a full guide to using nicotine as a nootropic, complete with pros and cons, risks, dose recommendations, and advice about what form of nicotine to use.

I do NOT recommend smoking cigarettes or using tobacco to get your nicotine. Im talking about very small doses that are far lower than youd get from smoking. Nicotine has a direct effect on your mitochondrial energy, and just about anything that increases mitochondrial function is going to make your brain work better.

Big Pharma has recommended amphetamine (Adderall) for ADHD sufferers for years now. Its also popular on college campuses around exam time. Too bad, because there are much better choices.

Amphetamine has substantial risks. In healthy adults, itimproves attention, focus, motivation to work, and short-term memory, all by increasing dopamine and norepinephrine release in your prefrontal cortex. [5] [6] Amphetamine also decreases fatigue, but it makes you jittery and can increase anxiety.

What worries me about amphetamine is its addictive potential, and the fact that it can cause stress and anxiety. Research says its only slightly likely to cause addiction in people with ADHD, [7] but we dont know much about its addictive potential in healthy adults. We all know the addictive potential of methamphetamine, and amphetamine is closely related enough to make me nervous about so many people giving it to their children. Amphetamines cause withdrawal symptoms, so the potential for addiction is there.

If you want a stimulant, drink coffee.

Because smart drugs like modafinil, nicotine, and Adderall come with drawbacks, I developed my own line of nootropics, including Forbose and SmartMode, thats safe, widely available, and doesnt require a prescription. Forskolin, found in Forbose, has been a part of Indian Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years. In addition to being fun to say, forskolin increases cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), a molecule essential to learning and memory formation. [8]

I have used forskolin for more than a decade.

Forskolin is especially effective if you combine it with artichoke extract. Artichoke extract inhibits PDE4, an enzyme that breaks down cAMP. PDE4 inhibitors make cAMP more available, and when you add in artichoke extracts cAMP-enhancing effects, you get a significant boost to learning, memory, and motivation.

Or you get a headache and an energy crash when you come down.

That may be because upping cAMP uses more dopamine than your brain usually would. It affects different people differently. You only know if you tryit.

As part of our Bulletproof Brain Blend, Smart Mode contains artichoke extract, along with other cognitive-enhancing ingredients. Take with Forbose, to get your dose of forskolin. Forbose is a unique formulation that helps your body produce more energy to power through intense physical and mental activity.

Smart Mode dose: 3 softgels daily

Forbose dose: 2 capsules before or after activity

L-theanine is a major component of black and green tea. On its own, theanine promotes relaxation, [9] alertness, and arousal.[10]

Theanine also works synergistically with caffeine. Together, the two increase reaction time, memory, and mental endurance. [11]

You can get your theanine from a capsule like Zen Mode, or you can drink a cup or two of green tea. If you decide to do the green tea, look for tea thats grown in the shade, because shade-grown green tea typically has much higher levels of theanine.

L-theanine dose: 200 mg. Take 3Zen Modesoftgels with your morning coffee, or you can take it at night, like me.

Thisis a small water plant native to India. Bacopais an adaptogen it helps your body adapt to stress. It also improves memory in healthy adults[12] and enhances attention and mood in people over 65. [13] Scientists still dont fully understand how Bacopa works, but they do know it takes time to work; study participants didnt feel its memory-enhancing effects until theyd been supplementing with it daily for 4 weeks, so if you try Bacopa, stick with it for a month before you give up on it.

Bacopa suppresses sperm production in male mice, so you may want to skip it if youre trying to conceive. [14] It didnt affect the mices testosterone or sex drive, though.

A lot of nootropic companies include Bacopa in their stacks, but they often dont use enough to give you real benefits. You want at least 750 mg daily. Take Bacopa with a fat source to increase its absorption.

Bacopa monnieri dose: At least 750 mg daily, taken with a source of fat

Unfair Advantage supports your mitochondria, the power plants of your cells, with two different ingredients:

You have the highest density of mitochondria in your brains prefrontal cortex, which helps to explain why I feel Unfair Advantage in my head first. You have the second highest density in your heart, which is probably why I feel it in the center of my chest next. Mitochondrial energizers can have profound nootropic effects! At higher doses mitochondrial energizers also make for an excellent pre-workout supplements.

Unfair Advantage dose: 1-4 ampules, taken any time

KetoPrimeis another powerful nootropic. It contains oxaloacetate, a compound that can shield your brain from environmental toxins.

Common environmental toxins pesticides, for example cause your brain to release glutamate (a neurotransmitter). Your brain needs glutamate to function, but when you create too much of it it becomes toxic and starts killing neurons. Oxaloacetate protects rodents from glutamate-induced brain damage.[17] Of course, we need more research to determine whether or not oxaloacetate has the same effect on humans.

KetoPrimeis a great way to give your brain a little extra boost. In animal studies, it also modifies the Krebs Cycle, shifting the ratio of NADH to NAD+, which makes mitochondrial energy production more efficient.

KetoPrime dose: 1 lozenge, taken in the morning

NeuroMaster is a supplement I helped formulate when I learned about the power of coffee fruit extract. This stuff significantly increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels even more than exercise. BDNF is a crucial neuroprotein that helps increase neuroplasticity and create new neurons, resulting in better memory and focus.

This is important for the short-term, and essential for the long-term because you naturally lose BDNF as you age. Lower BDNF levels are associated with age-related hippocampal shrinkage and memory decline.[18]

100 mg of extract of coffee fruit (the red fruit surrounding coffee beans) raised BDNF by about 140% in several studies.[19][20][21] The boost lasted for a few hours.

NeuroMaster dose: 1 cap, taken in the morning with or without food

When you first start taking nootropics, sometimes youll feel like nothing is happening. Thats what I experienced. Then, a week later, I quit taking them, and noticed their absence immediately. This is because when your brain works better, it feels so natural that its hard to notice unless you have a great degree of self-awareness.

On the other hand, sometimes youll feel a great cognitive boost as soon as you take a pill. That can be a good thing or a bad thing. I find, for example, that modafinil makes you more of what you already are. That means if you are already kind of a dick and you take modafinil, you might act like a really big dick and regret it. It certainly happened to me! I like to think that Ive done enough hacking of my brain that Ive gotten over that programming and that when I use nootropics they help me help people.

You can also get profoundly depressed. One of the nootropics I did not write about here, Lucidril, has superb anti-aging and cognitive benefits for some people, but others get deeply sad after taking it. After three days on Lucidril I felt entirely hopeless about my life. Fortunately, Id done my research and I stopped taking it immediately.

There is inherent risk in experimenting with pharmaceuticals, or illegal drugs like LSD. The risk is greater than it is with most natural substances. You can have a psychotic experience if you take too much LSD; youre more likely to get a big headache if you take too much of a choline-stimulating herbal substance.

It also pays to check the purity of your nootropics. Ive seen some companies promoting pre-made nootropic stacks that contain ingredients like blue agave (fructose!), food coloring even pieces of metal. Read your labels!

I have great hope that medicine will wake up to the amazing benefits of nootropics and begin to incorporate them into society. Many of them not only increase your quality of life, they make your brain more resilient to the environment around you. We could all use a little more that.

Before you try nootropics, I suggest you start with the basics: get rid of the things in your diet and life that reduce cognitive performance first. That is easiest. Then, add in energizers like Brain Octane and clean up your diet. Then, go for the herbals and the natural nootropics. Use the pharmaceuticals selectively only after youve figured out your basics.

The truth is that, almost 20 years ago when my brain was failing and I was fat and tired, I did not know to follow this advice. I bought $1000 worth of smart drugs from Europe, took them all at once out of desperation, and got enough cognitive function to save my career and tackle my metabolic problems. With the information we have now, you dont need to do that. Please learn from my mistakes!

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Best Nootropics (Smart Drugs) to Unlock Your True Brain

What are Nootropics? | Braintropic

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Danzig

Nootropics are supplements, drugs, or functional foods, that enhance cognitive functions such as intelligence, memory, creativity, and attention.

Nootropics have seen an influx of interest over the last several years as people search for ways to maximize their brains potential.

The word itself, coined by the Romanian psychologist and chemist Dr. Corneliu E. Giurgea who synthesized the first nootropic piracetam over 50 years ago, is a combination of the Greek words nous (mind) and trepein (to bend or turn).

According to Dr. Giurgeas definition, nootropics:

Piracetam, the first nootropic created, is still widely regarded as one of the best nootropics available, particularly a good choice for first-time users.

However, since piracetam was first synthesized, several more nootropics have been created meaning that today we now have a whole array of options to choose from.

While nootropics are not a miracle drugs that will turn an ordinary person into a genius overnight, research suggests that some nootropics are able to augment the power of the human brain, especially its capacity for memory and ability to learn, essentially making people smarter.

Nootropics are not a substitute for a healthy lifestyle. You still need to work hard when learning. However, nootropics may provide an edge that allows your brain to function at its best.

Nootropics are also regarded for their ability to contribute to the brains overall long-term well-being. Billions of neurotransmitters and receptors control the brain and all of its functions and modulating their behavior can result in improved brain function.

In addition to providing enhanced learning ability, the improved responses of neurotransmitters mean greater resistance to the normal cognitive decline that comes with aging as well as to cognitive disorders such as amnesia and dementia.

Some nootropics work by increasing the supply of oxygen-rich blood to the brain or by increasing the brains acetylcholine levels, the neurotransmitter that is largely responsible for the brains memory, learning, and mood functions.

Other nootropics, such as Lions Mane can even stimulate the production of Nerve Growth Factor wherein protein synthesis results in the growth of brain cells, particularly in the cells dendrites that make the communication of impulses possible throughout the central nervous system. Dendritic growth means faster communication, which in turn translates into improved learning and memory. It must be noted that some nootropics must be taken for days or weeks for its beneficial effects to kick in.

There are others, such as Noopept or phenylpiracetam, that have immediate effects.

With so many options out there, its important to do your research and find the right nootropic for your needs.

Nootropics are generally categorized into three main groups: racetams, stimulants, and nutraceuticals. Each nootropic group has a specific set of functions that contribute to preserving and improving the brains capability and health.

It is possible also possible to combine different nootropics, known as stacking, resulting in a powerful synergistic effect where the individual components of the stack produce an effect greater than the sum of their individual effects.

If youre a student facing difficulty in exams, a working professional looking for that extra edge, and an older person that wants to continue enjoying the mental agility of a young mind, nootropics may be the answer youre looking for.

Planning to start a new supplementation regimen? See our medical disclaimer.

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What are Nootropics? | Braintropic

High seas | maritime law | Britannica.com

Posted on June 2, 2019 by Danzig

High seas, in maritime law, all parts of the mass of saltwater surrounding the globe that are not part of the territorial sea or internal waters of a state. For several centuries beginning in the European Middle Ages, a number of maritime states asserted sovereignty over large portions of the high seas. Well-known examples were the claims of Genoa in the Mediterranean and of Great Britain in the North Sea and elsewhere.

High Seas Definition – Duhaime.org

Posted on June 2, 2019 by Danzig

Professor Melquiades Gamboa:

"High seas ... refers to all parts of the sea not included in the territorial sea or in the internal waters of a state. Being the common property of all nations, no portion of the high seas can be appropriated by any state (but see continental shelf) and no state may subject any part of them to its sovereignty.

"The freedom of the high seas includes: freedom of navigation, freedom of fishing, freedom to lay submarine cables and pipelines, and freedom of overflight."

In 1958, the United Nations proposed a Convention on the High Seas, often referred to as the Geneva Convention on the High Seas. The definition is essentially identical to that proposed by Gamboa above ("... the term high seas means all parts of the sea that are not included in the territorial sea or in the internal waters of a State").

The term was again institutionalized by the United Nations in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, also known as UNCLOS.

UNCLOS defines the term by elimination:

"... all parts of the sea that are not included in the exclusive economic zone, in the territorial sea or in the internal waters of a State, or in the archipelagic waters of an archipelagic State."

In essence, the high seas refers to the open ocean not within the territorial waters or jurisdiction of any particular state.

The term is also used in the COLREGS 1972 (collision regulations).

Historically, and prior to the advent of UNCLOS, the common law took the high seas to be all waters past the low tide mark, which also then marked the limit of the jurisdiction of the realm of England. Since then, all states have asserted jurisdiction over a band of water off the coast.

Note also these words of Justice Tjoflat of the United States Court of Appeals in United States v Postal:

"Beyond the territorial sea lie the high seas. These waters are freely accessible to all nations and are not subject to the sovereignty of any nation.

"The regulation of a vessel on the high seas is normally the responsibility of the nation whose flag that vessel flies, and of that nation alone. Ships shall sail under the flag of one State only and, save in exceptional cases expressly provided for in international treaties or in these articles, shall be subject to its exclusive jurisdiction on the high seas."

High Seas Definition - Duhaime.org

Welcome to Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation

Posted on June 2, 2019 by Danzig

27May 27, 201928May 28, 2019All day: Entrepreneurship Workshop for ArtisansAll day: Entrepreneurship Workshop for ArtisansClose

FijiArtsCouncilis planning to organize a Entrepreneurship Workshop for Artisans who are members of the FijiArtsCounciland are Fijian Crafted License Holders through theFijian Crafted Branding Campaignawarded by the Ministry of Industry Trade and Tourism.

The Second Intra-Commonwealth SME Trade Summit(ICSA) will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 28 and 29.

The summit aims to provide a sustainable platform for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), exporters and importers to share ideas, build awareness of existing global standards, and encourage regional and international investment in areas where Commonwealth countries have competitiveness, but lack capacity.

The Asian Development Bank is partnering with the Fijian Government on a free half-day seminar for private sector and public enterprises to learn more about international commercial arbitration, as Fijis International Arbitration Act 2017 is now in effect.

The seminar will take place from 9:30am to 1:30pm on 28 May 2019 at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, invites you to join us for the launch of a new study which demonstrates how childcare responsibilities impact working parents and their employers in Fiji. The study also identifies opportunities to better support working parents and to expand the supply of childcare services in Fiji. More than 4,500 public sector and private sector employees participated in this study - representing seven (7) Fijian businesses and all Government Ministries

The Second Intra-Commonwealth SME Trade Summit(ICSA) will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 28 and 29.

June 5-6, 2019 8:00 am 5:00 pm

Under the overarching theme of Advancing Green Finance through Youth Inclusion, the Central Bank of the Solomon Islands (CBSI) together with the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI) are pleased to invite you to the 5th Pacific Islands Regional Initiative (PIRI) High-Level Forum to be held from 5 to 6 June 2019 at the Heritage Park Hotel, Honiara, Solomon Islands.

The Pacific Islands have been amongst the frontrunners in this area within the AFI network. Since 2016, PIRI members in its meeting in Papua New Guinea articulated the first-of-its-kind regional policy commitment on financial inclusion and climate change. This was further elevated to the AFI network where member institutions formally adopted the Sharm El Sheikh Accord on Financial Inclusion, Climate Change and Green Finance at the AFI Global Policy Forum in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt in September 2017. This commitment is a vital contribution in moving towards greener, more sustainable financial sectors.

All participants are required to register with assigned registration codes as below by Friday, 3 May 2019 AFI Online Registration Portal, tentative agenda and logistics note can be found on the registration website.

June 5-6, 2019 8:00 am 5:00 pm

Welcome to Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation

7 Signs That You Are Achieving Spiritual Enlightenment …

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Spiritual awakening is a state of enlightenment; everyone going down the path of spiritual enlightenment will undergo similar experiences o...

by Helen E. Williams

As with most things involving spirituality, the phenomenon of spiritual enlightenment or awakening doesnt have a clear and concise definition.

We describe it as a highly complex and rich phenomenon that involves reaching a certain degree of understanding of life, oneself, and our reason to be among various other things.

When people undergo spiritual enlightenment, they experience a change within themselves. Although everyone has their own unique experiences, there are some common elements that we all share.

Spiritual enlightenment has strong, direct, spiritual implications and is a result to being more aware of ones spirituality and the ability to see past these illusions or fallacies.

The following are some of the changes we all experience as we go through this state of major transformation.

Are you on a path of spiritual enlightenment? Have you achieved it already?

1. Revisiting Childhood and Parental RelationshipsAll people that undergo a huge spiritual transformation revisit their early years of life. Healing our childhoods traumas is a vital requirement for deep healing.

Since we especially develop in our first years of life, any possible trauma greatly affects our perception of life and other related things.

In order to have a more accurate perspective on life and a better understanding of this reality, we must reexamine the basic notions upon which we have built our world on, in our early years of life.

Moreover, we have to develop healthier and stronger relationships with our families and, especially, with our parents, who have played such a huge role in what we have become today.

Just by attempting to heal old wounds or repair damaged relationships, one exhibits intense growth and maturity, which is a crucial aspect to ones awakening. This will, inevitably, lead to spiritual enlightenment.

2. Treading Uncharted Territories

While growing up, we tend to build a life that is equivalent to a bubble. However, it is unhealthy to stay within that bubble, as it severely limits our experience of the world.

We all have to take that first step in venturing into the unknown and make a place for ourselves in the world.

Once we start to explore the world and stop confining ourselves within our comfort zones, we star growing in previously unimagined ways, and this is one of the necessary steps we must take in order to experience true awakening.

3. Understanding and Eliminating Dysfunctional Relationships

Many people, despite being aware, stay within their dysfunctional relationships and try to find justification for their decisions.

This habit of deceiving your own self negates growth and perpetuates other dysfunctional habits in your life. Being surrounded by positive influences is extremely important, as we tend to absorb more than we can imagine from our interactions with those around us.

The ability to distinguish unhealthy relationships is a huge part of your awakening and using the newly acquired understanding by eliminating these unhealthy relationships helps you in achieving spiritual enlightenment.

4. Being Aware of the Gift that is Health

A vast majority of people dont understand the blessing of a good health physical, mental and social. Most of us only understand this important gift when our health starts to deteriorate and, for the first time in our lives, we understand that health is priceless.

Those of us who understood the significance of health and actively make an effort towards maintaining it (by exercising, eating healthy, and so on), are a part of a minority.

This realization is a huge step for those moving towards spiritual enlightenment.

5. Developing the Ability to Learn Perpetually

There are people, although small in numbers, who are always looking to learn something new from their experiences and interactions.

Such people have a desire to better comprehend the complexities of life and the world around them. Therefore, they seek knowledge and are open to learn new things, simply because it brings them pleasure and a sense of fulfillment.

Learning, in itself, is an evolutionary process one that complies with the nature of our life. Only those who are willing to learn and possess a burning desire to create their own educated perspectives will head closer towards attaining enlightenment.

6. Exuding Positivity

Many people are subject to self-sabotage and they practice self-defeatist practices and beliefs that only impede with their own growth.

One of the most important steps towards becoming spiritually aware is the realization that thoughts and emotions are very powerful.

A person that is completely engulfed in negativity will never be able to experience happiness or joy, no matter how beautiful their lives may be.

Those who can be true to themselves and seek joy in their experiences, can truly attain spiritual enlightenment.

7. Understanding the Significance of Life

Ask people about their jobs and most will tell you just how much they hate it.

If you value your career so much and you think that your work is what defines you, then why not, at least, choose something that you love doing?

Unfortunately though, most people choose to work in stressful environments that deprive them of creativity or joy, and their sole motivation to continue is the next paycheck. Pursuing money and choosing a career on those basis, usually leads to everything else but joy.

Instead, you should understand that no matter what you choose to do, as long as you make an honest effort and your work brings you pleasure, money will always come.

Those who have understood what the truly important things are, and actively seek joyous experiences in their work and personal lives, are the ones who have developed enough understanding to move towards spiritual enlightenment.

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7 Signs That You Are Achieving Spiritual Enlightenment ...

Sedona Spiritual Inspiration & Healing | Visit Sedona

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Come to Mother Natures red-rock temples to experience their life-transforming, soul-nourishing work in person. Sedona is a perfect place for spiritual and personal enrichment of the body and the soul. From healing massage treatments, yoga, spas and salons to hypnotherapy and retreats, surely Sedona has something to offer. Our Sedona Chamber of Commerce Affinity Group, the Sedona Metaphysical Spiritual Association, is a great resource for learning about the spiritual and metaphysical side of Sedona.

The majestic red rock scenery and evergreen vegetation are two reasons for the unique energy of Sedona and its tangible regenerative and inspirational effects. The red-orange color of the rock is one of the most neuro stimulating of colors. It enhances creative thinking and problem solving. Because Sedona is framed year round by green, visitors are also bathed in sense of hope and renewal, regardless of the season. The spectacular trails and overlooks provide numerous opportunities for prayer, and contemplation. Sedona is also internationally known for the uplifting power of its Vortex meditation sites. Two aspects of those sites make Sedona truly special. First, within a very small geographical radius, you can easily access all the different types of vortexes (upflow/masculine/electric, inflow/feminine/magnetic, or combination /electromagnetic, etc.) Second, the Vortex sites are interwoven with the real world of a growing city. As a result, seekers have experiences in how to live their spirituality as they go through their daily lives. Rather than having to escape from civilization to find peace, visitors discover that Sedonas splendor gives them insights for how to create an inner harmony they can maintain once at home.

Sedona is a mecca for alternative healers. Living this close to the beauty of the land has inspired many profoundly holistic approaches to health. Our body-temples are complex multi-dimensional organisms, and Sedona healers apply their gifts to every level of the body/mind/spirit spectrum. You will benefit from their intuitive skills and compassionate hearts as well as their intellectual training and hands-on experience. So, whether youre currently troubled with health issues or are simply seeking more wellness, pleasure and balance in your life a visit to one of these dedicated practitioners could open up new worlds for you.

The natural beauty of Sedona is extraordinary from any perspective, but the closer you get, the deeper your experience will be. Special Sedona guides can transport you through the physical landscape and into the heart of the wild. Let the spirits of the land speak to you. Our Native brothers and sisters are sharing their tribal wisdom, showing us how to live in harmony with the earth and all our relations. Some of the most profound spiritual experiences in Sedona are to be found out on the land.

Sedona Vortex sites are popular tourist attractions. What are these Sedona vortexes? Vortex sites are enhanced energy locations that facilitate prayer, meditation, mind/body healing, and exploring your relationship with your Soul and the divine. They are neither electric nor magnetic (although these words are often used to describe the vortexes, along with the other nomenclature such as masculine or feminine sites). The explanation for vortexes lies more at the boundaries of known science, rather than in electromagnetic descriptions or gender related labels.

Recently the PBS program Nova, featured a breakthrough in physics called String Theory (also known as super-strings) that is revolutionizing all of science on the same order of magnitude that Einsteins discoveries did in the early 1900s. The key spiritual implications of super-strings is that the worlds top scientists agree that all things exist in a minimum of 10 or more dimensions. Simply stated, Vortex sites are locations having energy flows in those deeper dimension that the Soul can soar on.

Upflow Vortexes (also called electric or masculine sites), have energy flows that help you soar to higher spiritual perspectives. They enhance prayers or meditations for blending with the Universe, feeling one with the divine, or facing a problem from a Soul level. Inflow Vortexes (also called magnetic or feminine), have energy flows that help you go inward. In them you will be more successful with meditations or prayers about your life purposes or how to heal hurts in your past. There are also Combination Vortexes that have aspects of both energies. These allow the seeker to experience more advanced or in-depth spiritual skills and meditations.

A wide variety of lectures, texts, and guides are available through Sedonas bookstores and Spiritual Centers to assist you in experiencing the power of Sedonas Vortex sites. Give yourself the gift of tapping Sedonas potential for spiritual renewal and advancement.

Editorial provided by Pete A. Sanders Jr., MIT Honors Graduate and David Cates authorized for use by the Sedona Chamber of Commerce

Undergraduate Degree Programs | NanoEngineering

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

The Department of NanoEngineering offers undergraduate programs leading to theB.S. degreesinNanoengineeringandChemical Engineering. The Chemical Engineering and NanoEngineering undergraduate programs areaccredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. The undergraduate degree programs focus on integrating the various sciences and engineering disciplines necessary for successful careers in the evolving nanotechnology industry.These two degree programshave very different requirements and are described in separate sections.

B.S. NanoEngineering

TheNanoEngineering Undergraduate Program became effective Fall 2010.Thismajor focuses on nanoscale science, engineering, and technology that have the potential to make valuable advances in different areas that include, to name a few, new materials, biology and medicine, energy conversion, sensors, and environmental remediation. The program includes affiliated faculty from the Department of NanoEngineering, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and the Department of Bioengineering. The NanoEngineering undergraduate program is tailored to provide breadth and flexibility by taking advantage of the strength of basic sciences and other engineering disciplines at UC San Diego. The intention is to graduate nanoengineers who are multidisciplinary and can work in a broad spectrum of industries.

B.S. Chemical Engineering

The Chemical Engineering undergraduate program is housed within the NanoEngineering Department. The program is made up of faculty from the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, the Department of Bioengineering and the Department of NanoEngineering. The curricula at both the undergraduate and graduate levels are designed to support and foster chemical engineering as a profession that interfaces engineering and all aspects of basic sciences (physics, chemistry, and biology). As of Fall 2008, the Department of NanoEngineering has taken over the administration of the B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering.

Academic Advising

Upon admission to the major, students should consult the catalog or NanoEngineering website for their program of study, and their undergraduate/graduate advisor if they have questions. Because some course and/or curricular changes may be made every year, it is imperative that students consult with the departments student affairs advisors on an annual basis.

Students can meet with the academic advisors during walk-in hours, schedule an appointment, or send messages through the Virtual Advising Center (VAC).

Program Alterations/Exceptions to Requirements

Variations from or exceptions to any program or course requirements are possible only if the Undergraduate Affairs Committee approves a petition before the courses in question are taken.

Independent Study

Students may take NANO 199 or CENG 199, Independent Study for Undergraduates, under the guidance of a NANO or CENG faculty member. This course is taken as an elective on a P/NP basis. Under very restrictive conditions, however, it may be used to satisfy upper-division Technical Elective or Nanoengineering Elective course requirements for the major. Students interested in this alternative must have completed at least 90 units and earned a UCSD cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better. Eligible students must identify a faculty member with whom they wish to work and propose a two-quarter research or study topic. Please visit the Student Affairs office for more information.

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Undergraduate Degree Programs | NanoEngineering

BBC – Religions – Atheism: Rationalism

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Auguste Rodin's The Thinker

Rationalism is an approach to life based on reason and evidence.

Rationalism encourages ethical and philosophical ideas that can be tested by experience and rejects authority that cannot be proved by experience.

Because rationalism encourages people to think for themselves, rationalists have many different and diverse ideas and continue in a tradition from the nineteenth century known as freethought.

However, most rationalists would agree that:

Almost all rationalists are atheists or agnostics. There has been a long link between rationalism and scientific method.

There is also a long tradition of philosophers who have approached philosophical and ethical questions from a rationalist perspective.

Bertrand Russell's "The Faith of a Rationalist" is an example of a rationalist approach to religious belief.

As well as approaching life through reason, rationalists enjoy those things in life where emotion and imagination are to the fore.

There has been a long tradition of artists and writers who have been associated with rationalism and its sister movement, humanism, or have pre-empted rationalist ideas in their writings. George Eliot, E.M. Forster and Emile Zola are all examples of such writers.

Rationalism encourages people to think for themselves, to look at the evidence before them and to come to their own conclusions. For this reason, the logo of the Rationalist Press Association is based on Rodin's "The Thinker".

BBC - Religions - Atheism: Rationalism

What is CR? – critical rationalism blogcritical …

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

I like to think of CR (critical rationalism) as a kind of evolving philosophical tradition concerning how we should approach knowledge. It is the Socratic method only with a little bit of modern awareness. While most philosophical traditions regard knowledge as something that has to be certain and justified, CR takes the view that we dont have ultimate answers, but knowledge is nevertheless possible. Truth is an endless quest.

The modern founder of critical rationalism was Karl Popper. Popper pointed out we can never justify anything, we merely criticize and weed out bad ideas and work with whats left. Poppers initial emphasis was on empirical science, where he solved the problem of induction, something that had been haunting philosophers and scientists for centuries. The problem of induction is this. No matter how many times weve seen an apple fall to the ground after weve dropped it, do we have any way to prove the same thing will happen next time we drop it. The answer is no. What Popper pointed out is that you can never justify any scientific theory, but you can falsify it. If I were to claim that all swans were white, one black swan would falsify my theory. In this way, science moves forward by weeding out bad theories, so to speak.

Popper said that science moves forward through a method of conjecture and refutation. While Popper was primarily interested in science, he often commented on political problems as well. Popper liked to emphasize the need for an open society, a society where people can speak out and criticize. After all, if science progresses through refutations, criticizing becomes essential. We need to speak out and therefore we need the freedom to do so. Popper was against any form of government that didnt give people the chance to speak out. Poppers thinking could probably best be summed up in this quote, I may be wrong and you may be right, and by an effort, we may get nearer to the truth.

Popper worked hard to expand his ideas, and so have several other people. CR should not be viewed as one mans philosophy, but as a growing philosophical tradition. One in which several people have contributed and are still contributing. One notable person was William Warren Bartley, III. Bartley worked towards expanding the idea of critical rationalism to cover all areas of knowledge, not just empirical science. Bartley felt that while in almost all areas of knowledge we seek justification, we should instead seek criticism. While nothing can ever be justified in any ultimate sense, certainly we can see error and weed it out. This is true whether we are dealing with empirical science and perhaps even knowledge of what is ethical. An important part of Bartleys thinking could probably best be summed up in this quote, How can our intellectual life and institutions, our tradition, and even our etiquette, sensibility, manners and customs, and behavior patterns, be arranged so as to expose our beliefs, conjectures, ideologies, policies, positions, programs, sources of ideas, traditions, and the like, to optimum criticism, so as at once to counteract and eliminate as much intellectual error as possible, and also so as to contribute to and insure the fertility of the intellectual econiche: to create an environment in which not only negative criticism but also positive creation of ideas, and the development of rationality, are truly inspired.

Neither Bartley or Popper have exhaustively explored the full potential of the CR philosophical tradition. Indeed, there are unlimited possibilities. While CR often emphasizes criticism, it also encourages new approaches and creative thinking. We need to come up with as many new ideas as we can, then let the process of criticism weed out the less workable ones. As CR accepts that the truth is out there and we are working towards it, it is actually a very optimistic philosophical tradition. Perhaps the most optimistic among the big three philosophical traditions. What are the big three traditions. Let me give you a quick summary.

One, dogmatism. Decide that you are privy to ultimate truth and then just follow that truth no matter what. Does such an attitude contribute to fanaticism? Perhaps.

Two, pessimism. Decide that truth is impossible, relative, random, meaningless. Just do whatever you want because nothing matters anyway. Does such an attitude contribute to random violence? Perhaps.

Three, critical rationalism, the truth is out there, but no one has a monopoly on it, so lets work together to try and get a little closer to it. Does such an attitude contribute to progress and mutual respect? More than likely.

If youd like more details than this then thats what this blog is for, please look around and explore.

Matt Dioguardi, blog administrator

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What is CR? - critical rationalism blogcritical ...

Rationalism and Empiricism – Ohio Northern University

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Rationalism and EmpiricismRationalism and EmpiricismSome Notes on Epistemological Strategies and their Implications in Ethics

While the main focus in an ethics course is on ethics and the problems and issues that ethics raises, it is impossible to investigate these problems in isolation, without at least some excursions into the other philosophical sub-disciplines. While all the philosophical sub-disciplines consider what, on one level, are separate questions and issues, there are considerable interconnections, as assumptions in one area will have repercussions in other areas. One question that all ethical theories must address is where ethical knowledge arises, i.e., where does the knowledge about general ethical principles or the knowledge that certain actions are moral or immoral originate? These and other similar questions raise issues that are no longer unique to ethics, rather these issues touch upon more general epistemological questions, i.e., questions about knowledgeits sources, nature and justification. To some the question Where does knowledge originate? might seem rather strange. While knowledge acquisition and manipulation are essential to human beings, the more usual epistemological questions concern some particular ideas source or some statements truth conditions. So, while it is common to inquire into a statement or ideas source, to inquire into all knowledges source seems strange. Some might question whether an answer is even possible. Nevertheless, it is a legitimate (indeed, an essential) philosophical question and though there are difficultiesreal difficultiesanswers are possible. Rationalism and empiricism represent the traditional Western philosophical responses to these epistemological questions. As epistemological theories these philosophical traditions each trace their origins to ancient Greece and the earliest philosophical speculations about the human condition and each also brings unique insights and assumptions to questions about human knowledges nature and origins.

RATIONALISM

Rationalism distinguishes between empirical knowledge, i.e., knowledge that arises through experience, and a priori knowledge, i.e., knowledge that is prior to experience and that arises through reason. As knowledge that arises through our experiences, empirical knowledge is about the material universe (and the various entities and phenomena in that universe). Sentences such as Edinburgh is in Scotland, It is 75o outside, John Locke was a philosopher, The average moose weights 1500 pounds each express statements about certain entities in the universe and so represent empirical knowledge. In contrast a priori knowledge is not about phenomena in the empirical universe or our experiences, though some a priori knowledge is applicable to that universe. The sense in which a priori knowledge is prior to experience is logical rather than temporal, i.e., it is possible that one learns some a priori knowledge through experience, nevertheless that knowledge neither requires experience in order to be known, nor is about experience. Perhaps it is easier, then, to consider a priori knowledge as knowledge that arises through reason alone, i.e., it depends upon no experience. Consider, e.g., mathematical knowledge or logical knowledge. The statement All triangles have three sides makes no claim about experience or the empirical universe since there are no triangles in the universe. There are, to be sure, triangular entities, i.e., physical entities that have a triangular shape, but no triangles themselves. In a similar manner, the statement 3+3=6 makes no claims about the universe as there are no 3s or 6s that one can experience and so possess empirical knowledge about. Again, while it is obvious that some mathematical knowledge is applicable to experience (e.g., 3+3=6 is applicable when one has 3 apples and someone gives one 3 more applesone then knows that one has 6 apples), this fails to demonstrate that the mathematical statement 3+3=6 is an empirical statement. The logical statements x = x, All the entities in the universe are either x or not-x and No entities in the universe are both x and not-x are also statements that while applicable to experience are not about experience.[1] There is another difference between empirical and a priori knowledge in addition to their respective sources and content. This difference has to do with their truth conditions. A truth condition specifies under what conditions a given statement can be said to be true or false, i.e., it indicates what one needs to do to prove a statement true or false. Consider the statement It is 75o outside. Under what conditions is this statement true? It should be obvious that the statement is true so long as the outside temperature is 75o. How would one prove whether the statement is true or false? Again, it should be obvious that one would need to determine, through some procedure or apparatus, the outside temperature. In short, one appeals to experience and the empirical data it provides. In contrast to this empirical statement, consider again the statement 3+3=6. Under what conditions is this statement true and how is it possible to prove it? Well, it is true so long as 3+3 does indeed equal 6, this much seems obvious. But, and here is the principal difference between empirical and a priori knowledge, how does one prove the statement to be true? Perhaps the most obvious response is: Well, take three apples and add them to three more apples and then there are six apples. While this demonstration is to the point, does it suffice to prove that 3+3=6? No, at best this little exercise confirms the statement, but it fails to prove it. To understand the difference between prove and confirm consider another illustration. It is a quiet summer afternoon and James decides to rest on the grass beside a river. Some moments later a white swan swims down stream. As James continues to rest seven more swans, that are also white, swim down stream. James considers this experience and realizes that all the swans he has ever seen have been white. So, James formulates the statement All swans are white and sure enough the next swan he passes is white. Did this last experience prove that the statement All swans are white is true? No, since James has not seen all swans, it is possible that there is at least one that is some non-white color. James experience does, however, provide additional confirmation that the statement is true (at least until James discovers there are non-white swans). To prove that 3+3=6 is true then requires that one appeals to more than experience. To be precise, one must appeal to other mathematical knowledge. At this point someone will perhaps take exception with this analysis and point out that since one learns mathematics through experience, so mathematics must also be empirical knowledge! The point is well taken. The source, however, is not the real issue. The real issue is what the knowledge is about and its truth conditions. Moreover, even though some a priori knowledge might arise through experience, it should be obvious that most does not, i.e., while one might argue that one learns basic mathematical truths, e.g., 1+1=2, 2+2=4 and so on, through experience, it seems clear that there are other mathematical truths that it is much more difficult to learn through experience, e.g., 3525+2353=5858 or a2+b2=c2. The rationalists point here is that a priori knowledge is about more than experience and as such it provides knowledge that experience is unable to provide. A similar analysis will demonstrate that logical statements such as All the entities in the universe are either x or not-x also depend upon no experience to determine their truth. Indeed, since the statement is about all the entities in the universe, the experience one needs to prove it as an empirical claim is impossible. It should be obvious, however, that one needs no experience or empirical data to prove the statement, i.e., whatever characteristic one chooses as x, it is apparent that all the entities in the universe either have x or do not have x. All the entities in the universe are either purple or not purple, bigger than a cat or not bigger than a cat, spherical or not spherical, and so on. One can know that this statement is true even when one has no idea what the characteristic in question is. Thus, one knows that all the entities in the universe are either merbalis or not-merbalis, even though no one else in the universe knows what merbalis is (since I made it up!). To rationalists this power to discern and generate universal truths is quite impressive. Indeed, the differences between rationalism and empiricism as to (a) what constitutes genuine knowledge, (b) what such knowledge is about, and (c) its truth conditions, suggest to the rationalists that there is a real qualitative difference between empirical and a priori knowledge. To be precise, most rationalists argue that a priori knowledge is superior to empirical knowledge. The one consideration that is seen as the most decisive in this argument is the difference in truth conditions between empirical and a priori knowledge. Most rationalists consider there to be a fundamental problem with empirical knowledge. Empirical knowledge depends upon our senses, senses that, the rationalist wastes no time to demonstrate, are unreliable. Here the rationalist appeals to common sense deceptions and perceptual illusionswhen one places a straight rod into water the rod appears to bend, at a distance a square tower appears to be round, parallel lines appear to converge in the distance, and so on.[2] Thus, it is difficult, perhaps even impossible, to ever know that an empirical statement is true. It seems that it is possible to doubt even the most certain sense perceptions. In contrast, a priori knowledge is certain knowledge. While it might be possible to doubt that I see a map on the wall beside the computer (I might have a bizarre optical disease or it might be a hallucination), it seems impossible to doubt that 2+2=4. Furthermore, while empirical knowledge represents conditional knowledge, i.e., knowledge that might have been otherwise, a priori knowledge is universal and eternal. Again, while it is possible to imagine a universe in which the earths circumference was 30,000 miles rather than 25,000 miles or a universe in which politicians are honest or a universe in which the Chicago Cubs do win a World Series, it seems impossible to imagine a universe in which 2+2=6 or where triangles have more (or less) than three sides. As with most philosophical theories there is some disagreement between rationalists on certain issues. One issue that separates rationalists is the answer to the question where a priori knowledge originates. The more radical rationalists (e.g., Plato and Rene Descartes) argue that a priori knowledge is innate, i.e., the knowledge is in some manner latent within the mind or even built into the mind. At best then experience acts to elicit the knowledge, but the knowledge was there prior to the experience. Plato argues that all genuine knowledge is innate and education is mere recollection or remembrance (see Platos dialogue Meno), while Descartes claims that certain critical conceptsGod, material substance, and mental substanceare innate. Given these three innate ideas and reason, Descartes argues that other a priori knowledge is derivable. The obvious problem that these radical rationalist strategies face is the need to explain where the mind acquires these innate ideas. In Platos case the solution is an immortal soul-mind that lives through countless lives (i.e., reincarnations), whereas Descartes argues that God places these ideas in human minds. It is also possible to argue that evolution is responsible, i.e., the minds biological structure contains the ideas. While this sounds rather strange, the linguist Noam Chomsky argues this precise thesis. Unless one assumes that certain linguistic structures, e.g., deep grammar, are innate, the argument goes, it is impossible to explain the apparent ease with which human beings learn natural languages. Immanual Kant argues a less radical rationalist line. Kant accepts the rationalist claim that reason alone can provide certain knowledge. Nevertheless, Kant also accepts the empiricist claim that all knowledge begins in experience, i.e., without sense experience as the initial data upon which reason can operate, the knowledge acquisition process can never start. Knowledge, as Kant conceives it then is what the mind produces as it orders and structures otherwise chaotic sense data. The rather radical idea here is that it is the mind that imposes the order and structure on the sense data, the implication being that the sense data have no intrinsic order or structure. The main organizational principles that the mind imposes on sense data are its spatial and temporal structure. These considerations led Kant to a metaphysical distinctionthe distinction between the noumenal universe and the phenomenal universe. The noumenal universe comprises entities-in-themselves, while the phenomenal universe comprises entities-through-their-appearances (White 1996: 296). This is rather technical so it is best to go through it in stages. Suppose someone presents us with a blue glass sphere. It is through our senses that we perceive this sphere. In this case the principal senses are visual and tactileour visual sense indicates that it is blue and spherical and our tactile sense that it is glass and also that it is spherical. Philosophers call these qualitiesbeing blue, being glass and being sphericalproperties or characteristics. All entities have propertiesa size, a shape, a color, a taste, a texture, an odor, and sound and so on. Kants point is that it is through these properties, and through these properties alone, that all the knowledge we have about the entities in the universe arises. All knowledge about entities comes through their properties (which Kant calls appearances). Our commonsense intuitions suggest, however, that there must be some substance or matter that has the properties that our senses perceive, i.e., that the properties cannot exist without some substance that underlies them and possesses them as properties. While the substance that underlies the properties is unseen, nevertheless reason and commonsense insist that it must exist. Descartes suggests that such inferences are rather common occurrences, e.g., when one peers out a window on a cold winter afternoon one might see a person move across the lawn. But does one see a person? No, all that one sees is a cap, a coat and perhaps trousers and shoes. Nevertheless, no one doubts that there is someone under all the apparel. Even though one is unable to see the person one still reasons that there must be one there, since clothes seldom stroll across lawns on their own. Kant agrees that there must be entities that possess the properties our senses perceive, but argues that while logic necessitates their existence, these entities-in-themselves (which comprise the noumenal universe) are unperceivable and so incomprehensible to the human mind. All that is knowable are the properties (i.e., appearances) that our senses perceive and our mind structures. These appearances are the entities that comprise the phenomenal universe. There are no means then to, as it were, move outside our senses to see entities in themselves, to see the real universe rather than the universe that our senses communicate to us through perception. Since all our knowledge comes through the senses and reason, these act as filters which order and structure all our perceptions and thoughts. The entities-in-themselves that underlie the perceptions remain forever elusive. While perhaps more plausible, Kants rationalism imposes limitations on knowledge that more radical rationalists would refuse to accept. Nevertheless, Kants approach is rationalist since it is the mind (to be precise, reason), that gives our sense perceptions the structure that changes them into knowledge (White 1996: 297). The main point to remember is that rationalists believe that, even though it might require experience to initiate the knowledge process, there is some knowledge that is irreducible to experience, i.e., the knowledge is neither about experience nor is it possible to use experience to demonstrate that the knowledge is true or false.

EMPIRICISM

Empiricism denies the rationalist distinction between empirical and a priori knowledge. All knowledge, the empiricist argues, arises through, and is reducible to, sense perception. Thus, there is no knowledge that arises through reason alone. It is essential to be clear here: it is not reasons existence that empiricism denies, or that reason has a role in knowledge acquisition and manipulation, rather it is that reason has some special access to knowledge over and above the knowledge that experience provides. All empiricists acknowledge that human beings possess reasonreason is the instrument that allows us to manipulate and augment the knowledge that experience provides. Knowledge, however, has its origins in experience rather than in reason. Empiricism begins with the distinction between sense data and ideas. Sense data represent the basic information that the senses present to the mind through our perceptual experiences, i.e., sights, tastes, textures, sounds and odors. To illustrate, suppose that one sees a blue sphere. This sense experience is reducible to the visual act and the sense data (i.e., the information that the visual act contains). In this case the information that the visual act contains is that there is a visible blueness and a sphericalness. At this stage there is no conscious recognition that one sees a blue sphere, all there is is the pure sense data that the senses present to the mind through the sense experiences. The mind processes and represents each individual sense datum as an idea, in this case the ideas blue and spherical. The mind then associates and combines the ideas it creates through sense experience to create the conscious idea blue sphere. To the empiricist, sense data represent the basic material that the mind uses to construct the ideas that comprise all our knowledge. Thus, no matter what the idea is, it is possible to trace that idea to some sense experience(s). While the precise details differ, these are the basic cognitive mechanisms that the principal empiricist philosophersJohn Locke, George Berkeley and David Humeall appeal to in order to explain the process through which sense data becomes knowledge. Although empiricism denies a priori knowledges existence, as knowledge that depends upon no experience, there is still the recognition that some knowledge goes further than experience in the sense that it is not about experience. Nevertheless, empiricism argues that such knowledge is still reducible to experience. Again, this is the crucial notionthat it is possible to trace all knowledge, whether or not it is about experience, to some particular experience or experiences. Rather than preserve what is thought to be an inaccurate distinction, empiricism recasts the distinction between a priori knowledge and empirical knowledge into the distinction between analytic knowledge and synthetic knowledge. Through this distinction empiricism denies the rationalist claim that a priori knowledge is superior to empirical knowledge. Indeed, the distinction provides the basis to argue the precise opposite. The statements that the rationalists cite as paradigmatic a priori knowledgeA triangle has three sides, 3+3=6 and so onthe empiricist sees as analytic statements. An analytic statement is one where the statement analyzes the concept in question. Thus, the statement A triangle has three sides does no more than analyze the concept triangle, and the statement 3=3=6 does no more than analyzes the concept six. Moreover, the empiricist argues, these statements never do more than analyze the concepts in question. In a real sense then these statements provide no additional knowledge, all the knowledge that analytic statements contain is given is within the original concept the statement analyzes (White 1996: 280). Synthetic statements, in contrast, do provide additional knowledgeknowledge that goes further than the original concept. Consider the statement: The temperature outside is 75o. This is a synthetic statement since, while it has to be some temperature outside, there is no reason that it has to be 75o rather than some other temperature. The concepts temperature and outside then have no intrinsic connection to some specific outside temperature, rather what the temperature depends upon are various other environmental conditions. So statement such as The temperature outside is 75o provide us with additional (and sometimes valuable) information. All synthetic statements then share the characteristic that, because there is no intrinsic or logical connection between the statements elements, these statements provide information about a connection or relation that is unavailable in the original concepts themselves. Given that analytic statements reveal no additional insights, while synthetic statements do provide novel ideas and associations, it should come as no surprise that empiricism argues that empirical knowledge is superior to a priori knowledge rather than the reverse (or to be more precise, that synthetic knowledge is superior to analytic knowledge). With the focus on analytic truths rationalism never quite reaches the real universe in the manner that synthetic statements are able to do. There is, however, a philosophical price to be paid. While the empiricist gains additional insights and knowledge there is a loss in certitude, since the empiricist still must deal with senses that (the rationalist is correct to maintain) are unreliable. The rationalist can be certain that 2+2=4, the empiricist, however, must accept that empirical knowledge is at best probable, never certain. The problem is that the empiricist has no real response to the claim that it is possible to doubt even the most persuasive sense impressions, since it is possible to doubt them without logical contradiction. In philosophical terms, the problem is that our sense perceptions underdetermine their causes, i.e., a given sense perception has more than one explanation. Consider, e.g., that one sees a white rabbit. What might explain this perception? The obvious answer is that one sees a white rabbit because there is a white rabbit there. It is also possible, however, that one has a rare optical disease and the rabbit is some other color, rather than white. It is also possible that one hallucinates or dreams the rabbit. As Alice will attest, these are all logical possibilities and the sense experiences in themselves provide no certain means to decide which explanation is correct. This suggests another potential problem that empiricism must addresshow to explain mathematics and logic? Remember that empiricism maintains that all knowledge is reducible to experience. Thus, the empiricist must explain how it is possible to reduce sometimes arcane mathematical knowledge to common sense experience. This means that, since mathematical knowledge is thought to be certain knowledge, the empiricist must explain how it is possible to derive certain knowledge through a processsense experiencethat provides knowledge that is, at best, probable. Moreover, the empiricist must also explain how it is possible to prove mathematical statements through experience. There have been numerous attempts to demonstrate how it is possible to derive mathematics and logic through experience. Though commendable these attempts all have had serious difficulties and so have met with little general acceptance. Even were it possible to reduce mathematics to experience, the questions (1) whether experiences whose truth is probable can produce certain mathematical knowledge and (2) how it is possible to prove mathematical statements through experience, pose rather more serious difficulties. Perhaps the easiest, though least intuitive, solution is to argue that there is no certitude in mathematics. This is John Stuart Mills tactic. Mill, a radical empiricist, argues that, as with all other all empirical statements, mathematical statements express mere probabilities. All that distinguishes them is that mathematical statements have undergone more extensive con-firmation than other statements (Encyclopedia of Philosophy 2: 503). The disadvantage to this tactic is obvious: one must give up all claims to absolute truth in mathematics. Most philosophers (as well as mathematicians) consider this concession to be as difficult as it is undesirable. In contrast to Mill, less radical empiricists, e.g., David Hume and John Locke, still want to maintain mathematics certitude. This too, however, comes at a price. To preserve mathematical truths as absolute truths Locke argues that some perceptions, and the ideas that represent these perceptions, can be more certain than others. To be precise, Locke argues that, when reason operates on experience, the ideas, and the associations between ideas, that it produces result in knowledge that is either intuitive, demonstrative or sensitive. Locke maintains that intuitive knowledge and demonstrative knowledge are certain knowledge (Encyclopedia of Philosophy 2: 501). Lockes arguments here are technical and, to most, less than a complete success. To all intents and purposes, however, what Locke does in order to guarantee certain knowledge is to introduce certain rationalist elements. The consequence is that Lockes certain knowledge is rather too similar to the rationalists a priori knowledge to please most empiricists. Since empiricism argues that there is no knowledge that arises through reason alone, it should be obvious that empiricism also denies that there are innate ideas, i.e., ideas that are in the mind prior to experience or that are built into the mind in some manner. The standard argument against innate ideas is that were there such ideas then all rational beings should possess and acknowledge them. Since it is obvious that there are neither universal ideas, i.e., ideas that all human beings possess, nor ideas upon which their is universal agreement, then there are no innate ideas (see John Lockes Essays on the Law of Nature and Essay Concerning Human Understanding, and David Humes A Treatise on Human Nature). The empiricist considers the pre-experience mind to be a tabula rasaa clean slateand it is through experience that knowledge comes to be written on this slate. Thus, empiricisms credo is that where there is (or can be) no experience there is (and can be) no knowledge.

IMPLICATIONS IN ETHICS

The debate between rationalism and empiricism continues, and it is quite possible some issues will be impossible to resolve, at least given our finite human intelligence. To the degree that it is possible to determine the correct solutions to these issues, the British philosopher Bertrand Russell concludes that the score is even. Russell argues that while it seems clear that the empiricists are correct that all knowledge must arise through experience, it also seems obvious that there is some knowledge that it is impossible to reduce to experience, i.e., reason is able to use experience to produce knowledge that it is nevertheless impossible to prove through experience (see The Problems of Philosophy). The main purpose here, however, is to illustrate that ones general philosophical assumptions about knowledges nature and origins will have consequences in other philosophical investigations, in particular in ethics. And to illustrate that all theories involve compromises, i.e., no matter the initial assumptions, there will be advantages and disadvantages. It is to a philosophers credit then to be able to detect and acknowledge the disadvantages as well as the advantages that their positions entail.

John Locke:Lockes natural law ethics reveals the same tensions that run through Lockes general approach to knowledge. The desire to have some knowledge be certain knowledge, even though all knowledge arises through experience, forces Locke to argue that reason is able to combine some ideas in a manner that produces certain knowledge. Such knowledge is irresistible, i.e., it leaves no room to hesitate or doubt (Encyclopedia of Philosophy 4: 497). Thus, Locke argues that certain knowledge is possible. Perhaps most important to Lockes ethics is the conviction it is possible to be certain that God exists. More than this, since Locke bases what is moral on what God wills, it is even possible to know what it is that Gods desires human beings to do, i.e., the divine law. The divine law as discoverable through reason becomes the natural lawthe command to preserve human beings. The natural law, Locke argues, underlies and governs all human interaction. Thus, through the nature law reason is able to derive all the particular natural rights and moral duties that human beings possess. These are rights and duties that all human beings possess as human beings and that human beings must use as a guide in their behavior. The universal and absolute character is what reason supplies to experience to produce certain knowledge.

Immanual Kant:While Kant thought there was much to admire in the empiricist philosopher David Humes A Treatise on Human Nature, and though he even accepts the empiricist principle that all knowledge arises in experience, Kant is without doubt a rationalist. This rationalism is quite apparent in Kants philosophical investigations into ethics. Kant believes that the supreme principle that underlies all moralsthe categorical imperativemust be absolute and universal. Such a principle can never arise in experience, Kant argues, since all experience is particular (i.e., about particular entities in particular situations at particular times). Neither can experience prove this principle. Experience can at best, Kant insists, confirm the categorical imperative. In contrast to the knowledge that arises through experience, the knowledge that arises through reason is abstract and universal. To illustrate the difference consider the statements There are wombats in Tasmania and a2+b2=c2. It is clear that the empirical statement There are wombats in Tasmania is about particular entities (wombats) and a particular situation (being in Tasmania). The mathematical statement has no such limitations. This statement is abstract in that it mentions no particular entities and universal in that it applies to all appropriate as, bs and cs. It is reason alone then that is able to determine and prove the categorical imperative as the supreme moral principle. Kant distinguishes here between theoretical reason and practical reason. It is theoretical reason that investigates the empirical universe. This is the reason that science uses. Practical reasons concern is the will, that motive force in human beings that underlies all moral behavior. To be precise, it is practical reasons role to create a good will. To do this practical reason determines the moral principle that the will must follow, i.e., the categorical imperative. The general epistemological limitations that arise because Kant accepts the empiricist principle that all knowledge begins in experience are also apparent in Kants ethics. Since it is impossible to know entities-in-themselves there are certain entities and ideas, whose importance to ethics are immeasurable, about which human beings can have no knowledge whatsoever. In particular, it is impossible to have knowledge as to whether (1) God exists, (2) the soul is immortal and (3) that human possess free will. Kant argues, however, that even without certain knowledge, it is still essential to assume that all these are true, otherwise ethics is impossible.

John Stuart Mill:Mills utilitarian ethics incorporates the radical interpretation that Mill gives the empiricist principle that all knowledge arises in experience. Mill interprets the all to mean all knowledge. Thus, Mill assumes that even mathematical and logical knowledge are empirical knowledge with all the limitations that such knowledge possesses. Mill manages to overcome, however, the scepticism that characterizes Humes empiricism (Encyclopedia of Philosophy 5: 318). The Greatest Happiness Principle that underlies utilitarian ethics states that those actions are moral which provide the greatest happiness to the greatest number. What determines happiness is without a doubt an empirical matter, i.e., it is through our experience that we realize what actions cause the pleasures that increase happiness and what actions cause the pains that decrease happiness. Reasons role in this process is to learn through these experiences and to formulate the general moral rules that will, over time, lead to the greatest happiness. It is essential to realize, however, that while these general moral rules are meant to guide behavior, because our experiences change, these rules can and do change over time. There are no certain, or absolute, or universal moral rules. Experience is unable to provide such permanence. Mill also acknowledges, that it is impossible to prove that happiness is the ultimate end that drives all human desire and action. As a consequence Mill must concede, and this is a rather radical concession, that it is impossible to provide a logical demonstration that the Greatest Happiness Principle is the fundamental moral law. Logical analysis, Mill argues, has no place in ethics. In contrast to Locke and Kant then Mill denies that ethics is, or can be, a science. In the end, Mills normative ethics rests upon psychological observations and arguments, whereas Locke and Kant believe their normative theories to rest upon logical arguments.

NOTES:

1. Bertrand Russell argues that, more that obvious logical truths, without at least the assumption that these principles are true, rational argument becomes impossible (1912: 72). 2. There is an extensive discussion about these problems in Rene Descartes Meditations on First Philosophy.

Sources and References

Blau, J.L. 1967 Immanual Kant. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 1967 John Locke. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy.Descartes, Rene 1993 Meditations on First Philosophy. Indianpolis: Hackett.Hamlyn, D.W. 1967 Empiricism. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy.Hume, David 1969 A Treatise of Human Nature. London: Penguin.Locke, John 1950 Essays on the Law of Nature. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1975 An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Plato 1981 Five Dialogues. Indianapolis: Hackett.Russell, Bertrand 1912 The Problems of Philosophy. Indianapolis: Hackett.Schneewind, J. B. 1967 John Stuart Mill. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy.White, Thomas I. 1996 Discovering Philosophy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.Williams, Bernard 1967 Rationalism. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

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Rationalism and Empiricism - Ohio Northern University

gambling | Definition, History, Games, & Facts | Britannica.com

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Gambling, the betting or staking of something of value, with consciousness of risk and hope of gain, on the outcome of a game, a contest, or an uncertain event whose result may be determined by chance or accident or have an unexpected result by reason of the bettors miscalculation.

Gambling – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is opposed to gambling, including lotteries sponsored by governments. Church leaders have encouraged Church members to join with others in opposing the legalization and government sponsorship of any form of gambling.

Gambling is motivated by a desire to get something for nothing. This desire is spiritually destructive. It leads participants away from the Savior's teachings of love and service and toward the selfishness of the adversary. It undermines the virtues of work and thrift and the desire to give honest effort in all we do.

Those who participate in gambling soon discover the deception in the idea that they can give little or nothing and receive something of value in return. They find that they give up large amounts of money, their own honor, and the respect of family members and friends. Deceived and addicted, they often gamble with funds they should use for other purposes, such as meeting the basic needs of their families. Gamblers sometimes become so enslaved and so desperate to pay gambling debts that they turn to stealing, giving up their own good name.

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Gambling - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Compulsive gambling – Diagnosis and treatment – Mayo Clinic

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Danzig

Diagnosis

If you recognize that you may have a problem with your gambling, talk with your primary care doctor about an evaluation or seek help from a mental health professional.

To evaluate your problem with gambling, your doctor or mental health professional will likely:

Treating compulsive gambling can be challenging. That's partly because most people have a hard time admitting they have a problem. Yet a major component of treatment is working on acknowledging that you're a compulsive gambler.

If your family or your employer pressured you into therapy, you may find yourself resisting treatment. But treating a gambling problem can help you regain a sense of control and perhaps help heal damaged relationships or finances.

Treatment for compulsive gambling may include these approaches:

Treatment for compulsive gambling may involve an outpatient program, inpatient program or a residential treatment program, depending on your needs and resources. Treatment for substance abuse, depression, anxiety or any other mental health disorder may be part of your treatment plan for compulsive gambling.

Even with treatment, you may return to gambling, especially if you spend time with people who gamble or you're in gambling environments. If you feel that you'll start gambling again, contact your mental health professional or sponsor right away to head off a relapse.

These recovery skills may help you concentrate on resisting the urges of compulsive gambling:

Family members of people with a compulsive gambling problem may benefit from counseling, even if the gambler is unwilling to participate in therapy.

If you've decided to seek help for compulsive gambling, you've taken an important first step.

Before your appointment make a list of:

Questions to ask your doctor may include:

Don't hesitate to ask any other questions during your appointment.

Your doctor will likely ask you a number of questions. Be ready to answer them to reserve time to go over any points you want to spend more time on. Your doctor may ask:

Oct. 22, 2016

10 Steps to Prepare for Americas Economic Collapse

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Danzig

A frenetic intemperanceis destabilizing our economy. It is a restless, explosive and relentless drive inside man. It seeks to throw off all legitimate restraints and gratify all disordered passions.

The Troubles We Now Face

Because of frenetic intemperance, our economy is coming apart under crushing debt obligations: personal, corporate, state and local government, out-of-control federal spending and debt, runaway trade deficits, a manufacturing base that has largely moved off-shore, and a wobbly dollar whose currency reserve status is increasingly challenged around the world. Crippling socialist regulations, laws, and taxes stifle businesses and individuals alike, squashing initiative and removing incentives to work and invest.

Free Book:Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian SocietyWhere Weve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go

No one expects a house without a foundation to survive a hurricane. Likewise, it is unreasonable to expect that, as the winds resulting from decades of profligate, irresponsible behavior reach gale strength, our society will withstand their destructive power.

Will America Survive?The crumbling of the American way of life does not necessarily mean the end of America. We must pray, work and trust in God that from the debris of our crumbling society, a new America will arise an America of faith and family, service and honor.

It all hinges on how we confront the coming economic collapse.

This collapse may come suddenly, or in stages, like the steps of a staircase. In either case, we must be prepared.

Drawn from John Horvats ground-breaking book Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian SocietyWhere Weve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go,here are 10Steps that will help you and your family.

1. Stand Your GroundIn face of the crisis, some suggest we flee to Americas remote recesses or move abroad. This is wrong, for the world is so interconnected and interdependent today that the crisis will reach us, one way or another. More importantly, now is the time to fight for America, not abandon her.

Wherever you live and whatever your occupation, you must stand your ground, fighting for the common good of the nation legally and peacefully.

2. Reject False SolutionsFalse solutions abound. Know them and reject them. False solutions from the Left include: the push for more socialism, the surrender of our sovereignty to international courts, the move toward global government, and sub-consumerist, neo-tribal, and ecological ideologies. False solutions from the Right include a quasi-anarchical aversion to government, the nullification movement, secessionism, and off-the-grid survivalism.

3. Prepare with PrudencePrudence is the virtue whereby we choose the adequate means to achieve our goal.In confronting a crisis, we often find it easier to focus on the practical measures. Certainly these are not to be neglected, but assembling the spiritual means that will help tackle troubles ahead is more important.

For this, you must strengthen your faith, fortify your principles, and reinforce your convictions. Start this prudent preparation with prayer and calm, reasoned reflection. It will make your principles solid and your attachment to our institutions firm. Only profound and solid reasons will sustain you in the hard, long struggle.

4. Examine Lifestyles and Personal HabitsThe movement to turn America around starts within each of us, on the individual plane. Since frenetic intemperance and selfish individualism are at the root of our socio-economic troubles, we must resolutely oppose them in our personal lives.

This means eliminating certain habits and lifestyles, for example: spending beyond your means or on fads and fashions; making unwise, even reckless investments; being swept away by stress-filled schedules; allowing the frenzy of technological gadgetry to dominate your life; puttingmoneyabove family, community or religion; preferring quantityoverquality; and having an aversion to leisure and reflection.

5. Ponder the Moral DimensionFrenetic intemperance is rooted in selfish unrestraint. It fosters individualism, whereby God and neighbor are shut out from the imagined universe we create for ourselves. But Saint John teaches: [H]e that loveth not his brother, whom he seeth, how can he love God, whom he seeth not? (1John 4:20). How very different is the guiding principle preached and lived by Our Divine Savior: Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13). Through the generous giving of self we eradicate frenetic intemperance and selfish individualism from our lives.

Whatever Americas economic collapse entails for you and your family, developing the habit of self-sacrifice is excellent spiritual preparation. Indeed, this dedication to others and to the common good, this true charity, has sustained every Christian society for 2,000 years.

6. It Takes a FamilyParents correctly see their children as extensions of themselves and sacrifice for them. In turn, children feel compelled by the ties of nature to love, honor, and sacrifice for their parents who collaborated with God to give them their existence. These bonds of affection and service tend naturally to expand, moving beyond the nuclear to the extended family: grandparents, cousins, uncles, and so on.

Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum correctly noted that, It takes a family. The family is a powerful and affectionate social safety net, and can provide many of the services usurped by the cold modern State. As an economic entity, the family tends to create patterns of production and consumption different from the flawed individualist model of today.

From the economic standpoint, the temperate structures of family tradition protect men from cut-throat competition. The predatory influence of usury is lessened since many have recourse to the family in times of need.

Your familys loving ambience is the easiest place for you to practice Christian charity.

7. It Takes a VillageFrom her perch on the Left, Hillary Clinton wrote that, It takes a village. This is perhaps the one point where we agree with her, though the underlying spirit is different. Hers is a socialist outlook, ours must be Christian.

We see the spirit of the family mirrored in associations and communities, towns and cities. These intermediate bodies between the family and the State are open to the temperate spirit of the family, which radiates its benevolent influence outwards.

This same family spirit has such a capacity to absorb and integrate that everyone in a region, even outside elements, eventually share a common family-like mentality, temperament and affection. A person from the South, for example, participates in the great Southern family or, to extend the analogy further, in our great American family.

Love your community. Be involved. Be proud of the good traits, traditions, products and cultural achievements of your region and do whatever you can to develop them further. Help others see the blessings God placed in your region.

8. It Takes a Christian StateThis sentiment of affection is in fact the most important element of union for the State. Constitutions, laws, and institutions may be indispensable unifying elements, but the most vital of all is family-like affection, without which the State is doomed to be divided against itself. So many modern states glory in their divisions! They are divided by political parties, factions, or intense economic competition. They should rather seek glory in uniting social groups, factions, and parties. Marriages should unite families, industries, regions, and nations. True patriotism is nothing but this family sentiment and common love of native land writ large and applied to all those in the same country.

The Christian State gives unity, direction, and purpose to society embracing, never absorbing; delegating, never concentrating; encouraging, never stifling.

Remain engaged in the Cultural War. Find ways to network with others and do everything you can so that our State and laws conform to the Divine and natural moral laws.

9. It Takes FidelityWithout fidelity to our Christian Baptism, competition and power struggles will inevitably occur. As a result, the family ends up being devoured by society, and society by the State.

A Christian family spirit must permeate society and State. Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports, wrote George Washington in his Farewell Address. And, though he spoke some 1,600 years ago, Saint Augustines teaching remains true today:

Let those who say that the teachings of Christ are harmful to the State find armies with soldiers who live up to the standards of the teachings of Jesus. Let them provide governors, husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and servants, kings, judges, taxpayers and tax collectors who can compare to those who take Christian teachings to heart. Then let them dare to say that such teaching is contrary to the welfare of the State! Indeed, under no circumstances can they fail to realize that this teaching is the greatest safeguard of the State when faithfully observed. (Epis.138 ad Marcellinum, in Opera Omnia, vol.2, in J.P.Migne, Patrologia Latina, col.532.)

Become an apostle of this Christian spirit, helping others take it to heart in their daily lives.

10. It Takes LeadershipIn face of the present economic crisis, we have two groups. Those with leadership qualities who succeed fabulously in what they do. And those who seek help and direction. What is missing is a way to unite the two groups. Therefore, weneed to regenerate a culture that encourages representative figures to unify the nation and confront the crisis.

We must encourage all types of leadership that express ties of mutual trust. We should think of concrete ways how we dress, speak, and lead to become truly representative figures for those who look up to us (be they in our family, business, parish, community, region or state). This would lead us to discover ways to embrace duty, responsibility, and sacrifice and reject a misguided and selfish individualism.

With many such dedicated leaders at all levels of society, laboring for the common good, we can restore America.

You will lead in some areas (great or small) and follow in others. Honor your leadership. Show your gratitude and honor everyone in leadership.

What Is a Representative Character?

A representative character is a person who perceives the ideals, principles, and qualities that are desired and admired by a family, community or nation, and translates them into concrete programs of life and culture.

We might point to famous figures like General George Patton or those lesser known people such as self-sacrificing clergy, devoted teachers, or selfless community leaders who draw and fuse society together and set the tone for their communities. Modern culture discourages the idea of representative characters and proposes false and unrepresentative characters that correspond to our mass society.

These 10Steps to Prepare for Americas Economic Collapse give a quick insight into John Horvats 400-page book Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy to an Organic Christian SocietyWhere Weve Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go (York, Penn.: York Press, 2013), ISBN: 978-0-9882148-0-4. Hardbound. Illustrated. $21.95 (shipping free).

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10 Steps to Prepare for Americas Economic Collapse

Cyborg (Character) – Comic Vine

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Danzig

Current EventsOriginVictor Stone

Victor Stone is the son of Silas and Elinore Stone, two STAR Labs scientists intent on using their research to improve mankind. Silas and Elinore scientific adventures often estranged their son, as they would sometime dedicate more time and toward their work, oppose to him. The two even used their son as a test subject for intelligence-boosting experimentation. While the successful experiment granted Victor a genius-level intellect, he resented his parents for treating him more like a lab subject oppose to a son.

Vic's resentment caused him to steer away from science and math in high school. Instead, he pursued an interest in athletics, much to his father's disdain. His life changed profoundly during a visit to STAR Labs to meet up with his parents, who were busy conducting inter-dimensional experiments. The experiment accidentally allowed a protoplasmic creature into the lab. Silas managed to return the creature to its home dimension, but not before it had slain Elinore and severely injured Victor. Desperate to save his son's life, Silas used untested cybernetic enhancements to rebuild and reconstruct Victor's body. He succeeded, but didn't anticipate Victor's horror and anger at what he had done.

Cyborg was created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez

The reaction of others to his new form made Vic even more resentful, and he isolated himself from his former life as much as possible by moving to Hell's Kitchen. It was in this bad neighborhood that Raven found Vic and invited him to join the Teen Titans. After the team formed, Vic found a place where he was accepted and appreciated, despite his inhuman appearance. His father, still feeling guilt over what he made his son go through, constructed the Titan's Tower for his son and his companions. Victor would remain a steadfast member of the Titans for a long time, serving not only as a hero but as a primary supplemental tech source for the team.

After the events of Flashpoint, DC Comics relaunched their entire comic catalog. In this continuity, Cyborg is now one of the seven founding members of the Justice League (replacing the Martian Manhunter), having never served with Teen Titan. He makes his first appearance in Justice League #1 but not as part of the team. In fact, he's a high school football player who hasn't even become "Cyborg" yet. After the Darkseid invasion, Victor was gravely injured and later cybernetically enhanced by his father.

Due to the events of Forever Evil, Cyborg gets an upgraded armor that appears to be much slimmer.

Tragedy struck when the Wildebeest Society captured the Titans and more shocking that the leader of the group was their teammate Jericho. Vic was launched in a rocket along with several members and crashed landed in Russia where he was seriously injured and damaged. The Russian scientists with the help of Red Star rebuilt Vic but due to such heavy brain trauma he had become no more than a walking robot with a human appearance. After several months, Vic's mind started to regain his memories but when the race known as the Technis came to Earth looking for a way to integrate with society and save their race. Cyborg sacrificed himself for both the Earth and the Technis was was rebuilt into Cyberion.

Cyberion became their protector as they traveled throughout the galaxy. Some time later, Cyberion was reunited with his former teammates and engaged in an interstellar conflict which resulted in the destruction of Tamaran. But there was triumph to be found in tragedy: The Titans were able to restore Raven - who was reborn in a golden spirit form. Following that, Raven, Minion and Garfield Logan elected to remain in space as traveling companions to Cyberion. Frightened by Cyberion's total embrace of technology, Gar left his friend and returned to earth. Jarras Minion also had doubts about Cyberion's new attitude and decided to leave as well. Jarras, a sworn pacifist, made Victor a gift of his Omegadrome war suit before he left. The Omegadrome allowed Victor to try to carry out his Technis Imperative: To recreate the planet Technis at all costs.

Having collected a planet-size assortment of technological debris, Cyberion journeyed to Earth to turn its moon into a new Technis world and populate it with his Titans allies. The JLA and the Titans first clashed, then united, to prevent Cyberion from destroying the planet while saving Vic's soul and downloading it into Minion's morphing battlesuit, the Omegadrome. Vic was later offered a human body if he would help Vandal Savage harvest Addie Kane's immortal blood. Before he could make a decision, Starfire destroyed Addie's body, thus robbing Vic of the chance to make a choice. Also, Vic had to remain a member of the team, per a deal that Nightwing made with Batman.

Following the events of his Technis Imperative, the JLA only trusted Vic to remain free if the Titans kept a watchful eye on him. Feeling like he owed his old friend a debt, Nightwing worked constantly to find a cure for Vic's condition. With Jesse Quick's help, Victor was given a new lease on organic life with a body cloned from cell samples harvested by the Russian scientists who once spared him.

Though his mind and cybernetic abilities were still encapsulated in the Omegadrome, Victor inhabited a truly biological body. And for the first time in years, Cyborg knew what it is to live and feel and breathe unaided by mechanized parts. Embarking on a new life, Victor Stone left the Titans for the West Coast. Vic Stone later aided the Flash during the "Our Worlds At War" crisis. At that time, Vic started using the golden Omegadrome to morph into a cybernetic form. Cyborg decided to return to adventuring and settled in Keystone City, home of the Flash. But when Vic Stone linked with the evil computerized Thinker in an attempt to stop him from taking over the city, his body became mechanically paralyzed - reverting him to his silver cyborg form.

Shortly afterward, a mysterious android from the future known as Indigo attacked the Titans and Young Justice , resulting in the apparent deaths of Troia and Omen. At Troia's funeral, Nightwing disbanded this version of the Titans. Meanwhile, members of Young Justice, especially Wonder Girl, felt responsible for the tragic deaths. This led Wonder Girl, Robin, Impulse and Superboy to form a new group of Teen Titans under the guidance of the more experienced Cyborg, Starfire and Beast Boy.

Cyborg, who was damaged in the battle caused by Indigo, has since received an upgrade in his cybernetic parts. He would experience the formation and reformation of the Titans multiple times, mentoring some versions of the team and even starting a short-lived team of his own. But he would always return to the companionship of his original Titans teammates, even to the extent of joining several of them in the Justice League of America.

After the Infinite Crisis Cyborg was fused to Firestorm and entered into a coma. When he finally woke up, he learned that the Teen Titans had dramatically changed. Wonder Girl, Speedy, Kid Flash, Raven, and Beast Boy had left the team; Starfire was lost in space; and Superboy was dead. Along with Robin, Kid Devil, Ravager, and Wonder Girl (who had just rejoined) he started a quest for Raven.

Vic Stone is a star wide receiver for the Ford Titans, a high school football team. He has an interest in super human activities but is more focused on going to college, earning a football scholarship, and hoping his father makes it to his games. Vic and his father have a distant relationship and after missing several games, Victor finally ventures to S.T.A.R Labs to confront him. Silas tells his son that given the current state of metahumans starting to show up around the planet, Vic's love for football is going to become irrelevant at some point. Discouraged, Victor begins to leave when everything takes a tragic turn, as a Mother Box unit springs to life and opens a Boom Tube. Victor and several scientists are fatally injured or killed by the boom tube energy.

Not intending to lose his son the same way he lost his wife, Silas outfits Vic with experimental bionics that have been reverse engineered from alien technology found around the globe. With aid from T.O. Morrow and Sarah Charles, Vic's life is saved and the energies from the motherbox are incorporated into his new form as Cyborg. This allows Victor to access the vast New Gods data library and discover Darkseid's true invasion plans. After aiding in sending Darkseid back where he came from, Cyborg helps to found the Justice League. He has not begun any process of reconciliation with his father, who is primarily concerned with Victor's mechanics rather than his humanity.

After the villain David Graves makes an attack against the Justice League, Cyborg and his team mates travel to the valley of souls. There he learns that he walks the line between life and death--meaning that part of his soul has left his body. He sees a false apparition of his human self that tries to convince him that Victor Stone is dead and Cyborg is just an imitation. Victor quickly sees past this ruse, and he and the rest of the Justice League defeat Graves. The situation lead to Vic embracing who he has become, not a young man who has lost his humanity, but a man who has learned to be a hero through shocking means. Allowing Vic to start to forgive his father, as he knows his father was just trying to save his life.

To help retrieve Superman and Wonder Woman from the depths of the ocean floor, Victor upgraded his suit to have an Environmental Mode that allows him to operate underwater. He then commenced a world wide League recruitment initiate to combat the Atlanteans hostiles

At the conclusion of the Trinity War, all of Victor's cybernetics were brutally ripped from his body as Grid, a software virus deeply embedded into Victor's cybernetics, revealed itself. The virus was planted by Atomica to help the Crime Syndicate of America. Atomica told Cyborg about what she did the Justice League and Justice League of America/ She also told him that she was the one that poisoned Superman and put the green Kryptonite in his nervous system where she trigger his heat vision, which killed Dr. Light. Cyborg was upset to hear this happening and all of a sudden she told Cyborg that he also betrayed the Justice League and it was Grid that was in his body. Cyborg body turned in to him as the Justice League and Justice League of America watched in horror and where all in shock to see this happening and that the Crime Syndicate of America was taking over the world they where from Earth 3. Atomica was a spy on both teams and she had all their plans. She was planning for the CSA to come and attack the various Justice Leagues.

Cyborg is kept alive with the help of Simon Baz and Batman. Batman and Catwoman manage to escape and bring along Cyborg to S.T.A.R. Labs to get the help of Victor's father Silas. Silas is initially reluctant to turn his son back to Cyborg once again for fear of hurting him but Victor pushes him to do so saying that this time it is his choice and he must help stop the Crime Syndicate. Cyborg is given an upgraded more slimmer armor. Cyborg goes to enlist the help of Doctor Will Magnus so that he can revive the Metal Men and fight the Crime Syndicate.

Magnus is also initially unwilling to revive the Metal Men as they were deemed failures the first time, but Cyborg convinces him to do so. The team is once again brought together and they join Cyborg in an attempt to fight. Cyborg directly confronts Grid while the Metal Men help fight the Secret Society members that were with him. Cyborg and Grid both enter the digital world where they do battle with each other. Grid initially appears to have the upper hand in the battle attempting to exploit Cyborg's human side. However, Cyborg states that he has embraced his tech side and that he is the bridge between human and tech. He manages to shut down Grid and goes into the fallen watchtower where he helps Batman use Wonder Woman's lasso to free the Justice League teams from the Firestorm matrix.

Cyborg possesses cybernetic enhancements that provide superhuman strength, endurance and durability. Cyborg can also interface with computers. Built into his body-armor were an infrared eye, computer generator, sound amplifier, and special programming adapters that allowed him to interface with other body extensions.

Shape-Change: Cyborg has virtually unlimited shape-changing abilities that allow him to mimic road, air or space vehicles and even reshape his entire body or parts of it to form such complex shapes such as a tank.

Superhuman Strength: At optimal capacity, Vic can lift/press in excess of four metric tons. If he pushes himself, he can even exceed five tons, but not without causing severe stress to his cybernetic components. Recently Victor breaks apart Kalibak's Chaos Cannon used to destroy planets.

Superhuman Speed/Agility: He possesses a degree of superspeed.

Flight

Sensor Systems/superhuman Senses:. Due cybernetic enhancements their five senses were increased to superhuman levels.

Superhuman Stamina: Victor doesn't need to sleep,eat or drink. Adding the Environmental Mode (that replaced his last lung) no longer has the need to breathe, and can operate in any area that has no oxygen in space or as in underwater.

Superhuman Durability: The nature of Cyborg's body provides offers protection against physical and energy attacks,being able to withstand the pressures of the deepest parts of the oceans.

Computer Interfacing: Cyborg is connected with all Earth's computers and satellites including government agencies, secret service (CIA,MI-6...) and even the Batcomputer.

Technopathy: Since is linked with Earth's computers and satellites Victor can control any type of technology that have connection with the Internet as well control any form of electronic communication,allowing it to manipulate data or rearrange security privileges. Recently demonstrated the ability to hear Brainiac's drones communicating with each other.

Teleportation - Cyborg can use Boom Tubes to transport himself and the League to anywhere n Earth and in the Universe,since is stated Darkseid use it to cross dimensions,however one out of every thousand 'jumps' results in transporting himself and whoever is with him to Apokolips. Recently installed a silent mode to not be noticed by others,not even Superman couldn't note him coming.

Integrated Weapons: He had various types of weapons integrated into his cybernetic parts.

When Reverse Flash goes back in time and messes with the timeline, the DC Universe turns into a very different place where the world's greatest heroes are not how we know them to be. In this timeline Cyborg is America's greatest hero, and he is based in Detroit where he has his headquarters. When the Amazons and the Atlanteans go to war, Cyborg tries to gather a group of Earth's superhumans to help stop the war that has ravaged half of Europe. No one joins his group when they find that Batman (Thomas Wayne) has no interest. But before long Barry Allen arrives and convinces Wayne otherwise, and the three set off to gather an army.

Stage actor Ray Fisher portrays the character in the upcoming Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice film. In a brief cameo, Victor's mangled body is shown being bonded with a Mother Box during one of his father's experiments.

Ray Fisher reprises his role in the live-action Justice League movie. This movie is directed by Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon, who served as the post-production director of this movie after Snyder stepped down from directing duties. This movie was released on November 17th, 2017.

In this film, Cyborg initially refuses to join the team, though after his father, Silas Stone, is captured, he voluntarily pitches in. He successfully saves his father from the hands of Steppenwolf, and escapes from the water tower from which he resided in. When Superman returned, his offense system kicked in and attacked Superman, which triggered the Man of Steel to fight the League.

Cyborg also played a crucial role in the final act, where he began to separate the Mother Boxes that had formed "The Unity". With the help of Superman, he succeeded.

Cyborg appears in Justice League: Doom in a major role. The film marks the first time Cyborg has been portrayed as a member of the Justice League in any non-comic form of media. He is voiced by Bumper Robinson. In the film, Cyborg first appears after Batman asks for his help in discovering how the Royal Flush Gang are pulling off a series of impossible heists. Cyborg later rescues Wonder Woman after she is poisoned by Cheetah, and ends up being brought along during the subsequent attempt to rescue the other JLA members. After saving Superman from a Kryptonite bullet, Cyborg helps the Justice League during the final battle against Vandal Savage and his Legion of Doom. After the League saves the Earth from a massive solar flare, Cyborg is officially inducted into the Justice League as the team's newest member.

He was voiced by Bumper Robinson

Cyborg appears in Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, an adaptation of Flashpoint. In the film, Cyborg is a member of the League. In the alternate timeline the bulk of the film takes place in, he is depicted as the world's top hero, since Kal-El never became Superman and most of the rest of the League never came to resemble their classic forms.

He was voiced by Michael B. Jordan.

Cyborg appears in JLA Adventures: Trapped In Time, voiced by Avery Kidd Waddell.

In Justice League: War, based off of the New 52 Justice League Origins comic book by Geoff Johns, Cyborg appears as one of the founding members of the Justice League in light of the invasion of Darkseid. Victor Stone was originally a talented high school football quarterback but has a troubled relationship with his father Silas due to his father's lack of support for his football playing career. In frustration, Cyborg grabs one of the boom tubes asking whether his work is more important than his own son. The boom tubes suddenly activate at that moment and engulfs Victor. In a last ditch effort to save his son's life, Silas grafts technology from the red room and successfully saves his son's life but at the cost of making him a Cyborg at the same time. Cyborg helps the rest of the Justice League in battling Darkseid and his Parademons, with Cyborg having access to almost any technological interface he is able to open up the boom tubes to send them back to Apokolips. At the end of the film, the newly formed Justice League team is introduced to the world and Cyborg seems to have embraced his new role more as he sees his father nod in approval. Cyborg was voiced by Shemar Moore.

Cyborg appears alongside his Justice League teammates in the sequel to Justice League: War, titled: Justice League: Throne of Atlantis. The film is based off of the New 52 comic book story line of the same name and was released in 2015. Shemar Moore reprised his role.

Cyborg appears in Batman Unlimited: Monster Mayhem, voiced by Khary Payton.

Cyborg appears in Justice League vs. Teen Titans, with Shemar Moore once again reprising his role. In the film, it's shown that he relates more closely to the Titans, as they are closer in age to him.

Cyborg appeared in The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians from 1985 to 1986. He was voiced by Ernie Hudson. Cyborg's origin was told via a medical journal read by Dr. Martin Stein saying Cyborg was a promising decathlon athlete until an accident destroyed most of his body and his father replaced part of his body with machine parts. Also, he is not a Titan. He becomes fast friends with fellow teammate Firestorm. He is an affiliate of the Justice League of America under Superman. In the introductory episode to Cyborg, "The Seeds of Doom", Cyborg's abilities save Earth from Darkseid's seeds, but as Superman warns, make Darkseid a dangerous enemy to Cyborg, so Cyborg joins the League.

Cyborg appears in the Teen Titans animated series, voiced by Khary Payton. This version of Cyborg is very similar to his comic book counterpart. His nickname is "Cy", and like his teammates, in the animated series Cyborg is never referred to by his given name; however, he does take the alias "Stone" (based on his real last name) in the Season 3 episode "Deception". The two main differences are his design and that he is more easygoing than his comics counterpart. His head is considerably more rounded and bald (based on his Titans Hunt counterpart), and his mechanical parts are bulkier. His primary weapon is a sonic cannon housed in his forearm; initially he uses only his right arm to fire, but later episodes reveal that his left arm has an identical cannon built into it as well. Other on-board weapons and tools, such as an acetylene torch, a remote-operated video camera, and several missile launchers, can be deployed as needed, and his arms and legs are detachable.

Cyborg is the Titans' chief technician and gadgeteer. He is responsible for the construction of the Titan Tower's electronic and security systems and the team's main vehicles, the T-Car and the T-Ship. His most dominant personality faults featured in the series are his enormous appetite and a tendency to be overly vain about his work as a result, he fosters a special dislike for those who abuse his devices irresponsibly, especially Gizmo and Brother Blood. On occasion, Cyborg acts as the team's second-in-command, but he tends to butt heads with Robin on rather trivial matters. In "Cyborg the Barbarian", he was sent back to 3,000 B.C. There, he met a woman named Sarasim and fell in love with her. The relationship ended when Cyborg was brought back to his own time.

Cyborg's age is never specified, but he mentions in "Deception" that he never had a chance to finish high school due to circumstances that made him what he is. The only time Cyborg's personal history has been discussed is in "Deception", in which he discusses his involuntary cyborg status with Starfire, and in the 4th season episode "The End: Part 2". In this episode, Trigon creates duplicates of Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy. These duplicates reflect the dark side of each character. During the fight between Cyborg and his duplicate, the dark duplicate says harmful things about Cyborgs mother and her death.

Cyborg appeared in the 15th episode of the fifth season of Smallville on the 16th February 2006 and is played by Lee Thompson Young. In this version, Victor is a former Metropolis High School football star. He is involved in a car accident that kills him, supposedly, and the rest of his family. However, he is secretly rebuilt by Cyntechnics scientists including Dr. Alistair Krieg, who experimented on a group of test subjects. Victor was the only test subject to survive the experiments. Cyntechnics was bought up by LuthorCorp shortly before Victor's escape. Lex denies any knowledge of Cyntechnics' secretive activities.

Although Victor's cybernetic enhancements are entirely on the inside [under his skin] instead of exoskeletal as they are in the comics and other media, a shot of Clark Kent's X-ray vision reveals that Victor's cranial armor covers the same-shaped area as it does in the comics. He also bleeds a dark fluid as he does in the comics. Smallville never uses the name "Cyborg" in his first appearance. Instead, Victor refers to his enhancements as bionic.

Lee Thompson Young reprises his role of Cyborg in the season 6 episode "Justice", episode about Green Arrow gathering together a group of individuals to combat Lex Luthor and his experiments. The episode premiered on 18 January 2007. In this episode, Victor has finally taken the name "Cyborg", as Green Arrow's team uses code names. Also on the team are Aquaman and Impulse. While Victor was last seen with a girlfriend named Katherine, he explains that his mechanical parts put a strain on the relationship. After their eventual break up, Victor states that it was Green Arrow who kept him from committing suicide. The episode also shows Cyborg wearing a stylized silver vest and black pants, and utilizing further enhancements Green Arrow gave him. One of his new functions allows him to hack into and disable security systems. While connecting to machines, Cyborg's left eye glows red.

Teen Titans Go!

Cyborg appears as a member of the Teen Titans in this more humorous take on the DC Universe.

Cyborg appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 2. He has a laser eye and the ability to pull magnetic legos.

Cyborg appears as a playable character in the game. He appears to be a combination of a power/gadget character in game.

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Cyborg (Character) - Comic Vine

Ethereum Bounty Program

Posted on May 30, 2019 by Danzig

Our bug bounty program spans end-to-end: from soundness of protocols (such as the blockchain consensus model, the wire and p2p protocols, proof of work, etc) and protocol/implementation compliance to network security and consensus integrity. Classical client security as well as security of cryptographic primitives are also part of the program. When in doubt, send an email to bounty@ethereum.org and ask us.

Here is some guidance on what we are typically interested in hearing about:

Geth is an Ethereum client written in Go. Areas that typically are in scope are:

Some areas of Geth are experimental, and not yet enabled by default. Yes, these are also included, but the Impact of issues in the areas below will be counted as low.

The LES (light clients) parts of Geth are twofold: server and client. For LES, we are interested in

Swarm is not yet production ready, and has very limited bounty scope. We are always interested in RCE-types of vulnerabilities, but not (yet) DoS via swarm protocols.

Whisper is also not yet production ready, and has very limited bounty scope.

EthereumJ EthereumJ is a pure-Java implementation of the Ethereum protocol, and the basis of Harmony a full Ethereum client. EthereumJ/Harmony is not included in the bounty program, since there are still too many known issues, and not a full mainnet client yet.

Aleth is an impementation of an Ethereum node in C++. This client is included, but any issues found will have rather low Impact rating since its not commonly used. Typically, we would be interested in consensus or p2p DoS issues, but not so much e.g. DoS via RPC attacks.

Py-evm is a python implementation of the Ethereum Virtual Machine, and the basis for Trinity. The Trinity client is currently in an alpha release stage and is not suitable for mission critical production use cases. Both of these components are included in the bounty scope, but any issues reported will have a lowered Impact since there are already known issues and they are not considered production release.

This category includes:

Here is an example of a submitted Solidity bug.

Solidity does not hold security guarantees regarding compilation of untrusted input and we do not issue rewards for crashes of the solc compiler on maliciously generated data.

Mist is a Dapp browser that connects users to the blockchain. The scope of bounty submissions includes, but are not limited to:

Privilege escalation issues.

Flaws breaking into the victims filesystem.

Flaws compromising any information outside each website scope (e.g. localStorage leaks, cross-website interaction).

Flaws affecting Mist that were already made publicly available by the vendors (e.g. Electron, Chromium, v8) may or may not be accepted by us.

The Vyper language is a new, experimental programming language for the EVM. It is still beta software, and as such is not expected to be bug-free.

Vyper is included in the bug bounty, but due to it still being under development, the Impact of bugs found will be downgraded accordingly.

Typical bugs that could qualify are:

As with Solidity, crashes of the Vyper compiler in the face of malicious input is not included in the bounty program.

LLL is not included in the bug bounty.

Pyethereum is a legacy Ethereum implementation, and the basis for the Pyethapp python client implementation. Both of these are now deprecated, in favour of py-evm/Trinity, and not not in scope of the bounty program.

This category includes:

Here is an example of a bug in the initial ENS registrar that would have allowed people to bid during the reveal period, thus affecting the legitimacy of auction results.

Clients not developed by the Ethereum Foundation would typically not be covered by the bounty program. For Parity, please visit their bounty program.

ERC20 contract bugs are typically not included in the bounty scope. However, we can help reach out to affected parties, such as authors or exchanges in such cases.

Our infrastructure; such as webpages, dns, email etc, are not part of the bounty-scope.

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Ethereum Bounty Program

Offshore Definition – Investopedia

Posted on May 29, 2019 by Danzig

What Is Offshore?

The term offshore refers to a location outside of one's national boundaries, whether or not that location is land- or water-based. The term may be used to describe foreign banks, corporations, investments, and deposits.

A company may legitimately move offshore for the purpose of tax avoidance or to enjoy relaxed regulations. Offshore financial institutions can also be used for illicit purposes such as money laundering and tax evasion.

Offshoring isn't usually illegalhiding it is.

Offshore can refer to a variety of foreign-based entities or accounts. In order to qualify as offshore, the accounts or entity must be based in any country other than the customers or investors home nation. Many countries, territories, and jurisdictions have offshore financial centers (OFCs). These include well-known centers such as Switzerland, Bermuda, or the Cayman Islands, and lesser-known centers such as Mauritius, Dublin, and Belize. The level of regulatory standards and transparency differs widely among OFCs.

Supporters of OFCs argue that they improve the flow of capital and facilitate international business transactions. Critics argue that offshoring is a way to hide tax liabilities or ill-gotten gains from the authorities.

In the terms of business activities, offshoring is often referred to as outsourcingthe act of establishing certain business functions, such as manufacturing or call centers, in a nation other than the one in which the business most often does business. This is often to take advantage of more favorable conditions in a foreign country, such as lower wage requirements or looser regulations, and can result in significant cost savings for the business.

Businesses with significant sales overseas, such as Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp., may take the opportunity to keep related profits in offshore accounts in countries with lower tax burdens. In 2018, it was estimated that more than $3 trillion in profits were held overseas, across more than 300 U.S. corporations.

Offshore investing can involve any situation in which the investors reside outside of the nation in which they are investing. This practice is mostly used by high net worth investors, as the cost to operate offshore accounts can be notable. Offshore investing may require the creation of accounts in the nation in which the investor wishes to invest. Advantages include tax benefits, asset protection, and privacy.

The primary downsides to offshore investing are the high costs involved and the increased regulatory scrutiny worldwide that offshore jurisdictions and accounts face, therefore offshore investing is beyond the means of most investors. Investors may also be scrutinized by regulators and tax authorities to make sure taxes are paid.

Offshore jurisdictions, such as the Bahamas, Bermuda, Cayman Islands and the Isle of Man, are popular and known to offer fairly secure investment opportunities.

Offshore banking involves the securing of assets in financial institutions in foreign countries, which may be limited by the laws of the customers home nation, can be used to avoid certain unfavorable circumstances should the funds be kept in a financial institution in the home nation. This can include the avoidance of tax obligations as well as making it more difficult for these assets to be seized by a person or entity in the home nation. Youve probably heard of the famed Swiss bank account, that James Bond-like account that puts rich peoples money out of reach of their own countrys governmentlike the IRS, for example.

Its true that the Swiss have strict privacy laws, and in the past Swiss banks didnt even have names attached to the accounts. But Switzerland has agreed to turn over information to foreign governments on their account holders, effectively ending anytax evasionthat could have come with having an account when an account holder didn't report it.

For those who work internationally, the ability to save and use funds in a foreign currency for international dealings can be a benefit, which can provide a simpler way to access funds in the needed currency without the need to account for rapidly changing exchange rates. Because banking regulations vary from nation to nation, it is possible the country in which offshore banking is conducted does not offer the same protections as other nations.

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Offshore Definition - Investopedia

Boeing: International Space Station

Posted on May 29, 2019 by Danzig

NASA is working with its partners and suppliers to design and develop the Gateway, a moon-orbiting outpost that will serve as a base for human and robotic expeditions on the moon, and for future missions to Mars. The U.S. presidential administrations goal of boots on the moon in 2024 relies on the Gateway.

Boeings Gateway concept builds on the companys experience from designing, building and operating the ISS for more than 20 years. Boeing is working on a habitation module, an airlock module (which doubles as additional living/work space), and a Power Propulsion Element (PPE) derived from the successful 702 line of Boeing satellites.

Launched aboard rockets including NASAs Space Launch System, these Gateway modules and others would connect with one another in lunar orbit using NASAs Orion capsule or a space tug. Following astronauts return to the moons surface via a lunar lander, the Gateway will become a hub for continuing missions to the moon and Mars for NASA, its international partners, and private companies.

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Boeing: International Space Station

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