Sore Nuthatch

Here are two photos of a white-breasted nuthatch that slammed into a window and stunned himself, allowing me to get close to snap a photo. He later flew off, thankfully. Click to enlarge.

Dopamine Dupes

There has been plenty news in recent years about the impact that dopamine and opioids have on our brains. They are chemicals created in the brain. They strongly influence our moods—causing us to feel good, and often get us hooked on these feelings, making us want more and more. In fact, some people become so hooked that they become dopamine (or opioid) dupes. But let's back up a bit first.

The brain creates two kinds of chemicals that get us excited and feeling pleasurable: dopamine and opioids. They are so desirable that many people seek external sources of these chemicals to flush their brain with, in order to get or sustain those good feelings. Opioids make us feel pleasure. When they get released into the brain, we can become content to sit around in a satiated stupor. When the British wanted to control the Chinese population in the middle 1800s, they made opium cheap and available—literally transforming the Chinese into comatose zombies. Today's heroin-use epidemic is another example of over-the-top opioid craving.

Popular belief thinks that the dopamine system in the brain is about pleasure, but that's not really true. It's more about seeking. The dopamine system is stronger than the opioid system, but they are also complementary; they work together. Dopamine stimulates your curiosity and spurs you into action. If that action finds something good, your opioid system gets you to pause and soak up the pleasure.

Evolution gave us these brain chemical enjoyments. The dopamine system makes us curious; gets us motivated to seek the things we need to survive; such as food, sex, and creative ideas. It urges us to check out what may be around the corner or over the next hill. It makes us want things. It stimulates desire.

Although dopamine was once crucial for our very survival and existence, it can today cause some problems. Unlike our hominid ancestors, we are surrounded by objects that can bring us instant gratification—toys that constantly seize our attention and promise excitement. Our smart phones ring at us, promising rewards; apps entice us to use them for thrilling awards. Twitter and texting ping at us—offering instant communication and the possibility of novel stimulation. We go online—maybe even for a good reason—and find ourselves a couple of hours later aimlessly cruising the internet. We turn on the TV and all kinds of enticing images suck us in. We can't stop the dopamine-induced loop that hooks our brain. We've become a dopamine dupe.

Where our forbears benefited from the brain rushes of dopamine and opioids, we are in danger of becoming addicted. Our ancestors found rewards and pleasures to be scarce. They needed to keep seeking, in order to survive. Manufacturers and advertisers of the countless items that pique our curiosity are almost holding us ransom in an opioid stupor—much like the Chinese in their 1800s opium dens. Our high-tech toys are certainly addictive.

How do we keep from getting hooked on the release of these brain chemicals? Awareness is a good first step... awareness of our propensity to seek pleasure and then veg out, when we get it. And we can turn off the electronic devices, or at least adjust them so we don't get constant notifications of the arrival of the next email, tweet, or text. Are you willing to wean yourself from their promise of yet another dopamine hit, or another opioid jolt?

Six Years of Saturn

Here are photos of Saturn--by NASA--taken over a six year period. Over this span of time our view of the rings changes, as their angle changes. Click to enlarge.

Ethics from Awe?

Awe is an emotion I have experienced much more often, after having moved from the big city three decades ago to a rural setting in the woods. As I slowed down and opened myself up to the many wonders of my world, the experiences of awe and reverence occurred much more often. Where I once seemed to require a trip to some distant land to invoke a feeling of awe, it now seemed as if very simple things, like the sight of a bird taking flight or the swaying of a tall tree, could bring about that sense of amazement.

I have often used the word “awe” to describe my feeling of wonder, without always pausing to be sure I am using it properly or really delving deeper into the meaning of the word. My wonderings about the deeper meaning of awe was recently piqued when I read about the results of a study of awe conducted at the University of California at Irvine. The results helped me to realize how powerful and influential awe really can be.

First, consider the definition of awe, as given by the Oxford English Dictionary: “a feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder.” Yes, that seems to capture the emotion, but I was intrigued by the use of the word “fear” in the definition. As I pondered it, I realized that when we feel awe, it's often because the thing we're viewing not only is magnificent, but can also cause us to feel very small and timid in its presence. Standing atop a mountain and gazing out at some vast scene can put us in our place—not just to feel diminished, but also to feel that we are a tiny part of a vast universe; a universe both fantastic and intimidating. Watching a thunderstorm brings about both wonder and alarm.

In fact, the researchers at UC Irvine found that people who experienced awe were more inclined to be generous and kind afterward. That is a fascinating finding! Their study discovered that awe can literally cause us to reduce the focus on ourselves; that we begin to forgo self-interest and become more inclined to want to improve the welfare of our world and other people. In other words, awe can not only invoke a reverential feeling, but induce us to become more ethical in our behavior. That's a causal connection I'd never realized before, but it seems logical that after being moved by the wonder of some experience, one would be more likely to act more altruistically. In contrast, I'm certainly not going to want to feel kindly toward others after I have had a shocking and revolting experience!

So I wonder: has a more frequent experience of awe made me a more ethical person? That's a judgment I don't feel inclined to make, but I do appreciate reading about research to this effect. It helps me feel gratitude that awe comes more often to me these days. It also is a good reminder that it can be counterproductive to try to bring the world down to my size; to render it something within my dominion or under my control. If I can let go of that feeling of mastery and allow myself to feel amazed—even a little fearful—it just might become beneficial to my behavior.

Alignment of Moon and Planets

The Moon and three planets (Jupiter, Venus, and Mars) were aligned this morning before dawn (Nov 4, 2015). Click to enlarge.

Einstein's Errors—Part 2

So Einstein is still king of physics... his ideas remain true. Yet many an experimental physicist over this last century has planned a test with the secret desire of showing Albert to be wrong in one of his basic ideas. One reason is that scientists always try to show a theory is wrong... and if they fail, it gives them more confidence that the theory is right. But also, if an experimenter could demonstrate a major flaw in one of Einstein's theories, wouldn't that gain him everlasting fame? If E = mc² was not correct, wouldn't that knock the socks off the scientific world? If something was discovered to move faster than the speed of light, how might that rattle the foundations of science?

In fact, four years ago worldwide headlines frenetically trumpeted that an experimental research team in Europe had announced that their measurements indicated that neutrinos traveled faster than the speed of light. That news set off a string of wild speculations in the public mind. Einstein—the god of physics—wrong? The absolute upper speed limit of the universe broken? It was almost as dramatic as demonstrating that the sun does revolve around the Earth. Many people chuckled knowingly, contending that they hadn't believed in Albert's speed limit anyway.

Most scientists were quoted as being convinced that something in the neutrino experiment had to be flawed—the whole foundation of physics rested on the fact that nothing moved faster than light. Even the team of researchers who ran the experiment doubted their result, but their measurements had repeatedly found the same thing. In fact, their announcement was partly intended to get the world's physicists to examine their work and find a flaw. A flurry of activity occurred over the following year and suggested modifications were tried. The measurement error was found, soliciting a collective scientific sigh of relief that the speed of light had prevailed.

I find it interesting that the popular press has been far more subdued in announcing that Einstein was right, than when they snickered about his error. It's similar to someone tweeting some fantastic phony claim (“Obama is a Muslim!”) that goes viral, spreading instantly across the globe's viewing screens. Careful fact checking soon disproves the false assertion, but the damage has been done. The correction never gets the equal notoriety that the first phony claim did. (Day one headline: “Obama was not born in America!” Day two correction in tiny print on page 17: “Yes he was.”)

I think, that here on the 100^th anniversary of Einsteins' general theory of relativity, there is more to a scientist's motivation for trying to disprove his ideas than wanting to go down in history as the guy who out-thought the great man. There is a propensity for people to make someone like Einstein a hero or create a god-like vision of him. The public image grows over the years, as the vision expands. But other people dream of knocking the hero down from the pedestal, to show that he's a fake after all.

I'm not sure what all motivates some people to want to see that Einstein was wrong. The case of the faster-than-light neutrino was a recent spectacular example. I take comfort from the fact that Albert broke the physics mold over a century ago and that his insights are still very much intact. You rock, Albert!

Einstein as a Halloween Pumpkin Carving