95% of U.S. baby foods contain toxic metals. Here’s what parents should know.

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“On the spectrum from worry to action, parents can choose to act,” a new report states.

  • A new investigation tested 168 baby food products for arsenic, lead, cadmium and mercury, all of which are toxic metals that can damage brain development in infants.
  • Nearly all of the foods tested contained at least one of the metals, and 1 in 4 contained all four metals.
  • The authors of the report recommended five steps for finding alternative baby foods with less toxins.

Almost all of the baby food products tested in a new investigation contained traces of toxic heavy metals that can damage brain development in infants.

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This brain balancing act allows consciousness

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Two types of thinking have a time-sharing deal going on in your brain.

  • Your DMN and DAT neural networks cooperate by staying out of each other’s way.
  • FMRI scans reveal a surprising temporal dance.
  • When both systems are at the same activity level, boom, you’re unconscious.

While consciousness remains “the hard problem” — as in what exactly is it? Where is it? — a new study published in Science Advances sheds surprising light on how the brain switches us from conscious to unconscious states and vice versa. It has something to do with an imbalance between two neural systems. In fact, consciousness requires that imbalance.

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How “thinking about thinking” can help children in school and in life

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In simple terms, metacognitive thinking teaches us about ourselves. According to Tamara Rosier, a learning coach who specializes in metacognitive techniques, thinking about our thinking creates a perspective that allows us to adapt and change to what the situation needs.

A simple example of metacognitive thinking (or reframing) is this:

“Math tests make me anxious.” This is a statement, a thought. Turning to metacognition, this train of thought evolves into “What about math tests make me anxious…and what can do I to change that?”

According to Rosier, children who are taught to think of themselves as being either “good” or “bad” at a particular task can end up with a fixed mindset that makes them passive in approaching a challenge relating to that task. However, teaching kids to become more metacognitive helps them develop a mindset that leaves more room for growth and adaptation, promoting self-awareness and resilience.

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This nifty infographic is a great introduction to neuroplasticity

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It’s startling to think about how we’ve got a spaceship billions of miles away rendezvousing with Pluto, yet here on Earth there are major aspects of our own anatomy that we’re almost completely ignorant about. We’ve climbed Everest, sent men to the moon, and invented the Internet — but we still don’t know how our brains work. The positive outlook is that many health, science, and research specialists believe we’re on the precipice of some major neuroscientific breakthroughs.

One example of a recent discovery with major implications is our further understanding of neuroplasticity. Simply put, we used to think our brain was what it was — unchangeable, unalterable. We were stuck with what nature gave us. In actuality, our brains are like plastic. We can alter neurochemistry to change beliefs, thoughts processes, emotions, etc. You are the architect of your brain. You also have the power to act against dangerous impulses such as addiction. The therapeutic possibilities here are endless.

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Parents’ brains sync up when caring for children together

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New research suggests parenthood helps couples tune into each other’s minds and emotional states.

  • Far from being a mental drain, parenthood seems to rewire gray matter for improved empathy and emotional regulation.
  • A recent study published in Nature Scientific Reports found that couples who co-parent together display similar brain activity, suggesting they become greatly attuned to each other.
  • These findings suggest time spent parenting together improves care, coordination, and empathy.

When they say parenting changes you, what follows is typically a refrain of ways the wee one will break you. Consider “mommy brain,” the folk psychology that having a baby decays a woman’s mind to flighty, forgetful, scatterbrained mush.

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How do birds navigate? Quantum entanglement suggests

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  • Birds’ navigation using Earth’s very faint magnetic fields suggests an incredible level of sensitivity.
  • There’s reason to think that sensitivity may be based on quantum entanglement in cryptochrome in their eyes.
  • Identifying the role of quantum physics in biology could lead, well, who knows where?

Okay, this is far from confirmed, but it’s pretty radical, and exciting. It’s a possible and plausible answer to a question that’s puzzled biologists ever since the manner in which birds navigate became apparent. The question is: How can birds possibly be able to perceive and follow something as faint as the Earth’s magnetic field? The possible answer? It may be that they perceive it through the interaction of entangled quantum particles in their eyes.

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Las personas están condicionadas, no solamente por el adoctrinamiento deliberado, sino también por los sistemas cuyos mismos proponentes son ignorantes de la necesidad de salvaguardas para evitar el condicionamiento. La gente también está condicionada por una constelación de experiencias. En casi todas las sociedades humanas se ha llegado a la unanimidad de pensamiento por medio de un inadvertido proceso condicionante en el cual virtualmente todas las instituciones de una sociedad pueden ser ramas de dicho proceso condicionante.
Esta información no es ni nueva ni necesariamente excitante. Pero es esencial. Lo nuevo acerca de ella es que ha sido concisa y efectivamente revelada por estudios hechos en Occidente, en especial desde el fin de la guerra de Corea. Si no conoces o no crees lo anterior, o bien deberás aceptarlo como hipótesis de trabajo, o bien dejar a un lado todos los intentos de estudiar otros asuntos hasta que te hayas puesto al día con esta información a partir de las fuentes generalmente asequibles sobre el tema. En tal caso, tu información básica es incompleta, y tus posibilidades de progreso en un sentido superior están tan limitadas como si estuvieras tratando de convertirte en un académico sin haber aprendido a leer y escribir.
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Viendo doble

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Un padre le dijo a su hijo, quien sufría de visión doble:

“Hijo, tú ves dos en vez de uno.”
“¿Cómo puede ser?” respondió el muchacho. “Si así fuese, allí arriba habría cuatro lunas en lugar de dos.”
Hakim Sanai de Ghazna.
Caravana de sueños
Nueva edición ya disponible en formato papel + eBook (libro electrónico). Muy pronto, también como audiolibro.
Puedes leer el libro, gratis, aquí: