Stimulate Your Mind

As we approach the New Year we see a range of emotions and actions from people across the globe. Some are happy, some are sad, some will party, some will stay in. Unfortunately, both the happy and sad are being negatively affected by the societal expectations, the culture and traditions. These traditions are in essence influencing our psychology (mind and behavior) in one way or another. The most common posts or reminders we may be seeing during these days are motivational and some will begin to think or list their New Year’s resolutions. In this regard, I wrote a poem (see below) many years ago which I hope will be of benefit, encouragement and motivation to blossom for all who may read it. new year’s resolution... what is the new year except another day yet many disagree and say it's a time to start fresh, from scratch so i say, let's detach ourselves from our bad habits and do that which benefits a resolution, another solution with constant evolution...

Can we determine feeding ability of newborns by imaging their brain? In this publication our purpose was to investigate the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a tool for assessing how a baby would develop feeding capabilities. Feeding capability, or lack thereof, is an issue when babies are born before completing 37 weeks of pregnancy, also known as preterm. The reason why this is a problem is because at preterm the brain (cerebrum and cerebellum) is not fully developed. Meaning, for example, if the baby is born around 35 weeks, the brain, an organ which essentially controls our body and senses, still needs time to grow in size and function. Ideally, 39 weeks is best for a healthy pregnancy. Other organs needing time to fully develop are the lungs and liver. Thus, consequences of early birth include: breathing, hearing and vision problems as well as developmental delay and cerebral palsy. For the babies born preterm, they are immediately placed in infant incubators ...

Scientific publications are written for scientists which indirectly leave out anyone who does not have a scientific education. A good rule of thumb is, if we as scientists cannot explain our research in a simple way then we probably do not fully understand it ourselves. Additionally, part of being a good scientist is thinking about how a particular manuscript, research study, technology, application, etc. can be used beyond the aim of its original purpose. Both the aforementioned points are important; however, seem lacking in the scientific community. A few years ago I had a discussion with a friend, an intellectual individual, who was constantly reading books and had already published his own book. At that time he mentioned that although he reads a lot, he finds it hard to read, comprehend or keep engaged in scientific papers or publications. Paraphrasing, he thought that scientists lived in a bubble, writing only for each other and essentially ignoring the rest of the world. H...