Making up passwords and passphrases I’m writing this because I was told that one of my rarely used websites uses a password that has been in a data breach. Now I have actually taught lessons… Read More
The Mind-Body link – 2
Physical Factors The way physical changes in the body occur in response to our thoughts, feelings and reactions is not fully understood. However, here are some possible mechanisms. When we are stressed, we release hormones,… Read More
The mind-body link
When people go to hospital or visit their doctors it is often because of physical symptoms. For some physical problems the diagnosis and treatment is clear. For example, if you have a broken leg your… Read More
How AI teaches itself to ‘sound human’
Where does the Artificial Intelligence machinery learn from? Is it the same as what I knew to be ‘machine learning’? There was a team of engineers outside my office in the London Stock Exchange in… Read More
On the final departure of Queen Elizabeth II
Hearing the news was accidental. I could easily have missed it – I don’t listen to the news much. My son was sitting next to me – he got a message from a class friend… Read More
Anxiety, grief and loss – three responses
Many people are suffering from grief just now. Personally, an uncle has passed away. My aunt is naturally sounding lost and bereft. Personal grief somehow brings into focus what might be felt by those in… Read More
Why modern monks still revere a 19th century female british educationalist
More importantly, why would I be grateful to her too? What Miss Margaret Noble did was to start a school for young women in Kolkata at the behest of Swami Vivekananda, a monk of the… Read More
DO POSITIVE EMOTIONS MAKE NEW HABITS, OR SHEER WILL-POWER?
Changing our behaviours always do feel like mountainous tasks. We set big goals – my son’s middle school tee-shirt said ‘run fast or be last’. The non sporting version is ‘go big or go home’…. Read More
Careers choices and options.
I didn’t really know what to do with my life when I was 17. I talked to my father, who said – time enough for that yet, get a degree first, and then think about… Read More
The practice of ‘calling the mind back’.
The practice of calling the mind back, when it has wandered off somewhere is called ‘pratyahara’ in Patanjali’s yoga sutras, an ancient work on how to meditate for the purposes of spiritual advancement. We know… Read More