In an increasingly digital world, literature is evolving. Sales of e-readers continue to rise, yet the cost of digital books and texts has not necessarily decreased to the extent to which many initially predicted. With authors’ incomes collapsing to near “abject” levels, and with public libraries under threat from swingeing public spending cuts, we felt honour bound to provide our fine readers with some valuable resources that could help save valuable money.
While we of course advocate supporting your local independent book store – and independent publishing houses – and would urge you to purchase copies of your books where you can afford to, below you can find a collection of 45 websites where you can download tens of thousands of books, plays and texts for free. Oh, and these sites are also all completely legal, of course!
I believe Edgar Allan Poe said it well: “Believe nothing you hear, and only one half that you see.”
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/252780-believe-nothing-you-hear-and-only-one-half-that-you
And it applies to the US and Oz media probably almost as much as it does in China.
The trouble with fully applying Edgar’s advice is that we cannot live long enough in one lifetime to learn from others’ experience all we need to know. The trick is to pick the right people to listen to.
The main stram media are not it, for sure. They are handed their stories to conform to the set agenda and anything not of that agenda is buried.
Voltaire said “To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” Well it would appear we are ruled by drug companies as medical professionals are not allowed to criticize their products!
The corollary to that is, “To find out who rules you, find who or what opposes what you are not allowed to promote.”
The recent suppression and invalidation of Vitamin C as a valid therapy for viral infections, despite lots of evidence of their efficacy in so doing, again points the finger at the drug companies. They would make no money from drugs and vaccines if people knew they could cure themselves sith sunshine and vitamin C.
If 15-25% of the population are technically insane.(Percentages from a researcher in the 1970s, might be higher now.)
The insane create problems for those around them. The family and associates of the insane then feel stress. They consider seeing a professional who “knows all about it” to help them. They consequently end up in the hands of a psyche.
As Stevie Nicks says of her brush with a psychiatrist: ‘So I will go to my grave angry at that man [the doctor] for that, because he took eight years of the prime of my life away.’
So if you are feeling down, the first thing to do is go for a walk and look at things. That will make you feel better quickly. After you have done that, email or message me for a bunch of other helpful hints.
“Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love – for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you from misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labours and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.” ― Max Ehrmann, Desiderata: A Poem for a Way of Life
The media are very good at creating single stories. Think back to all the Black PR about Afghanistan prior to the US going to war there, to Syria, to Iraq. Heck, the recent single story about Coronavirus and the one playing out before that about Iran.
Beware the single story. It can shape unrealistic viewpoints.
The average length of a hug between two people is 3 seconds. But the researchers have discovered something fantastic. When a hug lasts 20 seconds, there is a therapeutic effect on the body and mind. The reason is that a sincere embrace produces a hormone called “oxytocin”, also known as the love hormone. This substance has many benefits in our physical and mental health, helps us, among other things, to relax, to feel safe and calm our fears and anxiety. This wonderful tranquilizer is offered free of charge every time we have a person in our arms, who cradled a child, who cherish a dog or a cat, that we are dancing with our partner, the closer we get to someone or simply hold the Shoulders of a friend.
A famous quote by psychotherapist Virginia Satir goes, “We need 4 hugs a day for survival. We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. We need 12 hugs a day for growth.” Whether those exact numbers have been scientifically proven remains to be seen, but there is a great deal of scientific evidence related to the importance of hugs and physical contact. Here are some reasons why we should hug::
1. STIMULATES OXYTOCIN
Oxytocin is a neurotransmitter that acts on the limbic system, the brain’s emotional centre, promoting feelings of contentment, reducing anxiety and stress, and even making mammals monogamous. It is the hormone responsible for us all being here today. You see this little gem is released during childbirth, making our mothers forget about all of the excruciating pain they endured expelling us from their bodies and making them want to still love and spend time with us. New research from the University of California suggests that it has a similarly civilising effect on human males, making them more affectionate and better at forming relationships and social bonding. And it dramatically increased the libido and sexual performance of test subjects. When we hug someone, oxytocin is released into our bodies by our pituitary gland, lowering both our heart rates and our cortisol levels. Cortisol is the hormone responsible for stress, high blood pressure, and heart disease.
2. CULTIVATES PATIENCE
Connections are fostered when people take the time to appreciate and acknowledge one another. A hug is one of the easiest ways to show appreciation and acknowledgement of another person. The world is a busy, hustle-bustle place and we’re constantly rushing to the next task. By slowing down and taking a moment to offer sincere hugs throughout the day, we’re benefiting ourselves, others, and cultivating better patience within ourselves.
3. PREVENTS DISEASE
Affection also has a direct response on the reduction of stress which prevents many diseases. The Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine says it has carried out more than 100 studies into touch and found evidence of significant effects, including faster growth in premature babies, reduced pain, decreased autoimmune disease symptoms, lowered glucose levels in children with diabetes, and improved immune systems in people with cancer.
4. STIMULATES THYMUS GLAND
Hugs strengthen the immune system. The gentle pressure on the sternum and the emotional charge this creates activates the Solar Plexus Chakra. This stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body’s production of white blood cells, which keep you healthy and disease free.
5. COMMUNICATION WITHOUT SAYING A WORD
Almost 70 percent of communication is nonverbal. The interpretation of body language can be based on a single gesture and hugging is an excellent method of expressing yourself nonverbally to another human being or animal. Not only can they feel the love and care in your embrace, but they can actually be receptive enough to pay it forward to others based on your initiative alone.
6. SELF-ESTEEM
Hugging boosts self-esteem, especially in children. The tactile sense is all-important in infants. A baby recognizes its parents initially by touch. From the time we’re born our family’s touch shows us that we’re loved and special. The associations of self-worth and tactile sensations from our early years are still imbedded in our nervous system as adults. The cuddles we received from our Mom and Dad while growing up remain imprinted at a cellular level, and hugs remind us at a somatic level of that. Hugs, therefore, connect us to our ability to self love.
7. STIMULATES DOPAMINE
Everything everyone does involves protecting and triggering dopamine flow. Low dopamine levels play a role in the neurodegenerative disease Parkinson’s as well as mood disorders such as depression. Dopamine is responsible for giving us that feel-good feeling, and it’s also responsible for motivation! Hugs stimulate brains to release dopamine, the pleasure hormone. Dopamine sensors are the areas that many stimulating drugs such as cocaine and methamphetamine target. The presence of a certain kinds of dopamine receptors are also associated with sensation-seeking.
8. STIMULATES SEROTONIN
Reaching out and hugging releases endorphins and serotonin into the blood vessels and the released endorphins and serotonin cause pleasure and negate pain and sadness and decrease the chances of getting heart problems, helps fight excess weight and prolongs life. Even the cuddling of pets has a soothing effect that reduces the stress levels. Hugging for an extended time lifts one’s serotonin levels, elevating mood and creating happiness.
9. PARASYMPATHETIC BALANCE
Hugs balance out the nervous system. The skin contains a network of tiny, egg-shaped pressure centres called Pacinian corpuscles that can sense touch and which are in contact with the brain through the vagus nerve. The galvanic skin response of someone receiving and giving a hug shows a change in skin conductance. The effect in moisture and electricity in the skin suggests a more balanced state in the nervous system – parasympathetic.
The three women pictured in this incredible photograph from 1885 — Anandibai Joshi of India, Keiko Okami of Japan, and Sabat Islambouli of Syria — each became the first licensed female doctors in their respective countries. The three were students at the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania; one of the only places in the world at the time where women could study medicine.
As Mallika Rao writes in HuffPost, “If the timing doesn’t seem quite right, that’s understandable. In 1885, women in the U.S. still couldn’t vote, nor were they encouraged to learn very much. Popular wisdom decreed that studying was a threat to motherhood.” Given this, how did three women from around the world end up studying there to become doctors? The credit, according to Christopher Woolf of PRI’s The World, goes to the Quakers who “believed in women’s rights enough to set up the WMCP way back in 1850 in Germantown.”
Woolf added, “It was the first women’s medical college in the world, and immediately began attracting foreign students unable to study medicine in their home countries. First they came from elsewhere in North America and Europe, and then from further afield. Women, like Joshi in India and Keiko Okami in Japan, heard about WMCP, and defied expectations of society and family to travel independently to America to apply, then figure out how to pay for their tuition and board… . Besides the international students, it also produced the nation’s first Native American woman doctor, Susan La Flesche, while African Americans were often students as well. Some of whom, like Eliza Grier, were former slaves.”
To introduce children to more pioneering female doctors, we recommend the picture books: “Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors? The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell” for ages 4 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/who-says-women-can-t-be-doctors), “Dr. Jo: How Sara Josephine Baker Saved the Lives of America’s Children” for ages 5 to 9 (https://www.amightygirl.com/dr-jo), and “The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: The Story of Dr. Patricia Bath” for ages 5 to 9 (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-doctor-with-an-eye-for-eyes)
For a fascinating book for adults about America’s first Native American doctor, Susan La Flesche, we highly recommend “A Warrior of the People” at http://amzn.to/2zdzcDf
For more books to show kids that science is for everyone regardless of gender, check out our blog post, “60 Books to Inspire Science-Loving Mighty Girls,” at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=13914
And, to encourage your Mighty Girl to make her mark on the world as a doctor or scientist, you can find toys and kits to foster her interest in our blog post, “Top 60 Science Toys for Mighty Girls,” at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=10528
“We need to get supplies,” said Piglet. “For the Coronavirus”
“Ahh,” said Pooh, nodding in understanding. “Things like bread, milk, cough mixture, tissues and cat litter even though we don’t have a cat?”
Piglet did a little laugh, and a sort of leap and bit of a cough. “No,” said Piglet. “No, those aren’t the sort of supplies we need at all! What we need are family sized bags of chocolate buttons, massive Toblerone, jelly babies and crunchies and a freezer full of stuffed crust pizzas, and all of the Prosecco that we can possibly carry, so that when we get quarantined we won’t mind it even slightly. THOSE are supplies.”
All of a sudden, Pooh thought that the idea of coronavirus didn’t seem quite so bad, and actually, getting quarantined with Piglet and their supplies really didn’t sound such a terrible thing after all. “Oh Piglet,” said Pooh. “I really do think you are a very wise animal.”
As they walked along they spotted Eeyore stood by a stream watching the sticks float by…..
“Hello Eeyore,” Said Pooh, “we’re off to buy supplies to sit out the quarantine, would you like to come?”
“No thank you.” Said Eeyore “I’m just going to stand here, look at the stream and contemplate the Economic impact of a media induced panic that several companies are projecting folding straight out of Brexit. Also the NHS being brought to its knees by a huge panic, and the social impact of people distrusting others because they look or are associated with China. People are dumb.”
“Well that’s sad.” Said Pooh “I much prefer getting shitfaced and eating Pizza.”
“The ironic thing,” Smiled Eeyore, “is that Panic induces the Stress Response, and the first thing the stress response does is switch off the immune system.”
“Huh.” Said Pooh, “Why would the media do that.”
“I don’t know.” Said Eeyore “I just watch sticks.”
