Cooney's Commentary

Scientific America posted a podcast, and transcript. In this edition, SA spoke with a scientist who’s studying alcoholism and how genes might play a role in this. I found this article interesting for a few reasons – first off, in addition to the standard gene analysis – draw blood from a bunch of folks, and then check out their DNA, the scientists also perform brain scans to see how the brains function with and without alcohol. It got me thinking of Flusser’s apparatuses…. because they use electroencephalagram (EEGs) to see the brain waves. The EEG monitors the electrical impulses of the brain. The impulse creates a pattern that has meaning for the neurologist who reviews it. Our mind is still largely a “black box” but engineers are inventing ways for us to “see” inside. I also think back to Elkin’s book, particulary Chapter 2 where he shows examples of the scientic images.

You can almost visualize how our genes working in concert with our environment and our behaviour create these pathways … and for some folks, it will lead to alcoholism. Just because we have genetic predisposition towards something doesn’t not guarantee that we will express the gene, but it looks like they are making the case for why we might be predisposed to doing something even though it won’t be good for us.

One more reason for everyone to think about what they eat/drink and how it affects their mind and body. Bonus, I was able to incorporate a little yoga philosophy into the mix!

www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=98D29C91-E7F2-99DF-310D5D545B29FF8A

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 6th, 2009 at 4:48 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.