Podcast appearances and mentions of Bruce Alexander

Dive into a thought-provoking episode of the Libertarian Christian Podcast with host Cody Cook and guest Jane Clair Tyner, Communications Manager at End It For Good. This compelling conversation challenges conventional views on drug addiction and explores health-centered approaches over punitive measures. Jane shares insights from End It For Good's mission, drawing from founder Christina Dent's transformative journey detailed in her book Curious. From Dr. Bruce Alexander's groundbreaking Rat Park study to the harsh realities of the justice system, they unravel the complexities of addiction, debunk the "demon drug" myth, and discuss the societal impacts of prohibition. Jane's personal story adds a heartfelt dimension, urging listeners to rethink drug policy with empathy and evidence. Tune in for a fresh perspective on balancing grace, liberty, and responsibility in addressing one of society's toughest issues. Find resources and connect at enditforgood.com!Additional resources:End It For Good's podcast interviews with Dr. Bruce Alexander: Ep. 14 on the Rat Park experiment, Ep. 15 on a deeper dive into addiction and recovery.End It For Good's core resource page.Audio Production by Podsworth Media - https://podsworth.com ★ Support this podcast ★

Bruce Alexander is a psychologist and professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University. He actively taught at SFU from 1970 to 2005. In this interview, he will speak about many of the pivotal experiences he had during that time. One of which, occurred during the 70s, while he was volunteering at a methadone clinic in Vancouver's downtown eastside. There, he would engage in conversations with heroin users, and learn more about why they chose to use the drug. These talks would help set him on a path to conducting an experiment that questioned the standard beliefs of the day about drug addiction - The Rat Park Experiment. Bruce will share many interesting stories from his life, and give some fascinating insights about his lifetime search for the truth about addiction. All that, and much more. ___________________________________________________________________________ If you are interested in learning more about recording an audio memoir, for yourself, or for a loved one, please click on this, or go to myaudiomemoir.com to find out more. ____________________________________________________________________________ To stay up-to-date with new episodes, here are some of the ways you can subscribe... Spotify- https://open.spotify.com/show/64GCX2abpl8GfJ1AzjPQiB Facebook-https://www.facebook.com/thestoriesthatbroughtyouhere YouTube - YouTube - The Stories That Brought You Here 

Join us on an enlightening journey with award-winning author and journalist Julia Hotz, who shares her insights into the world of social prescribing. Julia's groundbreaking book, "The Connection Cure," reveals the transformative power of community activities like art classes and fishing clubs, which foster meaningful connections crucial for tackling addiction and mental health challenges. Inspired by the UK's Minister of Loneliness, Julia highlights the immense health risks of isolation, comparing it to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and explores how structured opportunities for connection can be a lifeline for those often lost in superficial interactions. We explore the profound difference between meaningful and superficial connections. Julia shares real-life stories demonstrating how shared activities can nurture rich, rewarding relationships that promote personal growth much like a nourishing meal, in contrast to the empty calories of superficial online interactions. Vulnerability and shared experiences, she notes, are keys to deepening these bonds, offering listeners a fresh perspective on the value of engaging with others in meaningful ways. In this episode, you will hear: Exploration of social prescribing and its impact on health and healing with insights from Julia Hotz's book, "The Connection Cure" Discussion on the health risks of loneliness, likened to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and the role of the UK's Minister of Loneliness Distinction between meaningful connections and superficial "junk food" connections, referencing Dr. John Cacioppo's theory of self-expansion The five core ingredients of effective social prescriptions: movement, nature, art, service, and belonging Influence of environment on addiction recovery, inspired by Bruce Alexander's Rat Park Study and Dave Lyons' "Tackling Minds" fishing club Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Supporting Resources: NovusMindfulLife.com https://www.instagram.com/hotzthoughts/ https://x.com/hotzthoughts?lang=en https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-hotz-06510161/ https://www.socialprescribing.co/ Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Je lijkt overal wel verslaafd aan te kunnen raken of te zijn, maar wanneer spreken we echt over een verslaving en wanneer is het simpelweg een gedraging die zo nu en dan niet gezond is? In deze aflevering van Normale Mensen Bestaan Niet gaan psychologen Thijs Launspach en Lennard Toma in op verslaving. Ook hebben de heren het over of het genetisch bepaald is of dat er iets anders aan te grondslag ligt. En… is Harry Potter verslavend? Bronnen en ander lees- en luister- en kijkvoer: - YouTube filmpje van universiteit Yale over verslaving: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ5LH634W8s - Johann Hari over verslaving in een TED talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PY9DcIMGxMs - Gabor Maté over verslaving: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys6TCO_olOc - En nog een: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66cYcSak6nE - Verhaal over Rat Park en Bruce Alexander: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Park Nerd-literatuur: - Rudski, J. M., Segal, C., & Kallen, E. (2009). Harry Potter and the end of the road: Parallels with addiction. Addiction Research & Theory, 17(3), 260–277. doi:10.1080/16066350802334595 - Iacono, W. G., Malone, S. M., & McGue, M. (2008). Behavioral disinhibition and the development of early-onset addiction: common and specific influences. Annu. Rev. Clin. Psychol., 4(1), 325-348. - Biolcati, R., Mancini, G., Pupi, V., & Mugheddu, V. (2018). Facebook addiction: onset predictors. Journal of clinical medicine, 7(6), 118. - Sihvola, E., Rose, R. J., Dick, D. M., Pulkkinen, L., Marttunen, M., & Kaprio, J. (2008). Early‐onset depressive disorders predict the use of addictive substances in adolescence: a prospective study of adolescent Finnish twins. Addiction, 103(12), 2045-2053. - Chen, C. Y., Storr, C. L., & Anthony, J. C. (2009). Early-onset drug use and risk for drug dependence problems. Addictive behaviors, 34(3), 319-322. - Valero-Solís, S., Granero, R., Fernández-Aranda, F., Steward, T., Mestre-Bach, G., Mallorquí-Bagué, N., ... & Jiménez-Murcia, S. (2018). The contribution of sex, personality traits, age of onset and disorder duration to behavioral addictions. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 9, 497. - Hadaway, Patricia F.; Alexander, Bruce K.; Coambs, Robert B.; Beyerstein, Barry (1979-11-01). "The effect of housing and gender on preference for morphine-sucrose solutions in rats". Psychopharmacology. *66* (1): 87–91. - Gage, Suzanne H.; Sumnall, Harry R. (2019). ["Rat Park: How a rat paradise changed the narrative of addiction"](http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/9728/1/Rat-Park-acceptedmanuscript.docx). Addiction. *114* (5): 917–922.

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“Addicted” - “exhibiting a compulsive, chronic, physiological or psychological need for a habit-forming substance, behavior, or activity.” Like other health conditions, addiction is multifactorial. It is the result of an alignment of root causes. In this newsletter, I'll discuss:* Substance addiction and behavioral addictions* Why addiction is not simply about dopamine and why there are multiple addictive personalities* How & why we differ in our physiologic response to substances* Our culture's shaming and punishment of addiction while fueling addiction* The role of attachment disruption, trauma, emotional dysregulation, and social isolationSubstance AddictionWhen it comes to addiction, you might expect me to talk a lot about dopamine.  Not all substance addictions are the same, however. Opioids act very differently on the body than alcohol, which acts differently than cocaine.  Some substances are more addictive than others, and even more so in certain people.  For most people, marijuana is less addictive, while alcohol, cocaine, and opioids are more addictive. Addictive Substances:* Alcohol* Caffeine* Cannabis* Hallucinogens* Sedatives and Hypnotics/Anxiolytics* Inhalants* Opioids* Stimulants* TobaccoSeemingly, 10-20 % of people who try substances will have problems with addiction. Our genetic makeup and the expression of our genes will impact how we react to substances, just as they will affect how we metabolize specific medications or environmental toxins.  We could, for example, have a weak enzyme that slows our metabolism of alcohol and results in our becoming more intoxicated more quickly.  We may have high neurotransmitter activity that we're trying to calm down with substances, or we may have low neurotransmitter activity and are taking substances or even carrying out certain behaviors that increase our neurotransmitter activity.   Behavioral AddictionWhile we can become severely addicted to substances, we can also become addicted to behaviors or the feelings brought on by the behavior or anticipation of the behavior. Examples of Behavioral Addiction:* Food addiction* Sex addiction* Love and relationship addiction* Codependence is considered a relationship addiction in that relationships are often one-sided, emotionally destructive, or even abusive.* Exercise addiction* Body dysmorphic disorder* Health addiction* Shopping addiction* Gambling addiction* Work addiction* Video game addiction* Internet addiction* Smartphone addiction* Social media addiction* Porn addiction* News addiction* Information addiction* Self-harm addiction* Extremism is also felt to overlap with addictionWe can become addicted to anything that spikes the reward chemicals in our brains.  If we're not sure if we're addicted, we can ask ourselves, “Is the compulsive behavior having negative consequences?”The severity of our addictions falls on a spectrum.  I may not have a gambling addiction where I am putting myself at financial risk; however, I could be addicted to sugar, which I know negatively impacts my health, gives me brain fog and fatigue, and causes me to check out of my relationships, including my relationship with myself. Culture: Shame & Punishment The last thing that we need if we are addicted to a substance or behavior is shame and punishment. Our culture still tends to see addiction as a moral failing or even a sin that can be removed with punishment.  This thinking leads to simplistic consequences such as rejection by family and friends and even imprisonment.  The same happens with other forms of mental illness, but in this case, there is even less understanding, less compassion, more anger, and more disdain.Culture: Fueling AddictionMeanwhile, most of us are becoming more addicted - addicted to our cell phones, social media, divisive stimulating news and information.  We have more information coming at us than we can process.  Our brains are flooded with catecholamines as we stay in highly stimulated states. One of those catecholamines is dopamine, which will drive motivation and have us in pursuit of “more.”  While there may be a type of pleasure in that pursuit, it's not a joyful or even content type of pleasure. When we are in pursuit, we are not present in our lives.   Many of us can barely process our moments, days, and lives in these modern times. For many, what was a life of memorable moments (positive and painful) has become a blur of days quickly passing by. Before we've had time to process what has happened, what we've experienced, or what we've felt, our minds are in pursuit of the next thing we need to know or have.With addictive technology comes the marketing and its messages - “more food, more sex, more youth and beauty, more health, more money, more success, and even more love - the elusive movie kind.  We are forgetting how to be satisfied and tolerate uncomfortable feelings.Attachment & TraumaWe haven't all had the same early attachment experiences. Some of us have experienced childhood trauma. We don't know what safety feels like. Two-thirds of those with opioid addiction have childhood trauma. This doesn't account for the trauma that can occur before verbal memory, which is usually not reported.Childhood trauma impacts our autonomic nervous system, our limbic system, and our hormonal stress response. Before we even experience a stressor, our baseline neurotransmitters may already be too high. Our trauma, in combination with our genetic variants, may result in high neurotransmitters that we may try to calm down with our addiction, or our trauma, in combination with our genetic variants, may have us seeking out stimulation so we can feel more alive and connected.Social IsolationPart of our understanding of addiction comes from the work of American psychologist Dr. Bruce Alexander, who did the “Rat Park” study.  Previous research had already shown that when rats were put in solitary confinement and given a choice between water and heroin or cocaine, the rats repetitively consumed the drug-laced water until they overdosed and died.Alexander realized that the problem may not be the rats but the environment.  Rats are social animals, just as we are.  So, he created “rat parks,” where the rats could roam, play, socialize, and have sex.  Despite being given the same access to the two types of drug-laced water, these rats preferred the plain water.  Even if they did drink the drug-laced water occasionally, they never did obsessively, nor did they overdose.  The social environment was protective against addiction. If we want to help those with addiction, we need to think about connection. If we want to help ourselves with an addiction, we need to think about connection.Emotional RegulationOur ability to regulate our emotions (increase calm and decrease fear and anger) comes through interactions with other humans - safe humans. Ideally, we learn to regulate our emotions during our first three years. When we were distressed as infants and toddlers, we communicated that distress through our cries and facial expressions, our caregivers responded, and our physiology returned to a sense of calm and safety. This repeated process - not necessarily perfect, but “good enough” - resulted in our internalizing that early relationship and, with that, an ability to recognize our feelings, trust others, feel worthy, respond to uncomfortable feelings with coping skills, and return to our baseline emotional state.  Without this skill we acquire through attachment, we can become overwhelmed by our feelings or detached from our feelings. Our experiences, genetics, and temperament will impact which direction we go.There is not one “addictive personality” but many addictive personalities. Some of us will be highly sensitive, and others will have a low level of sensitivity. Some of us will become overwhelmed by stress or stimulation and use addictions as a way to try to calm our emotional and high neurotransmitter states.  Others will seek sensory stimulation or risk-taking to bump those neurotransmitters and increase the feeling state. Of course, our biochemical differences impact this as well:* For those of us who are undermethylated, we may find that we are sensory seeking, have high activity at the NMDA receptor, and find ourselves craving whatever has come to have meaning or has left a mark on our neurophysiology.  * For those of us who are overmethylated, we may have the desire to calm things down, slow our racing thoughts, and lower our high neurotransmitter activity.* For those of us with high pyrroles (and or CAPs profile), we may feel socially anxious or overstimulated and desire to feel calm and comfortable, but at other times, we may feel brave and invincible.“Being bold and adventurous and being sad and cautious seem like opposite personality types. However, these two paths to addiction are actually not mutually exclusive. The third way involves having both kinds of traits, where people alternatively fear and desire novelty and behavior swings from being impulsive and rash to being compulsive, fear driven, and stuck in rigid patterns. ……My own story spirals around this paradoxical situation: I was driven enough to excel academically and fundamentally scared of change and of other people—yet I was also reckless enough to sell cocaine and shoot heroin.” - Maia Szalavitz We need to think more broadly about addiction, just as we would any other health condition.  We need to address the underlying physiological root causes, meet our human need for connection, and learn ways to experience, tolerate, and cope with our very human and necessary feeling states.  In this week's paid newsletter, I look forward to discussing cases to illustrate how various neurotransmitters can be at play with different substance addictions and how targeted nutrients can be used in the treatment of addictions - both substance and behavioral. Until next time,CourtneyIf you'd like to dive deeper into the root causes of brain symptoms, consider becoming a paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

You've probably listened to Bruce's past three episodes, so you probably know he wants a path to exist that leads people to want to live more sustainably and spread that change to others. It would mean them overcoming their addictions. By them, I mean all of us, since if we order takeout, fly, and drive big cars, we're in the group that has to change.His experience with addicts tells him it's hard, maybe impossible. On the other hand, while people may be conflicted and may have suppressed many of our emotions around the environment, we love nature.In this episode, we hear the Spodek Method finally clicking with Bruce. One interaction with it isn't supposed to change the world itself. It creates a mindset shift, which one has to follow with continual improvement to change one person, then to spread, but here you can hear it clicking.Ideas that spread, win. Emotions too. Here is a case where the emotion kicked in with someone skeptical. It's not alone a solution, but a proof of concept. In entrepreneurial terms, the technology works. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I find this series of conversations with Bruce to be ending up excellent examples to learn advanced Spodek Method from. I think they're also engaging. I certainly enjoyed the conversations with Bruce.You can tell he believes in the vision and isn't trying to answer askew, or maybe I'm not picking up on cues, but the interaction is both not clicking but not falling apart either. If you're learning the Spodek Method from the How-To Guide or a workshop, or finished either, I think you can learn a lot from these conversations. Also, from Bruce, a lot about addiction, science, and applying them to modern life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I think I can safely say Bruce and I have formed a friendship, both professional and from similar interests, even though he's retired and I'm not a psychologist. I learn psychology to help lead. We're both intrigued by addiction. We both want to improve our environmental situation, not just give in.He likes the idea of the Spodek Method. He hopes it works beyond just one person. He's not sure it can. In this episode we start practicing it.Working with him was one of the more challenging times doing the Spodek Method. I expect that as more people learn it, these conversations with Bruce will make effective lessons in challenging cases. He wasn't trying to challenge me. So far, it just works with some personalities more smoothly than with others. Finding examples of different types lets me learn how to apply it with different people and personality types.Some types I haven't figured out. Let's see how things go with Bruce. If you're learning the Spodek Method, I think you can learn a lot from this conversation. I'd say it's advanced. On further thought, it might be me. Maybe other people would have an easy time. If so, let me know what I might be missing.Bruce's home page Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Bruce Alexander is an internationally recognised author and psychologist perhaps most well known for his “rat-park” experiment and dislocation theory of addiction. Few people on the planet have contributed more to our understanding of the social and contextual factors driving addiction, so it was a real privilege to have this conversation. In this episode you'll learn: — Why psychology is only one piece of the addiction puzzle and the importance of taking a wider view — The extent to which belonging to a culture can be thought of as a basic human need; as essential to our wellbeing as food and water, and what happens in its absence — The historical factors driving the addiction crisis — Bruce's famous rat park experiment and how this is slowly leading to a paradigm shift in how we see addictions And more. You can learn more about Bruce's work by going to: www.brucekalexander.com --- Dr Bruce K. Alexander is a renowned Canadian psychologist and professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. He is best known for his groundbreaking work in the field of addiction and his influential theory known as the "Rat Park" experiment. Bruce Kenneth Alexander was born on December 13, 1939, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of British Columbia, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. He then pursued graduate studies at the University of Oregon, earning his Ph.D. in experimental psychology. Throughout his career, Alexander focused on studying addiction and its underlying causes, challenging prevailing theories that viewed addiction as solely a result of chemical dependency. He sought to explore the social and environmental factors that contribute to addictive behavior. Alexander's work highlighted the importance of social connections, environmental factors, and personal fulfillment in preventing and treating addiction. He argued that creating supportive communities and addressing the root causes of addiction, such as social isolation and psychological distress, are crucial for effective prevention and treatment strategies. Beyond his research, Alexander has been a vocal advocate for drug policy reform and has been critical of the war on drugs. He has called for a shift toward harm reduction strategies and the implementation of evidence-based approaches to address substance abuse. Bruce K. Alexander has published numerous articles and book chapters on addiction, psychology, and drug policy. His work continues to inspire researchers, clinicians, and policymakers in the field of addiction studies. --- 4 Books Dr Alexander Recommends for Every Therapist Should Read: — Scenes and studies of savage life - Sproat, Gilbert Malcolm, 1832-1913 - https://bit.ly/SSS-UBC2023 — Addiction and Devotion in Early Modern England — Rebecca Lemon - https://amzn.to/3XIBCW7 — Crack in America: Demon Drugs and Social Justice — Craig Reinarman and Harry G. Levine - https://amzn.to/433VtQE — Coming Clean: Overcoming Addiction without Treatment — Robert Granfield and William Cloud - https://amzn.to/3ppAqKN

I start by describing how podcast guest Carl Erik Fisher, author of bestseller The Urge, reviewed my upcoming book Sustainability Simplified as a subject matter expert on addiction. Carl mentioned how my book suffered from what Bruce describes as the demon drug myth. He pointed to Bruce's work as seminal, so I started reading it.I'd heard of Rat Park and later remembered Johan Hari mentioning Bruce in his TED talk where he said "the opposite of addiction is community". I couldn't wait to talk to Bruce. Carl introduced us. We spoke. Bruce clarified the demon drug myth. I described how addiction and doof figure in my sustainability leadership work.In our conversation, Bruce described how working with self-described junkies in the early 1950s led him to reinterpret the common wisdom "proved" by experiments that some chemicals addicted people, end of story. He then described how he created Rat Park, which showed a lot more nuance and alternative explanations. You can read about Rat Park on Bruce's page or this comic book version, but his description in our conversation is engaging and thorough.Then he shares how people continue to stick with the old view of addiction and drugs. It's easy. It takes parents and others off the hook.He describes new views of addiction. You won't see addiction the same after. If you want to stop polluting and depleting yourself and help people you know and communities you are a member of, this conversation will change how you view it forever. You'll approach it with more understanding, empathy, and compassion.Bruce's home page, aka Bruce K. Alexander's Globalization of Addiction Website Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're sharing a little bit of our Patreon exclusive Bonus show with from S7E9. In this clip, co-host Peih-Gee Law talks about rat park, a psychological experiment run by Dr. Bruce Alexander in the seventies, and the impact of creating connections through play. Listen to the rest of the Bonus Show now by becoming a patron today at patreon.com/roomescapeartist and to gain to access our library of over 60 bonus after shows. Thank you for supporting our work. 

United States v. Bruce Alexander

Gurpreet from the Sitka Law Group discusses recent changes in Property Transfer Tax and New Home GST exemption limitsBrad Windsor from Harbour City Kitchens and Bruce Alexander from Pacific Outdoor Kitchens tell us about a new line of locally manufactured outdoor kitchens, with display units at Harbour City Kitchens.https://harbourcitykitchens.com/https://pacificoutdoorkitchens.com/The Kensington Victoria- independent living for seniorsSales consultant Melinda Cottingham Wolff invites you to a special Open House on Friday April 12 and Saturday April 13 from 1:00-4:00. All are welcome!https://www.reveraliving.com/find-a-residence/british-columbia/victoria/the-kensington-victoria/

If we wanted to design a culture from the ground up to maximize both the potential and severity of addiction, we would build it exactly like the United States today.  Once upon a time, humans received contentment and fulfilment from their work, and they often went home feeling connected to their communities and identified with the service or goods they offered for sale. But for the last hundred years we've steadily changed that. Today, 1 in 8 of us in the United States has worked at McDonalds, a job that might pay the bills, but certainly isn't showing anyone how much they are truly capable of doing or connecting them to a sense of identity related to their work. We just do it to get a paycheck. In this episode I will cover the various ways our medical, educational, employment, legal and political systems are all built to maximize addiction potential and severity, and to hide their tracks by blaming drugs and drug users for problems caused by the environment in which we life. Cocaine and heroin costs around $1 per gram to produce from coca leaves and opium poppies, respectively. Yet these substances will cost a consumer upwards of 50x that much on the streets.Find out more about behavioralist B.F. Skinner here. Read about his use of Operant Conditioning here.In Bruce Alexander's experiments, rats that were put in a toyless, friendless cages used 19 times more morphine than those placed in comfortable, familiar homes with other rats. For more about maximizing button-pressing by rewarding the button-presser randomly, in unexpected and unpredictable patters, check out this article.Support the show

M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable was considered a disappointment when it was released, but that's because no one really knew that it was supposed to be a superhero movie. Bruce Alexander joins Perry to look back on this film and what it could have been if it were better marketed.Visit Authentic Identity Management to learn more about Bruce's life coaching for ADHD adults.Want to tell us what you think? Have any questions or comments for Perry about superheroes in media or comics? Leave a voice message to play on the show. You can also apply to be a guest on the show.PARAGONS OF EARTH is a comic book project I'm developing with Thomas Deja and Eric Johns. You can support the project by visiting crowdfundr.com/paragonscomic.FacebookBlueskyThreadsInstagramContact

Andrew C. Thornton II's unbridled greed - how much cocaine do you need to sell to be happy? / Dr Bruce Alexander and the Rat Park Experiments /  
“One should accept only those things necessary for himself, which are set aside as his quota, and one should not accept other things, knowing well to whom they belong.” / All there is to satisfy the senses, can't satisfy one who's senses are uncontrolled / The demonic mentality is taking Vishnu out of the picture /  the soul gives life to the body, not the other way around / Hiranyakashipu is no better than the Cocaine Bear SB 7.3.6-16

Andrew C. Thornton II's unbridled greed - how much cocaine do you need to sell to be happy? / Dr Bruce Alexander and the Rat Park Experiments /  
“One should accept only those things necessary for himself, which are set aside as his quota, and one should not accept other things, knowing well to whom they belong.” / All there is to satisfy the senses, can't satisfy one who's senses are uncontrolled / The demonic mentality is taking Vishnu out of the picture /  the soul gives life to the body, not the other way around / Hiranyakashipu is no better than the Cocaine Bear SB 7.3.6-16

Oklahoma City former career firefighter now authenticity/identity coach Bruce Alexander talks about his latest project “Authentic On Air Podcast” created to give something back to the world through life experience, triumphs, tribulations and more! Bruce served the last 10 years, including the role of Major, for the Oklahoma City Fire Department gaining skills & insights that would change him for the rest of his life, while living an interesting life of trials & victories and hopes his story will inspire others not to fear what he encountered, including struggling with ADHD and trying to fit in, plus how to overcome numerous obstacles and more! Plus…get the “How To Life” workbook for step-by-step guidance through building your life's instruction manual that helps identify and define what matters so you can finally start making moves that matter at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/howtolife and Get the brand new ADHD Dads Communication course at a limited time price with a ton of free bonuses at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/9steps-specialoffer ! Check out the Bruce Alexander and how he can help you at www.authenticitymanagement.com today! #brucealexander #oklahomacity #firefighter #major #authenticonairpodcast #authenticity #identity #coach #ADHD #lifeskills #communication #spreaker #iheartradio #spotify #applemusic #youtube #anchorfm #bitchute #rumble #mikewagner #themikewagnershow #mikewagnerbrucealexander #themikewagnershowbrucealexander --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/themikewagnershow/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/themikewagnershow/support

Oklahoma City former career firefighter now authenticity/identity coach Bruce Alexander talks about his latest project “Authentic On Air Podcast” created to give something back to the world through life experience, triumphs, tribulations and more! Bruce served the last 10 years, including the role of Major, for the Oklahoma City Fire Department gaining skills & insights that would change him for the rest of his life, while living an interesting life of trials & victories and hopes his story will inspire others not to fear what he encountered, including struggling with ADHD and trying to fit in, plus how to overcome numerous obstacles and more! Plus…get the “How To Life” workbook for step-by-step guidance through building your life's instruction manual that helps identify and define what matters so you can finally start making moves that matter at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/howtolife and Get the brand new ADHD Dads Communication course at a limited time price with a ton of free bonuses at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/9steps-specialoffer ! Check out the Bruce Alexander and how he can help you at www.authenticitymanagement.com today! #brucealexander #oklahomacity #firefighter #major #authenticonairpodcast #authenticity #identity #coach #ADHD #lifeskills #communication #spreaker #iheartradio #spotify #applemusic #youtube #anchorfm #bitchute #rumble #mikewagner #themikewagnershow #mikewagnerbrucealexander #themikewagnershowbrucealexander --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/themikewagnershow/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/themikewagnershow/support

Oklahoma City former career firefighter now authenticity/identity coach Bruce Alexander talks about his latest project “Authentic On Air Podcast” created to give something back to the world through life experience, triumphs, tribulations and more! Bruce served the last 10 years, including the role of Major, for the Oklahoma City Fire Department gaining skills & insights that would change him for the rest of his life, while living an interesting life of trials & victories and hopes his story will inspire others not to fear what he encountered, including struggling with ADHD and trying to fit in, plus how to overcome numerous obstacles and more! Plus…get the “How To Life” workbook for step-by-step guidance through building your life's instruction manual that helps identify and define what matters so you can finally start making moves that matter at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/howtolife and Get the brand new ADHD Dads Communication course at a limited time price with a ton of free bonuses at www.authenticidentitymanagement.com/9steps-specialoffer ! Check out the Bruce Alexander and how he can help you at www.authenticitymanagement.com today! #brucealexander #oklahomacity #firefighter #major #authenticonairpodcast #authenticity #identity #coach #ADHD #lifeskills #communication #spreaker #iheartradio #spotify #applemusic #youtube #anchorfm #bitchute #rumble #mikewagner #themikewagnershow #mikewagnerbrucealexander #themikewagnershowbrucealexander

The latest episode of More Than Hentai has arrived, and it's ready to slowly zombie shuffle it's way into your heart via your ears.The salt and pepper senpai, Brendan White is joined in the Riverside Studio by MTH's very first international guest, Mr. Bruce Alexander to share their thoughts on Haro Aso, Kotaro Takata and Bug Films 2023 horror comedy smash, Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead.As a friendly FYI, this episode will be a full deep dive on episode one, titled "Akira of the Dead", so be ready for spoilers.Please be sure to rate, review and subscribe to us as well as all the other podcasts you consume, it takes no time, costs you no money and means the world to us podcasters.Track us down on Discord, Instagram and TwitterCheck out Brendan's anime watch list and ratings hereUpdate your wardrobe via our merch storeThrow us a few dollars over at Buy Me A CoffeeUpgrade your audio game via our friends at Audio-TechnicaMuch love! Stay humble and stay hungry

In this episode of the Dunamis EQ Leadership Podcast, we are joined by Bruce Alexander, a seasoned firefighter and leader. Bruce delves into the realm of authentic leadership, highlighting the key principles that he learned in leadership school: self-awareness, consistency, humility, open communication, observance, and love. Bruce emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and how leaders need to analyze their weaknesses and understand how they respond to different situations. He also stresses the need for consistency, ensuring that the team knows what to expect from their leader in handling various challenges. Humility is a core aspect of Bruce's leadership philosophy, as he firmly believes in recognizing oneself as the weakest link and leveraging the strengths of others to strengthen the team. Open communication is another crucial element, creating a safe space for team members to share openly and not just when things go wrong. Bruce emphasizes the importance of being a real and approachable leader, encouraging listeners to shed the facade and truly connect with their team. He shares anecdotes from his extensive training as a firefighter and how that training made responding to fires feel natural and not weird to him. While expressing their excitement and exhilaration when fighting real fires, Bruce also acknowledges the need to prioritize the safety and well-being of the people affected, rather than solely focusing on the thrill of the firefighting experience. The physical demands of the job and the toll it takes on their body have caused Bruce to reconsider their initial enthusiasm for fighting fires. However, the lessons learned from their firefighting experience have also shaped their understanding of leadership. Bruce emphasizes the importance of recognizing who you are responsible to and who you are responsible for, both in the firefighting profession and in corporate teams. Throughout the episode, Bruce shares valuable insights on fostering a happy and engaged team, utilizing team members' skills, teaching sacrifice and the importance of being a team player. He also emphasizes the role of genuine care and love for team members as the foundation of effective leadership. Bruce candidly discusses their personal journey with ADHD, sharing how this neurological difference affected their understanding of social cues, feedback from their boss, and overall work performance. They reflect on the challenges they faced and the importance of open communication and understanding in navigating and managing ADHD in the workplace. The episode touches on the speaker's experience in the paramilitary system of the fire department, their initial resistance to conforming to its hierarchical structure, and their grappling with bureaucracy and slow progress. Bruce emphasizes the importance of observing and respecting your team, as well as catching them doing things right and praising their contributions to create a positive work environment. Ultimately, Bruce emphasizes that authentic leadership and an exciting culture can create teams that are enthusiastic and successful in any task given to them. When leaders genuinely care about their team's success, trust is established, and ambitious goals can be achieved. This episode is a captivating exploration of leadership, emotional intelligence, and the power of genuine care in building strong and successful teams. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dunamis-eq/message

In this episode, we welcome back Psychic/Medium Bruce Alexander. Join us as we delve into the fascinating world of past lives. In this episode, we explore the concept of reincarnation, share compelling stories of individuals who claim to remember their past lives, and discuss the signs that you may have lived a past life. Get ready to unlock the secrets of our ancient selves!You can find Psychic Medium Bruce Alexander here:https://bruceamedium.com/Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/bruceamediumInstagram:https://www.instagram.com/bruceamedium/Bob Olson Best Psychic Directory:https://bestpsychicdirectory.com/california/Jamie-Lynn-l.htmlwww.electricspiritpodcast.com@electricspiritpodcasthttps://psychicjamie.com/@socalhealerContest! Win a copy of Preston Dennett's book: Symmetry: A True UFO Adventurehttps://www.electricspiritpodcast.com/contestsJoin Psychic Jamie Electric Spirit Psychic Tarot PATREON!!https://www.patreon.com/ElectricSpiritPsychicTarot?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creatorElectric Spirit Podcast Facebook Group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/661261524931303/?ref=share_group_linkHave a psychic dilemma? Ask Psychic Jamie Lynn:https://www.electricspiritpodcast.com/weekly-wisdomDisclaimer:https://psychicjamie.com/jdisclaimerBy accessing this Podcast, I acknowledge that the entire contents are the property of Psychic Medium Jamie Lynn, or used by Psychic Medium Jamie Lynn, with permission, and are protected under U.S. and international copyright and trademark laws. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this Podcast may save and use information contained in the Podcast only for personal or other non-commercial, educational purposes. No other use, including, without limitation, reproduction, retransmission or editing, of this Podcast may be made without the prior written permission of the Psychic Medium Jamie Lynn, which may be requested by contacting electricspiritpodcast@gmail.comThis podcast is for educational purposes only. The host claims no responsibility to any person or entity for any liability, loss, or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of the use, application, or interpretation of the information presented herein.Support the show#pastlives #reincarnation #psychic #intuition #theunexplained #mysteries Support the show

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Dr. Bruce Alexander built the grooviest rat cage in existence in the 1970's and along the way, he taught us a very important lesson about how to live your best life. Listen in as I break it down.

This week's episode features Professor Bruce Alexander, a psychologist and professor emeritus from Vancouver, BC, Canada, author of two books about addiction: Peaceful Measures: Canada's Way Out of the War on Drugs and The Globalization of Addiction: A Study in Poverty of the Spirit. Professor Alexander conducted a series of experiments into drug addiction known as the Rat Park experiments. Which brought into light the true complexity of addiction and the influence of our environment on how we use drugs and how they affect us. Listen to this episode to find out why the “demon drug myth” is extremely out of date with the scientific world and what we can do to debunk it. Skin poppersHeroinMorphineDemon drug mythIan KershawRat parkHow permanent was Vietnam drug addiction ★ Support this podcast ★

Pull up a chair for this electrifying episode of Vanguard Radio as J. Richard Jones speaks with Bruce Alexander, President, Raymond EMC about military electromagnetic capability (EMC), emissions security (EMSEC), and TEMPEST technology. Your security is the issue in this conversation about bad actors who could be stealing your data, keystrokes, and video. Also in this episode: Bruce Alexander's journey in the industry What exactly is EMC? The four pillars of EMC testing What is EMSEC and TEMPEST What's at risk? And more!

“When you are in a war you don't want to hear that the justifications are false. And this is what we were saying, we were saying that the main justification - that this drug is a irresistibly addictive substance - was not true”Bruce Alexander has spent his life researching drugs and it's addictions. In his early career he started counselling hard-core drug addicts in Vancouver's darkest city streets and prisons, thanks to his youthful appearance and curious demeanour he managed to build a relationship with some of these addicts which gave him a fresh perspectives on substance abuse.Bruce began to conducted scientific research with animals (including the well-known “Rat Park” studies) and human beings. Now he uses clinical, historical, and anthropological studies to document the ways in which addiction is built into the emerging globalised society of the modern age. Author of three books including, The Globalization of Addiction: A Study in Poverty of the Spirit (Oxford University Press, 2008), since retiring from Simon Fraser University as Professor Emeritus, he has continued public speaking, primarily in Canada and Europe.An amazing man, with an amazing story! We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did.Lots of Love,Dave & SteveFor more information on Bruce please visit his website: https://www.brucekalexander.com/Pre-order our new book The Veg Box Now!Produced by Sara Fawsitt and Seanie Cahill See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Karl Fast is an independent scholar, information architect, and futurist. He's the co-author of Figure It Out: Getting From Information to Understanding. This is the second half of a two-part conversation about interaction and embodiment. If you haven't done so already, please listen to part 1 before listening to this episode. Show notes @karlfast on Twitter Karl Fast on LinkedIn Figure It Out: Getting From Information to Understanding by Stephen P. Anderson and Karl Fast Bruce Alexander The Rat Park experiments Bill Verplank's diagram of interaction Epigenetics About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design, 4th Ed by Alan Cooper, Robert Reimann, avid Cronin, and Christopher Noessel Mind in Motion: How Action Shapes Thought by Barbara Tversky The Alignment Problem: Machine Learning and Human Values by Brian Christian (Bonus: Jorge's book notes) The paperclip maximizer problem Punctuated equilibrium Some show notes may include Amazon affiliate links. I get a small commission for purchases made through these links. Read the transcript Jorge: Karl, welcome back to the show. Karl: Thanks for having me again! Jorge: Well, I could not help but want to talk with you again, since you mentioned wanting to discuss rats and heroin, and that just sounded too intriguing to me at the tail end of our last conversation. So, why don't we pick right back up there? What do you mean by rats on heroin? Rats and heroin Karl: So in the 1970s, there was a lot of concern about drug addiction in various parts of the society, especially in the US, and especially with the Vietnam War. And a lot of veterans — a lot of soldiers who were in Vietnam and who were exposed to heroin were… I think there was some estimate, something like 80 or 90% of all the soldiers who went over to Vietnam had used heroin at some point and had a serious… what we would now classify maybe as an addiction. I'm not sure if that number is correct. But there was this general widespread concern about this and what was going to happen when these people came back. I don't think that this particular study was motivated directly by that, but certainly this was in the air. And so, there was a Canadian psychologist named Bruce Alexander, and he was concerned about a lot of the studies that had been done around addiction and said, "well, these rats are stuck in like a small, cold cage, often socially isolated from all other rats. If I was in that kind of situation, maybe I'd like to take some heroin too!" So, he designed a study where he had a couple of different groups of rats. One group of rats, they were basically in the sort of normal lab cages that you would have. The other ones were in what are called "Rat Park." And you can actually look this up on Wikipedia. It's called, "The Rat Park Experiments." And they… they were like 200 times larger. There were about a dozen, 15 rats or so in there, both male and female. So, they had a completely different environment in which they were able to run around. They could play, there were all kinds of lovely things. There were things to keep them mentally stimulated. It was kind of like a rat heaven. And in both of these different groups, each of them, the rats were divided up into two different groups. There were rats that were given water to drink, and the other rats had a choice between water and water that was sweetened, but also laced with morphine. What they found basically was that when they were in rat park — in rat heaven — very few of them would consistently go and choose the morphine. But the ones that were in the cages almost always did the morphine. And there were several conclusions about this, but one interpretation was that social isolation was the major factor and that lack of socialization drove a lot of addiction. My understanding is that this is not… this has been criticized in a number of cases. But the broader one, the way that I've always interpreted this study, is that the role of the environment has a huge impact on stuff. And when it came to the veterans, when they came home, a surprisingly small percentage of veterans came back to the US after the war and continued with their heroin addiction. So, there are studies with rats, there are findings with the actual veterans. Embodiment and interaction Karl: And to me, this raises this question that relates to what we were talking about last week. We had this idea of embodiment. And the big idea with embodiment here is that the mind is not the same thing as the brain. Our bodies, our tools, the space around us — how we move and act in the world — this is all part of our cognitive system; that our brain might be in the head, but our mind is embodied. Our mind extends out into the world. So, the systems and the tools, the information we have… all the things that we design that are exterior to the body, those should also be understood as part of the mind. They're not just out there. And that brings us back to the other main thing we talked about last week was this question of interaction. How do we interact with the world? Why do we interact with the world? And we introduced that distinction between pragmatic and epistemic actions. And we gave that example of moving the bishop, where you pick up the bishop, and you move it and put your finger on it, but then you move it back. From a traditional perspective, we would say, "oh, you did two moves in the world. You've moved a piece, and then you pressed undo." But there's research, which says, "well, no, no, there's actually real reasons why you would want to do that." And the distinction is what they call pragmatic action and epistemic actions. And the idea of a pragmatic action is you're going to change the world in order to change the world. You want to bring about some change in the world. But an epistemic action is about changing the world to change your understanding of the world. To make thinking easier, or faster, or more reliable. So, we have these different ideas here. We have this idea that the environment plays a role in our mental wellbeing. The environment plays a role in our ability to think. The way we interact with the world is part of how we think, in many cases. And what we talked about was… we went through a number of different examples, but the big idea is this I think has major implications for the things that we design in a world where we have a lot of information. We have rich — increasingly rich — computational tools, powerful computational tools that don't just sit in a desk, that are being embedded into every part of our world. And that can sense and interact and respond back to us in more meaningful and interesting ways. Jorge: You mentioned in our previous conversation the opportunities inherent in the trajectories that we see in technology. Karl: Yeah. So, especially I think with AI, but that's an obvious one, right? Think about it this way: one of the things I argued last time is that we need to have a better conceptual toolkit when we're designing, when we're creating these different things. We need to think about how what we are making is not just out there, but is connected in a meaningful way to what our brains can do. So, we should think about certain definitions — certain words — and try to understand them and develop new concepts for how we talk about this. So, for example, let's start with some basic ones that I've already mentioned: action. I think of action is doing something. It's a thing, done, it's a gesture, it's a movement. And that is distinct from reaction — what happens in response to a situation, an event, to an action. But I use the word interaction to not mean action and then reaction. You can think about it that way in terms of the timeframe, but I tend to think of interaction as the action coupled with the reaction. So, you act in or on the world, that action combined with the response. Think about it as the difference between you can talk about, like, your coffee, and you can talk about the cream, but once you mix the two together, now they're bound together and that's different. So, we can think of them as separately, but we also need to learn to see them as connected together. Now, language can be a little slippery. And I know that in my writing and in my speaking here, I have probably used… I'm sure that I have used the word action when I really meant, by those definitions, interaction. I tend to use them synonymously. I talked about epistemic action. Really, I think it should be epistemic interaction, but it's a bit of a mouthful. But that's an example of definitions. Or another one would be "interactivity." This is a word that gets tossed around kind of loosely and casually, often as a synonym with interaction. I think it's best understood as a quality or attribute of an interaction. Some interactions are easy. Some are interactions are difficult. Sometimes easy is better. Not always, right? In learning, when interaction is too easy and quick — if learning is too easy — then the learning becomes shallow. You need a kind of certain friction. Or another example for interactivity: how difficult is it to articulate your intentions with a system? So, you can talk about a gap between what you intend to do and your ability to articulate it. And can we, through design, close that gap? When do we want to close that gap? So, you might have the same interaction. But the interactivity or certain dimensions of that interactivity could be very different. And there could be good and bad around that. Jorge: This brings to mind Bill Verplank diagram of interaction. I don't know if you're aware of that diagram. Karl: Refresh my memory. Jorge: Well, it's a feedback loop between the world and some actor. And the actor senses the world. Verplank labels it "feel." so, there's this sensing of the world. The actor, through sensing, knows and then does. So that's the other arrow. So, you sense, and you do. And this cycle of sensing and doing amounts to an interaction. And what I'm hearing you say is that… it's not a binary thing, but there's a gradient of interactions. So, some things are more interactive than others. Karl: Yes. And you know so that loop, that idea here… this is where I think embodiment is trying to say, "it's really complicated." It's a lot more complicated. It's a lot more nuanced than we have tended to describe it. You know, you take a class in cognitive psychology, you pick up a lot of different books around how the mind works, and you're going to see — sometimes explicitly, sometimes implicitly — a simple loop around perception, cognition, and action. Perception is input, right? Information from the world that is input into the brain. The brain takes that and does computation on that. And then from that, we act on the world. From the embodiment perspective, the simple and wrong way to think about that is that the cognition happens just in the head, right? Perception is input. Action is output. Cognition is what happens in the middle. And what embodiment is trying to say is, no. There is an element where that could be the case, and maybe often is the case. But it's certainly far from the entire story. We need to redraw that picture. Think of it as maybe a first order approximation of how the mind works. Now, we need to think about second and third order effects here. What are the other things that are going on here? And that's what things, like epistemic actions, point to. More broadly, it's very common in design for people to have taken a lot of classes and to have studied aspects of perception. All graphic and visual design, color theory, like layout… you know, all of this is about changing the perceptual inputs. Controlling the perceptual inputs. All the aestheticism that we have is about the perceptual inputs are largely about that. I'm much more interested in the other side of that, the interaction side of that loop. And how that is connected to the things that we create, and trying to unpack this in the light of what the science is telling us about embodiment. Jorge: Would it be fair to say that the emphasis then is on the touch-points between these artifacts that we perceive and the people who are perceiving them? Karl: Yes, and the way that those touch-points happen. And you know, the more I think about this… and I've been thinking about interaction for well over a decade. And you see this notion of interaction in so many different areas, in different fields. Like we just talked about it with the example of rats and heroin and this connection to the environment. Another one from biology is, we have that old idea of the debate between nature or nurture. And most of us today have gone, "oh, well, it's not about nature, it's not about nurture. It's nature and nurture, and some sort of balance between the two." But biologists don't believe that either. Not anymore. What a biologist would say is it's more about how the organism interacts with the environment. Evolution is an interactive process. An example related to that is genetics. In the mid-nineties, we had all this talk and this huge effort to decode the human genome, and the story that was told there was, "well, if we can just decode the human genome, then we'll be able to read the book of life," as though it was just information. And genes were presented to us as a deterministic thing. You have a gene, this tells you how tall you're going to be, this tells you what color your hair is going to be, it can determine intelligence, all of these things. But what we now know is that's really not what's going on. That is part of the story, but it's much more complex than that. And the big area in genetics is epigenetics. Epigenetics is how your behavior and your interaction with the environment shapes the way that the genes express themselves. So, maybe interaction will turn on a particular kind of gene, maybe it won't. It depends on how the environment that you're in really shapes this. This leads us actually back to rats. There are studies that go back to the 1950s about baby rats and how their mothers lick them. There are what are called "high licking mothers" and "low licking mothers." So, some rats get licked a lot when you're a baby, and some mothers will not lick their babies a lot. And they do this to calm the rat down. This changes the epigenetics: changes how the genes — especially around stress — and I believe it's cortisol, but other things — express themselves. So, a rat that gets licked a lot is going to be a much calmer rat. It will not get stressed as much. A rat that is not licked a lot, won't learn to do that. And so, it's genes will express themselves in a different way. And you might think, "well, it's great to be calm, not so great to be anxious." But then we come back to this problem of, well, what kind of environment is the rat in? If a rat is in a dangerous environment, it actually pays off, from an evolutionary perspective, to be anxious because you're going to be more alert to threats. So, you have this really much more complex, interesting trade-off. And interaction, to me, seems to drive all of this. The mother is licking the baby, that's interaction. The rat grows up to be in a particular environment — grows up in one environment, then maybe migrates to a different environment — that connection between the environment is interaction. All of this stuff again and again, we see interaction throughout everything. Think about another example, like programming. We talk about functions. And then we talk about objects. We talk about APIs… this, all the ways that programs interact with each other. We gave an example in our previous conversation about why people talk with their hands and the importance of gestures. It's not just a way of providing extra information to someone else. It also turns out that that physical movement has an inward-facing component that helps smooth our thoughts, or sort of like a cognitive grease. Epistemic actions. There's another example. We had the example of chess, which comes from a study about how people play Tetris. And the thing I'm trying to get at here is: I think interaction is fundamentally under-appreciated. We want to tell a story about the things. The things that we have. The objects, the artifacts, and the story that we want to tell might be about their perceptual qualities, their aesthetic properties, how beautiful something is, or the quality of which it is made. We might talk about its usability. We have various ways in which we talk about the objects. Or, from the cognitive side, we'll talk about what the brain is capable of. And I keep thinking from all the stuff that I see, this question of how we are interacting with those things: how we interact with things, how we interact with the environment, how we interact with other people. All of that seems to be really, really central. And my question has been, how do we come up with a better, richer — and from a design perspective — more useful way of talking about that? Interaction design Jorge: Most folks listening in will have heard of interaction design, and they probably associate it with things like the gestures and motions and… I've heard it described as though interaction deals with time. Whereas other disciplines deal with spatial relationships, interaction deals with time-based relationships. Karl: Well, and I know if you read, say_ About Face_, the interaction design book by Alan Cooper. He defines interaction design in terms of behavior. But for my reading of behavior, I think of it as the way you act or conduct yourself often, especially towards others, or towards things. And it tends to be more of a macro definition. It's a larger scale pattern. So, part of this is also a terminology question and looking at the things that we do at multiple levels. There's a nice paper by Cameron Seddick, who was my dissertation advisor actually many years ago, and he breaks interaction down roughly into, I think, four different levels. He talks about events. So, those are like the smallest-scale thing. This is something that actually changes and happens. An event would be like a click, a drag, pinch, scroll, tap, grab. Those types of things. An interaction is something more like filtering or rearranging or annotating. That is comprised of — depending on how things are designed — one or more different kinds of events. Then from there above that, we have different kinds of tasks. And above that, we have activities. And so at each stage, we get a level of behavior that is broader and more comprehensive, as opposed to being narrower. Activity theory, which is also another area which has strongly connected in many ways to embodiment, has a similar notion that interaction has multiple scales and dimensions. And also that things can move up and down, depending on our conscious level of control and experience. So, the classic example here would be learning to drive a car and especially learning how to drive say a manual transmission. When you first learn, you have to be very clear about, okay, I am pressing the clutch. I am moving the gear shift. But as you get more skilled and experienced with that, that goes from a low-level set of actions to something that's much broader. It's easier and it's more automatic. So, things can shift and change around. Again, we come back to this idea that… well, I'd say there are two reasons why I think interaction is not really as fully appreciated in design circles as it could be. Or maybe not appreciate is the right word… maybe a better phrase would be, talked about it in a way which allows us to fully leverage what interaction can do. And one reason I think for that is that it is complicated. It is nuanced. And I think the other major reason is that we have this idea from cognitive science that is baked in pretty deep about what is this relationship between the world, and perception, and the brain or the mind, and action. And we have tended to have a story from cognitive science, which is pretty simple: the one we talked about earlier, where perception provides information, the brain takes that and converts that information, which would then do mental computation. We call that thinking. And then action does the output. Perception, input. Action, output. And thinking happens in the brain. Embodiment is this big revolution in cognitive science, which is trying to really change that. But so much of the design world is based on traditional cognitive science from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. Jorge: What I'm hearing there is that it's not just a mind acting in the world. It's a mind acting on the world, so that the act of sensing and tweaking the thing that you sense, in interacting with the world, you gain an understanding of the world. And that is part of what cognition is. Is that a fair read on it? Karl: I think so. The reason I talk about it as action and reaction combined, is because things run both ways simultaneously. And that always makes it much harder to grapple with. Barbara Tversky is a longtime researcher at Stanford and wrote a book a couple of years ago, called Mind in Motion, which summarizes her lifetime of research in this area. And it's very much a book about embodiment, and she talks about several laws of cognition. I don't remember all of them, but the first two I think might be illuminative for this conversation. Her first law is that benefits always have costs. There is a cost to thinking just in the head. There is a cost to acting in the world. But when there's a cost, there's also benefits. And when we think about interaction in this richer way of being action and reaction together, how we have this notion of the extended mind, and we think with and through the body and the world around us, what we're talking about is how we're shifting those cost-benefit trade-offs. Where the thinking happens is really important. A classic example here would be when you're, say, multiplying two numbers. Most of us can multiply two times eight in our heads and get 16. But very few of us can multiply 28 times 342 in our heads and get a good answer. So, we have moved the computation out into the world. We could do it on pencil and paper. We could do it with a slide rule. We could do it with an abacus. We could do it with a calculator. We could ask a voice assistant to do it, right? And so, where do we think about that unit of analysis? Do we think that the thinking is happening in the brain? Do we think that we've offloaded it out into the world? Or do we see the two things — what we have in the world, and what we have in our head — as combined, and see that as the cognitive system? "Interactionism" Jorge: You brought up in our last conversation this word "interactionism," which I sense is a call for people who design interactions to be more conscious of what it is that we're doing. And I'm wondering if you could unpack that term for folks. Karl: So, I've been grappling for a word here which describes this notion that we would look at the world through this lens of interaction. We would not see interaction as, "well, I've pulled up whatever my favorite design tool is, and I've got a pallet of widgets on the left-hand side and I can drag and drop, and those are the interactions." How do we begin to start seeing this as much more important? So, interactionism in this sense here is a word, which I…. You know if you look up "ism," it's both a good word and a bad word, right? We all live in isms. We live in capitalism. Or liberalism. Or conservatism. We have lots of different ways around that. But what it really means is a doctrine, a perspective, a philosophy about how we look at things. What we see and the system in which operate. And right now, I think a lot of times in design, we have certain isms that exist. Certainly if you come out of graphic design and visual design, historically, has really been a strong influence for user experience and design more broadly. And there, aestheticism is very strong. Out of other kinds of design, we often have a very strong idea of the object of the thing. Usability engineering, and ergonomics, and human factors gave us a different kind of ism around the usability. UX itself, I think, is an ism, right? It is the experience that matters. And so, information architecture and other areas, have like sort of an information-ism, that we are focused on the information. Or maybe we could use the word structure. So, the structure-ism or structuralism. Each of these words has positives and negatives. Each of them is loaded in different ways and have certain histories. Even the word interactionism has this. If you do a search for interactionism, you'll find that it actually has at least two major meanings historically. One comes out of philosophy, and philosophy of mind, going back all the way to René Descartes, who famously created the idea of mind-body dualism and said that there is the body and then the mind is somewhere else. And we have this mental space, which is not physical space, and that thinking happens… there's this interaction between these two spaces, this mental space and the body and the world. And that is one way that people talk about interactionism. Another one is a perspective in sociology, or it was called micro-sociology, that wants to look at and think about sociology entirely in terms of the interaction between individuals. So, interactionism actually already is a word in at least two major areas. I'm interested in it simply as this perspective or this lens in which we really see this and begin to elevate it to a more prominent role, rather than thinking of it as, "Oh, well, I had an interaction here, and I sprinkled on some interaction there." Or, "This interaction is very usable." Is it just philosophy? Jorge: This is not something that you are going to encounter in a palette of components in a development environment. Karl: Right. Yes. Jorge: It's more of a philosophical take on what it is that we're doing here. Karl: It is a philosophical take, but it's also a philosophical take based on the way that the science of mind has been evolving and the new evidence that we have. So, it's not purely philosophical. Jorge: I say that with the caveat that I think that when a lot of folks hear the word "philosophy," they turn off, right? They think, "well, this is not actionable." But I think of a philosophy as a way of understanding what it is that you're doing in the world. Karl: Yes. And I think that anyone who has paid attention to robotics and artificial intelligence over the last five or six years, has realized that one of the major problems that the field has had has been ignoring philosophy. I mean, artificial intelligence and robotics has really revived philosophy in many ways. But I just don't think it's actually sort of revived it, but it's made like all the people who are doing this philosophy of ethics is super important. Philosophy of mind is super important. I recently read a book by Brian Christian called The Alignment Problem. And it's all about this question of what's known in AI as, how do we align human objectives with robotic objectives? How do we make sure that robots don't go out of control? The infamous paperclip optimizer problem, right? And you can read this book in a number of ways, but one of the most important ones is all of these people in computer science and robotics and AI going, "whoa, philosophy! Really important! Not a waste of time." Deep, deep questions here that have completely changed the way that they have gone thinking about the technology and the assumptions that they have underneath it. Jorge: And what I'm hearing here is that as designers of information systems or interactive systems — if we dare use that label now — we have to develop the awareness that what we're making is not just a collection of things to interact with. In some ways, it is extensions of people's minds. And much like the folks who are working on AI and robotics are taking the time out to think about what they're doing in a broader light, that we should be doing the same. Is that a fair summary of what you're saying here? Karl: Yes, I think so. I would draw an analogy to another idea from biology — actually paleontology — of punctuated equilibrium. There was a question for a long time about how evolution happens and issues and questions with the fossil record because there seemed to be gaps in the fossil record and long periods of basically not much happens. And so, in the late sixties and early seventies, Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldridge proposed a theory… what they called, "punctuated equilibrium." You can think of it as a curve. Think of a chart where you've got an X and Y axis, where you have a rise in an uptick. Time is along the bottom. Rate of evolutionary changes on the Y axis. And you have a rise, and then it tapers off, and it plateaus, and then it goes up again for another period of time. And then we have a period of where it plateaus, and then you have another period of change, and then it plateaus. So, evolutionary change is not a linear line. It's not this sort of straight line up at a steady rate. You have periods of intense change, and then you have periods of relatively little change. And I think that this is one way to look at how design has evolved. We had a period, I would argue, of very intense change through the late 90s and early 2000s with the advent of the web. You know, information architecture comes into its own, usability engineering becomes much more recognized and interaction design becomes a more widely recognized term. And user experience comes up and becomes more or less sort of this much more dominant term. But the early stages really are there, we have this period. And then I would say that we had a long period where… long being relative, I guess, but we had a number of years where things were more stable. Then what happens is we get mobile, right? And especially by say 2010, along with this mobile, I feel like we had large organizations especially, went and said, "you know, all of this work that people in UX do, this is really important, and we're going to stop hiring outside agencies and different groups to come in and consult and do this on a contract basis. We're going to start building UX teams." And we've seen, over the last 10 years, this massive growth in UX as an industry. We have people who go get a degree in graphic design, computer science, or whatever, and then they do a 12-week bootcamp in UX, and now they're a UX designer. We've been growing like this massive number of people in the field, and all of these people have been moving in-house. And so, we have this period of rapid change where we have a growth of the field, and we are having to integrate it into organizations where it's now a really important part of it. And so, when I look at this, we see this period of change. We've seen changes like this through technology. We had the PC revolution, then we had the web. And then we have mobile. Everyone in Silicon Valley is thinking about, well, what's the next iteration of this because this tends to happen in periods of 12 to 15 years. What's the next new major platform? And we can see this coming. We're going to have another period of intense change. And when I look at the trend lines, as opposed to the headlines, you can see some of them that. They seem fairly obvious: more and more information, more embedded computation, not just sitting on a desk or even in your pocket. We have pervasive sensors. We have intelligent response to what human beings are doing. The capacity for a greater and tighter connection between people and the digital world. We have more complex pattern matching. We are having machines now that — with robots and AI — they can do things at a scale that humans cannot do. Or an accuracy or a speed that they cannot do. If we think about these as being separate, out there, aside from human abilities, I think we're going to wind up missing a huge opportunity. I think design is going to be caught flat-footed. The book that Steven and I wrote is an early attempt, from a design perspective, strongly influenced by information architecture, but also coming from distributed cognition, to explore some of these ideas and do it in a way which could be helpful to designers. And so, we break the book up into several sections. We talked about associations. We talk about visual representations. We talk about interaction, and we talk about something called coordination. And then we look towards the future. And in each of these, we explore some of the science. We give lots of examples. But we also try to provide frameworks for people, conceptual tools so that people can look at these different areas and begin this process of building it up. We would not in any way think that this is a be all and end all, but we were consciously trying to provide people with a way to think about the problems that they have now and provide a way to think about them that is going to be more helpful in the future, given these trend lines. Closing Jorge: I already mentioned in the previous episode that it was one of my favorite reads of last year, and I strongly encourage folks to check out the book. And other than that, Karl, where are the best places for folks to follow up with you? Karl: The best place to find me at the present is on Twitter. I'm @karlfast, and that's K-A-R-L-F-A-S-T. I am not super active on Twitter, but if people ping me, I will respond. You can also look me up on LinkedIn. And again, if you message me there, I will respond. Jorge: Thank you so much for being with us and being so generous with your time. Karl: Pleasure to be here. Always nice talking with you.

Dan Engle, MD, is a psychiatrist with a clinical practice that combines aspects of regenerative medicine, psychedelic research, integrative spirituality, and peak performance. His medical degree is from the University of Texas at San Antonio. His psychiatry residency degree is from the University of Colorado Denver, and his child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship degree is from Oregon Health & Science University On this podcast, Dan talks about the potential to help people heal trauma - and instigate change in their lives - with MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. He discusses how this drug, commonly known as Ecstacy, has been shown in studies to be remarkably effective for curing even difficult cases of post-traumatic stress disorder. We talk about his new book, A Dose of Hope, which offers a client's first-person account of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for healing transgenerational trauma. An important disclaimer: The information provided in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical recommendations, diagnoses, or treatment. The use of information in this podcast is at one's own discretion and is not an endorsement of use given the complexity inherent in these medicines, and the current variable widespread illegality of their usage. Here's the outline of this interview with Dan Engle: [00:00:41] Dan's background and interest in psychedelics. [00:02:38] How psychedelic therapy helped Dan. [00:05:22] Book: A Dose of Hope: A Story of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy, by Dan Engle and Alex Young. [00:11:34] Video: ‘EQUASY': How Horse Riding Is More Likely To Kill You Than Ecstasy | David Nutt On London Real. [00:13:56] Psychological contraindications for MDMA. [00:15:29] Stanislav Grof tested the value of LSD in the treatment of psychologically ill people. [00:18:11] Dr. Gabor Maté. [00:19:04] Bruce Alexander's Rat Park experiments. [00:21:03] MDMA as the best treatment for trauma. [00:21:45] Physical contraindications for MDMA. [00:22:26] Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). [00:25:08] 83% cure rate for PTSD in 2-3 sessions; Study: Mithoefer, Michael C., et al. "The safety and efficacy of±3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy in subjects with chronic, treatment-resistant posttraumatic stress disorder: the first randomized controlled pilot study." Journal of psychopharmacology 25.4 (2011): 439-452. [00:25:46] Psychotherapeutic interventions used along with MDMA. [00:26:25] Follow-up studies on MDMA therapy and PTSD: Jerome, Lisa, et al. "Long-term follow-up outcomes of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for treatment of PTSD: a longitudinal pooled analysis of six phase 2 trials." Psychopharmacology 237 (2020): 2485-2497. [00:37:23] Dan's co-author, Alex Young. [00:39:41] Podcast: The Neurophysiology of Safety and How to Feel Safe, with Stephen Porges, PhD. [00:39:51] Book: The Drama of the Gifted Child: The Search for the True Self, Third Edition, by Alice Miller. [00:39:58] Book: The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, by Bessel van der Kolk. [00:40:02] Book: Will I Ever Be Good Enough?: Healing the Daughters of Narcissistic Mothers, by Karyl McBride. [00:40:32] Transgenerational family trauma; Book: It Didn't Start with You: How Inherited Family Trauma Shapes Who We Are and How to End the Cycle, by Mark Wolynn. [00:44:45] The process and cost of the therapy. [00:59:01] The future and vision of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. [01:03:16] MDMA vs. talk therapy. [01:09:11] Find Dan at ddrdanengle.com; kuya.life, Full Spectrum Medicine.

Join Resistance Recovery Founder Piers Kaniuka, Bruce Alexander, and Kent Dunnington as they discuss the meaning of addiction and the novel challenges of recovery in the 21st century. Recorded on May 13, 2021.Bruce K. Alexander is a psychologist and professor emeritus from Vancouver, BC, Canada. He has taught and conducted research on the psychology of addiction at Simon Fraser University since 1970. He retired from active teaching in 2005. Alexander and SFU colleagues conducted a series of experiments into drug addiction known as the Rat Park experiments. You can learn more about Bruce Alexander's work and publications by visiting https://brucekalexander.com.Kent Dunnington, associate professor of philosophy at Biola University, teaches and writes in the areas of virtue ethics and theological ethics. Other research interests include addiction and criminal justice, inspired by his experiences teaching in prison.You can learn more about Kent Dunnington's work and publications by visiting https://www.biola.edu/directory/people/kent-dunnington.Resistance Recovery (RR) is reimagining addiction, recovery, and community in the 21st century. Piers Kaniuka, MTS, MS has worked with thousands of addicts and alcoholics in his 25+ years in the field. Discover RR's new paradigm of addiction recovery by visiting http://resistancerecovery.com.Join the Resistance: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1236683136534727/ Visit the RR YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/RESISTANCERECOVERYSign-up for Long Threads and get Resistance Recovery news: https://mailchi.mp/ddc8023bec67/welcometoresistancerecoverySupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/resistance-recovery/donations

I am thrilled to be joined by my guest for this episode, Bruce Alexander. Bruce is the Managing Director of Montezuma's Chocolates - one of the most innovative and fastest-growing SME's around. Described as "Britain's Greatest Little Chocolate Company", they work with the principles of "Business Done Properly", putting substance over style and sustainability over profit. Bruce has had a successful career spanning 25 years, working within commercial FMCG roles across the UK and abroad including companies such as United Biscuits, Nestle and Kerry Foods. In this episode, we discuss why Montezuma's Chocolates is one of the most talked-about SME's around, as well as Bruce's role in ensuring the vision and values laid by its founders is reflected in everything they do. We discuss Bruce's highly successful background and how his love for working within the FMCG sector drew him to his current role. Bruce shares with us the key aspects that have helped him throughout his career - including his naturally competitive nature and a keen desire to keep learning and challenging himself. We discuss Bruce's thoughts on leadership, striving to become a B-corp, the Better Business Act and more! As ever, if you'd like to get in touch for any reason you can reach me at Jonathan.ohagan@leaderexecutivesearch.com Enjoy!

Resistance Recovery Founder Piers Kaniuka discusses the state of Dislocation Theory and Resistance Recovery with renowned psychologist Dr. Bruce Alexander.Recorded June 21, 2020."Global society is drowning in addiction to drug use and a thousand other habits. This is because people around the world, rich and poor alike, are being torn from the close ties to family, culture, and traditional spirituality that constituted the normal fabric of life in pre-modern times. This kind of global society subjects people to unrelenting pressures towards individualism and competition, dislocating them from social life.People adapt to this dislocation by concocting the best substitutes that they can for a sustaining social, cultural and spiritual wholeness, and addiction provides this substitute for more and more of us.History shows that addiction can be rare in a society for many centuries, but can become nearly universal when circumstances change – for example, when a cohesive tribal culture is crushed or an advanced civilisation collapses. Of course, this historical perspective does not deny that differences in vulnerability are built into each individual's genes, individual experience, and personal character, but it removes individual differences from the foreground of attention, because societal determinants are so much more powerful. Addiction is much more a social problem than an individual disorder." You can learn more about Bruce's work and publications by visiting https://brucekalexander.com​. Excerpt from the website.Resistance Recovery (RR) is reimagining addiction, recovery, and community in the 21st century. Piers Kaniuka, MTS, MS has worked with thousands of addicts and alcoholics in his 25+ years in the field. Discover RR's new paradigm of addiction recovery by visiting http://resistancerecovery.com.Join the Resistance: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1236683136534727/ Visit the RR YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/RESISTANCERECOVERYSign-up for Long Threads and get Resistance Recovery news: https://mailchi.mp/ddc8023bec67/welcometoresistancerecoverySupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/resistance-recovery/donations

Scott Stewart of Torchstone Global and Bruce Alexander of Security One Solutions break down the threat from electronic surveillance and social engineering in 2021.

In this episode I talk with Christina Dent about her journey changing her mind about drug policy and starting a non-profit to promote alternatives to the criminal justice approach. We also talk about LSD and how changing your mind can feel like losing your faith. Guest Plugs * End It For Good - https://www.enditforgood.com/ * End It For Good Podcast - https://www.enditforgood.com/podcast * End the War on Drugs for Good | Christina Dent | TEDxJackson - https://youtu.be/V263dVJZlqs Show Notes * How To Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan - https://michaelpollan.com/books/how-to-change-your-mind/ * Bruce Alexander - https://www.brucekalexander.com/ * Chasing the Scream By Johann Hari - https://chasingthescream.com/ * Episode 16: Addiction and Recovery with Christina Gibson - https://wdtatpodcast.com/16 * In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor Mate - https://drgabormate.com/book/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts/ Support the Podcast - https://www.patreon.com/wdtatpodcast Leave us a voicemail! https://www.speakpipe.com/wdtatpodcast Email your feedback to wdtatpodcast@gmail.com Follow us: Facebook -https://www.facebook.com/wdtatpodcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wdtatpodcast/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/wdtatpodcast Special Guest: Christina Dent.

Noa Daniel is gathered by Tracy Crowe @tracy_tcrowe from the University of Ottawa and Bruce Alexander @brucealexander4 from Wilfrid Laurier University to discuss how their respective faculties of education have responded to both the challenges and opportunities surrounding practicum placements for their students this year.

In today’s episode of Sundays With Stories, Stanton and Zach discuss current events. This week a New York Times article bemoaned the failure of addiction specialists to adopt a proven tool for treating drug addiction, “contingency management.” That is, paying meth, cocaine et al. users for abstinence. That’s right: experienced, one might say addicted, “speed” (“crank”) users will desist drug use if you give them money — and not colossal sums at that. This has been Carl Hart’s research with meth, and the University of Vermont group’s under Warren Bickle with cocaine. The same benefits of providing alternative rewards have been shown in Bruce Alexander’s Rat Park and the Baltimore City Hospital group’s research with street drinkers. What does this tell us? That drug and alcohol addiction is not a runaway train resistant to environmental factors and rewards. Which is useful to know. However, Zach and Stanton question who is creating these rewards. There is a bit of science-gone-amok to the image of men in white coats divvying out money for drug and alcohol users, even those with the worst usage patterns, to be “good.” And what happens when the rewards, the gravy train, stops? You tell us. But Harvard’s Global Anti-Tobacco Program offered a hint. While investigating the effectiveness of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for those who quit smoking, the program’s chief investigators found that, in the long run, those who quit on their own did as well as, or better than, those who rely on NRT. In fact, the most addicted smokers were the worst at keeping off the drug using NRT. This finding held true even though NRT was “proven effective in the laboratory.” Zach and Stanton then speak of people managing their own contingencies. That is, their finding real-world reasons to quit or cut back their addictions. Most important of all (with a nod to Steve Slate et al.’s Freedom Model”) is people’s belief that they can control their own drug use and lives. This thinking belies NIDA Director Nora Volkow’s 2007 unwise piece “Addiction Is a Disease of Free Will” — which, per Stanton’s urging, Volkow seems to be abandoning. What is she replacing this ill-conceived notion with? What Stanton and Zach practice in their Life Process Program: creating lives worth living and worlds people want to occupy. This is a tough task. But, once again, including a review of America’s ill-fated (drug deaths are ramping out of control) enthusiasm for medicine-assisted treatment for opioid addiction, there is no long-term alternative. Finally, Zach reviews SMART Recovery’s belated shift to “abstinence from addiction” in place of its former “desist all use” basis — as the user chooses. They agree in their admiration for Tom Horvath/SMART Recovery’s remarkable success at creating an alternative to AA. At the same time, they embrace SMART’s long-awaited and necessary shift to Harm Reduction. Stanton and Zach end their podcast by wondering how decades of addiction research and both positive and negative experiences with drugs have left even our “advanced guard” (i.e., policy reformists like the Ethan Nadelmann-founded DPA) so shorn of an appreciation for the interchange between people’s lived experience (their actual lives) and addiction. Come join Stanton and Zach as they reveal a little secret. That is, the best science, policy, and treatment involve common sense. At the same time, they say, free yourself from decades-old failed thinking. - - - - - - - - - - LPP MAIN WEB SITE http://LifeProcessProgram.com --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lifeprocessprogram/message

This is the continuation of my conversation with Mara Cur , a hide tanner, hunter, wildcrafter, herbalist and wilder punk extraordinaire. In this episode Mara talks about the history of hide tanning and the important role that women and femmes played in this vocation. We also circle back to the question I posed in the last episode about how she approaches redress with Indigenous communities as she returns the teachings of hide tanning that were eradicated by colonialism. The resource that Mara recommends to learn about White Saviorism is NoWhiteSaviors.org.   Mara credits visionary Cree artist, Kent Monkman, for his teachings on the early history of the fur trade.   I'd like to lift up Bruce Alexander's essay, The Roots of Addiction in Free Market Society, as a formative document in my collapse awareness that relates quite directly to what Mara was saying about the first 250 years fo the fur trade. It uses the experience of the Orcadians – that's Scottish folks from the Orkey Islands, previously renown for their sobriety –  employed by in the later days of the fur trade by the Hudson't Bay company, as a study in how cultural dislocation and attachment rupture were direct causes of alcoholism.   If you really want to geek out on that particular historical niche, you can read my other teacher, Michael Newton's book, We're Indians Sure Enough: The Legacy of Scottish Highlanders in the United States. Check out Mara's online offerings at liminagathering.com and her own website Crowsnest wildcraft.com  This season of the podcast is brought to you by the Threshold community. If the topics engaged in this episode appeal to you, check out our programming at www.thethresholdcommunity.com

Io, come molti altri psichiatri nel Mondo, quando mi dedico al problema delle dipendenze, non faccio poi molta distinzione tra alcol, zucchero, smartphone, cocaina, relazioni, tabacco, eroina, gioco o sesso.Ovviamente ognuna di queste aree di potenziale abuso e dipendenza ha delle caratteristiche specifiche ma in questo video vorrei farvi concentrare soprattutto su quello che le accomuna piuttosto che su quello che le differenzia.Per fare questo dovrete essere pronti a farvi un idea nuova del concetto di dipendenza e spero di riuscire ad essere io a fornirvi una nuova prospettiva tramite il lavoro di alcuni “giganti” delle neuroscienze come il Prof. Bruce Alexander, uno psicologo di Vancouver che negli anni ’70 ideò l’esperimento del “Rat Park”, oppure il Prof. Peter Cohen, un sociologo che ha impostato il passaggio dal concetto di dipendenza a quello di legame, nell’ipotesi che ogni legame significativo (tra persone, comportamenti, oggetti o sostanze) possa generare sia la felicità che dei problemi.Se volete capire bene questa importante prospettiva sui fenomeni delle dipendenze non dovete fare altro che seguire questo video sino alla fine….Potete anche andare a dare un'occhiata ad un mio altro video sull'argomento "Il Mercato della Dopamina": https://youtu.be/-mrIxMrSIn8Voglio finire dicendovi subito il concetto di base di questo video, ovvero che il contrario di “dipendenza” non è “sobrietà”. Il contrario di “dipendenza” è “connessione”, ovvero legame con gli altri e con il mondo intorno a noi.#dipendenza #dipendenzeISCRIVETEVI AL MIO CANALE ► https://bit.ly/2zGIJorVi interessano la Psichiatria e le Neuroscienze? Bene, allora iscrivetevi a questo podcast, al mio canale YouTube e seguitemi sul web tramite il mio blog https://www.valeriorosso.comInoltre andate su Amazon a dare un’occhiata ai miei libri:“Psicobiotica” - Un nuovo modo di intendere il rapporto tra la Mente ed il Corpo….andate su: https://amzn.to/2IZwjhm“Psichiatria Rock” - 50 pensieri off line dal mio blog….andate su: https://amzn.to/2IVKKmJIl Dr. Valerio Rosso, su questo canale YouTube, si dedica a produrre delle brevi lezioni di psichiatria rivolte ai pazienti, agli operatori della salute mentale, a famigliari di pazienti ed a chiunque sia interessato alla psichiatria ed alle neuroscienze.

Io, come molti altri psichiatri nel Mondo, quando mi dedico al problema delle dipendenze, non faccio poi molta distinzione tra alcol, zucchero, smartphone, cocaina, relazioni, tabacco, eroina, gioco o sesso.Ovviamente ognuna di queste aree di potenziale abuso e dipendenza ha delle caratteristiche specifiche ma in questo video vorrei farvi concentrare soprattutto su quello che le accomuna piuttosto che su quello che le differenzia.Per fare questo dovrete essere pronti a farvi un idea nuova del concetto di dipendenza e spero di riuscire ad essere io a fornirvi una nuova prospettiva tramite il lavoro di alcuni “giganti” delle neuroscienze come il Prof. Bruce Alexander, uno psicologo di Vancouver che negli anni ’70 ideò l’esperimento del “Rat Park”, oppure il Prof. Peter Cohen, un sociologo che ha impostato il passaggio dal concetto di dipendenza a quello di legame, nell’ipotesi che ogni legame significativo (tra persone, comportamenti, oggetti o sostanze) possa generare sia la felicità che dei problemi.Se volete capire bene questa importante prospettiva sui fenomeni delle dipendenze non dovete fare altro che seguire questo video sino alla fine….Potete anche andare a dare un'occhiata ad un mio altro video sull'argomento "Il Mercato della Dopamina": https://youtu.be/-mrIxMrSIn8Voglio finire dicendovi subito il concetto di base di questo video, ovvero che il contrario di “dipendenza” non è “sobrietà”. Il contrario di “dipendenza” è “connessione”, ovvero legame con gli altri e con il mondo intorno a noi.#dipendenza #dipendenzeISCRIVETEVI AL MIO CANALE ► https://bit.ly/2zGIJorVi interessano la Psichiatria e le Neuroscienze? Bene, allora iscrivetevi a questo podcast, al mio canale YouTube e seguitemi sul web tramite il mio blog https://www.valeriorosso.comInoltre andate su Amazon a dare un’occhiata ai miei libri:“Psicobiotica” - Un nuovo modo di intendere il rapporto tra la Mente ed il Corpo….andate su: https://amzn.to/2IZwjhm“Psichiatria Rock” - 50 pensieri off line dal mio blog….andate su: https://amzn.to/2IVKKmJIl Dr. Valerio Rosso, su questo canale YouTube, si dedica a produrre delle brevi lezioni di psichiatria rivolte ai pazienti, agli operatori della salute mentale, a famigliari di pazienti ed a chiunque sia interessato alla psichiatria ed alle neuroscienze.

:17 - Congressman Tim Ryan joined the program to give a look at how his department is handling the pandemic and the economic downturn. Rep. Ryan mentioned the need for more dollars to come into Ohio, the process of reopening Ohio, and the United States’ relationship with China going forward. 7:34 - Each Tuesday, Dr. Debbie Plate from Cleveland Clinic-Akron General calls in to provide an update on healthcare, both locally and nationally. Dr. Plate discussed the reopening of non-essential procedures, which will be properly handled through COVID-19 testing beforehand. 14:06 - We’ve gone locally with how Akron Public Schools is handling matters, but what about the state level? Bruce Alexander deals with both, and he looked at dealing with the pandemic from his perch with the Ohio Board of Education. Bruce gave a look at what education may look like in the fall, if students will be in classrooms or still from a distance, and how the athletic programs may fair. 20:50 - Some folks don’t even want to look at their 401(k) right now, but Prism Wealth Management’s Robert Dodaro says this should be the right time to do so. Dodaro also talked about IRA, and if this is the right time to invest in precious metals.

We’ve gone locally with how Akron Public Schools is handling matters, but what about the state level? Bruce Alexander deals with both, and he looked at dealing with the pandemic from his perch with the Ohio Board of Education. Bruce gave a look at what education may look like in the fall, if students will be in classrooms or still from a distance, and how the athletic programs may fair.

In this episode, Tempest CEO Holly Whitaker talks to our host Cameron Albert-Deitch about her book smart pick, The Globalization of Addiction, by Bruce Alexander.

No terceiro episódio da série Na Fissura, discutimos a Parte IV do livro, “Templo”. A parte funciona como um divisor de águas para Hari. Aqui, o autor, que julga ter contextualizado a guerra às drogas historicamente e ter esclarecido quem são os principais atingidos pelas medidas ostensivas e punitivas da proibição legal e da criminalização do usuário, foca e explicita o ponto que defende como causa principal da dependência em drogas e do vício. Usando como base a experiência do Rat Park, do pesquisador Bruce Alexander – que teve seus recursos cortados logo que apontados os primeiros resultados que desafiavam a convenção geral da “dependência química” –, o jornalista defende que a dependência é causada, majoritariamente, por profundos traumas aliados a um modo de vida solitário, culminando na substituição dos afetos pelo consumo exacerbado. Um círculo vicioso cada vez mais comum. Apoiado no contrassenso e na determinação de desafiar o sistema tal como é, Johann Hari busca na ciência a afirmação inequívoca para sustentar que usuários de drogas, em maior ou menor grau, precisam receber cuidados de saúde e precisam, como cidadãos, estar integrados como parte ativa da sociedade. Porém, ao bancar tal posição, se excede e confunde premissas básicas da ciência e da própria linha de raciocínio que construiu até aqui. Importante: Arte feita por Isadora Daurizio (Instagram: @colagemruim). Para mais informações e referências sobre esse episódio, acesse nosso site www.centralredepoderosa.com.br. O podcast Rede Poderosa de Intrigas também está no Instagram e no Twitter como @poderosarede. Para sugestões de pauta, críticas, parcerias, anúncios e mais, nosso e-mail é redepoderosa@gmail.com. Esse episódio é uma produção da Central Rede Poderosa. Até a próxima!

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Cantrell has published sixteen novels in over ten different languages. Her novels have won the ITW Thriller, the Macavity, and the Bruce Alexander awards. They have been nominated for the GoodReads Choice award, the Barry, the RT Reviewers Choice, and the APPY award.Fluent in German, she received her high school diploma from the John F. Kennedy Schule in Berlin and studied at the Freie Universität in Berlin and the Georg August Universität in Göttingen before graduating from Carnegie Mellon University.She and her husband and son just moved back to Hawaii from Berlin. Find Rebecca Cantrell on Facebook, Twitter, and at www.rebeccacantrell.com.F IS FOR FRED is Rebecca's latest book. After a caviar-related disaster, Sofia Salgado races to prevent the assassination of Maloney Investigations’ greatest celebrity—Fred the seagull.When Sofia returns from vacation, she discovers that her “pet” seagull, Fred, has become her greatest enemy: the paparazzi. Her former agent has dressed him with a tiny camera and created a wildly successful YouTube channel using his footage. To ensure his loyalty, her agent has been bribing Fred with caviar, feeding into his addiction and stoking a fire within his tiny bird heart that can only be quenched by more caviar. So he starts hitting luxurious parties. And that’s where it all goes south.

Diese Episode beinhaltet eine ganz besondere Erkenntnis für mich. Darum lade ich dich aus ganzem Herzen ein, dir diese Podcastfolge unbedingt bis zum Schluss anzuhören, in der ich dir von einem Experiment erzähle, von Bruce Alexander, einem Psychologieprofessor aus Vancouver, der mit seinem „Rattenpark“ das Thema „Sucht“, in ein komplett neues Licht rückte. Johann Hari, ein Journalist, der aus seiner eigenen Geschichte heraus, jahrelang auf der Suche nach Antworten zum Thema "Sucht" war, hielt darüber einen TED-Vortrag mit dem Titel: „Alles, was Sie über Sucht zu wissen glauben, ist falsch“. Ich weiß nicht mehr wie dieses Experiment „zu mir fand“. Als ich davon hörte, veränderte es mich jedoch nahhaltig, oder besser gesagt, es bestätigte meine Erfahrungen. Aber hör am besten selbst hinein! Unbedingt. Es ist so spannend.

This is the first in a trio of episodes on the topic of COMMUNITY, and the importance of finding our 'tribe'! Today's episode explains some of the research behind how socializing in a community is beneficial for us, and why we should be aiming for it! Did you know, for example, that people who are engaging with others regularly live longer - for an average 2.5 years?! Mind. Blown.   Honorable Mentions (if you can't access these links, try using the Apple Podcasts or Overcast apps) Bruce Alexander, on the ‘rat park’ that led to lower levels of drug consumption in rats JE Marver, et al, on how quality friendships reduce the risk of suicide KK Wiesel et al, on why high symptom individuals do not need to be excluded from online stress management EM Geramita, et al, on improvements in mental health related to active participation in an internet support group   Workbook on Self-Talk- FREE!   Workbook on Building Rituals - FREE! Instagram: @wildeaboutwellbeing Pinterest: @wildeaboutwellbeing Wilde About Wellbeing website

Summary: We're created in the image of the Trinity, One God, Three Persons, bound by love in perfect harmony. Thus, we're created to bond, to God and to people. The cross of Christ binds us vertically with God, Who fills our hearts with love for real people, creating the meaningful horizontal binds we all need.Transcript:This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you would like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston and our neighborhood churches, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Good morning. Welcome to Mosaic Church, my name in Jan. I am one of the pastors here at Mosaic. I've got the pleasure to serve, and if you're new, welcome. We're so glad you're here. We'd love to connect with you if you would like to connect. We do that initially personally. We'd love to meet you personally, and officially we do it through the connection card in the worship guide. If you fill it out legibly, then you can either redeem it at the welcome center for a gift, and it's a great gift. Or you can toss in the offering baskets when they around after, or option three, you can download the app from the app store, just Mosaic Boston, and there's a connection card in there as well. With that said would you please pray with me over the preaching of God's holy word.Father we thank you that you are a god of love. You're not just a god who loves, but you are love. Holy Trinity, there's a perfect community in the God head. We thank you for that. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. We thank you God that you proved your love to us through your son Jesus Christ. That Jesus you were the gift of the Father. The Father gave the Son, so that whoever believes might have eternal life. We thank you Christ that you came, lived the life of perfect love toward God, and toward neighbor, toward the people around you. You served. You sacrificed. You made yourself accessible. You are the embodiment of God, and you are also the embodiment of what it means to be truly human, so Lord Jesus we thank you for the gospel that on the cross you poured out your life. You poured out your blood, in order to save us from self, from egos, from selfishness, from all the things that keep us from bonding to you, bonding to the people in our lives.We thank you that Jesus you rose from the dead and we thank you that you send us the Holy Spirit through whom we can experience God, and we can be empowered by God, and our hearts can be filled with love. I pray you make us a force of love here in the city, so that we love in a way that draws attention to the ultimate act of love in the universe, which is the gospel. Bless our time in the holy word, and we pray all this Christ's holy name. Amen.So in the 1970s the American psychologist, Dr. Bruce Alexander, he ran a study called Rat Park. And studies had already been run where it was proven that if you put a rat in a cage by itself and you offer it two water bottles, one with just water, and one laced with a cocktail of a drug, heroin or cocaine, that as soon as the rat gets a taste of the cocaine, gets a high, that rat now chases that same high over and over, and keeps drinking from that water bottle until it dies of overdose.Well Dr. Alexander wondered, as he said, "Was it just the drug that caused the addiction, or might the isolation have something to do with it as well?" So to test that hypothesis, he built a rat park. He built rat paradise. There was all kinds of things for the rats to do. All kinds of ways for the rats to play, and frolic, there was little community center. Public space if you will. Many food trucks for the rats. No, no, not really, but that would have been epic. He created a Boston for rats. He created a true community. And also, he provided the same two types of bottles, and surprisingly, they preferred the plain water. And even when they did imbibe from a drug filed bottle, they did so without abuse, without obsession, and not one rat overdosed. And the conclusion was there's power in community.And the power of community is stronger than the power of drugs. But the power of community satisfies what the person was looking for. The person wasn't just looking for the drug or the high, there's a deeper problem, a problem of alienation that comes with isolation. Now that's important, and that's profound, because we live in a world where we are more connected than ever virtually. And more disconnected than ever physically, relationally. And that's one of the reasons it so... There is an opiod crisis.Now I knew about the rat race, and I know the theology behind why that works, because we're created by a Trinitarian god, a god of community. We're created in his image, therefore, we are created to bond with God and with people, and if we don't bond with God and people we will bond with things, sex, money, drug, etc. I was reminded of the rat study this week on Friday when I got in an Uber from Brighton down to Dewey Square, and in the Uber, so the Uber driver he extended his hand. I've never had an Uber drive do this, and he said, nice to meet you. And he said forewarning, "I am chatty, because I used to work as a psychiatrist." Oh wow. Okay. And I said, "Well I am chatty too, because I am a professional talker." And he said, "What do you do?" And I said, "I am a pastor." He says, "What?" And I said, "What?"Now you've got a psychiatrist and a pastor driving in Uber. It's like the beginning of a joke. Psychiatrist and a pastor walk into a bar. So just riveting conversation. I wish I had this on video. It's like I'm in a movie. What is the... And we got to talking about psychiatry and his job, and he said, "One of the reasons that I don't do that anymore is I"... it was important work. He said, "But I realized that people's greatest problem wasn't me writing a script and giving them a prescription. The greatest problem actually was they don't have friends. They don't have community. They don't have a support structure. And what I wanted to was I wanted to love them. I wanted to befriend them. I wanted to give them that, but because of the system of the job I couldn't do that. And he said what he was doing was important. What you are doing is so much more important. You're trying to create a true community, where people truly love one another, like one another. Where people are friends and family.Then he asked, "Can I come to your church?" And I said, "Yeah." I said, "It's not my church first of all." But his first joke when I got into the Uber and he found out I was a pastor, he's like, "Where's your jet plane parked?" No bro. I got a Toyota Highlander. I've only ever owned a Toyota, except for my first car an Audi 80, big mistake. So back to the sermon. Back to the sermon. So he gave me his number. We're going to connect, and now we're friends, and the first thing I texted him was let's be friends. But I want more than that. And you know what Jesus, he brings disciples and he says, "Follow me." And what he told his disciples at one point, "I no longer call you servants, now I call you," what? Friends. That's in the Bible. You can Google that.But he doesn't just call us friends either. He calls us family. That he's our older brother. We're brothers and sisters. He combines, like you have relationships in your life. Your family you have to love them. So I can't not love you, but we separate. We bifurcate between love and like. So we have people we like. We have people we love. Jesus says I want that to be one and the same. I love you and I like you. That changes everything. So that's what we're going to talk about. That's God's heart for the church. That's God's heart for the city, that the church exists in the city for the common good of the city.The problem is the ideal, usually it doesn't happen in reality. This is why Saint Paul writes this letter to the church in Corinth, and we have the same problem so he's writing to the church in Boston as well. The church in Corinth there were divisions in leadership, division in economics with lawsuits and secondary issue, and gifting, and this is what we're talking about today. We started last week, where God when he creates us he infuses us with talents, and then when he recreates us, when we're children of God he infuses us with gifts. What the gifts do is sometimes he repurposes our talents for his glory, but often the gifts just enhance the talents. Then God brings people together. Each person in the body, in the church has different gifts, and they're brought to the church as gifts. To use their gifts for other people to be other gifts that use their gifts. So that's what we're talking about today.We're in First Corinthians, chapter 12, verses 12 through 31. First Corinthians 12, 12 through 31. You can follow along in your Bible, on the screen, or on your screen. For just as a body is one and has many members and all the members of the body though many are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell, but as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he choose.If all were a single member where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those part of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God ha appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you still a more excellent way. This is the reading of God's holy inherent and infallible authoritative word, may he write these eternal truths upon our hearts. The I will show you a more excellent way wasn't on the screen, but it is in the text. And that's what we're talking about today. That love is the force behind the building of the church. The relationship in the church. That this is how we are bound. We are bound by love.Three points to the sermon. We are one. Two, are we one? And three, let's be one. First of all, we are one. Saint Paul begins with a we. Who's the we? He's talking about the church. He's talking about people who have been transferred from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of his light. People who are Christians they now are part of the Body of Christ, the church, and also the church locally. So who's the us? It's the church. It's the Body of Christ. He starts with that as he talks about being members he talks about it in the context of a body, like a physical body, therefore when we talk about church membership, we're not talking about being a member of a club, or of an activist organization, or political organization. Membership isn't a card, it's a belonging. That you are connected. Vitally connected to other people who are believers.So this is verse 12. Just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many are one body, so it is with... What does he say? So it is with... What's the last word? Christ. Unexpected. Unexpected. What are we expecting. He's talking about being members of a church. Being members of one body, the church body. Instead, he uses a different word. He brings in the word Christ. Why do that? Why would he use these words interchangeably, church and Christ? He does so because for him they are so united. They are inextricably intertwined. This is important for us because if we live in a world where people say, "I love Jesus. I want your Jesus, but not your church, not your Christians." For Saint Paul and the early church it was one and the same. This is Christ. The other Christians in my life are Jesus to me. I am Jesus to other Christians in my life.Where does Saint Paul get this idea? This idea was seared into his heart at his conversion. This is Acts 9: 3-5. Saul, that was his former name, birth name. He was a persecutor for Christians. And Jesus Christ meets him on the road to Damascus and converts him. That's why Saint Paul became a Christian. Verse 3 of Acts 9. Now as he went on his way he approached Damascus suddenly a light from heaven shone around him and falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him. "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" Not Christians, not the church, "why are you persecuting me," Jesus said. And Saul said, "Who are you Lord?" And he said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting."When a person becomes a Christian they become a Christian by the power of the Holy Spirit. God the spirit saves the person. Transforms, regenerates the heart, and it doesn't stop there. God just doesn't just forgive us our sins, and says, "Now you can live you life anyway you want, just until you go to heaven." If that were the case God would just teleport us into heaven. But no, there's a purpose for us here on earth. God has a mission for every single one of us. God has a purpose. God has gifts for us to fulfill that purpose. And we do that by the power of the Holy Spirit. So when we become a Christian we're united with Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. We become part of Christ. That's a spiritual reality. When you become a Christian you become a part of Christ. A part of God. This is how strong God's love is. It's like he swallows you whole. He internalizes you. We become part of him.It's kind of hard to communicate unless you've had a baby. I remember when my oldest daughter, she is almost 11. I remember when she was born and I brought us home I learned the swaddling technique. I became a master of the swaddling technique. I was like, "This is going to be my thing." The baby burrito thing, that's my thing. In like three seconds, done. And then I was like, "What's this called burrito?" I love burritos. I'm a big fan of burritos and I'm a big fan of babies, and now it's two in one. That's awesome. And there something when you hold the baby, especially a baby burrito. And you put your nose, like as you're kissing you smell the neck. Like this right here with the saliva and all this. The little lint. Something there about that smell. And honestly, the only way I can communicate it is I love you and I want to eat you. I won't eat you, but I want to. I don't know how to... And you see this with kids.My youngest Milana she's almost... She is two. She's what, she's two. And she loves my wife so much she tackles her climbs on top and she starts licking her. Not kissing, licking like... Like that. Like a puppy. With me it's a little different. We've got a different relationship. She starts biting me. That's what she... There something about God internalizes us. We become part of God. That's the fundamental spiritual reality. We are part of Christ, and what Saint Paul is saying is, let's make that a physical reality. But there's so much unity in the church. There's as much unity in the physical body of Christ as there is in the spiritual body of Christ, therefore disharmony is a contradiction.Verse 13. For in one's spirit we are all baptized into one body. So by the spirit we are baptized. Baptism is a visible sign of a spiritual reality. We were baptized into one body. Jews and Greeks, counter opposites. Diametrically opposed. Slaves or free. And all were made to drink of one spirit. Hear it. He's talking about the reality. We drink God in. He drinks us in. He inhales us. He ingests us. We do the same ting with him spiritually speaking. God become part of me. That's how close our union is. And the reminder for this, the outward reality, is that bread and the cup. The Lord's Supper. The sacrament. Every time we take part and we're doing that next week, bread is the Body of Christ. We internalize it. The cup is we internalizing Christ sacrificed his blood, so we are one.When God looks at Christians he see one. There's distinction. There's difference. There's diversity. But no division. Different but one. Not a melting pot. Not a melting... I know the U.S. is supposed to be a melting pot. That idea that got me into college. That was my essay for college. I'm an immigrant. I'm from the Soviet Union. Please let me into your school. I want to embody the American dream. Church is more than that. Church is more than the melting pot. Church is like a stew. A good church is like a good stew. You've got the steak tips of course. With the little potatoes. You've got some carrots. You've got a little onion, a little celery. And spices we need all the spices. We need all the flavors. That's what a good church is, it's like a good stew.Now the question is, are we one? From God's perspective we are one. From our perspective, are we one? Verse 14. For the body does not consist of one member, but of many. It the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less part of the body. If the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body." And so you get it. What's he's saying is it's ridiculous for people who are part of the spiritual Body of Christ to show up and see the physical body of Christ, and say, "I do not belong here." We have a personal relationship with Jesus, person to person, but it's not an individualistic relationship. And Paul here, he's first ministering to those who had suffered at the hands of the ultra gifted who have weaponized their gifts, the people with public gifts, of prophecy, of teaching, of healing, of tongues. They've created a hierarchy of gifts. And Saint Paul says, "no." What he's doing is he's leveling the ground that we all need grace. That we are all brothers and sisters as Christians. That we all have gifts that others need.There's two forms of exclusion, I don't belong. The first one is where the person excludes themselves. The second is when the person is excluded. Saint Paul starts with the person who feels excluded. The person who shows up to church and feels like, I don't belong here. I am not needed here. And sometimes it's because of a sense of inferiority. I'm not a hand, I'm just a foot. I'm not needed here. Well the hand's not getting anywhere without the foot. All right I'm not a mouth. I'm just an internal organ. I don't belong here. And Saint Paul starts here and says, "No, false theology. False ecclesiology. You do belong." God, if God has called you to a particular church, Mosaic or not, if God has called you, he's called you there for a reason. Perhaps you don't see that reason yet, but don't use the excuse of gift cop out to not use your gift. If God gave you gifts, he wants you to use those gifts as you love one another.Sometimes you walk into a church and you just feel like everyone here is just better than me. They know the Bible more than I do. They're smarter than I am, or what have you. They're more godly than I am. Look we've all got to start somewhere. Every saint has a past. Every sinner has a future. Every single one. We're all a mess. We're all a mess. And God works through our mess by bringing other people into our lives that loving say, "Hey, that's a mess. Can I help? I want to help. Can I serve?" We're all a mess. So if you're a foot, and you're a dirty foot, I know someone who's really good at washing feet. If you're an ear and you're here and you're like, "I don't like the sound here. This isn't my type of music." We still need you. We still need you. We need to hear what you hear. If you're an eye we need to see what you see. If you're a heart we need to sense. We need to love the way that you love. This is what he's saying. That we all need each other. We need you here.If you walk in and you're like, "Oh, this is a bigger church self-sustainable. It's all good you're self-sufficient. I'm not needed here." How many people in the city don't know Jesus? I can connect with a particular type of person. I can connect with people who are like me, and there's a lot of people in the city like me. There's also a lot of people in the city like you. So when you join and then they walk in they're like, "Yeah. I belong here." Well you didn't feel like you belonged, but you belong, because if Jesus called you and now that allows other people to feel like they belong. Some of you walk in, you're like, "Everyone's so friendly. Way too many people smiling. Way too many people saying hi to me." Leave me... A meet and great, that's not for me. That's not my kind of church. Look I understand. I understand. I'm an introvert. I'm an introvert that fakes the extro... By the power of the Holy Spirit, I'm growing in the whole extrovert thing.80% of the people at this church are introverts. Did you know that? 80%, and we do the meet and great, uncomfortably and awkwardly, and you do it uncomfortably and awkwardly, and then we get to know each other. And the next time it's not as uncomfortable, and it's not as awkward, because now you're friends, and hopefully become family. If you feel like you don't belong that's usually a good sign that you definitely belong. That you definitely belong. That we definitely need you.For example, I will give you an example of Fred and Nancy Gayle. Are they here? Fred and Nancy. They're so sweet. Back in the movie theater they showed up and this was when we used to meet in the Regal Movie Theater right down the street. Theater seven because that was a biblical number. And the average age of the church was like 23. And pastor Shane and I were the elders. We were the oldest people in the church. And Fred and Nancy came in. Fred and Nancy are retired, and they moved to the city, because they were like, "We love the city. We want to retire in the city." And they walked in and there was no one in their... No one they could connect with because they were their age. And in... I do think thing sometimes where I just point people out in the sermon, and I can because I have the excuse of, I'm up here. And I said, "We need you." And ended up on them. And they stayed. You know why they stayed? I said, "We need your wisdom, because we're all a bunch of 20 somethings trying to disciple 20 somethings." And we need someone who's lived a life of faithfulness to the Lord. We need you to teach us. We need you.So if you walk in, and you're like, "I don't see anyone that I can naturally connect to." It may be because you need to be the first one. And then when people walk in they're like, "This is the church for me." That's what it means to be a body of... This is what it means to be a Mosaic. This is the whole thing where we're broken pieces and we're brought together. We're different colors, different shapes, different brokens, different everything, but what unites us is the cross. And with the glue between the pieces is the love that we get from the cross. So we need you. If you feel like you don't belong, we definitely need you.Let me challenge. I don't do this often, but I want to challenge you with something. Who are the people you naturally connect with? People who are like you. You like people who are like you, because you like yourself. Hopefully. I challenge you to find, not your doppelganger, I challenge you to find at this church your anti-doppelganger. The person who is different than you in absolutely every category. Find that person. And I guarantee you that person is going to bless you and teach you more than anyone like you. You need more than you. That's what Saint Paul is saying.Verse 17. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the smell. So he's saying we don't want to just be a church of eyes, because eyes see eye to eye usually only with eyes. He's saying if you're an eye, you've got to pay attention to people who are other than an eye. We don't want to be a church of just ears. We truly want to be a church that reflects the city. And the city reflects the world. So we want to be a church that actually reflects the world. And usually, this is rare by the way. If you just look around. This whole thing that's... It's already happening. And this is rare. It's rare. Because usually this is how churches are planted. One ultra gifted person who's gifted in one category for example a person who has the gift of evangelism. So we now become the evangelistic church. All we want to do is evangelize. All we want to do is see people come to faith. That's awesome, and we need people with those gifts. But then people become Christians and then what?And the you have to disciple them, and then you've got to teach them. Then you've got to organize. Now church, it's an organism, but it needs to become an organized organism the best organisms are. So you need someone with the gift of administration. Then the church grows and you need someone with the gift of leading children's ministry, and youth ministry. And usually what happens is a person with a great gift in one area, projects that gift on everyone else, and doesn't build a team around themselves. Doesn't accept the people that God sends. And then those people go, and they start their own church. So now, there's the strictly evangelistic church, or the justice church, or the cultural center church, or the intense discipleship church. And the same thing happens to parrot church organizations.A person said, "Okay, I did the evangelistic church, no other churches aren't doing the evangelistic, I'm going to start my own parrot church organization. All we're going to do is evangelize people." Now what happens when you have a group of people who are baby Christians? We need churches that's what he says. You can't have a church only with one gift. And the only way this works is when you realize that we are nothing without each other. And we need each other. We are nothing without each other, and we need each other. Do you really believe that. In your heart do you really believe? Can you say to the people closest to you in your life? Husbands can you say to your wife, "I'm nothing without you." I dare you. I dare you to say that today. Wives, I need you. That's what repentance is. This is how the Christian walk starts. God I need you. God help me. God I'm nothing without you. And then that humbles you and you bond with God, and now you can bond with other people. Diffidence makes all the difference.The gospel gets rid of my pride on a dial basis. It keeps rearing it's ugly head. The gospel continually... God save me. God save me. God I need you. And now with humility. Humility allows the love to flow freely. It doesn't mean that you have to count everyone as so much more important than you, but it does mean that we're required to thing of people at least as equally in importance as us. And then Philippians 2 says, "Count others more significant than yourself." So the point is we do need you. If you walked into this church today, and you're like, "I'm just looking for a church." We need you. We need you. We need to lock arms together. We need to become members one of another.And we are gifts to one another. That's what we talked about last week. How do I know my gifts? Do I take a personality test? Do I take a talent and a gift test online? All of those things are cool. I'm not knocking any of that. Scripture doesn't offer any of those, but you know what scripture says? Love people. Serve people. Pay attention to people. The meat, a really close knit group of people join, and minister to those people, and they'll help you discern your gifts. Like hey, you're really good at this. You're really good at that. It's kind of hard to do that on a Sunday. It begins here, but we intentionally do that during community groups during the week. Different homes, different nights of the week. And I know if you're new to the city, that's so intimidating. You're going to someone's house. No. Meet someone here. Meet your anti-doppelganger at church, and say, "Which community group do you go to? Can I come?" Like, "Yeah, of course." And now you've become friends, and the friends become family, and that's the vision of the church.Then you see where your gifts are. You want to use your gifts more. The other thing I'll say here is when thinking of gifts don't just think about titles or offices. We're all called to teach. We're all called to serve. We're all called to love. We're all called to be generous. You don't need a title to do that. You don't need permission to be a Christian. So be a Christian. Love people. 1 Corinthians 12:18. But as it is God arranged the members in the body each one of them as he chose. If you are at Mosaic, you need to be sure God led you here, and if you're not sure pray Lord. Perhaps you're needed somewhere else, but if you're here, and you're like, "Mosaic is my church." God's brought you here, and if he's brought you here, he's brought you here for a reason. He's trying to arrange the parts. This is what he's talking about. And when you know that God is the one that gifts, and that God is the one that arranges. And when you understand that the gift you have is actually a gift. And the Greek, the word gift is charismata. Grace in the Greek is charis, charismata, meaning the gifts that we have, it's all grace.God chooses which gifts he gives to whom, therefore we don't have to play the comparison game with don't have to be envious of someone else's game because envy kills the free flow of love. So if you're ahead, don't be jealous of the hearts or the hands, but learn from them. If you're a heart don't be... You see? You see. 1 Corinthians 12:19. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is there are many parts, yet one body. And they're all interdependent. So don't become co-dependent on one person. And this is just real talk. A lot of people have become co-dependent on whoever the mouth is. My job here is to equip you. My job isn't just to feed you. My job is also to teach you how to cook. So this is why I go verse by verse, and I try to show you what I do. Look this word is... I don't give you lessons in hermeneutics.You come here for a month you'll understand hermeneutics. You'll understand exegesis. You'll understand how to interpret scripture. Therefore, you go home and you start reading scripture. And what you're doing is now you're cooking. And then you're like, "I've cooked more than I can eat." Then invite someone over to your house, and feed them. Let me feed you, I've cooked this bomb meal. Please come over, and the person who was invited, please don't be squeamish, "Oh I don't like eating other people's food." No eat their food. That takes love to. That take humility. Are we talking about food, or are we talking about the gospel? Yes, both. It's both. Other people cooking. This is in community group. Let other Christian teach you, "Hey what is God revealing to you through the scriptures through his Holy Spirit? Teach me." That's what I do. We're called to equip the saints for the work of the ministry as pastors.I know we live in a city where no one trusts each other. That's part of the reason no one even wants to say hello. Hello. Are you trying to sell something to me, or steal something from me? It's one or the other. And there's just this especially in a city, there's risk and it takes trust to bond with people. It takes trust to bond, and it takes risk to trust. What does through the gospel is he takes the risk that's impeding the trust, and he replaces it with love, because perfect love casts out fear, so now we can trust. We can love.So some Christians exclude themselves from the body. And sometimes Christian do the excluding. I don't belong here. I don't need you. That's verse 21. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." Some of the most heart wrenching words that you can hear. When someone that you want to be in a relationship with says, "I don't need you." And we might not say that out loud explicitly, we might act in ways that communicates this implicitly. I don't need you. My calendar, too busy. I don't need you in my phone. I have enough friends. I don't need you in my home, you're too different. I don't like how you look. I don't like how you dress. I don't like what you do for life. I don't like your education. I don't like how you smell. No. Don't communicate this verbally. Don't communicate it implicitly.And if you felt neglected, we're sorry. And we ask that you tell us that, and we'll try to work on fixing that. Mosaic is not self-sufficient. We're not self-sustainable. God gives gifts for mutual up building. We build each one up. When God gives you a gift it's not just for you. It's for you to share. And here's the other thing I'll say. The reasons why those Christians say to other Christians is because they think they're ultra gifted. And this is what happens with gifts. Who's the most gifted person who ever lived? Obviously Jesus. Who is number two? Who is second after Jesus when it came to all the gifts? It was Satan.And what happened with Satan was he twisted the gifts. The gifts instead of using the gifts to bless, he twisted the gifts to serve himself. And this is what Satan does. He tries to twist the gifts that God has given us. What takes someone down? What makes someone weaponize the gifts? It's just a little twisting when sin gloms onto the gifts that God has given us. Instead of using the gifts to serve, we start using the gifts to serve ourself. So be careful. And the greater your gift the greater the responsibility to use that gift. And the greater the temptation there will be to use it for self.1 Corinthians 12:22. On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. What he's talking about here is there's presentable parts. That's the visible gifts. Then there's the unpresentable parts, the ones that you aren't presenting because they are invisible. They're behind the scene. There's visible gifts, and there's behind the curtains. Behind the scenes gifts. So for example, visible gifts, presentable parts. The face, the mouth, the ears, the eyes. But then there's something inside. The heart. The organs, which are actually indispensable. They're actually more important than everything else. And he's saying the visible parts they already get the honor. Instead when you get the honor, I want you to bestow honor. Transfer honor to the ones who are behind the scenes. Bestow honor where honor is due. Out do one another in showing honor. And what this honor does is it... This bestowing of honor is very Christ like. It's very Godly.In the Trinity, the Father bestows honor to the Son the Son to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit to both. So we in the world. We're to show honor. We're to show attention the children. To those the world dishonors. I saw a guy walking the street today. He had a t-shirt that said I hate kids. I was kind of in a rush to Kids Summer Nights, or else I would have stopped and had a conversation with him. The world dishonors as a whole, children. Single moms, the elderly, the sick, the immigrant, the orphan, the widow, the homeless, the mentally ill, and we as the church are called to honor them. Are called to pay attention to them. Are called to serve them just like Jesus did. When the stronger pay attention to the weaker, they get stronger, so does the weaker get stronger. And they get stronger, because they realize, "Oh wow, you're weak in the thing I'm strong in, but you're also strong in the thing that I am weak in. We need each other." And the serving the weaker make everyone stronger, and what the stronger needs to know is that this person who seems weak is actually clothed in humility, and you need to be clothed in humility. And when we're clothed in humility. When we decrease together, Christ increases and that's how the church grows.Speaking of church growth. Three years ago we made... God sent this unique person into the church, Kara Bettis. This is the Kara Bettis part of the sermon. Kara Bettis came on staff three years ago, and when she came on staff as the Mini-Mo director/administrator/communications director/everything that needs to get done, she said, "I'm going to be here for a year. I'm going to give you guys a year." And it's been three years. Since she go there the church has doubled. And all the numbers, just everything has gotten a lot better. She's made all our lives better. She's very much behind the scenes. We don't really see her. So with a heavy heart I'm making the announcement that Kara Bettis is leaving the Mosaic Boston staff, but she's remaining in the church. She loves it this much. She was offered a job to do her dream job in journalism for Christianity Today. And she was offered a job as an editor. So she will be working from Boston, because she loves this church too much. She loves you guys so much. And we love her.So we want to honor you Kara Bettis. Big round of applause for Kara as she makes her way down. And we have a little gift for you. And we want to pray for you. So Kara though leaving staff she's remaining as a faithful member of the church, however I do ask you no longer email her with church questions. Because that's why she's leaving. No just kidding. Just kidding it's not true. The Lord is calling her to go elsewhere. We're going to pray over here. We're going to pray a prayer of thanksgiving, and also a prayer for the Lord to continue and empower her ministry. Would you pray with me.Lord we thank you for our dear sister Kara. Lord we thank you for her tireless work here for your kingdom. She's been a blessing to so many. She's a blessing to us and to me. And we just see in her... We see Christ in her. We've seen her sacrifice. And we've seen how the Holy Spirit has used her so powerfully. And Lord I pray that you do bless her in her new ministry. And the calling that you've placed on her, use her powerfully. Give her words. Write through her to touch many people. Bless many people with your gospel. And we also pray for you to send many more Kara Bettises to this church who behind the scenes do so much, and serve so selflessly. And I pray all this in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.Thank you Kara. Thank you. Thank you. Prayer emoji. We don't do that usually in sermons. What were we doing? Just honoring a person who was behind the scenes. So we are called to do that.Now verse 24. But God has so composed the body giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. This is how we use the gifts. This is how we grow in the gifts. Just care for people. If one member suffers, all suffer. If one member is honored, all rejoice together. If you stub your toe your whole body is aching in pain. If you get a great haircut, and someone compliments you on that haircut, your hair rejoices, so does the whole body. Thank you. It takes empathy. It takes noticing. It takes stepping into a person's life. Romans 12:15. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. And love is what unlocks the capacity to empathize this deeply.So we are one. Are we one? Let's be one. let's be who we are. It takes work. It takes commitment. It takes effort. It takes margin in life. It takes sacrifice. And where do we get the power to sacrifice like this? Where do we get the power to truly be so connected with other Christians in our life that we are individually members of one another? The whole world knows this is good. The whole world has studied that we need friends, and we need family, and we need deep relationships. Everyone talks about peace. Everyone talks about unity. But they're missing something. It's almost as if it's impossible to live like that, because people hurt us, and then hurt people who hurt people. So we want love, then we act in ways that where relationship are broken. Where do we get the power to love like this? Where do we get the power to forgive when people hurt us? Where do we get the power to be gracious? You know where we get that power, it's at the cross of Jesus Christ. Jesus came, God incarnate, made himself accessible. Made himself vulnerable. Made himself pierce-able.He came into the world, he said, "Let's be friends, let's be family." And we killed him and that's our sin. And he took our sin upon himself. Poured out his blood to cleanse us of our sin, our shame, our ego, our pride, everything that actually is what makes the world, the world. Christ now through his love knits us together. He makes us friends. He makes us family.So this is... We have a membership class today from 1:00 to 3:00. And I'm not selling anything, I'm just giving you. I'm offering you. I'm offering you something. And I'm offering... We have room in our hearts for you at this church. We have space for you here. And we have space for you here. So get connected to this church and once you're connected, once you have friends, once this church is family, then we talk about membership. You can become a member. So if you believe this is your home church, you're welcome to come to the membership class. Or you can just come. It's free lunch. It's 1:00 to 3:00 pm today downstairs. But we don't just do membership, like fake membership, like pretend membership, like if you belong, we just confirm that belonging through the process. So we welcome you to belong, because we need each other.In Boston, I have met some of the strongest people I have ever met. Strong in mind. Strong in will. Strong in body. But strong. Strong Christians. And if I were Satan this is how I would temp you, and I know, because this is how he temps me. He say's you are so strong. You are so strong, you don't need anybody. And now we become the rat in the cage. And now addictions. And we need the humility to say, "I might be strong in one thing, but there's people who are strong in the things where I'm weak, and I need them in my life." And when you go to someone else, and you say, "I need you." What's their response? "Oh awesome, I need you too." I need you. We need each other. We need each other. That's the point.And we see this all throughout scripture. This is how the Lord taught us to pray. I won't do the whole thing, but here's the Lord's Prayer. My Father in heaven? No, our father. And when we pray, every time we pray the Lord's Prayer, we're thinking about, oh my brothers and sisters. My community. Our father in heaven. And then when we ask for bread. Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors. That's the love with forgiveness. Lead us not into temptation. Meaning sometimes I'm led into temptation, sometimes because I don't think I need anyone, God does allow me to be led into temptation to show me, no you're not strong, you're weak. So I need brothers and sisters that I go to and say, "Please hold me accountable when I'm led into temptation. Here's my temptations. I need you to call me out and bring me back from the zigzag path to the straight and the narrow." So my point in conclusion. Let's be friends. Let's be family. Jesus allows that to be reality.I'm going to close with this illustration to give us just a glimpse. A glimpse of what this looks like. And we're going to go to the pyrosome. Have you ever seen this? Do you know what a pyrosome is? Oh. Oh. You're welcome for this next part of the sermon. And you should go on YouTube and watch pyrosomes. Read up on this. This thing is awesome. Tyler Burns sent this to me. Our youth ministry director. Thanks Tyler. Qz.com November 16, 2018, pyrosomes and they're called the unicorns of the sea. What is this thing. It's one body, but it's made up of hundreds, and actually thousands of individual organisms called zooids. And they're physically linked. They're shared tissue, but they're distinct. And yet they are one. And they have a purpose. They join together and they have a purpose to travel together. They need one another. By themselves they're unimpressive. They're negligible. Together, intimidating force. I actually read that they swallow up penguins, which that's not the church. We don't do that. But still that's pretty intimidating. And this is the crazy part. They are clones one of another. They clone, they reproduce. So we don't want to do the clone thing, but we do the reproduction thing in that we become Christians and others become Christians, and they're all clones of the first founding zooid, named... I don't know the zooids name, but you know where I'm going.And here's the other thing. This is what they eat. They join together, and they way that they travel is they suck water in and they suck it out, and what they're doing is they suck the bacteria in, and they let clean water out. They're actually cleansing the area around them. And the word pyro, pyrosome comes from the Greek words pyro, fire, some, body. They're a body on fire. I affectionately named this pyrosome Mosaic Boston. That's us. A body on fire. What's that fire? God's love for others. And that's what binds us. We're bound by love.Let's pray. Lord thank you for this time. Thank you for your scriptures, and thank you for the gospel, and thank you for your love. Jesus let us love in the same way that you have loved us. We pray this in your name. Amen.

Dr. Alexander, who has spent 50 years studying addiction, joins us to talk about poverty of the spirit as a driver of addiction, and how recovery can happen in a thousand ways, helped along by people just like us.

Dr Bruce Alexander spearheaded Rat Park, a revolutionary experiment that proved the drivers of addiction are far different than what we've been taught. He then spent nearly 50 years researching the causes and solutions to addiction in Vancouver, the city with the highest concentration of drug-addicted people in Canada.  

Dr. Bruce Alexander is a world-renowned whose extensive, paradigm-shifting research on the psychology of addiction - particularly his “Rat Park” studies - at Simon Fraser University has influenced the likes of Johann Hari and Dr. Gabor Maté. His work has also received renewed interest in the wake of the current opioids crisis. In 2007, he received the Nora and Ted Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy from SFU.

Dr. Bruce Alexander is a world-renowned whose extensive, paradigm-shifting research on the psychology of addiction - particularly his “Rat Park” studies - at Simon Fraser University has influenced the likes of Johann Hari and Dr. Gabor Maté. His work has also received renewed interest in the wake of the current opioids crisis. In 2007, he received the Nora and Ted Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy from SFU.

Terrorism experts Tricia Bacon, Douglas Wise and Bruce Alexander join us to lay out their views on terror groups, tactics and the future of terrorism.

I document an interview from The Sun magazine with Bruce Alexander about addiction in America. I connect this idea that as individuals in a society that has many addictions, we (and students) need to take it into account what's needed to create the four aspects of well-being based on what psychologists who study it suggest.

SHOW NOTES Dr. Bruce Alexander is a highly regarded psychologist and retired professor who has years of knowledge in the area of addiction. He offers ideas of how to solve the  drug crisis that so many are facing today. Dr. Alexander had moved to Vancouver in 1970 and at that time it was in the midst of the Heroin Crisis where he met "real live junkies". He shares his findings with the Rat Park experiments: taking drug addicted rats in solitude, compared to free rats in a thriving rat park. He talks about the invisible isolation people can have and how fear can take away our critical thinking capacity. HIGHLIGHTS Bruce and Matt have a fascinating discussion of the disappearance of the Rat Park Experiments. Drug Addicted Solitary Confined rats vs free Rat Park rats and how that can or can’t relate to people. He shares his knowledge of rat babysitting, and how rats actually build their own culture and social life!  Bruce and Matt discuss the importance of  a persons identity,  even if it's a somewhat proud "junkie".  They talk about youth being raised by peers instead of parents and how that relates in gangs.  Bruce talks about the 1970 disease theory of addiction based on withdrawal symptoms and being an "irresistible drug."  They chat about how Doctors and Police now have the discretion in how to deal with addicted individuals. Police can decide to charge or not and doctors can decide to prescribe or not.  They agree that the narrative is changing, and although there are solutions that may work, people may not be ready to hear those solutions just yet. How terror can cripple critical or wise thinking. QUOTES "Everybody has to be Somebody." "BE A BAD ASS!"  " We are in the midst of a Paradigm Shift." "People who use drugs, to the degree that they hurt themselves, have a Need, and drugs fulfill that need. We’ve got to do something about where that need comes from." " The rat park makes the Isolation visible, but human cages are sometimes Invisible." " Harm Reduction is Vital." " In the 19th Century you could buy opioids in the store, called Mrs.Winslows Soothing Syrup. My prediction is we will go back to that. We can't even talk about it yet, because of the panic. It takes away our critical thinking capacity.” LINKS Bruce Alexander Homepage: (http://www.brucekalexander.com/) Canadian Research Initiative of Substance Misuse (CRISM) Prairies website: (https://crismprairies.ca/) SayKnow.org Facebook page: (https://www.facebook.com/sayknoworg) SayKnow.org Twitter feed: (https://twitter.com/SayKnowOrg) Music provided by Redbull DJ Champ, Charly Hustle: (http://www.charlyhustlemusic.com)

Walter, with 2½ years since his last drink, shares his story… The Cure to Addiction… Is it possible?  Are we close to a cure?  No.  AA was founded in 1935, and since then we still don’t know what causes it or how to treat it.  A holistic cure will attack/treat the root causes.   The Rat Park experiment by Bruce Alexander points to the conclusion that the causes of addiction are social and environmental, rather than genetics or chemical dependency.  In the study, the addictive tendencies were eliminated when the stress was reduced and the environment changed.  Johann Hari’s Ted Talk says that the opposite of addiction isn’t sobriety, it’s connection.  Addiction is not about the pleasurable effects of substances, rather it is a symptom of the user’s inability to form deep connections with other human beings.  The phenomena that is addiction will likely die out in a global community whose only borders are the sky.    SHOW NOTES   [16:19] Paul Introduces Walter. Walter is 47 years old, in Waco, TX.  He’s been sober for over two years.  He works in real estate.  He is divorced and has a son.  He likes hiking, movies and reading.  He feels more present with his son now that he is sober.  His son had just turned 3 when his wife left.    [19:22] Give us a little background about your drinking.  He came from an alcoholic family.  Both his dad and uncle both died from alcoholism.  His mom got sober when he was 15, right around the time he started to drink.  He was a binge drinker.  He went to a party school in Colorado.  He moved back in with his parents and began to drink alone.  He drank his way through his 20’s.  In his 30’s, he married his drinking partner.  They had a child.  She didn’t want to be a mom.  He wanted to clean up.  They split.  The first 90 days were tough.  He also quit smoking.  He relapsed but hasn’t relapsed since then.  He is now serious about sobriety.  He’s active in AA.  He just went to Peru with Cafe RE.    [25:15] At what point did your drinking partner relationship turn?  They were a rebound relationship.  They had a lot in common.  She was a great adventure partner.  They had a similar relationship with alcohol.  They helped each other hide drinking from other people.  He feels the presence of his son saved his life.    [29:40] Did you try to moderate?  Did you experience a rock bottom moment? He definitely tried to moderate.  He always knew about recovery because of his mom.  When he drank at a friend’s house he woke up and realized he had a problem.  He and his wife got divorced.  They made it painless, and were both fair.  They focused on their son and his needs.  He’s glad he didn’t stay married to another alcoholic.    [34:11] How did you know that this time would be different? Every previous time before this one, sobering up in a jail or spending time in a hospital, he always thought it was bad luck.  He still felt in control.  At first he went to AlAnon because he thought his wife was the one with the problem, then he realized that he was also an alcoholic.  He came out to his mother and spilled everything to her.  He needed to tell people he was an alcoholic.    [37:45] What did early recovery look like for you? He didn’t know of any other options other than AA, so he jumped in pretty quickly.  He started to work the program, and he feels lucky that he has met some great people.  Reconnecting with men in sobriety has been good.  He has found hope and resilience.    [40:49] What was the Peru trip like for you? It was an awesome opportunity on so many levels.  He didn’t really know most people when he arrived.  He got to know everyone there a little bit at a time.  It was not an easy hike but it was worth the trip.    [45:48] What is your recovery like after 2 years? He is addressing his underlying fears that lead him to drinking.  His feelings of not being good enough or not being loved.  He still deals with a negative inner dialogue.  He feels more self aware.  His interactions with people have changed.  He used to live for comedic validation.  He’s more accepting of himself and the present moment.      [50:50] Rapid Fire Round What was your worst memory from drinking? Waking up in jail on his 5th wedding anniversary.  Did you ever have an “oh-shit” moment? drawing a blank What’s your plan moving forward? Keep taking it one day at a time.  Keep doing what’s working.  Keep looking for opportunities to be present for people.  What’s your favorite resource in recovery? AA, and sober traveling.  He loves meeting like minded people.  What’s the best advice you’ve ever received (on sobriety)? Focus on what you can control.  Accept what you can’t.  Know the difference.  What parting piece of guidance can you give listeners who are in recovery or thinking about quitting drinking? It’s ok, just keep trying.  When you’re ready, it will happen.  You don’t have to hit bottom first.  You might be an alcoholic if… “...if you get arrested on your 5th wedding anniversary.”  “...if you’re using a fake ID to buy booze so you can drink by yourself before you’ve turned 21.”    Resources mentioned in this episode: This episode is brought to you in support by ZipRecruiter. Right now, my listeners can try ZipRecruiter for free. Visit Ziprecruiter.com/elevator Connect with Cafe RE- Use the promo code OPPORTUNITY for your first month free Sobriety Tracker iTunes Sobriety Tracker Android Sober Selfies! - Send your Sober Selfie and your Success Story to info@recoveryelevator.com     “We took the elevator down, we gotta take the stairs back up, we can do this!”  

Karşınızda Gümlet Medya'nın sunduğu Mücadele! Mücadele'nin diğer bölümlerine erişmek içinSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3wZOwKwgFBsGmfG4ucjdd1?si=4upwBHInTDy8zENyeu1D9giTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/tr/podcast/m%C3%BCcadele-01/id1360454797?i=1000406560515&l=tr&mt=2Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/show/3093942YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2H3qK0nwR5iPGs8bNu79HAMücadele ekibine ulaşmak için:İletişim: mucadelepodcast@gmail.comTwitter: twitter.com/mucadelepodcast Bölümün açıklaması:Bu hafta Johann Hari'nin The Huffington Post'ta yayınlanan 2015 tarihli "Bağımlılığın Muhtemel Nedeni Düşündüğünüz Şey Değil" yazısı ve Bruce Alexander'ın fare parkı deneyinden yola çıkarak oyun bağımlılığı üzerine konuşuyoruz.Mücadele'ye hoş geldiniz.Bölümde konuştuğumuz kaynaklar:Yazı, Johann Hari, 2015 - https://www.huffingtonpost.com/johann-hari/the-real-cause-of-addicti_b_6506936.htmlDeney, Bruce Alexander - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_ParkDeney, Bruce Alexander - https://eksisozluk.com/entry/59164213 (Türkçe kaynak)

Bu hafta Johann Hari’nin The Huffington Post’ta yayınlanan 2015 tarihli "Bağımlılığın Muhtemel Nedeni Düşündüğünüz Şey Değil" yazısı ve Bruce Alexander'ın fare parkı deneyinden yola çıkarak oyun bağımlılığı üzerine konuşuyoruz.Mücadele'ye hoş geldiniz.Bölümde konuştuğumuz kaynaklar:Yazı, Johann Hari, 2015 - https://www.huffingtonpost.com/johann-hari/the-real-cause-of-addicti_b_6506936.htmlDeney, Bruce Alexander - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_ParkDeney, Bruce Alexander - https://eksisozluk.com/entry/59164213 (Türkçe kaynak)Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3wZOwKwgFBsGmfG4ucjdd1?si=4upwBHInTDy8zENyeu1D9giTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/tr/podcast/m%C3%BCcadele-01/id1360454797?i=1000406560515&l=tr&mt=2Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/show/3093942YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2H3qK0nwR5iPGs8bNu79HAArtık Twitter üzerinden de bize ulaşabilirsiniz! Keyifli dinlemeler.İletişim: mucadelepodcast@gmail.comTwitter: twitter.com/mucadelepodcast

The murders of 11 worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue is the most deadly antisemitic attack in USA history. Nancy Grace visits with Jon Pushinski, a member of Dor Hadash congregation that was meeting in the Tree of Life synagogue when Robert Bowers allegedly launch his shooting rampage. Others on the panel include Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism, forensics expert Joseph Scott Morgan, psycho analyst Dr. Bethany Marshall, terror expert Bruce Alexander, and reporter Art Harris.

A massacre at a Texas baptist church left 26 worshipers dead and it raises many questions for investigators. Nancy Grace looks at the tragedy with terrorism expert Bruce Alexander, forensics expert Joseph Scott Morgan, psycho analyst Dr. Bethany Marshall and investigative reporter Art Harris. Also, a woman accused of murdering an autistic teen reportedly carried out the act because it was on her “bucket list.” Nancy explores the depravity with Morgan, psychologist Caryn Stark and co-host Alan Duke.

An immigrant from Uzbekistan allegedly drove a rental truck down a crowed Manhattan bike path, killing 8 people and injuring at least a dozen. Nancy Grace assembles an expert panel to discuss the deadliest New York terror attack since September 11, 2001. The panel includes terrorism expert Bruce Alexander, forensics expert Joseph Scott Morgan, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Bober, and investigative reporter Art Harris. Psychologist Chloe Carmichael joins Nancy, Art and co-host Alan Duke to look at new developments in the mysterious case of Sherri Papini.

We explore the topic of drug addiction and how to think about it in this extended interview with Bruce Alexander

Bruce Alexander has spent his whole career as a psychologist working on the topic of addiction, and wrote the seminal ‘The Globalisation of Addiction: a study in the poverty of the spirit’, one of the most remarkable books I’ve ever read.  He lives in Pender Island, British Columbia, in Canada.  I wanted to explore with him any overlaps between his work and the imagination. It was a fascinating conversation.

The faint breeze from the open window carried the sound of the Burgermeister's rich baritone singing the arpeggios Haydn had assigned him: "Do Mi So Mi Do." In the distance, he could hear the soft, melodious strains of the barber-surgeon's violin. Even the most unmusical of the townspeople was able to take simple directions without argument, but Barto... A loud outburst reverberated through the hallway beyond the Music Room. Haydn was on his feet in an instant. God in Heaven! Whatever was the matter now? Could Barto get along with no one? He rushed into the Rehearsal Room, aghast to see chairs lying overturned before him and violin cases strewn all over the blue and gold patterned marble floor... -- Nupur Tustin, A Minor Deception I'm so excited to be chatting with Nupur Tustin about her debut novel, the first in a series of cozy historical mysteries. A Minor Deception features none other than composer Joseph Haydn as her amateur sleuth.  I had never really thought about the subgenre of biographical mysteries, and the idea of being part of the conversation surrounding real, historical people until our conversation. Nupur reminded me of Susan Wittig Albert's Beatrix Potter series, Stephanie Barron's Jane Austen mysteries, and Bruce Alexander's Sir John Fielding mystery series. She wanted to expand the conversation out of England, and into both the rest of Europe and the field of music. Haydn was the perfect choice. Nupur's light touch with history has also been compared to Emily Brightwell's wonderful Mrs. Jeffries Victorian mystery series. In a review, Emily calls A Minor Deception "elegantly written and plotted," and Nupur returns the favor, citing Emily as a big influence and comparing her to Agatha Christie. On a related note, I had the pleasure of interviewing Emily here if you'd like to listen to our chat.  Finally, Nupur writes a column called Agent Insight to help other writers on their road to publication. Writers out there, she also gives a shout out to the online Guppies chapter of Sisters in Crime.  Writer or reader, you can keep up with Nupur on her website, Goodreads, and Facebook page, and subscribe to her newsletter -- which earns you a free Haydn short story! -- right here. As always, if you'd rather read than listen, here is the transcript. Enjoy! Laura Transcript of Interview with Nupur Tustin Laura Brennan: Journalist and composer Nupur Tustin combines her love of music and her way with words to create the Joseph Haydn Mystery Series. Her first novel, A Minor Deception, a blend of historical and cozy, finds Kapellmeister Joseph Haydn on the trail of a thieving violinist, as mystery, politics and danger swirl around him. Nupur, thank you for joining me. Nupur Tustin: Thank you, Laura. Thank you for having me. LB: Joseph Haydn doesn’t immediately spring to mind as a likely amateur detective. How did you first discover him? NT: Yes, I've heard that from a lot of people. You know, why Joseph Haydn? I suppose it was because I was reading biographical mysteries at the time. I'd just become a mother. It hadn't been a difficult pregnancy as such, but I'd had four miscarriages before that so I was told to take it easy. And so that just meant that I couldn't do very much, I was restricted to the bedroom, I couldn't play my piano, and I was reading Susan Wittig Albert's Beatrix Potter novels. And I remember reading the author's note, and she talks about the considerable research that she's done on the series, having read about Beatrix Potter for about 10 years, and I thought, well, I could do that. I had just come out of the PhD program and research is in my blood. And I thought, this sounds like fun. I can do that. It's like writing a research paper, but you're writing fiction and you're kind of adding to the conversation. The conversation being biographical mystery series -- Stephanie Barron's Jane Austen series for instance, Bruce Alexander's Sir John Fielding mysteries.

Lack of play is a serious problem for us humans. Play geeks like me call it “play suppression.” In the worst cases, studies have shown that children who are kept from playing by their parents tend to have a hard time learning to relate to others and deal with their violent tendencies, leading to some of history’s saddest violent acts. Even those of us who did play as children but gave it up in adulthood suffer the effects of play suppression. One study that has sparked my interest in relation to this topic is called the Rat Park study. That’s why I’ve been looking forward to this conversation with Stuart McMillen for so long. Stuart McMillen is a cartoonist based in Canberra, Australia. Stuart draws long-form comics inspired by social issues involving science, ecology, sustainability, psychology and economics. His comics are currently translated into 9 languages, with the help of an enthusiastic international team of volunteers. In the podcast, Stuart refers to his work as science communication comics. He takes complex studies and subjects, spends vast amounts of time researching them then breaks them down for us laypeople in the form of a comic. In this episode, we’ll talk about two studies that relate to addiction and isolation, Rat Park and Deviance in the Dark. They shine a light on the importance of community, intimacy and of course, play. After we discuss the basics of these studies, we launch into a conversation that, if you like this podcast at all, will be one you won’t want to miss. It’s at the very heart of why I’m so passionate about helping adults realize the vital importance of play. Enjoy! Show Notes Visit Stuart McMillan’s website Read Stuart’s Rat Park Comic Read Stuart’s Deviance in the Dark comic Check out Bruce Alexander’s book, The Globalization of Addiction Read Stuart’s reflections on his research and the “making of” the Rat Park Comic A bustle in the cage-row: the making of Rat Park Globalization of Addiction: the post-Rat Park research of Bruce Alexander My Drug Period Watch the video of Stuart’s personal reflection on “connection” at Sunday Assembly

Bruce Alexander talks to Becky Walsh. Can solving addiction change the whole world? - Rat Park You might have seen a TED Talk by Johann Hari called ‘Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong’. It’s also been turned into an animation called ‘Addiction’. Both cite the experimental work of our guest, a professor of Psychology in Vancouver, Bruce Alexander and his experiments called ‘Rat Park’. Be prepared, what you think you know about addiction and the workings of society is about to change. This is a MUST HEAR podcast!

On this week's podcast, I discuss the power of unity with others in recovery and the importance of connections (not the WiFi type, but that's important too). Buzzkill Briefs: Rat Park, Bruce Alexander: http://www.brucekalexander.com/articles-speeches/rat-park/148-addiction-the-view-from-rat-park This week's comment beasts: Graham - https://guitarsandlife.wordpress.com/ Sara - @5arasmiles HDBigjourney - @hdbigjourney Clare - @clareyfrey Ritchie - @rockpapersober This Week's Question: Do you find that your addiction comes out in other ways - maybe in overspending, or eating too much sugar, or in other subtle and not-so-subtle ways? Drop a line at: buzzkillpod@gmail.com or leave your thoughts in the comments section below!

Ben Fraser talks about the Rat Park experiments of Bruce Alexander. What happens to rats who get addicted to morphine? And how do they become drug free? A great cartoon explanation of the Rat Park idea. http://www.stuartmcmillen.com/comics_en/rat-park/ Bruce Alexander's account of the Rat Park, with photos. http://www.brucekalexander.com/articles-speeches/rat-park/148-addiction-the-view-from-rat-park I first heard about the Rat Park from Johan Hari's Book “Chasing the Scream.” http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9781620408902-0 Huffington post article about Chasing the Scream http://www.huffingtonpost.com/johann-hari/the-real-cause-of-addicti_b_6506936.htmlea The Brick House Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Brick-House/266939153469555 Appreciation: Cooking! Check out the musical comedy Brick House Web Series at http://www.brickhousewebseries.com If you are listening to this, please let me know! http://brickhousewebseries.com/contact Also, follow on twitter @brickhousetv Or help people find it by giving a review or a rating on iTunes! http://bit.ly/1zhJnUj

First, Natalie London of the band Hey King! joins Katina to talk about their recent Ticked OFF Music Festival at the House of Blues in LA, and Natalie's debut memoir of her experience with Lyme disease, Lyme Light. Then, Bruce Alexander of Xeroshield joins Katina with news on the misunderstood crisis of Lyme disease in Scotland.

Did you know... North American governments Spend over 51 BILLION dollars a year on the War on Drugs? Yet these same governments do very little to treat addiction and the "poverty of the spirit" that engenders this addiction. Dr. Bruce K. Alexander is a Canadian psychologist who believes  that society is drowning in addictions, to alchohol, drug use and a thousand other habits. He maintains the reason for this is a growing disconnect as people around are torn from the close ties to family, culture, and traditional spirituality.  Alexendar says this rift and lack of social integration has destroyed what used to constitute the normal fabric of societal life. For many, addiction serves as a substitute for the connectedness for which they long and which provides context and meaning for their lives. Alexander believes because societal determinants are so much more powerful that individual ones, that addiction is much more a social problem than an individual disorder.  This is why he feels that the War on Drugs is so  wrong-headed. Alexander's book,  The Globalization of Addiction: A Study in Poverty of the Spirit presents a new look at the nature of addiction, how society should view addicts, and more effective treatments for addiction. Bruce Alexander is a psychologist and Professor Emeritus at Simon Fraser University, where he has worked since 1970. His primary research interest has been the psychology of addiction. He is best known in the UK for the "Rat Park" experiments, which helped to demonstrate the falsity of the outworn belief that simple exposure to narcotic drugs can cause addiction.   

In his first-ever collaboration, James Rollins combined his skill for cutting-edge science and historical mystery with award-winning novelist Rebecca Cantrell's talent for haunting suspense and sensual atmosphere in a gothic tale about an ancient order and the hunt for a miraculous book known only as The Blood Gospel.Now the winning duo opens the next chapter in THE ORDER OF THE SANGUINES series, a world of shadow and light, of salvation and damnation, where the fate of the heavens is locked within a child of INNOCENT BLOOD (Morrow, published 12/10/2013.A vicious attack at a ranch in California thrusts archaeologist Erin Granger back into the folds of the Sanguines, an immortal order founded on the blood of Christ and tasked with protecting the world from the beasts haunting its shadows. Following the prophetic words found in the Blood Gospel—a tome written by Christ and lost for centuries—Erin must again join forces with Army Sergeant Jordan Stone and Father Rhun Korza to discover and protect a boy believed to be an angel given flesh.James Rollins is the New York Times bestselling author of international thrillers, translated into more than forty languages. His Sigma series has been lauded as one of the "top crowd pleasers" and one of the "hottest summer reads." In each novel Rollins unveils unseen worlds, scientific breakthroughs, and historical secrets.Rebecca Cantrell's Hannah Vogel mystery novels have won the Bruce Alexander and Macavity awards and been nominated for numerous others. She and her husband and son just left Hawaii's sunny shores for adventures in Berlin.

Listen to the third "Off the Record" talk at the Actors Centre with Paul Clayton. Hear how the careers of Clive Swift and Bruce Alexander began and how they set up the Actors Centre with Sir Ian McKellen being first in the queue!

Dr. Bruce Alexander of Simon Fraser University

Our first guest is hypnotherapist Wendi Friesen who will discuss the use of hypnosis for smoking cessation, alcohol dependence and addiction. We will be discussing the research literature as well as Wendi's own practice.   Our second guest is Dr. Bruce Alexander, professor emeritus of psychology at Simon Frasier University and recipient of the Sterling Prize. Dr. Alexander will be talking about his Rat Park studies which demonstrate the effect of environment on addiction.