What's Your Best Example Of Correlation Not Equaling Causation?

The Social Network (2010) dir. David Fincher

Is it possible for you to share the diet you use?

I’ve committed to a Ketogenic Diet for almost a year now, entailing that I consume 30g or less of carbs per day; this demands my body to reconfigure itself to run primarily on ketones from fat rather than glucose from carbs.

For breakfast I blend a nutritional smoothie comprised of organic carrots, blackberries, almond butter, spinach, kale, sugarless dark chocolate, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, and 2 raw pastured eggs: I’ll have an avocado and 5 handfuls of raw nuts on the side comprised of walnuts, pecans, and macadamia nuts that I’ll dip in organic coconut oil with Himalayan salt.

For dinner I’ll prepare 2 organic, hormone and antibiotic free, grass fed beef patties, and 2 more pastured eggs; cooked in coconut/olive oil mix, dressed up with organic mayonnaise and plenty of seasoning. I also drink plenty of water throughout the day, often with lemon, and will take 5000 IU’s of vitamin D throughout the winter months.

Since I’ve begun researching and experimenting with my diet over the course of the past 3 years or so, essentially purging my body of toxins whose presence I was unconsciously maintaining, it’s been akin to waking from a coma and observing the world slowly come into focus.

Until these past few years, I didn’t know it was possible to eat a meal without feeling bloated, uncomfortable, and succumbing to a mysterious lethargy, nor was I aware that many of my symptoms of depression and ADD were simply in relation to the effects that these pollutants were having on my brain chemistry. 

I had also grown accustomed to getting sick at least once or twice each winter, but this June will mark 3 years since I’ve even so much as caught a cold. I can only relate this to having established such a durable immune system via my refined eating habits. I feel more mentally and physically capable than I have ever felt in my entire life, which is an encouraging awareness at 24.

"You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star."

-Friedrich Nietzsche

“Private institutions are under systemic and legal obligations to make money quickly to reward their capitalist investors; thus expensive, uncertain long-term research is inevitably harder and harder to justify as quarters tick by with few money-making breakthroughs to show for it. Small wonder, then, that the Internet, the web, the GUI, modern processors, Wi-Fi signaling, fundamental computer languages, and even Google itself arose from the academic or military research settings where steady funding is more or less assured and near-term stock prices don’t drive whether projects get axed. The history is long—Guglielmo Marconi developed radio for the Royal Navy, Berners-Lee the web protocols for CERN. The OSTP notes, “Past DOD research has resulted in revolutionary technological capabilities such as radar, digital computers, wireless mobile communications, lasers, fiber optics, composite materials, the Internet (and other ‘packet switched’ networks), and satellite navigation.””

— Rob Larson, Bit Tyrants: The Political Economy of Silicon Valley

“The highest and most beautiful things in life are not to be heard about, nor read about, nor seen, but, if one will, are to be lived.”

— Søren Kierkegaard, Either/Or

What 80% comprehension feels like

I know I should be on my hiatus but this is something I really need to share with you all; those who are intermediate can relate. Some guy called Marco Benevides visually demonstrated what it’s like to only understand 80% of a text

Here is 98% comprehension

You live and work in Tokyo. Tokyo is a big city. More than 13 million people live around you. You are never borgle, but you are always lonely. Every morning, you get up and take the train to work. Every night, you take the train again to go home. The train is always crowded. When people ask about your work, you tell them, “I move papers around.” It’s a joke, but it’s also true. You don’t like your work. Tonight you are returning home. It’s late at night. No one is shnooling. Sometimes you don’t see a shnool all day. You are tired. You are so tired…

bold = uncomprehended 2%

Here is 95% comprehension

In the morning, you start again. You shower, get dressed, and walk pocklent. You move slowly, half- awake. Then, suddenly, you stop. Something is different. The streets are fossit. Really fossit. There are no people. No cars. Nothing. “Where is dowargle?” you ask yourself. Suddenly, there is a loud quapen—a police car. It speeds by and almost hits you. It crashes into a store across the street! Then, another police car farfoofles. The police officer sees you. “Off the street!” he shouts. “Go home, lock your door!” “What? Why?” you shout back. But it’s too late. He is gone.

bold = uncomprehended 5%

Here is 80% comprehension

“Bingle for help!” you shout. “This loopity is dying!” You put your fingers on her neck. Nothing. Her flid is not weafling. You take out your joople and bingle 119, the emergency number in Japan. There’s no answer! Then you muchy that you have a new befourn assengle. It’s from your gutring, Evie. She hunwres at Tokyo University. You play the assengle. “…if you get this…” Evie says. “…I can’t vickarn now… the important passit is…” Suddenly, she looks around, dingle. “Oh no, they’re here! Cripett… the frib! Wasple them ON THE FRIB!…” BEEP! the assengle parantles. Then you gratoon something behind you…

And this really sums up how ***** annoying it can be to be an intermediate speaker. To be able to get the basic of gist of what’s happening, but never be able to get any kind of finer detail. I don’t think I’ve seen such a good illustration of intermediacy in a long time.

Source: http://www.sinosplice.com/life/archives/2016/08/25/what-80-comprehension-feels-like

Just an annual reminder that you shouldn’t be relying on the first of January to reflect upon whether or not the circumstances you consent to are in your best interest. This is little more than a knee-jerk reaction to the cultural pressure to convey self-improvement; a vast majority of people posturing for social approval, rather than having their goals stemming from a sincere initiative to make change. So may this “New Year’s Resolution” be your last, as you acknowledge your ability to overcome procrastination, stagnancy, and monotony, as you desire, when you desire.