In following the example of Kevin, MD, here are some items of note that I recently perused while wandering The Internets:

>> The Brain on the Stand. A thoughtful, if not mildly disturbing, discussion about The Brain versus The Mind. (As I had remarked to a couple of my colleagues for our “informal journal club”: “To me, this reflects the ongoing medicalization of everything—”incidentalomas” in the brain will suddenly mean something drastic; the definition of “normal brain” (or, I guess, “no acute pathology” on those MRI reads) will be tweaked to no end; thoughts will take on definitive meaning (so much for our oft-used phrase for suicidal patients; “a thought is just a thought”)… it’s almost as if there is a 1:1 correlation between thought and action. And we all know that that just ain’t true.”)

>> The 7th Guest. I recall urging my father to purchase this game for me shortly after it was released (1992!); I subsequently spent many hours working my way though the puzzles and getting totally freaked out—I couldn’t restrain myself from playing this game at night. I never “won” the game.

>> Crime Library: Ted Bundy. Ted Bundy was likely still working for the crisis clinic (presumably as a telephone counselor) here in Seattle when he began his career as a serial killer.

>> Groovie Movie. A nine-minute film, made in 1944, about swing dancing (the “modern dance” of the “hepcats”—”solid!”) that features hokey humor and good dancing.

>> Lindy Hip Hop. Two guys—both with excellent dancing skills—who throw in hip-hop moves into standard lindy hop. They capture the spirit of the dance well… and it pains me to see a guy who is a better follow than me!

>> How to Make a Complete Map of Every Thought You Think. I am not ambitious enough to follow this guy’s example, though perhaps I shall glean some insights about optimizing my “peripheral brain” (because my inner GTD minion demands it). The author must have been in Seattle when he wrote the text, as he makes a reference to the city’s online bus schedules. (There must be something in the Puget Sound water.)

>> Report of the APSAC task force on attachment therapy, reactive attachment disorder, and attachment problems. I read this article to learn more about “reactive attachment disorder” (an ill-defined diagnosis for kids). I reeled in disbelief upon reading this:

In the Newmaker case, a technique called rebirthing was used to simulate the psychological death of the angry unattached child to allow the child to be psychologically reborn (Lowe, 2000). This technique involved the child being held down by several adults, rolled up in blankets, and being instructed to fight her way free. In rebirthing and similar approaches, protests of distress from the child are considered to be resistance that must be overcome by more coercion.

Thankfully, “Rebirthing has been repudiated by many practitioners, including those who recommend other controversial techniques….” Egads.

>> Chickens lay unfertilized eggs. I am overly educated and I did not know this. All of these years, I thought I was eating a two-celled chicken fetus embryo when I ordered eggs.