Copernicus

"'To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge.'

-- Copernicus"

'To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge

"'To know that we know what we know, and to know that we do not know what we do not know, that is true knowledge.'

-- Copernicus"

The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present,

The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths
offered by the present, but a place that is created--created first
in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not
some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths
are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making them,
changes both the maker and the destination.

Born to Believe: God, Science, and the Origin of Ordinary and Extraordinary Beliefs and Why We Believe What We Believe

Andrew Newberg talked about his book How God Changes Your Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neurocientist (Ballantine Books; March 24, 2009). The neuroscientist examined brain scans of memory patients and web-based surveys of people's religious and spiritual experiences. The correlations he found led him to conclude that an active spiritual life physically changes the brain, permanently strengthening neural functioning in specific parts of the brain that aid in lowering anxiety and depression, enhancing social awareness and empathy, and improving cognitive functioning. Dr. Newberg showed images of brain scans. He discussed his work on stage with meditation teacher Loch Kelly. Andrew Newberg is the director of the Center for Spirituality and the Mind and an associate professor in the radiology department at the University of Pennsylvania. He co-wrote How God Changes Your Brain with Mark Robert Waldman, an associate fellow at the center. They are also the co-authors of Born to Believe: God, Science, and the Origin of Ordinary and Extraordinary Beliefs and Why We Believe What We Believe: Uncovering Our Biological Need for Meaning, Spirituality, and Truth. This "Meetings of the Minds" program of the second annual "Brainwave" series was held at the Rubin Museum of Art on Sunday April 5, 2009, at 4:00 p.m.