“‘I AM,’ said the man to the universe. ‘I KNOW,’ the universe replied. ‘But, this fact, does not put me under any obligation.’” We humans are born with our human traits already in place (e.g., curiosity, desire to associate, and deal with other fellow humans, while at the same time, tending to be selfish and…
I return to this subject over and over because is a matter of life and death for our species as humans The story of our origin as a species is not a long one by geological standards. We started our journey in this planet, about 6 million years ago along with similar species to ours,…
We humans are amazing, awe-inspiring creatures — as justifiably declared by Sophocles, one of the ancient Greek “Shakespeares.” We are not only intelligent, contemplative, curious, and able to use symbolism and language, but able to dream the future. And, through the invention of the scientific method, we have discovered the patterns and laws that govern…
“There is no genius without a touch of madness” Aristotle Indeed, all very creative people do behave oddly. Often defined as weird, we even use in describing them other more pedestrian terms; such as, nutty, etc. Let us first define genius as one who is able to think in alternatives, discern new patterns in nature, create…
I have mentioned the subject before but is needs repeating — If one of your resolutions in the new year is to go into a diet, please don’t. Studies and observations at large have shown that implementing such a decision is worse than useless. Not only do you punish yourself for a few days or weeks,…
Recently with opioids, we are facing a perfect storm. Let me explain. When atmospheric conditions are just right (like temperature, wind, and atmospheric pressure) and they act in unison, the result is what we call a “perfect storm” in terms of catastrophic intensity of the size of the resultant hurricane. Our opioid crisis in America…
Ironically, a few days ago I was writing an article with the heading, ”….and the pursuit of happiness” — which will appear in a future issue — when the news arrived that 17 high schoolers in Florida were gunned down. They were shot in their school by a depressed, despairing, miserable teenager who has been…
“Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness,” said Thomas Jefferson, one of the founding fathers in his immortal proclamation, heralding the independence of our country. Well, life and freedom one can understand but “happiness”? How do we pursue it? What is happiness anyway? Our third President certainly had the resources to be happy; but, he…
As I have mentioned many times in the past, we humans are complicated creatures. There exist two separate groups of inborn traits in us, which together make up our human nature: one making up the individual part of ourselves (selfishness, calculative-ness, aloofness, etc.); and the other making up the social (altruism, compassion, social interactions, cooperativeness,…
Dedicated to my friend with the angelic smile… It was a night full of stars and calmness, past midnight. The chill was already piercing my bones. And yet, it was beautiful because it was calm, and my soul was at rest… I was alone, quite alone at the estuary of the Axiós, wrapped up…
We, as a nation of over 300 million people do not really have a “gun problem” — whether as “protectors” of the second amendment or the “gun control people.” Instead, we have an obsession interwoven with racial tension and fears, and insecurities (the mythical “to defend myself”). Other developed nations, especially in Europe, own almost…
Nations, like humans as a group, pressuring and being pressured by leaders, often resort to foolish decisions which are not to their self-interest but are self-harming. A classic example for my readers is the impending exiting of the United Kingdom from the European Union passed by elections by an extremely small margin made up mainly…
All the doctors through the centuries have known it and they used it. We still do, but in a different way now. In the past we would give literally a pill of a harmless powder to our worrying patients and tell them that they will feel well by the next day. The pill was harmless…
Some Thoughts Regarding the Recent Tragic Events in Charlottesville, Virginia By Nicholas Pediaditakis, MD On my way to the farm where I raise Black Angus cows as a hobby, I asked my frequent companion, grandson Igor, who is a biochemist in Duke University, “What do you think of the state of our modern world?” He…
How society not only judges differently unusual behavior and uses treatments at different times, it also facilitates the emergence of different “mental disorders” in stressed individuals By Nicholas Pediaditakis, MD Society, at different times, depending on the prevailing “spirit of the times,” judges — and even punishes — strange or unusual behavior differently, as well…
Chroniclers of the Soul 