SCI-ART LAB

Science, Art, Litt, Science based Art & Science Communication

                                                                Interactive science series

Q: Why is evolution accepted and taught in education system since it is not completely proven? Especially whole modern medical science and new researches are based on it.

Krishna: Okay, why do you think bacteria become resistant to antibiotics? Evolution is the answer!

Convergent evolution before your own eyes: http://www.cell.com/current-biol...

Hybrid mice shed new light on the interactions between regions of the genome that help drive the evolution of new species by reducing the fertility of hybrid males. http://elifesciences.org/content...

29+ Evidences for Macroevolution

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26857-tape-of-life-may-not-al...

http://www.nature.com/ng/journal...

http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/12304/20150127/radical-evol...

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_re...
https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/wild-things/invasion-drives-quick-...

What is the evidence for biological evolution and what is the evide...

New Lizard Shows Evolution’s Predictability | Quanta Magazine

15 Answers to Creationist Nonsense

Intense Natural Selection in a Population of Darwin's Finches (Geos...

Evolution retraces its steps to advance

Metabolism: Evolution retraces its steps to advance
Bacteria in a long-term evolution experiment evolved a new metabolic trait via two separate mutations with opposite effects.
http://elifesciences.org/content/4/e12386?utm_source=content_alert&...

Caesarean births could be having an effect on human evolution

Caesarean Births Could Be Having an Effect on Human Evolution

New Lizard Shows Evolution’s Predictability

New Lizard Shows Evolution’s Predictability | Quanta Magazine

Metabolism: Evolution retraces its steps to advance

Evolution retraces its steps to advance

 Predators key to helping prey evolve with climate change

Predators key to helping prey evolve with climate change

Watching Evolution Happen in Two Lifetimes

Watching Evolution Happen in Two Lifetimes | Quanta Magazine

Intense Natural Selection in a Population of Darwin's Finches (Geos...

There are hundreds of direct and indirect evidences.

This is enough to to study evolution further and teach it in class rooms

Q: Based on the above one ...

Krishna: I don't know what fungal infection you have so I can't give a specific answer. But we have tested this product and found to be effective for some fungal infections. Use Godrej Mehindi powder (Nupur). Soak it in water for some time, mix it with curd and lemon juice and apply the paste on your eye lid. Let it stay for 2-3 hours.   Use this paste atleast once in a day. It works for some fungal infections. But you have to use it continuously non-stop.

Let me know whether it worked for you or not.

Q: Some superstitions were adopted for some specific purposes. We cannot dismiss all of them. What is your take on this?

Krishna: Superstition means irrational belief. If something is brought before a critical thinker, he or she analyses it thoroughly and only when it 's found irrational, it would be dismissed.

Let me give an example. Earlier there were several unknown infectious diseases. When people died of them, touching the dead body or placing it in a human dwelling for a long time would have spread the infection. Touching people who were  closely associated with the deceased person or visiting such people also might spread the infections. Therefore, people used to follow these things...

Remove the dead body as soon as possible, before the sun set on the same day  the person died.

All the people associated with the dead person or those that touched the body should take a bath after the body is cremated. All the clothes worn by them should be washed thoroughly. 

Thoroughly wash and clean the house of the dead person.

Don't cook or eat anything until everything is thoroughly cleaned.

Never visit other peoples' houses when you visit the dead person's house  after the ceremonies.

Tear the cards or any papers that you get from the house of the deceased person asking you to attend the ceremonies of the dead person.

Undoubtedly these were precautions taken to stop the spread of an unknown disease when knowledge was inadequate to understand and control infections.

But now you know the reason for the death of a person in 99% of the cases. If he or she died of a heart attack or a stroke, you need not worry about following these above things. Moreover, you now have medicines to cure or control the deadly infections.

Dead bodies are made non-infectious using disinfectants so that near and dear ones from far off places can visit to pay respects.

Earlier following the preventive measures made some sense. Now they look superstitious in several cases. Think about that. 

However, there are still some infections like Ebola which are highly dangerous and you still need to take strict precautions. 

I think each case has to be analysed thoroughly and following only what makes sense is the right approach instead of blindly following what people ask you to do.

Superstitions are irrational beliefs. If your thorough analysis of a 'belief' makes you think following something makes some sense, it won't be a superstition at all! If you think it doesn't make any sense, and following it is causing inconvenience or harm, discarding it is the right approach.

Like following certain things during eclipses. It doesn't make any sense at all! Getting rid of these superstitions is better for every one.

This is what critical thinkers do. That is what every one should do.

Q: Research says, turmeric and colloidal silver are good for cancer. Has anyone been cured by them?

Krishna: I asked several cancer researchers. Their unanimous and firm answer is "NO''!

There are certain things called bio-enhancers. If taken with drugs, they can make them more effective. 

Like methi (fenugreek )seeds in diabetic treatment. These might belong to that category. 

Q: Why are people so sure the current experts in science can't be wrong, when history has shown they have been wrong many times before?

Q: You talk as if science is the ultimate truth. But science can go wrong. Is n't that a fact?

Krishna: Scientists can go wrong while understanding the language of science this universe is written in. Science cannot go wrong. If it goes wrong, the principles that run this universe can too go wrong and it collapses. The fact that the universe is working wonderfully  shows science is the ultimate truth this universe is based on.

Scientists are the most COMPETITIVE humans our species ever created. If anybody is getting closer to truth about this universe and the fundamental principles it is based on it is the scientists although they are very much aware of the fact that the truth they identified is the truth of the moment and can be provisional and can be falsified at any moment by their own colleagues who find better answers to the same questions they are working on. When falsifiability scientists embrace gets you more closer to truth, yes, why not? 

Q:Your article "How scientific illiteracy can harm you" gives a good picture of our state of mind. Can you give more examples? 

Krishna: People 'mistake' one medical condition for another one. One person had a severe kidney malfunction. His feet were swollen. When I asked him to visit a doctor immediately after seeing his symptoms,   he said, ' No need to visit a doctor. Last night I was sitting at my desk the whole night. That's why my feet look like this. Today I would go to bed early, the swelling will disappear by tomorrow morning!"  And when they didn't, I had to convince him a lot to go to a hospital and when he finally did, his condition required immediate dialysis as he had a severe kidney malfunction.

Another one had a heart problem. As he has asthma too, he  didn't take his 'breathlessness' seriously. Again I had to goad him to see a heart specialist after noticing his symptoms which told me he had more than 'mere asthma' when they didn't respond to regular-using inhalers and nebulizers.  My hunch was correct. He had pericardial effusion and the resultant irregular heart beats. 

These are life and death situations. Scientific illiteracy can kill you sometimes.

 This 's also a real story told by a resident doctor recently...

Most people in India don't donate blood thinking it leads to perpetual weakness!

So In India, if someone needs blood from blood bank, the protocol in a government hospital is that someone from the side of person requesting blood needs to donate blood (a relative or a friend).

A pregnant female brought to our hospital recently required blood because her haemoglobin was less than 7g/dl.

The obvious choice in such cases is husband. But he refused point blank.

The reason - he had sex yesterday with her. If he donates blood - it will cause even more weakness that he won't be able to do it again ever!

This is the state of mind most people are in not only in our country but in several parts of the world.

That is why we stress on science education. 

Q: You do so much work. Does it have any impact on people?

Krishna: Knowing something and not telling it to people around to help them is the worst thing you can do to your society. I don't want to make such mistakes. Telling people what I know is my duty as a learned person.

If people listen, it helps them. If they don't, they would suffer, learn from their bad experiences and come back to listen and follow! Either way, they have to listen. :) Knowledge has that edge!

My work is having an impact. People themselves are telling me that. And I am happy with what I am doing.

Q: How did people survive when there were no vaccines and medicines?

Krishna: Several people died with diseases during pre-scientific era. The death rates among babies and young children under 5 years were very, very high. People used to have lots of children with the hope that at least one or two fittest would survive. If they survived, it is mere chance of either not contacting any deadly disease or their genes provided strong immune systems.

Q: Do Mantras and tantras work? Does black magic work and make people ill and die? I am worried because one person says he did some witchcraft to kill me. What should I do to negate the consequences  of his black magic? Has science any solutions?

Krishna: Don't worry, no body has any power to kill somebody in this world with just mantras and tantras. Some mentally weak people might get sick because of the fear and worry and not because of actual black magic. If you believe in it, it makes you go weak. 

Nobody can do anything to strong minded people. 

Science gives us solutions in the form of critical thinking. 

If the person 'that did black magic' on you has any power, he will on waste it on others. He would have used it on himself to get rid of his problems, illnesses and death. He would have earned money, name and fame. The very fact that he could not do these things tells that these powers are mere mental illusions created to cheat people and earn money by wrong means.

Critical thinkers will face these witches with full knowledge that the things they do to harm you will not work. And they won't work 100%.

So be strong. Nothing bad will happen to you.

Watch these videos to get strong...

Q: How can I develop a scientific persona?

Krishna: Glad to hear about your wish. 

This is an extremely difficult thing to do.

You have to eat, sleep, drink, breathe, live, think science all the time. Once got trained, science has to stay with you 24X365X100, i.e., each moment of your life. Scientific methodology has to enter each cell in your body (scientific principles based life’s processes are already there, nature has seen to it), influence your thought process in every way. There cannot be any exceptions.

Only facts and data have to be taken into consideration while thinking. Emotions, opinions, beliefs and ideals have no place to be here.

Critical thinking capabilities are extremely important in science. Read here how to develop them…

Some questions people asked on science and my replies to them - 50

“Developing” does not always lead to the right scientific persona because science will get tweaked by your biases and you end up as a strange chimera. When ‘’originated’’ within you and guided by the love and respect for scientific methodology, you will become a real ‘scientist’.

Being a scientist is a state of mind, not a profession!

Q: Is a very high IQ required to become a good scientist in the field of biological sciences, or is it hard work and passion only that matters?  

Krishna: IQ has only little significance in science research. Average IQ will do if you are passionate about science and research, creative enough to connect things and have a will to succeed. Read this article that defines what you really need to become a good scientist…

Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined

 

Views: 205

Replies to This Discussion

144

Deepak Menon: I’d say that it is virtually impossible for a normal person to crawl out of his comfort zone for one! So Pseudo Science as well as religious bigotry will continue as long as mankind continues in its present state of hopelessness …..

RSS

© 2024   Created by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service