| | The Lost Symbol Sparks Nationwide Interest in the Noetic SciencesLife can change rapidly; we all know that. But sometimes it changes in ways we aren't expecting, which is exactly what happened at the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) in October 2009. They did not know they were in the book. Since the release of Dan Brown's newest novel, The Lost Symbol, visits to the IONS Web site have increased 10-fold; new members are signing up every day, calls are flooding in from across the country, and journalists from Dateline NBC, the Discovery Channel, NPR, and other media outlets are clamoring for interviews. Why? Because IONS and its research are prominently featured in the novel, and now people want to know more—a lot more—about the role of intention and consciousness in the world. Brown's novel, which sold two million copies of the English language edition in its first two weeks of release, employs noetic science to untangle the web of clues that resolve a plot conflict between good and evil. It wasn't until the day of its release that IONS staff discovered they were featured. Marilyn Mandala Schlitz, PhD, CEO, of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, received an email from Brown. It basically said that he was a big fan of IONS, and although he had hoped to give them a heads up, he wasn't able to do so because of the security around the book. But he hoped they were enjoying the attention. They are. “We are immensely grateful to Mr. Brown for catapulting the little-known field of Noetic Sciences into mainstream conversation surrounding his book,” said Dr Schlitz, who shares similarities with the book's heroine, Katherine Solomon. Before becoming the CEO for IONS, Schiltz spent several decades pioneering clinical and field-based research in the area of human consciousness, transformation, and healing. “Based on my research over three decades, I am convinced that consciousness matters,” said Schlitz. “Through our individual and collective explorations, through the bridging of objective science and ancient wisdom traditions, we can find creative new solutions to age-old problems besetting humanity—fostering personal and social healing and transformation.” The Institute of Noetic Sciences, which was founded in the early 70s by Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell, is a nonprofit membership organization that conducts and sponsors leading-edge research into the potentials and powers of consciousness—including perceptions, beliefs, attention, intention, and intuition. Sitting in the cramped cabin of the space capsule on his return trip from the moon, Mitchell saw planet Earth floating freely in the vastness of space and was engulfed by a profound sense of universal connectedness. In Mitchell's own words: “The presence of divinity became almost palpable, and I knew that life in the universe was not just an accident based on random processes.” Researchers at IONS have been applying the lens of science to the multidisciplinary study of consciousness for nearly 40 years. The word noetic comes from the ancient Greek nous, for which there is no exact equivalent in English. It refers to “inner knowing,” a kind of intuitive consciousness—direct and immediate access to knowledge beyond what is available to our normal senses and the power of reason. EXPLORE Coeditor-in-Chief, Dean Radin, PhD, is the senior scientist at IONS. “My interest in consciousness was originally motivated out of an intuitive sense that the mind is far more mysterious and powerful than we know,” said Radin, who was brought on as an EXPLORE editor specifically because of his expertise in this field. “Through education and experience I've also come to appreciate that these experiences are also responsible for most of the greatest inventions, artistic and scientific achievements, creative insights, and religious epiphanies throughout history. Understanding this realm of human experience thus offers more than mere academic interest—it touches upon the very best that the human intellect and spirit have to offer.” The Lost Symbol mentions studies on the effects of individual and collective intention, intuition, gut feelings, and presentiments—all areas that IONS has been studying intensively for years. For a list of IONS published studies, please go to: http://www.noetic.org/publications/journal_pubs.cfm. To field the overwhelming number of requests by The Lost Symbol readers for information about noetic sciences, IONS launched a multipart teleseminar series on the subject in October 2009, which ran weekly through December 2009. The series was filmed on location in Washington, DC, where Brown's novel takes readers on a tour of the symbols and legends of ancient wisdoms and spiritual traditions hidden among the country's national monuments. Dr Schlitz guided listeners on a similar tour, offering a broader understanding of the noetic sciences and what science now knows about the mysteries of consciousness. “In January 2010 we will begin a new, live phone interview series in the form of a class that will take people deeper into the latest noetic research and implications,” explained Schlitz. For more information about IONS, please visit http://www.noetic.org. NIH Grantees Win 2009 Nobel Prize for Telomere Research  The 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is being shared by three grantees of the National Institutes of Health (NIH): Elizabeth H. Blackburn, PhD, of University of California, San Francisco; Carol W. Greider, PhD, of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; and Jack W. Szostak, PhD, of Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The three researchers, supported by NIH funding for decades, were honored for discovering how telomeres, through the enzyme telomerase, protect chromosomes against degradation. Cancer and aging research merge in the study of telomeres, the tails at the ends of chromosomes that become shorter as a cell divides. All telomeres have the same short sequence of DNA bases repeated thousands of times. Rather than containing any genetic information, these repetitive snippets help keep chromosomes intact. The enzyme telomerase, which builds telomeres, enables the entire length of the chromosome to be copied without missing the end portion. During cell division, the ends of the chromosomes are not completely copied, so telomeres become progressively shorter. Over time, scientists theorize, telomeres become so short that their function is disrupted, and this, in turn, leads the cell to stop proliferating. Average telomere length gives some indication of how many divisions the cell has already undergone and how many remain before it can no longer replicate. The NIH has provided a total of more than $32 million to the three researchers for their study of telomeres, telomerase, and the molecular functions of cells. “The question of how cellular aging relates to abnormal cell division, such as cancer, and the aging of organisms continues to be the focus of rigorous study, thanks to the insights of Drs. Greider, Blackburn and Szostak,” said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD. “These NIH grantees' discoveries offer a classic example of how basic science research driven by investigators' curiosity can illuminate our understanding of health and disease.” Their work has been an important breakthrough for many fields, including integrative medicine. Dr Blackburn is currently a coinvestigator with Frederick Hecht, MD, of the University of California, San Francisco, on a grant from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to study cell aging in the context of the metabolic and immunologic effects of meditation. This study is investigating the utility of a form of meditation, known as mindfulness-based stress reduction, in addressing obesity and stress, both of which are associated with the shortening of telomeres. Telomeres, the caps that protect the ends of chromosomes, and telomerase, the enzyme that lengthens telomeres, are important in measuring cell age and lifespan. The study will be one of the first to test the effects of meditation and stress reduction on cell aging. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.nih.gov. UCSF Osher Center Names New Director Margaret Chesney, PhD, has been named the new director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), to replace founding director Susan Folkman, PhD, who is retiring. Dr Chesney began her new job on January 1, 2010. Dr Chesney has had a distinguished career in integrative medicine. Most recently she was professor of medicine and associate director of the Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine. Before that, Chesney served for five years as deputy director of the National Institutes of Health's Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). During her time at NCCAM, Chesney also served as the director of the Division of Extramural Research and Training, and was the senior advisor to the director of the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research at the National Institutes of Health. “I feel so honored to have been selected to direct a program that Dr Susan Folkman and her colleagues have developed into a center that excels in clinical service, scholarly research, and professional and public education in integrative medicine,” said Dr Chesney. This appointment represents a return to UCSF for Chesney, who has also served as the codirector of the Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, associate director of the California AIDS Research Center, and director, Behavioral Medicine and Epidemiology Core of the Center for AIDS Research at the UCSF-Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology. During her career, Chesney has conducted research on the relationship between behavior and chronic disease, particularly in identifying the behavioral factors associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and developing psychosocial interventions to address those factors. In 2007, she was named one of the outstanding women leaders by the American Psychological Association. Chesney has held national leadership positions, including president of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research, and the American Psychosomatic Society. She is also a member of the Institute of Medicine and has served on a number of its boards. AANP Names Birdsall Physician of the Year Cancer Treatment Centers of America vice president of integrative medicine, Timothy Birdsall, ND, FABNO, was honored as 2009 Physician of the Year by the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP). The award recognizes Dr Birdsall's longstanding leadership within the AANP, his legislative, policy, and research initiatives, and the visionary integration of naturopathic medicine into healthcare that he has spearheaded. “We commend Dr Birdsall's efforts to expand the role of naturopathic medicine in oncology and bring the benefits of integrative medicine to cancer patients from across the country,” said Dr Lise Alschuler, ND, FABNO, president of the AANP. Dr Birdsall oversees the unique care model at Cancer Treatment Centers of America, a growing network of destination cancer hospitals that combine the best traditional medical care to treat the cancer with scientifically supported integrative therapies to help manage side effects, strengthen the immune system, and improve each patient's quality of life. “The naturopathic profession and integrative medicine community are committed to helping more and more people—the medical community and patients alike—realize the valuable role of an integrative approach to optimize health and improve overall quality of life, in cancer treatment and beyond,” Birdsall said. The AANP Physician of the Year award is one among several national accomplishments and appointments for Dr Birdsall. In January 2008, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt appointed Dr Birdsall to serve a four-year term on the National Advisory Council for Complementary and Alternative Medicine for the National Institutes of Health. The founding editor-in-chief of Alternative Medicine Review, the first peer-reviewed medical journal edited by naturopathic physicians to be indexed on MEDLINE, Dr Birdsall is also a member of the board of directors of the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians and currently serves as chair of the American Board of Naturopathic Oncology. Institute Seeks to Reframe the Conversation About Health Founded in 2007 by Brian Berman, MD, the Institute for Integrative Health wants to reframe the conversation on health. In keeping with Berman's work over the past 20 years, the institute, a nonprofit 501(c)3, hopes to provide an environment for innovative thinking on health and healthcare, foster collaborations, and facilitate the testing and implementation of novel solutions. “There is a unique opportunity at this point in time to improve our healthcare system through an integrative approach that values mind, body, and spirit and blends complementary and conventional medicine,” said Berman. “President Obama's new administration has recognized the importance not only of healthcare reform but of the central role of prevention in containing costs and creating a sustainable system. I founded the Institute to challenge conventional thinking on health and healthcare. Our emphasis is to bring together thought leaders from multiple disciplines in order to inspire fresh perspectives and solutions.” Dr Berman, a tenured professor of family medicine and director of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Center for Integrative Medicine, has dedicated his career to evaluating the efficacy, safety, and cost effectiveness of complementary and integrative medicine. In 1991, he founded the first US academic medical center–based program for integrative medicine. One of the most highly funded National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers in the area of integrative and complementary medicine, he is currently the principal investigator of two NIH specialized center grants for the study of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and chronic disease, specifically arthritis and irritable bowel syndrome. The institute is interested in health as the means by which our society and all individuals, regardless of age or state of wellness, can realize their full potential. The first two projects—Conversations on Health and New Media for Cultural Change—focus on developing health promotion strategies and technologies, and bridging scientific knowledge with everyday life by actively engaging the public through unique outreach. Forums The institute convenes groups of thought leaders and experts across disciplines to focus on nascent areas that have the potential for generating new approaches to health education, research, or treatment. For example, institute forums and working groups are focusing on areas such as complexity science and comparative effectiveness research in an effort to broaden the available research evidence that will help patients, clinicians, and payers make better informed healthcare decisions at the individual and population level. Scholars The institute's Scholars Program was created to support internationally recognized, preeminent individuals in their pursuit of work that relates to the value of an integrative approach to healthcare. Through this program, the institute hopes to encourage bold and transformative research that is unlikely to be funded by conventional, conservative sources. Current scholars Richard Hammerschlag, PhD, Ellen Hughes, MD, PhD, and George Kaplan, PhD, are exploring topics that include an integrative approach to healthy aging, complexity science as it relates to population health, and energy medicine. Leadership/Mentoring One of the institute's goals is to nurture young health professionals by encouraging the exploration of creative paradigms that foster connections between mind, body, and spirit. Specifically, the institute seeks to rigorously test the hypothesis that mindful practices, which enhance self-awareness and self-reflection, will lead to improved patient-provider communication and better healthcare. By including today's medical students, health professionals, and young scholars in their dialogues and providing mentoring opportunities with the institute's scholars, the institute hopes to inform tomorrow's conventional wisdom regarding health and healthcare. The institute also trains current medical education leaders in the skills and qualities believed necessary to advance the research and practice of integrative health. Future plans include training in clinical settings, as well as at leadership retreats focused on managing systemic change and fostering self-awareness, compassion, and empathy. Conversations on Health The Conversations on Health series seeks to catalyze a new multidisciplinary conversation that broadens and changes fundamental questions, including the following: •What is health? •How can it be optimized? •How can healthcare be reenvisioned to meet the real healthcare needs of the nation? Through a series of dialogues with a wide range of stakeholders, the institute aims to gain new insights, map opportunities for maintaining health across the life spectrum, and increase understanding of integrative medicine, particularly as it applies to optimizing health. Twelve conversations have been held so far. A summary of the first twelve of these conversations can be found on the institute's Web site (http://www.tiih.org/projects/Conversations). SpeakHealth An unprecedented emergence of new technologies and software applications are connecting people in revolutionary ways through the use of online forums and social networking. The SpeakHealth site (http://speakhealth.org) is taking advantage of the latest developments in social networking and new media to explore how each of us think about our health and how we as a culture think about health, healthcare, and medicine. The site is essentially an expanded blog, but one in which many voices discuss many issues. SpeakHealth uses narrative video segments to build a discourse around the issue of healthcare in America. The resulting Web-based community is prompting people to reflect upon, discuss, and rethink their relationship to their own health and to healthcare overall. This project, which is a collaboration between the Institute for Integrative Health, the Imaging Research Center at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, and InfoCulture, hopes to identify new forms of media that can be effective at weaving knowledge into culture and inspiring activity. The institute is led by an executive committee, consisting of Brian Berman, MD, Susan Hartnoll Berman, Margaret Chesney, PhD, Aviad Haramati, PhD, and Rick Scott. For more information about the Institute for Integrative Health, please visit: http://www.tiih.org/projects. Matters of Note is written and compiled by Bonnie J. Horrigan, editorial director for EXPLORE and author of Voices in Integrative Medicine: Conversations and Encounters (Elsevier 2003). PII: S1550-8307(09)00371-1 doi:10.1016/j.explore.2009.11.007 © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. | |
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