Chapters 1 & 3 (Hughes) and 6 (Tart)

Well, Chapter 1 and 3 are certainly interesting. My personal definition of creativity is in agreement with Hughes. Though, the two reasoning processes (divergent and convergent) are also important when defining creativity. It is also important to recognize that the validation of that idea is crucial.

"Creativity includes not only the working out of an idea into external reality, but also its acceptance and validation by others." (Hughes, p. 11)

We often think of creativity as constructive, but Hughes argues that creativity is destructive in nature as well.

"All creativity has a destructive component, since the mold has to be broken in order to make something new." (Hughes, p. 11)

Throughout the text, Hughes embraces the idea of dualities. From the Taoist Yin/Yang to left brain/right brain dichotomy, it is clear that opposites are central to life and science.

Further, Hughes frequently makes a distinction between Western society/academics and its eastern counterpart. His explanations are clear and concise.

When we were listing altered states in class, I forgot all about MPD's! Sure we mentioned diseases, but I wasn't thinking of MPD specifically. I have always been a huge fan of the made-for-television movie Sybil (1976) starring Sally Field, which portrayed the story of Sybil Dorsett. Sybil allegedly suffered from MPD resulting from severe abuse that fragment her mind. Personally, I find MPD (reclassified as DID) the most fascinating topic. Specifically, I am interested in the relationship between trauma/sensory deprivation and mind control (which includes MPD). Hopefully, we'll have a chance to talk about it later in the semester.

Hughes text (specifically parts of Chapter 3) reminded me of something I read in a Kabbalist text. It argued that the "real world" was filtered by our five senses. This filtering process keeps us from experience true reality. Enhancing a sixth sense, enables one to tap into the "real world". I believe this.

As for Tart's Stabilization of a State of Consciousness... the methods used to stabilize a state of consciousness are all too familiar. You could easily replace the word "citizen" with "soldier". After reading Chapter 6, I did a little research on Tart and was pleasantly surprised to discover that he is a student of Aikido (a Japanese martial art). He is rather proficient in meditation as well. Certainly this adds to his credibility in my mind.