Crossing Over: How Science is Redefining Life and Death
Article Summary
This article discusses the idea of death being reversible and what scientists are learning about the gray zone between life and death. Research and experiments are being completed to seek out explanations for near death experiences, how is it happening, why is it happening to only some people in similar instances, and what is it that we can do to reproduce this effect?
According to biologist Mark Roth of Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, oxygen is plays an inconsistent role along border between life and death. Scientists have recognized oxygen to be an essential characteristic of life, Roth says that is in a nonbinary way. You can take away oxygen, and life is no longer present; but, if you further reduce the oxygen, there is a suspended life. Roth has completed research on soil nematodes, which are alive in air with as little as .05 percent oxygen and are dead if you reduce the oxygen to 0.1 percent. But if you proceed quickly to a much lower oxygen, these worms enter a state of suspension where they need significally less oxygen to survive. In biology the less something moves, the longer it tends to live, it is hoped to develop a way to create immorality in a person for a moment – a moment they most need it.
The article continues with other research scientists are completing in this area. In India neuroscientist, Richard Davidson studies Buddhist monks in a state called tukdam. During this meditation biological signs of life have ceased yet the body appears fresh and intact for a week or more. Davidson’s goal is to see if he can detect brain activity in these monks, hoping to learn what happens to the mind after circulation st...
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...ore functions. The article taught me that death is a process, not a moment; the brain loses its function within the first four to five minutes, heart and kidney shut down within thirty minutes, the liver after one to two hours and the lungs stop after two to four hours.
Glossary
nonbinary - relating to, using, or denoting a system of numerical notation that does not have 2 as a base (Webster Merriam Dictionary). soil nematodes - any of a phylum (Nematoda or Nemata) of elongated cylindrical worms parasitic in animals or plants or free-living in soil or water —called also roundworm (Webster Merriam Dictionary). tukdam - in Tibetan it means intermediate state meditation or dying meditation, ground luminosity. It is a meditation between death and birth in which the mind rest for moment in its very inherent natural state of reality (Webster Merriam Online Dictionary).
Mortality, the subject of death, has been a curious topic to scholars, writers, and the common man. Each with their own opinion and beliefs. My personal belief is that one should accept mortality for what it is and not go against it.
If death is really real, based upon the animistic quality of our five physical senses, then how do we know that we are truly alive and breathing, not in a dream? It has been proposed that people aware the existence of surroundings majorly rely on their five senses, which may cause illusions. The ethereal, yet grounded, theory of existentialism provides the landscape for a more positively identified pathway which reaches across the separation exists among humans.
Life After Life, by Raymond A Moody Jr, M.D., is an account of Dr. Moody’s research of near death experiences (NDE). Dr. Moody has a Ph.D. in philosophy and a medical degree. This scientific discipline provided a path for him to document his findings. His intent was to draw attention to a phenomenon of NDE. He accounts it was “very widespread and very well-hidden, and at the same time, help create a more receptive public attitude toward it” (Moody Jr, MD, 2015, p. xix). As the modern Western world moved into the twentieth century, so did the scientific discipline of medical science. This allowed a transition of individuals dying at home, to dying within the confines of the hospital under the care of medical professionals. He interviewed
Underlying each of these claims is the theme of the unification of body and mind into a state of consciousness which greatly facilitates clarity and order in one's awareness. Through the deep periods of rest achieved during levels of transcendental consciousness, t...
According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, death is referred to the permanent cessation of all
The concept between life and death cannot simply exist without one another, where the topic is widely discussed throughout “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanithi. This memoir explores Paul’s definition of death as he passes through the distinct “stages” of his life. As Paul progresses through each stage, he views death differently as he transformed from a student to a neurosurgeon, neurosurgeon to a patient, and eventually becoming a father, where he needed to take full responsibility as an adult.
There are many phenomena present in today’s world concerning both life and death. An extraordinary incorporation of these prominent values is a Near Death Experience (NDE). Near Death Experiences empower and affect the psyche of many, changing their lives forever and altering their perception of death. Many questions arise from this particular topic simply because you have to experience it to fully understand its meaning. Questions such as, What is it, What happens, and how do they occur are familiar to experts in this field or to the people who have first hand experience.
Western medicine has recently discovered the powerful affects of meditation, by allowing doctors to treat the body and the mind. In reality, the mind is a very misunderstood and unexplored region of the human existence. Modern science knows more about the composition of the earth than it does about the mechanics of the human brain. Yet, meditation thwarts all notions of modern medicine with its shocking ability to to take obscure visualizations and create physical responses in the body. Mahayana Buddhism, found mainly in the autonomous region of Tibet, has become the main reference and standard for meditation practices in the west. Tibetans have used meditation for centuries as treatment for illness, and now, modern medicine of the western world is just beginning to reap the benefits of this unique and unconventional treatment for a variety of physical and mental ailments. Once a practice reserved strictly for Buddhist monks, meditation has become a worldwide phenomenon. Simply enter “Buddhist meditation” into the any Inter...
One thing that we often hear is that “death is just a part of life.” So often in our day and age do we hear people utter these words. However, death is far more significant and impactful than some would allege. True death is not merely a time when we cease to exist; it is an entombment, a mindset in which we are dead to this world. Throughout our lives, it is true that we can all be dead in one way or another, but it does not have to be that way. When we have our eyes opened to what death actually is, it is far easier to grasp what the true meaning of life is, and to embrace it. Often, we will come across individuals who are enveloped in death and others who are immersed in true life. The shadow of death and entombment lies upon some, encompassing
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These two thought provoking stories take widely separate approaches on the idea of death. One being
Story, Francis. "Buddhist Meditation." Access to Insight: Readings in Theravada Buddhism. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.
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I was very excited to take Death and Dying as a college level course. Firstly, because I have always had a huge interest in death, but it coincides with a fear surrounding it. I love the opportunity to write this paper because I can delve into my own experiences and beliefs around death and dying and perhaps really establish a clear personal perspective and how I can relate to others in a professional setting.
The abstract idea of life cannot be explained by such simple ideas as being animated, breathing, or speaking. Ordinary machines in this century can perform all of these basic functions. The quandary with defining death is not as abstract and elusive as that of life. The problem of defining life and death has plagued philosophers and the religious bodies for thousands of years for one reason; each philosophy or religion has tried to define the meaning of life and death from only their certain perspective. The seemingly appropriate approach to this problem would be to understand the ideas presented in various philosophies and religions and through this knowledge create a new definition for each idea of life and death. The movie Blade Runner has taken this exact approach in its attempt to finally define life and death in a logical and un-spiritual manner. By taking the position that death is a concrete idea that can be explained, Blade Runner accomplishes the task of interpreting the idea of life in terms death. Through this approach, the meaning of life is redefined to accommodate for the existence of the replicants. Also, as a result of this novel notion of life, it is apparent that humans and replicants never actually live, even though they are alive.