Vixen_Poetic

Now that we've all had our say about genetics and nutrition, let's look again at your question. At age 14 you are wondering if you will put on another 4 inches. I think your current growth pattern practicly assures it. It's likely that you will continue growing for the next 4 to 6 years and the growth spurts that should occur every 6 to 9 months should give you 1/2 an inch to 1 1/2 inches each time. So don't worry. Just eat right, especially proteins and dairy products, stay active and you'll be fine.

I've got news for you, vijeth. Yes, there is a lot of encoding in the genes but without proper nutrition they won't express properly. And those limits they set are not as hard and fast a rule as you think. First example: The japanese are known for being short even today. The average american steps off the plane over there and sees a sea of black hair. But the japanese that have emigrated to america have children, and those children grow up to dwarf their parents. The genes didn't change, the diet did. Second example: Polynesians are known for being tall and bulky, but their recorded history says they used to be taller. What changed was their diet. As trade with the continental united states and other nations increased their usual diet changed as did their usual height. They even started having diet related problems in greater percentages than those caucasians with similar diets. A few years ago the governor of hawaii tested out a diet that claimed to adress those issues by returning to the original diet of the islands; fruits, taro root, fish, etc. He put the entire governor's mansion staff on it by having it catered morning noon and night, and it worked. The overweight staff were dropping pounds and feeling great doing it. The 'I just need to watch what I eat' diabetics didn't anymore, those on insulin either required less or were off it completely. Last example: Teeth. A researcher wanted to see how much genes had to say about how teeth formed, I think that was what he was looking for. What he found was that contry folk rased in the country had teeth like their folk (if also raised in the country) but when they moved to the city their children raised there had weak and misaligned teeth in comparison to their parents. But in cases where those children moved back to the country the children they raised there had teeth like their grandparents, strong even and well spaced. Adequate and even excellent nutrition can have a great deal of impact on how we grow, our genes determine when we grow.

Thank you for your contribution, jjaenagle. That is an interesting, even evocative, question and we could all do with asking it of ourselves. I have met many who do and too many who don't, but claim to.

That is weird. Not your eyes. For me looking at a picture of what I saw in the mirror every morning growing up. The point is that way back then I asked my sister the same question (she was into make-up and I wasn't so much) and she had a make-up solution. She pulled out this handy color chart thing she had gotten from one of these mail-order make-up places and dialed in the various factors; skin tone, hair color, and eye color. Except when it came to eye color instead of dialing up hazel she set it for brown eyes and used those colors. It worked, it brought out the amber center. As I recall the colors were bronze and ochre variants. I guess the real point is that there is a make-up solution for your question. You could experiment with those colors to find something that works but for your best colors you should probably find a make-up artist or find one of those color wheels. Or both.

I've heard of two factors that can affect growth: activity and nutrition. Firstly, if your body doesn't have good building blocks for bones, tissue and nerves when the next growth spurt happens, well, it won't. Second, staying active is important to your body; if you don't use muscle you don't build more, or worse lose what you've got, or if your bones don't take some impact, some strain, some use, your body doesn't see a need for strong bones. A cousin of mine, told by a doctor that he was going to be short, said 'not if I have anything to say about it' and did weight training. He gained two inches more than the doctor said he would get.

Saitunes, something you said bothers me. It's right here: Since 99.9% (and more) of the people who have ever lived did not have the opportunity to do great, world changing things like Ghandi or Mother Teresa, is it even fair to judge those who, lacking the opportunity for visible greatness, just did what they could each day for those around them on the same scale of accomplishments?

Nintendo has lost the console wars!Nintendo is dead!Long live Nintendo!LOL, when I first read this I was sure it was a joke, but, darn it, it makes too much sense. The Wii-mote is all about instinctive interaction, what better way to use it than in tasks that require full concentration.

One thing, Wetton, the pig's bladder. What they are extracting from it is not stem cells but the matrix that makes up the wall of the organ. Like the way they used to use the intestines of an animal for sausages. What is really cool about this is that they are giving the body a matrix on which to regrow the cells instead of forming scar tissue where the slower forming cellular matrix isn't anymore. The science of it shows that the body has the ability to regenerate so long as it has a 'scaffolding' to build it on. And, guess what? they can grow differentiated organ structures in test tubes. I remember there was a breakthrough a few years back where they grew a functioning aorta valve.

That's great, cybermarkie. Now what do you believe about God or any other facet of your personal faith? Just saying that you are a jehovah's witness is just like saying someone else saying they are catholic, episcopalian or protestant. It tells us very little about what personal philosophy or belief gets you up in the morning or helps you sleep at night.

I didn't grow up disabled, I grew up about as healthy and normal, physically, as could be. I was socially challenged: I watched what my peers were doing and couldn't help but think 'how idiotic' or 'how demeaning'. But I watched. I had a friend when I was young who fit that description; glasses, hearing aid and speech problems. Serious speech problems: continual exposure to her allowed me to adjust to understand her but after being seperated for a few years that ability was gone. She was ostracized by the rest of the class, which was a pity, she was a really sweet and sincere girl. Then I ended up in the outcast group in high school and it included a girl who had been born without legs from the knees down. She was not a nice girl, she wasn't nasty either, more self-absorbed. Between her disability and her father's money(lawyer I think) she assumed that what she wanted would be provided, and she wasn't in the habit of listening to other people.My husband grew up at a time when they didn't understand dyslexia or ADHD. He knew he was different but he was different physically too, so he was all just different. And besides, ADHD was a tendency of his Mother's family so he was normal for his family. He made friends and had fun, he's a really social guy. He's mostly gotten past the mild dyslexia but the ADHD is still a problem.Now we have a son who is autistic, and for a lot of his life since the onset he has seemed unaware that there is any real difference between him and his peers, and a more cheerful happy boy would be difficult to find, unless it's his brother with ADHD. For my autistic boy everything is dramatic. If something goes wrong it's a tragedy, when it gets fixed it's a reason to cheer and hugs all 'round. Has it been dificult for him? Yes, he gets teased by some but he has protective older and younger brothers who won't put up with that kind of behavior and will take all of them somewhere else to play if some of the not-so-nice kids around here get nasty. But has it been difficult for him? I think that while it has been more difficult I don't think he has been aware of how much more difficult it has been, for him his daily schedule and differences are a 'ground state' sort of 'just the way it is' for him.

I truly sympathize, Grace. My son has been lucky to have some really good teachers helping him learn in spite of his autism. By all means bring in as many autism knowledgeble people to help you and your son as you feel you need. Just be aware that for all you do you may not get things straightened out right now, or even in time to help your son this school year (and if there's serious resistance, next year). But if you keep prodding at this problem and maintain your documentation you may get some attitudes adjusted in time for another kid and parent about to go through the same system. And when he changes schools, as he will eventually, you'll have a true record of his problems for his next teacher.

Firstly, Yes!! Go see a choripractor! The one my mother trusts uses an x-ray machine for an initial look at the problem before making any blanket prognosies or begining work on an unfamiliar unhealthy back. At least as I recall he does, it has been years. Secondly, You need to find good instruction or literature about non-harmful stretches and good posture. For non-harmful stretches I recomend a book called Surviving Exercise I think it's by Judy Adler. For good posture the only book I know of is Exercise Without Exercising Its an oldie and hard to plow through but good posture is important for keeping your muscles in condition to keep your spine in line, if that is your particular problem. A neighbor of mine with chronic bad back pain due to a real medical problem in her spine after using the stretches in Surviving Exercise that were specificly for properly stretching the back experienced a significant reduction in her back pain. So get your problem checked out and fixed and then do what you need to to keep it from becoming a problem again.

This is a tricky subject. The arguements surrounding stuff like this stems from competing philosophies concerning what our objective is in locking someone up. Are we getting a danger to society off the steets and remaking them into a contributing member of society or are we insisting that someone who has offended society's rules repay society with enforced work to benefit society. The guiding philosophy for incarcerations used to be the latter but we found that there was a percentage of hardcases for whom the rough treatment they recieved only turned their anti-social issues into a hard shell of victimhood or justification for continuing their behavior when they were let out. Meanwhile the rough conditions of prison life were a serious deterrent for more mentally stable or less desperate folk. And then book learned psychologists got involved and these 'squeeky wheel' hardcases for which the system wasn't working got an excessive amount of attention and the psycological reasoning changed and with it the incarceration conditions. And now we have a new problem, prison conditions are no longer a deterent from crime. The problem is that the role of government in society is to protect it from anyone that would do it harm, from people to communities, and they have forgotten that by commiting crimes against people and communities these criminals have removed themselves from the orginization called society. Another problem they have been trying to address is the large number of people who go into prison with few job qualifications and come out with less feeding the cycle of desperation. However, training programs do not require the resort living they are gifting their convicts with.

You think local speed will still be an issue? Of course it will... for now. First the businesses/orginizations that it will prove most useful to have to pay the prices that pay for the research and setup. And the hardware that can use it effectively. After that the prices will come down and it will further spread out in to the private sector. So don't despair, just be patient.

Now that is l337. And hey, its a working MODEL of a tank with plywood siding etc. So yes, it could give people a bit of a scare but any person with a working brain is going to chuckle and give him a literal or mental hi-five and get on with their day hopefully smiling a bit more than they were before.

Of course they've blocked such inflamatory sites as youtube and foreign news services. Their power stems from control of a populace that doesn't know it has power to change things. Let the common people get the idea that they can choose not to live the way they do, or put up with a government that does what theirs does and nothing could stop them from revolting not even mass murder. And their communist government knows it and it knows that the world will only tolerate a certain level of internal unrest in such a major economic player before they step in, quietly, to resolve the problem.

As I've been reading others posts, and contemplating the post I knew I would be making(am making now) it seemed only apropriate that these ruminations occured while listening to General Conference. For those who know or care to look up that reveals what religeon I belong too, but be warned what I am about to type is more analytical and definately not how it is written as doctrine of my faith. To have an idea of where we are going we need to look at where we come from. The ascent of man in the scientific record is a thoery that has several broken links that while time has served to connect several disjunctions has not as yet been sufficient to fully link the chain. Also, when the latest knowledge of our genetic family tree is laid next to other succesful species it looks suspiciously pruned. I limit it to succesful species because there is no denying the human family is an evolutionary success. Other species with world spanning populations such as cats, dogs, rabbits and foxes (again I only reference species that have been successes without human caretaking, most have been influenced by humanity but have their successes without us) have many branches, many subspecies with significant differences reaching back to branchings tracable though the eons. Ours looks peculiarly linear, at each tracable branching it gets a pruning at that or a branching later, as if there was only one viable strain being preserved, again a pattern that fits a failing species not a vibrant one. Darwinism says that natural selection will breed a species fit to rule the niche it tries to fill. Chaos theory as aplied to Darwinism says that the parts of a wind up watch put in a bag and shook will eventually result in an assembled working watch. That's a bit of an aproximation but essentially what it means; With all the right parts in the right place the result will be - eventually - order. The problem is that without something nudging things in the right way at the right time, a pile of parts will not make a watch, a bundle of amino acids will not make an animal. Yes, meet my reasoning for intelligent design. Something wanted this world to become the way it is, with green growth, crawly bitey things, running digging things and flying things. That 'something' took a species with marginal succesful survival traits and nurtured it through the ages to become the dominant species on the earth. Why would anyone, any intelligence, spend eons tending this garden? I see two possibilities, the cyinical view or the social view; either we are an experiment, a petri dish tended by a scientist, or a father has prepared a home for his family. Now, we come to recorded history(and re-recorded, and re-recorded) even though most of it is religeous history. Though the tales told by the Bible follow one family's journey through the treacherous shoals of history it also communicates plainly that the 'chosen people' were not the only people, just the only ones that were guided by God and kept a record that survived to spread throughout the world. It is no surprise that all this happened in the region know as the cradle of civilization; it held a combination of ideal factors conducive to the survival of any social species. Yes, that view assumes that the intelligence guiding the development of the species of man is the 'God the Father' of the bible. It fits the profile of what can be deduced by the pattern seen developing in scientific history. There were many times in human history where the entirety seemed about to implode under it's own weight or explode itself into ity-bity bits, and several of those turning points were marked by someone stepping up and returning reason to the procedings or by a group picking up all they hold most dear and fleeing the impending destruction. So, understanding that any record is corrrupted from true by the bias inherent in the viewpoint of the authors and the subsequent translators/re-interpreters, we still extract from these and other records that there is a God, a Supreme Being, that established a place for the Human Family to dwell. Now we come to why; why was such a place needed? Well, why does any father of any species create a space, feather a nest, organize an inhabitation? To propogate, to raise up the next generation, to bring about more running furry things and feathered flying things etc. But there is an apparent disconnect here. He acts like a father, yet our lineage is traceable back to the cro-magnon/neanderthal era. And to all apearances it ends when we return to the dust. Something is going on here that we can't see. Like the first glimpse through a microscope revealed bacteria, we need something to alter our ability to percieve in a way that can reveal more. But it doesn't exist, all that is left to us is our ability to reason and what few records remain. Why would an omnipotent being be protective and patient with such an obstinant group? The only possible social answer is that he is our Father in a way that is not quantifiable by scientific measure. No amount of scientific measuring has been able to confirm that there is a spirit that separates from the body at death though there are scientific measures to suggest it, and many a personal account to confirm it. Those of a Jungian psycological bent would say that Near Death Experiences and Out-of-Body flights are a manifestation of the collective unconscious in a dream-like state. It doesn't explain why, with many varied cultures and views of death and afterworlds, these experiences encompass the globe in their amazing similarities. So, with conjunctive evidences and a lack of contradictory evidence, let us base our further reasonings (though some would call them flights of fancy) upon this idea that is stated in the Bible, that God is the father of our spirits. I wish to take a few moments to point out the diferences in maternal instincts and paternal instincts. The mother of a newborn, with a natural affection, has loved the child of her womb for months before she ever sees it's little scrunched face or wiggly arms and legs. The father posessed of natural affection, on the other hand, loves the mother. He has little personal affection for this baby as an individual, but as a part of his beloved, as someone she loves with all her heart, from that perspective the baby is precious. A personal attatchment will grow in the father as the baby grows into a distinct individual with whom he can then connect. Yes, there are blurring of those lines in individual examples, but in general this social order holds true. Bearing that in mind, the idea forms that there was experiences enough before we were born into mortal forms for God to get to know us as individuals. If it were a matter of spirit stuff being formed and stuffed straight into a mortal shell we would have a religeous history of a mother goddess getting to know us even as we get to know ourselves. So, knowing a father's care for the future of his offspring, we are here in a mortal shell learning what we do of Him and life because it is the best place for us to develop, like a child sent to school. So, what does that say about our future, after this classroom called life? Our spirits will survive our mortal deaths. We will form new associations and renew old ones. We will help each other to cope with the new understanding of reality we will have having shed the liability of an imperfect body. And if we can grow and learn from that experience we will have a chance at being an adult member of our species. Like a pupa becomes a catepillar and a catepillar becomes a butterfly, there may be many seasons to our development but the butterfly is in our future.

It is probably, though only a doctor could tell you for certain, REM paralysis. Sometimes while dreaming I also would wake up, usually because the dream was about spiders - a particular phobia of mine. Now I wasn't listening to my heart or my breathing, I was holding perfectly still because in those dream-ridden moments I was certain that there was something vile in the darkness that would pounce if I made a single movement or sound. If you are particularly worried about dying in your sleep that might be what is causing your problems. Now a few words about Sleep Apnea. The danger of Sleep Apnea is that when the throat closes enough to deny sufficient oxygen to the lungs the heart works extra hard to extract the oxygen it can. A long enough time without air and the brain will wake the body up long enough to get a breath. Mild Sleep Apnea means your body isn't really getting rest. Full blown Sleep Apnea is like your heart ran a marathon while you slipped in and out of sleep.

There was a short quip I read years ago in an Analog magazine, semi relevant but funny; Have you ever seen the show Survivorman or Man vs. Wild? The special need of the body for water comes up often including the additional information that a sufficiently water-saturated plant, if it's a safe plant, can allieviate some of the dehydration. Also interesting about Survivorman is that while the Canadian host is knowledgeble and capable of survival in most any environment, deserts kick his butt. For him it always comes down to not enough water in the environment to avoid dehydration. And that was even in winter when dew pools could be found. For a real answer check out a first-aid or a 'what to do in an emergency' site.

Mrdee has some good advice; don't break your budget to indulge your hobby and find a style that fits you. I learned okenawan kempo many years ago and it only sort of fit me. My best friends of the last several years studied tae kwon do and for some of them the high stances and the flying-through-the-air techniques worked great and were fun, but one of them was built by nature to have difficulty leaving the ground and while he worked hard bad knees and large bones hindered his advancement. As you have already enjoyed wrestling, when you are talking to senseis about what they teach get their opinion on judo. If they scoff at it they will also downplay your wrestling background. If possible get a teacher who will teach judo as well when your class advances, or you advance, to that level of skill.

Firstly, those are all good suggestions by mrdee with one exception, the keys between the fingers is a bad idea. This was explained to my class by a peace officer, if anything goes wrong with your punch those keys can turn and damage the webbing between your fingers. As for items held in the fist to lend weight and a more solid impact keys can work, most lighters are too light except the metal ones, a roll of coins work well as does a fistful of loose change.Secondly, don't bet on the keys-on-a-chain being easier to learn to use effectively than the kubaton(whatever it's spelling) that your instructor has. Any flail weapon (chain, nunchuku, whip, etc.) takes considerable skill to use effectively. Even the best masters with nunchuku when swinging it around experience a moment where they have no control over what it will do, they can only set it in motion, let physics do it's thing and hope that it doesn't do something unexpected but not be surprised if it does. The smartest person I know wore a motorcycle helmet while practicing nunchuku. Before you feel confident swinging keys around try swinging a yoyo around(shorten the string to the length you expect to use) and see how it feels. Now a short stick is more readily controlled and can be used for more than presure points. It can lend solidity to your punch, it can be used to help trap a joint(also where many pressure points are), use the end(even a blund end) to strike any limb and it can leave a near instantaneous deep bruise inhibiting their ability to use it. But how to justify carrying a 5 to 6 inch stick even as a key chain? You could look into a clear strong plastic resin half cylinder used for magnifying lines of words on a page, maybe on a site for those with nearsighted problems. Get creative and think outside the box.Lastly, some of the advice I gave my son a few years back when he was having problems with bullies. Learn to use your elbows and knees to strike. Get inside their punches and use your weight to control where they are, assuming you have some weight; if you don't have weight on your side then you will retain more maneuverability in close quarters than your opponent. Learn to tangle up opponents' legs and put them on the ground. In a rough fight you will almost certainly end up on the ground at some point, at that time they have an advantage and time to strike while you stand up, so don't stand up until they are also on the ground or out of arms(and legs) reach. And speaking of falling, learn to fall in such a manner as to distribute the impact with the ground and then practice it; you will need this as a reflexive reaction for when you find yourself falling. It worked for him, I hope it helps you. But with these tecniques you will need to know how to take knives and guns away from opponents. Speak with your teacher about your specific concerns and he should be able to help you with more focused training when your skills are such that you could learn to use those tecniques effectively.Good luck.

It was almost certainly not coincidence. Prayer is the most important contact a person can have with God. It is through our prayer and our faith that we allow Him to bless our lives. Check out the General Epistle of James chapter 1 verses 5 and 6 for a specific answer to your question.

I can't give you an answer about advocacy groups, but chances are if your son's teacher doesn't want to cooperate by documenting his behavior no rule can make him. However you should have the right to request and get a meeting of the IEP team, which includes a representative of the principal, to discuss your concerns. Take copies of those emails and any other statements that people who have had a problem with your son are willing to write for you to that meeting to present as proof of a gap between their documentation and reality. But remember that your focus, your purpose must always be, and always appear to be, getting your son the help he needs. If you go into this with an appearance of petty revenge or wanting things done your way you'll get little traction or sympathy. Keep the focus on your son and be willing to be flexible about how his needs are met and you're more likely to see the resistance you've been experiencing evaporate.

Thank you, Michael, that helps a lot. Yes, I am looking for foods that are high in estrogen to help my mother to stay away from them, if she'll cooperate. It probably will take the doctor confirming the need for these lists for her to listen. It hadn't occured to me to look into foods that reduce estrogen as well. Repeating some of your google searches led me to a site about how copper can keep estrogen levels high. Also new information to me. Magnesium, B6 and high fiber. Again, thanks Michael.

Here's one you should all recognize, I hope. I wanted it to change my life but it was not efficacious until I came across something someone said here on Xisto, Between them they did change my life.