The Western Hemisphere. General term for the Americas following their discovery by Europeans, thus setting them in contradistinction to the Old World of Africa, Europe, and Asia.
Inca surgeons in ancient Peru commonly and successfully removed small portions of patients' skulls to treat head injuries, according to a new study.
The surgical procedure—known as trepanation—was most often performed on adult men, likely to treat injuries suffered during combat, researchers say.
Nice article about trepanation (skull surgery). It seems that the surgery was common to Incan men, which suggests that they bashed each others skulls a lot. They learned though, to cut around the fracture and lift out the piece of depressed skull, and relieve the pressure on the brain. Pretty nifty.
You'd think that after a while they'd learn to wear helmets or even, gasp, stop bashing each other on the head?
Boys will be boys, I guess.
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
Beagle wrote:Yo - back from supper. Actually, Min, I don't think we've learned that lesson even today.
Duh...
BTW, that the Incas did a lot of skull bashing is supported by the weaponry they used: clubs of all sizes and shapes were very prominent in their armoury.
Bart Huges (b. 1934), a medical school graduate who has never practiced medicine except for a bit of self-surgery, believes that trepanation is the way to higher consciousness. He says that he wanted to be a psychiatrist but failed the obstetrics exam and so never went into practice. In 1965, after years of experimentation with LSD, cannabis, and other drugs, Dr. Huges realized that the way to enlightenment was by boring a hole in his skull. He used an electric drill, a scalpel, and a hypodermic needle (to administer a local anesthetic). The operation took him 45 minutes. How does it feel to be enlightened? "I feel like I did when I was 14," says Huges.
What led Dr. Huges to believe that trepanation would lead to enlightenment? His first insight came when he was taught that he could get high by standing on his head. He came to believe that by permanently relieving pressure he could increase the flow of blood to the brain and achieve his goal. After he took a little mescaline he soon understood what was going on. "I recognized that the expanded consciousness was attributed to an increase in the volume of blood to the brain." How has such a simple fact eluded scientists and mystics alike for so many millennia?
In the past, trepanation was used either to relieve pressure on the brain caused by disease or trauma, or to release evil spirits. The former is still an accepted medical procedure. The latter has died out in those parts of the world where scientific understanding has replaced belief in invading demons. Huges has yet to command a large following of trepanners, but he has managed to attract a few supporters with holes in their heads. One of his most illustrious pupils was Amanda Fielding from Oxford, England, who not only lived through the filming of her self-surgery but also became a candidate for Parliament. She received 40 votes from the people of Chelsea in 1978 where she ran on the promise of free trepanation from the National Health Service.
Feilding maintains that having a hole in her head allows more oxygen to reach her brain and helps expand her consciousness. It's safer than LSD, she says, apparently convinced those are her only two options to expand her consciousness. She claims she now has more energy and inspiration, and is on a permanent natural high. She claims the trepanned are better prepared to fight neurosis and depression and less likely to become prone to alcoholism and drug addiction. One could say that she is very open-minded.
It should go without saying but it must be said anyway: trepanation is risky and can cause brain damage and infection. Also, according to Sugey Restituyo, many trepanners "later claim to have alien contacts and join the Raël movement."*
It should go without saying but it must be said anyway: trepanation is risky and can cause brain damage and infection.
Hmm, reads somewhat like the warning label: "Cape does not enable user to fly"
Being somewhat of a skeptic regarding trepination I recommend that we volunteer one of the members on this Forum for an experiment in enlightenment. Or even some former members, such as Arch. Michelle, does this fit within our guidelines?
"Volunteer" is a French word and means "he who loses the toss."
Something is wrong here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption, and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is not good work. If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed.
