Promising stricter consumer financial protections and "no more taxpayer-funded bailouts period," President Barack Obama this morning signed into law a hard-fought financial regulatory measure that is being touted as "the most sweeping financial regulatory overhaul since the Great Depression," according to MSNBC.

WASHINGTON U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law the most sweeping financial regulatory overhaul since the Great Depression Wednesday, saying that the new laws will foster innovation, not hamper it.

Speaking at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., Wednesday morning, Obama noted that over the past two years the nation has faced the worst recession since the Great Depression, with millions of Americans losing their jobs and watching the value of their retirement savings decline.

The primary cause was a breakdown in our financial system, Obama said. For years, the U.S. financial system was governed by antiquated rules, he said. Rules left abuse unchecked and taxpayers on the hook if a financial institution failed.

There will be no more tax-funded bailouts ... period, Obama added, and he noted that lawmakers will still need to make adjustments to the rules as the financial system adapts to the changes.

For an in-depth overview of the specific measures contained in the bill, check out the Senate Banking Committee summary (PDF).

President Obama's full statement can be read beneath the fold.

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Interesting. Check out that old photo.

Location of the Long Beach Oil Field in the context of the Los Angeles Basin and Southern California. Other oil fields are shown in dark gray.

The Long Beach Oil Field is a large oil field underneath the cities of Long Beach and Signal Hill, California, in the United States. Discovered in 1921, the field was enormously productive in the 1920s, with hundreds of oil derricks covering Signal Hill and adjacent parts of Long Beach; largely due to the huge output of this field, the Los Angeles Basin produced one-fifth of the nation's oil supply during the early 1920s. In 1923 alone the field produced over 68 million barrels of oil, and in barrels produced by surface area, the field was the world's richest.^[1][2][3] The field is eighth-largest by cumulative production in California, and although now largely depleted, still officially retains around 5 million barrels of recoverable oil out of its original 950 million. 294 wells remained in operation as of the beginning of 2008, and in 2008 the field reported production of over 1.5 million barrels of oil.^[4] The field is currently run entirely by small independent oil companies, with the largest operator in 2009 being Signal Hill Petroleum, Inc.^[5][6]

[edit] Setting

Detail of the Long Beach field, on an aerial photograph base, showing its position within Long Beach and surrounding communities.

The Long Beach field is one of many in the Los Angeles Basin now largely overbuilt with dense urban development. Even with the dramatic land use changes over the decades since its discovery, it remains moderately productive, with oil wells and oilfield infrastructure intermixed with commercial and residential development. The field underlies the northern portion of the city of Long Beach and most of the city of Signal Hill. In spite of its name, most of the productive area of the field underlies the small city of Signal Hill, which has a population of around 11,000. The main productive area of the field runs from northwest to southeast, about five miles long by one across, with the long axis following the Cherry Hill Fault Zone, which is part of the larger Newport-Inglewood Fault Zone, the most significant fault zone traversing the Los Angeles Basin.^[7] In the northwest, the oil field begins approximately near the junction of the San Diego Freeway (I-405) and the 710 (the Long Beach Freeway), and proceeds roughly paralleling the 405 freeway to near the intersection of Lakewood Boulevard and California State Route 1 (the Pacific Coast Highway) at their traffic circle in Long Beach. A small portion of the field, no longer productive, is in the city of Lakewood, and another small isolated part of the field, the "Recreation Park Area", lies to the southeast of the main field. The total productive area of the entire field is 1,725 acres.^[8]

Unlike some of the oil fields in downtown Los Angeles, the adjacent Mid-City area, and Beverly Hills, which hide their oil wells inside soundproofed, windowless enclosures, attempting to be as invisible as possible, most of the wells in the Long Beach field use normal above-ground pumpjacks, sometimes behind walls or inside of fenced enclosures, but also scattered through the community in parking lots, in freeway cloverleaf medians, vacant lots, and other empty spaces.^[7] Typically, residential structures are not immediately adjacent to wells. Also differentiating this field from the completely urbanized oil fields nearer to downtown, most wells are drilled vertically rather than directionally from drilling enclosures.

Climate in the area is Mediterranean, with cool rainy winters and mild summers, with the heat moderated by morning fog and low clouds. Drainage is by municipal storm drains into the Los Angeles River to the west, and the San Gabriel River to the east, both of which flow south into San Pedro Bay in the Pacific Ocean. As the area is largely urbanized, few areas of native vegetation and wildlife habitat remain.

[edit] Geology

The Long Beach field is one of many prolific oil fields along the Newport-Inglewood Fault zone, which includes the enormous Huntington Beach Oil Field on the south, the Seal Beach Oil Field, the Long Beach field, and to the northwest of that the Dominguez, Rosecrans, and Inglewood fields.

The main portion of the Long Beach field is an anticlinal structure paralleling the fault zone, with Signal Hill being its surface expression. Oil, which rises to the surface unless something is in the way, is trapped underneath impermeable units, in a series of oil bearing formations alternating with impermeable ones, like layers on a cake, but folded to form a long, narrow hill. The Long Beach field is notable for the thickness and depth of its oil-bearing formations; successively deeper wells continued to find oil even as late as the 1950s, with the deepest well finally hitting the basement rocks of the Catalina Schist at 14,950 feet below ground surface.^[9][7]

Within the main area of the Long Beach field, seven separate pools have been defined, ranging in depth from around 2,000 feet to over 7,500 feet. The thickness of the oil-bearing units was extraordinary, and largely accounted for the field's unusual standing as being the richest field by oil extracted per acre in the world, at least in the 1920s and 1930s.^[10][11] Primary productive geologic units in the field are the Pliocene-age Repetto Formation and the Miocene Puente Formation. Both of these porous units are richly oil-bearing elsewhere in the Los Angeles Basin as well, anywhere that oil can collect due to a combination of stratigraphic and structural traps.

Oil from the Long Beach field tends to be medium- to heavy-grade, with API gravity ranging from 14 to 30, and sulfur content relatively high at 2 to 3 percent by weight.^[12]

[edit] History, production, and operations

Signal Hill c1923

Oil was known in the Los Angeles basin since prehistoric times, as the La Brea Tar Pits are a surface expression of the Salt Lake Oil Field; crude oil seeps to the surface along a fault, biodegrading to asphalt. The native inhabitants of the region used the tar for many purposes, including as a sealant, and the first European settlers found similar uses. In the mid-19th century, oil had become a valuable commodity as an energy source, commencing a period of exploration and discovery for the sources of the substance. By the 1890s, prospectors were drilling for oil in the basin, and in 1893 the first large field the Los Angeles City Oil Field, adjacent and underneath the then-small city of Los Angeles became the largest oil producer in the state. Oil companies began finding other rich fields not far away, such as the Beverly Hills and Salt Lake fields. Attention shifted to Kern County in the first two decades of the 20th century, as the super-giant fields there were discovered one at a time.

The Long Beach field was one of several significant oil discoveries in the Los Angeles basin and adjoining area in the 1920s, and by far the most productive. In 1920 drillers found the Huntington Beach field; in 1921 both the Santa Fe Springs field and the Long Beach field; and the others along the Newport-Inglewood Fault zone followed quickly after, with the Dominguez field in 1923, and the Inglewood and Rosecrans fields in 1924.^[13][2] When the discovery well was drilled, the Signal Hill area was already being developed with residences, as the hill offered a commanding view of the harbor area to the south. Initially, the Shell Oil geologists opposed drilling on the hill, as competitor Union Oil had tried and failed to find oil there just four years earlier, and they were unwilling to risk a repeat of the series of costly failures that had plagued them recently at the Ventura field. Yet the discovery well, Alamitos No. 1 (now a historical landmark at the corner of East Hill Street and Temple Ave.) blew in as a tremendous gusher on June 25, 1921.^[10][14]

In the 1920s there were few regulations on well spacing, and Signal Hill sold narrow town lots which were quickly bought up by would-be oil millionaires, who put in wells that were virtually touching each other; in spite of this close spacing, most were profitable, although they drained the field quickly. Signal Hill became known as "Porcupine Hill" for its prickly appearance at a distance, covered with hundreds of wooden oil derricks (the low "nodding-donkey" pumpjack was yet to be invented). By 1923 the production from the field had become so abundant that oil from the Los Angeles Basin accounted for fully twenty percent of the entire world output. ^[15] 1923 was the peak year for production from the field, and that also coincided with the peak for production from the entire Los Angeles basin; in spite of large discoveries in the 1930s, including the nearby Wilmington field, fourth-largest in the nation, production never again attained that level. The price of oil had risen steeply, from $0.64/barrel in 1916 to $3.07 in 1920, largely because of the enormous increase in the number of automobiles on the roads during that time the number of cars had tripled.^[16]

Production slowed during the Great Depression, as the price of oil dropped with the demand, and the discovery of huge new fields not only in the Los Angeles Basin, but in Oklahoma and Texas, put a glut of petroleum on the market.^[17]

By 1950 the field was third in the United States in overall output, with a cumulative production of 750 million barrels of oil. Ahead of it were only the giant East Texas and Midway-Sunset fields.^[18] As production began to decline, and the technology became available, several waterflooding programs began, with the first in 1964 in the "Brown" horizon of the Repetto Formation. The goal was both to increase the flow of oil to production wells, and to replace the fluids pumped out of the reservoir in order to prevent subsidence, such as had occurred over the Wilmington field to the south.^[19]

In the 1980s and 1990s, Barto Enterprises, the ancestor of Signal Hill Petroleum, acquired many of the local assets of the large oil companies ARCO, Shell, Mobil, Texaco, and others that had previously been major operators on the Long Beach field (most of the majors moved out of the Los Angeles Basin during that time, seeking easier opportunities elsewhere; most present-day operators are small to medium-sized independents). As of 2009, Signal Hill Petroleum operated more than 90% of the wells on the field, as well as several enhanced recovery projects, including the waterflooding program.^[20]

WASHINGTON Consumers are having second thoughts about the recovery.

Shoppers are losing confidence, becoming more concerned about low pay and a weak job market than about bargains. And their worries are threatening to drag down the economy.

A report released Friday showed that consumer confidence fell in July to its lowest point in nearly a year. A volatile stock market, near-double-digit unemployment, lackluster wage gains and a stalled housing market have raised fears that the recovery is on the verge of stalling.

Americans reacted by clamping down on their spending in May and June. Many cut back after the stock market lost about 10 percent of its value over the past three months, as Europe's debt crisis shook Wall Street. The resulting loss of household wealth has left many Americans less inclined to spend.

Retail sales were weak this spring and probably slowed growth in the second quarter. Consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of growth.

With unemployment at 9.5 percent, shoppers are likely to stay frugal in the coming months. If they retrench sharply, businesses could cut back on hiring. Potentially, the economy could slip back into recession. The odds of that happening, while still low, have risen in the past three months, economists said.

"Consumers are hitting their reset button now after they were pretty engaged in their spending earlier this year," said Brian Bethune, economist at IHS Global Insight. "People are saying, 'Time out. The economy isn't progressing the way we thought it would.'"

Their confidence isn't likely to brighten this summer. The index of consumer sentiment sank to 66.5 in early July, from 76, according to the twice-monthly survey by the University of Michigan and Reuters. That's the lowest point since August 2009.

The drop in confidence, along with uneasiness about future bank earnings, rattled Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 261 points to close at 10,097.90.

Many shoppers are holding on to their money even though prices on most goods fell for the third straight month.

The Consumer Price Index, the government's most closely watched inflation gauge, dipped 0.1 percent in June, the Labor Department said Friday. Lower energy bills were a big factor behind the drop. Prices for some food, airline fares, computers, phone service and personal-care products also fell in June.

When you exclude the volatile categories of energy and food, prices were essentially flat for the month. Core prices have risen only 0.9 percent over the past year. That's below the Fed's inflation target, and it means core inflation is at a 44-year low.

The recent stretch of falling prices, at the consumer and wholesale level, has stirred talk of possible deflation a widespread and prolonged period of falling wages and declining prices on retail goods, real estate and stocks. America's last serious case of deflation was during the Depression of the 1930s.

Most economists do not believe deflation will happen, though some Fed officials have recently raised such concerns.

With inflation largely nonexistent, workers have a little more buying power. Average hourly earnings adjusted for inflation rose 0.6 percent for the 12 months ended June.

Because inflation as measured by the government has essentially disappeared, the Federal Reserve has even more leeway now to keep a key interest rate at a record low near zero. Low rates should help nurture the economic recovery and nip deflationary forces. Economists predict the Fed will not start boosting rates until next year or possibly 2012.

Many analysts think the economy's growth will slow in the second half of this year to a subpar 2 percent range, from a modest 3 percent in the first half. An economy that is fragile is more vulnerable to shocks that could sent it into reverse.

But there's a silver lining in the weak recovery.

Energy prices fell 2.9 percent in June for the second straight month. Gasoline prices led the decline with a 4.5 percent drop, giving a break to motorists. Prices for electricity and fuel oil also fell.

Global oil prices have been falling amid fears that the European debt crisis will hurt growth on the continent and slow the global recovery. U.S. motorists are paying an average of $2.72 for a gallon of regular unleaded.

Overall food prices were flat in June. But prices fell for cereals and baked goods, fruits and vegetables, and nonalcoholic beverages, providing some bargains for grocery shoppers.

Last month, prices for airline fares dropped by the most since February.

Still, shoppers have felt the pinch elsewhere. Prices for medical care, which continue to outpace overall inflation, rose 0.3 percent. And education costs rose 0.4 percent. Clothing prices increased 0.8 percent, the most since February 2009, although those prices have slipped 0.4 percent over the past 12 months.

"There's a sense of ennui and frustration on the part of consumers," said Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics. The job market "is certainly weaker than many had hoped. The stock market has been lackluster. We get negative headlines that grind on day after day. The BP oil spill. Talk of a double-dip recession. All this explains why American consumers' spirits are down."

As it has for the last four quarters, Gannett's profits rose thanks mostly to revenues from its local TV stations and continued cost cutting at its newspapers. Meanwhile, slight improvement at CareerBuilder, which had been a drag on digital revenues for over a year, pushed Gannett's interactive segment up 8.3 percent. Company-wide digital revenues, which include the Digital Segment and all interactive revenues generated by the other business units, were $252.2 million9.7 percent higher in Q2 compared to the second quarter in 2009 and were almost 19 percent of total operating revenues.

Updated: Just after Gannett (NYSE: GCI) announced its Q2 earnings, it released details of its local ad partnership with Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO). The partnership will cover a portion of display inventory at Gannett's 81 U.S. community papers as well as the company's local broadcasters' websites. (Our coverage of the earnings call.)

More on digital, plus the highlights on how other Gannett units performed in Q2:

Digital: In addition to CareerBuilder, Gannett's digital holdings include rich media provider PointRoll, ShopLocal, Planet Discover, Schedule Star and Ripple6, which was folded into Pointroll in May. During the morning earnings call, Gannett is expected to discuss some other digital moves, such as naming a successor to Chris Saridakis, who left as chief digital officer in April to become CEO of GSI Commerce's Marketing Services unit. During the Q1 earnings call, CEO Craig Dubow said the company planned to have a subscription plan in place for its USAT iPad app by July 5th, but the company backed off after finding that advertising sales on the app were sold out. Dubow is expected to provide an update on those plans on this morning's call.

Publishing: Gannett posted some pretty good numbers here, though it helps to keep in mind that it's coming off the worst year for advertising since the Great Depression. With that context out of the way, operating income at the publishing unit, which includes the community papers and Gannett flagship USA Today, was up 20.8 percent over Q209. That was due to slowing revenue declines as well as $20 million in savings from mandatory, unpaid leave that staffers took in the quarter. Publishing revenues declined 6 percent and classifieds fell only 5 percent, which is a major improvement over the nearly 45 percent decline for that section last year.

USAT: The softness in the travel industry continues to plague USAT. While automotive, retail and packaged goods categories increased spending on the newspaper in Q2, it wasn't able to balance out travel. Paid ad pages in USAT totaled 580 compared with 602 in last year's second quarter.

Broadcasting: Profits were up 56 percent and ad revenues grew 19.6 percent. Thanks to expectations of high political ad spending, Gannett is projecting revenues to be up in the mid-twenties in Q3. The Yahoo display ad partnership is set to begin rolling out now, and by the time Q3 ends, the online side should be able to generate a small contribution.

Related

• Gannett Closes In On New Chief Digital Officer; Resnik Set To Be Promoted
• Interview: Gannett Holds Off On Charging for USAT iPad AppFor Now
• Gannett Tries Out Paywalls At Three Papers
• Gannett Launches Digital Marketing Unit Aimed At Small Business
• Gannett Folds Ripple6 Into Pointroll

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Photo added.

The post office in June 2010.

Matheson, Colorado
Town
Location in Elbert County and the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 39 1020N 103 5835W / 39.17222 N 103.97639 W / 39.17222; -103.97639Coordinates: 39 1020N 103 5835W / 39.17222 N 103.97639 W / 39.17222; -103.97639
Country	United States
State	Colorado
County	Elbert[1]
Elevation[1]	5,801 ft (1,768 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	94[citation needed]
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code[2]	80830
Area code(s)	719
GNIS feature ID	0195128

Matheson is an unincorporated town and a U.S. Post Office in Elbert County, Colorado, United States. The Matheson Post Office has the ZIP Code 80830.^[2]

Established in the mid 1880's by Duncan Matheson a native of Scotland. Mr. Matheson came to Elbert County Colorado with his wife Jessie and their six children, Donald, Robert, John, William Norman and Janet.

As a farming and ranching community with a sideline industry of soft coal mining and the desire of personal independence, many from the east gathered in Matheson, Colorado.

Early businesses in Matheson included a depot, lumber yard, hotel, bank, blacksmith, general store, livery, drug store, and of course a saloon. Dr. Lewis White was an early physician.

A community church was constructed in 1918, and the St. Agnes Catholic Church at the west edge of town was built in 1921. It served until 1973. Matheson now has the Community Church of Matheson and holds services each Sunday for the town members and the surrounding community.

A large brick school atop the hill south of town was constructed in 1920 and closed in 1969. The building still stands as a landmark of Matheson, along with St. Agnes Catholic Church at the west end of town.

The original Rock Island Railroad delivered mail in 1888. The incoming mail was delivered on train No. 7 and the outgoing mail was sent out on train No. 8. The mail bag was thrown from the train as it passed and was often torn, scattering mail up and down the tracks. Out going mail was hung on a pole and picked off the pole by the caboose conductor, yielding a hook as the train passed by.

The town of Matheson was erroneously spelled Mattison by the Railroad Company. In 1915 the Post Office Department corrected the name to Matheson.

The town of Matheson once boasted a population of 500+. During and towards the end of the Great Depression the population started to drop as businesses failed, and folks moved on to find a better way of life.

The Third Depression

Recessions are common; depressions are rare. As far as I can tell, there were only two eras in economic history that were widely described as depressions at the time: the years of deflation and instability that followed the Panic of 1873 and the years of mass unemployment that followed the financial crisis of 1929-31.

We are now, I fear, in the early stages of a third depression. It will probably look more like the Long Depression than the much more severe Great Depression. But the cost to the world economy and, above all, to the millions of lives blighted by the absence of jobs will nonetheless be immense.

. . . I don't think this is really about Greece, or indeed about any realistic appreciation of the tradeoffs between deficits and jobs. It is, instead, the victory of an orthodoxy that has little to do with rational analysis, whose main tenet is that imposing suffering on other people is how you show leadership in tough times.

And who will pay the price for this triumph of orthodoxy? The answer is, tens of millions of unemployed workers, many of whom will go jobless for years, and some of whom will never work again.

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It appears a large land mass to the south of Texas will slow the hurricane.

Can omega 3 help treat depression? According to new research, the answer is yes.

In one of the largest studies on omega-3 supplements done to date, Canadian researchers found that for people who don't also have an anxiety disorder with their depression, the popular omega-3 fish supplements helped improve depression symptoms.

The improvements the researchers found in this study were similar to improvements found in studies of antidepressants, suggesting that for some people, omega-3 may be an inexpensive antidepressant alternative.

From October 2005 to January 2009, 432 male and female participants with major unipolar depression were recruited to take part in this randomized, double-blind study (neither patients nor researchers knew which capsules patients received).

For eight weeks, half of the participants took three capsules per day of OM3 Emotional Balance, a fish oil supplement containing high concentrations of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). The other half took three identical capsules of a placebo consisting of sunflower oil, flavored with a small quantity of fish oil.

In contrast with typical clinical studies designed to assess the effectiveness of antidepressants, this study included a high proportion of patients with complex and difficult-to-treat conditions, including patients resistant to conventional antidepressant treatments and patients also suffering from an anxiety disorder.

As with all things, don't rush out and change your meds without consulting your doctor first. Omega-3 is not a cure-all for depression, nor will it work for everyone. But it's an alternative worth trying if you feel depressed, have no anxiety, and haven't yet sought out treatment for depression.

The researchers used doses of 1050 mg of EPA and 150 mg of DHA each day for eight weeks to obtain their results. The specific brand of omega-3 used is called OM3 Emotional Balance and is available at local drugstores in the vitamins aisle (and at online drugstores).

Read the full new article: Omega-3 Supplements for Depression

Upto 15% of the entire disease in mankind is related to mental illness, according to the WHO. The brain gamma-aminobutyric (GABA) (the brain's primary inhibitory neurotransmitter) level of the brain is the major contributor to the mental disorders. Disorders like Depression and anxiety disorders are linked to lower GABA levels. As per a recent study at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and McLean Hospital, practising Yoga elevates the GABA levels. When two groups were studied, one doing Yoga for one hour and other reading a book, it was learnt that the former had 27% increase in the GABA levels compared to the other group. This study shows promise of use of Yoga in handling diseases like depression, anxiety and epilepsy.

Yoga is not just a one dimension wonder. It affects the whole body in a comprehensive way that promotes complete well-being. Even if the "spiritual results" may not be one's aim, the physical benefits are immeasurable and are being discovered daily. In fact recently the National Cancer Institute has provided University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center a grant worth more than $4.5 million "to study the efficacy of incorporating yoga into the treatment program of women with breast cancer". Here is a compilation of some benefits of Yoga:

Quality of life for Cancer Survivors: (May 2010) Cancer survivors who perform gentle yoga report they sleep better, feel less fatigued and enjoy better quality of life, according to the University of Rochester Medical Center, which is presenting the largest study of this kind at the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in June.

Yoga effective for Chronic Back Pain: (Nov. 2009) Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center found that yoga may be more effective than standard treatment for reducing chronic low back pain in minority populations. This study appears in the November issue of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine.

Yoga reduces cytokine levels, which promote inflammation: (January 2010) Regularly practicing yoga exercises may lower a number of compounds in the blood and reduce the level of inflammation that normally rises because of both normal aging and stress, a new study, done by Ohio State University researchers and just reported in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine has shown. that women who routinely practiced yoga had lower amounts of the cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) in their blood. The women also showed smaller increases in IL-6 after stressful experiences than did women who were the same age and weight but who were not yoga practitioners.

Yoga poses prevent falls among elderly women: (April 2008) Dr. Jinsup Song and researchers at the School of Podiatric Medicine and the College of Health Professions examined the gait and postural stability of 24 elderly females who were enrolled in an Iyengar yoga program specifically designed for those over 65. They found that at the end of the nine-week program, participants had a faster stride, an increased flexibility in the lower extremities, an improved single-leg stance and increased confidence in walking and balance.

Yoga reduces Bullying in School: Boulder students' self reported a decrease by 60% in their own bulling behavior and a 42% decrease in regard to being bullied by others at school A comprehensive yoga program can greatly reduce violence and bullying, but, the long term lasting effects are still unclear. The results of this intervention acknowledge yoga as an effective method for increasing anger management skills and decreasing physical outbursts of violence for upper elementary school age children during the time of implementation. The study was conducted by Dee Marie, M.A., CYT1, Grace Wyshak, PhD2, George H Wyshak, DMD, PhD3.; American Medical Association Alliance, Boulder, CO.; Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA.; and AHIMSA Non-profit Organization, Boulder, CO.

Yoga's origin lies in Hindu scriptures. The main branches of yoga are Raja Yoga, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, and Hatha Yoga. These are expounded and explained in different scriptures.

Raja Yoga, compiled in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and known simply as yoga in the context of Hindu philosophy, is part of the Samkhya tradition.[10] Many other Hindu texts discuss aspects of yoga, including the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Shiva Samhita and various Tantras.

Yoga has a historical legacy that can be traced to Indus Valley Civilization.

The Vedic Samhitas contain references to ascetics, while ascetic practices (tapas) are referenced in the Bra-hman.as (900 to 500 BCE), early commentaries on the Vedas.[18] Several seals discovered at Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3300-1700 B.C.E.) sites in Pakistan depict figures in positions resembling a common yoga or meditation pose, showing "a form of ritual discipline, suggesting a precursor of yoga", according to archaeologist Gregory Possehl.[19] Some type of connection between the Indus Valley seals and later yoga and meditation practices is speculated upon by many scholars, though there is no conclusive evidence.

What is Yoga? According to Yogasutra of Patanjali, Yoga is defined as:

( yogas' citta-vr.tti-nirodhah. )
- Yoga Sutras 1.2

Which as per Swami Vivekananda means: "Yoga is restraining the mind-stuff (Citta) from taking various forms (Vrittis).".

I personally disagree with this definition. Citta (pronounced as Chit) comes from the same root in sanskrit as Chetna and, therefore, is not mind. It is not even the "intelligence" of a sentient being or IQ as in how a being can articulate through his body and mind. It is, on the other hand, the intelligence of the consciousness. The primordial consciousness state is the state of Chit. When the primordial state takes on a "form" or creational states, then the consciousness has manifest as Creation as we know it. Sat-Chit-Anand has most often has been referred to that state. Sat (Truth), Chit (Pure and Primordial Intelligence) and Anand (or bliss from cessation of dualities) are the adjectives or characteristics of the primordial consciousness.

Also, the word "Nirodhah" is not restraining, but curing or keeping blemish-free. Yoga is the effort to take a consciousness entangled in Creational forms to its basic primordial state - of Chit. It is a way to "cure" the primordial chit from all the vrittis (forms) it has taken up.

This leads us to the discussion of Chakras - the core of Yoga. Accupuncture and Yoga are two of the health disciplines which do not use the regular physiological basis to work on body. Yet, the claimed benefits have been recorded, studied in detail and confirmed to be true.

While accupuncture works on channels and points where qi and Blood flow, Yoga works on energy channels similar to "Qi" called nadis. The intersections of nadis are known as Chakras. While modern biologists and scientists can see the benefits from Yoga exactly as explained by the Masters, they interestingly pooh-pooh the foundational explanation of why it works according to its orginators as mythical and mystical.

The reaction from the medical fraternity about Yoga's claims in terms of benefits and its underlying reasoning has been one of superstitious disbelief. For, if someone created something that works exactly as it promises, then the reasoning behind why it works as articulated by the creator of "technology", despite having no equivalence to anything that modern science has unveiled in the last 400 years, may be true as well.

Just that modern science has not been able to figure out the way to study that mechanism nor its significance in the very working of the body. Though Subjective, the experiences of Yogis, are "reproducible experiences that can be achieved by anyone performing certain introspective practices".

This superstitious disbelief of the medical fraternity is further exacerbated by the fact this fraternity itself, despite its incredible advancements has not created anything close to the potency, simplicity, and profundity of Yoga despite a crying need for health care for normal people to prevent illnesses.

Reluctantly, yet surely, as evidenced by the $4.5 million grant to MD Anderson, they would rather assimilate Yoga - created on "mythical and mystical science" - into their own health care structure as opposed to create something better based on "concrete Scientific knowledge".

And this brings one to the most fundamental question - that was best articulated by Hardy when he read Ramanujam's papers, while others rejected them outright thinking the content to be fantastic and without rigor:

"[theorems] defeated me completely; I had never seen anything in the least like them before."... and the theorems therefore "must be true, because, if they were not true, no one would have the imagination to invent them." (emphasis added)

If you think you are the most advanced generation with knowledge in a certain field, yet. And you still cannot create anything remotely close to the significance and benefits of something done, reportedly 4000 years back. And, you are not willing to take the reasoning of the creators of that knowledge seriously, while harping on the primacy of your knowledge. Then surely there is something inherently blinding about your view of exploration of knowledge itself. Such men and women cannot, by any imagination, be the pall-bearers of Scientific method and exploration.

If ideology leads you, if ego dictates your experimentation, if prejudice stops you from even the obvious, then pray, how are you any different from a ideologically blind individual?

The truth is that world of science is infested with such egotist, megalomaniacal men and women masquerading as people of science.

Not all the scientists are in such denial. Some see the obvious flaw of running down esoteric explanations of those who have done remarkable work before them.

Richard W. Maxwell is a private practice clinical neuropsychologist. He became intrigued with the concept of Chakras and looked at it more deeply. His observations and conclusions, though very preliminary do seem to point into a direction where modern science can learn something by deeper exploration of the Hindu Scriptural evidence of Yoga.

He explains the roots of confusion in modern science as it approaches the root of Yoga - the Chakras - as they are defined by different Yogic proponents:

......three aspects of chakras (components in the CNS, components in the ANS, and components in the endocrine system) that are variously intermingled by these authors. When abstract concepts such as "vortices of etheric matter" are also included, the potential for a scientific analysis appears hopeless.

[Central nervous system (CNS) ,Autonomic nervous system (ANS)]

Then Maxwell asks the obvious question:

....if chakras were truly independent of physical structures, why would there be any correspondence with physical locations? This dilemma can be resolved only if there are physical systems at least closely related to chakras through which the physical effects of chakras are manifest.

He argues that the little known "Gap Junctions" are the answers. These Gap junctions play supplementary and complementary role in the body to the physiological channels like blood vessels and neurons.

Gap junctions are hydrophilic passages between the cytoplasm of two adjacent cells created by a hexagonal array of connexin proteins, and probably a newly discovered family of pannexin proteins (Shl, Maxeiner, and Willecke 2005) (see Figure 1). Approximately twenty different connexin related genes have been identified on the human and mouse genomes (Evans and Martin 2002). Gap junctions composed of different connexins have different conductance and gating properties associated with exchange of small molecules and ions capable of creating electrical conductance (Bukauskas and Verselis 2004). Gap junctions play an important role in synchronizing endocrine secretion (Berthoud et al. 2000; Rttingen and Iversen 2000; Funabashi et al. 2001; Meda 2003), in the function of the heart (Verheule et al. 1997; Dhein 1998), in the synchronized firing of neurons (Colwell 2000; Bou-Flores and Berger 2001; Solomon, Chon, and Rodriguez 2003; Hewitt et al. 2004), in interactions between neurons and glial cells (Cotrina and Nedegaard 2000; Kirchhoff, Dringen, and Giaume 2001), and in coordinating activity in many embryological processes.

The Gap junctions are most dense during the embryological development and play a significant role. The process of gap junctions have been found to affect the entire development process of the body and also playing a significant role in many situations and disorders in physiology. Such as:

• left-right patterning (Levin and Mercola 1998)
• development of limb buds (Makarenkova et al. 1997; Law et al. 2002)
• migration and survival of neural crest cells (Huang et al. 1998; Bannerman et al. 2000; Cai et al. 2004)
• heart development (Ewart et al. 1997)
• development of the nervous system (Dermietzel et al. 1989; Menichella et al. 2003; Montoro and Yuste 2004; Tang et al. 2006)
• control of tumor growth (Naus 2002)

Embryological development is deeply affected by the gap junctions role in cell management - proliferation, boundary creation etc. Also, significantly, electrical coupling of neurons through gap junctions precedes the chemical synaptic activity in early development. The gap junctions are highly concentrated in the neural folds along the spinal cord and in the brain - areas where the Chakras are supposed to be.

The practice of meditation and yoga may be affecting and accentuating the electrical circuits along the neural pathways, which in certain circumstances play a more important role than Chemical Synaptic Systems. Maxwell argues:

As a yoga practitioner becomes more adept, subtler systems using gap junctions could be activated, changing energetic states in groups of cells, including opening connections between different compartments within the glial syncytium. Yogic practices could also stimulate increases in the number of gap junction connections.

If Chakras are the "Gap Junctions", then what is Sushumna Nadi?

The subtlest component of the sushumna (brahma-nadi) (Feuerstein 1997, 63) is expressed through a column of cells remaining in the region where the edges of the neural plate joined to form the neural tube.

Maxwell might be taking the first steps into the "How" of the Yoga. These steps, nevertheless, are not going to answer the question of "Why", something that Yogis had ably grappled with to come up with their creation.

As "mythical and mystical" as the ancient Hindu Sciences and their approaches are made to be, it is worth exploring if indeed, those men and women had no sense of logical exploration? From the admissions of inspiration the pioneers of QM to the success and profundity of Yoga and Yogic experiences, one has seen the conclusions of the highest wisdom, without being able to "trace the steps". But was the creation of Yoga done on a mere hunch? Did the conclusions of Vedantic rishis just mere story telling which happens to inspire the leading lights of Quantum and Unified Field Physicists even today?

If one could see a level of sophistication in enquiry of more mundane sciences, then one could with a reasonable sense conjecture that there was after all a "Method to the Madness".

Mathematics and Astronomy

Daivajna Vara-hamihira, who served in Gupta king Vikramaditya's court, compiled Pancasiddhantika - which comprised: Surya Siddhanta, Romaka Siddhanta, Paulisa Siddhanta, Vasishtha Siddhanta and Paitamaha Siddhanta. One of these, Surya Siddhanta had the following calculations:

• sidereal year = 365.2563795 days only 1.4 seconds longer than the modern value of 365.2563627 days.
• tropical year = 365.2421756 days only 2 seconds shorter than the modern value of 365.2421988 days.

Surya Siddhanta not only had the above calculations but also the trigonometric functions. It not only introduced Sine (Jya), Cosine (Kojya) and Inverse sine (Otkram jya); but also had used Tangent and Secant functions in their early times.

The antiquity and the authorship of Surya Siddanta is not known. The concepts had been passed through many generations and come from Vedic scriptures.

Arithmetic operations (Ganit) such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, fractions, squares, cubes and roots are enumerated in the Narad Vishnu Purana attributed to Ved Vyas (pre-1000 BC). Examples of geometric knowledge (rekha-ganit) are to be found in the Sulva-Sutras of Baudhayana (800 BC) and Apasthmaba (600 BC) which describe techniques for the construction of ritual altars in use during the Vedic era. It is likely that these texts tapped geometric knowledge that may have been acquired much earlier, possibly in the Harappan period. Baudhayana's Sutra displays an understanding of basic geometric shapes and techniques of converting one geometric shape (such as a rectangle) to another of equivalent (or multiple, or fractional) area (such as a square). While some of the formulations are approximations, others are accurate and reveal a certain degree of practical ingenuity as well as some theoretical understanding of basic geometric principles. Modern methods of multiplication and addition probably emerged from the techniques described in the Sulva-Sutras.

Linguistics and Sanskrit

Panini was not just a mathematician, but one who set the rules of Sanskrit grammar called Ashtadhyayi:

He is known for his Sanskrit grammar, particularly for his formulation of the 3,959 rules[2] of Sanskrit morphology in the grammar known as Ashtadhyayi (As.t.a-dhya-yi-, meaning "eight chapters"), the foundational text of the grammatical branch of the Vedanga, the auxiliary scholarly disciplines of Vedic religion.

Panini-Backus form, which forms the foundation of Functional programming (FP), is basically a morphed form of Panini's rules of describing the Sanaskrit language grammar.

Ferdinand de Saussure, professor of Sanskrit, also known as father of modern structural linguistics was greatly influenced by Panini's Sanskrit rules for grammar as he mentioned in his works including De l'emploi du genitif absolu en sanscrit (1881), a monograph on the genitive absolute. Even on American structuralists, Leonard Bloomfield and Naom Chomsky, his influence has been obvious and profound.

It is remarkable that someone from 4th BCE has had such a profound effect on the world of grammar and computing 2500 years after his seminal work of Ashtadhyayi.

Mathematics, Astronomy and Astrology

It is often argued that study of Astrology lies in the realm of superstition. When an ex-minister of Indian Government suggested Ancient Indian Astrology to be one of the courses of study for higher college education, many critics emerged. They depended more on rhetoric - borne out of simplistic, dogmatic and prejudicial impression of how the history of any discipline ought to be studied rather than a scholastic understanding. I wanted to look at this topic in a more detailed manner.

I argue that there is a very strong link between how the need for astrology created the market for advancement in the knowledge of mathematics and geometry on one hand as also astronomy on the other. It is imperative to understand how the greatest inventions - often credited to European scholars due to the colonial orientation of history writers - from India indeed influenced the world of mathematics and astronomy as we know it today.

While the direction that the science and mathematics of today may have taken may be different than what Hindu Scientific mind took, but the roots and influence on today's works is unmistakable.

The one treatise which strongly links the three - Mathematics, Astronomy and Astrology is Vedanga Jyotisa. It dates back to at least 1200 BC.

Vedanga Jyotisa actually is a recension of Rig Vedic and Yajurvedic verses. That dates the original knowledge to around 2000 BC, as per established modern dates, although vedic traditions depended more on oral traditions.

The astronomical treatise contains details astronomical calculations, calendrical studies, and establishes rules for empirical observation. Its antiquity and relation to the most fundamental Vedic scriptures, makes this treatise as the foundational one for the understanding of Mathematics, Astronomy and Astrological progress in Ancient India.

Note: If mathematics of Aryabhat and the various mathematicians have to be celebrated, you have to understand the applied knowledge that made all that possible. The reason why the ancient Indians delved into Astronomy, geometry and mathematics was to help them understand the constellations so predictions could be made. Any time is good for anything, they knew as much, but they had the pragmatism to realize that it helps to do something at a time when the nature is aiding you as well. Whether astrology is spiritually, morally, or even statistically correct or workable is not the question. The question is does it help? To the Ancient Indians, it was important enough to fuel their need to discover the heights of mathematics and geometry that served the world rather well. You cannot understand the origins of Indian mathematics without having any respect or understanding of the foundations and basics of Indian astrology.

How important was India's contribution to world of mathematics? Let's listen to someone who has made seminal contribution to the modern mathematics. After all, its better to listen to a qualified and celebrated doctor than a quack who makes his/her living writing critiques full of rhetoric sans any hard evidence. Therefore, if I need to understand the centrality of India's contribution in Modern mathematics, it would serve me best to listen to the best in history.

It is India that gave us the ingenious method of expressing all numbers by the means of ten symbols, each symbol receiving a value of position, as well as an absolute value; a profound and important idea which appears so simple to us now that we ignore its true merit, but its very simplicity, the great ease which it has lent to all computations, puts our arithmetic in the first rank of useful inventions, and we shall appreciate the grandeur of this achievement when we remember that it escaped the genius of Archimedes and Apollonius, two of the greatest minds produced by antiquity. - French mathematician Pierre Simon Laplace (1749-1827) on significance of the development of the positional number system

We begin our story with the journey of one of greatest Sages of Europe, often totally sidelined (and of whom some consider to be so similar in life to Jesus Christ, that they allege Vatican authorities have burned and wiped out books of and on him in an attempt to save a non-existent Jesus Christ).

Apollonius' Tryst with India

Apollonius of Tyana lived in Turkey in the 1st CE. He was a physician. He was the follower of Pythagoras. Apollonius was born in 4 BCE to wealthy parents. In his teens, he had seeked company of great philosophers of the temple of Asklepios. At age 16, under the influence of the teachings of Pythagoras, he became a vegetarian (regarding only productions of earth as pure), stopped drinking wine, walked barefoot and let his hair long while wearing only linen. Pythagoran teachings included reincarnation, vegetarianism, and keeping silent for number of years as part of a spiritual practice. These found strong echoes with the fundamental components of Hinduism.. There is a strong belief amongst many that Pythagoras himself was infuenced by Indian religious and spiritual tradition:

The Greek philosopher Pythagoras (c. 580-c. 500 bce) may have obtained his doctrine of metempsychosis (transmigration, or passage of the soul from one body to another; see reincarnation) from India, mediated by Achaemenian (6th-4th century bce) Persia, but similar ideas were known in Egypt and were certainly present in Greece before the time of Pythagoras. The Pythagorean doctrine of a cyclic universe may also be derived from India (Encyclopedia Brittanica

His spirituality was clearly influenced by the Vedic spirituality.

" It is more likely that Pythagoras was influenced by India than by Egypt. Almost all the theories, religions, philosophical and mathematical taught by the Pythagoreans, were known in India in the sixth century B.C., and the Pythagoreans, like the Jains and the Buddhists, refrained from the destruction of life and eating meat and regarded certain vegetables such as beans as taboo" The Legacy of India By G. T. Garratt - [Note from Desh: the only issue with this past of the book is that while Pythagoras lived from 580 BC to 500 BC, Gautama Buddha lived from 563 BCE to 483 BCE, so at best they were contemporaries. It is doubtful that one would have been influenced by the other in real time. Buddha attained Enlightenment at the age of 35.]

Apollonius went to East in India and came in touch with the Sage named Iarchas. Iarchas was known to do miracles - like touch a cripple and heal him, or give sight to the blind or cure a paralytic. The popular story of their meeting suggests that Iarchas knew his name, to which Apollonius asked "How can you know all these things?". To which Iarchas replied, "We begin by knowing ourselves". Apollonius then learned under Iarchas the secrets of Hindu spiritual practices including pujas, yantras, mantras. Yantras consecrated by Apollonius were popular in Europe many years after his death.

Apollonius said of the Sages of India:

"I saw Indian Brahmans living upon the Earth and yet not on it, and fortified without fortifications, and possessing nothing, yet having the riches of all men." . . . [Damis] said he saw them levitating themselves two cubits high from the ground, not for the sake of miraculous display, for they disdain any such ambition; but they regard any rites they perform, in thus quitting earth and walking with the Sun, as acts of homage acceptable to the God. Moreover, they neither burn upon an altar nor keep in stoves the fire which they extract from the sun's rays, although it is a material fire; but like the rays of sunlight when they are refracted in water, so this fire is seen raised aloft in the air and dancing in the ether. -- Philostratus, bk 3, pp. 257, 259 (Philostratus, The Life of Apollonius, trans. F. C. Conybeare, bk 1, p. 51)

Also, the concept of high numbers to the level of a trillion is very amply articulated in the Vedas:

By the time of the last Veda, the Yajurvedasam.hita- (1200-900 BCE), numbers as high as 1012 were being included in the texts.[20] For example, the mantra (sacrificial formula) at the end of the annahoma ("food-oblation rite") performed during the as'vamedha ("horse sacrifice"), and uttered just before-, during-, and just after sunrise, invokes powers of ten from a hundred to a trillion.[20] The Satapatha Brahmana (9th century BCE) contains rules for ritual geometric constructions that are similar to the Sulba Sutras.

The availability of Pythagorean theorems much before his birth, and the fact that learned man himself was influenced heavily by the scriptures and philosophy of India, it is not without basis, that one would wonder if the Pythagorus theorem in geometry was indeed his own? There is a strong impact that Hindu Spiritual and Material Sciences - including mathematics and astronomy had on contemporary discoverers.

Let us now move to some other evidence of scientific methodical thinking that surrounded the everyday living and works.

Cartography and Architectural History

The history of cartography or town planning - in very detailed manner - reminiscent of current science and method.

Based on archaeological and textual evidence, Joseph E. Schwartzberg (2008)a University of Minnesota professor emeritus of geographytraces the origins of Indian cartography to the Indus Valley Civilization (ca. 25001900 BCE).[12] The use of large scale constructional plans, cosmological drawings, and cartographic material was known in India with some regularity since the Vedic period (1 millennium BCE).[12] Climatic conditions were responsible for the destruction of most of the evidence, however, a number of excavated surveying instruments and measuring rods have yielded convincing evidence of early cartographic activity.[13] Schwartzberg (2008)on the subject of surviving mapsfurther holds that: 'Though not numerous, a number of map-like graffiti appear among the thousands of Stone Age Indian cave paintings; and at least one complex Mesolithic diagram is believed to be a representation of the cosmos.'

Medicine and Surgery

Perhaps the earliest surgeries in India were done on teeth for the earliest drilling of teeth have been found as far back as 7000 BC. People of the Indus Valley Civilization from the early Harappan times had knowledge of medicine and dentistry.

The earliest name of a surgeon is of Dhanavantri. Although modern historical accounts place him as a student in the Sushruta school, Dhanavantri in Hindu scriptures happens to be a Divine character.

In any case, Sushruta taught and practiced surgery near Benares in 600 BC. Details of his work are given in Sushruta Samhita.
It is remarkable in that it provides details on the "examination, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of numerous ailments, as well as procedures on performing various forms of plastic surgery, such as cosmetic surgery and rhinoplasty."

Egypt and India

Now let us move to the other civilization that is often considered to be the only contemporary of the Indian Vedic Civilization. Some often say that Egypt was as advanced as India was at that time. However, there are indications that India may have had profound impact on Egypt as well at that time.

Discovery of Nile by John Hanning Speke

John Hanning discovered the source of Nile and wrote about it in an essay in 1859. Intriguingly, he didn't get the hint of its source from Egyptians, who had little idea of it. Instead, he claims to have found his clues from the Hindu Puranas:

Colonel Rigby now gave me a most interesting paper, with a map attached to it, about the Nile and the Mountains of the Moon. It was written by Lieutenant Wilford, from the "Purans" of the Ancient Hindus. As it exemplifies, to a certain extent, the supposition I formerly arrived at concerning the Mountains of the Moon being associated with the country of the Moon, I would fain draw the attention of the reader of my travels to the volume of the "Asiatic Researches" in which it was published. (5) It is remarkable that the Hindus have christened the source of the Nile Amara, which is the name of a country at the north-east corner of the Victoria N'yanza. This, I think, shows clearly, that the ancient Hindus must have had some kind of communication with both the northern and southern ends of the Victoria N'yanza.

The main essay he was referring to was the On Egypt from the Ancient Book of the Hindus (Asiatic Researchers Vol. III, 1792), which was written by Lt. Colonel Wilford where he provided rich evidence showing that ancient Indians had come to and settled in Egypt. Given that Speke also found Puranic evidence shows that there was a "back and forth" communication.

Indologist and Sanskritist Sir William Jones also wrote in Asiatic Researches, Volume I: "Of the cursory observations on the Hindus, which it would require volumes to expand and illustrate, this is the result, that they had an immemorial affinity with the old Persians, Ethiopians and Egyptians, the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Tuscans, the Scythians, or Goths, and Celts, the Chinese, Japanese, and Peruvians."

Reference Links:

Yoga and elevated brain GABA levels
Study: Yoga Improves Sleep, Quality of Life for Cancer Survivors
Researchers find yoga may be effective for chronic low back pain
Yoga reduces cytokine levels known to promote inflammation
4.5 million grant for study of yoga and cancer
Poses can prevent falls
Yoga Prevents Bullying in School
Yoga
Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics Part 2, Part 2 By James Hastings
Apollonius of Tyana -- An Adept to Remember
A study of the similarities between Hinduism and Ancient Egyptian Religion
The Discover of the Source of the Nile
History of Indian science and technology
History of Surgery
Susruta of India, an unrecognized contributor to the history of exercise physiology

Toxic poisons are stalking the dolphins in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, and no one is discussing or reporting the fact that the oiled mammals are struggling in the waters near Grand Terre Island. There are no published photos or videos that we have been able to find, and no stories that describe the oil-encrusted dorsal fins and odd behavior that suggest an under-reported or deliberately hidden environmental catastrophe.

We were on the water with New Orleans photographer Jerry Moran and Reel Screamers Guide Service on June 11, when we noticed two groups of dolphins. One group was swimming through a bubbling slick consisting of the dispersant COREXIT and oil, and the other was in the shallows and rooting in the mud. Dolphins will dig for flounder on the bottom, so it did not seem remarkable at the time, but we did note that they appeared unusually agitated. The group swimming in the oily dispersant near our boat was sluggish but there was nothing we could do to discourage them from swimming there. Oil was everywhere, above and below the surface, and there was no escape. We shrugged it off, snapped a few photos, and went on to photograph oiled pelicans on Cat Island and Queen Bess.

We should have taken a closer look.

Moran was going through his photos few days ago and noticed that some of the dolphins we observed had dorsal fins that were completely coated with rusty red oil from the British Petroleum rig explosion.

When we realized what we had discovered, we called Daryl Carpenter, owner of Reelscreamers, and asked him if anyone else had noticed the oiled dolphins or reported it. Carpenter said that news crews had taken video footage, but he did not know if any of the images had been broadcast. So far none of the images have surfaced, and wildlife officials, if they know about this situation, have been mum.

There have been reports that marine animals are trying to outrun the massive river of oil and fleeing to shallow coastal waters. The New York Daily News compared the disastrous situation as akin to "animals fleeing a forest fire."

The BBC and ABC have filed reports and video about Captain Lori De Angelis, who runs dolphin spotting boat charters in the bays near Orange Beach, Alabama. She observed dolphins "acting drunk."

We called "Captain Lori," and told her about the behavior of the dolphins in Barataria Bay. She confirmed that she has been observing similar behavior and that "It is unnerving."

Captain Lori described some dolphins that were sluggish, and others that were "acting hyper and swimming and playing as if it were the last days of their lives."

The fact that their dorsal fins are encrusted with oil could spell an immediate death sentence. The dorsal fin and the fluke (tail) are an important for body temperature regulation., You can find a simple explanation and video here and a more detailed scientific paper here. The bottom line is that the dorsal fin helps to release excess heat from the body. Oil acts like a heat trap and water and air temperatures are climbing in this hot, sticky Louisiana summer.

Benzene is one of the volatile chemicals in crude oil. The dolphins are swimming in it, ingesting it, and it is coating their bodies. Like humans, they are mammals. Toxic chemical exposure is as dangerous to the dolphins as it is to humans. A review of the toxic effects and other characteristics of benzene is available here.

Chronic exposure to benzene can cause ventricular fibrillation, congestive gastritis, toxic gastritis, kidney damage, skin irritation and burns, swelling and edema, vascular congestion in the brain, and lethal central nervous system depression. See this analysis.

Toluene is also a concern. This is the same chemical found in airplane glue and its effects are well known. Inhalation of toluene fumes is not only intoxicating, but in large doses can cause central nervous system depression and death.

As reported in this overview at emedicine:

Acute intoxication from inhalation is characterized by rapid onset of CNS (central nervous system) symptoms including euphoria, hallucinations, delusions, tinnitus, dizziness, confusion, headache, vertigo, seizures, ataxia, stupor, and coma.

Those of us who were on the water last week developed varying cases of headaches, confusion, dizziness, (in my case, vertigo) and nausea. Unlike the dolphins, we were not swimming in the toxic soup or ingesting it. The water is the dolphins' environment. There is no escape from the rivers of oil and dispersants washing into their feeding grounds. We were able to retreat to our terrestrial environment and cleaner air.

On an even worse note, this is the time of year that calves are born. There can be serious consequences if a baby dolphin ingests tainted milk.

Why the dolphins of Barataria Bay have been forgotten, ignored, or the situation has been deliberately withheld is anyone's guess. What we do know is that the Coast Guard has been engaged in restricting news crews in the area. The Coast Guard, as one of the branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, seems to be answering to the orders of British Petroleum, and in a widely reported incident, challenged CBS reporters reporting from Louisiana's Coastal waters.

On two occasions during the week of June 6-13, we were stopped by the Coast Guard and Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Officials for "not wearing a life vest," when regulations state that while a vessel must have flotation devices, they do not have to be worn unless the boat is under sixteen feet. The captains believed we were at or over the requirement on both occasions. The camera, more than safety concerns seemed to be the motivation for the encounters. While we were detained, we were also warned "no photos."

All boats must have at least one U.S. Coast Guard--approved Type I, II, or III personal flotation device that is, wearable, and of the proper size for each person on board or being towed. Each person on board must wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved Type I, II, III, or V PFD while underway on a motorboat less than 16 feet long using an outboard motor that is steered by a hand tiller or steering arm attached to the motor.

The buck stops with the Coast Guard, and Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser has called for the resignation of Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, saying Allen has failed at almost every step in dealing with the catastrophic leak and is "not the right man for the job." Nungesser was talking about idle skimmers, idle BP workers and roadblocks place in the way of his attempts to clean oil out of sensitive marshlands in Barataria Bay and other areas.

Another source says that BP officials have warned workers under contract that they are not to discuss dead, injured, or oiled dolphins with anyone. While working the beach at Grand Isle, we were stopped by private security on two occasions and warned not to take photos of workers and not to step over the barrier boom into the "hot zone."

News blackout or not, it is critical that the dolphins of Barataria Bay get some attention.

A recent study of dolphins suggests that their intelligence requires that they be treated as "non-human persons" and granted rights as individuals.

Scientists studying dolphin behavior have suggested they could be the most intelligent creatures on Earth after humans, saying the size of their brains in relation to body size is larger than that of our closest relatives, the chimpanzees, and their behaviors suggest complex intelligence. The behavioral studies showed dolphins (especially the bottlenose) have distinct personalities and self-awareness, and they can think about the future. The research also confirmed dolphins have complex social structures, with individuals co-operating to solve difficult problems or to round up shoals of fish to eat, and with new behaviors being passed from one dolphin to another.

Imagine that you, as a being with self-awareness and intelligence, suddenly find yourself in a situation in which you become sick and disoriented. You sense that a foreign substance is coating your body, but you cannot remove it and you cannot escape from it. The food you eat is covered with this substance, and as you swallow it, it coats your digestive system and burns the membranes inside of your mouth; finally finding its way into the milk your infant suckles.

Something is terribly wrong and you swim in circles, confused, finally watching your infant sink helplessly into a brown bubbling substance where once you swam together in clear blue, life-giving waters.

Imagine.

This is real and requires little imagination. The toxic soup in Barataria Bay is killing the dolphins. They need help. The time is over for hiding or burying the evidence as Moran discovered on a back beach on Grand Isle in late May.