dave@cylixd.UUCP (Dave Kirby) (04/18/86)
Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Dave Kirby ( ...!ihnp4!akgua!cylixd!dave)
ags@pucc-h (Dave Seaman) (04/20/86)
In article <935@cylixd.UUCP> dave@cylixd.UUCP (Dave Kirby) writes: > >Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? No and no. -- Dave Seaman pur-ee!pucc-h!ags "You would think the President would spend his time worrying about Russia or China. He hasn't slept in eight nights, worrying about Libya!" - James Coburn in "The President's Analyst" (1967)
gwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn ) (04/21/86)
In article <935@cylixd.UUCP> dave@cylixd.UUCP (Dave Kirby) writes: >Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? The earliest ancestor of today's biorythms seems to be invented by a contemporary of Freud (sorry, I forgot his name), who had only two cycles (28 days feminine, 23 days (I think) masculine) that he claimed were active in everybody. Freud championed his cause. I don't know when or why the third cycle was introduced. The 28-day cycle for women (only) has a clear foundation, but the more general claims do seem to be in the same category as astrology. The similarities between the two are striking.
kwh@bentley.UUCP (KW Heuer) (04/21/86)
In article <935@cylixd.UUCP> cylixd!dave (Dave Kirby) writes: >Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? I reject it for the same reason that I reject astrology: it's based on such an absurd premise. There might be some such cycles in people, but I doubt that (a) they would all start nicely at age 0, (b) the periods would be an exact integer number of days, (c) the periods would be so consistent that one can extrapolate from age 0 to present, (d) that everyone would have the same parameters. Btw, assuming "astrology" means "using the positions of the heavenly bodies to determine events on earth", there is at least one non-trivial instance that works: tides. (And perhaps weather, to some degree.) Karl W. Z. Heuer (ihnp4!bentley!kwh), The Walking Lint
falk@sun.UUCP (04/22/86)
> > Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? > I believe that Biorhythms are for real. Basicly, we're all subject to cycles in our metabolism (three distinct cycles, with different periods to be exact). By plotting these, and looking for places where they reinforce each other (positively or negatively), you can take advantage of the situation. For instance, there was a city that experimented with reducing their accident rates by taking bus drivers off duty when their biorythms were at a low. HOWEVER, any biorythm charting method that works with your date of birth is just pure hooey. Everybody's cycle is slightly different. And to expect someone's cycles to stay precise and in phase from the moment of birth, for the rest of their lives is ridiculous. Proper biorythm charting must be done just that way -- by charting. Forgive me if the details are fuzzy, it's been a long time since I read the details. -ed falk, sun microsystems
friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen) (04/22/86)
In article <155@brl-smoke.ARPA> gwyn@brl.ARPA writes: > >two cycles (28 days feminine, 23 days (I think) masculine) >that he claimed were active in everybody. >The 28-day cycle for women (only) has a clear foundation, but >the more general claims do seem to be in the same category as >astrology. And please note, even the 28-day cycle is an *average* not an exact constant. There is considerable variation not only between individuals, but even over time in a single individual. This alone is enough to make Biorythms useless, they would only apply to those few people whose cycles happen to exactly match the average!! -- Sarima (Stanley Friesen) UUCP: {ttidca|ihnp4|sdcrdcf|quad1|nrcvax|bellcore|logico}!psivax!friesen ARPA: ttidca!psivax!friesen@rand-unix.arpa
macrakis@harvard.UUCP (Stavros Macrakis) (04/23/86)
I believe it was Wilhelm Fliess, Freud's friend with the nasal theory
of disease, who introduced the 23 and 28 day cycles. Martin Gardner
had a `Mathematical Games' column about this about ten years ago.
Perhaps the Scientific American cumulative index could help.
I know of no evidence of any sort of validity for this sort of theory,
but then I haven't been looking. It seems to be yet another a priori
theory, like homeopathy, etc.
--
-s
Stavros Macrakis Macrakis@Harvard.{Harvard.EDU,ARPA,uucp,csnet}
Harvard Aiken Lab 111 @Harvunxh.bitnet
33 Oxford Street
Cambridge, MA 02138bl@hplabsb.UUCP (Bruce T. Lowerre) (04/24/86)
> Btw, assuming "astrology" means "using the positions of the heavenly > bodies to determine events on earth", there is at least one non-trivial > instance that works: tides. (And perhaps weather, to some degree.) Is it just coincidence that the average human menstrual cycle equals the lunar cycle?
throopw@dg_rtp.UUCP (Wayne Throop) (04/25/86)
>>[cylixd!dave (Dave Kirby) writes:] >>Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? > [ihnp4!bentley!kwh (Karl W. Z. Heuer) writes:] > I reject it for the same reason that I reject astrology: it's based > on such an absurd premise. There might be some such cycles in people, > but I doubt that (a) they would all start nicely at age 0, (b) the > periods would be an exact integer number of days, (c) the periods > would be so consistent that one can extrapolate from age 0 to present, > (d) that everyone would have the same parameters. > > Btw, assuming "astrology" means "using the positions of the heavenly > bodies to determine events on earth", there is at least one non-trivial > instance that works: tides. (And perhaps weather, to some degree.) It is interesting that the parallel between biorhythms and astrology is very strong indeed. They both have a "real" base, they both use vastly oversimplified mathematical assumptions that swamp the real effects the system is supposedly based on, and both fill very much the same sociological niche, that is, causing money to flow from believer to practitioner. -- Wayne Throop <the-known-world>!mcnc!rti-sel!dg_rtp!throopw
rb@ccird2.UUCP (04/26/86)
In article <935@cylixd.UUCP> dave@cylixd.UUCP (Dave Kirby) writes: > >Is there anything to Biorhythms, or is it just neo-astrology? > Actually, there is more to it than is described in the "popular books". There are several very small rythms involving such things as digestive system, circulatory, and glandular activity which form the basis for biorythms. For example, the 28 day "Emotional cycle" is also the 28 day menstrual cycle in women. Appearantly, men have the same types of cycles in testosterone production. For example, there's appearantly a 3 hour "sleep cycle", a 4 hour digestive cycle, a 12 hour neuron cycle, and about 20+ others, some as short as 1/60th of a second, some "sum of the cycles" run as high as 7 years. In fact, life itself is much like the "hump" of a sine wave. Of course, not everybody's "Emotional cycle" is exactly 28 days, nor are any other of the "major cycles". Daily measurements of blood pressure, heart rate, fluid intake/output, weight, blood chemistry, and galvanometric skin resistance can give you an actual indicator of your actual periodic rates. All of these things have to be done at regular intervals, under carefully controlled conditions, for two or three months. Is it worth it :-). Just to confuse things more, your "Emotional peak" is actually a time when adrenaline and insulin levels are very high. Which means you will be very emotional. This could be good (you could appear very enthusiatic, full of engergy,...) or very bad (you could over-react to bad news). Your "Intellectual peak" is a period when your endorphamine (sp?) and electolyte levels are very high causing higher levels of neuron activity. This could make you a creative genius, or make you so easily distracted, you don't get anything done. The one good thing about following a "biorythm" or even astrology, is that it helps you to "pace yourself". If you consistantly push yourself to the limit all the time, you can overstress your system. If on the other hand you work extra hard for a while, then work a lighter schedule, you can plan time for things like extra long days, followed by some shorter days for resting up. There are even diet plans that will put you on say, 1400 calories for two weeks and then switch to 1000 calories for two weeks. This makes the body less prone to "store up" for the famine, it also reduces the tendency to "Binge" as many dieters do. This is frequently done by doctors and clinics, often unconciously, due to the way the body reacts to the diet. The doctor figures out that at 1400 calories, you should loose weight, say a pound per week. You do, for a while. Then the body starts "storing", and the doctor cuts your intake, then after a week or two, you start loosing too much (dehydration, potasium loss,...) and the doctor increases to keep you from going on a binge, or loosing strength in your immune system. Guess what, the pattern often corresponds with the "physical" cycle. In some cities, police and fire department personnel are given rotation based on their biorythms. Furthermore, during the full moon, many people get very emotional in a bad way, therefore police, fire, mental health centers, and hospitals often increase staff starting the friday night of the full moon. Lunacy is a "Statistical Reality" even if there is no obvious scientific reason for it. They also increase staff around the first of the month, but this is because many people get paid at this time, and like to party too much.
gwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn ) (04/28/86)
In article <3435@hplabsb.UUCP> bl@hplabsb.UUCP (Bruce T. Lowerre) writes: >Is it just coincidence that the average human menstrual cycle equals the >lunar cycle? I don't know, but I can tell you how to find out: Examine analogous cycles in other species. If virtually all of them track the lunar cycle, then I would say there is an (unknown) causal connection; otherwise it would appear to be coincidental.
mikes@tekecs.UUCP (Michael Sellers) (05/02/86)
> In article <3435@hplabsb.UUCP> bl@hplabsb.UUCP (Bruce T. Lowerre) writes: > >Is it just coincidence that the average human menstrual cycle equals the > >lunar cycle? > > I don't know, but I can tell you how to find out: Examine analogous > cycles in other species. If virtually all of them track the lunar > cycle, then I would say there is an (unknown) causal connection; > otherwise it would appear to be coincidental. Humans, chimps, and possibly a few of the other higher primates (maybe orangs and gorillas? I can't remember) have a genuine menstrual cycle that averages at about 28 days. I think chimps actually have something like a 26 or 27 day average, according to my rememberance of the Larousse book. Most other mammals have an estrous cycle where the uterine lining is absorbed rather than sloughed off and where the time of fertility is longer (seasonal). I don't know if the 28-day cycle is coincidence or not; I suppose it could go either way. Given the variability between women, though, I would vote for coincidence (though my wife is extremely consistent -- and each of our children has been born right around the time of the full moon... ). Mike -- Mike Sellers UUCP: {...your spinal column here...}!tektronix!tekecs!michaels "You have to do stupid things once in a while if you're going to be a hero." -- Rocky J. Squirrel