thinking thursday.

mind

• I found this article about the creation of a new language utterly fascinating, right down to the creator’s meeting with George Lakoff at the end: “’There are a whole lot of questions I have about this,’” he told Quijada, and then explained how he felt Quijada had misread his work on metaphor. ‘Metaphors don’t just show up in language,’ he said. ‘The metaphor isn’t in the word, it’s in the idea,’ and it can’t be wished away with grammar.‘”  Makes me want to dive back into “Metaphors We Live By.”
• How the brain organizes the things we see. It has long been thought that each category of object or action humans see — people, animals, vehicles, household appliances and movements — is represented in a separate region of the visual cortex. In this latest study, UC Berkeley researchers found that these categories are actually represented in highly organized, overlapping maps that cover as much as 20 percent of the brain, including the somatosensory and frontal cortices. “Using the semantic space as a visualization tool, we immediately saw that categories are represented in these incredibly intricate maps that cover much more of the brain than we expected.” (See image above)
• I love this interactive map of American migration.

body

• Here’s a list of 85 healthy snacks. Day 27 of a 30-day raw, vegan trial here. I’ve found that my family eats healthy snacks if healthy snacks are in the house (duh). My favorites recently: raw cashews with golden raisins, apple with raw almond butter, clementines.
• Pomegranates. Swiss Chard. Pecans. Yes. Made this for Christmas eve dinner. Indeed.
• This raw vegan lasagna is on my list to make.
• Six simple self-care rituals not only useful for reaching your potential as the title suggests, but for living a healthier life.

spirit

• The Week of Inward Looking is underway. It is a free, simple way to use this week between Christmas and New Year’s to reflect on your year and look inward as a way of preparing for the year to come. We would love for you to join us: 7 Days, 7 Thought Leaders, 7 Questions.

word

(image from here)