Pavlov's Box

Around the turn of the last century Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov ran a series of studies that most have heard about. In high school we learned about Pavlov ringing a bell to signal dinner time for a bunch of dogs. It made them salivate everytime he rang the bell, whether there was food or not. That part is well known, but what most people don’t consider is what was the purpose of the experiments anyway? I mean, this was the time of the beginning of the Bolshevik uprising. Why would Lenin, who praised Pavlov for his work, even care? Why who Pavlov receive a Nobel Peace Prize for this work?

The real purpose of the experiment was conditioning. They started on dogs but that doesn’t mean they stopped there. Over the last century social conditioning experiments have continued on a grand scale. We are being conditioned to do a multitude of things. And the largest source of these conditioning influences come through the media i.e. movies, television and music. If you don't believe it, consider a couple of examples like the impact of the movie Jaws. Before the movie fear of sharks was not a big phobia, but it only took a few months to change that. Or what about the influence of a cartoon, the Simpsons, for decades before the mid 1980’s the television was relatively free of profanity, until the cartoon Bart Simpson used the word “butt.” We have been conditioned to the extent that a word like butt, which used to rate offensively, now is hardly even considered a curse word. There are many more examples of how the media has induced fear, love, likes and dislikes.

Why has our paradigm changed? We are being conditioned. And the beginnings of this psycho science started in Pavlov’s lab. Consider that watching television literally has the same effect on the brain as staring at a blank wall. Serious. The brains waves are altered by the lights and action of the TV, the mind also relaxes because it does not have to take an active part in the program. In fact it is being programmed. When hypnotherapists induce a person into a hypnotic state they alter the brain waves of the individual to a slow state. The same effect is had on someone in as little as 30 seconds of television watching. This was born out by the work of Thomas Mulholland.  After induced into an altered state of consciousness we can be programmed by what ever the intent of the producer or advertiser. It is the author’s personal belief that Americans have become so materialistic, because of all the consumerism that is pushed upon the citizens through programs and advertisers.

As depressing as this may seem, there is an answer. You can turn off the television and disconnect the cable or satellite. If you are a tv watcher and you do this, you would be blown away with the amount of free time you will have. That’s time you can spend with family and friends, working on something you have always wanted to or better yet, it is time you can think for yourself! And good health starts with a sound mind.

God bless