Mountain Views News          Saturday, August 29, 2015

14

THE WORLD AROUND US

 Mountain Views News Saturday, August 29, 2015 


STUNNING NEW IMAGES FROM DWARF PLANET CERES

Striking 3-D detail highlights a towering mountain, 
the brightest spots and other features on dwarf 
planet Ceres in a new video from NASA’s Dawn 
mission. The video is available at:

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/video/details.php?id=1392 

 A prominent mountain with bright streaks on 
its steep slopes is especially fascinating to scientists. 
The peak’s shape has been likened to a cone or a 
pyramid. It appears to be about 4 miles high, with 
respect to the surface around it, according to the 
latest estimates. This means the mountain has 
about the same elevation as Mount McKinley in 
Denali National Park, Alaska, the highest point in 
North America.

 “This mountain is among the tallest features 
we’ve seen on Ceres to date,” said Dawn science 
team member Paul Schenk, a geologist at the Lunar 
and Planetary Institute, Houston. “It’s unusual that 
it’s not associated with a crater. Why is it sitting in 
the middle of nowhere? We don’t know yet, but we 
may find out with closer observations.”

 Also puzzling is the famous Occator (oh-KAH-
tor) crater, home to Ceres’ brightest spots. A new 
animation simulates the experience of a close 
flyover of this area. The crater takes its name 
from the Roman agriculture deity of harrowing, a 
method of pulverizing and smoothing soil. 

 In examining the way Occator’s bright spots 
reflect light at different wavelengths, the Dawn 
science team has not found evidence that is 
consistent with ice. The spots’ albedo—a measure 
of the amount of light reflected—is also lower than 
predictions for concentrations of ice at the surface. 

 “The science team is continuing to evaluate the 
data and discuss theories about these bright spots 
at Occator,” said Chris Russell, Dawn’s principal 
investigator at the University of California, Los 
Angeles. “We are now comparing the spots with 
the reflective properties of salt, but we are still 
puzzled by their source. We look forward to new, 
higher-resolution data from the mission’s next 
orbital phase.”

 Ceres, with a diameter of 584 miles, is the largest 
object in the main asteroid belt between Mars and 
Jupiter. 

 At its current orbital altitude of 915 miles, Dawn 
takes 11 days to capture and return images of 
Ceres’ whole surface. Each 11-day cycle consists of 
14 orbits. Over the next two months, the spacecraft 
will map the entirety of Ceres six times.

 The spacecraft is using its framing camera 
to extensively map the surface, enabling 3-D 
modeling. Every image from this orbit has a 
resolution of 450 feet per pixel, and covers less than 
1 percent of the surface of Ceres.

 At the same time, Dawn’s visible and infrared 
mapping spectrometer is collecting data that 
will give scientists a better understanding of the 
minerals found on Ceres’ surface.

 Engineers and scientists will also refine their 
measurements of Ceres’ gravity field, which will 
help mission planners in designing Dawn’s next 
orbit as well as the journey to get there. In late 
October, Dawn will begin spiraling toward this 
final orbit, which will be at an altitude of 230 
miles.

 Dawn is the first mission to visit a dwarf planet, 
and the first to orbit two distinct solar system 
targets. It orbited protoplanet Vesta for 14 months 
in 2011 and 2012, and arrived at Ceres on March 6, 
2015. 

 

 You can contact Bob Eklund at: b.eklund@
MtnViewsNews.com.


OUT TO PASTOR 

A Weekly Religion Column by Rev. James Snyder

CLUES TOWARDS NATURAL HEALTH

By Christopher Nyerges 

[Nyerges is the author of 
“Extreme Simplicity,” “How to 
Survive Anywhere,” “Guide to 
Wild Foods and Useful Plants,” 
and other books. He can be 
reached at www.SchoolofSelf-
Reliance.com, or Box 41834, 
Eagle Rock, CA 90041.] 

 Health. What is it, really? When most of the world 
speaks of the “health profession,” they’re not speaking 
of health at all. They’re speaking about maladies, 
discomforts, and disease. They speaking about what 
the western doctors can do to relieve or eliminate the 
symptoms of our problems. 

 So it always bugs me that we’ve hypnotically 
switched “health” with “symptom relief” in our 
thinking. 

 It also bugs me that no where in all the “healthcare” 
debate about “Obamacare” being forced upon us 
is there any discussion whatsoever about what 
constitutes health! So what is health? How do we 
achieve it? What does it look like? 

 When I was about 17 I got a job at a local health 
food store. The owner made a point of telling me 
that he got into the “health field” because he’d nearly 
driven himself to death because of his desire to be an 
actor. He would recount for us his various diseases 
and symptoms, all of which he says he overcame by 
a change of diet. He still died a young death in his 
50s, perhaps because his years of stress and drugs 
and drinking still caught up with him. But for awhile, 
he was the image of radiant health. What did he do? 
Perhaps more importantly, what did he not do? 

 I am not a fan of a big government dictating what 
constitutes health, and so I have no faith in the 
current dictates that everyone should get “mandatory” 
vaccinations. I don’t believe it is safe, nor efficacious, 
and yes, I am one of those who believe it can be 
harmful. (But this is not primarily about vaccinations.) 

 What is good vibrant health, and how can we all 
achieve it? 

It is something that Obamacare can give us? Is it 
something that most doctors can tell us how to achieve? 
For starters, just look at your doctor. He or she might 
be the epitome of radiant health, but chances are, 
your overworked doctor is not an exemplar of radiant 
health. 

In one of my books, Integral Health, I have proposed 
the “Pyramid of Health,” where the bottom foundation 
of the pyramid constitutes all those things that are the 
most important foundations of health. The very tip of 
the pyramid – those things that are least important – 
include the drugs and care of doctors. 

 What you do, and eat, and think, and how you 
spend your life, are the building blocks to radiant 
health. This is nothing new, and is not a mystery. 

 

Hippocrates, sometimes called the father of modern 
medicine, used a variety of “natural methods” to 
relieve sickness and bring about a state of health. These 
methods included exposure to sunlight, exercise, diet, 
fasting, water therapy, etc. There are whole books 
today about the scientific foundation for each of these 
means of promoting health. 

 Of course, the greatest focus in our society is upon 
the foods that we eat, and the intensity of the exercise 
we do. It is easier to quantify the effects on our health 
of various foods we eat than it is to quantify our state 
of mind on our health. But that is the direction in 
which we should be headed. 

 In a recent discussion with a mentor, he brought up 
what he felt is a major source of mental and physical 
sickness. He expressed that whenever any of us 
carries on with unpaid debts (and these debts can be 
financial, ethical, moral, or spiritual), that nightmares 
and sicknesses result. The obvious solution is to delve 
deep within, and find a way to pay that debt. But 
what most of us do, instead, is to dig in our heels and 
resist, resulting in much mental anguish and even 
manifesting as various sicknesses and diseases. Then, 
the common next step is to get a doctor (of some 
sort, even a psychiatrist) to give us drugs to deal with 
the pain. Of course, all the drugs have side effects, 
sometimes worse than what it was trying to cure. Or 
maybe we drink alcohol to relieve the pain so we can 
carry on with our life without ever having to deal with 
the cause. 

 Healthcare should promote regular vigorous 
exercise, and an excellent diet, and should guide 
each patient to see how our thinking, and the jobs 
we do, can ruin our health, or improve it. Real health 
educators should teach how to use foods as medicines, 
and how we can allow our body to heal itself, if we let 
it. For example, using the fresh aloe leaf to treat cuts 
and wounds. Or using garlic (internally or externally) 
to deal with infections. I told a friend how I once used 
garlic after a root canal, and didn’t use any antibiotics 
that the dentist prescribed. He believed I was lying! 

 Another “natural method” involves using vinegar 
in our drinking water and fruit juices to help us adjust 
to external temperature fluctuations, or externally to 
deal with bug bites. 

 We are, of course, in the early stages of a health 
revolution, where people know something is wrong 
with the overall direction and focus of the “health 
profession.” But don’t expect changes from the 
industry or from government. Educate yourself, and 
learn to treat yourself and your family. And keep 
learning!

 (Obviously, I’ve only touched on the tip of the iceberg 
here – I welcome your questions and comments).

A MIDSUMMER’S DAY NIGHTMARE

I am not sure who 
invented summer 
vacation, but I think they 
deserve a Nobel Peace Prize. Every year is worth 
the intense strain when there is a summer 
vacation to look forward to.

Ah, summer vacation. The freedom of not 
having anything to do. No schedule in my 
face. No appointments frustrating me. Just an 
agenda of fun and more fun and don't forget the 
eating.

Both the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage 
and me got up early to begin the drive to the 
airport to take us to our vacation location. I was 
so full of energy I could not sit still. It was then 
that I broke into singing, comfortably off key, 
a Carpenter's song much to the agitation of my 
wife.

"We've only just begun,

White lace and promises,

A kiss for luck and we're on our way."

All my wife could do was stare at me. Finally, 
she said, "You sure are excited. I've never seen 
you so excited. Are you sure you're all right?"

I could not have been more all righter.

All I could think of was a week before me 
surrounded by grandchildren I have not seen 
for over a year.

"How old is...?" I went through all the 
grandchildren. It is easy to forget how old kids 
are because every year their age changes. When 
you get to be my age, it is hard to keep up with 
all of these changes.

A week of stuffing them with all the candy I 
could carry. Taking them out to a restaurant and 
showing them the proper use of the drinking 
straw and the fine art of a spitball battle. After 
all, it is a grandfather's solemn duty to teach his 
grandchildren the fine art of shenaniganism. 
Where else are they going to learn it? Their 
grandmother? I don't think so.

We finally arrived at the airport, parked our car 
and proceeded to the check-in counter. I am not 
sure my feet touched the ground, so excited was 
I to get on our way.

"Slow down," my wife pleaded. "I can't keep up 
with you."

We finally arrived at the check-in counter with 
our baggage and one of the attendants asked me 
a simple question. I hate it when people ask me 
a question when I am in one of my silly moods. 
Believe me; I was in one of my silliest silly 
moods at this time.

"Sir," the attendant asked me very seriously, "do 
you have anything perishable or flammable in 
your luggage?"

With silliness smeared all over my mug I said, 
"I sure do. I got a Bible in there and it is Dyn-
O-Mite." And, I had the audacity to smile very 
broadly.

Then it happened.

Someone said, "Did he say dynamite? Where's 
the dynamite?" The attendant said, "He said the 
dynamite was in his briefcase."

Suddenly, lights went on, buzzers began ringing, 
men in uniforms surrounded me, two grabbed 
and subdued me. In a few moments, the hazmat 
men arrived asking where the dynamite was.

The man in charge pointed to my briefcase and 
said, "It's in the briefcase."

They begin moving people away while the 
hazmat men came in to remove the briefcase 
with the alleged dynamite. At this time, I was 
absolutely stunned. Every ounce of silliness had 
drained from my person and I knew I was about 
to go to jail. Finally, the senior security guard 
came and looked at me. "Where did you say the 
dynamite was, sir?"

I stammered and stuttered, but finally I said, "I 
said my Bible was dynamite."

He stared at me. Look me up and down, glared 
at me with eyes that burned into my very soul. 
Then he spoke.

"Would you by any chance be a minister?" He 
said rather gruffly.

"Yes sir," I stammered as if my life depended 
upon what I was going to say, "I am a minister, 
a preacher of the gospel." I thought the last part 
might do something for me. At least it was a 
shot, excuse me, a try.

He glared at me and shouted, "False alarm. Just 
another crazy preacher."

As he walked away, I could hear him muttering 
under his breath, "Where do all these crazy 
preachers come from?"

The terminal finally quieted down, I went 
through the inspection and I must say, I am not 
complaining, mind you, but the pat down was 
a little longer and rougher than I remembered 
it being in the past. They stripped me down 
almost to my birthday suit. Thank God for 
wrinkles.

As I walked down the aisle on the plane, I could 
hear people whispering, "That's him. That's the 
crazy preacher with the dynamite."

I finally sat down next to my wife who was 
staring out the window. In a few minutes, the 
plane took off and as we reached our altitude 
she, while still staring out the window, said to 
me, "Next time we'll take separate planes." She 
paused for a moment and then said, "In fact, 
we'll take separate airports."

I think I am going to stick to what the Bible says.

"For the word of God is quick, and powerful, 
and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing 
even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, 
and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner 
of the thoughts and intents of the heart" 
(Hebrews 4:12).

God's Word is powerful and therefore needs to 
be used in a way that will honor God.

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com