Self Experimentation

Submitted by Quizure on Fri, 2010-05-28 19:52
Science

A few years ago, I ran across a 'revolutionary diet' called the "Shangri-la Diet", and decided to try it - with absolutely no effort beyond *swallowing 2 tablespoons of coconut oil early each morning*, I lost 27 lbs in three months. The weight did not come back. I lost all food cravings, and could easily just stop eating the minute I was full. I didn't exercise.

The author of that book, Seth Roberts, is a 'self-experimenter' - which is how he discovered the effect of 'flavorless calories' that is the premise of his diet. Since that original theory, he's moved on to other self-experiments, which he openly blogs about. It's quite interesting.

The point here is that he's written a paper on the power of self-experimentation, and how it's especially useful in discovering ways to alter our brain's chemistry/perceptions that work for us. What we're doing right here is self-experimentation, and we're in good company!

Here is a link to his scientific paper: http://sethroberts.net/articles/2010%20The%20unreasonable%20effectivenes...

Quizure

Marnia's picture

Submitted by Marnia on Fri, 2010-05-28 21:16.

Thanks for posting it.

I got a kick out of his conclusion that 95% of scientific research adds little to human knowledge because it's "safe" research, where the researcher knows in advance what the conclusions will be.

"Financiers take too many risks; scientists do not take enough." Think I'll add that to the article I'm polishing. smiley

Thanks!

Submitted by Cole on Fri, 2010-05-28 21:24.

Like I recall the one study funded by the government to determine how motorcycle riders felt when riding beside an eighteen-wheeler on the highway?

I call those, "Duh" studies.

Submitted by Amari on Sat, 2010-05-29 05:49.

Once in a blue moon someone actually tests an assumption that everyone has, and the study freakishly turns out completely differently. This, if it's not dismissed immediately, tends to lead to a major breakthrough.

Submitted by Courage on Sat, 2010-05-29 08:48.

I've think that there's a scientific study to prove nearly every theory that exists in the world, and I'm very suspicious as to which companies sponsor these studies since they usually have something to gain from them. I think the best thing we can do is to experiment with ourselves and find what's best for us, find our own truth.