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Abstract: The “for one disease, one medicine” paradyme typical of current medical practice is outdated. The concepts of quantum mechanics, determined chaos and fractals allow us to understand disease processes more deeply and accurately than the classical models of cause and effect. Within this more expansive and inclusive world view (Weltanschauung) the multiple internal and external causes of a patient’s disease may be each considered within their own individual contexts. Both the patient and his physician are operating from a far more complicated multi-dimensional picture of the processes of health and disease. Because this picture more accurately represents reality, it provides a better basis for both an evaluation of the totality of the health situation and for the application of the wider spectrum of therapeutic efforts needed to solve problems, particularly those of chronic, degenerative diseases.
In very recent times, physicists looking within the atom found both a firm natural order and a totally unanticipated chaos and uncertainty. In order to express and work with these new ideas mathematically, scientists developed the uncertainty principle coupled with the science of quantum mechanics and chaos theory. Curiously, as the new conception of the nature of the universe began to emerge, reality again was defined a new type of three-level universe. The first layer consists of those aspects of our everyday world that may be accurately described by Newtonian physics. The third level consists of all objects and phenomena that are best described by chaos theory. Located between these two levels is the area of relative uncertainty (determined chaos) within which all the phenomena of life exist. Within this new and still emerging worldview, it is believed that life cannot exist either in rigid form or in chaos. Life can only exist within defined limits, between strict rules of structure and utter chaos.
With this new definition of reality, our worldview has once again drastically changed. In this new light, people are beginning to review their assumptions, concepts, and even their prejudices. Many find it hard to give up the comfortable certainty of Newtonian mechanics, but forward thinkers everywhere are adopting and adapting to the new concepts. Expression of the new worldview may be seen in various sciences, art and music. Chaos theory has even been successfully applied in predicting trends in the fields of economics and business. With the framework of these new concepts, repeatable but previously unexplainable phenomena in the field of alternative medicine are receiving a strong theoretical basis. It took several centuries after the Renaissance before the established dogmas gave way and the new concepts of Newtonian physics were generally accepted. Today, it may take decades before the general consensus of the established medical profession, which is still greatly dominated by the Newtonian concepts of cause and effect, accepts those facets of alternative medicine that are now being explained and proved in the light of quantum and chaos theories.
In the AK literature, one can see that explanations of muscle testing have been limited to the most widely accepted medical concepts of physiology and neurophysiology. However, within the generally accepted medical model, many of the observed phenomena of AK simply cannot be explained. Bioresonance and multi-resonance therapy systems such as electro acupuncture (Voll) are used by some in AK. Examiners using AK often test subtle energy substances such as homeopathic remedies, Bach Flower Remedies and gemstones held in the hand. An explanation of how the above methods could function does not exist within the models of classical medicine. Explanations and verifications, however, are now being developed in terms of quantum mechanics and chaos theory.
For both diagnosis and treatment, examiners using AK often utilize systems of reflex that have no, or only tenuous, basis in conventional anatomy. Examples of such reflex systems include neurolymphatic reflexes, neurovascular reflexes, hand and foot reflexes (reflexology), cranial stress receptors, the meridian system, and ear acupuncture. Jochen Gleditsch in his book, Mundakupunktur, has demonstrated that such reflex areas exist all over the body. According to his research, one can affect any chosen part of the body by stimulating reflex points located more or less upon every other part of the body. In all of these systems, remote areas are stimulated to produce an effect in a target organ or group of organs. Although attempts and some progress have been made, all efforts to explain these phenomena using the models of classical medicine have had limited success.
In this difficult situation, and as outlined above, a review of the evolution in mathematics and physics over the past century may provide a path-finder for understanding the new thinking in medicine. During that time, most of the hallowed Newtonian concepts gave way to Einsteinian theories, and particularly to quantum mechanics and chaos theory. In order to provide an explanation of the peculiar, very useful, and hitherto unexplainable AK phenomena, classic scientific and especially medical thinking will now be contrasted with quantum mechanics and chaos theory.
A Comparison Between Traditional and Modern Models of Reality
Classical linear cause-and-effect thinking developed during the Renaissance and ascended to its peak in Newtonian mechanics. The “one disease-one cure” concept still dominant in medicine today is a reflection of this thinking. In the classical scientific model (and also in classical medicine), a separation between the observer and the observed phenomena is assumed. In this model, it is believed that separate objects act one upon one another without any influence being caused by the act of observation. The basic premise of this viewpoint is that one object can cause an effect upon another object, fully independent of the observer.
In modern quantum theory, it has been determined that independent observers (those who have no effect upon that which is observed) do not exist. That which is sought, and the act of seeking itself, have an influence upon what is found. In physics, the validity of this principle was clearly demonstrated by the wave-particle duality of electrons. It was not known if electrons were waves or particles. In an experiment to detect waves, electrons behaved like waves. In another experiment to detect particles, electrons behaved like particles. So which are they? These experiments demonstrated that electrons appear to be what the experimenter is looking for and measuring! The act of observation, more than any inherent reality, determines how they appear. A philosophical expression of this idea is reflected in the popular saying, “If you are looking for trouble, you will probably find it.”
In another experiment, researchers were presented with two groups of rats. They were told that one group was bred for increased intelligence and that the other group was rather stupid. The researchers were asked to test each group of rats to see how much faster the intelligent rats learned to run through a labyrinth. As expected, the intelligent rats did indeed learn significantly faster to run through the maze. Then came the surprise: All the rats from both groups were genetically from the same stock. The only difference was the expectations of the researchers. In a similar experiment, school teachers were told that certain students were especially intelligent. And although the students were of only average intelligence, they did excel in their courses when their teachers expected them to excel. These surprising results, which are in perfect agreement with quantum theory, cast doubt upon the accuracy of much of the scientific research performed throughout history. These examples imply that in this universe of ours, there is a tendency to find what you are looking for!
Another basic premise of quantum theory is the “superposition principle”, which states that everything is related to and connected with everything else. In a universe such as this implies, it is impossible to make any definite statement about cause and effect. In order to make some sense of observed phenomena, it is necessary to isolate and abstract them from the all encompassing quantum world into the special, classical world of time and space. Then the system researched has individuality, measurements can be taken, and statements about its nature can be made. But any such measurements and statements about the “reality” of the system researched are dependent upon the point of reference, the context of the investigations and the expectations of the researchers themselves.
Although quantum theory has been accepted by most branches of science, many in the world of medicine cling to the cause-effect mentality defined by Newtonian mechanics. Classical medicine still bases its diagnostic and treatment techniques upon the concept of the lock and key, in which the lock is a disease and the key is a medicine or medical technique (chemical medicines, surgery, etc.). This linear thinking model implies that each part of the body and indeed each cell is an independent entity that may be treated for its independent disturbances. However, in a multi-cellular being such as the human body, cells do not exist individually. Historically, the abstract concept of the separate cell and its pathologies (Virchow, 1858) led to the linear idea of “for one disease, one specific cure.” Within this thinking, the individual phenomena one experiences when ill are ignored in favor of defined models of illness. Symptoms are quantified and used as indicators of specific syndromes. If the values of a certain test are above a defined level, you have the syndrome. After effective treatment, the values must again fall below the defined level. An effective treatment within this perspective means “normalizing” the values—bringing them back into the accepted range of tolerance. At its worst, this scientific dogma leads to treating the model of the disease instead of the patient.
For example, a patient had breast cancer that had spread to many other areas of her body. In May, after surgery to the breast and chemotherapy, she was told to prepare for death before September. Her T-lymphocyte cell count was 18/µl. The normal level is defined as being between 1000 and 3500/µl. She enjoyed running and continued to run 17 kilometers each day. In February, she was still alive and her T-cell count had increased to 76/µl. The doctors said that this increase was too small to have any significance whatsoever. The idea that her regular exercise might be keeping her alive and improving her health was not even considered. She was told that the increase in the number of T cells had no meaning and not to allow it to produce unrealistic hopes, because she would soon be dead.
This type of medical viewpoint automatically places limits upon which possible therapeutic efforts may even be considered. By only considering lab test values, doctors may diagnose and prescribe swiftly and thereby see more patients per day. The problem is that in this simplistic model, there is no place for individual variation. There is no room in this thinking for the fact that the same symptoms may be produced by different causes. And there is no place for the fact that the same medicine may produce different effects in two individual patients, even though they have the same presenting symptoms. More attention is given to the numerical results of medical tests than to how the patient is feeling or the causes of her symptoms viewed within her personal biology/constitution, or considered with reference to the quality of her lifestyle.
In acute illnesses where physical damage to tissues or infection by a micro-organism is the main cause, traditional medical diagnosis and treatment are extremely effective. In most acute illnesses, one specific cause outweighs all the others. In such cases, the “one disease-one treatment” mentality is usually successful. Doctors using this method have developed effective treatments for most acute medical problems. Because of these great successes, the world is largely free from many of the complaints that were often a cause of death in the past. Today the situation has changed. The most common medical complaints are no longer acute “diseases”, but are instead tumors and other chronic degenerative illnesses. And traditional medical thinking is at a loss in dealing with these problems.
Because people today seldom die young from injuries, infections and infectious diseases, the average age of death has risen significantly. Bodily functions and the ability to recover and regenerate decrease with increasing years. Old people typically die from degenerative diseases. That there are more older people is one reason degenerative diseases are more prevalent today. But the fact that many more young people suffer from degenerative diseases today than in years past indicates that there are other causes besides increasing age.
Thinking along the lines of the lock-and-key model, the doctor prescribes a chemical medicine to kill bacteria, or in the case of a viral infection, a chemical that inhibits viral reproduction. But medical research has revealed that many of the disease-producing bacteria and viruses live upon and within our bodies constantly. Often, the question is not asked as to why the body was susceptible at this particular time to infection. To even be aware that such a question exists, the doctor needs to expand his or her thinking from the classical Newtonian mechanics style of thinking that typically dominates the field of medicine to the more expansive, multi-dimensional concepts of modern quantum theory and chaos theory.
Anyone who has had a garden has observed that insects prefer to infest plants that are already weak. Similarly, anyone who has observed their own changing state of health knows that they are more likely to succumb to the ever-present cold viruses when they are exhausted, chilled, hungry, emotionally upset or otherwise excessively stressed. When the body is under stress, the bacteria that normally live on the skin can more easily infect a cut.
Seen in this light, it seems likely that taking medicines to combat an infecting agent, although temporarily successful against the acute disease, may be ignoring the multiple other causes of why the person got ill in the first place. And evidence indicates that, if not corrected, these multiple stresses may cause a repeat attack or eventually even result in a degenerative disease.
Furthermore, it is well known that those who are prone to infections and get sick a few times each year have less probability of developing our most prevalent disease, cancer. However, this benefit is lost if they take medicines that prevent their immune system from building strength by performing its natural fight against the infecting agents. Research strongly indicates that the immune system needs to battle diseases from time to time to keep in shape. When infectious diseases are severe, medicines may save lives. But their use for every little infectious disease that occurs may actually be one of the causes of severe diseases such as cancer!
Newtonian mechanics defines physical systems as functioning in a linear manner. An example of a linear system is a single pendulum. Its oscillating behavior is independent of the influence of any separate objects in its environment and is relatively independent of the effect of the observer. This is similar to the medical model of the single, isolated cell discussed above.
However, the concepts of cybernetics (Wiener, 1963), chaos theory and thermodynamic open systems of energy (Prigogine, 1979) have demonstrated that biological systems are non linear. A simple example of a non-linear system is many different pendula linked together with springs. When one is moved, the energy dissipates first into the nearby and then into the more distant pendula and then back again until all are moving together in harmonic resonance. Like these coupled pendula, most structures within non-linear systems are self-repetitive. The same patterns of structure and motion are seen on many levels. This principle is observed throughout nature.
In the eighteenth century, Ernst Chaldni placed sand upon a thin plate of glass and made the plate resonate by stroking it with the bow of a violin. The sand vibrated into beautiful repetitive geometric figures across the surface (Chaldnian figures). Chaldni publicized his discoveries in his book, Entdeckungen über die Theorie des Klanges, (Leipzig, 1787). The Swiss scientist, Hans Jenny, spent ten years investigating the power of sound to form geometric patterns in various inorganic substances. The patterns produced by sound vibration in his experiments look like starfish, bacteria, organs and other patterns seen in forms of life. In Cymatics (1974), he concluded that where organization is concerned, the harmonic figures of physics are essentially similar to the harmonic patterns of organic nature.
These patterns of physics are seen in all living systems. Their principal characteristic is redundance, i.e., the same patterns repeat again and again on many levels until the available space is filled. For example, in the circulatory system each artery branches again and again into smaller and smaller, but in form essentially identical, arterioles and capillaries. The lung provides a similar example. The lung is basically a bag of air that is subdivided into smaller and smaller bags of air. This redundancy principle may be seen also in the form of most organs, which are segmented with each segment also segmented and so on until each sub-segment is completely filled with nearly identical cells.
Fractal Geometry
Mathematics recognizes such redundant systems of organization in which the same patterns appear repeatedly on various levels of complexity until the available space is filled. In mathematics, these geometric structures are called “broken dimensions” or “fractals.” Fractal geometry was developed by the Polish-born French mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot. He coined the word “fractal” from the Latin verb frangere, “to break”, and the related adjective fractus, “irregular and fragmented.” Fractal geometry deals with structures that repeat on finer and finer scales (Mandelbrot, 1991). Fractal geometric figures are self-similar. This means that when enlarged, their parts are identical with the whole. Fractals are not smooth figures like the curves and circles that exist in Euclidean geometry. They instead have a step-wise, jagged quality.
Mathematical fractals are perfectly symmetrical and remain geometrically identical on any level of magnification. They exist between strict order and chaos in the realm of “determined chaos.” If the definition of fractals is expanded a bit to include some non-linear qualities (some deviation from mathematical perfection), such geometric forms can be found in nearly every natural phenomenon. Outside certain defining limits, forms may be very rough (but not self similar) or very smooth—thus defining them as not fractal but rather Euclidean. As already described, life can only exist in an area between chaos and structure. Too rough is too chaotic. Too smooth is too structured. Within these limits, virtually everything is fractal. For example, almost any-sized piece of cauliflower looks much like a whole head of cauliflower. The pattern “cauliflower” is clearly present on all these levels of observation. Thus the design of cauliflower is fractal. Fractals are an essential part of the mathematics of all natural phenomena, including life.
Fractal geometry has been used to understand disorder (chaos) in natural systems. In 1961, Mandelbrot applied his fractal theories successfully to turbulence in moving fluids, the distribution of galaxies, and even to predicting fluctuations of the stock market. In 1967, he showed that the irregular shorelines of the English coast are fractal.
Two American mathematicians, John Hubbard and Adrien Douady, developed the most known and useful set of non-linear fractals and named it after Mandelbrot. The more the bud-like geometrical figures derived from this set are magnified, the more the unpredictability increases. The Mandelbrot set is central to the science of dynamic systems.
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