HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: liblit@cs.psu.edu (Benjamin R. Liblit)
Subject: Re: The power of the mind
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1992 22:23:18 GMT

In article <18DEC199209035662@venus.cc.hollandc.pe.ca>,
villard@venus.cc.hollandc.pe.ca writes:
> What one must remember is this, scientists agree 
> that the power of the mind, if tapped, could quite logically be 
> limitless.  

Um ... well ... er ... no.  They don't.  In fact, a good deal of
modern cognitive psychology is based on the idea that the "power of
the mind" is *extremely* limited.  I'll gladly provide a reading list
to interested parties.  In summary, though, cognitive activities are
very tightly bound by finite working memory capacity, speed of recall,
and other limited mental resources.

Much of human behavior that initially appears paradoxical results from
a wide array of heuristics that the mind employs.  These heuristics
exist not because they provide better results, but because they are
*necessary* to cope with the mind's fundamentally limited abilities.

Remember the cliche about "you only use 5% of your brain"?  Well, no.
Not even close.  This was a gross misinterpretation of what was a
flaky statistic in the first place.  You're generally using as much of
your brain as you can get, and wishing you had more.

(If any of you take me up on the offer of a reading list, be patient.
I'll be out of net contact until early January.)

We now return you to our regularly scheduled martial mayhem.

--
Ben Liblit   -----   "Fais que tes reves soient plus longs que la nuit."
liblit@cs.psu.edu   --   brl102@psuvm.psu.edu   --   brl102@psuvm.bitnet
From: toman@bovine.uoregon.edu (J. Toman)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Finishing techniques
Date: 18 Dec 92 22:49:12 GMT
Organization: University of Oregon Network Services
NNTP-Posting-Host: bovine.uoregon.edu

In article <1992Dec18.195115.7957@reed.edu> todd@reed.edu (Todd Ellner) writes:
>In article <1gr89tINN8gd@pith.uoregon.edu> toman@bovine.uoregon.edu (J. Toman) writes:
>>If "rely on pain for effectiveness" means that you get broken if you
>>don't comply with the technique, then what doesn't rely on pain ?
>>Every strike or lock I can think of does.
>
>Many techniques do rely on pain for their effectiveness, but I can think of
>quite a few which don't. For example:
>
>1) Locks: Several neck locks. If your playmate doesn't comply the result is
>   a broken neck. Lights go out and don't go on again when the spine is
>   severed. If you are in the unfortunate situation of grappling with the
>   aforementioned werewolf breaking a knee or ankle will at least allow you to
>   run should you break free; leg locks don't exactly _rely_ on pain to be
>   effective.
>
>2) Strikes: All sorts of strikes to the neck and throat interfere with the
>   ability of nerve impulses to get from A to B, the passage of air and/or
>   blood, etc. Some also send the heart into fibrillation directly and do a
>   variety of other things which are debilitating but have nothing to do with
>   pain. Breaking off the xyphoid process, breaking the knee or ankle,
>   rupturing spleen, bladder, or liver all cause potentially werewolf-stopping
>   damage through means other than pain. 

Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. What I meant was that reliance on pain,
that is, relying on the attacker to not want to experience pain, is different
than relying on the attacker to not want to sustain severe injury, which I
jokingly referred to as 'relying on sanity' . All techniques I know of rely
on sanity, in the sense that if you don't want your leg broken or heart
fibrillated, you don't attack someone who is able to do these things to you.
No doubt there is some esoteric method of getting the brain to dump core
by tapping just so, but I don't know it. (actually, chokes might fit in here)

The two joint locks referred to in the previous article don't rely on pain,
but on sanity, as in order to continue an attack, the attacker must be
willing to sacrifice their arm. It was mainly a semantic quibble.

>
>These are just a few examples. I'm sure that other readers of this newsgroup
>can come up with many others.
>
>Out of curiosity what style do you (Mr. or Ms. Toman) study?
				     ^^

Shingu-style Aikido . Come on down and play with us sometime. Oh yeah !
That reminds me ! If you want to see painless joint locks, come to our
workshop in January.

							J. Toman
From: aikido@cs.ucsd.edu (Aikido Archive Maintainer)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Aikido dojo directory list updated
Date: 16 Dec 92 00:05:10 GMT
Organization: CSE Dept., U.C. San Diego

The aikido dojo directory has been updated just in time for the
holiday traveller.  Be sure to pack your dogi!

From the HOWTO file:

The aikido dojo lists (formerly maintained at iuvax.cs.indiana.edu)
are now at cs.ucsd.edu (132.239.51.3) via anonymous FTP in /pub/aikido.
There are currently 3 lists in compressed format:

	aikido-Asia-Aus-NZ.Z
	aikido-Europe.Z
	aikido-North-America.Z

There are also 3 plain text files:

	HOWTO        (this file)
	FORMAT       (contains style guide for dojo listings)
	periodicals  (contains list of aikido periodicals)

An example of how joe@cs.podunk.edu would obtain a list via anonymous FTP:

	% ftp cs.ucsd.edu
	User: anonymous
	Password: joe@cs.podunk.edu
	ftp> cd pub/aikido
	ftp> binary
	ftp> get aikido-North-America.Z
	ftp> quit
	%

The lists are also available via email through an FTP mailer such 
as ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com or bitftp@pucc.princeton.edu, for example:

	% mail ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com
	connect cs.ucsd.edu
	binary
	chdir /pub/aikido
	get aikido-North-America.Z
	quit
	.
	%

(For more info on FTP mailer usage, send the message HELP to the mailer.)

The file is sent as ASCII (using the btoa filter), and will need to be 
decoded back to compressed format.  Strip off the mail headers using
an editor (such as vi or emacs), then run atob (btoa -a).

Use the "uncompress" command to change the file into a readable format:

	% uncompress aikido-North-America.Z

Additions, modifications, and suggestions should be sent to:

	 aikido@cs.ucsd.edu

Onegaishimasu!
From: wrat@unisql.UUCP (wharfie)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: martial arts info
Date: 14 Dec 92 14:51:53 GMT
Organization: UniSQL, Inc., Austin, Texas, USA

In article <JON.92Dec10161806@zeus.med.utah.edu> jon@zeus.med.utah.edu (Jonathan Byrd) writes:
>>   This differs from karate tournaments where they pretend to hit each other.
>... and then pretend to bleed.
>
	I was under the impression that bloody noses and etc. are
the result of poor technique.  How many full contact karate tournaments
are there?  (Since karate blows are supposed to be lethal, how _could_
you have full contact karate tournaments?)
From: wr@bara.oche.de (Wolfram Roesler)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: QUOTING
Date: 20 Dec 92 19:09:23 GMT
Organization: Private UUCP site, Aachen, FRG
X-Software: Okami Newsreader Version 0.0 B18

In <6631.897.uupcb@meaddata.com>, Jo Lavoy (jo.lavoy%theweb@meaddata.com) wrote:

JL>Does anyone here besides me just HATE to read a message where the quoted
JL>text is longer than the reply?

Quite right, although this is not a rec.m-a specific problem. Many newsreaders
(including mine) simply quote all the text and present it to you for editing,
and many net users obviously are too lazy to delete all text not necessarily
required for the understanding of their follow-up.
Please remember that deleting a line of quoted text takes you a few key
strokes but saves a lot of time when the message is sent round the world
and read by hundreds of people.
Maybe it's simply a question of editor usage? It took me some time, for
example, to find out how to delete a large block of text with the vi
editor. If this is your problem, maybe we should make a list of how
to delete blocks of text with the various editors.
(For the vi users: move the cursor to the first line to delete, press mm
(double m), then move to the last line to delete and press d'm (d single-
quote m). To delete just a few lines it's usually easier to type the number
followed by dd, e.g. 3dd deletes 3 lines.)
-- 
Wolfram Roesler            Augustastr. 44-46            W-5100 Aachen
(E-Mail) wr@bara.oche.de      (Maus) AC2     (Voice) +49(0)241 534596
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: afsar@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com ( )
Subject: Re: need JKA contact
Organization: Lockheed Missiles and Space Co.
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL4
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 92 19:33:32 GMT

el24+@andrew.cmu.edu (Edward Liu) writes:
:  I was under the impression that Master Ohshima broke away from the JKA after
: Master Funakoshi died, but he didn't want to join the other folks leaving the
: JKA to form the Shotokai.

If you go to their dojos they say yes we are JKA too. Just try them.

: 
:    That's "Okazaki"

Yes, you are correct it is Okazaki. I worked out in his dojo for several years
and missed his name.!!!!.

: 
: >JKA/FSKA: Shihan Kevin Funakoshi...Funakoshi Shotokan Karate Association
: 		  ^^^^^
: >                               San Jose, CA
: >                               (408) 453-8112
:    Is this supposed to be "Kenneth?"  I've heard of Kenneth Funakoshi, but not
: Kevin before...?
: 
 Yes again. He goes by Knenneth too!.
From: JTCHEW@lbl.gov (Ad absurdum per aspera)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Drugs & Fighting (was Finishing techniques)
Followup-To: rec.martial-arts
Date: 18 Dec 1992 19:55:19 GMT
Organization: Honest Ernie's Used Ions
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: 128.3.252.152

>   Recently we hear of a narcotic being used in Samalian gunmen.

Minor nit:  I'd be happy to see Somalians (or any other of the
world's excessively numerous kinds of gunmen) take "narcotics" 
all the livelong day.  :)

The drug I usually hear about in this context is "qat" or "khat,"
a drug-containing leaf  you chew, which is imported into Somalia.
Hesitate not to correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it's a bit of a
stimulant that can make you cranky and a bit irrational of you
stay high too long.  Admittedly, these are not desirable qualities 
in somebody who has gotten into the habit of walking around with 
a Russian bazooka slung over his shoulder, but I don't think it 
makes you into a police-folklore-stereotype PCP freak or anything.

Further mass-media hearsay holds that qat is socially disruptive 
not because it causes fighting, but because there is a tendency
for the menfolk to take the afternoon off, sit around chewing
until late at night, and make up for it by getting back to
work late the next morning.  I've also heard that it is relatively
new to Somalia.  There's some other country in that general
part of the world -- I want to say Yemen but am not really sure --
where it is much longer and more thoroughly established.

I'll try to look up something real about qat this weekend.

"Just another personal opinion from the People's Republic of Berkeley"
From: roberts@pogo.wv.tek.com (Robert Stroud)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Just Curious...
Date: 11 Dec 92 17:50:10 GMT
Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Wilsonville,  OR.

In article <1992Dec10.173010.29723@mercury.cair.du.edu> bcarlson@denver.cba.du.edu writes:
>> >TKD new? 
             ... its origins from the 1st C. BC or earlier.
>	
>	Does this mean I get the luggage Robert??
>--
>Bill Carlson                  
     
     No.  But I have an old smelly bogu (kendo
     equipment) bag I gathering dust in my 
     garage which I might consider adding to the
     list of fabulous rec.MA prizes.


-- 
Robert Stroud       Robert_Stroud@simulacrum.wv.tek.com
Obukan Kendo Club   Portland Oregon USA
From: sog@craycos.com (Steve Gombosi)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Sternum strike vs. Solar plexus
Date: 14 Dec 92 16:46:11 GMT
Organization: Cray Computer Corporation

In article <Bz94Jz.JC0@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu> burdickd@silver.ucs.indiana.edu (Dakin Burdick) writes:
>In article <1992Dec13.190418.27172@craycos.com> sog@craycos.com (Steve Gombosi) writes:
>>
>>Exactly where do you strike when you do a "sternum strike"? We punch for
>>the xyphoid process (also known as the "ensiform appendix"), at the very 
>>bottom of the sternum. I believe this point is considerably more vulnerable 
>>than, say, the middle of the sternum ...
>
>I'd agree.  But the people I've heard talk of a "sternum strike" say
>to strike in the middle of the sternum.  
>
>>Striking higher on the sternum wouldn't be likely to break much of anything,
>>IMHO, since the ribs would tend to act as "shock absorbers".
>
>Agreed.
>
>>Consider the case of an assailant with a *really* well developed set
>>of abdominals, or one with (as Lovret-sensei puts it) "a well defined
>>center of gravity." Striking such a person in the solar plexus may well
>>be ineffective, since the intervening tissue may completely absorb the
>>force of the blow. There is no such protective layer over the ensiform
>>appendix/xyphoid process - even highly developed competitive bodybuilders
>>have no muscle lying over this area. It lies low enough on the chest that
>>even Arnold Schwarzennegar's pectorals wouldn't obstruct a clean shot.
>
>Body-building can't make a solar plexus shot ineffective (although a
>lot of fat might!).  
"A lot of fat" *is* what I meant by "a well-defined center of gravity" ;-).

>The solar plexus lies at the juncture of the 
>stomach muscles and the ribs (and just below the xiphoid process;
>in fact the xiphoid process would be hit by a penetrating shot to the
>solar plexus) so the whole point is to avoid hitting the stomach
>muscles.  

Well, I'm sitting here trying to punch myself silly...and I can't find
a way to target my solar plexus that *doesn't* make its initial impact 
on the upper abdominals, unless it's a shot to the ensiform appendix.
As you point out, a punch to the ensiform appendix/xiphoid process
*also* clobbers the solar plexus. Let me grab my boss and we can try this
for real ;-).

A really penetrating blow to the upper-middle sternum (near the spot
where the manubrium joins the gladiolus) might cause a separation - and it might
involve the cardiac plexus as well. However, I think the pectorals and
the shock absorption provided by the ribs would make it *really* difficult
to do this with a "straight-in" blow. Maybe a downward elbow...

>Remember that Houdini used to take punches to the stomach
>to demonstrate how strong he was.  He died after someone hit him
>in the solar plexus.

Uhhhh....I thought he died after someone took him up on the "stomach" 
challenge when he was unprepared. I always heard that the punch ruptured
his appendix. I'm probably wrong, though...

Steve
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: burke@mathsoft.com (Edward J. Burke)
Subject: I Chuan (was Re: Standing Meditation)
Organization: MathSoft, Inc.
Date: Fri, 11 Dec 1992 15:43:52 GMT


I have recently started practicing "standing meditation" with renewed
dedication, (my previous practice being somewhat sporadic). I was initially
inspired by Kwan Saihung who introduced a variant of it involving multiple
positions. He then recommended to a friend of mine via a phone conversation
that we practice the first position (wu chi) for 12 weeks and then the first
and second for several weeks, and first second and third for several more
weeks and so on. There are a total of nine basic positions.

What I really find interesting about this is Mister Kwan indicated that the
positions were from the system developed by Wang Xiang Zhai who called the
system I Chuan (yiquan). I found a little more about him from a couple of
other sources. I quote without permission from _The_Way_of_Energy_ by Lam Kam
Chuen:

"In the mid 1940s an announcemnt appeared in th Chinese newspaper Shibao and in
some other journals outside China inviting anyone to come and beat up a
middle-aged gentleman living in Beijing! No one who took up the challenge ever
succeeded. No wonder - they had tried to overcome Wang Xiang Zhai, the founder
of a form of martial art known as Great Achievements Shadow Boxing or Da Cheng
Chuan".

It went on to describe how Wang was originally a Hsing I Chuan (xingyiquan)
practitioner who then studied under several other masters. He then decided to
distill what he knew, removing all but the essentials, and  yiquan was the
result.


-- 
Ed Burke

burke@mathsoft.com
From: wrat@unisql.UUCP (wharfie)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Re: Quick response was Quick question
Date: 14 Dec 92 21:34:39 GMT
Organization: UniSQL, Inc., Austin, Texas, USA

In article <MARY.92Dec12141826@martinique.Cayman.COM> mary@Cayman.COM (Mary Malmros) writes:
>Someone who has a size and strength advantage can use such "primitive 
>non-techniques" to considerable effect against 98% of the population.  Given 
>that, I wonder if it isn't foolish for us as martial artists to get all 
>haughty and dismiss such techniques as unsophisticated. 

	(I wonder if this isn't another variation on the Super Streetfighter
argument.) A (non) technique isn't dangerous because a very strong
person may be able to cause harm with it.  That's putting the cart before
the horse.  A very strong person is dangerous because he can use almost
any technique to cause harm.  But disregarding the semi-mythical 400 pound 
ex-Marine on PCP I don't think it's haughty to say that if some one attacks
you in this manner you should have enough time to come up with a suitable
defense, even if you have to stop and think about it.  

	It's like if I said "What if someone throws a big wide roundhouse
(punch) ?  If it ever connects you'll be splattered! What a dangerous
technique!"  Wouldn't your response be "But you'd see it coming a mile
away.  Easy to avoid and counter!" ?

>Beats me, what the hell's a "nikkyo"?  

	You bend the wrist so that the fingers point towards uke's elbow 
(which must be bent) along the back of the arm .  This tightens the
tendons and allows you to use the wrist to make a solid connection to
the shoulder and effect his balance.  (If he doesn't submit out of
pain first.)
								wr
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: radner@cray.com (Lauren Radner)
Subject: Re: bags
Keywords: thai bag, heavy bag
Organization: Cray Research, Inc.
Date: 16 Dec 92 15:56:47 CST

In article <6035@rosie.NeXT.COM> trose@next.com writes:
>
>while we are the subject of bags...
>Does anyone know where I might obtain
>a 6 foot bag??  of any weight.....
>

.... so many straight lines... so little time...


-Lauren
From: jo.lavoy%theweb@meaddata.com (Jo Lavoy) 
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: RE: TOGAKURE RYU NINJUTSU
Date: 6 Dec 92 17:46:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: The Web BBS 1-513-436-9011 6 Lines 1200 News groups 50,000 files!
Reply-To: jo.lavoy%theweb@meaddata.com (Jo Lavoy) 

Ah, Dave. Do you know Brin Morgan?  I can't remember the names of other
Brits who we see out here in Ohio from time to time (normally at the
annual festival).
From: actize@sag4.ssl.berkeley.edu
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
Subject: Hapkido Forms
Date: 18 Dec 1992 22:44:09 GMT
Organization: Space Science Labs
Distribution: ucb
NNTP-Posting-Host: sag4.ssl.berkeley.edu

Master F.Azhadk markets a tape "Hapkido Forms". Question: If I learn these 
forms and go in a Hapkido studio and do them, is the instructor going to tell 
me "we don't do this form here" ?  Question: Is there a book of Hapkido forms ? 
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: jlahti@pcuf.fi (Jarmo Lahti)
Subject: pc systems for judo contests
Organization: The PC-users of Finland
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 06:54:40 GMT

If there is pc-program for judo contests (cups etc), to be
used to quickly put fighters to right fights, produce 
"fight plans" and final results, easy to maintain during
competition and has options to be connected to electronic
point/time systems, fax systems (for press releases etc),
can be started with only one little pc but can be updated
to lan systems for big events ...
..
.. please let me know. Or if there is anything? (I have
made my own "system" with QEdit macros, but now I have de-
cided it must have more capabilities.)
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: brian@garfield.cs.mun.ca (Brian Paquet)
Subject: DAMN KIDS!
Organization: CS Dept., Memorial University of Newfoundland
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 06:12:15 GMT

 I have a problem. I hate kids. This would not be so bad but I 
work at a corner store in a not so good area of town where some of 
the kids ..well.. lets just say they don't act like 10th dan aikido
grandmasters :) [as if a tenth dan ANYTHING would not be a grandmaster]
Anyways beating them is out of the question [being illegal and it not
being my style to follow anger with violence] but I am at a loss
how to deal with some of the mega disruptive runts. Before anyone
says it's probably something in me that gets kids going, I do
get along with many of them  so I must be doing something OK.

Perhaps some stories from the dojo might apply outside???
I am sure that many of you have trained with unruly kids 
[the two kids who go to my dojo are not ruffians..]
so what can you do when a kid realises that you really
have little power over them. 
[I supose calling the cops would work.. for a while untill
they learn about time lag]
Treating them like human beings don't seem to work.. [rememer
the bad ones is what I am talking about]

Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts
From: schan@birch.srg.af.mil (Stephen Chan x4485)
Subject: Re: The Harmony Factor
Organization: SRG, Arinc Research Corp., Annapolis, MD
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 92 14:30:37 GMT
Keywords: harmony, sparring, attack

In article <1992Dec11.124739.12639@athena.mit.edu> ras@athena.mit.edu (Richard A Shandross) writes:
>Secondly, *if* you accept the premise, what implications does that have for
>sparring - - - does it then imply that the practice of two people going after
>each other is an exercise in futility because neither is paying attention to
>the question of how to maintain "harmony with the universe" and instead are
>frequently breaking it in order to "win."  

	It seems to me that some of the old Taoist texts are about how to
"maintain harmony with the universe" _in_order_ to win. You invest in loss so
that eventually you come out ahead.
	Its like in algorithm design - a "greedy" algorithm may not provide you
with the optimal solution (though its often the easiest to implement)

>This explains why neither Aikido nor Tai Chi normally include sparring in the
>usual sense.  (Any A. or T.C. players out there who *do* spar per se, and find
>what value in it?)

	I suggest that this is due to the character of the Taiji and
Aikido subcultures here in the USA. In Asia, Taiji people *do* fight. There is
a common story about Yang Lu Ch'an castigating his son for allowing an
opponent to tear his sleeve in a challenge match. I'm not sure, but I think
that Tomiki Aikido is the most popular form of Aikido in Japan.
	San Shou is the term used for Taiji free sparring. It is pretty far
downstream in many Taiji curriculums. But I understand that William Chen likes
his students to put on the gloves and do the Rock'em Sock'em Robots thing
fairly early.
--
	Stephen Chan
	uunet!srg!schan or uunet!srg!schan@uunet.uu.net
Newsgroups: rec.martial-arts