Transhumanism Accelerates..... First successful implant of 'Bionic' eye Microchips

'I've dreamed in colour for the first time in 20 years': Blind British man can see again after first successful implant of 'bionic' eye microchips

• Microchips restore sight to people suffering retinitis pigmentosa - an incurable condition that leads to blindness
• Condition affects one in every 3,000-4,000 people
• Clinical trial with two sufferers 'exceeds expectations
• Sufferers able to detect outlines of objects 'within days'
• Vision expected to improve further as 3mm chip 'beds in'

Surgeons in Oxford, led by Professor Robert MacLaren, fitted the chip at the back of Chris' eye in a complex eight-hour operation last month. Chris, from Wiltshire, said: 'I've always had that thought that one day I would be able to see again.'

Two blind men can see again for the first time in more than two decades after an implant of a 3mm 'bionic eye' microchip.

Doctors believe in time Chris James will be able to recognise faces, once his brain learns to see again. 

Chris, from Wiltshire, said: 'I've always had that thought that one day I would be able to see again.'

Surgeons in Oxford, led by Professor Robert MacLaren, fitted the chip at the back of Chris' eye in a complex eight-hour operation last month. 

Chris was one of two British patients to receive the electronic microchips - and both were regaining ‘useful vision’ just weeks after undergoing surgery.

Robin Millar, 60, from London, is one of the patients who has been fitted with the chip along with 1,500 electrodes, which are implanted below the retina.

The music producer said: ‘Since switching on the device I am able to detect light and distinguish the outlines of certain objects which is an encouraging sign.

‘I have even dreamt in very vivid colour for the first time in 25 years so a part of my brain which had gone to sleep has woken up!

‘I feel this is incredibly promising for future research and I'm happy to be contributing to this legacy.’

Eye experts developing the pioneering new technology said the first group of British patients to receive the electronic microchips were regaining 'useful vision' just weeks after undergoing surgery.

The news will offer fresh hope for people suffering from retinitis pigmentosa (RP) - a genetic eye condition that leads to incurable blindness.

Retina Implant AG, a leading developer of subretinal implants, fitted two RP sufferers with the wireless device in mid-April as part of its UK trial.

The patients were able to detect light immediately after the microchip was activated, while further testing revealed there were also able to locate white objects on a dark background, Retina Implant said.

The chip is 3mm by 3mm, and is implanted into the eyeball of sufferers

The Six Million Dollar Man: A similar 'bionic' technology was used to restore sight to the blind, and the first group of British patients to receive the electronic microchips were regaining 'useful vision' just weeks after undergoing surgery

The Wiltshire man can now recognise shapes after becoming the first British patient to be fitted with the digital chip

Robin Millar from London, one of two men to undergo cutting edge bionic eye treatment

The first group of British patients to receive the electronic microchips were regaining ¿useful vision¿ just weeks after undergoing surgery

The company hopes for a further trial with ten new patients later this year

Retina Implant AG, a leading developer of subretinal implants, fitted two RP sufferers with the wireless device in mid-April as part of its UK trial.

The patients were able to detect light immediately after the microchip was activated, while further testing revealed there were also able to locate white objects on a dark background, Retina Implant said.

Ten more British sufferers will be fitted with the devices as part of the British trial, which is being led by Tim Jackson, a consultant retinal surgeon at King’s College Hospital and Robert MacLaren, a professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Oxford and a consultant retinal surgeon at the Oxford Eye Hospital.

They said: ‘We are excited to be involved in this pioneering subretinal implant technology and to announce the first patients implanted in the UK were successful.

‘The visual results of these patients exceeded our expectations. This technology represents a genuinely exciting development and is an import step forward in our attempts to offer people with RP a better quality of life.’

The patients were able to detect light immediately after the microchip was activated, while further testing revealed there were also able to locate white objects on a dark background, Retina Implant said

The chip pairs with an external device to process images

Chris James from Wiltshire, said: 'I've always had that thought that one day I would be able to see again.'

The patients will undergo further testing as they adjust to the 3mm by 3mm device in the coming months.

The subretinal implant technology has been in clinical trials for more than six years with testing also taking place in Germany. Developers are planning to seek commercial approval following the latest phase of testing.

David Head, head of charity RP Fighting Blindness, said: ‘The completion of the first two implants in the UK is very significant and brings hope to people who have lost their sight as a result of RP.’

RP is an inherited condition which gets worse over time and affects one in every 3,000-4,000 people in Europe.

By ROB WAUGH

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2138775/The-eye-borg-First-successful-implant-bionic-eye-restore-sight-blind.html#ixzz1tqASlXsB

Ancient Aliens Debunked

I’m guessing all PaleoBabble readers know about the Ancient Aliens series put out by the Fantasy Channel (still though of by many as the History Channel). I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be interviewed later this summer for the documentary film response, Ancient Aliens Debunked. If you visit the link you can sign up for email notification when the documentary is released. It will be FREE and viewable online. The trailer is below. The film is being produced by Chris White. Since the documentary will be free, all of the expense incurred by Chris is his own. This has been true of his online and YouTube ministry since its inception. Please visit his site to donate and help support this project!

By Mike Heiser

http://michaelsheiser.com/PaleoBabble/2012/04/ancient-aliens-debunked-official-trailer/

Are the UN and other Goverments Preparing for an Alien Invasion?

What would we do if earth was invaded by aliens? Could they be preparing the public for a possible false flag attack by a superior Alien war machine?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=v6aUrqSagog#!

Religious Sect erects billboards in Toronto ahead of the ‘Transformation’

Aaron Lynett / National Post

A billboard on Bloor Street West in Toronto shows Jose Luis De Jesus. The sect leader's followers believe he is the incarnation of Christ.

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Doris Rosado watches her teenage daughters, Ninette and Kiara Mongrut, get the numbers “666” tattooed on their wrists, beaming with pride. The number typically conjures up biblical symbolism tied to the Antichrist, but this St. Catharines, Ont., family belongs to a obscure Christian sect for which “666” is a positive symbol of their group’s messianic leader.

“They wanted to do it,” Ms. Rosado, 45, said at the St. Catharines tattoo parlour where her daughters were inked. “But now it’s more important because we’re counting down… I’m so proud.”

For this family, and other members of Growing in Grace International, these tattoos are a way of demonstrating their faith as true believers of Jose de Luis de Jesus — who they fervently believe is the second coming of Jesus Christ — before a day of reckoning they believe will wipe out most of humanity.

Armina Ligaya for National Post

The group, which they say has branches in five Canadian cities and members in more than 130 countries, believes that on June 30 (or July 1 across the international dateline), their Texas-based leader and his followers will be transformed, said Alex Poessy, the group’s bishop in Canada.

To spread the word, Growing in Grace put up billboards in Toronto this week featuring Mr. de Jesus.

“That day, the body of Jose de Luis de Jesus, who is a human like you and me, his flesh is going to be immortal…. He’s going to be living forever. And that will happen to him, but also his followers.”

Armina Ligaya for National Post

But, said Mr. Poessy: “All those that are not believers are going to be destroyed.”

Growing in Grace International is not the first to prognosticate that the so-called end of the world will come this year. The Mayan calendar famously picks Dec. 21, 2012.

Courtesy of The Government of God

Jose Luis De Jesus, leader of Growing in Grace International

But Mr. de Jesus also predicts that the “transformation” will endow him, and his loyal followers, with superpowers, such as the ability to fly and walk through walls, said Axel Cooley, the bishop’s daughter.

“[We can] run and not get tired. Go through fire and not get burned…. I could be talking to you right now, and then I could go through that wall. So, you’ll know there is a difference,” Cooley said.

The global economy will collapse as currency markets “fail” and governments around the world will be forced to resign. These predictions are based on biblical passages, she adds.

“The world’s not going to end. What is going to end is the system…. All the governments and the currencies will fall. The new government of the 666 will take over,” she said.

The group’s billboards feature a picture of Mr. de Jesus, with such messages as “666, number of wisdom” or “Countdown to the transformation June 30, 2012.” The group is eyeing billboard locations in Ottawa and Kitchener as well, she said. Growing in Grace has also put up billboards in at least 10 countries, including the U.S., Brazil and Puerto Rico, Ms. Cooley said.

Mr. de Jesus, whom followers lovingly call “Dad,” had a vision in 1973 while living in Massachusetts of two angels coming to him. “The body of Christ manifested in Jose de Luis de Jesus, and all of a sudden, that’s when he knew,” Ms. Cooley said.

By 1986, he founded Growing in Grace, or Cresciendo en Gracia, in 1986 in Puerto Rico. His teachings are based on the writings of the Apostle Paul, Ms. Cooley says.

The group has come under fire and accused of being a cult.

Regina Albarracin of Pembroke Pines, Fla., whose son Alvaro became estranged from his family after he joined Growing in Grace, said its members are “brainwashed.”

Aaron Lynett / National Post

“They’re stupid people who believe in stupidities,” she told the Miami New Times in 2006. “They’re like those people in Waco, Texas. When you go there, you get brainwashed.”

Questions have also been raised about the funds flowing from followers into Growing in Grace’s coffers.

The church had been paying $144,000 a year in alimony to de Jesus’ first wife, considering it part of his salary, according to a 2007 article in the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Also, donations from followers in Colombia went to a Colombian bank account in Jose Luis de Jesus’ name, the Sun-Sentinel reported. De Jesus said the Colombian bishop controlled the money earmarked for churches there. However, he also said some of the money went to de Jesus’ wife, including about $60,000 for a condominium.

Canadian member Ana Guevara, 20, brushes the cult claims off.

“All our lives have been enriched with this…. If we were a cult, then I guess we’re a pretty awesome cult. Because it’s teaching you how to live happy. How to live in a good mood,” says Ms. Guevara, whose family is also part of Growing in Grace.

The group has roughly 200 members in Canada, including branches in Toronto, St. Catharines, Montreal and Calgary. Its newest branch is in Vancouver, which officially opened in March, Mr. Poessy said.

‘It’s a strong indicator that their authority is slipping, they’re losing followers’

Ontario Growing in Grace members congregate in hotel conference rooms for what they call “tracings.” During a tracing in January in Niagara Falls, a few dozen members sat in rows of padded chairs facing a screen. The sermon-like Spanish broadcast was streamed live online, beaming in images from other members’ gatherings around the world. Members listened to speakers and sang along with the hymns.

“We’re the ones who will live eternally,” they sang in Spanish.

Usually, Mr. de Jesus addresses his followers during the tracings. But on April 22, his 66th birthday, he gave his last speech before retreating from public view.

In a video posted on YouTube and on their website, cegenglish.com, Mr. de Jesus called for his followers to enter into the final countdown until, he says, their government will come into power. “A government where we will govern everything with a perfect order. This is my last farewell for you. The time is finished… We will see each other soon in Armageddon.”

Dr. Lorne Dawson, a University of Waterloo sociologist and religious studies professor who specializes in new religious movements, says that when a religious group sets a deadline, it is a sign that the “movement is starting to run into trouble.”

“It’s a strong indicator that their authority is slipping, they’re losing followers, not acquiring followers at a level that they used to … and nothing galvanizes a group and galvanizes attention like a new mention of an apocalypse.”

Last year, California preacher and evangelical broadcaster Harold Camping infamously said that the world would end on May 21, 2011. When the day passed without incident — after many of his followers sold off all their belongings — Mr. Camping apologized for the faulty predictions, and subsequently retired.

Jehovah’s Witnesses have prophesied that the world would end eight times, as recently as 1975. The Church Universal and Triumphant, a new age religious group from the U.S., forecast that nuclear war would strike in 1990, says Dr. Dawson.

Even after their prophecies failed, such groups continued to survive at a similar level, or become even stronger, he said. “The leader will quickly come up with an explanation, rationalize, and that rationalization will be spread quickly to all of the membership … and gear them up for another prophecy down the line,” Dr. Dawson said.

‘[I]t’s teaching you how to live happy. How to live in a good mood’

Common explanations include blaming the members who doubted, or that the prophecy happened on another spiritual plane, he added.

Growing in Grace members, however, insist their prediction will come true, and their transformation is on its way.

They cite recent erratic weather patterns and global economic woes as signs that change is afoot.

“We are sure that it’s going to happen,” said Mr. Poessy.

By Armina Ligaya

http://life.nationalpost.com/2012/05/01/the-time-is-finished-religious-sect-erects-billboards-in-toronto-ahead-of-the-transformation/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NP_Top_Stories+(National+Post+-+Top+Stories)&utm_content=Googl

Prophecy Unfolding? Israel Ex-Spy Warns Against Rising Threat Of 'Messianic' Iran War

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  Yuval Diskin, Israel's former domestic …

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A former Israeli spymaster has branded the country's leaders as "messianic" and unfit to tackle the Iranian nuclear program, in the strongest criticism from a security veteran of threats to launch a pre-emptive war.

Other retired officials have also criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister, but the censure from Yuval Diskin, who stepped down as head of the Shin Bet domestic intelligence service last year, was especially harsh.

He was also unusual in using the language of religious fervor that Israelis associate with their Islamist foes.

"I have no faith in the prime minister, nor in the defence minister," Diskin said in the remarks broadcast by Israeli media on Saturday. "I really don't have faith in a leadership that makes decisions out of messianic feelings."

Government officials rebuked Diskin and questioned his motives, implying that he had his eye on a political career or was settling scores after Netanyahu denied him a promotion.

The catastrophic terms with which Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak describe the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran have stirred concern in Israel and abroad of a possible strike against its uranium enrichment program.

Iran says the project is entirely peaceful and has promised wide-ranging reprisals for any attack.

World powers, sharing Israeli suspicions that Iran has a covert bomb-making plan, are trying to curb it through sanctions and negotiations. Those talks resume in Baghdad on May 23, but Barak on Thursday rated their chance of succeeding as low.

Although Israel has long threatened a pre-emptive strike if diplomacy fails, some experts believe that could be a bluff to keep up pressure on the Iranians, making it harder to interpret the swirl of comments from the security establishment.

FALSE IMPRESSION

Commenting on Diskin's remarks, Amos Harel of the liberal Haaretz newspaper said the temperature was rising in anticipation of the nuclear talks.

"Nothing has been determined in the Iranian story, and the spring is about to boil over into another summer of tension," said Harel.

Diskin spoke days after Israel's top military commander, Lieutenant-General Benny Gantz, told Haaretz he viewed Iran as "very rational" and unlikely to build a bomb, comments that apparently undermined the case for a strike.

The former Shin Bet chief was specifically damning of Netanyahu and Barak, who have often crafted strategy alone and whose rapport dates back four decades to when they served together in a top-secret commando unit.

"They're creating a false impression about the Iranian issue," Diskin told a private gathering on Friday, where the comments were recorded. "They're appealing to the stupid public, if you'll pardon me for the phrasing, and telling them that if Israel acts, there won't be an (Iranian) nuclear bomb."

Diskin said he was not necessarily opposed to an attack on Iran, though he cited experts who argue this risked backfiring by accelerating its nuclear program.

Netanyahu's former Mossad foreign intelligence director, Meir Dagan, last year also ridiculed the Israeli war option.

Diskin went a step further by saying that Netanyahu and Barak were not up to the job of opening an unprecedented front with Iran and, potentially, with its allies on Israel's borders.

Netanyahu is a second-term premier with solid public approval ratings and a broad conservative coalition. Barak, a former prime minister, is Israel's most decorated soldier. But they are both technically subject to security vetting by the Shin Bet, which added punch to their panning at Diskin's hands.

"I have seen them up close," he said. "They are not messiahs, the two of them, and they are not people who I personally, at least, trust to be able to lead Israel into an event on such a scale, and to extricate it."

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman dismissed Diskin's alarm as irresponsible "speculation," telling Israel's Channel Two TV that such big decisions would be made at cabinet level rather than by the prime minister and defence minister exclusively.

Lieberman said Diskin, who was considered as a potential Dagan successor but was passed over, might be angry. One Barak confidant sarcastically wished Diskin "welcome to political life," implying he was angling for a slot in an opposition party ahead of an Israeli national election scheduled for next year.

By Dan Williams

(Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

http://news.yahoo.com/israel-ex-spy-warns-against-messianic-iran-war-114919243.html