add cellular karma blog

content/posts/karma-of-cells.md

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+---
+title: Karmic Codons
+summary: Exploring the biological basis of cause and effect at the molecular level
+tags: ['meta/physics']
+draft: false
+date: 2024-03-07
+---
+
+%% -- _principle of interconnectedness_ -- %%
+Many non-European philosophies around the world emphasize the concept of transgenerational interconnectedness. The actions of one generation influence the next through the web of cause and effect. Indeed, we are born in a world shaped by our ancestors, their virtues, and their shortcomings. In turn, we hope to beget children who inherit our strengths and hopefully improve upon our failings, thus ensuring the continued progress of our species. 
+
+%% -- _reproduction and multiple generations of cells within a lifetime_ -- %%
+The human body itself witnesses many generations of cellular civilizations.
+Every single day, it replaces 330 billion cells or 1% of the entire body [[1](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/our-bodies-replace-billions-of-cells-every-day/)].
+Cells reproduce by splitting their DNA into new daughter-cells, and then die off once they reach their maximum age.
+
+%% -- _cells inherit DNA and epigenome_ -- %%
+Think of a cell's DNA as a vast cookbook, with each gene being a recipe for a specific protein. As the cell goes through life, it faces different situations and has to react to them. So, it figures out which genes (or recipes) to use to make the right proteins for each situation. This knowledge is stored in the cell's _epigenome_, a kind of cellular diary that remembers which recipes worked best [[2](https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/epigenetics/memory)]. Unlike DNA, which changes slowly and randomly over many generations, the epigenome can change a lot in just one lifetime.
+
+%% -- _cells inherit unlived experiences also_ -- %%
+The cellular diary, the epigenome, is shaped by how the cell senses things, how it reacts to those things, and what it thinks will happen next. We used to think that parent cells only passed on their DNA to their offspring, leaving them to start their own diaries. But now we know that the parent's epigenome - the story of their experience - is also passed down. For example, research has shown that children of Holocaust survivors have identical markers in their epigenome as their parents, even though they didn't go through the same traumatic experience[[3](https://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/aug/21/study-of-holocaust-survivors-finds-trauma-passed-on-to-childrens-genes)]. Our cells can carry the echoes of experiences we've never personally lived.
+
+%% -- experiences can shape personality at the elemental level_ -- %%
+And these echoes can be foundational to what we perceive and how we act. Consider something as simple as eating ice cream. The experience of choosing the flavour, savoring the ice cream, the subsequent delights in the tongue and the brain... all of it is saved in the epigenome. Long after the ice cream is gone, your cells remember the pleasure it brought you. 
+And your cells will ensure this learned experience is not forgotten by passing it to its offspring, embedding your perceptions and actions in the very fabric of your being.
+
+{{< figure src="../../images/karma_nola.gif" caption='"Karma" by Do-Ho Suh at the New Orleans Museum of Art' align="center">}}
+
+All action originates from desire. Craving a gelato makes you want to eat some, and the ensuing dopamine rush makes you keep coming back for more. This is like a loop that keeps getting stronger, a self-perpetuating cycle. It starts with you wanting something. That want pushes you to do something about it. You act, and see what happens because of your actions. If the result makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside, you'll probably end up doing it again. This cycle is a lot like the Hindu doctrine of Karma; what we want, what we do, and the results of what we end up doing are all interconnected.
+#### Desire --> Will --> Action --> Result --> Desire ...
+
+Karma is not just about getting rewarded or punished in the next life. The act of doing something good or bad is itself the reward or punishment, because whatever we do changes us at the level of the DNA. These changes might be small, but they are instant and can stick around for a long time. Such a view of Karma means that our actions tangibly shape not just our future but also our present.
+
+What the scientist cannot explain objectively, the philosopher will debate with logic and the theologian will interpret with myths. The 8th century scholar Sankara declared that only what we do determines what happens to us in the future. He did not believe in some heavenly karma police keeping score of our deeds. Now that science has caught up, we are starting to see karma not just as a religious or philosophical idea but a validated biological reality.