Buddhisming?

[Eyti]

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I wanted to hear from anyone who has went through the MCAT and also might have had some experience learning Buddhism. Buddhism seems to be the one religion I can see a natural structure to and allow to be guided in life through thinking about its teachings. I am wondering whether reading about Buddhism can in some way expand my reasoning abilities when it comes to the verbal section on the MCAT. What books would you recommend to a person that is a) prepping for the MCAT b) interested in increasing natural reasoning ability and c) interested in Buddhism?

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I wanted to hear from anyone who has went through the MCAT and also might have had some experience learning Buddhism. Buddhism seems to be the one religion I can see a natural structure to and allow to be guided in life through thinking about its teachings. I am wondering whether reading about Buddhism can in some way expand my reasoning abilities when it comes to the verbal section on the MCAT. What books would you recommend to a person that is a) prepping for the MCAT b) interested in increasing natural reasoning ability and c) interested in Buddhism?

meditation proves to be good for the mind.. it trains focus and skills
buddhism overall i think in itself is a religion of practices which make a person more able to separate themselves from this world to achieve the next plane
to some extent its a religion which could help some people..
but prep for the mcat i think the only thing that'd help would be.. meditation

 

[phience]

buddhism overall i think in itself is a religion of practices which make a person more able to separate themselves from this world to achieve the next plane

Next plane... wtf?

 

[Dr. Pepper]

I wanted to hear from anyone who has went through the MCAT and also might have had some experience learning Buddhism. Buddhism seems to be the one religion I can see a natural structure to and allow to be guided in life through thinking about its teachings. I am wondering whether reading about Buddhism can in some way expand my reasoning abilities when it comes to the verbal section on the MCAT. What books would you recommend to a person that is a) prepping for the MCAT b) interested in increasing natural reasoning ability and c) interested in Buddhism?

I am a very devoted fan of Buddhism, and I think that it is certainly worth looking into. However, in terms of increasing MCAT "reasoning abilities" and such, I think that you might not derive much benefit from Buddhism. However, I studied for the MCAT pretty much straight for a little over a month and my only break was a long walk at night and meditation for about 15-20 minutes, and it allowed me to sustain a literally all-day schedule for about a month, which I found pretty remarkable.

Buddhism and meditation can prepare you for anything, except perhaps the VR section of the MCAT.

If you want to increase your comprehension for the MCAT, I would recommend reading very difficult articles, both in the sciences (PNAS, Nature, NEJM) and for verbal (Economist, WSJ, Atlantic, New Yorker) as these will provide you much better background than any Buddhist text.

I'll give a longer post on Buddhism when I have time. If I forget, just e-mail me and I'll see what advice I can give.

Best of luck,
-Dr. P.

 

[Pharm2love]

I was closed to accepting that I have permanent memory impairment, until I started meditation. It's not magic, but it would definitely enhance your concentration and alertness. I brought many of my friends to the meditation center every Sat. and I think none of them last more than a month; but if you can do it let say for the MCAT purpose or whatever else, it would help.

 

[phience]

I've never understood what exactly meditation constitutes. How is proper meditation accomplished?

 

[red10]

 

[Eyti]

Okay. My head is feeling kind of foggy today (sleep disruption) so I'm going to try googling techniques for the next hour or so and see where it goes.

So when it comes to reading materials I think I'll spend most of it on scientific literature and Claude Bernard. Reading Buddhist literature seems like it might be a good way to expand my sense of insight, relax, and bring concepts together more easily. That is both concepts for the MCAT and for life in general.

Of course, when you guys have time, could you let me know of any other life-style techniques that you found helpful in channeling your thought processes in addition to meditation.

The reason I began looking into Buddhism is because I noticed a similarity between the teachings of Buddhism and what I have been doing in my personal life in hope of achieving self-realization on the path towards enlightenment.

 

[SoundofSilver]

Interesting thought, but Buddhist texts will not help your verbal reasoning abilities in my opinion. Just like reading the bible or koran will probably not help with verbal reasoning. It's good to read as much as you can obviously, but the type of material that is seen in real, primary Buddhist texts that were translated from Sanskrit are nothing like the type of readings you will see on the MCAT verbal reasoning.

Also, Buddhism is more of a philosophy than a concrete religion. It's been super commercialized (things such as Zen cereal or Zen green tea or basically the word Zen in general) and the Eastern relgions in general are often distorted by Western pop culture (think mellow, wise asian man with incense sitting in the lotus position.)

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

meaning the otherside.. nirvana.. heaven? or w.e cesspool you believe good people go to after death

 

[bannie22]

very good. very good. no friends. no friends.

 

[Gallix23]

meaning the otherside.. nirvana.. heaven? or w.e cesspool you believe good people go to after death

No, I believe the "next plane" is sort of like "opening your third eye" which is basically just the ultimate level of self awareness and concentration. It's sort of like the highest level of consciousness. It's hard to explain but it's a really cool concept.

And yes, meditating is an awesome way to relieve stress and relax

 

[Eyti]

meaning the otherside.. nirvana.. heaven? or w.e cesspool you believe good people go to after death

I mean enlightenment during the time you are a living being. I think that when we die, we die and that there is no heaven/after-life. What I seek for myself through enlightenment is world knowledge or a sense of understanding of my environment and myself.

 

[Eyti]

very good. very good. no friends. no friends.

🙁

 

[phience]

meaning the otherside.. nirvana.. heaven? or w.e cesspool you believe good people go to after death

Haha I don't believe in a life after this one. Thanks for the clarification, though!

 

[phience]

No, I believe the "next plane" is sort of like "opening your third eye" which is basically just the ultimate level of self awareness and concentration. It's sort of like the highest level of consciousness. It's hard to explain but it's a really cool concept.

And yes, meditating is an awesome way to relieve stress and relax

Ooooo.... I like this.

 

[apumic]

^That.

No, I believe the "next plane" is sort of like "opening your third eye" which is basically just the ultimate level of self awareness and concentration. It's sort of like the highest level of consciousness. It's hard to explain but it's a really cool concept.

And yes, meditating is an awesome way to relieve stress and relax

We docs-to-be or "Ministers of the Third Eye"?

Just seems a little odd to me, but that's cool. OP, I'd suggest sticking w/ the traditional VR practice material for the MCAT.

 

[SoundofSilver]

I mean enlightenment during the time you are a living being. I think that when we die, we die and that there is no heaven/after-life. What I seek for myself through enlightenment is world knowledge or a sense of understanding of my environment and myself.

Actually, according to most forms of Buddhism, enlightenment = nirvana, and nirvana = nothingness. Only a Buddha can achieve this, and it takes thousands upon thousands of years to become a Buddha (i.e. going through endless cycles of deaths and births) according to the Mahayana tradition or it may never happen according to the Therevada tradition (where only 1 Buddha comes around every million years or whatever). 😉

But I'm just giving you a hard time. I totally agree with what you're saying. The importance of self understanding and knowledge of one's environment are often overlooked.

 

[Gallix23]

We docs-to-be or "Ministers of the Third Eye"?

Just seems a little odd to me, but that's cool. OP, I'd suggest sticking w/ the traditional VR practice material for the MCAT.

Hahah it's just a cool concept, who knows supposedly it's true. I mean, we have people that can sit in a tub of ice but through meditation keep their blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate at normal levels, even INCREASING temperature all with their mind.

But I started looking into it after hearing about it in a bunch of Tool songs, and it really is pretty interesting.

 

[Pharm2love]

The concept of rebirth is very much similar to the law of conservation of energy: energy is neither be destroyed nor created, it just changes from one form to another - from fire to heat etc., but none is lost.

 

[apumic]

Hahah it's just a cool concept, who knows supposedly it's true. I mean, we have people that can sit in a tub of ice but through meditation keep their blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate at normal levels, even INCREASING temperature all with their mind.

But I started looking into it after hearing about it in a bunch of Tool songs, and it really is pretty interesting.

You do realize that we can do the exact same thing w/ a placebo, right?

So, that having been said, I am starting a new religion called Placeboism. We're going to suck on little white sugar pills in order to reach nirvana. And this time EVERYONE can reach nirvana! Without even dying!

The concept of rebirth is very much similar to the law of conservation of energy: energy is neither be destroyed nor created, it just changes from one form to another - from fire to heat etc., but none is lost.

Wow...lol. Actually, that would very much violate the 2nd law of thermodynamics. You can't go backward from death to life via the 1st law b/c the 2nd law disallows it.

 

[Pharm2love]

Good point there. But like I said it's a similar concept (not exactly) as I can not explain something fully that I haven't experienced any better than what I think is reasonable. The fire doesn't catch on itself, it depends on other stuffs, and rebirth doesn't just emerge by itself either, it depends on other stuffs.

 

[phience]

The concept of rebirth is very much similar to the law of conservation of energy: energy is neither be destroyed nor created, it just changes from one form to another - from fire to heat etc., but none is lost.

While it's true that an atom of "me" may exist as in some future form of life, it hardly validates reincarnation in the commonly understood sense.

 

[Gallix23]

You do realize that we can do the exact same thing w/ a placebo, right?

So, that having been said, I am starting a new religion called Placeboism. We're going to suck on little white sugar pills in order to reach nirvana. And this time EVERYONE can reach nirvana! Without even dying!

Really not the same thing. With placebo, we take a pill that we are told is something that will relieve pain, and so our mind thinks it's working and the pain in gone.

With this, one is fully aware of the situation that they are in and of the reality of the situation, yet they are still able to tap into their mind to prevent any damage from occurring to their bodies without thinking they are getting any sort of outside aid.

I'm sure if you gave someone a pill that was suppose to prevent them from getting cold, then threw them in a tub of ice water, it wouldn't work. Yet someone who is a master of meditation would be fine.

 

[Pharm2love]

While it's true that an atom of "me" may exist as in some future form of life, it hardly validates reincarnation in the commonly understood sense.

True that. It's really hard, and I can only accept this on the relativity scale, not absolute, and also for the sake of trying to do things right for karma will get me.. Reincarnation involves more than just physical according to buddhism teaching, it involves something else that we commonly call souls.. But I can not get anywhere closed to explaining souls. 😀 .. But if you believe some astonishing stories of kids who remember their past, then you probably believe in reincarnation more.

 

[phience]

True that. It's really hard, and I can only accept this on the relativity scale, not absolute, and also for the sake of trying to do things right for karma will get me.. Reincarnation involves more than just physical according to buddhism teaching, it involves something else that we commonly call souls.. But I can not get anywhere closed to explaining souls. 😀 .. But if you believe some astonishing stories of kids who remember their past, then you probably believe in reincarnation more.

Neuroscience is inching closer and closer. 😉

 

[Pharm2love]

You do realize that we can do the exact same thing w/ a placebo, right?

So, that having been said, I am starting a new religion called Placeboism. We're going to suck on little white sugar pills in order to reach nirvana. And this time EVERYONE can reach nirvana! Without even dying!

Meditation is being as fully aware as possible. It's not something super or scary, it's a very normal thing; if you pay attention to something, you will see it in more details. It's not a trance; to others, it looks like a trance, but the actual experience is very awareness.

 

[phience]

Meditation is being as fully aware as possible. It's not something super or scary, it's a very normal thing; if you pay attention to something, you will see it in more details. It's not a trance; to others, it looks like a trance, but the actual experience is very awareness.

How does one accomplish this without caffeine?

 

[Pharm2love]

How does one accomplish this without caffeine?

All to the the power of the mind and concentration. Not everyone is lucky enough to achieve this in a one time or a short time practice; it takes time and practice. Those who get to advance levels are very aware even when they breathe, walk, talk, see, hear, wash dishes, drive, and even soonly after they wake up etc.. Just as how expert guitarist or pianist to perform the way they do w/o the need of medicine - they put their mind to it and practice. If we put the mind into meditation, we can get better at it too that those who don't practice find it hard.

 

[apumic]

Really not the same thing. With placebo, we take a pill that we are told is something that will relieve pain, and so our mind thinks it's working and the pain in gone.

With this, one is fully aware of the situation that they are in and of the reality of the situation, yet they are still able to tap into their mind to prevent any damage from occurring to their bodies without thinking they are getting any sort of outside aid.

I'm sure if you gave someone a pill that was suppose to prevent them from getting cold, then threw them in a tub of ice water, it wouldn't work. Yet someone who is a master of meditation would be fine.

LOL, sorry, you've been proven incorrect. Exactly this experiment has been done and the opposite was shown to be true. (I.e., someone who was told the pill would cause them to be warmer actually did warm up slightly in a localized manner. Of course, this could never exceed what is possible by the laws of physics but the person believing s/he would be warmer appeared to "cause" the body to warm itself.)

Meditation is not "being completely aware of yourself" so much as believing yourself to be completely aware of yourself. It is a placebo in terms of its effect. That is, it works by a similar pathway. Meditation works because the person expects it to work. This is, by definition, a placebo effect.

 

[Gallix23]

LOL, sorry, you've been proven incorrect. Exactly this experiment has been done and the opposite was shown to be true. (I.e., someone who was told the pill would cause them to be warmer actually did warm up slightly in a localized manner. Of course, this could never exceed what is possible by the laws of physics but the person believing s/he would be warmer appeared to "cause" the body to warm itself.)

Meditation is not "being completely aware of yourself" so much as believing yourself to be completely aware of yourself. It is a placebo in terms of its effect. That is, it works by a similar pathway. Meditation works because the person expects it to work. This is, by definition, a placebo effect.

Fair enough then, but did they test it by giving the person the placebo pill, and then having them try to mimic the effect on their own?

Call it what you want, but it's cool nontheless and must do something right considering it's been practiced for thousands of years.

 

[Pharm2love]

LOL, sorry, you've been proven incorrect. Exactly this experiment has been done and the opposite was shown to be true. (I.e., someone who was told the pill would cause them to be warmer actually did warm up slightly in a localized manner. Of course, this could never exceed what is possible by the laws of physics but the person believing s/he would be warmer appeared to "cause" the body to warm itself.)

Meditation is not "being completely aware of yourself" so much as believing yourself to be completely aware of yourself. It is a placebo in terms of its effect. That is, it works by a similar pathway. Meditation works because the person expects it to work. This is, by definition, a placebo effect.

I think people think too complicated of meditation. Like I said, it is supposed to be very simple. It costs you nothing and you can do it anywhere anytime. Free. You don't have to close your eyes to meditate, you can meditate while typing - you know you are punching the letters on the keyboard (this is a form of meditation). Pretty straightforward and simple. And don't expect too much of perfection awareness - this needs more practice. Believing in yourself is good to improve your effort; obviously, if you think you surely are gonna fail the test, you will quit studying. Meditation is being aware of what is happening (if you think of the past, be aware of that about-the-past thought which is a thing happening), and when meditate, I am aware (hear) my mom talking, I hear the TV, I hear the dogs barking, the pain kicks after 10 mins, the back hurts, feet start to numb - it's all real and just simply simple.

 

[Gallix23]

I think people think too complicated of meditation. Like I said, it is supposed to be very simple. It costs you nothing and you can do it anywhere anytime. Free. You don't have to close your eyes to meditate, you can meditate while typing - you know you are punching the letters on the keyboard (this is a form of meditation). Pretty straightforward and simple. And don't expect too much of perfection awareness - this needs more practice. Believing in yourself is good to improve your effort; obviously, if you think you surely are gonna fail the test, you will quit studying. Meditation is being aware of what is happening, and when meditate, I hear my mom talking, I hear the TV, I hear the dogs barking - it's all real and just simply simple.

What form of meditation is that? Because the form that I learned was thoughtless meditation where you focused on your breath and got all of the thoughts out of your mind. It's a very hard thing to do to sit silent in a room and literally have an empty mind, but it is really relaxing.

 

[apumic]

Fair enough then, but did they test it by giving the person the placebo pill, and then having them try to mimic the effect on their own?

Call it what you want, but it's cool nontheless and must do something right considering it's been practiced for thousands of years.

The exact methods depend upon which experiment you are looking at. The method you propose would not work well (i.e., matching or sequential testing of the same subjects is generally considered poor methodology); however, placebo vs "going it alone" has been tested and the placebo consistently wins out. I think a lot of people here underestimate what placebo effects can do. I've noticed a lot of assumptions that when something is compared to a placebo it means that that something is powerless. That is actually far from the truth. It's just that it means most of the "power" of the treatment is a direct result of the person's brain and not of the treatment itself. In other words, placebo effects are not necessarily a big negative. They are what we ought to expect from something like meditation or prayer if we assume no higher power is intervening. They can be very positive. (For example, in the case of Airborne actually making people "feel better" despite being little more than a placebo -- hey, if it makes you feel like you get over colds more quickly, perhaps it is, in fact, doing what it was designed to do, just not in the way you might have expected!)

 

[Pharm2love]

What form of meditation is that? Because the form that I learned was thoughtless meditation where you focused on your breath and got all of the thoughts out of your mind. It's a very hard thing to do to sit silent in a room and literally have an empty mind, but it is really relaxing.

My primary goal is to dwell on my breathing as well. But the nature of the mind is to think and think constantly (if the mind stops thinking, we are dead), so it thinks here and there and everywhere. And while paying attention to the breathe and if a thought pops up, that is a good thing Gallix because now you are aware of the thought. You are now more focus to detect the tiny thoughts going on in the head; but don't dwell on the thought, just acknowledge it and back to the breathing. Do so for anything else whether it's noise, pain, feeling etc., get back to the breathing but do ackowledge other things that you aware. Even w/ the relaxing, don't dwell on it else it will stop you there. Just be aware of it.

 

[SoundofSilver]

Reincarnation involves more than just physical according to buddhism teaching, it involves something else that we commonly call souls.. But I can not get anywhere closed to explaining souls. 😀 .. But if you believe some astonishing stories of kids who remember their past, then you probably believe in reincarnation more.

Actually this is wrong, one of the major teachings of Buddhism is that there are no souls: the absence of self is fundamental to many Buddhist concepts. This is one of the reasons why I think Buddhism is cool.

Reincarnation does occur, but not in the Hindu sense which I believe does value the concept of self (might be wrong though, don't know a ton about Hinduism).

This is one of the tricky things about Buddhism, your actions or karma do play a role in what realm (human, animal, hungry ghost, etc.) you are reincarnated to; however, you yourself are not reincarnated because there is no you.

 

[Pharm2love]

Actually this is wrong, one of the major teachings of Buddhism is that there are no souls: the absence of self is fundamental to many Buddhist concepts. This is one of the reasons why I think Buddhism is cool.

Reincarnation does occur, but not in the Hindu sense which I believe does value the concept of self (might be wrong though, don't know a ton about Hinduism).

This is one of the tricky things about Buddhism, your actions or karma do play a role in what realm (human, animal, hungry ghost, etc.) you are reincarnated to; however, you yourself are not reincarnated because there is no you.

Yeah that's true SoundofSilver. I don't know what the term in English is, so I just go w/ the non-Buddhism term "what people commonly call soul".

 

[Eyti]

All to the the power of the mind and concentration. Not everyone is lucky enough to achieve this in a one time or a short time practice; it takes time and practice. Those who get to advance levels are very aware even when they breathe, walk, talk, see, hear, wash dishes, drive, and even soonly after they wake up etc.. Just as how expert guitarist or pianist to perform the way they do w/o the need of medicine - they put their mind to it and practice. If we put the mind into meditation, we can get better at it too that those who don't practice find it hard.

This 👍👍👍

 

[Eyti]

LOL, sorry, you've been proven incorrect. Exactly this experiment has been done and the opposite was shown to be true. (I.e., someone who was told the pill would cause them to be warmer actually did warm up slightly in a localized manner. Of course, this could never exceed what is possible by the laws of physics but the person believing s/he would be warmer appeared to "cause" the body to warm itself.)

Meditation is not "being completely aware of yourself" so much as believing yourself to be completely aware of yourself. It is a placebo in terms of its effect. That is, it works by a similar pathway. Meditation works because the person expects it to work. This is, by definition, a placebo effect.

I think this is simplifying some far larger concepts. The concept that is "meditation" is something that very few are as informed about as the concept of "placebo". I don't think that I have the expertise to speak about either of these two concepts. However, I believe that the use of "placebo" right here is being used in a derogatory manner in an attempt to attach stigma to an incredible wealth of knowledge that is too often overlooked and under-appreciated in our own environments.

 

[GH253]

The way to prepare for the MCAT is to study for the MCAT, not Buddhism.

 

[Kaiv Man]

you guys should check out the book "The Relaxation Response" by Dr. Herbert Benson of the Mind/Body Institute at Harvard. Its quite an interesting read concerning the scientific findings on the positive impact of meditative practice on psychological and physiological well-being. Very inspiring!

 

[Eyti]

Okay so my final personal verdict after reading all of this is to stick with meditation, but hold off on reading philosophy. Instead I'll stick to scientific literature.

 

[apumic]

I think this is simplifying some far larger concepts. The concept that is "meditation" is something that very few are as informed about as the concept of "placebo". I don't think that I have the expertise to speak about either of these two concepts. However, I believe that the use of "placebo" right here is being used in a derogatory manner in an attempt to attach stigma to an incredible wealth of knowledge that is too often overlooked and under-appreciated in our own environments.

Placebo is not a derogatory term at all. The fact that you describe it as one shows that you do not understand what placebo effects are. Meditation works via a similar (if not identical) pathway to at least one of the known placebo pathways. There is nothing "wrong" with that. It simply means that meditation doesn't do any more than a sugar pill, hypnotic suggestion, or any other sham treatment would. Each of these sham treatments is known to elicit some very powerful effects but the effects are not "caused" directly by the sham treatment. They are, instead, caused by some other factor in the equation. Some of the known factors include suggestion (often subtle or environmental), expectation, and classical conditioning. Meditation includes some of those, otherwise it would not work. There is nothing wrong with that but it is only right for people to understand the treatment they are receiving is essentially a placebo.

 

[Eyti]

retracted on account of insomnia

 

[MexicanDr]

Has any of you read "The Power of NOW" very interesting book...

How many of you use meditation/breathing to diminish stress/anxiety?

 

[Gotaro]

I had a friend who had Buddhist aspirations for a while and even traveled to a conference to listen to some highly influential Buddhist leaders speak. He said it was enlightening, and he came back a changed person. I listened to him rattle on about all the crap he learned and his success/failure stories in practicing daily.

Honestly, I thought it was all bull****. Finding euphoria in true emptiness is rubbish. Meditating on negative emotions, focusing all of your energy on them to overcome them, IS RUBBISH. "Mindfulness" this, mindfulness that. R-U-B-B-I-S-H.

Sometimes, rubbish is what it takes to motivate you to change yourself and accomplish goals, to make progress. But he has long since given up his aspirations and reverted back to his old self. At the time, he thought he was making real progress, but looking back, I can't see that he actually did anything at all. To the OP, I can't see Buddhism doing anything but wasting your time. It's not just some tool you can use; it's a lifestyle, and not a very conducive one to being competitive.

 

[MexicanDr]

Meditating on negative emotions, focusing all of your energy on them to overcome them, IS RUBBISH.

So what would be the best way, according to you to overcome negative emotions?

 

[oh my god]

There are lots of studies out there that show the benefits of meditation.

Meditation could be helpful for premeds, as it can increase your ability to concentrate along with your ability to handle stress.

I remember reading about a study on monks. Monks who had undergone the most intense meditation trainings had a level of focus that no average person had.

Meditation actually changes the structure of the brain, too. I don't know how conclusive the results are yet. It's still a relatively new frontier in terms of Western science studying it, but current studies show that meditation probably has lots of benefits.

When winter break starts I plan to start a daily meditation practice, and if I notice any significant benefits, I'll stick to it.

 

[Gotaro]

So what would be the best way, according to you to overcome negative emotions?

Haha.. That's easy: find a distraction. That's basically what you're doing when you try to objectify and quantify emotion, except when meditation is your choice distraction, you're wasting time, effectively doing nothing.

Meditation could be helpful for premeds, as it can increase your ability to concentrate along with your ability to handle stress.

I remember reading about a study on monks. Monks who had undergone the most intense meditation trainings had a level of focus that no average person had.

Meditation actually changes the structure of the brain, too. I don't know how conclusive the results are yet. It's still a relatively new frontier in terms of Western science studying it, but current studies show that meditation probably has lots of benefits.

I think what is most important is breaking down meditation scientifically to discover what aspect of it is truly functional. I hate that it has such a mysterious, spiritual air about it. The benefits you described from meditation can be achieved through amphetamine use (and subsequent dopamine release, IMO).

 

[Eyti]

There are lots of studies out there that show the benefits of meditation.

Meditation could be helpful for premeds, as it can increase your ability to concentrate along with your ability to handle stress.

I remember reading about a study on monks. Monks who had undergone the most intense meditation trainings had a level of focus that no average person had.

Meditation actually changes the structure of the brain, too. I don't know how conclusive the results are yet. It's still a relatively new frontier in terms of Western science studying it, but current studies show that meditation probably has lots of benefits.

When winter break starts I plan to start a daily meditation practice, and if I notice any significant benefits, I'll stick to it.

I do believe that if anything at all, meditation is going to be a great way to relieve anxiety. Maybe 6-12 months from, if I feel like exploring Buddhism some more I will look into more of their lifestyle practices. I don't think I could immerse completely into it now, plus I think that physics is very soon going to demonstrate how we are in fact our own gods. Thats a discussion for another time though.