HOMOEOPATHY, n. A school of medicine midway between Allopathy and Christian Science. To the last both the others are distinctly inferior, for Christian Science will cure imaginary diseases, and they can not.
Interpretation
Homeopathy is satirically described as a medical practice that lies between traditional medicine and Christian Science, highlighting its perceived inadequacies.
In this quote by Ambrose Bierce, homeopathy is positioned as a form of medicine that fails to effectively address real ailments, as it is humorously suggested to be a less credible option compared to both allopathy (traditional medicine) and Christian Science, which, according to the author, can only treat imagined afflictions. This critique underscores a skepticism towards homeopathy's efficacy and invites reflection on the legitimacy of various healing practices.
In practice
This quote can be referenced in a discussion about alternative medicine at a health seminar.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
Overall, the human brain is the most complex object known in the universe - known, that is, to itself.
If your child gets asthma, the fossil fuel industry doesn't pay. Or if there's a natural disaster, the bill is paid by the taxpayer, not the fossil fuel company.
Humans are natural-born scientists. When we're born, we want to know why the stars shine. We want to know why the sun rises.
Astronauts are not superhuman. They lead ordinary lives and have varied personalities.
In space there are countless constellations, suns and planets; we see only the suns because they give light; the planets remain invisible, for they are small and dark. There are also numberless earths circling around their suns.
Those who know that the consensus of many centuries has sanctioned the conception that the earth remains at rest in the middle of the heavens as its center, would, I reflected, regard it as an insane pronouncement if I made the opposite assertion that the earth moves.
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