h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

That would depend upon whether the chicken consented or not wouldn't it DR

Seriously though, does anybody have /any/ idea where to start on a good definition for sanity? I've been trying to find one for years, and I'm still failing miserably... I'd like to know whether or not I'm insane, dammit!

Well psychological databases are always a good start

I always thought it was the difference between thinking and acting...I mean, we all think crazy things and some point or another...the difference is whether or not you go through with it in action...

...well, that's what I always figured anyway ??

Ummm....but what if you think crazy things /all/ the time? But for example, I don't believe that what I do is very much related to what I think, so as far as anyone else knows I'm mostly normal... or mostly harmless... or both. But I don't think that means that I'm sane on the inside.

What do you mean by psychological databases, Darakat? Do you know of any? the Google god doesn't seem to want to help me on this one...

I'm not entirely sure how to differentiate it either Jerms, sorry .

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure I *want* to know...as long as there's a good chance I'm sane, I'll stick with that

...problem is that there's a good chance I'm /not/ sane... but I can't prove or disprove it to myself, so I don't know.

I found a pshychological test, but somehow I don't think it's going to help. It'll just tell me my personality type, I guarantee it...
...let you know when I've finished. It'll take a while, it's a bit of a doozy.

I like to think of myself a a generally sane person, who suffers from moments of extreme...well...insanity...

...I don't know you'd have to ask my doctor

I would ask /my/ doctor, but I've already tried that, and over here they only do a psychological health report if you're provably a danger to yourself or others, or if you pay an incredibly high fee.

Finished the test; as I guessed it's just a profile. No mention of mental health at all.

Man, that blows a bit, dunnit ?

I have no idea how it works over here...although I'm sure my doctor would be more than happy to help me out...I think he worries about me

*gently pets Crispian, who has fallen asleep in the folds of her skirt*

Yep. Yes it does.

My ex, when she tried to kill herself a few months ago, had to undergo a phychological exam while recovering in hospital. She wanted me there as emotional support, so I was mentally answering the questions for myself, that the psychiatrist was asking her... he had her placed in the acute mental health ward for a few weeks, but I'm sure it should have been me in there instead!

I think if you have the sense to be able to question your own sanity, then you should be resonably sane. It's if you think you're sane but you keep doing crazy things that you're insane. Knowing when to stop before going too far is also a good indicator.

Like in Catch-22

Yeah - what was it... they could request to drop out of the war or something only if they were insane, but to be able to make that request, you had to be sane in order to have enough sense to do it...

Something like that. The biggest legal loophole ever

Yeah, I can't remember it properly, but it was something like that...

(I have the book at home, I may have to check it)

http://lii.org might get you somewhere in your search, ovewise deepweb sites tend to have a hole bunch of free databases on all sorts of stuff, nuclear tests, uranium mines, national parks, world heratige areas, even ones on kitchen sinks!

"It's if you think you're sane but you keep doing crazy things that you're insane." Surely that also applies in my case, when I think I'm insane, but keep doing sane things?

And being able to question my own sanity doesn't make me sane, I'm sure. It's only one indicator of social adaptivity, right?

Oh, and thanks for the link, Darakat!
I didn't find anything there; the only tests of a vaguely medical nature were all physical tests. I'll keep looking.

Ok cool, might want to try http://library.albany.edu/internet/deepweb.html as well

Sanity is indeed a strange, strange thing...