Re: Rays
...lumps of crystal (quartz for example) in jugs of water or on their mantelpiece and believe in some sort of positive radiation...
You got this wrong. As any fuleSwiss kno, the quartz does not emit any but rather absorb malign radiation. That's how the Swiss keep healthy.
And don't remind me of microwave ovens. I've had a many futile discussions trying to pointlessly explain that food heated in a microwave oven retains more of its original (i.e. healthy?) components because of its lesser exposure to heat as compared to using traditional methods.