Re: FW: MD Dawkins on quantum/mysticism convergence

From: Scott Chase (ecphoric@hotmail.com)
Date: Sat Mar 16 2002 - 23:11:06 GMT

  • Next message: Lawrence DeBivort: "RE: FW: MD Dawkins on quantum/mysticism convergence"

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    From: "Scott Chase" <ecphoric@hotmail.com>
    To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
    Subject: Re: FW: MD Dawkins on quantum/mysticism convergence
    Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2002 18:11:06 -0500
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    >From: <AaronLynch@aol.com>
    >Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
    >To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
    >Subject: Re: FW: MD Dawkins on quantum/mysticism convergence
    >Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2002 14:17:30 EST
    >
    >In a message dated 3/16/2002 11:45:46 AM Central Standard
    >Time, Douglas Brooker <dbrooker@clara.co.uk> writes:
    >
    > > Lawrence DeBivort wrote:
    > >
    > > > Good morning, everyone,From another list...
    > > >
    > > > -----Original Message-----
    > > > From: owner-moq_discuss@venus.co.uk
    > > > [mailto:owner-moq_discuss@venus.co.uk]On Behalf Of nargess
    > > > sabeti
    > > > Sent: Saturday, March 16, 2002 7:41 AM
    > > > To: moq_discuss@moq.org
    > > > Subject: Re: MD Dawkins on quantum/mysticism convergence
    > > >
    > > > Glenn Bradford <gmbbradford@netscape.net> wrote:
    > > >
    > > > Richard Dawkins, in a Forbes article written three
    > > > years ago, speaks his
    > > > mind on the notion, popularized by Fritjof Capra
    > > > and others, that the
    > > > science of quantum mechanics is converging with
    > > > religious mysticism.
    > > >
    > > > DAWKINS:
    > > > [A] kind of marriage has been alleged between
    > > > modern physics and
    > > > Eastern mysticism. The argument goes as follows:
    > > > Quantum mechanics, that
    > > > brilliantly successful flagship theory of modern
    > > > science, is deeply mysterious
    > > > and hard to understand. Eastern mystics have
    > > > always been deeply
    > > > mysterious and hard to understand. Therefore,
    > > > Eastern mystics must have
    > > > been talking about quantum theory all along.
    > > >
    > > > Similar mileage is made of Heisenberg's
    > > > uncertainty principle ("Aren't we all,
    > > > in a very real sense, uncertain?"), fuzzy logic
    > > > ("Yes, it's okay for you to be fuzzy,
    > > > too"), chaos and complexity theory (the butterfly
    > > > effect, the Platonic, hidden
    > > > beauty of the Mandelbrot Set--you name it,
    > > > somebody has mysticized it and!
    > > > turned it into dollars). You can buy any number of
    > > > books on "quantum
    > > > healing," not to mention quantum psychology,
    > > > quantum responsibility,
    > > > quantum morality, quantum immortality, and quantum
    > > > theology. I haven't
    > > > found a book on quantum feminism, quantum
    > > > financial management, or
    > > > Afro-quantum theory, but give it time.
    > > >
    > > > The whole dippy business is ably exposed by the
    > > > physicist Victor Stenger in
    > > > his book, The Unconscious Quantum, from which the
    > > > following gem is taken.
    > > > In a lecture on "Afrocentric healing," the
    > > > psychiatrist Patricia Newton said that
    > > > traditional healers "are able to tap that other
    > > > realm of negative entropy--that
    > > > superquantum velocity and frequency of
    > > > electromagnetic energy--and bring
    > > > them as conduits down to our level. It's not
    > > > magic. It's not mumbo jumbo. You
    > > > will see the dawn of the 21st century, the new
    > > > medical quantum physics really
    > > > distributing these energies and what they are
    > > > doing."
    > > >
    > > > Sorry, but mumbo jumbo is ! precisely what it is.
    > > > Not African mumbo jumbo but
    > > > pseudosc! ientific mumbo jumbo, down to the
    > > > trademark misuse of the word
    > > > energy. It is also religion, masquerading as
    > > > science in a cloying love
    > > > feast of bogus convergence.
    > > > --
    >
    >Hi Douglas.
    >
    >My earlier use of the phrase "the ineffable Quantum of being"
    >a few months ago was also in reference to some of the mystical
    >interpretations of quantum mechanics.
    >
    > > and memetics is a science?
    >
    >Just suppose that Eastern mysticism got attached to quantum
    >physics in the early days, so that a substantial fraction of
    >the physicists reading their first quantum physics books were
    >asked to swallow a lot of mysticism. The word "quantum"
    >would have gained a very bad reputation among serious
    >physicists.
    >
    > > sounds like the pot calling the kettle black.
    >
    >Perhaps this is the old strategy of the best defense
    >being a good offense.
    >
    >
    Dawkins is right on the money. "Quantum" seems to be a popular adjective to
    attach to a lot of goofy ideas making them more trendy in pop culture. It's
    like a vague allusion to QM has hybridized with various kooky pet theories.

    Dawkins says some similar stuff to the above in _Unweaving the Rainbow_
    which was probably cryptomnesically bubbling below the surface in my mnemon
    store when I made some casual jokes about a "quantum" (or anti-"quantum")
    filter not so long ago. A rough list offered by Dawkins (in _UtR_,
    paperback, p 188) includes "quantum healing", "quantum psychology", "quantum
    responsibility", "quantum morality", "quantum aesthetics", "quantum
    immortality", and "quantum theology". Dawkins laments that "quantum caring"
    was absent :-)

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