Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id BAA22959 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 3 Oct 2000 01:07:00 +0100 Message-Id: <200010030004.UAA02976@mail4.lig.bellsouth.net> From: "Joe E. Dees" <joedees@bellsouth.net> To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Date: Mon, 2 Oct 2000 19:09:14 -0500 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Subject: Re: the conscious universe In-reply-to: <39D8D8DA.3643A@clara.co.uk> X-mailer: Pegasus Mail for Win32 (v3.01b) Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Date sent: Mon, 02 Oct 2000 19:50:03 +0100
From: Douglas Brooker <dbrooker@clara.co.uk>
Organization: University of London
To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Subject: Re: the conscious universe
Send reply to: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
> "Wade T.Smith" wrote:
>
> > Empirical science _is_ universal- always has been and always will be,
> > world without end amen.
>
> The teachings of one school of mysticism combines theory and empirical
> practice. The practice consists of a large number of exercises that are also
> referred to as 'experiments.' One purpose of the experiments is to allow the
> student to test and verify the theoretical propositions to their own
> satisfaction. Scepticism is encouraged.
>
> The experiments, simply described, apply various forms of concentration and
> meditation, to develop the student's skill using their mind and understanding
> the dimensions and capabilities of their consciousness. One experiment
> involves placing a piece of paper in a bowl of water and by applying the
> technique described to cause the paper to move about the surface of the water
> as directed by the consciousness of the student. The exercise is meant to
> demonstrate the theoretical principle that thoughts are 'things' and that
> thoughts can be focused in such a way as to produce empirical manifestations
> entirely through correct direction of consciousness.
>
> On the basis that thoughts are things, it seems to follow that there is a
> physical basis to memetics. This is one mystical interpretation.
>
Memes are meaningful patterns encoded in neurons and sound
waves and print, etc., not the bodies or the air pressure or the ink
and paper themselves. While their material/energetic substrate
subsists in the world of being, memes themselves are of the world
of meaning, and may be encoded in many different ways by means
of many differing physical substrates.
People who are trying to move paper floating in a bowl are also
subliminally blowing on it, and tend to convince themselves a
posteriori that they were successful in any case - kina like a ouija
board.
>
> Douglas
>
>
>
> ===============================================================
> This was distributed via the memetics list associated with the
> Journal of Memetics - Evolutionary Models of Information Transmission
> For information about the journal and the list (e.g. unsubscribing)
> see: http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit
>
>
===============================================================
This was distributed via the memetics list associated with the
Journal of Memetics - Evolutionary Models of Information Transmission
For information about the journal and the list (e.g. unsubscribing)
see: http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Oct 03 2000 - 01:08:16 BST