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diff --git a/essays/energy_cube1966.tex b/essays/energy_cube1966.tex new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d925445 --- /dev/null +++ b/essays/energy_cube1966.tex @@ -0,0 +1,189 @@ +\chapter{Representation of the Memory of an Energy Cube Organism (1966 VERSION)} + +The energy cube organism is a conscious organism which is nothing but +energy confined to a cubical space. It rests on a rectangular energy slab, in a +stationary, colorless liquid, separated from the slab by a thin film of liquid. +It has been on the slab for an indefinitely long time. There are in fact two +infinite bodies of the liquid, alternating with two infinite empty spaces; the +four volumes are outlined by two intersecting planes which just miss being +perpendicular. The slab is poised, at a slant, on the faces of the upper body +of liquid, near where they meet. There are no other objects in the bodies of +liquid. The slab, liquid, and spaces are the energy cube organism's entire +cosmology. (See the illustration.) + +\img{energycube} + +The energy cube organism can continuously change position, +continuously and instantly moving the liquid from its path into its wake so +as to make no current in the liquid. For almost as long as it has been on the +slab, the organism has devoted itself to crossing the slab, from the slab's edge +on one face of the liquid to its edge on the other. + +The energy cube organism has a conscious memory (by which I mean +strictly a memory of what it did and what happened to it, the past events of +its existence). The memory consists of symbols which are given "meaning" +by their extra-linguistic mental associations---in human terms, it consists of +language. The complete memory contains tens of thousands of partial +memories, which the organism can only have one at a time. Going through +the partials---which it does as if they were the phonemes of one long +word---constitutes its one complete memory. Each partial is a memory of the +difference in the organism's minimum distances from the destination edge, at +the beginning, and at the end, of some interval of time. Call the difference its +"progress." The total of time intervals in all the partials completely covers +the interval from the earliest remembered event to the most recent +remembered event. As time passes, more partials are added to the complete +memory. The production of partial memories is an involuntary process of +the organism. + +The memory is temporally dual. The interval for each partial is an +interval of fixed time, defined by its duration, and the distance from the +fixed time when the energy cube organism appeared on the slab up to the +interval's end. But it is also a sliding interval, defined by its duration, and a +constant distance from the present instant back to the interval's end. When +partials are added to the memory, each of the former intervals exactly covers +the tire not already covered, up to the absolute time when the partial is +added. But the latter intervals, while they never overlap, can have gaps +between them. The intervals generally are of different durations. The energy +cube organism lacks any independent extra-linguistic memory, any mental +reliving of the past, which could conflict with the dual temporal memory. +There is no form to the past other than that of the memory's language. (See +the graph.) + +The order of the partials in the complete memory is a linguistic +phenomenon which indicates the method the organism has been using to +move itself---and thus the order (with its extra-linguistic associations) is the +memory of the method. A single method" is everything to be done by the +energy cube organism to move itself, throughout the entire time it takes to +reach the destination edge. There are different possible methods, and each +could get the organism across; but the methods cannot be combined in any +way. Every order of all partials signifies a different possible method. These +possible methods are in no special order. When a partial is added to the +memory, the number of possible methods is increased by a factor equal to +the new number of partials. + +\img{energycubegraph} + +{ + \centering + \textsc{Graph} showing a possible relationship in the dual temporal memory + \par +} + + +Now the complete memory is obtained by going through the partials---in +any order! Any order gives the memory. This feature, which can be +precisely characterized in terms of the memory language, is perhaps the most +remarkable feature of the whole cosmology. An approach to this feature in +human terms is to say that when the organism goes through the partials, (it +dreams that) it has been using the method indicated---and is presently using +it. It (does not remember the dream, and) does not remember going through +the partials. It has no other memory of which method it has been using. + +The organism moves itself by mental exertion, teleports itself. The +"possible methods" are mental routines. These routines draw on the +following standard mental resources. The organism can assume at will many +"mental states." By 'mental state' I refer to a mental "stage" or "space" or +"mood" in which visualizing, remembering, and all imaging can be carried +on. Some human mental states are general euphoria, stupor, general anxiety, +dreaming, dizziness, empathy with another person, and clearheadedness, the +normal state in which work is performed. These states are not defined by +specific imagings, but are "spaces" in which imaging is carried on. The +organism changes its state by changing from one form of energy to another, +gravity, magnetism, electric energy, radiated heat, or light. In these states, +the organism has an unlimited capacity to image; in human terms, to +visualize. There are visualized regions of colored liquids. Call them "fluid +colors." There are visualized glowing surfaces, and there are black regions or +"holes." There are visualized "covers," "lattices," and "shells," which are all +formed from transparent planes, spherical surfaces and the like. Call them +"orojected surfaces." The fluid colors can be stationary or flowing. There are +"channels," which are strung-out series of fluid colors. There are +"reservoirs," which are clusters of fluid colors. A channel can be closed or +open. Two channels can cross each other. There are pairs of channels such +that earlier members of each channel flow into later members of the +other---called "screw-connected" channels. Fluid colors often occur on or +within projected surfaces. Projected surfaces can be growing or held. A +visualization can be at the forefront of attention, or in the back of the mind. +That is, states have depth, and visualizations can be at different depths. The +state as a whole can be "frozen" or "melted." A human approach is to say +that a "frozen" state is set or fixed; while a "melted" state is fluid---the state +itself flows. A state can be projected into "superstate," gaining an abnormal +amount of mental energy and becoming superdizziness or superanxiety, for +instance. + +Most interesting, states in different possible methods can have contact +with each other. A human approach is to say that dreams are so flexible that +the organism can dream that an actual state is\slash was in contact with a state in +a possible method. One sort of cross-method contact is for states to be +"interfrozen"---more easily frozen because they are somehow mixed. They +can also be "intermelted." + +I will describe a method, as the organism would be conscious of it in +remembering. For concreteness, I will refer to the different states with the +names of human states rather than with letters. Channels are generated in a +frozen stupor, and become fixed at the forefront of attention of euphoria +intermelted with a possible state. The screw-crossed channels erode crevices +in a held lattice, which breaks into growing sheets (a variety of covers). The +sheets are stacked, and held in a frozen dream thawed at intervals for +reshuffling of the stack. The dream becomes melted, and proceeds in a +trajectory which shears, and closes, open channels. If no violation of the +channels cross-mars the melt, the stack meshes with the sharp-open channels. +The dream becomes interfrozen, and mixed clear-headed states compress the +closed channels which were not fixed at the dream's surface. A fused +exterior double-flash (a certain maximally "glowing surface") is +expand-enveloped by euphoria, which becomes dizziness; and oblique +lattices are projected from the paralinear deviation of guided open channels +in it. Growing shells are dreamed into violet sound-slices (certain synesthetic +"fluid colors") by the needed jumped drag (a generic state), a crossfrozen +dream. Channels in a growing anxiety enspiral concentric shells having +intermixed reservoirs between them, during cyclic intersection of the anxiety +in superstate. And on and on. Time is here the time it takes to carry out the +successive steps of the routine. + +The energy cube organism language, the symbols constituting the +partials, are themselves mental entities. A partial is a rectangular plane +glowing surface, which has two stationary plane reservoirs on it, and has a +triangular hole in it. As a mental entity, in other words, a partial is a +visualization like those which are part of the methods. The perimeter of the +triangular hole equals the organism's progress in the corresponding time +interval. Absence of the hole indicates zero progress. + +The fluid colors in each of the reservoirs on each partial memory are +primary colors, and are mixed together. Speaking as accurately as possible in +human terms, in each reservoir there is precisely one point of "maximum +mixture" of the primary colors. The primary colors are mentally mixed in +any way until the right amount of mixture is reached. There is a scale of +measurement for amounts of mixture of the colors. There is a scale for +vertical distances on the surface---for how far one point is below another. The +difference in amounts of mixture at the two points of maximum mixture +corresponds to the length of the first temporal interval; and the difference +between the maximum possible amount of mixture and the lesser of the two +amounts of maximum mixture on the surface corresponds to the distance +from the fixed beginning time to the interval's and. The vertical distance +between the two points of maximum mixture corresponds to the length of +the second temporal interval; and the vertical distance from the middle of +the surface to the point nearer it corresponds to the constant distance from +the present instant back to the interval's enc. The middle of the surface +represents the present, and the upper half represents the future; the +reservoirs are all in the lower half. For each partial it is necessary to +determine (1) the number of units of duration per unit difference in +amounts of mixture; and (2) the number of units of duration per unit +difference in vertical distances. The average glow per unit area of each +glowing surface (excepting the hole) is correlated with a pair of numbers +constituting this information. + +Finally, turning all the partial memories upside down---and reflecting the +first temporal memory in the present instant, so that the intervals' absolute +distances from the present are preserved---gives the precognition of the +organism's future course of action, tells what progress will be made when +and by which method. + + +\section*{The Representation} + +This essay accompanies a representation of the energy cube organism's +memory---hence its title. The way to picture the memory, naturally, is to +make something that looks like the partials. I have represented the partials +by rectangular sheets of paper of different translucencies with mixtures of +inks of primary colors on them and holes cut in them; together in an +envelope, which bears the injunction not to have more than one sheet out at +a time. Three of the tens of thousands of partials are represented. |