Models - Evolution

Extended Remix by Julian Mendelsohn.

Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.

Albert Einstein

Oldest complex organic molecules find by Webb telescope. It where found in a galaxy visible as a perfect Einstein ring. They may be 12 billions years old. Life must be everywhere. That’s my conclusions….

Spinoza’s and Einstein’s idea and belief of God: Are science and religion married? Is consciousness involved?

When it comes to Universal theories about the way the Universe exists or what exists in the Universe as opposed to what doesn’t, I don’t necessarily believe in the multiverse theory or string theory, but I am partial to the “in potentiality” or “as yet to be decided” takes that quantum superposition theory proposes. The theory that for every already existing reality - this one and possibly others - there is a potentiality for multiple or even infinite alternate ones to exist and it’s simply a case of it just hasn’t been “decided” yet which one is the correct one or the always there one.

Now I want to be very careful on what I mean by “decided”. I’m not referring to any kind of personal anthropomorphic God or divinity here. I’m not talking about some type of human-like superconsciousness deciding on what exists and what doesn’t. I do believe in God and divinity but not in the way that there exists only one superconscious being that is the overall ruler and decider of all things existing or not existing. That’s just Western biblical bullshit to me. But there is the idea and belief that all individual consciousness (me, you, other animals) combined create and determine the one conscious being which could indeed be a superconsciousness but each individual conscious being does not have the mental bandwidth for recognizing nor controlling it. This seems a very realistic “God” or “divinity” that can be the truth.

Spinoza’s or Einstein’s idea and belief of God and divinity resonates with my idea and belief of God and divinity but not absolutely because to me not everything that is said to objectively and externally exist is conscious, nor can determine itself. But just the general idea and belief that “God” is synonymous with nature and therefore “God” is simultaneously everything as well as manifesting, maintaining and determining everything. That idea and belief of “God” or “divinity” very well could exist because it doesn’t override science nor religion - which are still in combat for which is “correct” - because it’s a pantheistic view - which both science and religion agree on. I tend to take a middle way with both science and religion because, to me, they’re both correct in their own ways but neither are absolutely correct because I believe both areas of philosophy have some things right and others not right at all. It all depends on the language used to express and convey these philosophies I say because science and religion use entirely different terms and definitions to describe the creation of existence despite ultimately talking about the same exact thing. They both make the argument that there exists one ultimate way of creation or one creator of everything. Religion refers to it as “God”. Science refers to it as “The Big Bang” - but they’re both referring to a Creator of Everything despite how different the terms and definitions may be between. I think because of this religion and science could very much be married one day when humanity gets its own heads out of its own arses. When it ultimately comes to the conclusion that while the languages might be wildly different, the ideas and beliefs are not so much. And only someone that thinks in the middle way or in “the grey area” - as I like to call it - will believe that it is possible that science and religion can come together and work together to figure this existing and creator of everything existing out one day. Hopefully.

In science - quantum physics - there is something called the wave-particle function in the forever groundbreaking double-slit experiment. It’s quite hard to explain but basically it means that reality is both there and not there at the same time and it only depends on “the conscious observation” of it which it is. I’m sure you’ve heard of the concept of the Copenhagen interpretation and thought experiments such as Schrödinger's cat being used to debunk the validity of quantum superposition. There seems to be the constant need in serious scientific study to try to falsify the plausibility that consciousness collapses the wave-particle function or to try to prove that consciousness plays no part in existence or of what is and isn’t reality. And I say “try to prove” because it has not been done successfully as of yet mainly because in order to try to prove it, consciousness cannot have any intervention in the experimentation - which evidently is absolutely impossible to pull off since all trying to verify the result of it are conscious beings. They’ve argued that technological apparatus and processes such as AI can intervene on a conscious being’s behalf but consciousness then has to be what measures and verifies what AI has done. And it’s a never-ending loop. No matter how much you try to remove consciousness from the equation, it’s obviously always going to be involved somewhere because it’s only ever consciousness that needs the information measured and verified anyway. It’s an effort that’s admirable but always in vain because consciousness is everywhere. It’s not in everything, as panpsychism suggests, but it is indeed that of which determines what “things” exist and what “things” don’t because a “thing” is only a concept of conscious perception. And I’d argue that the only reason why so many want to disprove and remove consciousness is because they’re too close and they feel weirded out by the thought that their intervention has influence on the creation and determination of external reality.

In religion - Christianity/Judaism/Islam specifically - it’s a lot different because consciousness is put on a hierarchy rather than just argued against entirely. It is believed by a good majority consensus of a Western religious population that there exists a consciousness above all consciousness. A superconsciousness. A “God”. And this idea and belief of “God” is an anthropocentric view even while specifically insistently stating that human consciousness plays no part in what “God” is since they identify and refer to “God” as a He and He is therefore typically read and perceived in Western biblical text in the male human image and living above the clouds, floating somewhere in the ethers and looking down on humanity as a much lesser consciousness to Himself. Of course, I don’t believe in that idea of “God” but many people still do. Especially people of a Western civilisation. Despite being a Western civilian myself, I’m more of an Eastern believer. I subscribe more to Taoism/Buddhism/Hinduism religions if I have to consider myself religious at all. But I would honestly rather not because I always feel religion complicates what are very simple matters and I am very much an Occam’s Razor person who favours the most simplistic option and approach to an understanding about the existence and nature of everything. There are, of course, limitations in Eastern religion too but it’s a lot less dogmatic than Western religion in my opinion since the ideas and beliefs of “God” and “divinity” in these religions are a shared experience with humanity and everything else that exists that is conscious - such as animals and insects and plants - which of course, also shares its views with Spinoza’s and Einstein’s idea and belief of God but doesn’t remove consciousness from the existence of reality.

I truly believe that nature and evolution is what “God” is and how “God” works. Nature is not separate or differentiated from consciousness and vice versa. When we think of nature we tend to have the picture of greenery in our minds. Plants - maybe a tree. When we think of evolution - we picture a seed transforming into a tree. We picture a metamorphosis happening of some kind. But that is not the only picture of nature or of evolution because nature and evolution goes beyond greenery. Beyond seeds and trees. I often refer to nature as the principle of all things and evolution as the process through which that principle of all things manifest and maintain themselves. So I think of nature and evolution as the principle and the process of everything in existence. But it is only two of the three ideas and beliefs and philosophies that ultimately matter to me regarding existence and its creation. The third is choice. And this is where my idea and belief of “God” and “divinity” comes in and Spinoza’s and Einstein’s idea and belief of “God” and “divinity” drop out. This is when my taken areas of both science and religion marry and this is what I mean by “deciding”. To me, consciousness is fundamental. If I could, I would make it a fundamental constant of serious scientific study and experimentation along with electromagnetism, gravity and the speed of light in time-space. I think it’s just as important - if not even more so important than those already very well accepted and beloved fundamental constants because we - humanity (and I’m sure every other conscious being that exists) - live under the laws of consciousness every waking moment - all the time. Constantly. It makes no sense to me why scientists want to disprove and remove consciousness from serious scientific study when the only way they can study and understand that study seriously is through consciousness anyway. The only way I can make sense of this wanting is the weird feeling that consciousness is something we are and therefore we can’t be how anything else is or comes to be. Scientists - especially physicists - have a really difficult time with the thought that they could be the creator of all things in existence like the personal “God”. But it’s not so outlandish of a thought when you consider that if God is All then All is God. When you take a pantheistic approach to it, it’s less weird and absurd and more comforting and plausible. I mean really… at the end of the day… all you’re saying is that Creator and Creation is the same exact thing. And in that case… Science and religion are already married. It’s just forcing ourselves to stop getting lost in the translations of both and start caring about the ideas and beliefs of both because I personally think the concept of “God” or “The Big Bang” is correct. I just think the wording is all wrong. And I also think that we need to get used to the idea that perhaps the chicken and the egg are the same exact thing. That they are principle and process.

I think Spinoza and Einstein were on the right lines but the refusal to involve and connect consciousness in with their ideas and beliefs is where I believe they went off track because nature or their “God” is not completely impersonal because consciousness is part of reality and removing it completely is just living in denial. But for some reason many scientists and philosophers alike want to do that. Want to ignore the part that consciousness evidently plays in the creation and determination of existence. It may not be everything, but it evidently is fundamental in that the laws of nature cannot be determined without it. There is a “decider” in existence. It’s consciousness. And we have to seriously consider in science and religion that biology and consciousness is central to the laws that govern the entire Universe. We cannot laugh at the notion of that anymore. Yes, it’s a radical belief. But so was believing that the world was round once upon a time. So is believing that time doesn’t exist today. But these ideas and beliefs are now very much accepted in serious scientific study and experimentation. So why can’t we do the same with the idea and belief that biology and consciousness are the keys to unlocking the secrets to the existence of the entire Universe?

OneNETnews EXCLUSIVE: The Impersonation of Albert Einstein takes the internet by storm at the Evolution Gaming's Blackjack

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN -- In a surprising twist, Evolution Gaming's Blackjack table recently witnessed an uncanny impersonation of the reincarnated, mathematician and renowned physicist Albert Einstein that has since garnered widespread attention. The impersonation showcases the genius' distinctive appearance and mannerisms, leaving viewers both amused and intrigued.

(Logo via Evolution Gaming)

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(Contributed Classic Photo)

Albert Einstein, celebrated as one of the greatest scientific minds in history, was a German-born physicist who revolutionized our understanding of the universe with his theories of relativity. He is renowned for his intellectual contributions, which include the famous formula E=mc2, representing the equivalence of energy (E) and mass (m) as well as the speed of light (c).

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Videos capturing the Evolution Gaming's Einstein impersonation quickly went viral, garnering thousands of views and widespread acclaim on a disclosed video platforms. Viewers were fascinated by the audacity of incorporating such a unique character within the realm of online gambling, breaking away from the traditional norms of casino gaming.

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SCREENGRAB COURTESY: KumbaraCasino and Evolution Gaming via YT Video BACKGROUND PROVIDED BY: Tegna

SOURCE: *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWxL-TQEjs8 [Referenced YT Video #1 via KumbaraCasino] *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veyiLEKZcDo [Referenced YT Video via BestCasinoWins] *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSZ0c6E1Qqw [Referenced YT Video #2 via KumbaraCasino] *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XG-qihyDIBg [Referenced YT Video #3f via KumbaraCasino] *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1Vt2ceU694 [Referenced YT Video via HyperCard] *https://www.softswiss.com/game-providers/evolution-gaming/ [Referenced Biography via SoftSwiss] *https://www.evolution.com/who-we-are/timeline/ [Referenced Timeline via Evolution Gaming] *https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein and *https://www.atomicarchive.com/resources/biographies/einstein.html [Referenced Biography via Atomic Archive]

-- OneNETnews Team

WHAT IS THE SPACE - TIME CONTINUUM??

Blog#364

Saturday, January 6th, 2024.

Welcome back,

The space-time continuum is a concept in physics that refers to the idea that space and time are two aspects of a single entity, called spacetime. In other words, instead of thinking of space and time as separate entities, the theory of relativity suggests that they are intimately connected and should be considered together as a four-dimensional fabric that makes up the universe.

The concept of the space-time continuum arises from Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. According to Einstein, the passage of time and the curvature of space are affected by the presence of mass and energy. Massive objects like planets and stars can warp the fabric of space and time, causing other objects to move along curved paths.

The theory of relativity also predicts that time passes differently for observers in different states of motion. Specifically, time dilation occurs when an object is moving at high speeds, causing time to appear to pass more slowly for the moving object relative to a stationary observer. This effect has been observed in experiments and is an important factor in the operation of devices like GPS satellites.

The concept of the space-time continuum has important implications for our understanding of the nature of the universe, including the behavior of particles traveling at high speeds, the structure of black holes, and the origin and evolution of the universe as a whole. It also provides a framework for understanding the fundamental laws of physics and the behavior of matter and energy in the universe.

Originally published https://medium.com

COMING UP!!

(Wednesday, January 10th, 2024)

"IS TIME INFINITE IN BLACK HOLES??"

“Since her death in 1979, the woman who discovered what the universe is made of has not so much as received a memorial plaque. Her newspaper obituaries do not mention her greatest discovery. […] Every high school student knows that Isaac Newton discovered gravity, that Charles Darwin discovered evolution, and that Albert Einstein discovered the relativity of time. But when it comes to the composition of our universe, the textbooks simply say that the most abundant atom in the universe is hydrogen. And no one ever wonders how we know.”

—

Jeremy Knowles, discussing the complete lack of recognition Cecilia Payne gets, even today, for her revolutionary discovery.

Cecilia Payne’s mother refused to spend money on her college education, so she won a scholarship to Cambridge.

Cecilia Payne completed her studies, but Cambridge wouldn’t give her a degree because at that time there's not much exposure for woman, so she said to heck with that and moved to the United States to work at Harvard.

Cecilia Payne was the first person ever to earn a Ph.D. in astronomy from Radcliffe College, with what Otto Strauve called “the most brilliant Ph.D. thesis ever written in astronomy.”

Not only did Cecilia Payne discover what the universe is made of, she also discovered what the sun is made of (Henry Norris Russell, a fellow astronomer, is usually given credit for discovering that the sun’s composition is different from the Earth’s, but he came to his conclusions four years later than Payne—after telling her not to publish).

Cecilia Payne is the reason we know basically anything about variable stars (stars whose brightness as seen from earth fluctuates). Literally every other study on variable stars is based on her work.

Cecilia Payne was the first woman to be promoted to full professor from within Harvard, and is often credited with breaking the glass ceiling for women in the Harvard science department and in astronomy, as well as inspiring entire generations of women to take up science.

Cecilia Payne is awesome and everyone should know her.

I did not know that!

“Since her death in 1979, the woman who discovered what the universe is made of has not so much as received a memorial plaque. Her newspaper obituaries do not mention her greatest discovery. […] Every high school student knows that Isaac Newton discovered gravity, that Charles Darwin discovered evolution, and that Albert Einstein discovered the relativity of time. But when it comes to the composition of our universe, the textbooks simply say that the most abundant atom in the universe is hydrogen. And no one ever wonders how we know.” — Jeremy Knowles, discussing the complete lack of recognition Cecilia Payne gets, even today, for her revolutionary discovery. (via alliterate)

OH WAIT LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT CECILIA PAYNE.

Cecilia Payne’s mother refused to spend money on her college education, so she won a scholarship to Cambridge.

Cecilia Payne completed her studies, but Cambridge wouldn’t give her a degree because she was a woman, so she said to heck with that and moved to the United States to work at Harvard.

Cecilia Payne was the first person ever to earn a Ph.D. in astronomy from Radcliffe College, with what Otto Strauve called “the most brilliant Ph.D. thesis ever written in astronomy.”

Not only did Cecilia Payne discover what the universe is made of, she also discovered what the sun is made of (Henry Norris Russell, a fellow astronomer, is usually given credit for discovering that the sun’s composition is different from the Earth’s, but he came to his conclusions four years later than Payne—after telling her not to publish).

Cecilia Payne is the reason we know basically anything about variable stars (stars whose brightness as seen from earth fluctuates). Literally every other study on variable stars is based on her work.

Cecilia Payne was the first woman to be promoted to full professor from within Harvard, and is often credited with breaking the glass ceiling for women in the Harvard science department and in astronomy, as well as inspiring entire generations of women to take up science.

Cecilia Payne is awesome and everyone should know her.

Feeling annoyed by this story which I saw on twitter today.

In March 2020 some scientists published a paper in Nature Medicine saying that the Covid-19 virus does not show any signs of being produced by genetic engineering. Later some Slack chats and emails emerged which reveal that the paper authors still thought it's plausible that it could be a lab leak of a wild virus. Also, before submitting to Nature Medicine they had submitted to Nature—in that review cycle one of the reviewers said they should state that this rules out a lab leak, and they had replied that you can't in fact conclude that.

And now Donald McNeil, a NYT journalist who wrote articles discounting the lab leak hypothesis, has published a book where he says this shows that the scientists “clearly misled me early on. ... disappointed, both in them and in myself, that I was so easily taken in. ... It’s one thing to be lied to by a politician and fail to check it out. But on viral evolution, to whom do you go for a second opinion? … If Albert Einstein assured you that nuclear fission is harmless, whom would you trust to quote saying, ‘Einstein’s dead wrong?’”.

But come on. First, it's amusing to see a New York Times journalist complain about people publishing true but misleading information. Oh how the turntables!

But second, this information just objectively isn't all that misleading. I was there, in 2020! I remember reading this paper when it was in the news, and thinking “I see, I guess this is evidence against genetic engineering but not against escape of a wild virus.” Other people on twitter and tumblr were saying the same thing. This is not some kind of esoteric viral evolution lore, it is obvious if you just read the introduction paragraph of the paper.

Maybe McNeil preferred to not read anything and instead email with the authors. Per the leaked Slack chats, they told him exactly that:

From a genomics perspective, the theories Richard Ebright lay out [i.e. a lab leak] I would expect would look the same—there would be no way to distinguish them.

Like, these people had an agenda to downplay the possibility of a lab leak, but they were careful to be completely truthful in everything they said. If McNeil drew less accurate conclusions from it than a bunch of randos on twitter did, I think that's mainly on him.

There are moments when one feels free from one's own identification with human limitations and inadequacies. At such moments, one imagines that one stands on some spot of a small planet, gazing in amazement at the cold yet profoundly moving beauty of the eternal, the unfathomable: life and death flow into one, and there is neither evolution nor destiny; only being.

Albert Einstein

The Turtles as Things my Fiancée has Said

Alas, I did end up making one of these posts. Most of the things I have written down are chaotic/hectic so I don't think there will be many for Leo tbh.

Here we go.

[Censored Swearing]

Leo:

Is that a cop? No, it's just a Tesla.

What the flip, man?

I can't- I can't! I'm not doing that. I can't.

Raph:

I will literally punch a grandma in the teeth, I swear to god.

Betty White is strong as f*ck.

That man looks like the toothpick that came out of a crackhead's mouth.

I just shot the bartender.

Aaaaaand I don't really care. I really don't care.

Why the f*ck on the wall?

I got that sh*t too. Back to bed.

I can't tell if I dreamed that or not.

Though I concur, you're f*cked.

Donnie:

No Mikey, not f*cking coffee, you f*cking squirrel.

I'm probably gonna get, like, AIDS doing this... Why do it, you ask? It's for science.

I hear you in the trees, f*cker.

Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake-

How does Donnie know what's going on? That is an excellent question.

Wait where are my glasses? Oh, I'm too tired for this sh*t.

You don't know anything about anything.

A bit scary, but.

It's okay- eh, f*ck it. Whatever. He said to stop there but whatever.

You see, at this point in evolution, Mother Nature gave up.

I don't need a mental health day, I just need mental health.

Mikey:

You are a Dinkelburg. Shut up.

Wait, are you taking me for a haircut? Why?

Well, good evening.

What do you have? Can I have one?

Hey, look! Hi!

Does God pray to himself or to Jesus?

Ask the Little Einsteins, they're Albert's kids.

Should I stop saying that? Probably, but I won't.

*Looking at a car accident* I think you got something on your car.

Can you no?

Distract him? How am I supposed to do that, be famous?

Try to cook me, I dare you.

13 is... That much too many.

*Looking at a different car accident* You can't park there.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A: What is Λ?

Lo! It's a Λ! 

When you take the Z off of Z-A, you're left with Λ, or the Greek letter lambda. So what does this lambda mean? What is the Λ in Pokemon Legends: Z-A?

This Λ is most likely the symbol for the Infinity Energy coming from AZ's Ultimate Weapon.  Infinity Energy is the reoccurring power from Generation VI. It's sometimes created from the life energy of Pokemon, but not always. Some fans like BirdKeeperToby use the term to refer to the energy, power, or magic that Pokemon use in general.

In the real world, Λ is tied up in all sorts of equations of radiation and light, so it fits perfectly with Infinity Energy.  The most powerful and prolific energy associated with Λ is dark energy.

Now, a disclaimer: I'm not a physicist, so I might get some of this wrong. I'll try my best to stick to the sources.

Albert Einstein used the letter Λ to symbolize the Cosmological Constant, a hidden factor in the universe that counteracted the force of gravity and kept the universe static, neither getting bigger or smaller.  Except, he miscalculated.  The universe wasn't just expanding, the expansion was accelerating.  (Source: LiveScience)

Image from HubbleSite

In the 1990's, scientists named the hidden force dark energy.  It's the hidden factor that is pushing against gravity, causing the universe to expand.  And while it's invisible to the eye, and accelerating too far to access, some scientists believe that in billions of years the expansion could rip apart the universe. (Source: LiveScience)

It feels like a very anime idea, like something from Gurren Lagann. An overload of crazy, accelerating energy (three-fourths of the universe!) that expands the universe beyond its limitations.  We could liken dark energy to the untapped potential of Pokemon. Pokemon have special powers and abilities, but in certain circumstances, they can unlock a special potential within them that allows them to evolve their limits.

Mega Stones were created when the blast from the Ultimate Weapon irradiated normal evolutionary stones with Infinity Energy. When a Pokemon Mega Evolves, it reveals within them a potential that was hitherto unknown, energy that lets them expand beyond their limits, just like dark energy expands the universe past the force of gravity.

Of course, there are other things that Λ can symbolize.  Lowercase lambda (λ) symbolizes half-life, and radiation is tied closely with Pokemon evolution itself.  The Mega Stones were "irradiated" with Infinity Energy.  λ is also used to symbolize wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum, including light, which works well with Lumiose City's Prism Tower.  (Wikipedia) Lumiose City is after all, based on the Paris, the City of Lights.

While I find Dark Energy the most exciting explanation for the Λ on the cover of Legends: Z-A, our big green Λ probably incorporates multiple concepts of energy and light into the idea of Infinity Energy.  Infinity Energy is the connective tissue of Generation VI, so it's very likely that it will appear in Legends: Z-A again.  While this doesn't tell us much about the game itself, it might give us an idea why GameFreak used the letter Λ.

Edited by @fluffybunnybadass.

Previously, in the Legends: Z-A Saga!

Part 2: Is Z-A Just Zygarde-A? (%1000 Zygarde and the Fragments of the Tree of Life)

Part 1: Aaah, it's an A! Is the A in Z-A the Tree of Life?

Part 0: How much longer am I going to have to wait for a freakin' Unova remake?! (Not really a theory.)

source

“People normally cut reality into compartments, and so are unable to see the interdependence of all phenomena. To see one in all and all in one is to break through the great barrier which narrows one's perception of reality. We are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness.” ― Thich Nhat Hanh

"The basic laws of the universe are simple, but because our senses are limited, we can't grasp them. There is a pattern in creation." ~Albert Einstein

Every “thing” in the Universe is a system. These systems are connected to surrounding systems and made of smaller systems. All these systems are self-organizing and work together as unified wholes. Many of these systems are extremely creative, new structures and creations “emerging” from their interactions.

Our Universe is a creative system, as is Nature. Most systems exhibit certain shared characteristics, such as self-organization, wholeness, balance, connectedness, creativity, cycles (of change and stability) and what the Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh referred to as “inter-being.”

Inter-being refers to how all systems are connected and flow into one another in ecological relationships, sharing energy and elements. A tree for example is made up of water that existed as rain and clouds, sunlight, carbon that came from the air and other elements. Your body is the same, made up of trillions of atoms that are billions of years old and have been moving from place to place on our planet (and before that in the Universe) for a long long time.

Wholeness refers to how self-organizing systems form dynamic wholes, that regenerate their patterns across time and maintain harmonic functioning. Balance is really essential in a system, whether its your body, an ecosystem, a family, a community or solar systems.

Cycles of change are what allow for creativity and evolution, but also what maintain the wholeness and health of systems. The term “regeneration” refers to the processes that allow living systems to heal and sustain themselves across time. Your body, a forest, the ocean, a family, maintain stability by sustaining balance in relationships, regenerating connections and self-organizing wholeness.

Change is also a constant. Every system is constantly changing inwardly or outwardly, either in regenerative “virtuous” cycles of circulation that maintain order and stability, or degenerative “vicious” cycles which can create chaos, eventually leading to the collapse or death of that system. We seem to be living in an age now where many patterns are becoming unstable. Change (whether creative, regenerative or destructive) is imminent.

Sometimes the chaos of a vicious degenerative cycle can be transcended, and a new pattern of relationships is born. When people talk about spiritual growth, or psychological healing, this is often what happens. The “death” of the old pattern allows a new way of living and being to be born. Nature actually requires death in order to regenerate new life.

It’s one of the mysteries of our Universe, that even the total collapse of a system is never the end of it’s story. Most of the atoms in your body, for example, were created in the center of former stars which “died” in super nova explosions. If those stars had not seeded our region of the galaxy with these atoms, we would not be here.

Understanding how systems grow, change, evolve and transform like this is sometimes called “systems thinking” or “ecological consciousness.” I think it’s what many culture’s down through history have called “wisdom.” It’s an understanding all of us in this each deeply need.

~Christopher Chase

Fukuoka, Japan

"You are something that the Whole Universe is doing, in the same way that a wave is something that the Whole Ocean is doing..." ~Alan Watts

“I think the difficulty is this fragmentation. All thought is broken up into bits. Like this nation, this country, this industry, this profession and so on… And they can’t meet. Wholeness is a kind of attitude or approach to the whole of life. If we can have a coherent approach to reality then reality will respond coherently to us.” ~David Bohm, physicist

***

Friday, March 22, 2024

The fastest post I have made to date! I think I finally got to all of the tag games that I was sent. I meant to get to it last night, but I was tired after dance.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Tasks Completed:

Geometry - Learned to construct inscribed squares and inscribed regular hexagons + practice + honors work

Lit and Comp II - Unit 21 vocabulary test (100%) + read the second part of chapter 42 of Emma by Jane Austen

Spanish 2 - Reviewed furniture vocabulary + viewed two furniture websites in Spanish

Bible I - Read Judges 17-18

World History - Read notes on the Russian Revolution + reviewed and filled in parts of the Russian Revolution chart assignment + read about Russian Revolution + watched a video on Russia in WWI, the civil war, and the revolution

Biology with Lab - Presented a persuasive argument of my beliefs on evolution and creation to my dad

PE/Health I - Read a health article

Foundations - Read more on self-control + completed next quiz on Read Theory + read an article about headlines + viewed posters and political cartoons + read political headlines from WWII + viewed a fake front page of a newspaper which demonstrated the use of headlines as fact when they were opinionated statements

Piano - Practiced for two hours in one hour split sessions

Khan Academy - Completed High School Geometry Unit 8: Lesson 11

CLEP - None today

Streaming - Watched episode 4 of Life on Our Planet (evolutionist perspective)

Duolingo - Studied for 15 minutes (Spanish, French, Chinese) + completed daily quests

Reading - Read pages 331-400 of House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig and finished the book

Chores - Dusted my bedroom, my bathroom, and the study + laundered my bedding

Activities of the Day:

Personal Bible Study (Proverbs 17)

Ballet

Pointe

Journal/Mindfulness

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What I’m Grateful for Today:

I am grateful for an amazing family.

Quote of the Day:

Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.

-Albert Einstein

🎧Pupazzi, Op. 36 - Florent Schmitt

The moment Light writes in the death note he becomes a killer, but he could not become Kira without L. (L/Light, slow burn — Yotsuba Arc with all the mind-games intact)

OUBLIETTE

(Architecture) a dungeon in the shape of a long vertical chamber, in which the only entrance is through the top.

[from French, from oublier to forget]

Part 1: Superposition {All humans will, eventually, die.}

Whatever it is you are struggling to remember, it is not poised on the tip of your tongue or even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen. It has floated away down a dark mythological river whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall… —from Forgetfulness by Billy Collins (William James Collins) But what is light really? Is it a wave or a shower of photons? There seems no likelihood for forming a consistent description of the phenomena of light by a choice of only one of the two languages. It seems as though we must use sometimes the one theory and sometimes the other, while at times we may use either. We are faced with a new kind of difficulty. We have two contradictory pictures of reality; separately neither of them fully explains the phenomena of light, but together they do.  —from The Evolution of Physics by Albert Einstein and Leopold Infeld

(read on ao3)

June 7, 2004. Day seven of confinement. The thing about getting rid of useless pride is that it is a scaffolding built of years. It takes more than the work of a moment; though you are begging in the windowless cell. What was I thinking, putting myself in here? You don’t remember. It’s beginning to disturb you, how much you don’t remember; although when you close your eyes and follow the trail—one event follows upon the other just as you had expected it to; and you can even recall the way you stood up in shock the first time Kira killed, when all you saw was a reporter’s face through the screen of your TV, and the way your hands had sweated, your heart palpitated as though in sympathy; (terror) you think, classifying the signs; and how that evening when you went to the store, when the motorcycles, converging around frightened prey— (Criminal. Name: Shibuimaru Takuo.) The accident; the truck slamming into him; the sick fragile way it jerked and spun, the skid of wheels. It was the end of your boredom, because though you were nothing but a spectator to the great battle, you already felt how Kira and L would pull you along in their wake just as any battle between titans would (because you would stand within the event horizon, if only to get closer).

Perhaps that is where you are now. In the quiet dark within the black hole, where your self, gaunt and unfamiliar to you, has already irrevocably been altered. (Suspect. Name: Yagami Light.) 

The facts don’t lie in saying you have the potential to be Kira, that the suspect profile and all the circumstantial evidence is against you. And yet the idea that you could have become so disassociated from your sense of self as to distrust your own memories is jarring. Had you convinced yourself in a fit of temporary madness? Was the shock of Misa’s arrest so great? Or was it L, with his soft insinuations, level-headed, building a structure atop which you can stand, precarious, Kira; like an imaginary god? Ever since you’d met him, when he sat beside you in the Todai entrance ceremony and said “I’m L” with his black-hole eyes watching you… it is true that you had felt the dilation of time; it is true that in that moment you were aware of yourself as a suspect, as though you were guilty. L has always been able to make you feel as though you were guilty, though you have nothing to be guilty for. 

The problem is that it had fed your pride. That the greatest detective believed you were capable of being his opposite had a heady power you couldn’t deny, though it disgusted you to your core. You hated his very being, and craved it; as though in his own darkness he had seen your own worst pathetic thoughts and unearthed them, digging through the midnight graveyard of your most unsettled dreams. Everyone thinks, now and again: the world is rotten. Everyone thinks, now and again: why is the world succumbing only to entropy; why does the bad always outweigh the good, why do the murderers live and the victims die. Perhaps that was why you had stepped so close. Perhaps that is what pulled you into a self-doubt of such grandiose proportions. When he had said “you are Kira” your morality and your memory and your sense of self had said “I am not”, but your pride had said “I could be if I wanted to. There is no way I would do any less.”

(read on ao3)