Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Wanderers 2007.10.30

This was the most well attended presentation in recent memory, with listeners overflowing into the alcove and foyer.

Dr George Weissmann discussed his views on quantum theory. His focus: the discontinuity of dharmas (his phrase), the discrete nature of experience, a sequence of distinctions, discriminative moments, events, vertexes, observations.

Particles have properties, including that of being particulate, only when measured (detected, tuned in, reified in special case). In pure principle, these "particles" are more "tendencies" (probabilities, likelihoods, proclivities, incipient views).

I was reminded of passages in Bucky's Synergetics (e.g. 1072.30), also in Franklin Merrill-Wolf's Philosophy of Consciousness Without an Object.

Quantum theory is weird, very entangled with philosophical and psychological namespaces.

Dr. Weissmann is Julian's father in law.