> >:Hey, all --
> >:
> >: As long as we're throwing around the idea, why not set up some tests?
> >:E-mail readings would seem the perfect means for eliminating verbal or
> >:non-verbal feedback (which most "psychics" use as a guide for their
> >:interpretations...).
> >
> >If all we're doing is randomly generating memes, what kind of tests would
> we do?
> >
> >David Leeper
> >Homo Deus
[Major review of mass mutations creating classic 'divination methods': I
Ching, Tarot, runes]
Two comments:
I have never heard of a decent conventional deciphering of runic
use. The popular sources [I HAVE no technical sources, so noctem may be
ahead of me here] admit to 'past-life-regression' and similar
hypnosis-based stuff. This correlates with their testing 'null' in my
perceptual map.
One Hermetic Order source [Phillip & Dennings(?), "Creative
Visualization"] openly states that any 'divination method' can be
reverse-engineered into a active-alteration method (of equally dubious
verifiability....) I am reminded of two things:
Larry Niven's comment that (paraphrase) "If magic and psi powers exist,
they're weak and almost useless. Otherwise, we'd be using them in place of
technology."
The rather annoying trait that, at any given time, 99% of
mathematics is inapplicable math. However, yesterday's inapplicable math
can suddenly be today's applicable math.
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/ Kenneth Boyd
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