The “Cartesian Split” Is a Hallucination; Ergo, We Should Get Rid of It

June 12, 2005 | Jean F. Drew

[RightWhale]

There is a heavy amount of math, not trivial. Matrix analysis. If you want that and to get it right, try Hermann Weyl for the real deal. 'Symmetry' is an entertaining read, or you can go deep with 'Time Space Matter'. It was crystallography that produced the data that led to quantum mechanics. Hermann Weyl did a fair job with philosophy, too. You won't be disappointed. Princeton, you know, like Einstein and Goedel.

[2ndreconmarine]

Of course, also today I received from Amazon an intriguing book that 2ndreconmarine suggested I read: Timothy Ferris' The Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report (1997).

Isn't Amazon like magic??? Instant gratification. (grin)

Let me know what you think of Ferris' book. We can discuss after you have finnished, if you wish.

It was published in 1997. In the last few years the field has moved forward incredibly. The most significant discovery is that the expansion of the universe is accelerating. That just blows my mind.

[betty boop]

The most significant discovery is that the expansion of the universe is accelerating. That just blows my mind.

Hold that thought, 2ndreconmarine! I've been wondering about that, too.

I will most likely want to touch bases with you, after I've read Ferris' book. Fortunately, I have a long holiday weekend ahead.... :^)

Thanks so much for writing -- and for the book recommendation!

[betty boop]

Hermann Weyl... will have to keep my eyes open for him! Thanks for the suggestion, RW; will follow up in due course. IIRC, Robert A. Herrmann thinks highly of him (have been studying Herrmann lately).

Thanks RightWhale!

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you oh so very much for your beautiful essay! So much to meditate on but the hour is late so I'll have to save my comments for tomorrow.

[Alamo-Girl]

What a truly magnificent, Spirit inspired testimony, my dear sister in Christ!

You will not have “your head handed to you” by me. Not at all. All that you have written rings true in both the indwelling Spirit and in Scripture.

I strongly agree with your reservations about Whitehead’s theology – it is short-sighted and very much akin to Eastern metaphysics (hence my previous link to the Swami’s webpage).

Also, I do tend to use the term “aspect” when speaking of such Spiritual matters for to me, the Spirit gives us an understanding which is akin to a seven faceted diamond. Depending on which facet one is holding to his face, he will see something slightly different – but it is the same diamond and the same Light.

After all, Jesus chose twelve disciples with very different personalities and authenticated seven churches with their own “bent” on the Christian life. Denominational differences today are like that – with much of the difference between them (which can sometimes get quite heated) being a matter of emphasis.

For instance, Catholics put a great emphasis on Peter’s mission and Mary’s honor. Southern Baptists put great emphasis on the Berean test and thus are often seen toting large Bibles with bookmarks and tabs. Others put emphasis on the gifts of the Spirit and Pentecost, prophesy. And so on…

But where the Trinitarian Truth is upheld – there is no substantive difference in that all are seeing the same diamond, the same Light.

Another metaphor I’ve used (which may be a take from your Michaelangelo metaphor) is the artist making a great masterpiece. His palette is full of different colors. What kind of a masterpiece would He have if He mixed all the colors into one?

I also strongly agree with you on the import of Light and of His speaking it into existence. In His two great revelations -–the Scriptures and the Creation – there are often "types" or symbols and this is one.

Looking at the root Hebrew words of Genesis 1, of evening and morning, the Scriptures are actually speaking of moving chaos to order. That is a directed process, i.e. creation.

And the first order brought by His speaking is Light. This is seen in the cosmic microwave background – where sound waves are recorded at the moment when the universe had cooled enough that photons decoupled from electrons, protons and neutrons, atoms formed and light went its way.

Thus the physical creation is a “type” for the spiritual Truth which the Scriptures confirm.

But Spiritual Light is much more significant. God is Light, there is no darkness in Him. (I John 1:5) We are the children of Light and are to walk in the Light. (I Th 5:5, I John 1:7).

The mystery of Light is unraveled by Hebrews 1:3 where He proclaims that Jesus is the “brightness” of the Father’s “glory”. There is no line of separation between them. The Father and the Son are One. (John 17).

Likewise, the Scriptures declare there was a beginning of both heaven and earth. And our observations of the physical realm again speak to the beginning of real time and space (geometry in all cosmologies).

Which brings me to my final observation – which is really only a translation for any Lurkers who might be interested. We both use the term “universal vacuum field” to describe the same thing that I often call “geometry”. A field is defined as existing in all points of space/time. Thus when we say “universal” and “vacuum” it speaks to an empty “allness”, the underlying structure or geometry. By swapping terms, I may be unintentionally creating some confusion – my intent however is to ready the debate for whichever turn it might take, i.e. either to the structure of all that there is – or to the content (or lack of content) thereof.

[betty boop]

We both use the term “universal vacuum field” to describe the same thing that I often call “geometry”. A field is defined as existing in all points of space/time. Thus when we say “universal” and “vacuum” it speaks to an empty “allness”, the underlying structure or geometry. By swapping terms, I may be unintentionally creating some confusion – my intent however is to ready the debate for whichever turn it might take, i.e. either to the structure of all that there is – or to the content (or lack of content) thereof.

Thank you so very much Alamo-Girl, for your kind words!

WRT the above excerpt, I thank you for clarifying the way we use these terms. Indeed, whether one speaks of the primary universal vacuum field or the underlying geometry of the Universe, one is essentially speaking of one and the same thing. I especially appreciate your term, "empty allness" (that is, one thinks, pregnant with possibilities that are yet to be manifested) to describe this concept....

You wrote: "But where the Trinitarian Truth is upheld – there is no substantive difference in that all are seeing the same diamond, the same Light." Truly I think this is the main thing. Christians are called to live in intimate communion with our Lord, in his Light, Truth, Love, and Grace. Particular doctrinal confessions are in comparison only of secondary importance. IMHO FWIW.

PatrickHenry has a great article up today on quantum field theory -- the Standard Model and the Supersymmetric Standard Models, and the quest for the Higgs boson. Find the Higgs, and you have found the Higgs field; for the Standard Model of particle physics states that every particular subatomic particle is the product of a particular field. My conjecture is that the Higgs field would not be the most "basic" field in the Universe; that would be the primary universal vacuum. But maybe it is "first-born" of the Vacuum; my conjecture is it is the Vacuum which ultimately produces all the other fields, according to a specifying geometry, or "cosmic blueprint." (Which as indicated in my previous post I associate with the Word God Spoke in the beginning, that got loaded into the singularity of the big bang....) You can read the article at this link: The Mysteries of Mass

Highly recommended "good stuff!" [Thanks again, Patrick, for posting it!!!]

Thank you so much for writing, dear sister in Christ!

[PatrickHenry]

We post; you decide.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you so much for your encouragements!

You wrote: "But where the Trinitarian Truth is upheld – there is no substantive difference in that all are seeing the same diamond, the same Light." Truly I think this is the main thing. Christians are called to live in intimate communion with our Lord, in his Light, Truth, Love, and Grace. Particular doctrinal confessions are in comparison only of secondary importance. IMHO FWIW.

So very true. If only everyone could have this confidence then perhaps there would be fewer disputes...

And thank you so much for the endorsement of the article! It is indeed fascinating.

My conjecture is that the Higgs field would not be the most "basic" field in the Universe; that would be the primary universal vacuum. But maybe it is "first-born" of the Vacuum; my conjecture is it is the Vacuum which ultimately produces all the other fields, according to a specifying geometry, or "cosmic blueprint." (Which as indicated in my previous post I associate with the Word God Spoke in the beginning, that got loaded into the singularity of the big bang....)

Indeed. This is where it becomes impossible to decouple the concept of a universal vacuum field from the geometry of space/time (including all dimensions). As an example, the article speaks to super-symmetry and string theory as the potential explanation for the family problem in the Higgs quest. Or to put it another way, it's not what is "there" but the potential afforded by the structure - non-locality and superposition are similar concepts.

[gobucks]

Thanks for posting this.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Science has been unable to convincingly explain philosophy.

[Aquinasfan]

You're welcome 8-)

[VOA]

bump

[betty boop]

Thanks for the bump, VOA! I haven't seen that article in a while. :^)

[Zionist Conspirator]

Thus science was born in the ancient world of the classical Greeks. What motivated the great thinkers of this yet-unsurpassed era of human intellectual achievement was the irrepressible, inexhaustible eros, or desire, to understand the Universe, and thereby to understand man’s place in it.

Yep, that sounds like the Greeks all right.

Seems like materialism was metaphyisical already back then.

[betty boop]

Because the Hellenist is convinced that only the immediate can be known, anyone whose values system is based on Ultimate Things is regarded at best as a delusional obscurantist and at worst as a ticking irrational time bomb.

The "Hellenists" are not the same breed of cat as the classical Greeks. Certainly the above italics do not reflect Plato's view! Nor even Aristotle's, for that matter. Nor Pythagoras', Heraclitus', Parmenides', et al.

Thanks for the very interesting link, ZC!

[Zionist Conspirator]

The "Hellenists" are not the same breed of cat as the classical Greeks. Certainly the above italics do not reflect Plato's view! Nor even Aristotle's, for that matter. Nor Pythagoras', Heraclitus', Parmenides', et al.

It is true that many fans of science make all sorts of claims about ultimate reality.

Thanks for the very interesting link, ZC!

Any time. Have you ever considered reading Moses?

[Alamo-Girl]

I'm thrilled to see a renewed interest in your outstanding article, my dear sister in Christ!!!

I am somewhat concerned however by this remark by Zionist Conspirator:

Have you ever considered reading Moses?

ZC, you presume too much if you are asserting that betty boop is unfamiliar with the first five books of the Old Testament or the historical import of Judaic mysticism to Greek philosophy and Western culture.

I have a particular interest in the subject as well and am currently studying both the Tanach and the Chumash - which include the Torah, Jewish tradition and commentary of Jewish mystics.

[betty boop]

Hi Alamo-Girl! I admit I was a little mystified by ZC's remark. Certainly I have read the Torah! What I wondered about was whether ZC was aware of another source for Moses...?

Thanks dear sister in Christ for your kind words of encouragement re: my article!

[Tribune7]

bump for later