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Session 2: MIND-SPECTRUMS:
A TOOL FOR THINKING
Adam Blatner, M.D.
Posted February, 2014: 2nd
in a series of various topics given in a series of Lectures
for Senior University Georgetown
Following up on my son David's overview
of his work in contemplating the dimensions of the cosmos, I
here describe a bunch of variables he didn't touch on: What
I call "mind-spectrums." A spectrum is a continuum in
which the different regions have different qualities.
In fact, many continuums (technically spelled "continuua"---from the Latin, a neuter plural; spectra likewise. But I thought, "Why trouble the reader's minds with technicalities when a simple plural 's' does the job?)---many continuums operate to suggest the variations of strength or intensity of some parameter. Examples might include the length of a vibration of energy, distance, intensity of energy, time spans, and so forth. In a previous talk, my son David talked about these. My point is that it is we, mind-full beings, who discern qualities. We interpret things as big or small, fast or slow, near or far. What's pretty empty to us, like air, is really more thick and like water to a gnat.
A spectrum, then, is a continuum at which at a low level we assign certain meanings---that's a radio wave---and at a rather high frequency we assign another name---gamma ray. Gregory Bateson noted that information is a difference that makes a difference, and when we noticed that very high frequency wavelengths of electromagnetic energy can disrupt human tissues---give you radiation sickness---well, that makes a difference, so we set up Geiger counters to notice how many of those waves are around. For registering low frequency waves, we invented radios.
Those are physical spectra. But in this talk I'll be shifting the domain from the physical, measurable realm to the mental realm in which things operate often with no measure, or only very rough estimates as to intensity or quantity. (Another example of a concept that has shifted among its domains is "evolution," shifting from a description of a purely biological process to be applied to the qualitative transformation of technologies---so you hear of the evolution of computers, for example---and even the evolution of consciousness! But I digress.) Similarly, although spectrum originally applied only to physical parameters, the word mind-spectrum refers to the way the mind often operates along a gradient or range of perceptions, behavior, or experience. My point is that applying the idea of spectrum to psycho-social phenomena is a good idea; the concept of mind-spectrum is a really useful tool!.
The idea of representing a wide variety of things as spectrums is a tool for thinking. It replaces to some degree either-or thinking (or "dualistic") thinking. There are "shades of gray" between black and white. As a matter of fact, far and away the majority of phenomena should be described as operating somewhere in between two possible extremes.
Let me admit something to begin with: I am muddy minded a good deal of the time. When I write, even then I go back and review and correct a lot. The ease of making corrections on the computer should not obscure how very much I do this! I'm pretty bright, but my point is that in a century or so I may be pitied at being so dumb, limited, in light of what they take for granted as basic knowledged at that time. It's okay---we do what we can do in the now.
I dare speak for the species! I suspect that on the range of how conscious the mind can be from where we were a hundred thousand years ago, largely before language, to where we may be a hundred thousand years from now, if that's a spectrum from 1 - 100, I think we're 12. Sort of like early adolescence. Smart enough to think, reflect, realize what dummies our parents are, and also what dummies 6-year-olds are, how far we've come---but not smart enough to really recognize how much there is yet to learn---or maybe a little.
One of these spectrums is how annoyed or angry one is. I talk about that on another website.
sss
In fact, many continuums (technically spelled "continuua"---from the Latin, a neuter plural; spectra likewise. But I thought, "Why trouble the reader's minds with technicalities when a simple plural 's' does the job?)---many continuums operate to suggest the variations of strength or intensity of some parameter. Examples might include the length of a vibration of energy, distance, intensity of energy, time spans, and so forth. In a previous talk, my son David talked about these. My point is that it is we, mind-full beings, who discern qualities. We interpret things as big or small, fast or slow, near or far. What's pretty empty to us, like air, is really more thick and like water to a gnat.
A spectrum, then, is a continuum at which at a low level we assign certain meanings---that's a radio wave---and at a rather high frequency we assign another name---gamma ray. Gregory Bateson noted that information is a difference that makes a difference, and when we noticed that very high frequency wavelengths of electromagnetic energy can disrupt human tissues---give you radiation sickness---well, that makes a difference, so we set up Geiger counters to notice how many of those waves are around. For registering low frequency waves, we invented radios.
Those are physical spectra. But in this talk I'll be shifting the domain from the physical, measurable realm to the mental realm in which things operate often with no measure, or only very rough estimates as to intensity or quantity. (Another example of a concept that has shifted among its domains is "evolution," shifting from a description of a purely biological process to be applied to the qualitative transformation of technologies---so you hear of the evolution of computers, for example---and even the evolution of consciousness! But I digress.) Similarly, although spectrum originally applied only to physical parameters, the word mind-spectrum refers to the way the mind often operates along a gradient or range of perceptions, behavior, or experience. My point is that applying the idea of spectrum to psycho-social phenomena is a good idea; the concept of mind-spectrum is a really useful tool!.
Mind-Tools
We tend to think of tools as hardware, things, but the idea of expressing oneself in writing is a tool, and though it leads to other tools such as writing implements or paper, the idea itself should also be recognized as a tool. (I discuss the history of writing elsewhere on this website.) Maps are tools, as are diagrams, musical notation, and other derivatives. Codes in telegraphy are based on alphabets which is a tool, and also derives from the idea of writing.The idea of representing a wide variety of things as spectrums is a tool for thinking. It replaces to some degree either-or thinking (or "dualistic") thinking. There are "shades of gray" between black and white. As a matter of fact, far and away the majority of phenomena should be described as operating somewhere in between two possible extremes.
Playing with Spectrums
On another website I have two cartoons, one an "adjust-o-meter" and the other an "out-of-control panel." While these are somewhat playful, they offer a hint at the wide variety of dimensions that can be imagined to be in flux in our minds, in our day-to-day lives, as we attend first to this and then to that. There is no way I can cover the field---it is vast, goes way beyond my ability, and is prone to being revised because in a changing world we continue to discover new phenomena and dimensions of existence. Therefore, I invite you to play with this idea and if you wish, send me yet another spectrum that I haven't thought of.Physical Spectrums
My son, David, recently published a book about Spectrums, objective spectrums that can be measured---distance, time or duration, force, temperature, and so forth. There were several he did not cover because there is little agreement about what they are or how to measure them---e.g., "mass." Basically, he noted, communicating a charmingly breathless astonish-mentality, that many of these variables have expanded exponentially in the last century and promise to do so again in the coming decades. Things are speeding up, I want to note. Changes are coming faster and are affecting more things. The world is becoming more interconnected---e.g., this website---and so forth. Granting that, there is yet another dimension (or an infinite number?) beyond space and time, matter and the kinds of energy that interact in our 3-D universe: Mind(s). And in the mind-dimension(s), there are innumerable dimensions. The point in this paper is that it helps to begin to name these, as the events of everyday life can be better appreciated and discussed in terms of "how much." Just a tiny bit? A medium amount? A lot?Mind-Spectrums
So, then, let's turn to the varieties of ways mind can express itself. Consciousness should be also evaluated as ranging from slight to a great deal, or in other ways. How awake are you? Could it be possible for you to be more conscious? What if you could glimpse your own consciousness from thirty years in the future? What happens when you reflect on how clever, bright, yet clueless you were thirty years ago? This is more that personal maturity, too! Things have changed! When I was your age we used to have to get up out of our chair to change the channel on the TV! No! that's not a "tall story"!Let me admit something to begin with: I am muddy minded a good deal of the time. When I write, even then I go back and review and correct a lot. The ease of making corrections on the computer should not obscure how very much I do this! I'm pretty bright, but my point is that in a century or so I may be pitied at being so dumb, limited, in light of what they take for granted as basic knowledged at that time. It's okay---we do what we can do in the now.
I dare speak for the species! I suspect that on the range of how conscious the mind can be from where we were a hundred thousand years ago, largely before language, to where we may be a hundred thousand years from now, if that's a spectrum from 1 - 100, I think we're 12. Sort of like early adolescence. Smart enough to think, reflect, realize what dummies our parents are, and also what dummies 6-year-olds are, how far we've come---but not smart enough to really recognize how much there is yet to learn---or maybe a little.
Tools
We have lived in a time in which the use of tools has expanded and intensified so much that we can move up a notch in the nature of abstraction and think about such things as what is a tool, what is technology, what is design, what are the implications of this level of thinking? We think about thinking, too---"meta-cognition." (I wrote about this elsewhere on this website.)One of these spectrums is how annoyed or angry one is. I talk about that on another website.
sss