Sunday, January 25, 2009

The Probable Future

"Without a map of our natural and social world - a picture of the world and of one's place in it that is structured and has inner cohesion - human beings would be confused and unable to act purposefully and consistently, for there would be no way of orienting oneself, of finding a fixed point that permits one to organize all the impressions that impinge upon each individual."

I came across this quote the other day while I was writing something else. Several days later I'm still thinking about it. Needs must I blog, so that the thoughts will go away.

Believe it or not, I've never attempted to comprehensively describe how my world-map has changed as a result of thinking in 5-dimensions. A world-map, as described in the above quote, contains more than one's understanding of the laws of physical phenomena. It also contains orienting values and overarching goals that one can access when trying to determine a course of action. It's that 'values and goals' part that I haven't really tackled yet. This is partly because when you assert the primacy of a particular set of values or goals, you risk being seen as less objective or impartial than you should be when dealing with matters of science.

So be it. What I have done was never really objective science as much as it was a mapping of my subjective internal experiences. If that leads to a theory that can some day be validated by objective data, my hopes will have been realized. If not, then this is just more fodder for my science-fiction writing career. ;)

But back to values and goals... I'll put down what I can, with no illusions that I can be completely objective about what guides or motivates me.

I think the most noticeable differences in my world-map reflect the differences in the way I see time. If the past is not fixed, and/or one can select a universe that reflects specific conditions from the past, then the past ceases to be as big of a source of worry or concern. Similarly, if the future is a set of possible outcomes (and there's always a set), then you are never worrying about the future. You are only worrying about the probable future. More than anything, it is what is happening now that matters. In this particular 5-dimensional perspective, what's happening now - including what's happening only in your head - is altering (however slightly) the probabilities associated with each future outcome.

Of course the past can still be used to make useful predictions about the future, and we couldn't function without doing so, but I've come to realize that using a specific event from the past to make a decision about an action now is not as useful as assessing the current situation in light of multiple interpretations of its relationship to the past. (Wow, that was a long sentence, and a somewhat convoluted thought...) Considering multiple interpretations of the relationship between past and present circumstances, and deciding how to act upon such an option-space of relationships, will ultimately bring out your optimistic or pessimistic tendencies. Both tendencies have functionality in determining outcome states, and you'll figure these out as you explore a 5-dimensional perspective.

From the same stories I just cited, you can see where the value status of material things changes in 5 dimensions. If a pizza, book, or on-sale dress is only a universe away, and I know how to get to that universe at any time, then the acquisition of that item now is only valuable if it fills a specific need that I have now. Don't get me wrong - I have hundreds of books waiting to be read. I hoard them against a great catastrophe wherein I might die of boredom. I do not claim to be the living embodiment of the set of values that I can articulate. But I do think that my values have generally shifted away from 'objects for status' and 'objects as a hedge against the future and/or link to the past', and towards 'objects for immediate use'. (Except for the books again. People I respect generally read a lot of books and have a lot of books. I can't tell you that possessing books is not, for me, in some way about status.)

Right now I'm starting to feel slightly ridiculous for writing this post. I'll shift to 'goals' for a moment to see if that helps. My motivations to do things (other than fulfill basic needs) are largely intrinsic. Perhaps they always were, or perhaps this reflects my changed perception of the nature of external motivators. Or, if you want to plumb the depths of psychology even further, you can suggest that I have a need for control (or the illusion of control) that underlies both my theory of 5 dimensions and my perception that I am intrinsically-motivated. ;)

Either way, I have goals that reflect the desire for self-mastery. Selecting an outcome requires the ability to master thoughts, emotions, and expectations. And while moment-to-moment experience is largely not a factor of conscious selection, thoughts and emotions set the general 'direction' of your trajectory (if you will permit me to sound excessively NewAge-y and non-scientific for just a moment), so mastering them can have a broader impact on the quality of the outcomes that you experience. Mastery of thought and emotion is also valuable in many other (more mundane) aspects of daily life, including interpersonal relationships and overall state of health, so it's worth your time, even if you think a 5-dimensional perspective is so much mushroom fertilizer. ;)

My other overarching goal is to learn. As biological organisms, we seem to be incapable of not learning, where learning is defined as 'modification with experience.' Perhaps it's my scholar-status bias again that makes me want to conclude that learning is the ultimate purpose, and should therefore be embraced as an overarching goal. Then again, since we can't avoid learning at its most basic level, perhaps I can be permitted a modicum of leeway in my subjective perception of its importance. ;)

Three paragraphs later and I'm still feeling as though this whole endeavor has overtones of 'pompous', so I think I'll stop for now. Until the next time I am possessed by thoughts I must explore, namaste.