From owner-philofractal@icd.com Thu Jul 1 01:12:57 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA29274 for philofractal-list; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 00:12:42 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from mailhost2.attcanada.net (mailhost2.attcanada.net [206.191.82.43]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA28912 for ; Wed, 30 Jun 1999 23:37:03 -0500 Received: from d235-xv101h1-vanc-pdi.attcanada.net ([142.194.61.235]) by mailhost2.attcanada.net (InterMail v03.02.07.03 118-128) with ESMTP id <19990701044206.LSD19924@d235-xv101h1-vanc-pdi.attcanada.net> for ; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 04:42:06 +0000 Date: Wed, 30 Jun 1999 21:48:04 -0700 From: John Wilson X-Mailer: The Bat! (v1.34a) S/N 78C6BBA8 X-Priority: 3 (Normal) Message-ID: <19908.990630@attcanada.net> To: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re[2]: [philofractal] Re[2] (Fractal Waterfall) In-reply-To: <3.0.3.32.19990630222911.00793d10@mail.nznet.gen.nz> References: <3.0.3.32.19990630222911.00793d10@mail.nznet.gen.nz> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com Wednesday, June 30, 1999, 3:29:11 AM, Morgan wrote: >>If you apply this argument to the human genome, then you are >>upholding predestination! MLO> Only if you reckon Linus Torvalds decides what people's computers are used MLO> for. Which, of course, he does. His stated objective is "to seek out and destroy all manifestations of BILL". Bill also decides what peoples' computers are used for. Computer development and usage seems to parallel the evolution of life...natural selection having a dramatic influence on the development of the machine. A machine which does what a majority of operators want it to do, has a survival advantage. This can be augmented if a need can be cultured, which can best be served by a particular machine, thus augmenting the original natural advantage. The Cyber-wayside is littered with machines which didn't evolve fast enough. But what's the connection with predestination? John W. mailto:johnw1@attcanada.net _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Thu Jul 1 01:20:05 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA29278 for philofractal-list; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 00:12:53 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp2.mindspring.com (smtp2.mindspring.com [207.69.200.32]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA28854; Wed, 30 Jun 1999 23:26:53 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveibj.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.73.115]) by smtp2.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA12138; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 00:37:25 -0400 (EDT) Date: Thu, 1 Jul 1999 00:37:25 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990701003824.413f1230@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 01-07-99 (Witches' Cauldron) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 01, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: No rain was forecast for today, but a sprinkle fell in the evening. Since it was not enough to wet the sidewalk, we'll call it a tie. Most of the day it was cloudy and 77F (25C) -- perfect for fractals. As I studied today's fractal image and fancied myself gazing down into a cauldron of witches' brew, I named the picture "Witches' Cauldron". The recipie formula mixes Z^(-10) with Z^2, a perfect formula to create a powerful potion. Of course, real witches, (and they do exist), don't waste much time hunched over black cauldrons, cackling like, well, witches. They spend most of their time doing what everyone else does -- earning a living. The base fractal is filled with odd-shaped Mandeloids. I enjoy exploring these odd-shaped midgets, and especially examining structures that have no counterpart in the classic M-set. It is in these extra structures that the most interesting midgets are found. Today's midget has a rather garish yellow-green color scheme -- not my best, but not my worst either. The parameter file is moderately slow; the image file is far faster. The image may be downloaded from: or from: That's it for today, fractal fans. Look for me again tomorrow, same time same place, with a new fractal and maybe some new philosophy. Until then, take care, and aren't fractals bewitching? Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= Witches'_Cauldron { ; 0:04:00.40 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident center-mag=-2.25147429298224000/-0.6928231354272376\ 0/128560.1/1/47.499 params=-1.5/-10/0.4/2/0/0 float=y maxiter=1800 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=99 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000020<5>071582AI5FM7<3>ZkHdnKjrMouQmuO<9>AW9\ <11>BqGCvF<12>9EI<7>SnHVwC<8>OMm<2>VeNakEls2rq6zp9zo\ CznFsmIkkLhjOeiRdhU<4>hbhhakg`j<10>XTcZTeWTcTWUQZK\ <3>YY8ZX8_Y6TY5MY4EX0<14>Zg_Yi`_ga<4>VEPU8MV2H<5>K3U\ I3WF4`<10>_3EY07<7>rNiuQnvRpwSr<12>vJuxIuzGzvHusIupJ\ vmKxiLz<6>OSzLTzGUz<13>Zgz_hz_iz`jz_kzYlz<12>MyzLzzK\ zzJzzHzzFzzBzz<13>azzczzczz } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ Witches'_Cauldron { ; 0:04:00.40 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident center-mag=-2.25147429298224000/-0.6928231354272376\ 0/128560.1/1/47.499 params=-1.5/-10/0.4/2/0/0 float=y maxiter=1800 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=99 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000020<5>071582AI5FM7<3>ZkHdnKjrMouQmuO<9>AW9\ <11>BqGCvF<12>9EI<7>SnHVwC<8>OMm<2>VeNakEls2rq6zp9zo\ CznFsmIkkLhjOeiRdhU<4>hbhhakg`j<10>XTcZTeWTcTWUQZK\ <3>YY8ZX8_Y6TY5MY4EX0<14>Zg_Yi`_ga<4>VEPU8MV2H<5>K3U\ I3WF4`<10>_3EY07<7>rNiuQnvRpwSr<12>vJuxIuzGzvHusIupJ\ vmKxiLz<6>OSzLTzGUz<13>Zgz_hz_iz`jz_kzYlz<12>MyzLzzK\ zzJzzHzzFzzBzz<13>azzczzczz } frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Thu Jul 1 03:14:49 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id CAA30336 for philofractal-list; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 02:12:48 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id BAA30062 for ; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 01:31:17 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-20.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.150]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id SAA26324 for ; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 18:50:40 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990701183952.0084de40@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Thu, 01 Jul 1999 18:39:52 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: Re[2]: [philofractal] Re[2] (Fractal Waterfall) In-Reply-To: <19908.990630@attcanada.net> References: <3.0.3.32.19990630222911.00793d10@mail.nznet.gen.nz> <3.0.3.32.19990630222911.00793d10@mail.nznet.gen.nz> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 21:48 30/06/99 -0700, you wrote: >Wednesday, June 30, 1999, 3:29:11 AM, Morgan wrote: > >>>If you apply this argument to the human genome, then you are >>>upholding predestination! > >MLO> Only if you reckon Linus Torvalds decides what people's computers are used >MLO> for. > >Which, of course, he does. His stated objective is "to seek out >and destroy all manifestations of BILL". Bill also decides what >peoples' computers are used for. > That's not what computers are used _for_. One usually does not buy Windows to dicker with Windows (though that's what usually happens). I could choose between a Windows-based machine and a Mac because most of the applications I use are available for both platforms - it's only the fact that the remainder were all Windows-specific that made me decide. Morgan "Resistance is futile." Bill Gates of Borg _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Thu Jul 1 16:12:39 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id PAA05349 for philofractal-list; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 15:12:46 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from mailhost1.attcanada.net (mailhost1.attcanada.net [206.191.82.42]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id OAA04948 for ; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 14:25:02 -0500 Received: from d121-xv101h2-vanc-pdi.attcanada.net ([142.194.60.121]) by mailhost1.attcanada.net (InterMail v03.02.07.03 118-128) with ESMTP id <19990701192951.JZE29507@d121-xv101h2-vanc-pdi.attcanada.net> for ; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 19:29:51 +0000 Date: Thu, 1 Jul 1999 12:35:35 -0700 From: John Wilson X-Mailer: The Bat! (v1.34a) S/N 78C6BBA8 X-Priority: 3 (Normal) Message-ID: <5524.990701@attcanada.net> To: philofractal@icd.com Subject: [philofractal] Re[4]: (Fractal Waterfall) In-reply-To: <3.0.3.32.19990701183952.0084de40@mail.nznet.gen.nz> References: <3.0.3.32.19990701183952.0084de40@mail.nznet.gen.nz> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com Wednesday, June 30, 1999, 11:39:52 PM, Morgan wrote: >>Which, of course, he does. His stated objective is "to seek out >>and destroy all manifestations of BILL". Bill also decides what >>peoples' computers are used for. >> MLO> That's not what computers are used _for_. One usually does not buy Windows MLO> to dicker with Windows (though that's what usually happens). Perhaps one doesn't buy Windows to "dicker with" Windows, but I think that a great number of folk buy Linux with just that purpose in mind, (I'm one of the masses). Come to think of it, it occurs to me that this is one of the stages of computer evolution...and by "computer" I mean the hardware/software symbiosis. Few bought an Elf, Pet or Z-80 box to do serious work with, we just wanted to "dicker with" CP/M and BASIC. The Atari was a species that never got to far past the "dickering" stage, in spite of its,(then), advanced operating system. A machine without an office suite, and good graphics capabilities just can't evolve. Personally, I see Linux at a nexus. One can use it efficiently on an "old" computer which is ground to a halt by Windows, but it lacked supporting software of the kind to which the average user has become accustomed. This is what I meant by "Bill also decides what peoples' computers are used for". He has supplied software which, in turn, dictates what our computers are used for. Selection at work...you wont find many now trying to build "Asteroids" in BASIC on a low-res B&W, (or green), screen! After a few Linux sessions with "vi" or "emacs", (I am not computer-trained), I rapidly came to the conclusion that, if Linux is to evolve, it will be heavily indebted to the free offerings of "Netscape" and "WordPerfect" for Linux, which will accelerate the acceptance of the operating system. I understand that there is a Linux port of Fractint, somewhere, and I intend to try it, when I become a little more proficient with the system. However, from what I read recently, Fractint is also at a nexus, and might well become one of the past byways of fractal programming. It would be saddening if Fractint came to be regarded as the illustrious ancestor of the real thing! John W. mailto:johnw1@attcanada.net _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Fri Jul 2 01:12:50 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA10870 for philofractal-list; Fri, 2 Jul 1999 00:12:42 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp3.mindspring.com (smtp3.mindspring.com [207.69.200.33]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA10741; Thu, 1 Jul 1999 23:49:25 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2ivehgp.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.70.25]) by smtp3.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA13660; Fri, 2 Jul 1999 00:59:32 -0400 (EDT) Date: Fri, 2 Jul 1999 00:59:32 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990702010034.32ef8458@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 02-07-99 (Sylphs) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 02, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Sometimes, when gazing blankly at a featureless blue sky, little dancing points of light can be seen in the field of vision. It is said by some that these dancing points are the near-physical manifestation of the Sylphs that inhabit our atmosphere. Sylphs are the nature spirits which inhabit the air, just as Gnomes inhabit the earth, Undines the water, and Salamanders the fire. And though very few actually believe in these elemental spirits nowadays, the spirits still believe in us. I myself would not be a believer unless I had actually seen the Sylphs and captured them in today's fractal. Eight of them can be glimpsed surrounding the midget, floating in their celestial blue garments. . . . Ahhh . . . being a sylph must be a lot of fun. The eight Sylphs can be seen by running the parameter file and waiting several minutes, or by downloading the JPEG image file from the binary Usenet group: The Sylphs are also dancing on the WWW at: Now for the letdown. It should be apparent by this time that I've been doing a bit of jesting. Those dancing points of light that can be seen by staring at a blue sky are nothing more than red blood cells moving through the capillaries of the retina of the eye. But don't jump to the conclusion that I doubt the existence of fairies etc. Skeptical opinions notwithstanding, just as with ghosts, a belief so universal must have some basis in actuality. The comedy of the local weather service continued today. For the fifth day in the last six, the forecasters forecast showers, and surprise, for the first time in six days, it actually showered. We received 0.03 inches (0.1cm) of water here at Fractal Central -- enough to wet the sidewalks but not enough to drip through dense foliage. The temperature of 86F 30C was perfect for fractals of all kinds. The forecasters are boldly forecasting showers again tomorrow. Cynic that I am, I can't wait to see a dry day. I'll be here again tomorrow in my full cynicism, with both a fractal and the weather report. And there is a 40 percent probability of scattered philosophy. Until then, take care, and could it be that a fractal is a picture of a wish your heart makes? Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= Sylphs { ; 0:07:11.77 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident passes=1 center-mag=-0.727006695642331/+2.586003449569653/4\ 405843/1/175 params=10/1/-10/-1/-1.1/0 float=y maxiter=6000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=84 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000NTJ<3>cFV6U3AS6DQ9o3kp3lq3mr3m<5>lCOhEKj\ FF<2>gJ3<7>tkZbMTwrf`LVqlcVLTlfaQHRf`_WJUaVYZNXWPW\ <4>IARG7QF9S<6>ELdEMeEPg<2>DVlDYnDZp<3>CgwCiyCjzFj\ yIgxLdwOcv<2>XVs_TrbQqeOphMokLnnJmqRltZkvYkw_jzefz\ hbzjUzhUzhU<2>zdUyWg<6>39l<11>7lx7oy9nv<14>QjLYO0\ <11>docZeYUWT<18>RovRpwSpt<5>VsgVseTtb<13>7z8<22>t\ zL<13>Tzm<5>yzw<2>nzLdzYkzQizUhzh<10>gzYCzVSzXEzDJzG } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ Sylphs { ; 0:07:11.77 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident passes=1 center-mag=-0.727006695642331/+2.586003449569653/4\ 405843/1/175 params=10/1/-10/-1/-1.1/0 float=y maxiter=6000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=84 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000NTJ<3>cFV6U3AS6DQ9o3kp3lq3mr3m<5>lCOhEKj\ FF<2>gJ3<7>tkZbMTwrf`LVqlcVLTlfaQHRf`_WJUaVYZNXWPW\ <4>IARG7QF9S<6>ELdEMeEPg<2>DVlDYnDZp<3>CgwCiyCjzFj\ yIgxLdwOcv<2>XVs_TrbQqeOphMokLnnJmqRltZkvYkw_jzefz\ hbzjUzhUzhU<2>zdUyWg<6>39l<11>7lx7oy9nv<14>QjLYO0\ <11>docZeYUWT<18>RovRpwSpt<5>VsgVseTtb<13>7z8<22>t\ zL<13>Tzm<5>yzw<2>nzLdzYkzQizUhzh<10>gzYCzVSzXEzDJzG } frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Fri Jul 2 03:12:51 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id CAA11685 for philofractal-list; Fri, 2 Jul 1999 02:19:07 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id BAA11400 for ; Fri, 2 Jul 1999 01:24:54 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-09.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.139]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id SAA11696 for ; Fri, 2 Jul 1999 18:43:57 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990702152346.00842320@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Fri, 02 Jul 1999 15:23:46 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] Re[4]: (Fractal Waterfall) In-Reply-To: <5524.990701@attcanada.net> References: <3.0.3.32.19990701183952.0084de40@mail.nznet.gen.nz> <3.0.3.32.19990701183952.0084de40@mail.nznet.gen.nz> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 12:35 01/07/99 -0700, you wrote: >Wednesday, June 30, 1999, 11:39:52 PM, Morgan wrote: > >>>Which, of course, he does. His stated objective is "to seek out >>>and destroy all manifestations of BILL". Bill also decides what >>>peoples' computers are used for. >>> >MLO> That's not what computers are used _for_. One usually does not buy Windows >MLO> to dicker with Windows (though that's what usually happens). > >Perhaps one doesn't buy Windows to "dicker with" Windows, but I >think that a great number of folk buy Linux with just that >purpose in mind, (I'm one of the masses). > One other decision in my Windows versus Mac decision is that the latter doesn't like you dickering with it. Basically, it's patronising. I want that sort of control there and easily accessible, though I don't want it constantly in my face. Not to be told that it's none of my concern, just get on with what you're doing. Just for one example, my available video modes for Windows are described as things like "1024x768 High Color (16 bit)" and "1280x1024 256 Color" (how can I get it to spell it "colour"?). Onthe Mac it's something like (and I forget the exact numbers) "568x768 (millions of colors)". I'm not a baby. I know what 24-bit colour means. Sorry; disengaging rant mode - I've been working on a Mac for the last couple of days. Really, it's a matter of taste. (That's another thing - the Windows UI is much easier to look at than the Mac's). Predestination? I think the claim was that to say that the human genome imposed programmed limits on human behaviour was to claim that humans were constrained to following this program through their lives, determining what they would do in the future. I think. This wasn't clarified. I don't think this is the case. Certainly, programmed limits limit behaviour, but it doesn't mean that the system (in this case a human, but it could just as easily be a computer) is so constrained as to have a preprogrammed destiny. I mean, I may have two legs, Wernicke's Area, and my aorta to the left of my heart, but I'd hardly say those facts determine my destiny. They just mean I'm capable of bipedal motion, understaning speech, and have a prominent pulse on the left side of my chest. Morgan L. Owens "If everyone smoked, lung cancer would be a genetic disease." _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 02:13:18 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id BAA24737 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 01:12:52 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id AAA24581; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 00:46:16 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveij2.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.74.98]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id BAA12426; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 01:56:09 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sat, 3 Jul 1999 01:56:09 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990703015714.414f3e8a@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 03-07-99 (Wreath of Iterations) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 03, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: It was a mostly cloudy and quite warm day here at Fractal Central. The temperature topped at 88F (31C), but, as I predicted yesterday, the showers that the weather experts were predicting for today failed to appear. This is about the longest run of inaccurate weather forecasting I have ever seen. Of course, the experts will have all kinds of excuses, most likely something such as it rained everywhere in Maryland except here at the fractal shoppe. Oh well, I guess we must excuse the incompetency. Weather forecasting is an inexact science. Due to a rush of hurry jobs, I had little time for fractal searching today, but my M-Mix4 formula once again came through, and produced a passable fractal when I needed one fast. The formula adds 1/10 part of Z^11 to 1/Z, which creates a multi- lobed Mandeloid aggregation with scads of new places to search. I found today's midget in one of the spurious valleys of the fractal. When I noticed the wreath-like effect, I named the picture "Wreath of Iterations". The parameter file runs in a reasonably few minutes, but the image file downloads in an even more reasonable time. That image can be found on Usenet at: and on the WWW at: Between jobs today, I've been pondering the existence of fairies. Science, through strict adherence to the empirical method of investigation, has shown that fairies do not exist. According to the philosophy of logical positivism, the philosophical viewpoint of science, the senses are the only source of truth. And this is only common sense. To speak of things that cannot be perceived with the senses and tested by science is meaningless. Therefore, according to science, fairies not only do not exist, the mere thought of them is absurd and without meaning. I guess I'll have to put fairies in the same category as that Qi energy my Kung-Fu customer, who runs a Kung-Fu school, works with and can demonstrate. (No, I can't give a demonstration.) Like fairies, Qi energy does not exist. (Check a recent Skeptical Inquirer.) Yet a large part of the earth's population has missed the bad news, and continues to work with the non- existent Qi energy. Apparently, my problem is that I lack faith in the truth of logical positivism, or Scientism as it is sometimes called. This lack of faith is compounded by the fact that logical positivists, (mainly skeptics and Atheists), do not accept faith as a valid means of determining truth. It's one big circle, and I'm caught in the middle. Faith in the reality of the world behind my sensory world image, my one way out, has been declared invalid. The fairies, if they exist, probably have been laughing for many years at such human folly. And I'll be here again tomorrow, laughing at the glory of the fractal that I'll have with me. Until then, take care, and be fair. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= WreathOfIterations { ; 0:06:45.61 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident center-mag=-0.1520966765735726/+0.00309934204235459\ /1.944641e+008 params=-0.1/11/1/-1/0/0 float=y maxiter=1800 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=177 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000dGZdGZ<7>r3e<19>iFlShG<2>FqeBsm9mh<3>4TP3\ OK3TN<6>3te<5>`aHb`FeZDw87<6>j_3qg3<6>3K3<5>DfUc90s\ B9<6>bTd`VhWTg<6>2Md<3>IEXD9`<2>bLK<16>4LU2LU1IW<6>\ 13f<21>olX<15>MPvDQxLOwSMwZKvdGz<8>gRXmXV<6>94T<8>W\ BDZCB_A7<22>tsy<6>wtZwtVwtT<4>wtOwtMwtN<13>wtY } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ WreathOfIterations { ; 0:06:45.61 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=ident center-mag=-0.1520966765735726/+0.00309934204235459\ /1.944641e+008 params=-0.1/11/1/-1/0/0 float=y maxiter=1800 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=177 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000dGZdGZ<7>r3e<19>iFlShG<2>FqeBsm9mh<3>4TP3\ OK3TN<6>3te<5>`aHb`FeZDw87<6>j_3qg3<6>3K3<5>DfUc90s\ B9<6>bTd`VhWTg<6>2Md<3>IEXD9`<2>bLK<16>4LU2LU1IW<6>\ 13f<21>olX<15>MPvDQxLOwSMwZKvdGz<8>gRXmXV<6>94T<8>W\ BDZCB_A7<22>tsy<6>wtZwtVwtT<4>wtOwtMwtN<13>wtY } frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 03:12:51 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id CAA25163 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 02:12:42 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id BAA24878 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 01:29:27 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-07.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.137]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id SAA03028 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 18:48:10 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990703183627.00841b90@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Sat, 03 Jul 1999 18:36:27 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] FOTD 03-07-99 (Wreath of Iterations) (c) In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990703015714.414f3e8a@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 01:56 03/07/99 -0400, Jim Muth wrote: > > >The fairies, if they exist, probably have been laughing for many >years at such human folly. > Oh the fairies and brownies and gnomes and goblins and elves (especially elves) are all still around and still up to their old tricks. Only these days they're being called aliens. Morgan _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 05:12:51 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id EAA25967 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 04:12:57 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from deimos.worldonline.nl (deimos.worldonline.nl [195.241.48.136]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id DAA25731 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 03:38:29 -0500 Received: from t356237 (vp213-85.worldonline.nl [195.241.213.85]) by deimos.worldonline.nl (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id KAA20895 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 10:48:22 +0200 (MET DST) Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990703101708.007a18b0@ramos.nl> X-Sender: ramos01@ramos.nl X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.5 (32) Date: Sat, 03 Jul 1999 10:17:08 +0200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jack Ruijs Subject: [philofractal] Chi Kung In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990703015714.414f3e8a@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 01:56 AM 7/3/99 -0400, Jim wrote: >I guess I'll have to put fairies in the same category as that Qi >energy my Kung-Fu customer, who runs a Kung-Fu school, works >with and can demonstrate. (No, I can't give a demonstration.) >Like fairies, Qi energy does not exist. (Check a recent >Skeptical Inquirer.) Yet a large part of the earth's population >has missed the bad news, and continues to work with the non- >existent Qi energy. Can I find any information on the internet about the recent Skeptical Inquirer? Because I am one who missed the bad knews (:->). Although the question whether Chi exists or not could be a very interesting discussion, it however is not what Chi is all about. Do the following test: Shake your hands pretty wildy around, keeping your arms low, such that you pump more blood in your hands. Do this for about 1 minute until you feel an apparant tinteling (does this word mean anything in English? A mild sensation might be a better word). Then keep your hands in front of your body (relaxed position) with palms facing eachother about 1 cm apart. Then move your hands a little bit like you would do with two magnets. Just try to explain what you feel ... (It doesn't always work, it depends on a lot of factors) Is it Chi? Is it electromagnitism? Is it heat? Is it just psychological? Is it just the effect of moving some joints? The point I'm trying to make is that it doesn't matter how you call it, it exists, no more no less. So are certain aspects of Chi, they DO exist, whether one calls it Chi or whether one calls it nonsense. It just isn't a question whether Chi exists or not, it is a question what to do with it ... (and how it really works). Someone trying to detect Chi, proving or diproving it, is missing the point altogether. Kind greetings, Jack Ruijs _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 12:14:37 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id LAA28749 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:12:42 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id KAA28524 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 10:46:27 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveica.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.73.138]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id LAA02959 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:56:16 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:56:16 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990703115722.406f6a0c@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Chi Kung Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 10:17 AM 7/3/99 +0200, Jack Ruijs wrote: >Can I find any information on the internet about the recent Skeptical >Inquirer? Because I am one who missed the bad knews (:->).
I've been looking for the issue if SI with the Qi-energy article. I can find every issue in my collection but that issue, which was published about one year ago. I'll check the CSICOP site later today, and let you know if I find the article. I might have shown the SI issue to my Kung-Fu customer to give him a laugh. The next time a job goes exceptionally well and he's in a good mood, I'll ask about the Qi (Chi) energy, which he understandably is reluctant to discuss for free. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 12:14:38 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id LAA28753 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:12:51 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from mtiwmhc01.worldnet.att.net (mtiwmhc01.worldnet.att.net [204.127.131.36]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id KAA28432 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 10:31:50 -0500 Received: from default ([12.74.120.54]) by mtiwmhc01.worldnet.att.net (InterMail v03.02.07.07 118-134) with SMTP id <19990703154109.QHXK2808@default>; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 15:41:09 +0000 Message-ID: <377E2F67.1BFA@Worldnet.att.net> Date: Sat, 03 Jul 1999 10:42:31 -0500 From: "Paul N. Lee" Organization: Nahee Enterprises X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.04Gold (Win95; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: philofractal@icd.com CC: Jack Ruijs Subject: Re: [philofractal] Chi Kung References: <3.0.5.32.19990703101708.007a18b0@ramos.nl> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-2 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com Jack Ruijs wrote: > > At 01:56 AM 7/3/99 -0400, Jim wrote: > > > >I guess I'll have to put fairies in the same category as that Qi > >energy my Kung-Fu customer, who runs a Kung-Fu school, works > > > > Can I find any information on the internet about the recent > Skeptical Inquirer? Because I am one who missed the bad knews > There are at least 20 references to the above mentioned, but you probably would find the following the most accurate: http://www.csicop.org/si/9509/chi.html P.N.L. -------------------------------------------------------------- Why do most folks hate cynics so much? Because we're almost always right. -------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.fractalus.com/cgi-bin/theway?ring=fractals&id=43&go _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 3 12:14:38 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id LAA28757 for philofractal-list; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:12:52 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id KAA28516 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 10:46:25 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveica.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.73.138]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id LAA07925 for ; Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:56:13 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sat, 3 Jul 1999 11:56:13 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990703115719.406f3e9c@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: FOTD 03-07-99 (Wreath of Iterations) (c) Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 06:36 PM 7/3/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: I can reply to Morgan by adopting the persona of an occultist. >Oh the fairies and brownies and gnomes and goblins and elves (especially >elves) are all still around and still up to their old tricks. Only these >days they're being called aliens. Exactly. This is the secret of aliens -- they are not physical. No physical object could possibly perform the maneuvers of the alien spacecraft. Aliens are astral entities, just as the elves, gnomes, etal. Their 'vehicles' travel by the power of thought, just as in our minds we travel instantly to any place in the universe by the power of thought. Alien abductions are also non-physical events. Since physical bodies cannot pass through walls, abductions must be out-of-body experiences, caused by the alien visitors, who are able to control the astral material of our astral bodies. Perhaps fairies, aliens, etc. would be more scientifically acceptable if they were referred to as 'virtual entities' or 'in a state of quantum uncertainty'. But I can give no scientific proof of any of this until science retches and reluctantly admits the reality of the astral plane. (I'm not holding my breath.) Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 4 02:52:03 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id BAA03230 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 01:53:13 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id AAA02871 for ; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 00:57:58 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-21.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.151]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id SAA21372 for ; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 18:16:23 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990704180418.00842100@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Sun, 04 Jul 1999 18:04:18 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] Re: FOTD 03-07-99 (Wreath of Iterations) (c) In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990703115719.406f3e9c@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 11:56 03/07/99 -0400, you wrote: >At 06:36 PM 7/3/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: > >I can reply to Morgan by adopting the persona of an occultist. > >>Oh the fairies and brownies and gnomes and goblins and elves (especially >>elves) are all still around and still up to their old tricks. Only these >>days they're being called aliens. > >Exactly. This is the secret of aliens -- they are not physical. No >physical object could possibly perform the maneuvers of the alien >spacecraft. > Aliens are astral entities, just as the elves, gnomes, >etal. > I'm asserting something stronger than an equivalence, I'm asserting an identity! Elves and aliens are one and the same phenomenon! Once you've accounted for the differences in language and cultural background, stories of elves and stories of aliens are so similar it's not funny. They behave the same, they do the same things, they even look the same. There are also definite indications that they are subject in some way to human perceptions of them. Hundreds of years ago they lived in magic hills. That would be considered silly today so instead they live in space. And that's another thing I've noticed about the whole alien phenomenon - how human the aliens and their concerns seem to be. At the turn of the century there was a rich spate of airships complete with propellors, anchors and rigging, crewed by people who claimed to be crossing the Atlantic when they stopped off for fuel and provisions (though no-one else had never heard of any such people arriving or leaving). In the 50s and 60s it was all grave warnings about "releasing the power of the Atom", with a hint of Cold War mentality thrown in. The aliens all turned environmentalist in the 70s and early 80s; and nowadays they carry out bizarre medical procedures and are about as friendly as tax investigators. I like that word: _Zeitgeist_. I think it sums them up wonderfully. > >Alien abductions are also non-physical events. Since physical bodies >cannot pass through walls, abductions must be out-of-body experiences, >caused by the alien visitors, who are able to control the astral >material of our astral bodies. > There have been a number of incidents where alien abductions have been experienced, even though eyewitnesses insist that the abductee never left. > >But I can give no scientific proof of any of this until science >retches and reluctantly admits the reality of the astral plane. (I'm >not holding my breath.) > I agree that summat's going on. Whether it's physical, chemical, biological, psychological or cultural, though, I'm not saying. Science's problem here is that there isn't a firm reference point from which to begin a decent investigation. Heh, I remember an episode of _Star Trek: The Next Generation_, where one of the characters becomes subjected to repeated abductions of exactly this sort. Luckily for him, 24th century science was sufficiently well-developed to deal with it. Morgan L. Owens "Have you ever found a metallic object implanted in your body? Have you checked everywhere?" _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 4 02:58:22 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id BAA03245 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 01:55:40 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp4.mindspring.com (smtp4.mindspring.com [207.69.200.64]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id BAA02916; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 01:03:57 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveh3f.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.68.111]) by smtp4.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id CAA29141; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 02:12:57 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 4 Jul 1999 02:12:57 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990704021405.41576092@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 04-07-99 (Cubic Mandelbrot) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 04, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: There are Mandeloids and there are Mandeloids, but there is only one Mandelbrot set. The Mandelbrot set is the quadratic Mandeloid, the richest and most rewarding of all fractals. But the cubic Mandeloid has some great scenes in it also, and it has been far less widely explored. Today's fractal is an attempt to remedy that situation. It is a picture of a midget in the cubic Mandeloid. This midget is right at the limit of Fractint's resolution, and I seem to see a bit of breakdown along the edges, but it's a very fast fractal and well worth the minute or so it takes to compute from the parameter file. I have named the picture "Cubic Mandelbrot", a name more technical than artistic. I'll likely spend a few more days in the cubic Mandeloid, since I've found some additional interesting scenes. And don't be surprised if I get into the cubic Julibrot slices before I'm finished. As I said, the parameter file is fast. But the image file is even faster, and this image file has been posted in GIF format by error when I clicked the wrong file. The file can be picked up from Usenet at: and from Paul Lee's web site at: As expected, our weather experts continued on their inaccuracy roll today, when they once again forecast showers and no rain fell. But they were right about the heat, which reached 92F (33C) with humidity to match. These conditions, of course, were perfect for fractaling. When I went to search for the Skeptical Inquirer Qi-energy article earlier today, I found that Paul had already located it. For all who are interested, I've attached the summation section of the article, which appeared in the Sep-Oct 1995 issue of SI. START SKEPTICAL INQUIRER ARTICLE------------------------- Having surveyed the evidence so far, there seems to be little evidence of substance that supports the existence of Chi. Although some, including myself at times, find this quite disappointing, it is really not too surprising when we look at the extent of the claims and the way science works. Science and scientific theories and knowledge don't just happen arbitrarily. They are developed based on careful observation and testing over the course of many years, if not generations. Chi theory states that the function of the human body is based on a system of energy that circulates throughout all other existing systems and integrates with them all. There is no evidence that such a system exists. If such a system does exist, but for whatever reason has managed to avoid detection by science, then it would seem logical that there would be large and sweeping gaps in our knowledge of human physiology every time we examined a system that the Chi interacted with. In other words, if Chi controls and influences the behavior of the human body, and we have not detected Chi, then the existence of Chi would be conspicuous by its absence. Personally, I believe that further study of traditional Chinese medicine should uncover many valuable things, such as some useful herbal treatments. I also believe that modern medicine and healthcare have many problems that should be looked at seriously and possibly fixed. Despite these, it is important to examine any body of knowledge critically before employing it for anything as important as healthcare, and this includes the traditional arts and sciences of other cultures. If one wishes to truly understand something, one must be willing to look beyond the explanation traditionally presented. To be truly open-minded, one must be willing to step beyond the boundaries and limitations that have been inherited. To pursue the truth, you must be willing to consider the teachings that cultures have to offer, but you must also hold those teachings up to careful examination. END SKEPTICAL INQUIRER ARTICLE--------------------------- As you can see, the CSICOP investigator found little evidence that Qi energy exists. But then, despite their claims to the contrary, CSICOP is hardly impartial. Behind their facade of impartial investigation, CSICOP considers it their duty to defend the philosophy of rationalism, and as a result they have yet to verify a single paranormal event. (Perhaps because the paranormal events they have investigated do not exist.) My opinion is that, although some trickery may be involved, Qi (or Chi) includes something that science is not yet fully aware of. And with that confession, I'll close today's FOTD. I'll be here again tomorrow with another cubic and if I'm in the mood, more non-rational philosophy. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== MandelbrotCube {; Jim Muth real(c),imag(c) z=p1, c=pixel+p2: z=z*(sqr(z))+c, |z| <= 16 } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= Cubic_Mandelbrot { ; 0:00:52.61 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=slices.frm formulaname=MandelbrotCube passes=1 center-mag=+0.5388592866040914/+0.6163082906621036/\ 1.878431e+013/0.9996/-57.515/-0.004 params=0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=5000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=110 symmetry=xaxis periodicity=10 colors=000BckGciLel<2>_fsYgpWfnUelSej<10>6NN<21>aNg\ bNgbPh<16>blo<12>Bhu<20>YPfZWe_ad`ddbg_dhU<2>fiFfj3\ <3>hk1hk1gj2fi2<3>dj2cj6ck2<24>Pm4Pm4Qm4<12>bm5cmCd\ m8emP<19>ymEzmEzmDzmD<14>zm5zmA<17>zmAzmAzmC<3>zm6z\ mC<29>zm8 } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ Cubic_Mandelbrot { ; 0:00:52.61 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=slices.frm formulaname=MandelbrotCube passes=1 center-mag=+0.5388592866040914/+0.6163082906621036/\ 1.878431e+013/0.9996/-57.515/-0.004 params=0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=5000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=110 symmetry=xaxis periodicity=10 colors=000BckGciLel<2>_fsYgpWfnUelSej<10>6NN<21>aNg\ bNgbPh<16>blo<12>Bhu<20>YPfZWe_ad`ddbg_dhU<2>fiFfj3\ <3>hk1hk1gj2fi2<3>dj2cj6ck2<24>Pm4Pm4Qm4<12>bm5cmCd\ m8emP<19>ymEzmEzmDzmD<14>zm5zmA<17>zmAzmAzmC<3>zm6z\ mC<29>zm8 } frm:MandelbrotCube {; Jim Muth real(c),imag(c) z=p1, c=pixel+p2: z=z*(sqr(z))+c, |z| <= 16 } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 4 08:51:33 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id HAA05696 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 07:51:21 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from spamgaae.compuserve.com (as-img-5.compuserve.com [149.174.217.148]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id GAA05368 for ; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 06:52:05 -0500 Received: (from mailgate@localhost) by spamgaae.compuserve.com (8.9.3/8.9.3/SUN-1.1) id IAA23521 for philofractal@icd.com; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 08:01:04 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 4 Jul 1999 08:00:40 -0400 From: Lee Skinner Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 03-0 To: philofractal@icd.com Message-ID: <199907040800_MC2-7BC0-AF8@compuserve.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Disposition: inline Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-MIME-Autoconverted: from quoted-printable to 8bit by rock.icd.com id GAA05369 Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com Jim, >> FOTD -- July 03, 1999 >> The formula adds 1/10 part of Z^11 to 1/Z, which creates a multi- lobed Mandeloid aggregation with scads of new places to search. << frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } Anyway, I found this little (obscene?) midget lurking near your wreath! TestosteroneMidget { ; t= 1:51:25.32 ; on a P233 at 1600x1200 Jul 04, 1999 05:52:18 ; Image Copyright 1999 by Lee H. Skinner ver=1961 ; Version 1961 Patchlevel 75 reset=1961 type=formula formulafile=fractint.frm formulaname=mandelbrotmix4 function=ident center-mag=-0.15199624454598850/+0.00467602232198407/22505.79/1/97.499 params=-0.1/11/1/-1/0/0 float=y maxiter=1800 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=92 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000xz`<8>xzMxzKxzIxzHxzFxzD<3>xzDxzDxyE<25>vRfvPgvOh<3>uIm<3>eKw`\ LzbOvdRqfUlfQhfLcgGZ<3>qeGtlBws6zz1zzC<2>zzz<3>jqdfo_blU<3>Mb8<21>qt8ru8\ tv8<2>xy8zz9zx9<6>zj7zh6zf6<2>z`5zY4zV5<3>zI5zE6wE6tD6qC6qC6<12>e9Ed9Fc9\ Gb9Ga8H<2>Z8IX8IV8H<5>L6FJ6EH6E<2>C5DA4CA4D<12>IFSIGTJHUJIVKJWLKY<3>IOZH\ QZHR_GS_FT_<7>AaN9bL8cJ<2>6fE5hC5hF<3>7lR8lU8mX<2>ApeBqiErj<9>fwtiwulxv<\ 3>xzz<14>xza } Lee _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 4 13:51:23 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id MAA07981 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 12:52:05 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp5.mindspring.com (smtp5.mindspring.com [207.69.200.82]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id LAA07475; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 11:54:34 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveirj.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.75.115]) by smtp5.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id NAA01090; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 13:03:59 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 4 Jul 1999 13:03:59 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990704130509.317f2588@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: fractal-art@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Chi Kung Cc: philofractal@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 11:22 AM 7/4/99 +0200, Jack Ruijs wrote: >Thank you for the article, but I have to admit, that although I like the >skeptical aspect, I cannot read any information in the article (:->). I >agree with some statements and with some I don't, I just do not get what >really is being stated in the article. The entire article is too long to post, but it is available at: http://www.csicop.org/si/9509/chi.html >I just do not understand what you mean with "trickery involved" I refer here to reproduction by conventional magic. Skeptics often try to debunk a paranormal claim by demonstrating how the same effect can be achieved by conventional stage magic. Randi, the magician of CSICOP fame, excels at this. Skeptics often cite "Occam's Razor", a principle which states that when several explanations are possible, the simplest is usually correct. In the world of skepticism, anything physical is simpler than something mystical. Therefore, when a skeptic shows how a supposedly paranormal event can be duplicated by purely conventional physical means, he feels that he has satisfactorily debunked that event. In this case, the author explains in the article how some of the Qi phenomena could have been achieved through some kind of stage magic without resorting to an energy unknown to science. Personally, I have never found this kind of debunking very convincing. It is two entirely different things to show how something *could have* been faked by someone with a knowledge of magic, and to explain what actually happened. I've got more comments, which will take some time to compose. Meanwhile, let's move this thread to the philofractal list. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 4 13:51:24 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id MAA07949 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 12:51:50 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp5.mindspring.com (smtp5.mindspring.com [207.69.200.82]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id LAA07478 for ; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 11:54:36 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveirj.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.75.115]) by smtp5.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id NAA12661 for ; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 13:04:03 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 4 Jul 1999 13:04:03 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990704130512.334f5e9e@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Fairies and Aliens Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 06:04 PM 7/4/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: >I'm asserting something stronger than an equivalence, I'm asserting an >identity! Elves and aliens are one and the same phenomenon! Once you've >accounted for the differences in language and cultural background, stories >of elves and stories of aliens are so similar it's not funny. They behave >the same, they do the same things, they even look the same. >There are also definite indications that they are subject in some way to >human perceptions of them. Hundreds of years ago they lived in magic hills. >That would be considered silly today so instead they live in space. >And that's another thing I've noticed about the whole alien phenomenon - >how human the aliens [and fairies] and their concerns seem to be. The similarity is not coincidental. The physical appearance and behaviour of both fairies and aliens is largely a product of human imagination. But fairies and aliens are occult things, not physical things. (Despite the belief of the UFO buffs.) In the world of the occult, stating that a thing is imaginary is a different way of stating that the thing exists on the astral plane. In the eyes of occultists, astral objects and imaginary objects are of the same nature. They consider thoughts to be real! This is one reason why an occultist is not concerned when told than something exists 'only in the mind'. (And come to think of it, fractals also exist only in the mind.) Skeptics, who consider only material things real, are correct when they state that fairies and aliens do not exist. Occultists, who consider imaginary things also real, are correct when they state that fairies and aliens are real beings which exist on the astral plane. The argument will never be settled because it is about two different aspects of the same thing. And as always when I speak in my occult persona, I can offer no scientific evidence for my statements. Imagine an IMO before every controversial sentence. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Mon Jul 5 00:51:28 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id XAA13364 for philofractal-list; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 23:51:22 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA13288; Sun, 4 Jul 1999 23:41:26 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveicl.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.73.149]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA32480; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 00:50:33 -0400 (EDT) Date: Mon, 5 Jul 1999 00:50:33 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990705005145.3327e726@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 05-07-99 (A New Angle) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 05, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts, lurkers and visionaries: As I write this FOTD, I can look through the fractal shoppe window and see three separate fireworks displays in progress around the city. And the weather is also hot as a firecracker. Once again the predicted showers failed to appear, but the heat did not fail. It is getting ever more oppressive. The temperature of 99F (37C) was great for nothing but fractals. Tomorrow is due to be even hotter, so I suppose tomorrow will also be good for nothing. Today's picture is a new view of yesterday's cubic midget. It is actually the same scene of the Julibrot sliced in a different direction. The midget itself lies buried near the center of the frame. It's quite stretched and a bit hard to find. At this angle, which is close to halfway between the Parabolic and Oblate directions, the surrounding pattern undergoes a strange transformation. We can see the nine elements converging on the midget, but before they can trifurcate into 27 elements, they get cut off, and form some rather interesting configura- tions. (The 27-element convergence never appears.) I named the picture "A New Angle" to bring out the fact that it is a different aspect of yesterday's image. Yes, I did give the image a boost in a graphics program, but not enough to damage its purity. It's a very fast fractal, so it might be quicker to run the parameter file than to download the JPEG image file from: or from: Since I've already exceeded my speculative philosophical quota for the day in earlier letters, I'll add nothing at this time. But I will be here again tomorrow with another fractal, which easily could be another view of the same scene. I also could easily erupt into more philosophy, (if my ramblings qualify as such). Check then to see what happens. Until then, take care, and I've yet to see the first fractal fireworks display. 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Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] Re: Chi Kung In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990704130509.317f2588@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 13:03 04/07/99 -0400, Jim Muth wrote: > >I refer here to reproduction by conventional magic. Skeptics often try >to debunk a paranormal claim by demonstrating how the same effect can be >achieved by conventional stage magic. Randi, the magician of CSICOP fame, >excels at this. > >Skeptics often cite "Occam's Razor", a principle which states that when >several explanations are possible, the simplest is usually correct. In >the world of skepticism, anything physical is simpler than something >mystical. > Not quite: application of Occam's Razor is to the effect that an explanation in terms of known entities is more credible (and more useful) than one which introduces a new unknown. The problem with the latter "explanation" is that it's not an explanation (hence the quotes) that can serve as a basis for further investigation and understanding; it just shifts the question around. > Therefore, when a skeptic shows how a supposedly paranormal >event can be duplicated by purely conventional physical means, he feels >that he has satisfactorily debunked that event. > >In this case, the author explains in the article how some of the Qi >phenomena could have been achieved through some kind of stage magic >without resorting to an energy unknown to science. > >Personally, I have never found this kind of debunking very convincing. > >It is two entirely different things to show how something *could have* >been faked by someone with a knowledge of magic, and to explain what >actually happened. > What Steven Jay Gould calls (in another context) "Just So Stories". But you must admit, it's a lot more plausible that it _has_ been faked. I think it more likely that what we have here is a second-rate conjurer has hit on a way of making a few quid by duping the public than someone who has discovered how to get special dispensation from the laws of nature. One such person, Uri Geller, has been caught red-handed cheating on more than one occasion (including by Randi, hence the litigation between them). The defence he could come up with, though, was that okay, he did cheat _those_ times, but they were the only ones - that's why he was caught. I think one of the elements about the Geller/Randi feud is professional jealousy on Randi's part. Here he is, sweating away at new and more elaborate, more subtle, and more inexplicable illusions. When he shows them to the public it goes "Wow, how does he do that?" and then goes home chatting about the show. Geller does something that Randi could manage (or simulate, if you prefer) without any warning or preparation on the spur of the moment and the public goes "WOW! MAGIC!" and credits Geller with special powers. (This is related to why a lot psychic charlatans manage to get scientific endorsement: electrons don't cheat.) Morgan L. Owens "But I'm not even a redhead." _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Mon Jul 5 12:51:20 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id LAA18683 for philofractal-list; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 11:51:28 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp2.mindspring.com (smtp2.mindspring.com [207.69.200.32]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id LAA18435 for ; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 11:28:04 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2ivehhb.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.70.43]) by smtp2.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id MAA00834 for ; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 12:37:08 -0400 (EDT) Date: Mon, 5 Jul 1999 12:37:08 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990705123820.330f5a9e@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Randi -- was Chi Kung Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 05:29 PM 7/5/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: >Application of Occam's Razor is to the effect that >an explanation in terms of known entities is more credible >(and more useful) than one which introduces a new unknown. The >problem with the latter "explanation" is that it's not an >explanation (hence the quotes) that can serve as a basis for >further investigation and understanding; it just shifts the >question around. True as far as it goes, but the plausibility of explanations is dependent on one's world view, and what one considers to be the unknown. If, in my gullible occult persona, I visited one of our local mediums and heard a message that resembled something my deceased father might have said, I would have no trouble accepting the explanation that my father's spirit had spoken to me through the medium. If I made the same visit in my skeptic persona, I would be admiring the medium's showmanship and skill at cold reading as I handed over my money. >But you must admit, it's a lot more plausible that [a >paranormal event] _has_ been faked. Yes, far more likely. >I think it more likely that what we have here is a second-rate >conjurer has hit on a way of making a few quid by duping the >public than someone who has discovered how to get special >dispensation from the laws of nature. My occult persona replies by claiming that the hypothetical conjurer had not gotten a dispensation from the laws of nature, but was using natural laws that science had not yet recognized. But here, my skeptical persona again admits that fakery is far more likely. >One such person, Uri Geller, has been caught red-handed >cheating . . . Agreed. Uri is one of the most-exposed fakers. >I think one of the elements about the Geller/Randi feud is >professional jealousy on Randi's part. . . True, but I feel that Randi is also on a quest to promote the philosophy of rationalism -- his world-view. And he may be doing as much harm as good. I remember a debunking show Randi did for television a few years back. It had been a pretty good show, exposing several unfounded claims of paranormal activity. But at the end of the program, Randi blew it. Standing before his million-dollar mansion, he stated something such as, "when one understands science, they must give up certain comforting beliefs such as immortality". Ignoring the fact that it's an unfounded statement, I could not imagine a statement better designed to turn people from science. When a person has just lost a loved one, you don't give them a book by Richard Dawkins or Bertrand Russell -- not if you want them to remain your friend. Likewise, you don't tell the have- nots of this world to accept that they're never going to have it in another world -- not if at the same time you're showing that you *do* have it, and want them to accept your message. People have a tendency to listen to and believe pleasant things, and ignore and disbelieve unpleasant things. And when science is presented as Randi presented it in his television show, it becomes a very unpleasant thing. Not many people consider a "grin and bear it" message of meaninglessness, hopelessness, despair and ineluctable extinction to be pleasant. I myself grow irritated when I hear well-meaning scientists such as the late Carl Sagan telling of the wonders of the universe, and then I remember that I will never see those wonders. And in a way, the inability of anyone to personally observe the wonders of outer space demonstrates that those wonders might in the end prove to be no more than speculative mental constructs. If someone went back in time 100 years and tried to enlighten the world to the wonders of fractals, that person would most likely be considered a bit strange in the head by the world at large. Only a few wise mathematicians would have the insight to realize that the time traveler was speaking truth, but they would have no means of demonstrating that truth. Perhaps some of those now making outlandish claims are in the same situation those wise mathematicians would have been in. FOTD in 12 hours, if we survive the 105F (41C) heat. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Mon Jul 5 15:52:58 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id OAA20381 for philofractal-list; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 14:51:25 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from deimos.worldonline.nl (deimos.worldonline.nl [195.241.48.136]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id OAA20237 for ; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 14:35:57 -0500 Received: from t356237 (vp233-81.worldonline.nl [195.241.233.81]) by deimos.worldonline.nl (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id VAA28796 for ; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 21:44:54 +0200 (MET DST) Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990705214424.007ae580@ramos.nl> X-Sender: ramos01@ramos.nl X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.5 (32) Date: Mon, 05 Jul 1999 21:44:24 +0200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jack Ruijs Subject: [philofractal] Carl Sagan In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990705123820.330f5a9e@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 12:37 PM 7/5/99 -0400, Jim wrote: >I myself grow irritated when I hear well-meaning scientists such >as the late Carl Sagan telling of the wonders of the universe, >and then I remember that I will never see those wonders. And in >a way, the inability of anyone to personally observe the wonders >of outer space demonstrates that those wonders might in the end >prove to be no more than speculative mental constructs. I really admired the tv-programs of Carl Sagan in my youth, I can never imagine being irritated by someone like him or of his sayings (:->). In fact it is he -or more his programs- who interested me for science in the first place. I can still remember a program where he tried to calculate the chance of the existence of extra-terrestial life. To me, the hypothetical calculation alone is worth a lifetime study ... Meaning the study of how thin or thick the life-thread really is. Just the small strange fact that water has it's highest density at about 4 degrees celcius, for example determines that life can exist at all! And there are many of these strange critical aspects of life. Studying these different threads has always been one of my wishes, initiated by the programs of Carl Sagan ... Kind greetings, Jack Ruijs _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Mon Jul 5 23:52:03 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id WAA25704 for philofractal-list; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 22:51:46 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id WAA25587 for ; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 22:37:28 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-46.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.176]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id PAA11307 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 15:55:12 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990706154400.008435c0@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Tue, 06 Jul 1999 15:44:00 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] Re: Randi -- was Chi Kung In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990705123820.330f5a9e@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 12:37 05/07/99 -0400, J wrote: >At 05:29 PM 7/5/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: > >But at the end of the program, Randi blew it. Standing before >his million-dollar mansion, he stated something such as, "when >one understands science, they must give up certain comforting >beliefs such as immortality". > >Ignoring the fact that it's an unfounded statement,... > Damn, I wish I'd known about that when I met him! Wheee, there'd have been some fireworks! >them to remain your friend. Likewise, you don't tell the have- >nots of this world to accept that they're never going to have it >in another world -- not if at the same time you're showing that >you *do* have it, and want them to accept your message. > Hence the success of the Catholic Church... >I myself grow irritated when I hear well-meaning scientists such >as the late Carl Sagan telling of the wonders of the universe, >and then I remember that I will never see those wonders. And in >a way, the inability of anyone to personally observe the wonders >of outer space demonstrates that those wonders might in the end >prove to be no more than speculative mental constructs. > Well, you'll probably never see the inside of my house, either. But don't you think "I will never see those wonders" is a line with the same basis in fact as "they must give up certain comforting beliefs such as immortality"? Don't be so defeatist :-) >If someone went back in time 100 years and tried to enlighten >the world to the wonders of fractals, that person would most >likely be considered a bit strange in the head by the world at >large. Only a few wise mathematicians would have the insight to >realize that the time traveler was speaking truth, but they >would have no means of demonstrating that truth. > Actually those mathematicians would probably laugh you out of the room. As one said to Karl Weierstrass, "I'm sorry, but we're discussing curves _with_ derivatives". And more than one mathematician (Poincare) took one look at where their work was heading and ran for the hills. Morgan L. Owens "Well, Sartre, we don't like existentialists around here, and we certainly don't like French philosophers poncing around in their black polo necks filling everyone's heads with their theories about the bleakness of existence and absurdity of the cosmos, clear?" _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Tue Jul 6 00:51:48 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id XAA26193 for philofractal-list; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 23:51:47 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp4.mindspring.com (smtp4.mindspring.com [207.69.200.64]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA25887; Mon, 5 Jul 1999 23:14:21 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveiq9.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.75.73]) by smtp4.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA12716; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 00:23:16 -0400 (EDT) Date: Tue, 6 Jul 1999 00:23:16 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990706002430.326f8510@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 06-07-99 () (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 06, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Today's semi-glorious fractal is mis-named. It is a scene in the Z^5+C Mandeloid, which for some unknown reason I named "Hexagonal Mandeloid". I guess I had the number six on the mind, even though there are clearly only five triangular features converging on the almost invisible midget in the center. The higher order Mandeloids are usually considered dull. In a way they are, but interesting scenes are there for the taking if one knows where to look. Today's picture is a fine example of what waits deep in the Z^5 Mandeloid. The zig-zagging elements give a staccato effect, which almost cries out for some jazzy music to accompany it. I've created this fractal with a Julibrot-rotation formula for good reason. I intend on rotating it. Most likely, tomorrow's FOTD will feature a rotated version of today's midget. Today's parameter file runs in less than an hour on all but the slowest 486's. But for faster viewing, the JPEG image file can be downloaded from: or from: The weather today was a scorcher. The weather experts predicted hot with no rain, and that's what it was. The temperature of 105F (41C) and unrelenting sun was too much for anything but swimming or fractals. I chose the latter, though there were times the former seemed the better choice. Having exhausted my fractosophy earlier in the day, I now find myself at the point where I must close down the fractal shoppe and call it a night. But I'll be here again tomorrow with more questionable wisdom and a lot of nonsense. Until that time, take care, and keep the fractal faith. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== multirot05-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and many rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=z*(sqr(sqr(z)))+c, |z| <= 36 } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= HexagonalMandeloid { ; 0:06:14.15 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot05-XY-ZW function=ident/flip passes=1 center-mag=+0.3553089574874263/+0.685339380\ 8366081/5.159961e+011/1/-32.121/-0.291 params=0/0/0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=12500 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=177 symmetry=xaxis periodicity=10 colors=000zdzzdzzdzzfzzfx<3>zgwzgtzitzitziszkszkq<2>\ zlpzlpzlnznnznlznlznlznizkgzgbzdazaYzYRzVRxQQtNQqLQn\ JI<2>nIIsQRxYazfazn_zs_zxYzxYzzYzzXzzXxzVxzVxzVwzTwz\ TwzRwzRtzQtzQtzQszOszOszNszNqzNqzLqzLpzJpzJpzJpzInzI\ nzGnzGlzE<2>lzDkzDkzBkzBizBiz9iz9iz8gz8gz8gz6fz6fz4f\ z4gz2fz4fz4fz6fz6fz6fz8fz8fz8dz9dz9dz9dzBdzBdzDdzDdz\ DbzEbzEbzEbzGbxGbwGbwIbtIbsIasJaqJaqLapLanLanNalNakN\ _kO_iO_gO_gQ_fQ_dQ_dR_bRYbTYaTY_TY_VYYVYXVYXXYVXYTXX\ TYXRYXR_XQ_XO_XOaXNaXLaYLbYJbYIbYIdYGdYEdYEfYDfYDgYB\ gY9gY9gY8fY6fY6fY4dY2dY2dY1b<3>Y1aY1aY1_Y1_Y1_X1YX1Y\ X1YX1YV1YV1YV1YV1YT1YT1YT1YT1YR1Y<5>Q1YQ1YO1Y<5>N1YN\ 1YL1YL1YL1YL1YJ1Y<46>I1Y } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ HexagonalMandeloid { ; 0:06:14.15 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot05-XY-ZW function=ident/flip passes=1 center-mag=+0.3553089574874263/+0.685339380\ 8366081/5.159961e+011/1/-32.121/-0.291 params=0/0/0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=12500 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=177 symmetry=xaxis periodicity=10 colors=000zdzzdzzdzzfzzfx<3>zgwzgtzitzitziszkszkq<2>\ zlpzlpzlnznnznlznlznlznizkgzgbzdazaYzYRzVRxQQtNQqLQn\ JI<2>nIIsQRxYazfazn_zs_zxYzxYzzYzzXzzXxzVxzVxzVwzTwz\ TwzRwzRtzQtzQtzQszOszOszNszNqzNqzLqzLpzJpzJpzJpzInzI\ nzGnzGlzE<2>lzDkzDkzBkzBizBiz9iz9iz8gz8gz8gz6fz6fz4f\ z4gz2fz4fz4fz6fz6fz6fz8fz8fz8dz9dz9dz9dzBdzBdzDdzDdz\ DbzEbzEbzEbzGbxGbwGbwIbtIbsIasJaqJaqLapLanLanNalNakN\ _kO_iO_gO_gQ_fQ_dQ_dR_bRYbTYaTY_TY_VYYVYXVYXXYVXYTXX\ TYXRYXR_XQ_XO_XOaXNaXLaYLbYJbYIbYIdYGdYEdYEfYDfYDgYB\ gY9gY9gY8fY6fY6fY4dY2dY2dY1b<3>Y1aY1aY1_Y1_Y1_X1YX1Y\ X1YX1YV1YV1YV1YV1YT1YT1YT1YT1YR1Y<5>Q1YQ1YO1Y<5>N1YN\ 1YL1YL1YL1YL1YJ1Y<46>I1Y } frm:multirot05-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and many rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=z*(sqr(sqr(z)))+c, |z| <= 36 } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Tue Jul 6 13:56:17 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id MAA32501 for philofractal-list; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 12:51:21 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp0.mindspring.com (smtp0.mindspring.com [207.69.200.30]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id MAA32134 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 12:26:18 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveh7d.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.68.237]) by smtp0.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id NAA10657 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 13:34:52 -0400 (EDT) Date: Tue, 6 Jul 1999 13:34:52 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990706133609.329f992e@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Randi Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 03:44 PM 7/6/99 +1200, Morgan Owens wrote: >Jim Muth wrote: > >>But at the end of the program, Randi blew it. Standing before >>his million-dollar mansion, he stated something such as, "when >>one understands science, they must give up certain comforting >>beliefs such as immortality". >> >>Ignoring the fact that it's an unfounded statement,... >> >Damn, I wish I'd known about that when I met him! Wheee, there'd >have been some fireworks! Nahhh, I doubt if you'd have said anything, but consider yourself as now having been enlightened, and remember that it's never too late to rectify one's errors. ;-) >>Likewise, you don't tell the have- >>nots of this world to accept that they're never going to have it >>in another world -- not if at the same time you're showing that >>you *do* have it, and want them to accept your message. > >Hence the success of the Catholic Church... ... and the success of superstition and pseudoscience. This is also one reason I'm no longer a Catholic. >Actually those [19th century] mathematicians would probably laugh you >out of the room [if you told them about fractals]. You're probably right. Well, back to the old pondering desk. :-) Jim M. _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Tue Jul 6 13:56:20 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id MAA32511 for philofractal-list; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 12:51:47 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp0.mindspring.com (smtp0.mindspring.com [207.69.200.30]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id MAA31901 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 12:05:33 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveh7d.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.68.237]) by smtp0.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id NAA27560 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 13:13:54 -0400 (EDT) Date: Tue, 6 Jul 1999 13:13:54 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990706131518.329f358a@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] Re: Carl Sagan Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 09:44 PM 7/5/99 +0200, Jack Ruijs wrote: >I really admired the tv-programs of Carl Sagan in my youth, I >can never imagine being irritated by someone like him or of his >sayings. I am not irritated by Mr. Sagan himself. He was a great scientist. What frustrates me is the thought that all those wonders out there in space must remain forever beyond my reach -- a mere fantasy that I shall never have the satisfaction of observing, confirming, or disproving. >In fact it is he -or more his programs- who interested me for >science in the first place. I can still remember a program >where he tried to calculate the chance of the existence of >extra-terrestial life. The program was one of Sagan's 'Cosmos' series. I have the entire series on videotape, and I watch it again and again, two or three times a year. I must have seen the series 50 times since its release in 1980. In the mid 1980's, when I had a music show on one of the local college radio stations, I presented several programs of the music from the Cosmos series. (The opening theme is from part 1 of 'Heaven and Hell' by Vangelis.) The existence of extra-terrestrial life is another frustration of mine. According to Mr. Sagan, life just happens naturally when chemicals and energy interact. The universe must therefore be teeming with life. I agree that the universe is filled with life, but what a waste it is, having that life so widely scattered, with such vast distances between intelligent civilizations that we shall never meet or interact. Mr. Sagan must have felt the same way. Though he believed that alien intelligence was out there, he always doubted the existence of alien visitors to Earth in UFO's. >To me, the hypothetical calculation alone is worth a lifetime >study... Meaning the study of how thin or thick the life-thread >really is. Just the small strange fact that water has it's >highest density at about 4 degrees celcius, for example >determines that life can exist at all! If you think this water coincidence is strange, you should check the infinitesimal chances that stable matter itself could exist. >And there are many of these strange critical aspects of life. >Studying these different threads has always been one of my >wishes, initiated by the programs of Carl Sagan... I feel the same. But as I watch the Cosmos series over and over, I can't help but notice that it is promoting the philosophy of rationalism as much as the discipline of science. Phrases such as "all by accident" creep into Mr. Sagan's words a bit too frequently as he discusses the origin of life. And he lets no opportunity pass to launch an almost religious attack against superstition and pseudoscience. The Cosmos series is a great science series, which at times drifts a bit too far into unverifiable rationalist speculation. Life is full of mysteries, the greatest of which is "what is life and why did it happen?". The rational scientific reply, "life is an accident that happened by chance", is more an admission of ignorance than a satisfactory answer. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Tue Jul 6 18:56:33 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id RAA03186 for philofractal-list; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 17:53:04 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from deimos.worldonline.nl (deimos.worldonline.nl [195.241.48.136]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id RAA03105 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 17:43:48 -0500 Received: from t356237 (vp213-82.worldonline.nl [195.241.213.82]) by deimos.worldonline.nl (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA20007 for ; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 00:52:30 +0200 (MET DST) Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990707005159.007a6780@ramos.nl> X-Sender: ramos01@ramos.nl X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.5 (32) Date: Wed, 07 Jul 1999 00:51:59 +0200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jack Ruijs Subject: [philofractal] Carl Sagan In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990706131518.329f358a@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 01:13 PM 7/6/99 -0400, Jim wrote: >I am not irritated by Mr. Sagan himself. He was a great >scientist. What frustrates me is the thought that all those >wonders out there in space must remain forever beyond my reach >-- a mere fantasy that I shall never have the satisfaction of >observing, confirming, or disproving. Indeed, it is a bit frustating ... but on the other hand very fascinating. >The program was one of Sagan's 'Cosmos' series. I have the >entire series on videotape, and I watch it again and again, two >or three times a year. I must have seen the series 50 times >since its release in 1980. Ahh, I wondered when it really appeared on T.V., it seemed longer ago, considering that in those years T.V.-programs from abroad had a certain "incubation" time of 2 to 3 years before they were shown on Dutch television (:->). But neverthless to me it was the Golden Ago of T.V. with great programs from Carl Sagan, Richard Attenborough, Kung Fu, Star Trek etc.. and cannot agree more with your interest in the 'Cosmos' series. >The existence of extra-terrestrial life is another frustration >of mine. According to Mr. Sagan, life just happens naturally >when chemicals and energy interact. The universe must therefore >be teeming with life. I agree that the universe is filled with >life, but what a waste it is, having that life so widely >scattered, with such vast distances between intelligent >civilizations that we shall never meet or interact. Mr. Sagan >must have felt the same way. Luckily I do not, I find the two possiblities of whether extraterrestial life exists or not, utterly beautiful and refuse to let one of the possibilities disregarded without absolute proof ... >If you think this water coincidence is strange, you should check >the infinitesimal chances that stable matter itself could exist. I once read a book, well a part of it, where a list was given of these kind of peculiarities, I never found the book again ... >The Cosmos series is a great science series, which at times >drifts a bit too far into unverifiable rationalist speculation. As far as I can recollect from memory, I agree. Kind greetings, Jack Ruijs _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Wed Jul 7 00:57:05 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id XAA06554 for philofractal-list; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 23:51:21 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from bo.nznet.gen.nz (ns1.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.34]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA06509 for ; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 23:44:40 -0500 Received: from packrat.nznet.gen.nz (ms2-20.nznet.gen.nz [203.167.232.150]) by bo.nznet.gen.nz (8.8.7/8.8.8) with SMTP id RAA02665 for ; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 17:02:02 +1200 Message-Id: <3.0.3.32.19990707165000.00849330@mail.nznet.gen.nz> X-Sender: packrat@mail.nznet.gen.nz X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Light Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Wed, 07 Jul 1999 16:50:00 +1200 To: philofractal@icd.com From: "Morgan L. Owens" Subject: Re: [philofractal] Re: Carl Sagan In-Reply-To: <1.5.4.16.19990706131518.329f358a@pop.mindspring.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com At 13:13 06/07/99 -0400, Jim Muth wrote: >>Just the small strange fact that water has it's >>highest density at about 4 degrees celcius, for example >>determines that life can exist at all! > >If you think this water coincidence is strange, you should check >the infinitesimal chances that stable matter itself could exist. > Ah, the game of "what would the Universe be like if..." (insert alteration here). Proving grounds for Theories of Everything. Tweak the gravitational constant down a bit and have the Big Bang throw everything apart to quickly for it to form stars; make space four-dimensional and waves no longer propagate symmetrically. If the carbon atom didn't have an energy level at 7.82 MeV then stellar nucleosynthesis wouldn't be able to make significant quantities of any higher element; but what sort of Universe could have that specific a change without other alterations elsewhere? The three stable climatological modes for an Earthlike planet are runaway greenhouse, airless Ice Age, and a small temperate trap with lots of surface water (partly maintained by that 4-degree property); which basin of attraction does Earth fall into, and mayhap it's unusually _dry_ for such a world? Beside questions like that, "What would the world be like if The South won the Civil War?" (which seems the standard fare of moat American SF writers of alternate histories) seem rather petty. Morgan L. Owens "What would the Universe be like if "left" were swapped with "right"? _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Wed Jul 7 01:54:47 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA06971 for philofractal-list; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 00:53:13 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp5.mindspring.com (smtp5.mindspring.com [207.69.200.82]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA06620; Tue, 6 Jul 1999 23:54:00 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveijb.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.74.107]) by smtp5.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id BAA14778; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 01:02:30 -0400 (EDT) Date: Wed, 7 Jul 1999 01:02:30 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990707010347.326fb638@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 07-07-99 (Three Arms or Five) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 07, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Today was once again ridiculously hot here at Fractal Central. The temperature of 104F (40C) was perfect for seeking the coolest corner and searching for fractals. A few heavy clouds at sunset threatened rain, but none fell. In the coolest corner I could find, I searched and found a fractal. The fractal is a different view of yesterday's mis-named Hexabrot scene. I named today's picture "Three Arms or Five" because at this angle, two of the five converging elements disappear before reaching the midget which lurks at the center. That central midget is stretched to the thinnest slit at this angle. It's hardly worth the effort it takes to reach it, but any intrepid fractalnaut who would like to try has my blessings. The parameter file draws in a few minutes. The JPEG image file downloads in even fewer minutes from: or from: I posted most of my pseudophilosophical musings earlier today, so I have little left for this evening. I've had a few passing thoughts since then about immortality, (as contrasted to simple survival), and whether it would be a curse or a blessing. But it's a deep subject and I'm out of steam for the day. But I'll appear again tomorrow, same time same place, with a new fractal and possibly some near-philosophy. Until then, take care, and I wonder if the Mandelbrot set is immortal, (or should I say eternal). Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== multirot05-XZ-YW {; Jim Muth ; 0,0=para, 90,0=obl, 0,90=elip, 90,90=rect e=exp(flip(real(p1*.01745329251994))), f=exp(flip(imag(p1*.01745329251994))), z=f*real(pixel)+p2, c=e*imag(pixel)+p3: z=z*(sqr(sqr(z)))+c, |z| <= 36 } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= Three_Arms_or_Five { ; 0:02:49.94 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot05-XZ-YW center-mag=-0.00000000000519522/-0.00000000000093178\ /4.062229e+011/0.4272/168.648/-88.799 params=-26.421/163.15/0.3553089574873854/0.685339380\ 8366987/0.3553089574873854/0.6853393808366987 float=y maxiter=12500 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=209 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000KAK<3>KANKAOKCPFFQ<2>UOJURHVVFVYFV`D<7>R_N\ DlE0m55qC<2>IXX<3>JVnHUt<14>ZaRVcJ_aQc`Wh_aoYd<5>`_r\ Z_tYYr<10>VCeVAdV9eL8fB7gCAhDCjEFm<2>HMmIOhJQc<4>YJG\ <6>rAav8h<6>pFHw52<4>QnwRmz<5>TjzTjzRlz<2>Lrz<17>pjz\ <5>t4z`uz<14>yhz<8>RjzCczKuzNjzJjwFjrBjmWxh<2>OsU<4>\ AkUyFU<2>TZUIdLMZR<5>BgM9iL9C2<10>8hKSJl<19>8iMbxZWF\ x<7>AgP8vJ<10>8pK } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ Three_Arms_or_Five { ; 0:02:49.94 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot05-XZ-YW center-mag=-0.00000000000519522/-0.00000000000093178\ /4.062229e+011/0.4272/168.648/-88.799 params=-26.421/163.15/0.3553089574873854/0.685339380\ 8366987/0.3553089574873854/0.6853393808366987 float=y maxiter=12500 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=209 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000KAK<3>KANKAOKCPFFQ<2>UOJURHVVFVYFV`D<7>R_N\ DlE0m55qC<2>IXX<3>JVnHUt<14>ZaRVcJ_aQc`Wh_aoYd<5>`_r\ Z_tYYr<10>VCeVAdV9eL8fB7gCAhDCjEFm<2>HMmIOhJQc<4>YJG\ <6>rAav8h<6>pFHw52<4>QnwRmz<5>TjzTjzRlz<2>Lrz<17>pjz\ <5>t4z`uz<14>yhz<8>RjzCczKuzNjzJjwFjrBjmWxh<2>OsU<4>\ AkUyFU<2>TZUIdLMZR<5>BgM9iL9C2<10>8hKSJl<19>8iMbxZWF\ x<7>AgP8vJ<10>8pK } frm:multirot05-XZ-YW {; Jim Muth ; 0,0=para, 90,0=obl, 0,90=elip, 90,90=rect e=exp(flip(real(p1*.01745329251994))), f=exp(flip(imag(p1*.01745329251994))), z=f*real(pixel)+p2, c=e*imag(pixel)+p3: z=z*(sqr(sqr(z)))+c, |z| <= 36 } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Thu Jul 8 00:51:38 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id XAA19021 for philofractal-list; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 23:51:35 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA18812; Wed, 7 Jul 1999 23:26:12 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveh45.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.68.133]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA31784; Thu, 8 Jul 1999 00:34:27 -0400 (EDT) Date: Thu, 8 Jul 1999 00:34:27 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990708003546.3267453c@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 08-07-99 (New View of Old Figure) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 08, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Nothing is more refreshing than a new view of a familiar object. The familiar object in question today is the Z^2+C Mandelbrot- Julia complex known as the Julibrot. Being a four-dimensional object, the Julibrot has six mutually perpendicular two-dimensional planes intersecting every point. And of course, any number of oblique slices can be drawn through every point. I often amuse myself by rendering oblique slices of the Julibrot. Many of these slices are trite, but occasionally I stumble upon an odd slice that surprises with its novelty and simplicity. Today's curious image is one of these odd slices. Sliced at an angle turned 30 degrees from the Parabolic direction toward the Julia direction, it is unlike any other slice I know of. The slice cuts the Julibrot in the vicinity of Seahorse Valley. By changing imag(p1) to 90, the Julia set of this area can be displayed. The parameter file is lightning fast, and running it is probably the fastest way to see the image. But for those who would rather download, the JPEG file has been posted to: and to: It was another blazing hot day here at Fractal Central. The temperature of 97F (36C) was perfect for fractals, but a bit too warm for the heavy thinking necessary for writing philosophy. So the philosophy will be postponed until at least tomorrow. The fractals, however, are never postponed. So check here again tomorrow for a fractal that will not only knock your socks off, but will actually put them back on again. Until then, take care, and don't let your guard down when a fractal is around. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== multirot-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and many rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=sqr(z)+c, |z| <= 36 } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= NewViewOfOldFigure { ; 0:00:06.53 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multirot.frm formulaname=multirot-XY-ZW function=flip/ident passes=1 center-mag=0.391236/0.921391/0.4952381 params=90/30/-0.924634/0.32762/-0.75/0 float=y maxiter=1250 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=yes symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000KA7RBEOCBVDISEFZFMVGJaHQZINeJUbKRiLYfMV\ mNaiNToP`lQRoRXnSPpTTpVNrWPrXLsYMtZKt_IvaG<3>xe8x\ f7vbB<9>l7g<2>azsmMfcsq<4>kQks90rB4<4>mJcs82<21>l\ KiHe0Jd0<20>kKhaqr<2>jSl8p0Bn1<15>jLhIrL<17>kLiJw\ d<5>hPjuiW<22>lLj61p<21>kKjdPs<8>lKjAJdNKf_KhsN0\ <20>lKhU3X<7>jJiJR3<8>`MU } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ NewViewOfOldFigure { ; 0:00:06.53 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multirot.frm formulaname=multirot-XY-ZW function=flip/ident passes=1 center-mag=0.391236/0.921391/0.4952381 params=90/30/-0.924634/0.32762/-0.75/0 float=y maxiter=1250 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=yes symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000KA7RBEOCBVDISEFZFMVGJaHQZINeJUbKRiLYfMV\ mNaiNToP`lQRoRXnSPpTTpVNrWPrXLsYMtZKt_IvaG<3>xe8x\ f7vbB<9>l7g<2>azsmMfcsq<4>kQks90rB4<4>mJcs82<21>l\ KiHe0Jd0<20>kKhaqr<2>jSl8p0Bn1<15>jLhIrL<17>kLiJw\ d<5>hPjuiW<22>lLj61p<21>kKjdPs<8>lKjAJdNKf_KhsN0\ <20>lKhU3X<7>jJiJR3<8>`MU } frm:multirot-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and many rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=sqr(z)+c, |z| <= 36 } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Fri Jul 9 01:51:33 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA03861 for philofractal-list; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 00:51:28 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp3.mindspring.com (smtp3.mindspring.com [207.69.200.33]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id AAA02565; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 00:04:35 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2ivehmh.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.70.209]) by smtp3.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id BAA11112; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 01:12:24 -0400 (EDT) Date: Fri, 9 Jul 1999 01:12:24 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990709011347.337fd690@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 09-07-99 (Boogie-woogie) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 09, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: A fractal with a boogie-woogie beat is indeed a treat. When I saw today's fractal, that familiar 8/8 melody came immediately to mind. I named the picture "Boogie-woogie" accordingly. I found the scene by entering a few significant math values into the M-Mix4 formula to see what would happen. The results appeared so quickly that I got no chance to try 3.1416... The parameter file renders in only a few minutes; the JPEG image file downloads even faster from: or from: The weather today was still hot, but not as hot. After the recent heat, the 94F (34.5C) felt absolutely pleasant. The drought however is near record proportions. The rivers are at near record low levels. If substantial rain doesn't fall in a few weeks, I hear it will be possible to walk across the Potomac River -- on dry land that is -- I can't walk on water. And that's about as far as we go today. It's time to shut down the fractal shoppe, lock up the door, and cast aside my worries. But I'll arrive again tomorrow, sure as the sunrise, with another fractal and another few words of wisdom. Until then, take care and then take some more care. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= Boogie-woogie { ; 0:01:27.44 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=recip passes=1 center-mag=+0.04143557140397893/-0.19552553476653\ 730/5.602156e+009/1/-55 params=1.414/0.7071/-1.618/-2.718/-2.4/0 float=y maxiter=600 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=23 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000inBck3<2>MY6HT7BN85H90F9<3>93HB0IG5P<4>\ cRrgVxjZt<5>vtX<6>aL6eCLh3Z<7>XVabWZgXWWnN<5>EUM\ <6>KV8KV7J`8If9HkA<5>8xd<2>_aq<6>hoT<2>KYf<4>ed\ yZWaTOF<6>Dj9<5>hEC<6>0gTApY<7>dpW<3>Rp`WpQ`pGZpO\ YqV<2>pqt<6>SrUPrRNrQ<4>GsO<3>psS<4>StV<3>Otp<2>E\ uc_uF<3>su9suK<6>qvQOv3<6>AwLZwXwxh<7>Xyf<7>zz\ Kuzcpzv<3>7zy<4>Xzlazjezh<5>zzYszLlz8<3>Gz9<5>GzA\ VzCizD<5>6zM<2>Tz9<7>JzeIzfHzfWzMbzSpzK } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ Boogie-woogie { ; 0:01:27.44 on a p233, 640x480 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=critical.frm formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=recip passes=1 center-mag=+0.04143557140397893/-0.19552553476653\ 730/5.602156e+009/1/-55 params=1.414/0.7071/-1.618/-2.718/-2.4/0 float=y maxiter=600 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=23 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000inBck3<2>MY6HT7BN85H90F9<3>93HB0IG5P<4>\ cRrgVxjZt<5>vtX<6>aL6eCLh3Z<7>XVabWZgXWWnN<5>EUM\ <6>KV8KV7J`8If9HkA<5>8xd<2>_aq<6>hoT<2>KYf<4>ed\ yZWaTOF<6>Dj9<5>hEC<6>0gTApY<7>dpW<3>Rp`WpQ`pGZpO\ YqV<2>pqt<6>SrUPrRNrQ<4>GsO<3>psS<4>StV<3>Otp<2>E\ uc_uF<3>su9suK<6>qvQOv3<6>AwLZwXwxh<7>Xyf<7>zz\ Kuzcpzv<3>7zy<4>Xzlazjezh<5>zzYszLlz8<3>Gz9<5>GzA\ VzCizD<5>6zM<2>Tz9<7>JzeIzfHzfWzMbzSpzK } frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j, k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < l } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Fri Jul 9 04:51:37 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id DAA06261 for philofractal-list; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 03:51:57 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from mail.worldcom.ch (mail1.worldcom.ch [195.61.43.205]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id DAA05814; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 03:11:07 -0500 Received: from rey (portge023.worldcom.ch [194.235.4.23]) by mail.worldcom.ch (8.9.3/8.9.3) with SMTP id KAA08355; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 10:18:15 +0200 (MET DST) Message-ID: <001001bec9e3$b74d2cc0$1704ebc2@rey> From: "=?iso-8859-1?Q?Luc-Andr=E9_Rey?=" To: , , , Subject: [philofractal] a project Date: Fri, 9 Jul 1999 10:14:43 +0200 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 4.72.3110.5 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V4.72.3110.3 Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com Hello everybody, A project. In my site, a new page : the artist of the month, with a choice of the best images. I wait your contributions. Thanks and regards Luc-Andre Rey lrey@worldcom.ch http://www.aour.ch _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sat Jul 10 01:53:53 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id AAA18319 for philofractal-list; Sat, 10 Jul 1999 00:59:41 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp1.mindspring.com (smtp1.mindspring.com [207.69.200.31]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA17642; Fri, 9 Jul 1999 23:55:38 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveiii.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.74.82]) by smtp1.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id BAA19290; Sat, 10 Jul 1999 01:02:44 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sat, 10 Jul 1999 01:02:44 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990710010410.336fe4bc@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 10-07-99 (High Midnight) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 10, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Another hot day here at Fractal Central produced a hot picture of a midget in the Z^16+C Mandeloid. Why would a simple midget be hot? -- because the nature of the high order Mandeloids makes an interesting midget a rarity. The high order Mandeloids are boring, and for good reason -- they're all the same dull circles. But now and then a respectable image can be wrung from one of these fractals. With the Z^16 figure, it's necessary to go as deep as possible if a respectable image is to be found. With a magnitude of 4e+013, today's picture is certainly deep enough. Curiously, the higher the order of the Mandeloid, the more plentiful the midgets. In today's image, midgets are everywhere. Toggle in and out of color cycling mode to see them light up like snowflakes. But unfortunately, at Z^16 the midgets are rapidly becoming circles. The most obvious midget, at lower right, is surrounded by the zig-zag features that are found near the lake edge between buds. I have named the picture "High Midnight" after the high order of the fractal and the midnight blue color scheme. The parameter file is slow enough to make a download of the image the better choice. The file is posted today in GIF format, as JPEG'ing the image produced too much distortion. The image file may be found on Usenet at: and on the W.W.W. at: As I stated above, it was hot today -- 99F (37C) -- and humid -- which made conditions perfect for fractals. The experts are predicting showers again for tomorrow, but I'm waiting eagerly to see no rain appear. I enjoy seeing experts look like bumbling neophytes. Well, that's it for today. But I've got a fractal ready for tomorrow. Check then to see the fractal, and if I'm right, to see the humiliation of the weather experts. Until then, take care, and isn't life fun with fractals around! Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com START FORMULA============================================== multirot16-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=sqr(sqr(sqr(sqr(z))))+c, |z| <= 36 } END FORMULA================================================ START PARAMETER FILE======================================= High_Midnight { ; 0:14:25.13 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot16-XY-ZW function=ident/flip passes=1 center-mag=+0.30003119379338970/+0.783\ 78551171727250/3.882413e+013/0.9995/180 params=0/0/0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=25000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=850 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000f90d90d90b90b93`93Z93Z93Y95Y95W95U95U97S\ 97S97Q97P97P99N99L99L99J9BJ9BH9BF9BF9DD9DD9DB9D99F\ 99F79F59F59H39H39H09H09J09J09J09J09L<2>09L09L0BN0B\ N0BN0DN0DN0DP0DP0FP0FP0FP0FQ0HQ0HQ0HQ0HQ0JS0JS0JS0\ JS0LS0LU0LU0LU0NU0NU0NW0NW0PW0PW0PW0PW0QY0QY0QY0SY\ 0SY0SZ0SZ0UZ0UZ0UZ0U`0W`0W`0W`0W`0Yb<2>0Yb0Zb0Zd0Z\ d0Zd0`d0`d0`f0`f0bf0bf0bf0dh0bf0bf0bf0`f0`f0`f0Zf\ <4>0Yf0Yf0Wf0Wf0Wf0Uf0Uf0Uf0Sf0Sf0Sf0Sf0Qf<3>0Pf0P\ f0Nf0Nf0Nf0Lf0Lf0Lf0Lf0Jf0Jf0Jf0Hf0Hf0Hf0Ff0Ff0Ff0\ Ff0Dd0Dd0Dd0Bd0Bd0Bd09d09d09d07d07d07d07d05d05d05\ d03d03d03d00d<23>00d00d00f00d<53>00d } END PARAMETER FILE========================================= START 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================ High_Midnight { ; 0:14:25.13 reset=1960 type=formula formulafile=multmult.frm formulaname=multirot16-XY-ZW function=ident/flip passes=1 center-mag=+0.30003119379338970/+0.783\ 78551171727250/3.882413e+013/0.9995/180 params=0/0/0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=25000 bailout=25 inside=0 logmap=850 symmetry=none periodicity=10 colors=000f90d90d90b90b93`93Z93Z93Y95Y95W95U95U97S\ 97S97Q97P97P99N99L99L99J9BJ9BH9BF9BF9DD9DD9DB9D99F\ 99F79F59F59H39H39H09H09J09J09J09J09L<2>09L09L0BN0B\ N0BN0DN0DN0DP0DP0FP0FP0FP0FQ0HQ0HQ0HQ0HQ0JS0JS0JS0\ JS0LS0LU0LU0LU0NU0NU0NW0NW0PW0PW0PW0PW0QY0QY0QY0SY\ 0SY0SZ0SZ0UZ0UZ0UZ0U`0W`0W`0W`0W`0Yb<2>0Yb0Zb0Zd0Z\ d0Zd0`d0`d0`f0`f0bf0bf0bf0dh0bf0bf0bf0`f0`f0`f0Zf\ <4>0Yf0Yf0Wf0Wf0Wf0Uf0Uf0Uf0Sf0Sf0Sf0Sf0Qf<3>0Pf0P\ f0Nf0Nf0Nf0Lf0Lf0Lf0Lf0Jf0Jf0Jf0Hf0Hf0Hf0Ff0Ff0Ff0\ Ff0Dd0Dd0Dd0Bd0Bd0Bd09d09d09d07d07d07d07d05d05d05\ d03d03d03d00d<23>00d00d00f00d<53>00d } frm:multirot16-XY-ZW {; draws 6 planes and rotations ;when fn1-2=i,f, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=O, 90,0=E, 90,90=J ;when fn1-2=f,i, then p1 0,0=M, 0,90=R, 90,0=P, 90,90=J a=real(p1)*.01745329251994, b=imag(p1)*.01745329251994, z=sin(b)*fn1(real(pixel))+sin(a)*fn2(imag(pixel))+p2, c=cos(b)*real(pixel)+cos(a)*flip(imag(pixel))+p3: z=sqr(sqr(sqr(sqr(z))))+c, |z| <= 36 } END 19.6 PAR-FORMULA FILE================================== _______ ______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ post: send message to philofractal@icd.com unsub: send "unsubscribe" to philofractal-request@icd.com admin: send comments to philofractal-owner@icd.com From owner-philofractal@icd.com Sun Jul 11 00:58:24 1999 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) id XAA29446 for philofractal-list; Sat, 10 Jul 1999 23:51:21 -0500 X-Authentication-Warning: rock.icd.com: majordomo set sender to owner-philofractal@icd.com using -f Received: from smtp5.mindspring.com (smtp5.mindspring.com [207.69.200.82]) by rock.icd.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with ESMTP id XAA28982; Sat, 10 Jul 1999 23:01:48 -0500 Received: from LOCALNAME (user-2iveihe.dialup.mindspring.com [165.247.74.46]) by smtp5.mindspring.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id AAA07067; Sun, 11 Jul 1999 00:08:59 -0400 (EDT) Date: Sun, 11 Jul 1999 00:08:59 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <1.5.4.16.19990711001026.31b72b3c@pop.mindspring.com> X-Sender: jamth@pop.mindspring.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.4 (16) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: philofractal@icd.com From: Jim Muth Subject: [philofractal] FOTD 11-07-99 (A Stray Midget) (c) Cc: fractal-art@icd.com Sender: owner-philofractal@icd.com Precedence: bulk Reply-To: philofractal@icd.com FOTD -- July 11, 1999 Fractal enthusiasts and visionaries: Today's fractal may already be a weiner. I named it "A Stray Midget" because I couldn't think of any better name to give it. The formula combines 10 parts of Z^10 with 1/10 part of 1/Z, and still manages to create a fractal. It's just one more midget from the M-Mix4 formula. The number of midgets this formula finds is truly beyond infinite. No two midgets are exactly the same, though there are certain broad rules, which I am just now becoming aware of. The parameter file is quite fast, so it might not be necessary to download the JPEG image file from: or from: It was anoth