<nettime> sondheimogram x4 [2x thought, greatest fears 2x, k-h clouds]

[Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>]

               [digested @ nettime --mod(tb)]

Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
     The double thought experiment of Wittgenstein (also known as the
     My greatest fears 
     My greatest fears* second part plus a vision 
     Kelvin-Helmholtz Clouds and a unique event 

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Date: Sat, 29 Nov 2008 03:07:22 -0500 (EST)
From: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: The double thought experiment of Wittgenstein (also known as the

The double thought experiment of Wittgenstein (also known as the double
earth experiment)

Imagine, says Wittgenstein, there is another earth, another thought. That
this is correlative with what you conceive of as your earth, your thought.
But there is a modicum of control from the other earth, other thought. It
may be of the order of full control, or nothing more than the slightest
influence. It is as if a door has opened between the other earth, other
thought, into what you think of as your earth, your thought. As if it were
a matter of scale. But that something you think, you might think as a
result of the other earth, other thought, has been taken from you. That it
is not as it was or might have been. There is the matter of free will, you
think, if there is such an other earth, other thought. But the correlative
or influence may well depend on free will, may be integrative with free
will, that perhaps free will has shifted to the other earth, other
thought. Or the other earth, other thought has shifted free will upon
yourself, not only for all intents and purposes, but also for all physical
experiments and measurements, as if such a thing were possible. That is,
everything you might think or do would appear to one which is to say, to
you, as if there were free will, which would be no contradiction, i.e. it
would be the same or identical with free will. You may in fact have this
thought on this earth, that there is an other earth, other thought, as if
the other earth, other thought permitted you this earth and this thought.
And so you remain at an impasse and Wittgenstein says, this impasse is all
the same, it is all there is, as he has said elsewhere, it is all that is
the case.

(When he says this, it is as if a door opens, into space, a very ordinary
door in fact.

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Date: Sat, 29 Nov 2008 03:35:26 -0500 (EST)
From: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: My greatest fears 


My greatest fears


That I will die.
That I will die and not be able to help Azure or others I love, that doom
hangs over everything.
That I will slowly lose the use of my limbs.
That I will be unable to walk and will witness my body splitting off from
me, signaling back, permanently and to no avail.
That there will be nothing to do about this, that it will be both
intolerable and inexorable.
That one day I will notice my piss turning red and that will be the start
of a spiral downward, one that I will see clearly.
That my mind will give out and I won't be able to work with originality.
That I will harbor a tumor which will be other and it will attempt to
welcome me as a friend, through masquerade, fraud, and duplicity.
That I will never see how anything turns out.
That my work will disappear unknown and unappreciated.
That the unity and philosophical force behind my work will not be evident,
that it will appear as if all I did was write scattered thoughts and bad
aphorisms.
That the brilliant excitement of working virtually within the real and
really within the virtual will never be evident as well.
That I will be treated as old and out of date, that my work will always
already have been seen as such.
That my fears will overtake me, and I will never have a pleasant or
peaceful day again.
That my sight will continue to grow worse until I am blind and feeble, and
cannot read or think clearly.
That my tinnitus will increase until I am deaf and no longer can make my
thoughts and feelings, wants and desires, empathies and givings, known to
anyone.
That I will know I am dying and watch the darkness seep down and drown me.
That my mind and body will become a shell of the fear of dying.
That I will not have the time to take pleasure in the small amount of
success I am now having.
That I will notice a sore that will not heal.
That I will find things permanently slipping away.
That forgetfulness and absent mindedness will turn into wooly and
suffocating thought.
That I will be seen as an object of pity or one whose talent remains
unfulfilled.
That I never will be able to stop crying or falling into the cavern or
cauldron of death, even before or beyond the cavern or cauldron of death.
That I will no longer be able to breathe.
That I will no longer be able to play music or sound with the skill I now
possess.
That I will no longer recognize musical instruments as a source of
pleasure or a source of music or sound.
That I will repeat myself without knowing I am repeating myself.
That I will repeat myself as if I were in prison without recompense,
creativity, or originality.
That I will die slowly of cancer, unable to eat, starving myself, slowly
withdrawing from the gaze and concern of others.
That I will not be able to stop this withdrawing.
That I will die in such pain that thought itself will be cauterized.
That I will go insane wondering what Azure sees, even just moments or
seconds, after I am dead.
That I will be forced to continually recognize the absence of spirit and
the absence of care I can no longer give, well before, and up to, the
moment of my death.
That I cannot give my death as a gift to others.
That I will go insane in any case as time approaches a limit veering ever
closer no matter what I do and how I live and think.
That I will be lost in remedies that never work and never will work.
That my death will foretell at the last moment of consciousness the
meaninglessness of my life and the life of others, no matter how much
meaning appears to be shored up elsewhere, elsewise.
That my thinking and my work will be treated as without worthy of
consideration.
That my thinking and my work will be treated as of another and older
generation already receding into the past.
That my thinking and work will not be thought of as current or relevant to
the work and thinking of others.
That I will observe myself transformed into substance, losing sentience,
mumbling without response.
That my limbs and thoughts will become, without my knowledge, phantom
limbs and thoughts.
That I will be too old to learn anything new.
That my learning will be repetitive, as if it were learning something new
every time, but in reality only endlessly, uselessly, repeating.
That my deepest fears are always already in a state of hopeless realiza-
tion.
That I will die already having the fullest knowledge, not of death, but of
dying, and that this knowledge is contributory towards my death through
unfathomable darkness and depression.
That I will be destroyed.
That I will die a violent and painful death.
That pain will invade my consciousness and I will beg for death.
That I will never go beyond the suffering of the world.
That every little thing will continue to reveal its suffering to me.
That I will never see how things come out.
That I will die.

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Date: Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:36:22 -0500 (EST)
From: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
To: nettime-l@kein.org
Subject: My greatest fears* second part plus a vision 

My greatest fears* second part plus a vision


That we will remain unemployed.
That we will become homeless.
That we will huddle screaming in the dark.
That I will not be able to help Azure, so much darkness surrounds me.
That Azure will tire of my despair, depression, regrets, insomnia, age,
obsessiveness, irritability, illness, hysteria, exhaustion.
That I will become a burden to Azure.
That I will be withdrawn from working online as my equipment fails and I
cannot replace it.
That we will not be able to afford healthcare.**
That I will helplessly witness my own desecration.**
That I will die in pain.**

But then there are visions, from today, New Mexico:

http://www.alansondheim.org/thevision1.jpg
http://www.alansondheim.org/thevision2.jpg
http://www.alansondheim.org/thevision3.jpg
http://www.alansondheim.org/thevision4.jpg
http://www.alansondheim.org/thevision5.jpg

Of which I have not seen before, small miracles (harboring (despair),
nonetheless, small miracles.

**A friend of mine lay in his own filth in a hospital bed, screaming in
pain, before he was taken to a hospice to die.


*My greatest fears


That I will die.
That I will die and not be able to help Azure or others I love, that doom
hangs over everything.
That I will slowly lose the use of my limbs.
That I will be unable to walk and will witness my body splitting off from
me, signaling back, permanently and to no avail.
That there will be nothing to do about this, that it will be both
intolerable and inexorable.
That one day I will notice my piss turning red and that will be the start
of a spiral downward, one that I will see clearly.
That my mind will give out and I won't be able to work with originality.
That I will harbor a tumor which will be other and it will attempt to
welcome me as a friend, through masquerade, fraud, and duplicity.
That I will never see how anything turns out.
That my work will disappear unknown and unappreciated.
That the unity and philosophical force behind my work will not be evident,
that it will appear as if all I did was write scattered thoughts and bad
aphorisms.
That the brilliant excitement of working virtually within the real and
really within the virtual will never be evident as well.
That I will be treated as old and out of date, that my work will always
already have been seen as such.
That my fears will overtake me, and I will never have a pleasant or
peaceful day again.
That my sight will continue to grow worse until I am blind and feeble, and
cannot read or think clearly.
That my tinnitus will increase until I am deaf and no longer can make my
thoughts and feelings, wants and desires, empathies and givings, known to
anyone.
That I will know I am dying and watch the darkness seep down and drown me.
That my mind and body will become a shell of the fear of dying.
That I will not have the time to take pleasure in the small amount of
success I am now having.
That I will notice a sore that will not heal.
That I will find things permanently slipping away.
That forgetfulness and absent mindedness will turn into wooly and
suffocating thought.
That I will be seen as an object of pity or one whose talent remains
unfulfilled.
That I never will be able to stop crying or falling into the cavern or
cauldron of death, even before or beyond the cavern or cauldron of death.
That I will no longer be able to breathe.
That I will no longer be able to play music or sound with the skill I now
possess.
That I will no longer recognize musical instruments as a source of
pleasure or a source of music or sound.
That I will repeat myself without knowing I am repeating myself.
That I will repeat myself as if I were in prison without recompense,
creativity, or originality.
That I will die slowly of cancer, unable to eat, starving myself, slowly
withdrawing from the gaze and concern of others.
That I will not be able to stop this withdrawing.
That I will die in such pain that thought itself will be cauterized.
That I will go insane wondering what Azure sees, even just moments or
seconds, after I am dead.
That I will be forced to continually recognize the absence of spirit and
the absence of care I can no longer give, well before, and up to, the
moment of my death.
That I cannot give my death as a gift to others.
That I will go insane in any case as time approaches a limit veering ever
closer no matter what I do and how I live and think.
That I will be lost in remedies that never work and never will work.
That my death will foretell at the last moment of consciousness the
meaninglessness of my life and the life of others, no matter how much
meaning appears to be shored up elsewhere, elsewise.
That my thinking and my work will be treated as without worthy of
consideration.
That my thinking and my work will be treated as of another and older
generation already receding into the past.
That my thinking and work will not be thought of as current or relevant to
the work and thinking of others.
That I will observe myself transformed into substance, losing sentience,
mumbling without response.
That my limbs and thoughts will become, without my knowledge, phantom
limbs and thoughts.
That I will be too old to learn anything new.
That my learning will be repetitive, as if it were learning something new
every time, but in reality only endlessly, uselessly, repeating.
That my deepest fears are always already in a state of hopeless realiza-
tion.
That I will die already having the fullest knowledge, not of death, but of
dying, and that this knowledge is contributory towards my death through
unfathomable darkness and depression.
That I will be destroyed.
That I will die a violent and painful death.
That pain will invade my consciousness and I will beg for death.
That I will never go beyond the suffering of the world.
That every little thing will continue to reveal its suffering to me.
That I will never see how things come out.
That I will die.

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Date: Mon, 1 Dec 2008 11:05:59 -0500 (EST)
From: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: Kelvin-Helmholtz Clouds and a unique event 

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--0-2072759147-1228112212=:19180
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Kelvin-Helmholtz clouds


Kelvin-Helmholtz instability

(Of all the cloud phenomena I've seen, this is the most beautiful. It's als=
o=20
remarkable - the vortices were astonishing and more defined than in other=
=20
examples. In addition there was an unique event perhaps previously unrecord=
ed -=20
a 180 degree rotation between left and right wave-trains.)

Video at http://www.alansondheim.org/kh.mov (series of stills 1 fps).
Separate images up for a short time - kh jpgs, 1600 x 1200 resolution.
Photographed in northern New Mexico off Interstate 25.


From=20Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A KHI on the planet Saturn, formed at the interaction of two bands of the
planet's atmosphere [see article at Wikipedia]


A KH instability rendered visible by clouds over Mount Duval in Australia
Kelvin=C2=96Helmholtz instability can occur when velocity shear is present
within a continuous fluid or, when there is sufficient velocity difference
across the interface between two fluids. One example is a wind blowing
over a water surface, where the wind causes the relative motion between
the stratified layers (i.e. water and air.) The instability will manifest
itself in the form of waves being generated on the water surface. The
theory can be used to predict the onset of instability and transition to
turbulent flow in fluids of different densities moving at various speeds.
Hermann von Helmholtz studied the dynamics of two fluids of different
densities when a small disturbance such as a wave is introduced at the
boundary connecting the fluids.

For some short enough wavelengths, if surface tension can be ignored, two
fluids in parallel motion with different velocities and densities will
yield an interface that is unstable for all speeds. The existence of
surface tension stabilises the short wavelength instability however, and
theory then predicts stability until a velocity threshold is reached. The
theory with surface tension included broadly predicts the onset of wave
formation in the important case of wind over water.

For a continuously-varying distribution of density and velocity, (with the
lighter layers uppermost, so the fluid is RT-stable), the onset of the KH
instability is given by a suitably-defined Richardson number, Ri.

Typically the layer is unstable for Ri<0.25. These effects are quite
common in cloud layers. Also the study of this instability becomes
applicable to inertial confinement fusion and the plasma-beryllium
interface.


From=20the Cloud Appreciation Society


The classic 1964 surfing documentary, The Endless Summer, followed the
adventures of three surfers traveling from Malibu to Ghana, via Nigeria,
Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, and Hawaii in search of the perfect wave.
Cloudspotters can experience their own perfect wave too, without ever
having to leave home - all they need is a lot of patience. The only down
side to the ultimate aerial breaker, is that it has the particularly
un-hip name of the "Kelvin-Helmholtz cloud."

The breaking waveforms of "Kelv-Helmz" (as they aren't known) are the
result of shearing winds up at cloud level. A particular type of
turbulence can develop in a layer of Cirrus cloud, which happens to form
below an inversion* between air currents of differing speeds and/or
directions. Sea waves break as their bases are slowed down upon reaching
shallow water and their crests surge ahead. Cloud waves break in the same
way: when their crests are pushed ahead of their troughs by the difference
in air currents.

Though spotter-dudes won=C2=92t have to cross the world to see this formati=
on,
those in search of the perfect Kelvin-Helmholtz will have to wait a while.
This most beautiful and transient of formations may appear over most
regions of the world but it only ever does so on the rarest of occasions.

*An inversion is a region where air temperatures change with altitude in
such a way as to act as an invisible "ceiling" that stops clouds from
rising through it.
--0-2072759147-1228112212=:19180--

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