[microsound] Beyond Numbers

[David Powers]

Adam,

I think you are making some fundamental philosophical mistakes.

You write: 'Thus, postposthuman "cyclo-anarchic" technology that will
allow for the breaking out of feedback and currently inescapable
cycles.'

However, you are misapplying the concepts of FEEDBACK and CYCLES.

*FEEDBACK is not of a single type. Feedback can lead to growth, death,
or homeostasis. Feedback loops are a part of nature. We cannot say
that any of these things are "bad" except insofar as we examine the
particular consequences and context wherein the feedback occurs. Not
only that, but FEEDBACK loops can certainly lead to instability and
chaos, so I am not sure why they are associated with "inescapable
cycles."

*Furthermore, CYCLES are not the same thing as FEEDBACK. Neither is it
necessarily a problem that cycles are "inescapable." Cycles are a part
of our human experience and of nature. The cycle of the four seasons
can be experienced joyfully when we live in harmony with nature. If
you are speaking of the cycles imposed by capitalism, you might have a
point. However, capitalism in fact attempts to create purely linear
growth, and cycles are more the unintended consequence of a complex
system that the capitalists don't entirely understand. Henri LeFebvre
differentiates between two types of rhythm, linear, that is to say
repetitive, like a series of identical actions performed by a worker
using a machine on the factory assembly line, and cyclic, which is
more associated with waves and natural patterns, including patterns of
our body (such as awake-asleep).

You also wrote: "To break out of number is to break out of
infinity...is to break out of feedback and endless contradiction."

As far as INFINITY, this sounds too speculative and I'm going to leave
that one alone. Suffice it to say that my existence as a finite being
in an unknown and vast universe is not problematic to me.

WIth regards to "breaking out of feedback," my previous comments
apply. In fact, feedback often leads to chaotic patterns, so feedback
breaks out of itself through its own internal energy. You must be
thinking only of feedback loops tending towards homeostasis.

Finally, in regards to endless contradiction, have you given thought
to dialectics? Dialectics is essentially a non-dualistic view of
logic, in its simplistic form stating that THESIS and ANTI-THESIS may
be resolved in a SYNTHESIS that transcends the two terms. Dialectics
implies endless contradiction, certainly, but recognizes that
contradiction may be historical and that under certain conditions
contradictions are transcended, growth occurs, new forms take shape,
and new contradictions appear that reflect the new historical
situation.

Only in a universe devoid of history are we doomed to repeat the same
ad infinitum. But surely history does take place. A universe without
history is imposed on us by those who can only realize their profits
via maintaining conformity and the status quo. If the future is open,
how can one be certain of making a profit? The closed universe is
necessary for those who wish control over society and nature. Those
who live in harmony with nature, who relinquish the idea of absolute
control through technological and economic means, should not buy into
the myth that history is at an end. We are doomed to repeat the same,
only because we are unaware of our freedom to do otherwise.

It might be wise to recall the words of Walter Benjamin here: "It is
well-known that the Jews were forbidden to look into the future. The
Torah and the prayers instructed them, by contrast, in remembrance.
This disenchanted those who fell prey to the future, who sought advice
from the soothsayers. For that reason the future did not, however,
turn into a homogenous and empty time for the Jews. For in it every
second was the narrow gate, through which the Messiah could enter."

~David

On Wed, Oct 7, 2009 at 9:36 AM, Adam Davis <technohead3d at googlemail.com> wrote:
> Friends,
>
> Branching out from the interesting "Bach and Mathematics" thread, I wanted
> to share with you my personal expression of mathematics and music:
>
> Everything as fundamentally number, infinitely. Thus, to react against this
> via, say, extreme postposthuman innovations:
>
> Numbers <-------------------->
> Anti-numeralism/trans-numeralism/infra-numeralism
>
> However:
>
> "Numbers <--------------------> Anti-numbers"...a duality, thus 2!
>
> Number/anti-number duality feeding back to number. Thus, postposthuman
> "cyclo-anarchic" technology that will allow for the breaking out of feedback
> and currently inescapable cycles.
>
> ~
>
> To break out of number is to break out of infinity...is to break out of
> feedback and endless contradiction.
>
> Earlier versions of this concept can be found as illustrations here:
>
> http://www.hpluscommunity.com/photo/dsc02154-1?context=album&albumId=2899471%3AAlbum%3A7110
>
> And here:
>
> http://www.hpluscommunity.com/photo/cycle-1?context=album&albumId=2899471%3AAlbum%3A7110
>
> Best wishes,
> Adam
>
>
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