Metaphorical Understanding
Inconsistencies at the boundaries of Metaphor
In the many articles that constitute this monograph, the Author has drawn parallels between the inferential structure of subatomics, information info packets, music and human cognition. As with every other verbal abstraction, the relationships are metaphorical in nature. And with every metaphorical relationship, the fit is never exact. There are always inconsistencies at the boundary lines. The edges get weird.
What is the nature of the Metaphorical Relationship?
There is a tendency to ask whether the relationship is correct or not? For instance, is the photon really an info packet? This question ignores the innate inexactitude of metaphor. The proper questions are: What is the nature of the metaphorical linkage? How extensive are the correspondences? Where do they sync up? Where does the metaphorical relationship break down? Are there enough linkages to warrant making a connection at all?
Metaphors: how we understand experience
As an example, how close is the inferential structure of auditory info packets to the inferential structure of subatomic entities? Where does the relationship break down? Not, does the relationship break down? Metaphorical relationships are never exact. But this is all we have to understand our world.
Literary Metaphor based upon superficial similarities
In other words, a metaphorical relationship can be strong, weak, or even non-existent. In general, literary metaphors are weak because they rely on superficial similarities for the linkage. As an example, let’s examine the expression: “He’s a gem.” This statement only suggests that this person is valuable or precious. It has nothing to do with any other characteristics of the gem.
Conceptual Metaphor based upon common inferential structure
On the other hand, cognitive science's conceptual metaphor is based in a similar inferential structure. Humans, regularly and inadvertently form conceptual metaphor to understand our world. However, this logical relationship is established, not generally on conscious levels, but via what the cognitive scientists call ‘unconscious cognition’. This is a fancy name for subconscious thought processes.
Conceptual Meta-for: Logical Structure ‘above’ the Facts
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‘Meta-for’: An understanding from ‘Outside’ the facts
From a ‘fun’ perspective, the term metaphor could be viewed as a ‘meta-for’. ‘Meta-for’ indicates an über understanding of an event (a comprehension from above). Instead of just describing what happens, there is an understanding of the causal mechanisms behind the event. For instance, a description of a bank robbery would just include the basic facts of the event. A meta–description might also include the cultural context and personal background of the robber – for instance, extreme poverty, racial alienation, and perhaps a dash of broken family. The understanding is ‘outside’ the basic facts.
Common Logical structure is ‘outside’ the process.
The literary metaphor is based upon superficial similarities. The conceptual metaphor of cognitive science is based upon linkages of the inferential structure between 2 processes. Because of the linkage of underlying logic, the second participates in the fun meaning of metaphor. The correspondences are based upon logic – something that is ‘outside’ the actual processes.
Purpose to determine where metaphor breaks down
However, no metaphorical relationship is exact. The purpose of this essay is to illustrate where the metaphorical relationship between music (auditory info packets) and subatomics breaks down.
Music & Subatomics: common features
In this monograph, the Author has developed a metaphorical relationship between subatomic behavior and info packets of sound. In this case, the auditory info packets are not sound waves, but are instead words and notes – sound that has meaning for some form of Life. Because music epitomizes the notion of info packets, we will frequently substitute the term ‘music’ for the clumsier ‘auditory info packets’ in the following discussion. This terminology is not meant to exclude info packets of language. It is just an abbreviation.
Subatomics & Music: Meaning in Information, not permanent essence
Subatomics and info packets share many features in common. Words and music consists of transitory pulses of information that exist through time. Similarly, electrons and photons also seem to be pulses of information that exist through time. Further, the meaning of sound and the subatomics is based in information, not in permanent essence.
Subatomics & Music: Content secondary to Context
Physicists employ spinning probability amplitudes, event arrows, to determine the behavior of light. Similarly, we can see how the spin on the information contained in words and music influences human behavior. Delivery and context make a difference in how something is received. This difference is independent of content. For both subatomics and music, content is secondary to context.
Subatomics & Musical Meaning: Only become Real with the Event
The meaning of music and words only becomes real in the listening. In similar fashion, the subatomics only become real in the measurement. The info packets of music interfere and resonate with each other to create meaning for the listener. Similarly, the photon's info packets interact with each other to generate interference patterns for the experimenter.
Subatomics have more in common with Musical Info Packets than Atom-based Particles.
These similarities are particularly significant because the particles and waves of our atom-based world do not possess these characteristics. Despite the many differences between the subatomic world and our atom-based world, the scientific community persists on categorizing subatomics as particles. The many metaphorical correspondences suggest that subatomics are better thought of as info packets.
The Info Packet Metaphor
3 Elements
Our info packets are based upon the inferential structure of the Info Packet metaphor. As discussed elsewhere, our Info Packet metaphor has 3 elements: Source, Receiver, & Informational Meaning. The process is basic. Informational Meaning is transmitted from a Source to a Receiver.
Info Packet metaphor does not apply to Electronic Information Processing.
This structure might seem to apply to electronic processing. It doesn’t. Electronic processing only transmits the content of the information. This is why exact transmission is so important in traditional information theory. Transmitted information does not have any innate meaning. Humans derive meaning from the transmitted information.
Info Packet metaphor: Meaning transmitted, not Content
Conversely, in our sound-based Info Packet metaphor the meaning of the information is transmitted, rather than just the content. To extract meaning from information, the Receiver must digest, rather than just process the information. Rather than exact duplication, the information digestion process entails discarding an abundance of information in pursuit of the information’s essence – its meaning to the Receiver. Because meaning is subjective, the information’s essence in this context is not absolute.
Let’s apply these constructs to our discussion and observe what they reveal.
Metaphorical Breakdown: Humans, a vital part of the Info Packet Metaphor
Humans, not Machines, are the Receivers in Info Packet Metaphor
In the case of subatomics, the Receiver of the results is the measuring device, perhaps a photo-multiplier, at least on simplistic levels. In terms of our Info Packet metaphor, meaning is conveyed between transmitter and receiver. A machine, such as a photomultiplier, does not understand meaning. The real receiver in this case is the human who attributes some kind of meaning to say for instance the sound from the photomultiplier.
Metaphorical breakdown: Scientist required to provide subatomics with meaning.
This is one place our Info Packet metaphor breaks down. We’ve attempted to understand the behavior of subatomics via the info packets of sound. Yet the subatomic world has no meaning without humans. Meaning is a unique feature of living matter. Inert matter, such as the subatomics, reacts automatically to environmental circumstances. An atom or a photon does not attribute meaning to an event. The scientist is a vital part of the Info Packet metaphor. In this auditory context, the subatomics don’t have an independent existence.
Breakdown: Subatomics & Sounds Waves go on forever; Transmission Ends
With our data stream of sound, the words or notes immediately disappear upon completion of the transmission. Although the sound waves may go on forever, they don't exist in terms of the metaphor once the listener has received them. In similar fashion, subatomics go on forever, as does the entire material universe. It might change from one form to another – energy to matter or electron to photon, but the material world is indestructible. However in terms of the human scientists who attribute meaning to the abstract reading of their instruments, the photon or electron that triggered the measurement doesn't exist anymore. While the electron-photon exchanges go on forever, the photon has made its mark in terms of the experimenter and has gone its merry way – outside the info transmission process.
Scientist, a vital part of Info Packet metaphor
Although we can understand subatomics in terms of info transmission via sound, the scientist is a vital part of the metaphor. Subatomics disappear for the scientist once they’ve transmitted their information. Similarly music disappears once the listener has heard it. In other words, the Info Packet metaphor doesn’t apply to physical sound or subatomics independent of the humans that provide meaning to the events.
Scientific context determines Instantaneous Subatomic Meaning
An essential feature of the Info Packet metaphor is context. Context is required to provide meaning. The context of the scientist determines the content of the subatomic. In other words, the experiment determines what type of info the electron or photon will transmit, for instance wave or particle-like behavior – position or trajectory. The scientist with the information from his machines determines this instantaneous meaning. But the subatomic info packets keep bouncing around, changing into this and that perpetually.
Musical context developed over Time, not Subatomic Meaning.
While context also determines the meaning of music, the context is developed over time. A memory of what went before and an anticipation of what is coming next are required to provide the meaning of a single note or the tiny sounds that comprise words. In contrast, the scientific meaning assigned to subatomic results has very little, if anything, to do with the ongoing temporal context. Although the photon gives up info in each sub-event, the intermittent moments have nothing to do with the meaning. In brief, the context of musical meaning emerges over time, while subatomic meaning is instantaneous. Another metaphorical inconsistency.
Auditory Meaning independent of Physical Sound; Scientific Meaning dependent on Subatomic Results
Although physical sounds evoke the meaning of words or music, the human-provided meaning is independent of the actual sounds. The sounds don’t have any innate meaning associated with them. As evidence, each culture interprets the tiny sounds of language in a unique way. Stated another way, Meaning in the sound-based Info Packet metaphor is independent of physical sounds. In contrast, the photon’s content is directly linked to the click of the photomultiplier. This is yet another way that our metaphorical relationship between sound and subatomics is not exact.
Scientist linked to Subatomic Meaning, just as Listener linked to Musical Meaning
According to this analysis, the scientist in integrally linked to the meaning of the subatomics just as the listener is linked to the meaning of the concert or lecture. While subatomics and sound waves have an independent existence, although transitory existence, humans determine their meaning. Similarly, the Living Algorithm’s rates of change, the derivatives, have no meaning except that which living systems impart. Hence the Info Packet metaphor does not apply to subatomics, auditory info packets, or the Living Algorithm without a human to provide meaning. As such, the subjective Observer is an inherent part of the Transmission process.
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