The only thing we ever do.

Why was I even alive at all ?                Most of the thinking that has been done about  communication has been in the field of  Information Technology , with the general approach being concerned with  Claude Shannon 's idea that: " The fundamental problem of communication is that of reproducing at one point either exactly or approximately a message selected at another point." This is, of course, a very reasonable approach as long as you are dealing with machines. But another fundamental problem, and one that I would argue is infinitely more important at this time, is that human beings are, very clearly, not machines.         So how does communication work in people?                 Communication always most basically works as: Information --------> Idea . (With Idea here being define...

The midnight hour is close at hand.        In December 1982,  Michael Jackson's music video for Thriller emerged from the Stygian gloom of Union Pacific Avenue and proceeded to shuffle and clap its way across the planet; with continents and cultures of all kinds succumbing to the remorseless 40,000 year old funk.       This particular viewer, however, was moved to ask: Why is this called " Thriller" when it's clearly about a horror movie?               " It is often forgotten that (dictionaries) are artificial repositories, put together well after the languages they define. The roots of language are irrational and of a magical nature. "                     - Jorge Luis Borges *               All communication always (...

      When the events that came to be collectively known as 9/11 occurred in the United States it was late night in Asia.* That night I made a phone call to my brother in China to arrange a forthcoming trip to visit him. When he answered the phone, I asked how his evening had been. He said: "We had a great night in a bar, some Chinese guy was trying to convince us that some terrorists had flown planes into the World Trade Center and that the twin towers had fallen down!"       "It's true." I said.  And since that day, pretty much the only thing that everyone agrees on is the fact that it happened. The who, what, how and why of that day however, have given rise to a much broader range of ideas.     As far as I know,* there is no-one claiming that the twin towers didn't fall down that day, and they are, in fact still there. But every other piece of information about that day has been lifted high or torn apar...

Friends nowhere to be seen....     Conspiracy theory is, most basically, an alternative explanation. It offers a different idea from that which is most widely accepted. In some conspiracy theory, no man has ever set foot upon the moon, 9-11 was organised by  Mossad , and the entire world is in thrall to the world's worst secret society: the Illuminati . 　　　  Coming into contact with conspiracy theory often elicits the question: why do people believe this stuff? A more useful question, however, would be: Why do people believe anything?                   As all communication works as info -----> idea, our ideas can only ever come from information. Traditionally, human culture naturally encourages information that supports the ideas of the ruling class and attacks and often attempts to hide information that might give rise to awkward new ideas. Children are encouraged down ...

                                                       What is it ?         This is the fundamental question, that sits atop Bela Lugosi's pyramid : and a question (like all other questions) that can produce an infinite set of responses or ideas. In order to understand something clearly we must first ask: what is it? and then attempt to produce the best idea in response. Any effort to attempt to do any of these basic steps of communication is most often greeted with bemusement or derision. It is noticable that the level of derision often increases according to the person's level of "education." Funny that.               Traditional...