The best representation of a thing is the thing itself and yet there are things that we experience great difficulty recognizing in their true form. The truth is one of those things. In speaking of the truth, what we have is a word—and as a representation of a thing, a word provides a label for a concept that is...
Is it possible to divide a number by zero? Conventional thinking in mathematics declares this to be impossible, but this answer is contingent on a point of view. The problem here lies in the normal interpretation of the value of the number zero; a representation of “nothing” zero is seen as more of a place holder, a...
To a curious mind, gravity is a curious phenomenon. The more one pays attention to it, the more fascinating and mysterious it becomes. Today, we have the advantage of having had great minds ponder the mystery and define what can be observed and inferred by studying it. Newton pondered the question “why do objects...
There is a line in “The Matrix” when Morpheus confronts Neo about a wrongness in the world, “like a splinter in your mind.” It was caused by an instinctive apprehension of the artificial reality he was trapped in. It is similar to a feeling many people have about our own reality. There is a wrongness in the world,...
I normally avoid the first person when writing an article or essay, but in this case I need to begin with a personal story A year into my studies at Humboldt State University a mutual acquaintance showed up at my friend’s apartment while I was visiting and regaled us with his synopsis of a lecture on dimensions he...
I’ve been scratching out ideas since the writing bug first bit me in grade school. Somewhere in the back of my mind I always had this notion that I was going to devote some part of my life to writing. Of course, I’ve spent much more time thinking, while trying to find time to get anything written! Inevitably, when the...
Is there really such a thing as time? That is a question it is helpful to ask in order to address what we call the present. That is because our experience of time is completely subjective and because everything we are is dependent on that peculiar subjectivity. Time is what we derive from the ceaseless transformation...
Those moments in life when we are confronted with a new concept or idea can be life altering, seemingly setting the mind free to roam a new and undiscovered country or even knocking the world completely off its hinges. Sometimes that can happen even with just a new word or concept for something we’ve had an inkling of...
Among the features not provided for contributors on the now-defunct Helium writer’s website was a way for readers to respond directly to the writers. While it was active, the only way for readers to respond on Helium was by posting their own thoughts on the topic at hand. Those who were so inclined were welcome to do...
Posted on Helium under: The fundamentals of self-awareness The mind is an inherently fascinating and difficult subject to pin down. Philosophers have been musing over the mysteries of the mind for thousands of years but it is, without doubt, the scientists who find it the most frustrating to study. The subjective...
In asking about the purpose of religion, it is necessary to ask first if religion is not simply a product of our own search for purpose? The answer to the primary question depends on whether we perceive religion as having a divine origin or if we see it as the origin of divine thinking. Either way, religion comes to us...