DEEP SCRATCH

Author: flyagaric23

  • Preface to ‘The Mayan Letters by CHarles Olson.

    For me, and my world right now (9th December 2012) Charles Olson and his book ‘The Mayan Letters’ makes perfect sense.

    Here’s the preface:

    Preface to Mayan Letters

    by Charles Olson

    Sometime toward the end of 1950, it was in December I think, but the letter isn’t dated, I heard that Charles Olson was off to Yucatan. A sudden “fluke”—the availability of some retirement money owed him from past work as a mail carrier—gave him enough for the trip, “not much but a couple of hundred, sufficient, to GO, be, THERE. . . .” By February I had got another letter, “have just this minute opened this machine in this house lerma. . . .” From that time on I heard from him regularly, and so was witness to one of the most incisive experiences ever recorded. Obviously it is very simple to call it that, that is, what then happened, and what Olson made of his surroundings and himself. Otherwise, it is necessary to remember that Olson had already been moving in this direction, back to a point of origin which would be capable of extending “history” in a new and more usable sense. In his book on Melville, Call Me Ishmael , he had made the statement, “we are the last first people . . .”; and in his poetry, most clearly in “The Kingfishers,” there was constant emphasis on the need to break with the too simple westernisms of a ‘greek culture.’
    Yucatan made the occasion present in a way that it had not been before. The alternative to a generalizing humanism was locked, quite literally, in the people immediately around him, and the conception, that there had been and could be a civilization anterior to that which he had come from, was no longer conjecture, it was fact. He wrote me, then, “I have no doubt, say, that the American will
    Charles Olson, Mayan Letters (Bañalbufar, Mallorca: Divers Press, 1953).
    ― 103 ―
    more and more repossess himself of the Indian past. . . . If you and I see the old deal as dead (including Confucius, say), at the same time that we admit the new is of the making of our own lives & references, yet, there is bound to be a tremendous pick-up from history other than that which has been usable as reference, the moment either that history is restored (Sumer, or, more done, Chichen or Uaxactun) or rising people (these Indians, as camposinos ripe for Communist play—as ripe as were the Chinese, date 1921, June 30). . . .” The problem was, to give form, again, to what the Maya had been—to restore the “history” which they were. For in the Maya was the looked-for content: a reality which is “wholly formal without loss of intimate spaces, with the ball still snarled, yet, with a light (and not stars) and a heat (not androgyne) which declares, the persistence of both organism and will (human). . . .”
    In editing the present selection, I have tried to maintain a continuity in spite of the limits of space and the loss of some letters which it has meant. I have indicated excisions with dots ( . . .), whenever such were necessary.
    February 12, 1953

  • Fattening Blogs For Snakes (a John Sinclair blog)

    Fattening Blogs For Snakes (a John Sinclair blog)

    Music, radio shows, reviews, movies, photography, flyers, poetry, art, painting. Orbiting the constellation of John Sinclair.

    Kept by steve fly agaric 23.

  • Open Source History (a novel)

     
    • first draft.
    • V.2.0.
    • Google sites
    • Lulu.com
    • Started November 2008. Amsterdam.

  • Giordano Bruno was so right so long ago, yo.

    The Italian priest Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in 1600 for, among other things, imagining an infinite number of other worlds and claiming that “innumerable suns exist; innumerable earths revolve about these suns.”

    Modern astronomers are proving Bruno right – there really are innumerable suns with innumerable planets revolving around them.

    An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside our solar system. As of early September, a total of 836 exoplanets have been found. Astronomers now believe that more than half of all sunlike stars harbor at least one planet, leading to the estimate of at least 160 billion exoplanets in our own Milky Way galaxy.

    http://azstarnet.com/news/local/east/scientist-will-explore-probability-of-other-earths-at-free-talk/article_279ca0f6-cba3-5627-8193-c4a443bbc79f.html

    “
    An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside the Solar System. A total of 839 such planets (in 662 planetary systems, including 125 multiple planetary systems) have been identified as of October 5, 2012.[1] Estimates of the frequency of systems strongly suggest that more than 50% of Sun-like stars harbor at least one planet.[2] In a 2012 study, each star of the 100 billion or so in our Milky Way galaxy is estimated to host “on average … at least 1.6 planets.”[3][4] Accordingly, at least 160 billion star-bound planets may exist in the Milky Way Galaxy alone.[3][4] Unbound free-floating planetary-mass bodies in the Milky Way may number in the trillions, with 100,000 objects larger than Pluto for every main-sequence star.[5] 


  • Straight from the horses mouth: RAW interviews from Rawilsonfans.com

    The Illuminatus! Play with Shea, March 1977
    High Times by Michael Hollingshead, April 1980
    Future Life, Sept 1981
    Lewis Shiner, c. 1980s
    Compuserve Online Conference,  1986
    The Nature of Reality,  December 1990
    KBOO-FM, c.1990
    The ROC, Aug 1990
    published in Cosmic Trigger Volume 2
    EST, Feb 1991
    High Times, November 1991
    Off the Beaten Path, April 1992
    The Death Interviews with Timothy Leary, Summer 1994
    RAW Circuits, Spring 1995
    On a Rainy Day, March 1995
    The F Stops Here, October 1997
    Booklist, May 15, 1999
    RAW Power, 1999
    DOUBT!, Winter 1999
    The TVI Times, May, 2001
    Utopia USA, Feb,  2001
    Fly, September 2002
    In the RAW, 2003
    High Times, March 2003
    Russian ‘zine, April 2005
    “One of the central features of Confucianism is courtesy, which is one of the most lacking qualities in American society.  Politeness.  I’m not even talking about ethics.  But the funny thing is that if you make a habit of politeness, you naturally become more ethical.”   –    Science fiction author, conspiracy theorist and Capitola resident Robert Anton Wilson from from “Say what? Quotes from 2003 that made us angry, made us laugh and made us go, Hmm …” Santa Cruz Sentinel, Staff Report,  31 Dec 2003.
    Find more interviews in Audio and Video.

  • RAW and the Great Beast

    http://www.rawilsonfans.com/articles/GreatBeast.htm
    The Great Beast – Aleister Crowley
    by Robert Anton Wilson
    from Paul Krassner’s The Realist, issues 91-B, C, 92-A, B (1971-2)
    _______________
    return to RAW Fans
    O – The Fool
    All ways are lawful to innocence. Pure folly is the key to initiation.          – The Book of Thoth
       Crowley: Pronounced with a crow so it rhymes with holy: Edward Alexander Crowley, b. 1875 d. 1947, known as Aleister Crowley, known also as Sir Aleister Crowley, Saint Aleister Crowley (of the Gnostic Catholic Church), Frater Perdurabo, Frater Ou Mh, To Mega Therion, Count McGregor, Count Vladimir Svareff, Chao Khan, Mahatma Guru Sri Paramahansa Shivaji, Baphomet, and Ipsissimus; obviously, a case of the ontological fidgets – couldn’t make up his mind who he really was; chiefly known as The Beast 666 or The Great Beast; friends and disciples celebrated his funeral with a Black Mass: or so the newspapers said.

    RAW

  • the Tale of the tribe as a blueprint for Artificial General Intellgence

     

    listening to some of the ideas and descriptions of Artificial General Intellgence, I thought that the holistic approach of combining many differemt disciplines, reflects RAW’s comprehensive group of intelligence engineers in The tale of the tribe.

    RAW asked what these characters and internet have in common? I am formulating a new set of answers based upon general purpose computing. And a new way of seeing the back of your head.

  • When ‘Livvylong’ is Chinese

    Finnegans Wake, a hugely complicated work by Irish author James Joyce, will get a receptionfrom Chinese readers in September.
    The first volume of Finnegans Wake was translated by Dai Congrong, a Chinese language andliterature professor of Fudan University, and will be published by Shanghai People’s PublishingHouse.
    “I was aware about how tough it would be from the very beginning,” Dai says.
    “Yet without Chinese translation, the book would remain a mystery for Chinese readers,especially those who love James Joyce.”
    Dai says she spent 10 years translating the work. And this is just the first volume.
    At a recent seminar about the Chinese edition of Finnegans Wake, Dai shared her experience oftranslating the book with a group of scholars from the literature department of Chinese Academyof Social Sciences.
    In the translated work, Dai keeps about half of the author’s original words, and has put downevery possible meaning of some complicated words that have rich meanings as footnotes.
    “Many words in this book have very rich meanings, and that’s why people find it hard to get itright,” Dai says. “As a translator, I think I tried to not translate each word and sentence, onlybased on my own understanding. This way, we can leave more space for the readers.”
    She says the footnotes are equally important as Joyce’s original text, as they show the author’sopen-mindedness and diversity.
    Joyce, an Irish novelist and poet, is considered one of the most influential writers in themodernist avant-garde of the early 20th century.
    Finnegans Wake, which Joyce worked on for 17 years in his later years, is a work of comicfiction and significant for its experimental style.
    The book is also known as the most difficult work in English literature. Upon writing the book,Joyce once said that it would take people 300 years to fully understand its meaning.
    While a French translation of the book took 30 years and the German version took 19 years, ittook Dai just a decade to translate the first volume.
    “In order to grasp its meaning, I had to break up each word and study it individually, as the bookis full of word combinations that Joyce created,” she says. “For example, the word ‘livvylong’ canbe understood as ‘Livvy is a long river’, or as ‘life long’.”
    More than 10 scholars attended the discussion and shared their opinions on the translatededition.
    Liu Yiqing, an English teacher from Peking University, thinks the book should not only considerreaders who are Joyce experts.
    “There is still something we can improve in the way the footnotes are presented,” she says. “While putting every possible meaning in Chinese into the text, it will break the integrity of thestory. We should make it a story that is also interesting for college students to read andunderstand.”
    Zhang Yu, a 26-year-old student who studied comparative literature during her postgraduatestudies, says she heard about Finnegans Wake at university, but was taken aback by theabnormal writing style and found it difficult to understand.
    “I am very much looking forward to the translated version in Chinese, even though there may beobstacles,” she says.
    Wang Weisong, editor-in-chief of Shanghai People’s Publishing House, says readership of theChinese translation mainly focuses on Chinese scholars who study Joyce’s works.
    But they also hope that all fans of Joyce will love the book.
    zhangyue@chinadaily.com.cn
    (China Daily 09/18/2012 page19)

  • Fly Agaric: Look but don’t touch (Highland News)

    I Love this article from Highland News! –fly

    Look but don’t touch “Alice in Wonderland” toadstool

    By Laurence Ford

    Keep a weather eye out for fly agaric.

    Keep a weather eye out for fly agaric.

    PEOPLE across the Highlands are being asked to look out for one of the most recognisable, highly toxic and mind-altering toadstools.
    The distinctive red and white fly agaric is said to have inspired both Alice in Wonderland author Lewis Caroll’s hookah-smoking caterpillar and the colours of Santa’s suit – but is also a useful indicator of the changing seasons.
    Now, Woodland Trust Scotland is asking people to keep an eye out for fly agaric (Amanita muscaria), the classic red and white spotted toadstool, during walks and record any sightings online.
    Fly agaric is widespread throughout the UK and commonly found on light soils in mixed woodland and heaths among birch and pine.
    Rory Syme, from Woodland Trust Scotland, said: “The best place to spot fly agaric is close to birch and pine trees. The wet summer we’ve had may mean that it will appear early this year. In previous years sightings have been recorded as early as the end of June.
    “Keeping track of key events in nature helps us record the changing seasons. Natural phenomena such as bird migration, changes in leaves and the appearance of flowers and fungi are some of the best indicators for climate change.”
    Fly agaric is toxic and was traditionally mixed with milk and left out in bowls to kill flies, which is where it gets its name.
    He added: “Fly agaric can be dangerous, so the best advice is to look but don’t touch.”
    Five facts about fly agaric:
    • Fly agaric was traditionally used as an insecticide, the cap broken up and sprinkled into saucers of milk. It’s now known to contain ibotenic acid, which both attracts and kills flies
    • The ‘spots’ are actually remnants of a white veil of tissue that encloses the young mushroom, and can sometimes be washed off by the rain
    • It was commonly found on Christmas cards in Victorian and Edwardian times as a symbol of good luck and its colours may have been the inspiration for Santa Claus’s red and white suit.
    • Fly agaric is mycorrhizal, forming a mutually beneficial relationship with its host tree. This association provides the tree with increased absorbtion of water and minerals, and the fungus with constant access to carbohydrates
    • One of the effects of consuming fly agaric is a perceived distortion in the size of objects. It has been said that Lewis Carroll’s hookah-smoking caterpillar in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was inviting her to take a bite from a fly agaric.
    Sightings can be recorded through the Nature’s Calendar Project at naturescalendar.org.uk

    http://www.highland-news.co.uk/News/ook-but-dont-touch-toadstool-appeal-20072012.htm

    Steven James Pratt

  • Carbon 60 (SIXTY) and Bucky Fuller Life Mice

    Somehow i missed the somewhat recent news of research done with carbon 60 infused food for mice which led to a doubling of their life span. Wow, now if the research is repeated a few more times we have another great property of Carbon 60, and another reason to look back and reconsider, re-study the works of Buckminster Fuller.–Steve fly

    A recent French study looking for chronic toxicity resulting from ingesting buckyballs dissolved in olive oil found that 10 month old rats who ingested the human equivalent of a tenth of a gram of C-60 buckyballs (which in technical grades cost less than US$10/gram) several times a week showed extended lifespans instead of toxic effects.– http://www.gizmag.com/diet-buckyballs-extending-lifespan/22245/

    Researchers at the University of Paris and colleagues fed the molecule fullerene (C60 or “buckyballs”) dissolved in olive oil to rats and found it almost doubles their lifespan, with no chronic toxicity.
    The results suggest that the effect of C60, an antioxidant, on lifespan is mainly due to the attenuation of age-associated increases in oxidative stress, according to the researchers.– http://www.kurzweilai.net/fullerene-c60-administration-doubles-rat-lifespan-with-no-toxicity

    Steven James Pratt