Thought as a System by David Bohm

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Thought as a Systemby David Bohm

• Sunday Morning
• as reviewed by Chuck Selden
• For the NIH BCIG Book Club
• 22 March 2007

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SUMMARY (Sunday Morning)

• Proprioception
• Coherence
• Insight
• Self Image Identity
• Rainbows and Ultimons
• Culture
• Truth and Freedom
• The System

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Proprioception

• Sensation and Thought are intimately related
• Insight is a central theme in this part of the
  discussions
• Body and mind participate in a material process
• Mental and Physical Proprioception are the
  substance of our awareness.
• Perception and consciousness define ones reality

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Coherence vs. Incoherence

• Imagination plays a role in perception
• Caveat Incoherence
• Fantasyfake insight (not creativity)
• Illusionfake truth
• Lies are underlain by truth
• Fantasy vs. Creativity
• Perception relates to pleasure
• Advertising urges pleasure via fantasy
• Sets up mechanical thought reflexes

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Insight

• Is Evanescent Instant
• Threatens the Status Quo
• Reflexes defend conditioning
• Senses process consciousness
• perception insight

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Self Image

• I am God
• Real or deception?
• Self Me, Myself and I
• - parts of the self image
• Me is an object-things happen to me
• I is will power
• I is hero or God (I as a word means God)
• I is the little child
• Myself is made of two sides-- I and me

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Leadership

• The charismatic leader
• Self-assured
• Strong vision
• Followers see the gleaming self-image
• Followers identify with this image
• Empowers followers
• Strengthens the leader

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Identity

• Exists only in thought
• Holders often seek proof
• Accumulation of Money or Power
• Support of others
• To prove you are there
• May be grounded or centered
• Is the physical self real?
• Is an amputee less?

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Identity2

• The whole system of thought gives you your
  identity
• Which constantly reveals itself to you
• Sum of the system reflexes integral chemistry
• You try to maintain this identity
• Although it is ephemeral
• Consists of thoughts
• Neural circuits keep the movement

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Identity and Being

• Identity Reflexes Stifle Creativity
• HOWEVER
• Our thoughts of our identity are REPRESENTATIONS
• WHILE
• Our material being is shared matter of the
  UNIVERSE

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Matter and Energy

• Matter is Energy
• Empty Space is full of Energy
• THEREFORE
• Thoughts represent Matter
• AND
• Perception of SELF-IDENTITY is like
• Perceiving a RAINBOW

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RAINBOW

• Is a process, not Matter
• IDENTITY
• Is a process, not Matter
• (your identity constantly reveals itself)
• (all of us are constantly changing)
• YOU CANT TOUCH A RAINBOW
• You cant know yourself
• TV is an illusion, like a rainbow, and
• ones self-image
• all are representations of reality

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Ultimons

• Ultimate truth
• Ultimate knowledge
• Theory of everything
• God told me
• All will lead you to stop seeking and
• Stop being motivated
• The best you can say is
• as far as I can see, thats the way it is

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Unknown

• Frightening
• KNOWING IS A PROCESS
• Universal Truths exist in all cultures
• The Golden Rule, etc.
• Insights are perceptions of TRUTH

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Cultural Barriers to Truth

• Thoughts
• Reflexes
• Totalitarianism
• Repressive Governments
• Truth in a society requires FREEDOM
• Truth is Reality
• Truth is what is is

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Truth and Electrochemical Smog

• Truth depends on the brain situation
• State of Mind (material system)
• Muddleheadedness vs AWAKE
• Truth clears away the smog
• But we cant see the source of truth
• Just like we cant see the source of insight

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Truth is an action

• Truth is movement
• Truth is a factor in actuality
• Truth touches that which is
• Truth is coherent
• THUS
• The perception of truth gives rise to thought
  which can then act in a more coherent way

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False

• Is an inappropriate abstraction
• Is underlain by truth
• Must be defended
• Is incoherent

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Truth

• Truth runs with time, but is not time
• Truth changes with time
• True perception of one moment will not be truth
  in the next moment
• Truth is beauty and joy
• revealed in the absence of thought
• Truth and freedom are in the same field
• Perception of truth is only possible with freedom

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The System

• Truth is action, not knowledge
• Society and culture suppress truth by creating
  smog
• The individual is subject to the culture
• Identity is affected by cultural assumptions and
  repression
• Culture is SHARED MEANING
• Culture is perceived truth in a society
• Insight is informed by knowledge
• Truth comes from imagination
• The unfettered brain can move toward truth

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SUMMARY (Sunday Morning)

• Proprioception
• Coherence
• Insight
• Self Image Identity
• Rainbows and Ultimons
• Culture
• Truth and Freedom
• The System

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Thought as a Systemby David Bohm

• Sunday Morning
• as reviewed by Chuck Selden
• For the NIH BCIG Book Club
• 22 March 2007