The Universe as a Novelty Conserving Engine

1min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Key takeaways

Transcript

Episode notes

The idea of ordinary causality suggests that the universe has been cooling down and organizing itself since the beginning, without a specific goal or purpose.
Contrary to ordinary causality, the speaker believes that the universe has a direction and is moving towards deeper novelty.
The speaker describes the universe as a novelty conserving engine, meaning it holds onto and values novelty.
Elements like species, molecular arrangements, and star systems are tightly held together in the universe.

Guest speaker: Terence McKenna PROGRAM NOTES: Today we get to hear Terence McKenna's lecture about his TimeWave hypothesis (it never became a true theory). This 1997 talk was given less than three years before Terence's death and thus represents some of his latest thinking about this topic. He defines the TimeWave as a mathematical model of how the world works, as based upon the I Ching. Also, he clearly states that where the end point is set determines all of the other data points fall. However, in true Terence McKenna fashion he points out that even if he was 0.001% off, that gave him a range of 60,000 years in which his prediction would still be valid. He then goes on to discuss his correction to the Watkins objection that was discussed in podcast 472. [NOTE: All quotations are by Terence McKenna.] “We are involved in the most accelerated, asymptotic ascent into change, so far as we can tell, that the cosmos has ever known.” “In the one sample we know of, biology has proven itself to be four times as enduring as the stars themselves.” “I won't defend it [the TimeWave] though. I've decided to get a life after 2012 no matter what happens.” Download MP3 PCs – Right click, select option Macs – Ctrl-Click, select option