6 min audio from a recent reading at Village Books
Tag: derealization
15. Uncanny Valley Thanksgiving
“Is the star of The Truman Show suffering from the Truman Show delusion? Have culture and reality finally merged into one, trapping us in a feedback loop? What happens when reality doesn’t show up to the reality show?”
00:00 —On misnomers and false maps…
04:06 —Elevator Riders on the Storm
11:42 —Is Tomorrow a Virgin?
14:15 —A walk with Jesus…
17:26 —Notes on the Mandela Effect
22:51 —Late night at the grocery store self-checkout
30:52 —Zombie Ants
32:50 —Behind The Doors
43:00 —Notes on Dissociation as Enlightenment
50:49 —The Day Before Thanksgiving
54:56 —The Terrarium
57:30 —The Last Laugh
65 minutes
“Time After Time,” by Hiroshi Yoshimura, “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever,” by Robert Goulet, “Baby (slowed down 800 percent)” by Justin Bieber, “Riders on the Storm,” by The Doors, “Blown-Out Joy from Heaven’s Mercied Hole” by A Silver Mt. Zion, “Unseen Forces” by Justin Walter, “#3” by Aphex Twin, “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds, “New Space Music,” by Brian Eno, “Everybody’s Talkin'” by Harry Nilsson, “Able-Bodied Seamen,” by Jonny Greenwood, “Disintegration Loops” by William Basinki, “Mad World (slowed down 800 percent)” by Gary Jules, “An Ending (Ascent),” by Brian Eno, “Thursday Afternoon,” by Brian Eno, “#3” by James Devane
14. Autumn is Nature’s Striptease
“I’ve noticed that the last socially acceptable form of discrimination is astrological prejudice. Stereotyping based on gender, race, or sexual orientation is frowned upon, but it’s completely okay to say, ‘I’ll never date another Scorpio, because they’re evil, promiscuous, two-faced, jealous little bitches.’”
0:00 —A Failed MacGuffin
4:37 —The Library
12:14 —Hannah
17:40 — Autumn Leaves
19:45 — Late Night in the Community Room
30:22 — Chat with the chatty Sagittarius on the balcony
44:46 —Job Interview
61 minutes
“Time After Time,” by Hiroshi Yoshimura, “Beeps,” by Gib Strange, “Poa Alpina” by Biosphere, “An Ending (Ascent),” by Brian Eno, “Thursday Afternoon” by Brian Eno, “Gymnopédie No. 1” by Erik Satie, “Nowhere Man,” by The Carpenters, “#3” by Aphex Twin, “Of Cities and Escape,” by The Poppy Family, “Neroli,” by Brian Eno, “Something Blue,” by Hiroshi Yoshimura, “#3” cover by James Devane, “New Space Music,” by Brian Eno, “The Universal,” by Blur
5. The “Real” Question
“A machine has yet to officially pass such a test, and though it’s still a talking point in the dialogue about artificial intelligence, many argue that passing the Turing test doesn’t prove intelligence as much as an ability for mimicry. Which leads to the question: how much of what we call human intelligence is actually just mimicry? Isn’t repetition pretty much the basis of our whole educational system? Also, we often hear the human mind is often likened to a machine. On some level it is a pattern recognition machine, programmed by evolution to detect approaching danger and avoid being eaten. Not surprisingly, studies show that pattern recognition goes up when the mind is experiencing fear. If internet conspiracy culture is any indication, fear seems to be building in the populace. Perhaps you’ve heard of the Reptilian conspiracy, in which a malevolent race of shape-shifting lizard elite controls the world….”
0:00 —The Depersonalization Questionnaire
02:01 —Notes on the Turing Test
09:40 —The Derealization Questionnaire… or, more questions for human robots and robot humans . . .
11:30 minutes
“Poa Alpina” by Biosphere
1. Somewhere in the Distant Present
“My personal space has been invaded by a man looking for an invasion by an insect that practices an invasive form of procreation…”
0:00 —The bug-man…
04:15 —Do you ever suspect that the world actually did end in 2012 and we’ve simply failed to notice? …
04:56 —An elevator glitch leads to a staring contest with a stranger in the 4th floor mirror…
12:31 —Another glitch leads to a case of mistaken birthday…
16:41 minutes
“Poa Alpina” by Biosphere, “Unseen Forces” by Justin Walter
Notes from the Uncanny Valley 