Twelve Hours of Sunset

A meta-meme at work here ?

I was just making some comments elsewhere about my earlier reference to J S Mill setting-off the Pythons’ Philosphers’ Song in my head, and being easily set-off again and again by even oblique references – any mention of will, freedom or liberty so far – it’ll be tennis, elbow, foot next – anything subconsciously connected or explicitly unconnected with either Mill or Python or …. it goes on for ever. It’s worse than five degrees of separation – nothing is free from immediately being linked.

Anyway, I noticed I was silently humming “Twelve Hours of Sunset” a 70’s number from Roy Harper – about the surreal experience of flying west – a song I heard a lot at the time, mainly thanks to John Peel. It was moment before I realised what had set it off. I had been scanning a couple of my own blog references that had mentioned the common theme of my reading various books on west-bound transatlantic flights, and on Asia to Europe flights. But until I noticed I was humming the tune, I hadn’t brought to consciousness the common theme of the posts I’d just read. And I doubt I’ve heard (or consciously hummed) that song for 20 years or more.

Did the explicit conscious thought of the catchy Python song meme create a subconscious link to another subconscious tune meme by some subconscious association with the concept of a meme, with something else I’d only subconsiously just experienced. The power of memes. Is there any escape ?

7 thoughts on “Twelve Hours of Sunset”

  1. ian, for whatever it ends up being worth… thank you. you truly are an **HONEST** seeker of valid answers to the “why questions”, and that is indeed a rare and wonderful change for me.

    Thanks

  2. And, for what it’s worth Island, you may never know how much I value such a comment.

    Worth ? Value ? Quality ? Wisdom ? … now there’s a subject … 😉

    … onward and upward.

    Many thanks and take care.
    I hope the links create some value.
    Ian

  3. Sorry Island, there were quite a few physics threads from people who claimed to be physicists, but they dried-up when people complained about their marginal relevance. There were quite a few in the “Einstein was right” mould.

    The 4 or 5 people that continued to correspond off-line I copied in mails to you, and copied your links in mails to them. The horse led to water may not necessarily drink.

    One of the threads was based around the “not even true” post on string theory on your site. All I can suggest is you post your own agenda to that mail thread directly, and see if anyone bites.

    Personally I’m still reading around the subject – David Bohm currently.

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