There's a great chat transcript I have had rattling around my SL account! I hope it's not too long!
(Ms. Goldenberg has offered permission for it's posting via my friend J., thanks you two!)QUOTE
[11:06] Fleet Goldenberg: Well, let's start things moving. :)
[11:06] Fleet Goldenberg: The scientific definition of a 'lifeform' is a biological organism with the capability to respirate, excrete and reproduce. If it exists and breathes then it is accorded the status of Life.
[11:07] Fleet Goldenberg: The concept of non-biological sentience being acknowledged as alive is unacceptable to science and so ghosts and rock monsters, even if they were proven conclusively to exist, would be classified officially as 'things' no matter how intelligent they were. The same already holds true for electronic artificial intelligence.
[11:07] Fleet Goldenberg: Have you ever read about or watched a fictional character and wanted them to be real? Most people have done so, especially as children. Here's some news for you then. They are real!
[11:07] Fleet Goldenberg: When a writer creates and describes in detail a fictional world and its inhabitants then the mental energy of the creator is channelled into their designs, forming an invisible micro-universe in which the imaginative power is molded into physical structure that is solid to its inhabitants but intangible to everything outside of it.
[11:07] Wyn Galbraith nods, all the time.
[11:08] Fleet Goldenberg: The events that occur in these pocket dimensions are influenced by the thoughts of the creators that they are linked to and are also sustained by mental energy supplied by every human who believes in that universe through following its fictional adventures on paper or in moving pictures.
[11:08] Fleet Goldenberg: The greater the fan following of a fictional world, the greater the amount of energy that is infused into it and hence the stronger that world and its populace grows. As Roger Rabbit correctly observed in the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit, "Toons don't die, they just fade away".
[11:10] Fleet Goldenberg: Do any of you have a particular character from a book, movie or tv/comics that you would like to have a conversation with?
[11:10] Wyn Galbraith nods, "Spock."
[11:10] Samnsara Dean: Ha! Dr. or Mr.?
[11:11] Wyn Galbraith laughs, "The Mr. There are many more, thought I would keep it short."
[11:11] WoodBee Writer: lol
[11:12] Fleet Goldenberg: At what point in his life? It's very important to decide on this. Just like we have a past, present and future, characters have different stages of their lives as well. So if one decides they want to speak to Spock, they may not get the precise Spock they want. They could end up talking to Child Spock, Original Series Spock or Next Generation Spock!
[11:12] Wyn Galbraith: The oldest, cause he would contain them all ;)
[11:13] Fleet Goldenberg: That makes excellent sense, yes. If it is wisdom you are after, the older versions are the best to go for
[11:14] Fleet Goldenberg: And once you have decided the age at which you wish to speak to that character, you should try to decide on a specific location based on your knowledge of that character's life. For instance, if you wanted elder Spock, you could choose 'Spock on Romulus during the 24th Century'
[11:15] Fleet Goldenberg: Although all of this seems strange, the purpose of creating specific criteria is to narrow your connection down to the exact Spock that you want to talk to.
[11:16] Wyn Galbraith ponders those points.
[11:16] Fleet Goldenberg: And once you have decided character and time and location then one thing remains ... to decide what you want to ASK the character
[11:16] Samnsara Dean: welcome :-)
[11:16] Ilse Mannonen: :)
[11:18] Fleet Goldenberg: Ok, as a test of the process, let's do a practical example. Somebody give me the name, age range (and location of a character and a question for them, and I will try to get that character to answer your qustion.
[11:19] Fleet Goldenberg: I can't see if anyone is typing from here :)
[11:19] WoodBee Writer: Iago 40-ish Cyprus
[11:19] Fleet Goldenberg: Iago is a classical character, isn't he?
[11:20] WoodBee Writer: why did you choose to being down Othello in the way you did?
[11:20] WoodBee Writer: sorry lame question really
[11:20] Fleet Goldenberg: No, it's fine :)
[11:20] WoodBee Writer: sorry did you want someone from modern lit?
[11:20] Fleet Goldenberg: Okay, give me a minute please to ask. :)
[11:20] Fleet Goldenberg: Iago is fine as an example
[11:22] Fleet Goldenberg: The response I get to that question is "If I had not done it, somebody else would have". How does that sound to you, Woodbee?
[11:22] WoodBee Writer: interesting - I had never thought of it from that angle before
[11:22] WoodBee Writer: but yes
[11:22] Samnsara Dean: good one
[11:23] Fleet Goldenberg: Ok, before I explain how to do the technique yourselves, may I have another example?
[11:23] Wyn Galbraith speaks up and continues her choice, "Spock - Romulus - How to present logic when others refuse that logic with non-logical views?"
[11:23] Fleet Goldenberg: Thank you.
[11:25] Fleet Goldenberg: "If one runs from themselves then there is nowhere for them to go but over a mental cliff."
[11:26] WoodBee Writer: Could I ask a question please?
[11:26] Fleet Goldenberg: Sure.
[11:26] Wyn Galbraith ponders that.
[11:26] WoodBee Writer: Isn't this a way of finding out about ourselves as much as the character?
[11:26] Fleet Goldenberg: What is your question, Woodbee
[11:27] Fleet Goldenberg: There is something in that, Woodbee. I have on occasion used the technique to converse with my inner self as well as fictional characters
[11:27] WoodBeeWriter: OK thanks
[11:28] Samnsara Dean: I just talk aloud to my self and sometimes I answer
[11:28] WoodBee Writer: lol
[11:28] Fleet Goldenberg: Ok, I'll move onto the technique itself. I'd like to give replies all day but it can be tiring to do repeatedly in a short space of time and the accuracy of the responses tends to go down the more you do in one day.
[11:29] Fleet Goldenberg: I'll say first though that one should remember that although the characters have never had a biological existence, they are sentient and have feelings and so should be treated with the respect that you would want to receive yourself. Unless they are evil, in which case by all means cuss them out!
[11:30] WoodBee Writer: :)
[11:30] Fleet Goldenberg: Do not be surprised either if the questioning reveals small deviations in their life choices and relationships from the canon even if their personality is consistent.
[11:30] Fleet Goldenberg: Although it is the writer that provides them with their life plan, they have the same free will as us to make choices of their own within the framework and major turning points of their destiny.
[11:30] Fleet Goldenberg: That they should have an independent life at all is not inconsistent with existing studies. There have been recorded accounts in which paranormal researchers have devised a description of a fictional ghost with a false history and then placed total conviction in the description.
[11:31] Fleet Goldenberg: The 'spirit' subsequently manifested with a physical appearance that closely resembled the researchers' design and related its fantasy history to the researchers through mediumship.
[11:31] Fleet Goldenberg: Whatever is created in the realms of the mind becomes real in the outer world if the creation is strongly believed in, because thought is energy given direction and application.
[11:31] Fleet Goldenberg: How is everyone so far?
[11:32] Samnsara Dean: good.
[11:32] WoodBee Writer: great.
[11:32] Fleet Goldenberg: I'll be giving out a transcript to everyone at the end of the class.
[11:32] Erictherole Bailey: clear.
[11:32] Wyn Galbraith suddenly feels like Janeway going to the holodeck to speak to a certain old man long dead.
[11:32] Samnsara Dean: Oh good, then I will quit taking notes.
[11:34] Fleet Goldenberg: Ok, the technique. I have already described about the preparation. Decide who you want to speak to, the time during their lifespan, location, and then of course your question. Write your question or questions down on a piece of paper to read from before you commence the technique.
[11:36] Fleet Goldenberg: Once you have done this, you are ready to begin. Place your mind in a state of calmness and clearly 'speak' the following command in your mind: "Connect me to [character] at age [x] at [location]"
[11:36] Fleet Goldenberg: At this point, feel with certainty that you have formed a mental connection to that character, as though you can almost see a visible line between your mind and theirs.
[11:37] Fleet Goldenberg: Then look at your piece of paper and clearly issue the question written on the piece of paper as a mental command.
[11:39] Fleet Goldenberg: Now listen to the words that come into your mind. Do not try to hear, as straining will create a mental block. Just listen as a stream of words come to you. The words will be in your own 'mental voice' and you may think that your own mind has just made them up and you are not actually hearing the voice of the character. Believe in what you are hearing in your mind and note the words down. You can rationalize whether they are true or not once the process is over.
[11:41] Fleet Goldenberg: After the contact, once you have broken off the connection and are thinking about the validity and meaning of the words, you will be able to compare the personality and speech style in the reply to the official canon version of the character in tv / movies / books to confirm whether you have indeed contacted the intended personality or if you are mistaking your own imaginative thoughts for conversation.
[11:42] Fleet Goldenberg: That is the technique in a nutshell. It may take practice to get results, but as I demonstrated, there is validity in it. Any questions so far?
[11:42] WoodBee Writer: when you say issue the question as a mental command do you mean you start with "Please tell me..."?
[11:43] Wyn Galbraith: So this technique could be used to contact any personality.
[11:44] Fleet Goldenberg: Any personality, yes. It also has applications for contacting real entities, but that is an entirely different class. :) And yes Woodbee, if the character is deserving of respect then starting with Please is a good move!
[11:44] WoodBee Writer: OK
[11:44] SamnsarDean: Animal communicators use this?
[11:45] Fleet Goldenberg: Animal communication, which I sometimes do as well, is a bit different as their minds work a bit differently to human or human-like ones
[11:45] Samnsara Dean: will u be having a class on that soon? (I hope.)
[11:46] Fleet Goldenberg: But when talking to animals, messages are automatically translated from English into a mental language the animal understands. Thought is a universal language.
[11:47] Fleet Goldenberg: I haven't got a class specifically covering animal contact, though I do have a shaman-related class in my portfolio. I would develop an animal class if there was a popular demand
[11:47] Poor Writer: What about non-living characters?
[11:47] WoodBee Writer: I'd be interested too
[11:47] Fleet Goldenberg: Like zombies? :)
[11:47] Poor Writer: Data?
[11:47] Samnsara Dean: Me as well!
[11:47] Wyn Galbraith: Like passed on friends, family.
[11:47] WoodBee Writer: yes, Data!
[11:48] Samnsara Dean: Zombies lol
[11:49] Fleet Goldenberg: As the character is a construct of a writer's mental energy then yes, Data or other machines would have a personality. I believe even real life machines have a rudimentary 'personality', since they have energy fields and electrical pulses moving around them like a human brain
[11:49] Samnsara Dean: Ii agree 100%
[11:49] Fleet Goldenberg: It's my experience that if you have a computer that is working badly, it'll work even worse if you get mad at it.
[11:50] JD Carter: lol
[11:50] JD Carter: So true.
[11:50] Poor Writer: Would it be the case then that it would work for anything that people apply human or living characteristics to?
[11:50] Samnsara Dean: Is that why SL is acting up all the time?
[11:50] Wyn Galbraith always speaks nicely to SL.
[11:50] Samnsara Dean: ...swears and yells at SL.
[11:51] Erictherole Bailey: Question: Does knowledge of the canon help or hinder communication?
[11:51] Wyn Galbraith: Aha! Then it's Samnsara's fault! ;)
[11:51] Fleet Goldenberg: In the case of fictional characters, I think anything created can be communicated with. With FirstLife entities/animals, it is, of course, a bit more complex
[11:51] Samnsara Dean: ...so steps out of SL has a glass of wine... then resumes later
[11:51] Poor Writer: True.
[11:51] Samnsara Dean: haha... I drink a lot of wine lately!!
[11:51] Cindy Crabgrass giggles.
[11:53] Fleet Goldenberg: Well, relying on canon too heavily can instill doubt if the response seems too off of the official. Remember though that some characters are written about by many different writers, each who have their own interpretation of the character. So in such instances, such as comic books, you should add to your narrowing criteria the writer of the character you want to talk to.
[11:53] Fleet Goldenberg: So you can have a version of the character for each writer... i.e. a number of parallel versions with different opinions.
[11:53] Samnsara Dean: What is canon??
[11:53] Erictherole Bailey: TY
[11:54] Fleet Goldenberg: Canon is the official storyline of a book or comic. Non-canon tends to be a story, such as fan fiction, which is not accepted as official by the characters' creators.
[11:54] Samnsara Dean: ty
[11:55] Fleet Goldenberg: Ok, if you're willing for this class to overrun by a few minutes, I will go into creating your own fictional dimensions with characters of your own design to comunicate with.
[11:56] Cindy Crabgrass: sure
[11:56] Samnsara Dean: sure
[11:56] WoodBee Writer: yes :)
[11:56] Fleet Goldenberg: I'll give you an exercise to do later. Write on a piece of paper a fictional description of a place from your imagination, making it as detailed as possible. It need not be inhabitated with people. When you have done so, imagine a magical object of ultimate power and add it to the description.
[11:56] Wyn Galbraith needs to run to the kitchen to get her coffee, but is willing.
[11:57] Fleet Goldenberg: Begin the connection process, but this time issue the mental command in this format: "Connect me to the name of magical object in name of your created world" and then issue the thought "Name of magical object, give me all of your magical energy now!"
[11:58] Fleet Goldenberg: Then mentally note any sensations you experience
[12:00] Fleet Goldenberg: A friend of mine created a fictional dimension (which will remain nameless so people don't connect to it) that had an all-powerful magical wish granting book in it. In time, I got involved too in communicating with this dimension. He had designed it to have no occupants, but over time it developed dolphins in its oceans.
[12:01] Fleet Goldenberg: And then he found that no matter how hard he tried, he could not project himself inside that dimension. He would continually go through a tunnel and almost reach the entrance but then be bounced back to full consciousness by an invisible barrier.
[12:02] Fleet Goldenberg: So I made attempts to reach it myself by the same method. After a number of tries, I got in, only to discover that a giant god-like eye was looking down at me from the sky ... apparently the dimension had developed a god-personality all of its own without the writer's willing it.
[12:03] WoodBee Writer: wow!
[12:03] Fleet Goldenberg: I tried to look around but a woman-like figure would stand in front of me and try to block my view, much like when your parents come home after you've had a wild party and you don't want them to see the cigarette burns on the carpet.
[12:03] WoodBee Writer: LOL
[12:04] Wyn Galbraith: Wouldn't work if the god eye was female.
[12:04] Fleet Goldenberg: And from this we guessed that once you create a world from a fictional description then it begins to evolve on its own. Left for some years, you can end up with a giant god eye there.
[12:04] WoodBee Writer: It doesn't sound like a very comforting god.
[12:05] Fleet Goldenberg: Whatever you create has a free will of its own.
[12:05] Fleet Goldenberg: You have to remember that in the context of this universe, it contained a magic wish granting book. Wouldn't you be defensive if you were the god of that world?
[12:05] WoodBee Writer: Hmm - if I were omnipotent I wouldn't need to be defensive.
[12:06] Samnsara Dean: ha
[12:06] Fleet Goldenberg: Also, I was not the creator of that world, and so although I was the friend of the creator - and maybe that's why nothing bad happened to me - I was in some sense intruding.
[12:07] Fleet Goldenberg: There is something that happened later that was far more shocking though.
[12:08] Fleet Goldenberg: Some years after this attempt, I was on a beach in the real world one day when I drew a symbolic diagram on the beach symbolizing connections between this world and that world, and wrote out a message. I turned my back for a moment and when I turned back, there was an extra stone amongst the letters, changing the message.
[12:09] Wyn Gabraith leans forward, "What was the message?"
[12:09] Fleet Goldenberg: Once you create that world then you create a link between that world and our one. Everything in the universe is connected, but sometimes through the process of what you do, you can make some links stronger than others.
[12:11] Fleet Goldenberg: It was a while ago, but I think for some reason I chose to write 'Marin' ... I think it may have been a word I heard from the god eye and was curious about for a while. When the stone was added, it said 'Marina' ... which made some kind of logical sense in that I had performed the ceremony beside the ocean.
[12:11] WoodBee Writer: Has anyone here seen the film Paper house based on the children's book Marianne Dreams by Catherine Storr?
[12:12] Wyn Galbraith: Marin is a county in California's Bay Area. I pretty uppity county. ;)
[12:12] Fleet Goldenberg: I haven't seen it, no.
[12:12] Samnsara Dean: no uh-uh
[12:12] WoodBee Writer: It's very much about what we've been discussing here.
[12:12] Fleet Goldenberg: I think we'd better wrap things up though. If anyone wants to talk about concepts further, please contact me anytime.
--END OF TRANSCRIPT--
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