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8 The Universe Observed and Unobserved
It is a reasonable claim that what holds the universe together as a single
unified entity is the principle of non-contradiction. The same principle may be
what holds all of time together as a single unbroken thread where any one event
either precedes or follows any other event. The principle of non-contradiction
is at the heart of the template age.
Because objects in the midlevel universe may be compared with one another,
it is hypothetically possible to have templates for any rigid shapes that are of
interest to us. This does not mean that the unobserved universe has such things
as triangles and pentagons: It simply has templates for X s and Y s which have
neither appearance nor a description. Appearance and description will emerge
later, when living observers view things as meaningful Gestalts.
Note that template recognition is not at all like visual recognition, because
a template shape differs from another template shape merely by the fact that it
matches one template rather than an alternative one. It has a form only in the
sense that it can be mechanically checked against a template. In contrast, for a
living observer a shape is a Gestalt unity, experienced whole in a single frame
of awareness. It is something definite and specific, and requires no template to
be recognized. The shape of an equilateral triangle is something unique which
can be known only by contemplating the whole of it at once.
What is especially important about comparisons in midlevel reality is that
in order for two objects to be comparable for some feature, it is not necessary
that a comparison be carried out physically. The mere fact that comparisons are
possible suffices to establish the existence of real, specific distinctions between
material objects. You may think of these distinctions as features of the objects,
but with one crucial difference: To a living observer, a feature is a quality which
has a distinct feel to the viewer, whereas in the universe outside the range of
any observer, the distinction is purely formal and has no appearance or quality.
In a universe in which objects are comparable for length, it is physically
possible to lay down a unit of length and measure objects by comparing them
with the unit of length. In a universe in which mass also is measurable, the
law of the pendulum holds and therefore intervals of time are comparable. In
a pragmatic sense, therefore, space-time exists in the midlevel universe.
In the reasoning that leads to the Special Theory of Relativity, a yardstick
at rest is compared to an identical yardstick in motion with respect to the
first. The lengths of these identical yardsticks, within their respective frames of
reference, depend crucially on their state of motion in relation to one another.
What is important is that these yardsticks are not merely mental props: They
are assumed to be rigid and have mass. Special relativity holds in a material
universe and not in a vacuum: It holds in the midlevel universe, but may fail
to hold in a reality without large-scale solids that hold their shape. 3
8 The Universe Observed and Unobserved
It is a reasonable claim that what holds the universe together as a single
unified entity is the principle of non-contradiction. The same principle may be
what holds all of time together as a single unbroken thread where any one event
either precedes or follows any other event. The principle of non-contradiction
is at the heart of the template age.
Because objects in the midlevel universe may be compared with one another,
it is hypothetically possible to have templates for any rigid shapes that are of
interest to us. This does not mean that the unobserved universe has such things
as triangles and pentagons: It simply has templates for X s and Y s which have
neither appearance nor a description. Appearance and description will emerge
later, when living observers view things as meaningful Gestalts.
Note that template recognition is not at all like visual recognition, because
a template shape differs from another template shape merely by the fact that it
matches one template rather than an alternative one. It has a form only in the
sense that it can be mechanically checked against a template. In contrast, for a
living observer a shape is a Gestalt unity, experienced whole in a single frame
of awareness. It is something definite and specific, and requires no template to
be recognized. The shape of an equilateral triangle is something unique which
can be known only by contemplating the whole of it at once.
What is especially important about comparisons in midlevel reality is that
in order for two objects to be comparable for some feature, it is not necessary
that a comparison be carried out physically. The mere fact that comparisons are
possible suffices to establish the existence of real, specific distinctions between
material objects. You may think of these distinctions as features of the objects,
but with one crucial difference: To a living observer, a feature is a quality which
has a distinct feel to the viewer, whereas in the universe outside the range of
any observer, the distinction is purely formal and has no appearance or quality.
In a universe in which objects are comparable for length, it is physically
possible to lay down a unit of length and measure objects by comparing them
with the unit of length. In a universe in which mass also is measurable, the
law of the pendulum holds and therefore intervals of time are comparable. In
a pragmatic sense, therefore, space-time exists in the midlevel universe.
In the reasoning that leads to the Special Theory of Relativity, a yardstick
at rest is compared to an identical yardstick in motion with respect to the
first. The lengths of these identical yardsticks, within their respective frames of
reference, depend crucially on their state of motion in relation to one another.
What is important is that these yardsticks are not merely mental props: They
are assumed to be rigid and have mass. Special relativity holds in a material
universe and not in a vacuum: It holds in the midlevel universe, but may fail
to hold in a reality without large-scale solids that hold their shape. 3