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PARN Project
Human-plant communication - research diary
Lionel

Thursday 04/07/2011

Lybarinth research diary

T. McKenna, Archaic Revival (1991, book), p 219-225
° Central idea: plants as inspirational model for solving global problems. Phytomimicry in industry, politics, personal life.
° According to McKenna, the “lessons” of plants are:
- societal/politics: feminization of culture
- personal: inwardness, cooperation (symbiosis)
- ecology: phytoremediation, biodiversity
- industry: recycling, H2-economy, photovoltaic, nanotech
° McKenna hopes a change of paradigm. Idea of the “rebirth of the [vegetal] Goddess”. Spiritual or symbolic idea of the mother-earth, Gaia, etc.
° Suggests that the use of psychedelic plants opens channels of direct communication with this Gaia.
° McKenna speaks about “planetary purpose”. Intentionality. (link to be made with Naturalism and Intelligent Design)

Wikipedia search about:
New Age Gaian, James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis, Noepaganism, Pseudoscience, Falsifiability

Wednesday 03/07/2011

Start meeting with Nick & Maja

Research starting points:
° Reach a broad spectrum going from science < —- > pseudo-science
° Special attention to stories. Stories made to justify some logical shortcuts in speudo-scientific demonstrations, stories on the side of classical research, etc.
° Think of experiment to test some pseudo-scientific claims (plants grow faster if you speak to them). Those experiments are not meant to be realized.
° Make an overview of the research in the field of plant-plant communication. Neurobotany, sensory ecology, chemical communication between plants, etc.
° Speculative science: what do we need to build a translator to interfer with those signals?

Literature starting points:
° Experiments of Laurence (~1950). Onion attached to a telescope, and other strange experiments.
° HPI paper on the Lybarinth
° Sci-fi writer K. Schröder. Idea of thalience, switched subjectivity. Idea that the value of a model is not only determined by the fact it is true or not, but also by its ability to generate other models and ideas (“heuristicity”).
° T. McKenna, Archaic Revival, Chapter about plan/plant/planet. Phytomimicry and techno-gaianism.
° P. Stamets, Mycelium Running, global considerations about mycelium as nature's internet.