FOTX0511 -- On_the_Half_Shell (Rating A-4,M-4) Fractal visionaries and enthusiasts: Today's minor effort is worth at least a quick look, though it will not set any records for beauty. It is a minibrot that lies on a tendril extending from a bud of the parent fractal that results when 1.6 parts of Z^-1.9 are combined with 0.2 parts of Z^-9.1. The shell-like effect that inspired the name was achieved by rendering the image with the outside set to 'tdis' The good news is that my fingers really do remember the Fractint keystrokes, I just cannot think of the strokes when I consciously try to recall them, making frequent diversions to the help index necessary. I am also a bit rusty on finding minibrots and other good fractal scenes. A year ago, these fractal things were turning up almost automatically. Today, I needed to take time to try to guess where the scenic areas of the parent fractal might lie, if any might exist. My success was questionable. Maybe I have become too involved in the debate over the meaning of quantum theory. The math of quantum theory is not in question, it works great. The problem is that the quantum world appears to consist of only the math that defines it. Things like electrons and photons can be seen as tiny balls, spread out waves, neither or both. In all cases the same math applies. The problem arises when the math is squeezed into our very limited, common sense idea of a world of 3-D space filled with real objects, which raises the measurement problem. The measurement problem arises because the real world is made of sub-atomic particles, and the sub-atomic particles consist of numbers. The means that the real world is basically made of numbers, and numbers are pure abstractions, with no material reality at all. The problem is that no one can show with certainty how abstract numbers can create real physical material. Perhaps the greatest embarrassment of science is that even after 90 years of pondering, this problem is still unresolved. Considering all this, it seems to me as if the real world might be much like a computer video game, where the fantasy world of the game exists only as program information until it is displayed on the screen, observed, and thereby made real. But if this is taken to be true, it will make no difference in everyday life, since everything we have always considered real will still appear and behave the same. But rational materialists are quite upset by this. Maybe their concern is that their philosphical world view is being threatened. Quantum theory seems to be drifting toward mysticism, which is the antithesis of rational science and says that the material world is an illusion. In an effort to show how silly such views are, rationalists refer to such views, which are very common among new-agers, as 'Quantum Woo'. At the same time, Atheists are annoyed by quantum theory because it can easily be misused as an argument for the existence of God. This debate is quite understandable. After all, everyone needs a solid foundation on which to base their life's philosophical standpoint, be it the white bearded old man in the sky of religion or the rock solid reality of the material universe on which science is based. But fractals can be enjoyed by everyone, whether the images are real or not, or whether God exists or not, and the real world can likewise be enjoyed by everyone, even if it turns out to be no more real than fractals and if God is actually proved to exist. There are problems with the FOTD web sites, so I'll not post any web addresses until the problems are resolved. Today was cloudy and dreary but dry here at Fractal Central, with a temperature of 63F 17C. The fractal cats spent most of the day worrying about the feral tomcats that are again becoming more numerous around the area. And to make things worse, we think there could be kittens under the fractal back porch. FL is also rather down because the cool wet weather is causing her garden to lag. The next FOT... will be posted whenever it is. Until whenever, take care, and I'm either a believer or an Atheist, depending on how God is described. Jim Muth jimmuth@earthlink.net START PARAMETER FILE======================================= On_the_Half_Shell { ; time=0:10:21.26 SF5 at 200MHZ reset=2004 type=formula formulafile=basicer.frm formulaname=MandAutoCritInZ function=recip passes=1 center-mag=+1.552148830053915/+0.2525932592080373/\ 3.38727e+007/1/-70.0000276875551748/2.252300646\ 62476637e-005 params=1.6/-1.9/0.2/-9.1/0/0/0/0 float=y maxiter=1500 inside=0 outside=tdis periodicity=6 sound=off colors=000wNexLexJeyHezFezDexEdwEdvFdtFdsGdrGdqHdo\ HcnIcmIclIcjJciJchKcfKbeLbdLbcMbaMb`Nb_NbZNbTQeOSg\ JUiDWk8Ym3_o7ZkBYgFYdJX`NWXRWUVVQYVNDMYAQf7To4WxIQ\ tVLqgGnXOjMWfCccUmlWmiXmfYmdZma`mZamXbmUcmSemPfmMg\ mKhmHjmEkmClm9mm7nk8nj8oi8oh9pf9pe9qd9qcAqbAr`Ar_B\ sZBsYBzpBwlCugCsaCvWCsQBqKBoHBmDBkABi6Bg3Bf5Ae79d9\ 9cB8bD7aF7`H6`J6_L5ZN4YP4XR3WT2VV2UX15KT3LV2cW4cX6\ cY8cZAc_Cc`EcaGcbHczHfzmzzmzzmzzmzzmzzmzzDtfCsdBrb\ Bq`ApY9oW8nU8mS7lP6kN5jL5iJ8gL_c7bZEeULhQSkLZnGeqC\ krEbsGUtIMuKDvM5FT`eKIQIUDvxCmtBepBXlAPhZQDSNLMLSG\ JZir7ajEVbLOWSHOZXT40V12T73RC4PH5OM7MR8KW9I`aF8YGD\ VGHRGLOGPKHUHHYDHaa1CW5IQ8OLBUFE_2kD4cL6WS8OZRHhLH\ gFHfF47E7EDALCCSBFZnMkUJhEBzDCwCDtCEqBFnBGkAHhEelC\ ThYyKSmQMbVGS`YzEuTVoRXiQYcO_YN`SLaMKcGIdzd2r`8jYE\ cUKWRPPNVHK`Yx1is`S_csXOmVRgTTaRVXPXRN_LLaFJcyENlF\ S_GXNHaDRTCPVCOXBMZBL`AJb } frm:MandAutoCritInZ {; Jim Muth a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(((-a*b*g*h)^j)+(p4)), k=real(p3)+1, esc=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel): z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c, |z| < esc } END PARAMETER FILE=========================================