Alarm System
A follow up to entropic forces and cancer.
The moment the alarm goes off is the first test; it sets the tone for the rest of the day. The test is not a complex one: when the alarm goes off, do you get up out of bed, or do you lie there in comfort and fall back to sleep? If you have the discipline to get out of bed, you win - you pass the test.
Alarm System
Entropy is difficult to tackle as a topic. This is due to how recent the idea has come into our collective understanding of the human condition and psychoanalysis. That and Schrödinger’s cat.
It was Schrödinger and not a cat that really got the attention of the psychoanalysts in regards to entropy, but that’s what he is most famous for, so I think its inclusion here is warranted if for nothing else than to jog some memory.
Entropy can be seen as the encroachment of chaos brought on by time and stagnation or the absence of movement. That explanation makes it seem inevitable and complicated, which it is.
However, that can also help us when trying to understand why we do what we do, why we think what we think, and why we feel what we feel.
Once we have some understand of those concepts, we can then use that understanding to inform us of the future. The only certainty we can take from the future is that it’s uncertain.
We cannot accurately predict the future, we can only make educated guesses. I’d imagine that’s by design, but I also believe it’s due to missing some tools. A time machine, for example, would help tremendously.
But given we do not have one appears to indicate there will never be one. Wrap your head around that theory for a minute.
To accuse others for one's own misfortunes is a sign of want of education. To accuse oneself shows that one's education has begun. To accuse neither oneself nor others shows that one's education is complete.
Entropy has a role in what we do on the day to day. It is something to be avoided, staved off, run away from, or guarded against by any means. We don’t want to deteriorate, we want to grow.
This isn’t something that is going to happen in a day, so don’t worry. You didn’t look at the Holy Grail as it was opened, so you won’t wither away into dust very quickly.
However, entropy has a grip that’s difficult to pull away from. It starts slowly but doesn’t let go without force, so try not to let it get any part of you and if it does, know that you should really think about progress and growth so you can pry it away and leave it behind.
Anxiety is your warning sign here. Anxiety, by and large, sucks. That’s completely scientific I’m sure. But really, it’s the worst. Most things have an upside or some useful component and anxiety is no exception.
It is the indicator of encroaching or “emergent” entropy, as Dr. Peterson alludes to in an episode of his podcast ( released 5/15/23 with the guest Brian Roemmele, titled “ChatGPT and the Dawn of Computerized Hyper-Intelligence”).
That podcast episode is the inspiration for this section of “On Entropy” and credit needs to go to where it is due, hence the long winded attribution appended at the end of this paragraph.
Anxiety indicating the emergence of entropy can be used by us, whether we like it or not. Neither one of those concepts is cheery but life isn’t cheery in its totality so we have to take what we can get.
The lesser of the two problems is anxiety, so use it to avoid entropy and then thank it for helping you out. It’s a bitter pill to swallow but at least you’ll still be able to swallow.
Given entropy is the oncoming or encroaching chaos, that makes the anxiety understandable. Anxiety is brought on by an encounter with the unknown. Dealing with anxiety or ameliorating anxiety happens through facing the unknown and making it known.
In essence the unknown is chaos and the known is order. So to alleviate anxiety you must either learn or convince yourself you know.I wouldn’t recommend the latter option, but sometimes you have to do things that aren’t optimal.
If you have to convince yourself of a long shot in order to get through a rough patch, then you have to convince yourself of that long shot. While this seems overly wordy for a concept that could be explained in a sentence or two, I don’t agree.
In fact, I challenge you to try it. This is complex and must be thought through word by word and the ambiguity that comes with open ended statements must be shored up by lengthy explanation.
Entropy comes in many forms as chaos is abundant. Ambiguity contains chaos, so entropy lurks. To instill understanding you must turn that chaos into order. Not only that, but it must be as close to complete order, authoritarian in nature, as possible. That’s dangerous as a concept, so be careful.
Which brings us to the last part of this section on entropy. Entropy as an alarm system itself.
But what could possibly be worse than entropy?
The absence of entropy. This isn’t possible theoretically or literally, so rest assured you’ll be fine. But when you find yourself completely relaxed, no worries, and everything is perfect, has been perfect, and always will be perfect, you’re currently occupying a head space that completely lacks entropy.
While that appears to be an image from paradise, it’s a large red alarm light whirling about and your alarm bells should be ringing. When in life is that attainable? It isn’t.
The future is uncertain, that’s why it’s the future. The past is even uncertain, but at least it’s in the rear view. So if you’re in this perfect state of mind, something is wrong.
You aren’t in reality. Something was missed, something went wrong, look around and ground yourself, you’re in danger. It may not be imminent, but you’re living in fantasy and you run the risk of colliding with rocks you do not see.
The lookout that was meant to be in your fictitious crow’s nest has left his perch and you’re bound to run aground. This is the time to open your eyes and figure out what’s missing. It’s your time to figure out what was missed.
This is not a likely scenario but it can happen. There have been many times in history societies have come close to this state, normally when they’re promised a “utopia” and they blind themselves to the impossibility of such a place. If a society can be coaxed to near-cessation of any entropic feeling, it stands to reason individuals can get there as well.
You should relax when you get a chance. You should rest when there is time for resting. Do not endlessly dwell on the problems of life, there are too many. Just do not go to sleep at the wheel.
There needs to be some resistance at all times or you will no longer keep the precision needed to guide yourself as you should. Resistance is the key to precision. You need some push back and you need something pulling you forward.
If you get caught unaware, which you will from time to time, that’s when you will experience trauma. It isn’t inevitable to be traumatized, but false senses of security and false cessation of entropy greatly increase the probably to become a victim of trauma.
Keep your head on straight, keep your eyes open, and have faith. Life can work out if you pay attention. You will be fine.
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