ZetaTalk: Truth Test
Note: written on Jun 15, 1996

The reality that can be sensed is based on many things, and all of these things carry distortions.

The physical reality that one perceives is distorted by the senses. Human eyes, for instance, see but a small section of the color spectrum seen by other life forms. Beyond the color spectrum there is clarity of vision. Horses are nearly blind compared to humans, but the gliding hawk sees twice what a human does. Human ears hear but a small swath of the vibration frequencies that other animals on Earth perceive, as any owner of a dog who responds to a dog whistle will attest. The human blows the whistle and hears nothing, but the dog comes running.

A limited view of the physical world can lead one to distorted conclusions. Mankind deals with gravity, and thus in his mind has a down and an up. On the other side of the world there stands another man whose down and up are contrary. Even the fact that the Earth is round is lost on primitive man, unless he calculates carefully the movement of the skies and is given to deep thought on such matters. Humans speculate on the birth of the Solar System, all the while having no real sample of the core of the Earth or more than a sniff or two of components elsewhere. They are guessing.

Man is ego-centric, and barely pulls away from a completely self-centered notion of the world even when a mature adult. He assumes the Sun revolves around the Earth until forced to deal with facts telling him otherwise. He assumes that he as an intelligent creature stands alone as God's handiwork and balks at having to share the spotlight with other species from other worlds. He develops pet theories that place him in the center of the Universe, and is loath to let these theories go as he enjoys this concept. Reality is resisted.

Distortions are perpetrated by humans who stand to gain. The religious elite resist a more realistic view of the Universe as this puts them out of a comfortable job. The establishment frequently resists truth as any change to the status quo is likely to change their status, where they are perched at the top. This human desire to keep others ignorant or confused is rampant, from the husband who keeps his housewife ignorant of the job opportunities that exist for women in the work force to the distributor who keeps a competitor's product off the shelves through bribes. Truth must fight its way through the mud to emerge.