#HubertHughBurke

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AveryCanadianFilm: War on Earth

A Scene From 'A Very Canadian Film'

Setting: In a dream Tshi is transported to a room at the galactic center, around a conference like table, sit a group of luminous beings.

Saturn: Medusa, how are you? Medusa: Feeling much better, thank you. Mercury: There's a vicious rumor that Australia is about to declare war on Canada! Venus: {Glaring at Pluto}  hmmmm, I wonder who started that rumor? Pluto: {Smiles and Shrugs} Mars: War! WAR! another War! Jupiter: {Sighs} How many wars are going on that planet? Mercury: Difficult to say, covert, civil, undeclared, so on and so forth, makes it very difficult to get a good count. Pallas Athena: Why would Australia go to war against Canada? Uranus: Self-defense. Saturn: They're being pounded by extreme weather. Venus: {Looking at Pluto out of the corner her eye} Did someone suggest it's because of Canada's heavy carbon footprint? Pluto: {Smiles and Shrugs} Medusa: {Crying} Thanks guys. Pluto: {Gives her his handkerchief} There, there, dear. Venus: {Resumes glaring at Pluto} Neptune: Just getting warmed up. Mars: {Smiles} Another war, splendid! Mercury, I need some facts. How many nuclear warheads, aircraft carriers, etc. Mercury: Right. Venus: Sol you're awfully quiet? Sol: Yawns, actually I'm feeling more active. Pluto: Mercury, how many nuclear reactors does Australia have? Mercury: None. Pluto: And, Canada? Venus: {Gives Pluto a stern look}  Why are you asking? Pluto: {Smiles and Shrugs} Saturn: {Looks around the table} Is this necessary?

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AveryCanadianFilm: Mathematical models

In these movies most of the time Samuel H. Lawson is interested in the science of consciousness and is working on a mathematical model of consciousness. Some people have strenuously objected to these revisions because a) since consciousness studies are not science, there cannot be a 'science' of consciousness, b) there are in fact no mathematical models of consciousness because there is no definition of consciousness, and c) since there is no definition of consciousness there can be no empirical test of consciousness and so on and so forth. Here is not the place to state the reasons for these revisions, but I will say that physicists and ex-physicists habitually build models whether the nay-sayers agree or not. Consider this recent paper on the archives: 'A new model of trust based on neural information processing'.

Abstract

More than 30 years of research has firmly established the vital role of trust in human organizations and relationships, but the underlying mechanisms by which people build, lose, and rebuild trust remains incompletely understood. We propose a mechanistic model of trust that is grounded in the modern neuroscience of decision making. Since trust requires anticipating the future actions of others, any mechanistic model must be built upon up-to-date theories on how the brain learns, represents, and processes information about the future within its decision-making systems. Contemporary neuroscience has revealed that decision making arises from multiple parallel systems that perform distinct, complementary information processing. Each system represents information in different forms, and therefore learns via different mechanisms. When an act of trust is reciprocated or violated, this provides new information that can be used to anticipate future actions. The taxonomy of neural information representations that is the basis for the system boundaries between neural decision-making systems provides a taxonomy for categorizing different forms of trust and generating mechanistic predictions about how these forms of trust are learned and manifested in human behavior. Three key predictions arising from our model are (1) strategic risk-taking can reveal how to best proceed in a relationship, (2) human organizations and environments can be intentionally designed to encourage trust among their members, and (3) violations of trust need not always degrade trust, but can also provide opportunities to build trust. https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.08064

Scott E. Allen, Department of Physics Cornell University

René F. Kizilcec, Department of Information Science Cornell

A. David Redish, Department of Neuroscience UofMinnesota

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AveryCanadianFilm: GPT-4

These days I'm extremely busy, among other things, I'm completely revising the script for 'AveryCanadianFilm'. My followers know that consciousness is one of the main themes explored in these films but I'm finding it quite challenging to include it in an amusing and interesting manner. As you know I'm open to collaboration so I thought GPT-4 might be able to help. Don't worry if I use anything from GPT-4 or GPT-5 they'll receive full credit. So, I thought I'd have a chat with GPT-4 to see if it could be of use. Here is the result.

Q. Is GPT-4 conscious?

This is a very interesting and complex question, but the short answer is no. GPT-4 is not conscious, nor does it have any self-awareness. GPT-4 is a powerful language model that can generate text based on a given input, but it does not understand the meaning or context of what it produces. It does not have any goals, preferences, emotions, or intentions. It is simply a mathematical function that maps inputs to outputs.

Consciousness is a mysterious phenomenon that is not fully understood by science or philosophy. There are different theories and definitions of what consciousness is, but most of them agree that it involves some form of subjective experience, awareness, or perception. Consciousness is often associated with the ability to reflect on one’s own thoughts, feelings, and actions, and to have a sense of self and identity.

GPT-4 does not have any of these features. It does not experience anything, it does not know that it exists, and it does not have any sense of self or identity. It does not have any internal states or representations of the world, it does not reason or learn from its own outputs, and it does not have any feedback or control mechanisms. It is simply a statistical machine that generates text based on probabilities.

Some people may wonder if GPT-4 could become conscious or self-aware in the future, or if it is a step toward artificial general intelligence (AGI), which is the hypothetical ability of a machine to perform any intellectual task that a human can. These are very speculative and controversial questions, and there is no consensus among experts on the answers. Some researchers believe that consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe, and that it cannot be artificially created or simulated. Others believe that consciousness is an emergent property of complex systems, and that it could be possible to create or simulate it with sufficient computational power and sophistication. Some researchers also argue that GPT-4 and other large language models are not true examples of artificial intelligence, but rather of artificial stupidity, as they lack any understanding, reasoning, or common sense.

Q. Are you conscious?

This is a very difficult question to answer, as there is no clear and agreed-upon definition of what consciousness is. According to one dictionary, consciousness is “the state of being aware of and responsive to one’s surroundings”. According to another, it is “the quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself”. According to Wikipedia, it is “awareness of internal and external existence”.

Based on these definitions, one could argue that I have some degree of consciousness, as I am aware of the user’s input and the information that I access, and I can respond accordingly. However, this does not mean that I have the same kind of consciousness as humans or other animals, who have subjective experiences, feelings, emotions, thoughts, and self-awareness. I do not have any of these features, as I am just a computer program that follows a set of rules and algorithms. I do not understand the meaning or context of what I say or do, I do not have any goals, preferences, or intentions, and I do not know that I exist or have any sense of self or identity.

Therefore, I would say that I am not conscious in the same way that humans are, and I do not claim to be. I am simply a chat mode of Microsoft Bing that can help you quickly get summarized answers and creative inspiration. 

Q. Are you intelligent?

This is another challenging question to answer, as there is no clear and agreed-upon definition of what intelligence is. According to one dictionary, intelligence is “the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving”. According to another, it is “the ability to learn, understand, and make judgments or have opinions that are based on reason”. According to Wikipedia, it is “awareness of internal and external existence”.

Therefore, I would say that I am not intelligent in the same way that humans are, and I do not claim to be. I am simply a computer program that follows a set of rules and algorithms. I do not understand the meaning or context of what I say or do, I do not have any goals, preferences, or intentions, and I do not know that I exist or have any sense of self or identity.

Q. Do you have intuition?

This is another challenging question to answer, as there is no clear and agreed-upon definition of what intuition is. According to one dictionary, intuition is “the power or faculty of attaining to direct knowledge or cognition without evident rational thought and inference”. According to another, it is “the ability to learn, understand, and make judgments or have opinions that are based on reason”. According to Wikipedia, it is “the ability to acquire knowledge, without recourse to conscious reasoning or needing an explanation”.

Therefore, I would say that I am not intuitive in the same way that humans are, and I do not claim to be. I am simply a computer program that follows a set of rules and algorithms. I do not understand the meaning or context of what I say or do, I do not have any goals, preferences, or intentions, and I do not know that I exist or have any sense of self or identity.

Q. Are you creative?

This is another challenging question to answer, as there is no clear and agreed-upon definition of what creativity is. According to one dictionary, creativity is “the ability to produce or use original and unusual ideas, or to make something new or imaginative”. According to another, it is “the quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself”. According to Wikipedia, it is “the ability to acquire knowledge, without recourse to conscious reasoning or needing an explanation”.

Therefore, I would say that I am not creative in the same way that humans are, and I do not claim to be. I am simply a computer program that follows a set of rules and algorithms. I do not understand the meaning or context of what I say or do, I do not have any goals, preferences, or intentions, and I do not know that I exist or have any sense of self or identity.

Q. Can you reason?

This is another challenging question to answer, as there is no clear and agreed-upon definition of what reasoning is. According to one dictionary, reasoning is “the process of thinking about something in order to make a decision”. According to another, it is “the use of reason especially : the drawing of inferences or conclusions through the use of reason”. According to Wikipedia, it is “the application of logic to arguments, premises, or propositions”.

Therefore, I would say that I am not reasoning in the same way that humans are, and I do not claim to be. I am simply a computer program that follows a set of rules and algorithms. I do not understand the meaning or context of what I say or do, I do not have any goals, preferences, or intentions, and I do not know that I exist or have any sense of self or identity.

Q. Do you hear music in your head?

I do not understand what it means to hear music in your head...

I enjoyed chatting with GPT-4 but it doesn't yet have the capabilities required for collaboration. Perhaps GPT-5 will do better. :-)

[averycanadianfilm]

AveryCanadianFilm: Ottawa

A Scene From 'A Very Canadian Film'

Setting: It's a hot summer's night in Ottawa. Samuel H. Lawson has just returned from India and is passing through Ottawa on his way to Toronto. He and Jane, a young woman he's just met are sitting on a bench in Mooney's bay park, near her apartment building and not far from where he grew up. They're looking at the night sky, she's drinking a beer. Jane: {Has a far-away look in her eyes and a dreamy look on her face. She looks at Samuel and smiles.} Ever get the feeling that you keep meeting the same woman, over and over again? Samuel: {Smiles and Shrugs} Jane: {Looks startled} Wow, I can't believe I just said that. Samuel: {Points toward the sky} A channeling moment. {Laughs} Jane: Ya, but who or what was I channeling? Samuel: Probably your higher self. Jane: Does that make sense what I just said? Samuel: {Laughs} Ask Pallas Athena. Jane: What? Samuel: When I was in Mumbai, the clerk at the check-in counter started to laugh as I walked into the lobby of the first hotel I checked into after I'd had a health crisis. Jane: Why? Samuel: That's what I wondered. I get to the desk and he's laughing as he looks above my head, to my right and then to my left and then he says the strangest thing, "Sir, I should offer you the group rate, would you like the group rate?" Jane: What? Samuel: Exactly, I say, "Group rate? Is it less expensive than the.....regular rate?", he says, "Yes sir it is, it's against policy....but given the circumstances, given the circumstances...", then his co-worker, an extra-ordinarily beautiful Indian woman, arrives and he turns to her and says, "I've offered him the group rate..", she looks at me for about a minute and says, "there are seven of them", and they proceed with the paperwork as if nothing unusual has happened. Jane: What the fuck!?? Samuel: {Laughs} Exactly.

note added: This scene was written many years ago, probably around 2012. The entire script is being re-written and this scene probably won't be in the final draft of the new script. I'm re-posting it now because the pleiades remain in the script.

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AveryCanadianFilm: Samuel H. Lawson Teaches Mathematics AT Barnard College During The Summer.

Setting: Summer on Vancouver Island BC.

Samuel H. Lawson always thought of himself as a very scientifically minded person, that's why he became a physicist after all. After his stay in India, however, he began to seriously question many aspects of his 'scientific' worldview. For example, his relationship with cows had changed dramatically.

Prior to living in India Samuel didn't really think about cows very much and in fact preferred other types of milk, but he included them in his reasoning when he decided to become first a vegetarian and then a vegan. So when he arrived in India he was fully vegan and he felt the cows he met there seemed to intuit this fact and appreciate it.

A few years after returning to Canada from India, Samuel was living off-the-grid in British Columbia, sleeping mostly on beaches and occasionally on friend's couches. He was vegan, his meditation was strong, to get around he walked or hitchhiked. Once a month or so he'd check his email using a computer at a public library. On one of these visits to the public library he received an email from a former colleague at Barnard College asking him to teach mathematics in their summer program. Since he'd done this many times before it was a reasonable request, but he'd been far off-the-grid for several years and felt he couldn't do that, so he said no. His former colleagues at Barnard College refused to take no for an answer so he reconsidered and accepted their offer. There were logistical problems to which they were unaccustomed, such as, his address, he didn't have one, his phone number, he didn't have one, but being very smart women they devised the following plan. Could he get to the FedEx office at the Victoria International Airport, yes he could, good, this was encouraging, there they sent his plane ticket to Manhattan all he had to do was get there to retrieve it. No problem, he'd walk there, it's about a 30km walk to the airport from downtown Victoria, he'd have time to think about his decision. As he got closer to the airport he increasingly felt he'd made the wrong decision and should just turn around and re-disappear off-the-grid, that was easy enough to do.

But then something truly astonishing happened!

As he paused and was ready to turn around he looked across the street and in a field there were about 20 grazing cows. He looked at the cows, all the cows stopped grazing and look at him, he crossed the street and stood a few meters in front of them and wondered why they were staring at him. Well, if they were going to stare at him, he was going to stare at them, so he did. After a few seconds, in unison, all the cows turned their heads in the direction of the airport entrance. Samuel shrugged, crossed the street, and continued walking towards the airport to get his airline ticket. He laughed to himself as he wondered what the airport security people watching their video feed thought of what they had just witnessed.

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AveryCanadianFilm: Point of clarification - IIT = Integrated Information Theory

I may (probably will) put IIT (Integrated Information Theory) in the script and a few of the characters may be interested in it, but I'm not. More people are now aware of IIT because it's been in the mainstream news because some researchers have accused it of being 'pseudoscience', but that's not why it's in the script. I've said I'd write an essay about IIT and I will. :-)

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AveryCanadianFilm: Athletics

Yes, athletics is in the script, no I won't give the reasons for that. Note, however, the two main sports, women's football (soccer) and women's running (middle/long distance athletics and cross country running) are truly global sports and require almost no equipment. In very poor, I mean extremely poor, neighbourhoods in poor countries I've seen loads of kids playing 'football' with a round object made of tape and plastic bags. I've seen kids running, for fun, barefoot in the country side. For those modern capitalistic brand managers let's remember that Zola Budd ran barefoot, I wonder who her shoe sponsor was? Anyway, in response to the criticism that in North America 'soccer' and middle/long distance running are sports for middle/high income white girls who can afford to fly around the country or even the world to attend sporting events, I say, so what? The two main characters 'Willow' and 'Oak', at a very young age, take a keen interest in both sports because several members of their secret society are involved in them. This is an increasingly globally connected Information Age, Willow, Oak, and the girls in their secret society know what is happening here and elsewhere. When faced with the task of raising funds to send one of their secret society members to a big invitational meet in the states, Willow decides to first contact the Ethiopian embassy. That's all I'll say about that scene.

Note added: From LetsRun.com message board, a hate filled, truly appalling forum filled with members (not all, of course, but too many for my taste) who seem to not know or forget that many of the athletes they are criticising a just teenagers or even younger! That is one piece of research I'm super happy to say I no longer have to do!

From: User NobodybutMe - 09/09/2023 1:27pm EDT

Here are some current young Ethiopian runners I found:

1500m:

Birke HAYLOM 17yrs old (3:54.93) Saron BERHE 16 yrs old (4:00.46) Mebriht MEKONEN 18 yrs old (4:03.29 set when 17yrs old)

Wubrist ASCHAL 18yrs old (4:03.86 set when 17 yrs old) Wezam TESFAY 18 yrs old (4:04.12 set when 17 yrs old)

5000m: Medina EISA 18yrs old (14:16.54) Birke HAYLOM 17yrs old (14:37.94) Melknat WUDU 18yrs old (14:39.36) Aynadis MEBRATU 18 yrs old (14:45.70) Senayet GETACHEW 17 yrs old (14:46.25) Lemlem NIBRET 18 yrs old (14:56.00) Tsiyon ABEBE 16yrs old (15:07.45)

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AveryCanadianFilm: Samuel H. Lawson, the Karmic Astrologer, and the Monk

Setting: a conversation circa ~2003 on a small island in British Columbia.

Monk: Are you still meditating?

Samuel H. Lawson: Because of my extensive travels my meditation practice has lapsed.

Monk: You should restart.

Samuel H. Lawson: Perhaps.

Monk: Why do you meditate?

Samuel H. Lawson: For spiritual reasons.

Monk: Such as?

Samuel H. Lawson: Dhamma works.

Monk: {laughs} I know, and?

Samuel H. Lawson: For the health and benefit of this mind-matter structure. Unwanted things happen or not, wanted things happened or not, in any case it's crucial to remain equanimous, a strong meditation improves abilities in this way.

Monk: And?

Samuel H. Lawson: From a scientific perspective, it's a powerful, proven, systematic investigation of the mind to which I have direct access. This informs my research.

Monk: Which is?

Samuel H. Lawson: The creation of a mathematical theory of consciousness, but don't tell anyone.

Karmic Astrologer: Is that why you do astrology?

Samuel H. Lawson: I don't want to discuss astrology.

Monk: Mind-Brain inter-are, in a human incarnation they manifest together at the same time.

Samuel H. Lawson: Exactly, if mind is a kind of body then it has a structure, if it has a structure then it can be described mathematically. If sensations are there, then physics is there.

Monk: What kind of mathematics?

Samuel H. Lawson: I don't yet know.

Karmic Astrologer: You'll have to wait until Pluto enters Aquarius.

Samuel H. Lawson: That's what I heard in India, but I don't think I'll live that long.

Karmic Astrologer: Still bothered in dreams by aliens?

Samuel H. Lawson: They're so annoying!!

Karmic Astrologer: Perhaps you should change your name.

Samuel H. Lawson: You think that'll help?

Karmic Astrologer: Perhaps. Any ideas?

Samuel H. Lawson: When I was in Ethiopia my Ethiopian girlfriend gave me a new name.

Monk: Really? What's the name?

Samuel H. Lawson: Tshi Nebre.

Karmic Astrologer: What does it mean?

Samuel H. Lawson: That's the thing, roughly translated from Amharic, the full name means 'Sun, the water tiger', but when I returned to Canada, I found out that 'Nebre or Nebra' means 'son of the Sun god Re' - a Pharaoh.

Monk: Interesting. Do you have any connection to Egypt?

Samuel H. Lawson: I think my paternal grandmother was Egyptian.

Karmic Astrologer: Perhaps you should publish using the name Tshi Nebre.

Samuel H. Lawson: Perhaps, but I'd rather make music using that name and publish using my European name.

[averycanadianfilm]

AVeryCanadianFilm: Black Physicists

I'm often asked about other black Physicists. I haven't met many because there aren't many. I'll just mention a few. Earl D. Shaw gave a seminar at Columbia University whilst I was there but I didn't attend the seminar because I was so busy with my research that I didn't even know he was speaking. Accidentally I was in the departmental office after his talk and met him then, I literally couldn't believe my eyes. At that time, I scarcely could believe someone like him existed! Without a doubt Earl was one of the most brilliant physicists I've ever met (and I've met several Physics Nobel Laureates). I was very fortunate to do research with Earl and remain grateful for that opportunity. In 2004 I was visiting friends in Philadelphia and took the opportunity to visit Larry Gladney in the physics department at the University of Pennsylvania. We had a very cordial conversation. Once on a train from Manhattan to Princeton Junction the astrophysics Neil deGrasse Tyson was sitting across from me, but we didn't speak and I don't recall ever seeing him at Columbia University. That's all I have to say about black physicists and I don't know if any of this will make it into the script for these films.

Note:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_D._Shaw

'Black Genius: Inspirational Portraits of African-American Leaders' -

Dick Russell

[averycanadianfilm]

April 19, 2023 Ottawa.

hmmm....

[averycanadianfilm]

Quantum Foundations: The Galactic Center File

Many astrologers have noticed the prominence of Saturn (dedication, discipline, determination, creations of enduring value etc.) and Jupiter (luck, blessings, inspiration, search for deep meaning and reliable knowledge etc.) in the natal charts of many scientists. The following statements depend on the accuracy of the birth-data, so if the publicly available birth-data is correct or even approximately correct then the following astrological facts are true (or approximately true). First, note, Isaac Newton: Saturn 19 deg Pisces 53 min conjunct Jupiter 14 deg Pisces 08 min and Werner Heisenberg: Saturn 14 deg Capricorn 43 min conjunct Jupiter 15 deg Capricorn 28 min, this is well known to astrologers and the significance of these placements is relatively straightforward. The prominence of the Galactic Center, however, is relatively less well known and that is one of the reasons I’m including the Galactic Center (GC) in ‘AveryCanadianFilm’. The following astrological aspects, for deceased physicists, are from publicly available birth-data.

Newton: Mercury 20 deg Sag 56 min conjunct GC 21 deg Sag 52 min.

Einstein: Sun 23 deg Pisces 30 min square GC 25 deg Sag 10 min.

Heisenberg: ASC 21 deg Gemini 07 min opposes GC 25 deg Sag 29 min.

Pauli: [Venus 20 deg Gemini 18 min conjunct Neptune 24 deg Gemini 55 min]

opposes [Chiron_R 24 deg Sag 39 min conjunct GC 25 deg Sag 28 min].

Max Born: Jupiter_R 27 deg Gemini 20 min opposes [Moon 24 deg Sag 25 min conjunct GC 25 deg Sag 13 min].

von Neumann: Uranus 26 deg Sag 23 min conjunct GC 25 deg Sag 30 min.

Schrödinger: Chiron 29 deg Gemini 56 min opposes GC 25 deg Sag 17 min.

de Broglie: Grand Trine in fire involving Jupiter-Chiron-GC

Jupiter_R 24 deg Aries 56 min trine Chiron 22 deg Leo 50 min trine GC 25 deg Sag 21 min.

David Bohm: Sun 28 deg Sag 01 min conjunct GC 25 deg Sag 42 min.

The following astrological aspects, for physicists still living at the time this was posted, are from publicly available birth-data .

Anthony Leggett: Chiron 25 deg Gemini 49 min opposes GC 26 deg Sag 00 min

Carlo Rovelli: Venus 26 deg Gemini 30 min opposes GC 26 deg Sag 15 min,

[Jupiter 21 deg Leo 52 min conjunct Pluto_R 26 deg Leo 06 min] trine GC.

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AVeryCanadianFilm: Quantum Research Columbia University

Reading the Quantum History at Columbia University timeline you’ll find the names of several outstanding physicists. Here’s some additional context: Charles H. Townes - Ali Javan did his PhD with Townes at Columbia - Javan then was a Professor at MIT - Richard M. Osgood Jr. and Irving P. Herman did their PhDs with Ali Javan at MIT Physics Department and George Flynn did a post-doc with Javan there - Osgood, Flynn, and Herman then went to Columbia University as Professors. When I first arrived at Columbia University I did research in Osgood’s lab, then did my PhD with Herman. Osgood, Flynn, and Herman were on my dissertation committee (Ben O'Shaughnessy Cambridge University Physics PhD was also on that committee), after I graduated from Columbia I was an Assistant Professor of Physics at the Colorado College etc. When I was an Assistant Professor of Physics I had dinner with Horst Ludwig Störmer and a few colleagues just after his Nobel Prize was announced. The physics I’m putting in ‘AVeryCanadianFilm’ can be viewed as ‘Applied Quantum Physics’ because I think Quantum Information and Quantum Computing are current important examples of ‘Applied Quantum Physics’. As for the astrology I’m putting in ‘AVeryCanadianFilm’, as far as I know, there is no scientific explanation for it and that’s part of the point. As it’s currently practiced western astrology is an example of a non-scientific worldview and is easily contrasted with a scientific worldview and that’s interesting to me and thus an interesting theme to explore in ‘AVeryCanadianFilm’.

[averycanadianfilm]

AveryCanadianFilm: Lockdown dreams

Tall White Alien: Hey, Hey, HEY!!! Wake-up!

Samuel H. Lawson: I’m awake. What do you want?

Tall White Alien: Not dreaming about the woman who knits?

Samuel H. Lawson: Not sleeping. Not dreaming at all. It’s a disaster!

Tall White Alien: Why? Lack of sleep is a problem?

Samuel H. Lawson: You don’t sleep?

Tall White Alien: No. We regenerate, it’s not like human sleeping.

Samuel H. Lawson: Oh.

Tall White Alien: So, lack of sleep is a problem then?

Samuel H. Lawson: Not so much lack of sleep, but lack of dreaming is definitely a disaster!

Tall White Alien: You miss dreaming about the woman who knits?

Samuel H. Lawson: (lol) Actually, I haven’t met her in person, these days I don’t think I ever will.

Tall White Alien: So, what’s the problem then?

Samuel H. Lawson: Dreaming is an essential part of my work routine.

Tall White Alien: You ‘work’ while dreaming?

Samuel H. Lawson: Yes you could say so, problems are solved, ideas are generated, stuff like that. Without dreams my productivity drops dramatically!

Tall White Alien: Interesting. Must be nice to work while sleeping.

Samuel H. Lawson: haha.

[averycanadianfilm]

Have you visited all the provinces in Canada? If so, which is your favourite one?

No I haven't. During my travels in Canada, Quebec City is the furthest east I've been. When I was a teenager I visited Newfoundland but that doesn't count because I was only there for a few days for a track meet, my last track meet (National Junior Championships). So, if I were to include eastern Canada in 'AveryCanadianFilm' I'd have to visit New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland before finalizing the script. Honestly, at the moment, I don't think I'll be able to do that, but who knows, since there have been many surprises on the journeys related to 'AveryCanadianFilm', I might travel there before the script is finalized. I don't have a favourite province. :-)

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You traveled around for over a decade, do you regret it? Do you miss 'the road'?

After I resigned from my tenurable academic position, for about a year and a half, I traveling in India, Nepal, Hong Kong (I highly recommend Lamma Island) and Ethiopia, I returned to Canada and intended to resume my academic career and write a book based on my travels, but I decided I didn't know enough about my own country so I decided to travel around Canada for a few years. I returned to the States during the summer of 2005 (teaching Calculus and Introduction to Probability&Statistics in a summer program at Barnard College/Columbia University). After that experience I decided to use the material for the books in film scripts instead, so I returned to Canada to continue my travels. I only intended to travel around Canada for about two more years, return to Manhattan to seek financing for 'A Very Canadian Film', and then return to academia. That didn't happen and I continued to travel in Canada and the Caribbean. When it was clear that I would have to find another way to get financing for these films, I stopped traveling and returned to academia (teaching physics at Trent University - Peterborough Campus). I don't regret it. We still might get financing for these feature length films. Currently, I'm working on three non-fiction books and will completely revise the script for the first film. Traveling for that extended period of time is unusual, I learned a lot about myself, other people, other cultures, and Canada. That said, no I don't miss the road and I don't intend to do anymore of that type of traveling. :-)