Philosopher Robert Anton Wilson observed/discovered a truth of humanity that he labeled the "Jumping Jesus Phenomenon."
"Let us define the measurement of known scientific facts in the year 1 A.D. as 'one jesus,' using the name of the celebrated philosopher born that year," the late Wilson wrote several decades ago. Wilson estimated it took homo sapiens 40,000 to 100,000 years to accumulate its collective knowledge up to that time.
We humans took "only" 1,500 more years to double our knowledge to "two jesuses," Wilson estimated. The next doubling, to four jesuses, took only 250 years and came in 1750 A.D. Wilson guestimates humanity reached "256 j" around 1979 and 512 j in 1982."
He also postulated that we humans' collective knowledge would soon be doubling at an ever accelerating rate, until one future time when we will acquire a new "jesus" of knowledge each day, then hourly.
"In short, we are living in a mental transformation space expanding toward infinity in all directions," Wilson wrote. "And the electronic center of this halo of 'mentation' is possibly everywhere. It is all available to you right where you are sitting now. Just plug in a terminal. The machine doesn't care who or what you are."
Wilson was on to something -- and remember that he crafted this theory years before the invention of Google.
However, I apply his "Jumping Jesus" theory to pop culture, which these days is changing at an alarming rate. Here's some recent evidence:
Mr. Squiggles. Two weeks ago I was listening to a report on National Public Radio about this holiday season's shopping outlook, and the piece featured a quote from Amazon Vice President Craig Berman: "One of the hottest toys is Zhu Zhu pet hamsters -- they are little soft hamsters, and each has a name, and right now Mr. Squiggles is the third best-selling item in our toy store."
Hmmmm, I thought, Amazon is selling live pets?! After all, the guy did not say electronic hamsters -- the "e" word appeared nowhere it his description of the "little soft" creatures.
Only after Mr. Squiggles made the news a few days later, because a watchdog group claimed he might contain toxic chemicals, did I feel like an idiot. (BTW, it appears the electronic beastie has been proven safe for kiddies after all.)
But what does it say about humankind when "pets" has become synonymous with electronic toys?
HD radio. Several weeks ago, Orlando public radio station WMFE-FM announced it was kicking its classical music programming to the curb -- well, to its HD radio sister channel. I confess I knew more about Mr. Squiggles than this newfangled HD technology.
After hearing from classical music fans who were more bent out of shape than Tiger Woods' golf clubs, I did some research. Nope, you and I cannot listen to WMFE-FM's HD2 station (their new classical channel) on the antique, Marconi-era wireless we currently have in our cars and homes.
We need a new device (of course we do). However, a search on Amazon.com and Bestbuy.com revealed that HD devices for both car and home begin at under $50. And the really good news for classical fans: WMFE-FM HD2 is Beethoven and those dudes 24/7 -- none of that crappy talk/news/information programming that makes us think, ponder life and increases humanity's collective intelligence so that we jump into another "jesus."
Pope rap. OK, it's not hip-hop-style rap by Pope Benedict XVI that's featured on the new CD "Music From the Vatican." Rather, the pope is heard speaking and singing in Latin, Italian, Portuguese, French and German over eight classical works commissioned from three contemporary composers. The CD's press release, by the way, trumpets that the three composers are Catholic, Muslim and "undeclared."
Can the pope out-gun Susan Boyle on the charts? Did the pope bring on the Muslim and the undeclared guys to attract market share beyond his Catholic fan base? Will Jay-Z guest-rap on the remix album?
These questions and others will be answered as we humans acquire yet another "jesus" of knowledge.
"Let us define the measurement of known scientific facts in the year 1 A.D. as 'one jesus,' using the name of the celebrated philosopher born that year," the late Wilson wrote several decades ago. Wilson estimated it took homo sapiens 40,000 to 100,000 years to accumulate its collective knowledge up to that time.
We humans took "only" 1,500 more years to double our knowledge to "two jesuses," Wilson estimated. The next doubling, to four jesuses, took only 250 years and came in 1750 A.D. Wilson guestimates humanity reached "256 j" around 1979 and 512 j in 1982."
He also postulated that we humans' collective knowledge would soon be doubling at an ever accelerating rate, until one future time when we will acquire a new "jesus" of knowledge each day, then hourly.
"In short, we are living in a mental transformation space expanding toward infinity in all directions," Wilson wrote. "And the electronic center of this halo of 'mentation' is possibly everywhere. It is all available to you right where you are sitting now. Just plug in a terminal. The machine doesn't care who or what you are."
Wilson was on to something -- and remember that he crafted this theory years before the invention of Google.
However, I apply his "Jumping Jesus" theory to pop culture, which these days is changing at an alarming rate. Here's some recent evidence:
Mr. Squiggles. Two weeks ago I was listening to a report on National Public Radio about this holiday season's shopping outlook, and the piece featured a quote from Amazon Vice President Craig Berman: "One of the hottest toys is Zhu Zhu pet hamsters -- they are little soft hamsters, and each has a name, and right now Mr. Squiggles is the third best-selling item in our toy store."
Hmmmm, I thought, Amazon is selling live pets?! After all, the guy did not say electronic hamsters -- the "e" word appeared nowhere it his description of the "little soft" creatures.
Only after Mr. Squiggles made the news a few days later, because a watchdog group claimed he might contain toxic chemicals, did I feel like an idiot. (BTW, it appears the electronic beastie has been proven safe for kiddies after all.)
But what does it say about humankind when "pets" has become synonymous with electronic toys?
HD radio. Several weeks ago, Orlando public radio station WMFE-FM announced it was kicking its classical music programming to the curb -- well, to its HD radio sister channel. I confess I knew more about Mr. Squiggles than this newfangled HD technology.
After hearing from classical music fans who were more bent out of shape than Tiger Woods' golf clubs, I did some research. Nope, you and I cannot listen to WMFE-FM's HD2 station (their new classical channel) on the antique, Marconi-era wireless we currently have in our cars and homes.
We need a new device (of course we do). However, a search on Amazon.com and Bestbuy.com revealed that HD devices for both car and home begin at under $50. And the really good news for classical fans: WMFE-FM HD2 is Beethoven and those dudes 24/7 -- none of that crappy talk/news/information programming that makes us think, ponder life and increases humanity's collective intelligence so that we jump into another "jesus."
Pope rap. OK, it's not hip-hop-style rap by Pope Benedict XVI that's featured on the new CD "Music From the Vatican." Rather, the pope is heard speaking and singing in Latin, Italian, Portuguese, French and German over eight classical works commissioned from three contemporary composers. The CD's press release, by the way, trumpets that the three composers are Catholic, Muslim and "undeclared."
Can the pope out-gun Susan Boyle on the charts? Did the pope bring on the Muslim and the undeclared guys to attract market share beyond his Catholic fan base? Will Jay-Z guest-rap on the remix album?
These questions and others will be answered as we humans acquire yet another "jesus" of knowledge.
