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Fractal of the Day
by Jim Muth
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Fractal visionaries and enthusiasts: Today's midget is a scene in the Mandeloid fractal associated with the 6.0457442391 critical point of the expression: (0.01Z^4)-(0.2Z^3)+(Z^2)+(Z)+. Yes, I know that things are out of the conventional order in the formula, but it makes no difference. I named the resulting image "More Storm Clouds". The stormy fractal weather just will not blow over. I fully expect that tomorrow's image will be named something like "Still More Storm Clouds". The rating of a 6 is fair enough. 6-1/2 might have been more accurate, but we are not nit-picking. The render time of over 17 minutes is a bit slow, but the finished image is posted on the FOTD web site at: Those who are touchy about the beliefs of religion should stop reading now. While watching the devastation on TV Tuesday, fractal lady casually commented about why God would let such a thing happen. She should have known better. There is no question more likely to get my philosophical juices flowing. My immediate reply was to remind her that the question she had just spoken has always been the leading mystery of the western religions. Then I began pondering aloud: Let's skip the minor details. Let's get right to the core of the problem. Why does evil exist in a world being watched over by an all-good, all-caring, all-knowing, and all-powerful God? Like time-travel questions, this question as it stands is impossible to answer. But impossible-to-answer questions are usually signs that wrong assumptions have been made. The answer to this unfathomable mystery is quite simple and, for those with the courage to face it, makes total sense -- the assumption of religion is wrong. No God who is all-good, all-caring, all-knowing, all-wise, all-powerful and all-everything-else-man-considers-good would ever permit his children, the children he created and supposedly loves, to suffer such miseries. Such an entity is a self-contradiction, and an impossibility. We have made a wrong assumption. The answer to the question of why evil exists is harsh but inescapable. God, as described by our western religions, *does not exist*. The "invisible magician in the sky" that we are taught about in the churches is an invention of man, a widely believed fantasy that comforts believers when times are hard, but has no basis in reality. In my opinion, the really big question should be: why, in times of distress, do we continue to turn for help to the very entity whose actions or lack of actions are the cause of our distress? Why do we continue to pray to a God who, according to his whim of the moment, might or might not answer our prayers? By the time I finished my rant, fractal lady had called me an Atheist and turned back to the images of devastation on TV to watch and sulk. But she had no rebuttal. Needless to say, I am firmly against religion. But at the same time, I most definitely am *not* an Atheist. The universe with its potential for conscious life did not, indeed, could not have just popped into existence by accident as the skeptics at the opposite end of the belief spectrum claim, but if religion is delusional and skepticial Atheism is too simple, what else remains? Perhaps more wrong assumptions are lurking unseen before our eyes. More philosophy is to come in the not-too-distant future. The temperature reached 84F 29C under cloudy skies here at Fractal Central on Wednesday. But no rain fell, which allowed the fractal cats to enjoy a full afternoon romping in the holly bushes. They must have romped a bit too hard, for Tippy returned with a clump of burdock burrs stuck to his flank. I removed the burrs with a comb and scissors, while Tippy voiced his complaint. Today is starting sunny and cooler. It looks like another good day for both myself and the cats. The next FOTD is due in 24 hours. Until then, take care, and have faith, but not too much faith. Jim Muth jamth@mindspring.com jimmuth@aol.com |
START PARAMETER FILE=======================================
More_Storm_Clouds { ; time=0:17:46.49--SF5 on a P200
reset=2004 type=formula formulafile=allinone.frm
formulaname=MandelbrotMix3a function=recip passes=1
center-mag=-0.37403692302453810/+0.189225269024860\
60/2.477933e+008/1/-70/-5.874863224e-006 params=1/\
2/-0.2/3/1/1/0.01/4/6.0457442391/500 float=y
maxiter=1250 inside=0 logmap=185 periodicity=10
colors=000H8VH5YE0a90eI0eR5f_BfhIipOkyUmzXpzZryZrv\
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RzzTzzUzz3zeHzoUzyezzkzzozzszzwzzzzzzzzzzzzzpzzfzz\
ZzzOzzEzz5pzekziezl_zoWzr }
frm:MandelbrotMix3a {; Jim Muth
z=real(p5), c=fn1(pixel), a=real(p1), b=imag(p1),
d=real(p2), f=imag(p2), g=real(p3), h=imag(p3),
j=real(p4), k=imag(p4), l=imag(p5)+100:
z=(a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f))+(g*(z^h))+(j*(z^k))+c,
|z| <=l }
END PARAMETER FILE=========================================
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times.
