In order to continue last week’s e-mail, I would like to start again with a short story. This time the topic will be „Signal Processing“ resp. „Image Processing“ (see figure below). Some of you who answered my last e-mail know that „there is something going wrong in this world“, but „we can‘t do anything at all“. Therefore it seems better not to care about those things too much. This is completely understandable and no-one can be blamed for that in fact, because 95 % of the population think like this. So, at least you are not alone J

Because of all this I would like to repeat again for what reasons I write these e-mails regarding „September 11^th“. They are NOT meant to change the world „overnight“. They were also NOT written to keep you away from the nice & beautiful things in life (quite the contrary). And furthermore I do NOT intend to spread any news or any new philosophical ideas about „God and the World“. The only reason for me to write these e-mails is to make you aware of the use of one of the most complex organs of the human body in a different way from time to time: YOUR BRAIN. Everyone knows the term „Brainwashing“ and while we get amused or fed up of somebody else’s limited mental capability sometimes, we tend to forget in which way our own brains might be affected by that.

To come to the point:

The figure shows – slightly simplified – the information flow which a signal takes from the reality to our brains. Starting at the „true or real reality“ – the things as they really happen. This „true or real reality“ is being recorded by reporters, camera teams, documentary directors etc. At this moment a so-called „Noise“ – disturbing signals, other influences, is coming into force for the first time. What is the cameraman recording? How – in which way – is he recording it? On what is he putting his focus? Pictures, taken by a single man, will be seen later on by millions - or in case of „September 11^th“ by billions - of people in the whole wide world. At this very moment he has to be aware (or not), that he can acquire only a very small part of the „real reality“.

These signals (visual & verbal information) are being delivered to a „BLACK BOX“, which is responsible for the signal processing. What really happens in this „BLACK BOX“ do only those know who are inside of it – 99.9 % of the population are outside of it in any case. Let’s say: 0.1 % (that means approx. 80,000 Germans or 6 millions worldwide) sit inside of the „BLACK BOX“. Since we all put our faith in our democracy and the constitutional law (CL of Germany, Paragraph 5, see attachment) says that there is NO censorship of the press, 99.9 % of the population (people outside the „BLACK BOX“) rely on 0.1 % of the population within the „BLACK BOX“.

The geometrical figures inside of the „BLACK BOX“ are called „operators“, who use so-called „filters“ – you can also call these operators „governments“, „political organisations“, „secret services“, „industry“, „financial experts“ etc. In the field of „Signal and image processing“ there are hundreds of different filters. Among the most common you can find e.g. the „Low-Pass-„ and the „High-Pass-Filter“. That means only signals with an either very big positive or very big negative amplitude will come through. The rest ends up in the dustbin. There are also others, and Adobe Photoshop experts will know them all, such as „Softener“ or „Edge Enhancing“. „Softener“ can be perfectly used to modify verbal information. Very often you will get to know different forms of „Doublespeak“ – almost everyone knows that if they say „that the job market won’t relax“ (poor German-English translation, sorry for that) they try to say that we will have more unemployed people in future. The „Edge Filter“ (in all its variations) is also used quite often, but its fame it got mainly by the fact that all of the models and women in the TV journals never have any wrinkles. Apparently most of the filter or tools are used to „blur“ or to „remove noise“. In contrast to that filters such as the so-called „Unsharp mask“, which enhances details, were „strangely“ used quite seldom. They don’t want to overstrain you with to many details (sometimes also called „negligibilities“). Actually the people in the „BLACK BOX“ are quite nice though, aren’t they?

The best and easiest commands for image processing – because they are the fastest – are „Change resolution“ or „Cut part of image“. In Today’s Society, in which we are taught to be fast to be successful, these two commands are therefore the most effective – because you just need to carry out one command.
The signal modified by many filters reaches now … the Media. Again, it is being changed by a „noise“. When does it reach the media – time of the day? In which way – via radio, television, newspaper, Internet etc.? Will it reach the people in the world at the same time?

The Media then give us mostly (inevitably .. and not always) a very simplified image of the „true, real reality“ (see figure above). When we talk about „September 11^th“ the image mainly contained two things – the „Good“ („We“) and the „Evil“ („The Others“). Some members of the German parliament had to support this in quite a amusing manner (Original statement by Mr. Peter Struck, MP, Social Democrat, 12.09.2001: „Today we are all Americans!“). What is quite amusing for me looking back to those days, that wasn’t that amusing for a Afghan wedding party last week. Just a little slip-up of the US Army – can even happen in the best families! Just like the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade or a residential building in Sofia during the Kosovo War in 1999?

Finally the signal comes to us out of the radio, the TV set, in the newspaper or any web-page. And again there is a noise: Do we listen/watch properly? Are we interested at all? Which station, channel do we listen to/watch, which newspaper do we read? Did we miss Yesterday’s news? Admittedly, not everyone can follow the daily news with such an enthusiasm like we watch „Big Brother“, „Ally McBeal“ or any other daily soap.

Well, what’s the conclusion of all this „image processing“ stuff? At the beginning there was the „true, real reality“ and at the end there is just a big question mark. It should be easily understandable, that it is NEVER possible to re-produce the original from the picture with the two dots (see figure above). Hence, the aim of the whole „news & information“ thing is NOT to make us understand what really happens „somewhere in the world“. But we should be aware of the fact that the things we (or our brains) get to „eat“ via our TV sets are just a very little part of the whole story. The more we believe the official media, the more we tend to „see, what we shall see“ and NOT what is really there. In fact, can you tell the „better informed person“ from the one who watches the news every day and the one who doesn’t do that at all?

Surely, no-one can stop the killings of millions of human beings – according to statistics about 80 million (!) people have died during wars since 1945. Wars have been there for millenniums and most probably they will always be there. But at least we should know, why our coffee and petrol is so cheap. From time to time one should think of the reason why we can afford such a good life. Just because there is someone dying at the other end of this world at the same time.

It is your business whom you thank for these things – that they are as they are. Some call him „God“, others „Destiny“, and some call him „Mr. President“. And not to forget about another big part of the population who hasn’t even started thinking about such things at all. Not bad though – if you are able to do so.

Are you able to do so?

Have a nice, sunny day. Yours, Michael. 

You can also forward this e-mail to people you know – I don’t mind that at all.

PS: Next time – possible answers regarding the questions in the first e-mail.