The Intangible

by C.J. Washington

People with Capgras syndrome falsely believed a loved one had been replaced by an imposter.

“Sometimes it’s about faith. Believing that something bigger than yourself is putting you where you need to be.”

“It’s the idea in theoretical physics that multiple universes exist,” Frederick explained. “Every time a quantum particle changes state, every state it could possibly assume generates a new universe. In other words, everything that can possibly happen, happens. The differences play out in different universes.”

When the world is inexplicable, our explanations are apt to be creative.

“I believe that one true objective reality exists. A full understanding of that reality is beyond our reach, however, so we construct narratives, approximations of reality. We collect rules, like ‘Good guys always win,’ and they become the framework for our narratives.

And small shifts in rules can lead to large differences in narratives.”

There are things I believed ten years ago that seem crazy to me now. But my change in perspective can be explained by small shifts in the rules I accept.”

When I said that people can get creative in the face of the inexplicable, I meant that we’re skilled at adopting new rules to expand our narrative structure. I don’t believe in ghosts. If I see one, I can either add a rule that nullifies my senses, or I can add a rule that permits the supernatural. I may not know which is true, so I have to choose. I think people tend to be self-serving in those choices. We see the world as we want to see it.”