The Science of Psionics, Wednesday
"Next week, we graduate to telekinesis," Kerrigan said, as she paced idly into the room. "Today, we talk about the more... active... applications of telepathy. Passive telepathy we've covered - the discipline of listening in and knowing how the mind fits together. Active telepathy is a step beyond. It is when we start meddling."
She may have shot her TA if she was there a mildly amused glance there. "Hypnosis and other fields like it have been explored by humanity for millenia. The subconscious is a powerful place to reach into, provided you knock out - or pass by - the conscious mind. The subconscious controls where our ideas come from, how our body works, how we act before the idea has even manifested. Some scientists claim that all decisions are already made in the subconscious; any control we think we have over them is just an illusion."
She leaned against the desk. "Fertile ground for telepaths," she said. "We don't need to wave objects in someone's face to take out their conscious mind. We can slip past it - provided we're willing to navigate the maze that lives in all of your brain pans. Placing suggestions is an art form. You'd be surprised how complex these processes are - I can't just snap my fingers and make you cluck like a chicken."
Beat.
"Probably."
She was reassuring like that. "Smaller things are easier. A compulsion to go to a certain place, at a certain time. Being more inclined towards wearing a certain color in your wardrobe. But sometimes all you need is a small thing to affect a greater change, to throw everything off balance." She smiled. It was also not very reassuring. "Usually, the smaller the alteration, the more natural the change, the less likely anyone is to notice something has changed. A telepath specialising in suggestion is a lot like a surgeon. You won't know they've done their work until they've long gone, if you ever find out at all."
She tapped her fingers against the desk. "Three things today," she said. "First of all, as in every class, I want you to swap experiences. Theorise about the nature of compulsion. Discuss what you think you can do to stop invaders from tweaking your mind. Second of all, I have a movie for you that... discusses some of the processes involved in tweaking the subconscious. Finally, if any of you dare - I'm willing to give a practical example of a compulsion. Today, or during my office hours on Friday. Don't worry. It won't last more than a few minutes."
Ahahaha. Sure.
She may have shot her TA if she was there a mildly amused glance there. "Hypnosis and other fields like it have been explored by humanity for millenia. The subconscious is a powerful place to reach into, provided you knock out - or pass by - the conscious mind. The subconscious controls where our ideas come from, how our body works, how we act before the idea has even manifested. Some scientists claim that all decisions are already made in the subconscious; any control we think we have over them is just an illusion."
She leaned against the desk. "Fertile ground for telepaths," she said. "We don't need to wave objects in someone's face to take out their conscious mind. We can slip past it - provided we're willing to navigate the maze that lives in all of your brain pans. Placing suggestions is an art form. You'd be surprised how complex these processes are - I can't just snap my fingers and make you cluck like a chicken."
Beat.
"Probably."
She was reassuring like that. "Smaller things are easier. A compulsion to go to a certain place, at a certain time. Being more inclined towards wearing a certain color in your wardrobe. But sometimes all you need is a small thing to affect a greater change, to throw everything off balance." She smiled. It was also not very reassuring. "Usually, the smaller the alteration, the more natural the change, the less likely anyone is to notice something has changed. A telepath specialising in suggestion is a lot like a surgeon. You won't know they've done their work until they've long gone, if you ever find out at all."
She tapped her fingers against the desk. "Three things today," she said. "First of all, as in every class, I want you to swap experiences. Theorise about the nature of compulsion. Discuss what you think you can do to stop invaders from tweaking your mind. Second of all, I have a movie for you that... discusses some of the processes involved in tweaking the subconscious. Finally, if any of you dare - I'm willing to give a practical example of a compulsion. Today, or during my office hours on Friday. Don't worry. It won't last more than a few minutes."
Ahahaha. Sure.