Fuzzy Logic...

I passed a television the other day displaying a static signal. You know the one, black and white random dottiness. It got me thinking that you don't really see television static much these days because the tellys are programmed to tune themselves and do it so well. No more of the manual knob adjustment trying to get that pin point accuracy on the dial to get the picture just perfect. Also reminded my of a portable Sony black and white television we used to have in the house (Do black and white televisions still get made anymore? Remember you used to have different licence fees for colour and black&white televisions.) which only had one knob for tuning to the channel and no preset buttons. You just had to cycle through static to find each channel.

Another really odd thing it reminded me of was the pictures I can see in television static signals. Does anyone else see them? Things like whirley star shapes that spin across the static, sometimes with wee satellite spinney stars around about them. Then geometric shapes and lines that sometimes formed wireframe 3D objects like cubes and pyramids.

Is this making any sense to anyone whatsoever? I don't think I've vocalized it (albeit in print on 'tinternet) in about 20 years.

I put these shapes and star whirleys down to the absolute random nature of the static meaning that my eyes and brain could construct these shapes because the signal so rapidly changed in such a random fashion that as my eyes move across the screen, the pixels move into whatever shape my brain was constructing with them. Essentially I was able to concentrate and speed the stars up of move the shapes around the screen by concentrating on them it that direction.

I'm pretty sure I've lost you completely but it would be cool if anyone recognizes what I'm talking about.