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structure of a sentence

English translation: The language, imagery and organisation of one provide a model for the other

07:55 Jan 10, 2017
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
English term or phrase: structure of a sentence
Hello everyone,

Creative tftinking, the thinking that originates crucially in the spiritual level of the self, issues from a brain dynamic that functions very much like the processes and systems described by quantum physics and com- plexity science. Some brain scientists even argue that there is an actual quantum level in the brain, perhaps coupled with “complex” activity, that makes consciousness and creative thinking possible.5 Whether this is true remains to be proven. But human creative thinking is so similar to the cre- ativity of quantum processes that I find it useful to call creative thinking quantum tftinking. For similar reasons, I often refer to the spiritual level of the self as tfte quantum self. This allows us to find a language, a set of images and metaphors, and even an organizational model for nurturing creativity and creative leadership in the existing language, imagery, and organization of quantum and complex systems and the quantum brain.

I'm not sure I understand correctly the structure of the last sentence in the paragraph.

"This allows us to find a language, a set of images and metaphors, and even an organizational model for nurturing creativity and creative leadership in the existing language, imagery" -- although I would prefer the "and" between "language" and "imagery", I think I understand the meaning which is as follows: the existing language makes it possible to express all the things mentioned.

"and organization of quantum and complex systems and the quantum brain." -- what does this part refer to? Shouldn't it go before "... in the existing language" to form a logical sequence?

Thank you.
Mikhail Korolev
Local time: 06:15
Selected answer:The language, imagery and organisation of one provide a model for the other
Explanation:
The last part of the sentence that is causing you difficulty forms a single unit:

"the existing language, imagery, and organization of quantum and complex systems and the quantum brain"

"Language, imagery, and organization" are three features of quantum/complex systems and of the quantum brain. I think perhaps the comma after "imagery" may have confused you. This comma, sometimes called the "Oxford" comma, is commonly used in American English but not in British English. In other words, in a list or enumeration of three or more parallel elements, BrE typically puts "A, B and C", but American English typically puts "A, B, and C". That is what's happening here: the writer means:

the language of quantum systems +
the imagery of quantum systems +
the organisation of quantum systems.

So having noted the established conjecture that the brain is a quantum or complex system, the writer is saying that the language, imagery and organisation of complex systems can be applied to creativity and creative leadership. Since it is argued that these two things (quantum/complex systems, including the brain, and creative thinking) are analogous and work in similar ways, we can find language, imagery and organisation models applicable to creative thinking in those of quantum systems and the quantum brain: we can apply the latter to the former.

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Note added at 2 hrs (2017-01-10 10:01:05 GMT)
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I've just seen Sheila's comment, and it shows that even careful native speakers can (in my opinion) misread this sentence. I don't think the author means that all these three things, language, imagery and an organisational model, nurture creativity; "for nurturing" only applies to the organisational model. The syntax tends to obscure this, but to me it's just common sense. The first two elements, (1) a language and (2) a set of images and metaphors, are used to describe creativity (and thus communicate an understanding of it), and the third, (3) an organizational model, nurtures it (or may nurture it).

Personally, although the writer probably should and could have made this easier for the reader, I don't think the syntax of this sentence is garbled. Whether you think the whole argument about "quantum" thinking and creativity is nonsense is another matter, but that's not the point here.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2017-01-10 10:04:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

And clearly (to me) there is a straight correspondence of three elements of one thing (A: "quantum creativity") with the same three elements of another (B: quantum/complex systems generally): we can find a language for A in the language of B, an imagery for A in the imagery of B and an organisational model for A in the organisation model of B.
Selected response from:

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 05:15
Grading comment
Many thanks to everyone.
Thank you, Charles.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +2language, imagery and organization
suew
4The language, imagery and organisation of one provide a model for the other
Charles Davis


Discussion entries: 1





  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
language, imagery and organization


Explanation:
This is a straight list - "language, imagery and organization" - of elements (which arguably don't sit particularly well together). In BE we'd take out the comma between "imagery, and organization", but I have seen lists in AE where they include a comma between the penultimate item and the "and".
So I'd read it as "This allows us to find ... a model for nurturing ...leadership in the ...language, imagery and organization of ....systems and the quantum brain."

suew
United Kingdom
Local time: 04:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Sheila Wilson: This allows us to find several things to nurture several other things. Dreadfully garbled.
23 mins
  -> Thanks, Sheila!
agree  acetran
2 hrs
  -> Thank you, acetran!
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
The language, imagery and organisation of one provide a model for the other


Explanation:
The last part of the sentence that is causing you difficulty forms a single unit:

"the existing language, imagery, and organization of quantum and complex systems and the quantum brain"

"Language, imagery, and organization" are three features of quantum/complex systems and of the quantum brain. I think perhaps the comma after "imagery" may have confused you. This comma, sometimes called the "Oxford" comma, is commonly used in American English but not in British English. In other words, in a list or enumeration of three or more parallel elements, BrE typically puts "A, B and C", but American English typically puts "A, B, and C". That is what's happening here: the writer means:

the language of quantum systems +
the imagery of quantum systems +
the organisation of quantum systems.

So having noted the established conjecture that the brain is a quantum or complex system, the writer is saying that the language, imagery and organisation of complex systems can be applied to creativity and creative leadership. Since it is argued that these two things (quantum/complex systems, including the brain, and creative thinking) are analogous and work in similar ways, we can find language, imagery and organisation models applicable to creative thinking in those of quantum systems and the quantum brain: we can apply the latter to the former.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2017-01-10 10:01:05 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I've just seen Sheila's comment, and it shows that even careful native speakers can (in my opinion) misread this sentence. I don't think the author means that all these three things, language, imagery and an organisational model, nurture creativity; "for nurturing" only applies to the organisational model. The syntax tends to obscure this, but to me it's just common sense. The first two elements, (1) a language and (2) a set of images and metaphors, are used to describe creativity (and thus communicate an understanding of it), and the third, (3) an organizational model, nurtures it (or may nurture it).

Personally, although the writer probably should and could have made this easier for the reader, I don't think the syntax of this sentence is garbled. Whether you think the whole argument about "quantum" thinking and creativity is nonsense is another matter, but that's not the point here.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 2 hrs (2017-01-10 10:04:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

And clearly (to me) there is a straight correspondence of three elements of one thing (A: "quantum creativity") with the same three elements of another (B: quantum/complex systems generally): we can find a language for A in the language of B, an imagery for A in the imagery of B and an organisational model for A in the organisation model of B.

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 05:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 572
Grading comment
Many thanks to everyone.
Thank you, Charles.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Daryo: a brave attempt to avoid the GIGO effect ... the last bit is just fashionable nonsense not worth loosing your sleep over it - simply resorting to the most literal translation will be more than good enough!
10 hrs
  -> Thanks! I tried to confine myself to clarifying the syntax. I agree with you on fashionable and woolly speculation about "quantum" systems.
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