# Feng Shui? Nonsense! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 20, 2004, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267 "2004-01-20T01:33:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/61 "2004-01-23T13:39:40Z")
It is a fact that energies flow about us, within us, and eminate from us in many different spectrums (EM, Radioactivity, Heat energy, etc.). It is quite logical that this ocean of energies that we swim in would have certain rules of ebb and flow, interaction and counteraction, and ultimately influence, or be influenced by, the “physical”. It is really a simple inevitability and fact. Just because we don’t “see” it, doesn’t mean that there isn’t a dynamic energy effect happening around us constantly in varying degrees dependant upon our physical environment. Everything we perceive, after all, is only reflected energy. The insights and practices of feng shui may seem strange, but then again, so are the linsights and practices of quantum physics. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/62 "2004-01-23T14:00:15Z")
What utter bullshit. Explain to me then, how keeping the toilet lid closed has the slightest effect on “heat energy.” Or designing the layout of a building on the cardinal points of the compass alters the effects of electromagnetic activity. As for your “ocean of energies,” that’s simply incorrect. There only four natural forces: gravity, the strong nuclear, the weak nuclear, and electro-magnetic. And in fact, the weak nuclear and electro-magnetic forces have been shown to be pretty much they same thing. They have been unified into what’s called the electro-weak force. Evidence of this was found by CERN in 1973. There’s no “ocean of energies;” rather there are a very few basic natural forces which are well exlplained and accounted for - both in Newtonian physics and quantum physics. Moving your furniture has **zero** effect on these. > [@](#): > > The insights and practices of feng shui may seem strange, but then again, so are the linsights and practices of quantum physics. The tenets of feng shui seem strange because they have no effect on “energy.” The tenets of quantum physics seem strange because they are complex interactions that take place below one’s unaided level of perception. There are those who can use (and explain) quantum physics to make accurate predictions of future events - science has predictive power. There’s no one who can explain how feng shui effects this mysterious “ocean of energy,” because there is no such thing, thus feng shui has no predictive power. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/63 "2004-01-23T14:08:46Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > It is a fact that energies flow about us, within us, and eminate from us in many different spectrums (EM, Radioactivity, Heat energy, etc.). It is quite logical that this ocean of energies that we swim in would have certain rules of ebb and flow, interaction and counteraction, and ultimately influence, or be influenced by, the “physical”. It is really a simple inevitability and fact. Just because we don’t “see” it, doesn’t mean that there isn’t a dynamic energy effect happening around us constantly in varying degrees dependant upon our physical environment. Everything we perceive, after all, is only reflected energy. > The insights and practices of feng shui may seem strange, but then again, so are the linsights and practices of quantum physics. IT’S HIRYUU!!! HE’S BACK!!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/64 "2004-01-23T14:10:35Z")
> [@essvee](#): > > Priceguy, please go take a flying fuck at a rolling donut. It has been discussed in this thread that feng shui is thousands of years old, and that so-called experts have jumped on a bastardized version to sucker gullible housewives and househusbands and such. No denying that. > [@](#): > > If you had taken the time to read my post, instead of immaturely jumping all over your high-school-ass, Ayn Rand, rebel-outlaw, black trenchcoat wearin’ juvenile buzzwords (like religion, for instance, you fucking moron), you might be able to get it through your prehensile li’l medulla that all I said was that anything as studied and codified as feng shui is probably has some wisdom (read: understanding of how to live) and some practical application to our lives. So many misconceptions in such a short body of text. Impressive. Your parents must be so proud. I’ve understood everything you’ve said. This time and the other times. I’m still highly unimpressed, especially by your little display of misdirected rage. You’re still, of course, entirely wrong, as shown by your inability to answer questions put to you, your inability to understand why “old” and “codified” don’t mean “good” despite it being explained to you, and above all, your amazing ability to read things that just aren’t there. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/65 "2004-01-23T14:59:30Z")
> [@UncleBeer](#): > > What utter bullshit. Explain to me then, how keeping the toilet lid closed has the slightest effect on “heat energy.” Or designing the layout of a building on the cardinal points of the compass alters the effects of electromagnetic activity. I don’t know you’d have to consult a practitioner of Feng Sui. > [@UncleBeer](#): > > As for your “ocean of energies,” that’s simply incorrect. There only four natural forces: gravity, the strong nuclear, the weak nuclear, and electro-magnetic. And in fact, the weak nuclear and electro-magnetic forces have been shown to be pretty much they same thing. They have been unified into what’s called the electro-weak force. Evidence of this was found by CERN in 1973. There’s no “ocean of energies;” rather there are a very few basic natural forces which are well exlplained and accounted for - both in Newtonian physics and quantum physics. True, and maybe you are mischaracterizing my metaphor. We are obviously not on the same wavelength (pun intended). Tiny droplets from my “ocean of energies”. > **[Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences - Faculties, Departments and Schools |...](https://www.uwe.ac.uk/about/faculties-and-departments/health-and-applied-sciences)** > > The Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences brings together experts from Allied Health Professions, Applied Sciences, Health and Social Science, and Nursing and Midwifery. > [@](#): > > Moving your furniture has **zero** effect on these. Move your speakers beneath your bed, how does this effect reflected energy? Put your favorite picture behind your refrigerator, how does this effect reflected energy? > [@](#): > > The tenets of feng shui seem strange because they have no effect on “energy.” The tenets of quantum physics seem strange because they are complex interactions that take place below one’s unaided level of perception. There are those who can use (and explain) quantum physics to make accurate predictions of future events - science has predictive power. There’s no one who can explain how feng shui effects this mysterious “ocean of energy,” because there is no such thing, thus feng shui has no predictive power. I can build a Faraday cage and shield myself from certain energies, I can shield myself from other energies with a sheet of lead, I’m sure there are even more subtle factors from certain combinations of elements or physical objects…lotsa deflection and absorption going on all about us, really. One energy affecting another, disaffecting another…etc. …a seething sea of energies. Feng shui isn’t predictive… it is effective. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/66 "2004-01-23T15:10:19Z")
> [@UncleBeer](#): > > What utter bullshit. Explain to me then, how keeping the toilet lid closed has the slightest effect on “heat energy.” I take it you don’t live with any women. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/67 "2004-01-23T15:12:14Z")
Hey Beer, I’ll buy you a beer at Frickers. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/68 "2004-01-23T15:30:55Z")
Ya know, Feng shui is based on a digital model of the universe. Everything is either Yin or Yang…1 or 0. Maybe there is some mathmetical truth behind its calculations? ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/69 "2004-01-23T15:33:24Z")
Correction\* - “a binary (digital) model of the universe.” ---
**Author:** ![GSV\_Consolation\_of\_Dreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f1d935/32.png) [@GSV\_Consolation\_of\_Dreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GSV_Consolation_of_Dreams)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/70 "2004-01-23T15:41:33Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > Ya know, Feng shui is based on a digital model of the universe. Everything is either Yin or Yang…1 or 0. Maybe there is some mathmetical truth behind its calculations? Methinks you should learn something about Yin and Yang. 1 and 0 indeed. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/71 "2004-01-23T15:51:20Z")
Ok, maybe positive and negative, would be a more appropriate mathmatical correllate. Nothing we conceive is really an appropriate image of the subtleties and intricacies of the ever evolving Yin and Yang as a whole …from one into the other and back again…and so it goes. Ostensibly, and for practical purposes, it is a binary system or representation of an evironment within the practice of Feng Shui. ---
**Author:** ![Janx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Janx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Janx)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/72 "2004-01-23T16:40:29Z")
\*\* devilsknew \*\* wrote… > [@](#): > > Move your speakers beneath your bed, how does this effect reflected energy? Put your favorite picture behind your refrigerator, how does this effect reflected energy? Big deal. I can measure sound and light reflection, they exist. I know what will happen when I block either of them. I can not measure your ocean of energies though, no one can. Ya know why? Cause they don’t exist. So then \*\* devilsknew \*\*, you remember Acham’s razor? It does not say the simplest answer is usually the best, it says that there is no need to invent a new entity to explain an outcome for which there are already reasonable explanations: \*\* Suppose you leave a bowl of milk out for your cat at night and come back the next morning and the milk is gone, do you decide that the milk ferry came and drank it? No, there is already an explanation, it was the cat. Even though you didn’t see him drink it, there is no need to create a new entity. Following this rational, you are asking me to believe that if I move a chair to a certain location it will increase my chances of winning the lottery, but if I don’t it will increase my chances of getting hit by a truck, why? Because that chair there upsets the milk ferry, that’s why. Now, this is just bad mental health. So until you can show me, using the scientific method, that your “Ocean of Energys” exist, and can in fact exert a force of some kind or another on me (or my furniture) I’m gonna stick with the “the cat drank the milk” thank you very much. Oh, that goes for Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, extra terrestrial UFOs, ghosts, dowsing, psychokinesis etc. etc \*\* In case you recognize this, I heard this explanation someplace else, I am paraphrasing, I would site the source but I forget where it came from (go figure). ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/73 "2004-01-23T17:04:10Z")
> [@](#): > > I don’t know you’d have to consult a practitioner of Feng Sui. Well, since you’re the guy making the outrageous claims for the powers of this mysterious force, I thought maybe you actually knew something about it. I could, I suppose, consult a practitioner, but I can just as easily read the unsubstantiated tripe they’ve posted on the 'Net. I don’t think I need to pay one of these clowns five hundred bucks an hour for a consultation. > [@](#): > > [http://www.uwe.ac.uk/fas/wavelength/wave21/good2.jpg](http://www.uwe.ac.uk/fas/wavelength/wave21/good2.jpg) Pretty picture. What is it? And how did changing the path of my sidewalk effect it? More importantly, what benefit to my future does that picture portend? Searching from the homepage of the site from which that .jpg comes, I find not a single article relating to feng shui. > [@](#): > > I can build a Faraday cage and shield myself from certain energies, I can shield myself from other energies with a sheet of lead, I’m sure there are even more subtle factors from certain combinations of elements or physical objects…lotsa deflection and absorption going on all about us, really. One energy affecting another, disaffecting another…etc. …a seething sea of energies. And of course, none of this has a single thing to do with re-arranging your furniture into a more aesthetically pleasing configuration. Faraday cages indeed. As shown here, feng shui is thousands of years old; Michael Faraday lived from 1791 to 1867. Difficult for me to see how feng shui incorported knowledge of electromagnetic induction into its theory when Faraday didn’t discover it until 1831. > [@](#): > > Feng shui isn’t predictive… it is effective. Now you’re simply restating the claim. The argument here is that it’s not been shown to be effective. Repeating the thesis, no matter how many times it’s done, is not proof. Offer me some proof of the efficacy of feng shui. ---
**Author:** ![Pabitel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bbce88/32.png) [@Pabitel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pabitel)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/74 "2004-01-23T17:19:13Z")
Alright, I thought I made the point that MaxTheVool, UncleBeer and Mighty\_Girl felt the need to belabour. let me repeat what I said and 'splain. “Sure there are people out there exploiting Feng Shui in various scams. But then I tend to think that anyone bored and rich enough to hire a Feng Shui “expert” to help them redecorate deserves to get fleeced.” I thought that was pretty clear. I think the “experts” who are charging an arm and a leg for their services are con-men. “Feng Shui is, at its heart an aesthetic. It has a cultural basis, not a scientific one. Any art form old enough has its superstitions folded into the actual functionality of it processes.” I thought that was pretty clear as well. This is an ancient art. The vocabulary that built up around it is not scientific. It is superstitious and spiritual. You have no right to declare that any cultural phenomenon that is to continue to exist change its entire vocabulary to match your preferences. “Just because some of the aesthetic qualities of Feng Shui are couched in metaphysical terms does not mean that the social and psychological benefits that can be derived from application of the principles are not real.” I thought that was clear as well. Energy flows and invisible dragons are simply a part of the art form. These are social and philosophical constructs not scientific facts. Any architect will tell you that there is a “natural energy flow” through a building. Yet it cannot me measured by setting up electron detectors. These terms mean something entirely different in their context then they do in yours. Stop trying to impose you cultural sensibilities on someone else’s art form. In case any of you missed it. I think anyone who claims to directly affect the physical world through Feng Shui is a charlatan. That said I think Feng Shui is a completely acceptable art form with many potential, intangible, benefits to those who admire it. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2004, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/75 "2004-01-23T18:17:54Z")
> [@](#): > > I thought that was pretty clear as well. This is an ancient art. The vocabulary that built up around it is not scientific. It is superstitious and spiritual. You have no right to declare that any cultural phenomenon that is to continue to exist change its entire vocabulary to match your preferences. I don’t think anybody’s arguing against those points, Degrance; hedra did a fine job of explaining the historical background and cultural significance of feng shui. The points that MaxTheVool, Mighty\_Girl and myself are belaboring are those that contend there is no scientific basis for the extraordinary claims made by some of feng shui’s practitioners. There are people in this thread who keep insisting that feng shui has some _measurable physical effect_ in the material world. We deny that view. I think you and the three belaborers you mentioned above are substantially in agreement. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/76 "2004-01-24T02:20:25Z")
> [@Janx](#): > > \*\* devilsknew \*\* wrote… > Big deal. I can measure sound and light reflection, they exist. I know what will happen when I block either of them. I can not measure your ocean of energies though, no one can. Ya know why? Cause they don’t exist. > > So then \*\* devilsknew \*\*, you remember Acham’s razor? It does not say the simplest answer is usually the best, it says that there is no need to invent a new entity to explain an outcome for which there are already reasonable explanations: \*\* Suppose you leave a bowl of milk out for your cat at night and come back the next morning and the milk is gone, do you decide that the milk ferry came and drank it? No, there is already an explanation, it was the cat. Even though you didn’t see him drink it, there is no need to create a new entity. Sound and light are all quanta of energy flowing through a rather dense “ocean” of other energy quanta…Everything is literally pure energy in various states. I am not making up anything or inventing a new entity, I am simply using a relatable metaphor- language and quantum physics are at odds, and this is a practical assimilation. Maybe it borders to much on the language of hoohaa for you, I don’t know- these are your prejudices. > [@](#): > > Following this rational, you are asking me to believe that if I move a chair to a certain location it will increase my chances of winning the lottery, but if I don’t it will increase my chances of getting hit by a truck, why? Because that chair there upsets the milk ferry, that’s why. Now, this is just bad mental health. Hey, seems to me you’re following your own rationale. I have never made a claim that feng shui actually works in the way you describe, but my rationale leads me to believe that if I introduce a reactive “element” , for that matter, even non reactive “elements”, into my physical environment it is going to effect (hence, the reason I claim it is “effective” in my previous post.) other energies within my environment , even if I don’t consciously perceive or register these interactions. Whether Feng Shui is the correct system or science of these subtle energy interactions, I don’t know…and never claimed to know, but it seems to have laid a serious groundwork through thousands of years of practical observation and theoretics about the nature of these “energies”. Quite the feat, considering we only now within the last 200 or so years, have solid factual proof and technology capable of detecting these “energies” that account for all of creation. > [@](#): > > So until you can show me, using the scientific method, that your “Ocean of Energys” exist, and can in fact exert a force of some kind or another on me (or my furniture) I’m gonna stick with the “the cat drank the milk” thank you very much. > > Oh, that goes for Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, extra terrestrial UFOs, ghosts, dowsing, psychokinesis > etc. etc > > \*\* In case you recognize this, I heard this explanation someplace else, I am paraphrasing, I would site the source but I forget where it came from (go figure). Take the cat that drank the milk- put him in a microwave and turn it on high for 10 minutes. I guarantee that will demonstrate the existence of my “Oceans of energy” and, in fact, can and will exert a force on you and your appliance/furniture. The force will very likely affect you in various determinable and undeterminable ways. Overall, it will produce an environment that is not conducive to healthy or positive flow of chi. (DISCLAIMER: NEVER PUT A CAT IN A MICROWAVE!) ---
**Author:** ![CheekyMonkey613](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e480ec/32.png) [@CheekyMonkey613](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheekyMonkey613)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2004, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/77 "2004-01-24T20:34:59Z")
> [@UncleBeer](#): > > There are people in this thread who keep insisting that feng shui has some _measurable physical effect_ in the material world. We deny that view. _Ok. I’ve been watching this thread since I contributed at the very beginning. My thinking is: Either you accept it, or you don’t. There’s no point in me arguing_ for _feng shui. It would take more than a few posts here to get enough across. And like I said in my original post, “If it doesn’t float your boat, that’s fine.”_ But, I will take this opportunity to take you up on “measurable physical effect”. Let’s say it’s a hot summer day. You put your AC on. (For this example, let’s assume it’s a window unit) What else would you do? Maybe get some fans going in the house to circulate the air? What else? Close the windows to prevent warm air from coming in? What else? Maybe shut the doors to the rooms where cool air is unimportant? What wouldn’t you do? You wouldn’t put something in front of the vents, blocking the airflow ~ like a chair . Why? Because these are all measurable ways of helping cool your house. Why are these methods effective in cooling your home? You’re improving flow and circulation; you’re preventing loss of “energy” (in this case cool air). You’re making sure that the cool air doesn’t “congregate” in one small area where that air is blocked (you wouldn’t aim the AC vent to the corner of the room). In that case, I was demonstrating how to get “good air” all over. Let me give another very rudimentary example, this time with “bad air”. Let’s say you’re in bed, nice and cosy under the covers. Snug as a bug in a rug! You’ve had a few too many beers the night before (or beans, or cabbage). And you are farting like a champ. Not just fart farts. I’m talking SBDs. As soon as you take off the covers, you’re knocked over by the stench. Like something crawled up your ass and died. But you didn’t smell it before. Why? Because all over your sheets and blankets were covering you up and “blocking” that “bad air” from getting out. That’s very measurable. It’s all about blocking and unblocking energies. In the previous two cases, I was demonstrating these energies very perceptively. One was the sense of touch (air on our skin), and one was the sense of smell. I could go into many more “measurable” examples… Sunglasses block the blinding rays; opening blinds brightens up a room. Soundproofing rooms; speaker placement for best surround sound effects. Too much salt blocks the taste of food; sugar reduces acidity in a spaghetti sauce. Most people will not argue that our senses go way past the Big Five (sight, smell, touch, hearing, taste). Example: “sense of fear”, “sense of love”, “sense of security”. One last example, using a sense outside of the Big Five: Let’s say your job is almost intolerable. Finally your break comes around. You go to the break room and you’ve got a choice of two people to be with. One bitches, moans and complains about everything. She’s always negative about anything that happens. There’s practically a raincloud over her head. The other person equally hates her job. But she tries to be positive about things. Instead of bitching about how much she hates her job, she talks about what she’s planning for the weekend. Maybe, at first, misery loves company and it would do you some good to release your negative thoughts about the job with the Complainer (Negative energy attracts negative energy). But day after day, break after break, you realize that it makes you even more negative about your job and you’re even more miserable once your break is over and you’re back at your post. If you want to feel upbeat, and don’t want to be more depressed, you’ll talk to the Positive girl. You’re suddenly thinking, “Two more days and it’s the weekend. I can’t wait to really try out my new roller-blades.” (Positive energy attracts positive energy). Feng Shui works in the same way ~ just on a larger scale. If our emotions can affect our health (surely you don’t dispute this), and our surroundings affect our emotions (think traffic jam and beach), then why is it so unbelieveable that our surroundings affect our health (both mental and physical)? And again, it’s undisputable that health affects our quality of life. Therefore, my hypothesis is that our surroundings affect our health and quality of life. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/78 "2004-01-25T00:15:59Z")
Anyone else reminded of **Question** by **devislknew**? > [@devilsknew](#): > > Sound and light are all quanta of energy flowing through a rather dense “ocean” of other energy quanta…Everything is literally pure energy in various states. Sound is not measured in quanta. Energy is measured in quanta, and therefore the phrase ‘quanta of energy’ is meaningless. The statement that ‘everything is pure energy in various states’ is true, since matter and energy are fundamentally the same thing. Some of what you’re saying is right, and you’re _still_ making it sound like BS! ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/79 "2004-01-25T02:11:52Z")
> [@Mighty\_Girl](#): > > I have never paid any attention to the Feng Shui fad going around these days. I was completely ignorant of these ideas although I have a cousin that is a big fan of Feng Shui and is always telling me how the distribution of my current dwelling “is not good for my energy”. Well, I don’t know about energy, but when you are fresh out of school “energy” is not your main concern when you are buying furniture. > > Well, today I was watching this show where somebody analyzed somebody else’s house following the precepts of Feng Shui. I am, eh, flabbergasted. These were a just few of the suggestions they gave her. > > 1- Change the entrance to the house because it had a straight path. Energy can’t travel in a straight line, so it would not reach the house. > > 2.- Get rid of the security bars on doors and windows because the “element metal” should not be present at the entrance according to her “chart”. Whatever that is. > > 3.- She should not buy used furniture anymore as she can’t know what kind of energy they could bring from past owners. > > 4.- Change the kitchen because it is white. Being the kitchen a “point of fire” and white represents metal. Metal melts with fire. > > 5.- Get rid of the mirror because it faces the bathroom mirror and the energy bounces and could cause accidents. > > 6.- Get rid of the bed because it was inherited from her grandma and she had died of a painful disease. > > WTF? What a truckload of nonsense. Is this what this is really about? Do people really believe this? Wow! Why is this so popular? The world is full of morons. :eek: Huh… You learn something new everyday. I didn’t know that THAT’S what it entailed. I always thought that it had to do with setting up your environment so that the lines and arrangement was the most comfortable for you. Silly me. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2004, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267/80 "2004-01-25T05:58:50Z")
> [@dwalin](#): > > Anyone else reminded of **Question** by **devislknew**? > > Sound is not measured in quanta. Energy is measured in quanta, and therefore the phrase ‘quanta of energy’ is meaningless. The statement that ‘everything is pure energy in various states’ is true, since matter and energy are fundamentally the same thing. Some of what you’re saying is right, and you’re _still_ making it sound like BS! Yes, I guess I lumped the two together, light and sound. You are quite right. Sound is however a phenomenon of energy quanta effecting other energy quanta. Ultimately, sound and its transmission is entirely dependent upon energy quanta. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feng-shui-nonsense/225267.md?page=5)