Is it just me, or are people awestruck by giant geometrical shapes?
- The giant black monolith in “2001.”
- Pyramids.
- The giant discs of “ID4.”
- The Borg cube.
- The Death Star.
- The giant wedges (Imperial Cruisers).
- The giant sphere in Michael Crichton’s “Sphere.”
Just wondering about this. I sometimes think about kung fu this way. Like, in kung fu (or so I’ve seen in movies), you learn about all sorts of weaknesses in the body. Little places you can touch or squeeze to immobilize someone, that sort of thing. They’re kind of like chinks in the armor of the human body. I wonder if there are such things for the human mind. Granted, we’re all “different,” but we all do share a number of remarkable similarities. I wonder if there are certain sounds or images or what have you that, upon being processed by the human brain, immobilize it. Would hypnosis count as this?
That’s an interesting idea, but I don’t think it can be fully analyzed until we have unlocked the secret of the workings of our minds. They’re still as shrouded in mystery as they were (basically) half a millenium ago. We know the chemical reactions and stuff, sure, but why do we think the way we do? Well, I’m rambling, but it makes you put things in a different way. The human mind is a powerful thing, but… you may be onto something. 
Wow, your brain’s been immobilized! 
I believe the fascination with giant shapes is a manifestation of hyperstimulation: sensorial overload always draws focus because it’s so darn-diddly-arned hard to ignore. Does that make it a vulnerability to our mental defenses (as I think your kung fu analogy is referring to)? I would say so. I still remember a picture from an old science book I had as a kid of a chicken attempting to hatch an ostrich egg while the nearby chicken egg went ignored. it was presented as an example of just what I think you’re talking about.
