Difference between revisions of "Interpretation of the Diagnostic Metrics"

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* Bi-directional arrows between [[Oblivion]] and [[Ruin]]
 
* Bi-directional arrows between [[Oblivion]] and [[Ruin]]
  
Consider also the Decision Mechanism in the Level Four Participant box. There are four symbols on each side, and the symbols on the same side seem to be either all positive or all negative:
+
Consider also the Decision Mechanism in the [[Level Four Participant]] box. There are four symbols on each side, and the symbols on the same side seem to be either all positive or all negative:
  
 
* [[Glory]], [[Success]], [[Destiny]], [[Freedom]] (the first three are of type [[Causa Sui]])
 
* [[Glory]], [[Success]], [[Destiny]], [[Freedom]] (the first three are of type [[Causa Sui]])
 
* [[Oblivion]], [[Chaos]], [[Surrender]], [[Ruin]] (which are all of type [[Entropic]])
 
* [[Oblivion]], [[Chaos]], [[Surrender]], [[Ruin]] (which are all of type [[Entropic]])

Revision as of 02:36, 17 February 2012

The Diagnostic Metrics are 18 symbols that appear throughout the artwork on the content and promotional materials for the album Artificial Heart. The artwork was created by the graphic designer Sam Potts.

What Is Known

The names of the Diagnostic Metrics symbols were given on the Tucson Diagnostics web site.

There are 18 symbols in the Diagnostic Metrics and 18 songs on the album Artificial Heart.

On the back cover of the Artificial Heart CD jacket, the track listing also includes three columns of symbols. They are:

Track Title   Metric A     Metric B     Metrics C, D, and E  
1. Sticking It To Myself
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2. Artificial Heart
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3. Nemeses
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4. The World Belongs to You
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5. Today With Your Wife
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6. Sucker Punch
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7. Glasses
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8. Je Suis Rick Springfield
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9. Alone at Home
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10. Fraud
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11. Good Morning Tucson
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12. Now I Am An Arsonist
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13. Down Today
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14. Dissolve
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15. Nobody Loves You Like Me
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16. Still Alive
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17. Want You Gone
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18. The Stache
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The titles of the columns of diagnostic metrics are not specified on the CD cover or in the liner notes. The names used above for the Metric columns are arbitrary and only for reference here.

In the track listing, each symbol appears exactly once in the Metric A and Metric B columns.

The relationship between the Metric A and Metric B columns is symmetric. That is, if a song has a Metric A symbol of X and a Metric B symbol of Y, then the song with Metric A symbol of Y has a Metric B symbol of X. One such example is Want You Gone and The Stache.

Possible Interpretation

From the lyrical content of the songs on Artificial Heart, the naming of the Diagnostic Metrics given on the Tucson Diagnostics web site, and the relationship between the songs and symbols given on the Artificial Heart CD jacket, it is possible to infer the meaning of the symbols from their context.

One possible interpretation is that Metric A represents the primary theme of the song, Metric B represesnts the opposite of the primary theme, and Metrics C, D, and E represent secondary themes.

For example, consider the symbols for the song Still Alive:

  • Its Metric A symbol, or primary theme, is Success
  • Its Metric B symbol, or opposite theme, is Ruin (which is the Metric A symbol for Dissolve)
  • Its Metric C, D, and E symbols, or secondary themes, are Betrayal, Rebirth, Confidence

This interpretation appears to be consistent with usage of the symbols in many other contexts as well. Consider also the artwork on the front of the red Level Four Participant shirt, which shows arrows between several symbols:

The black Level Three Participant shirt shows a similar arrangement of symbols and arrows:

Consider also the Decision Mechanism in the Level Four Participant box. There are four symbols on each side, and the symbols on the same side seem to be either all positive or all negative: