Michael Talbot (author)

"Holographic Universe" redirects here. For the Scar Symmetry album, see Holographic Universe (album).
This article is about the American author. For other people with the same name, see Michael Talbot (disambiguation).
Michael Talbot
Born(1953-09-29)September 29, 1953
Grand Rapids, Michigan, US
DiedMay 27, 1992(1992-05-27) (aged 38)
New York City, US
Alma materMichigan State University
Subjectquantum mysticism
Notable worksMysticism and the New Physics
The Holographic Universe

Michael Coleman Talbot (September 29, 1953 – May 27, 1992)[1] was an American author of fiction and non-fiction. He wrote several books highlighting parallels between ancient mysticism and quantum mechanics, and espousing a theoretical model of reality that suggests the physical universe is akin to a hologram based on the research and conclusions of David Bohm and Karl H. Pribram.[2] According to Talbot ESP, telepathy, and other paranormal phenomena are a product of this holographic model of reality.[3] Talbot also wrote several horror novels.

Early life

Talbot was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on September 29, 1953, and grew up in nearby Lowell. He attended Michigan State University from 1971 to 1974 where he pursued an eclectic education. While he did quite a bit of writing at the time, he was also engaged in many other efforts. He taught himself how to play the piano by locking himself in piano rooms for long periods. He was a great fan of Scriabin. He spent quite a bit of time painting, and made friends with faculty in Art History to discuss art and culture. As a young man he had a great interest in the occult, which allowed him to spend hours entertaining small groups of friends with tales of poltergeists, UFOs and similar phenomena.

Career

He was originally a fiction and science fiction author.[1][4] He also contributed articles to The Village Voice and other publications.[4]

Talbot attempted to incorporate spirituality, religion and science to shed light on profound questions.[5] His non-fiction books include Mysticism And The New Physics, Beyond The Quantum, and The Holographic Universe (freely available at the Internet Archive).

Personal life and death

Talbot was openly gay and lived with his boyfriend.[6] In 1992, Talbot died of lymphocytic leukemia at age 38.[1][4]

Bibliography

Novels

  • The Delicate Dependency, 1982 (reprinted in 2014 by Valancourt Books), ISBN 1941147240
  • The Bog, 1986 (reprinted in 2015 by Valancourt Books)
  • Night Things, 1988 (reprinted in 2015 by Valancourt Books)

Non-fiction

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to Michael Talbot.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Michael Talbot". Contemporary Authors Online. Gale, 2003. Retrieved on December 1, 2008.
  2. ^ Hanegraaff, Wouter J. (1997). New Age Religion and Western Culture. SUNY Press. pp. 72, 228, 527. ISBN 0791438546.
  3. ^ Panek Robins, Suzann (2010). Exploring Intimacy: Cultivating Healthy Relationships through Insight and Intuition. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 41, 220. ISBN 978-1442200906.
  4. ^ a b c "Obituaries: Michael Talbot, Writer, 38". The New York Times. 2 June 1992. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  5. ^ Hammer, Olaf (2003). Claiming Knowledge: Strategies of Epistemology from Theosophy to the New Age. Brill Academic Pub. pp. 295–296, 517. ISBN 900413638X.
  6. ^ Johnson, Toby. "Michael Talbot". Toby Johnson. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  7. ^ Ray, Marilyn; Davidson, Alice; Turkel, Marian (2011). Nursing, Caring, and Complexity Science: For Human Environment Well-Being. Springer Publishing Company. pp. 48, 51. ISBN 978-0826125873.
  8. ^ Kneale, James; Kitchin, Rob (2005). Lost in Space: Geographies of Science Fiction. Bloomsbury Academi. pp. 156–157. ISBN 0826479200.
  9. ^ Iskander, Magued (2010). Innovative Techniques in Instruction Technology, E-learning, E-assessment and Education. Springer Publishing. p. 415. ISBN 978-9048179749.