Jim Muth's [Fractal of the Day](https://user.xmission.com/~legalize/fractals/fotd) for January 13th, 2003

Jim Muth's commentary for the image:
> Fractal visionaries and enthusiasts:
> 
> Unable to find a good opening for today's FOTD discussion, I 
> shall simply place my mind in idle and let my thoughts ramble 
> where they will.  Now let me see . . .
> 
> Every day for almost the entire life of the FOTD, I have opened 
> the discussion with the line 'Fractal visionaries and enthusiasts'.
> I do it without thought of the meaning, since the 
> line is part of my pre-formatted FOTD template file, and is 
> inserted into the text of the discussion automatically.  The 
> nature of the fractal enthusiast mentioned in the line is 
> obvious, but what is a fractal visionary?
> 
> My dictionary defines the word 'visionary' both as an adjective 
> meaning 'existing only in the mind', and as a noun meaning 
> 'a person who sees visions of hidden things'.  So a fractal 
> visionary is one who sees visions of the normally hidden things 
> known as fractals, (which BTW are only partly unreal).
> 
> Those who can see things, real or unreal, that others cannot see 
> are also known as mystics.  In times past, mystics were seen as 
> wise people; in our present age of reason run amok, they are 
> looked upon as a little weird, amusing but harmless -- that is 
> unless they start claiming and convincing too many others that 
> their visions are actual glimpses of other real worlds, in which 
> case they must be shown to be deluded.  In this age of reason, 
> there is and can be only one real world, the physical world,  
> with which we can be in touch.  There is no possibility of 
> interaction with other real worlds, which preferably do not 
> exist.  This status quo must be preserved at all costs.
> 
> Well, I often see things that others cannot see with eyes alone, 
> though I'm not sure if this makes me a mystic.  The things I see 
> are called fractals, and must be seen with the aid of a computer 
> and monitor.  With my real eyes, I can see fractals on my 
> computer screen whenever I wish, and I sometimes see them in my 
> dreams as real 3-D objects existing and evolving in 3-D space.  
> Since others can at least see my fractal visions on their own 
> computer screens, I guess this makes me a mystic of the second 
> order.  I could not be a mystic of the first order unless others 
> could also see the fractals I sometimes dream of in my dreams.
> 
> Today's image is a fractal of the third order.  It is mystical 
> in the sense that it cannot be seen without the aid of a 
> computer and also that it is another of my 'evaporated' images, 
> which consist entirely of the ghost of a fractal that once was 
> there.  (To see the fractal that once was there but has 
> vanished, change the imag(p3) parameter from 10^100 to zero.)
> 
> The parent of today's image consists of a multi-lobed string of 
> bays extending north to south.  A filament extends southwest 
> from the southernmost bud, and terminates in a zig-zagging ring. 
> Today's scene lies on this ring, not far from where the filament 
> joins it.  I named the image "Mysterious Energies" for no good 
> reason, and rated it a 7 because in my opinion it is above FOTD 
> average.
> 
> The weather Sunday was sunny but cold here at Fractal Central, 
> with a high temperature of 29F -1.5C.  The cats endured their 
> indoor confinement with patience, blaming me only twice for the 
> chilly conditions beyond the door.
> 
> Today has so far been uneventful.  Hopefully, it will remain so, 
> as there is a bit more than the average amount of work to be 
> done.  Until next time, take care, and is it reasonable to 
> believe that fractals are real?

[PAR file](https://user.xmission.com/~legalize/fractals/fotd/2003/01/2003.01.13-MysteriousEnergies.par)
```
MysteriousEnergies { ; time=0:09:16.89--SF5 on a P200
  reset=2002 type=formula formulafile=allinone.frm
  formulaname=MandelbrotMix4 function=recip passes=1
  center-mag=+0.80567324593928600/-2.034640713112640\
  00/2.056237e+009/1/-62.5/2.93630749607157182e-005
  params=-7.57/-1.5/-0.98/-6.5/0/1e+100 float=y
  maxiter=900 inside=bof61 periodicity=10
  colors=000_QjXSl000STmVXgXYaY`Y_aS`dOcfIdiDfj7gm3i\
  o0jp0fo0co4`oAYmFVmLSmQOlXLl`IlfFjlCjr9jvDdxI`xMVx\
  QQyVLyYGyX`pXuiXzarz0mz0jz0gy0dv0as0_p0Xm0Tj0Pg0Md\
  0Ja0000DX0AT07Q04P0CV9J`GQdOYjVcoaczfczigzclm_o`Ts\
  OPxAJz0Fv1Js4Mp7PmASjDVgGYcJ``McYPfVSiSVlPYoGMv9Cz\
  11z00z0Az0Tz0jzLVTfG0cM0aS0`X1Ya4Xg6Vl7SrA000PzDQz\
  GSzITzLVzMXzOYzQ_zS`zTazXczYdz_fzagzcizdgxc000dpac\
  m`ci`000`aY__YYVXYSX`VQaXLc_Fd`Agc4id0jg0li0gf0dc0\
  ``0YY0TV0QS0MP0JM0FJ0CG07D04A00700410A10730N40F40P\
  60L60S70S70Y90_A0eA0dC0nC0lD0uD4iAGi9T_7dV4rP3zL1y\
  Q6uV9r`CmdGiiJfoMasPYxTVzXQz_OzaPzcQzdSzfSzfTzgVzi\
  XxiXvjYul_rl`pm`oo00ocjpdirdgrQfpCfo0fo3_f6T_0S_0S\
  _0Ma6Gd_QT`Qa`QjgJ`mCQu4Gz07x4MvA_sGlrMypSzmXzl`zj\
  dziiz90_DAPIQGMg6Px0Ts1Yo6aj9fgDjcGo_LsXOpTGmQAfMG\
  _IMSDSM9YF4c70i10m41f66_7AT9FMAJGCO9DS37`01g0Ai0Ij\
  3Pl7XmCcoGjpLrrPyrTupQpoP }

frm:MandelbrotMix4 {; Jim Muth
a=real(p1), b=imag(p1), d=real(p2), f=imag(p2),
g=1/f, h=1/d, j=1/(f-b), z=(-a*b*g*h)^j,
k=real(p3)+1, l=imag(p3)+100, c=fn1(pixel):
z=k*((a*(z^b))+(d*(z^f)))+c,
|z| < l }
```

Want to render these yourself and explore further? Try out the PAR file in
[Iterated Dynamics](https://github.com/LegalizeAdulthood/iterated-dynamics/releases),
an open source fractal renderer compatible with FRACTINT PAR files.
See the [online help](https://legalizeadulthood.github.io/iterated-dynamics/) for instructions on using Id or
press F1 anywhere in the program for context-sensitive help.