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In 1954, when I went to Europe,
I no sooner arrived in Paris than I
noticed that the city was covered with
posters publicizing a mushroom exhibition
that was being held in the Botanical
Gardens. That was all I needed.
Off I went. When I
arrived, I found myself in a large
room filled with many tables upon which
were displayed many species of fungi.
On the hour from a large
centrally-placed loudspeaker a recorded
lecture on the deadly poisonous amanitas was
delivered. During this lecture,
nobody in the hall moved or spoke.
Each person’s attention was, so
to speak, riveted to the
information being given. A week later,
I was in Cologne in Germany
attending a concert of electronic music.
There was also an audience and a
large loudspeaker. However,
many in the audience were dozing off,
and some were talking to their neighbors.
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