where & how is the 'configuration' encoded? [we don't know, right] Is this why string theory requires higher dimensions? Also when I see the term 'harmonic oscillations', I think of plucking a string -- it seems so elegant for the physical particles to be manifestations of higher dimensional ~~vibrating~~ oscillating strings :) (thinking of flat-lander analogy)

gp's premise about learning with the multi-particle landscape first sort of blew my mind.