[FRIAM] do animals psychologize?

[Marcus Daniels]

I don't think your example is over-intervention, it is under-intervention.   If they step on the scale every day, don't like what they see, and walk or run 10 miles every day (whatever speed they can manage) they will almost certainly see a fitness change.    Of course, it will be better if they don't use a crude indicator like visible chubbiness but switch to another set of indicators like resting heart rate, blood pressure, or average speed.

Usually the best experiments involve changing one variable at a time in a non-ambiguous way.   And there are plenty of `standard practices' that in neglect push things to the edge.  There are some parts of the country where there are enough hunting licenses issued to almost wipe-out all of the yearling deer.   So, the idea of "let's make a little change and see what happens over time" is kind of silly because there is a huge intervention made every season for completely artificial reasons (political pressure from a hunting lobby).    

In my example, it could be that there are population-level reasons why some individuals prefer the same sex, and if these individuals were removed, they would rebound for other reasons besides one of genetic predisposition (that was hypothetically selected for).   Likewise, if the redneck/hillbilly population were attenuated, that new people would move out to rural areas and drop their urban sensibilities.   Perhaps as frequency of diverse interaction is reduced, a tribal pattern resumes, at least within a generation of isolation.

Marcus   

On 9/17/18, 8:00 AM, "Friam on behalf of ∄ uǝʃƃ" <friam-bounces at redfish.com on behalf of gepropella at gmail.com> wrote:

    Not at all.  One can over-intervene with respect to any ongoing dynamic. For example, some people concerned about their weight will step on a scale every day and, based on what they see, either modify their diet for the day or perhaps simply feel one way or another (good or bad).  But such instantaneous measures are largely useless for health and fitness.  It's the trends that matter.  And any intervention should be done based on the trends and maintained for quite awhile before their effects can be understood.
    
    On 09/14/2018 04:57 PM, Marcus Daniels wrote:
    > Out of curiosity, does over-intervention concern apply to government behavior only?   One could imagine the same technology trends empower many groups and individuals.
    
    
    -- 
    ∄ uǝʃƃ
    
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