[FRIAM] from 5/15 virtual FRIAM

[thompnickson2 at gmail.com]

Marcus, 

 

It seems to me that most of our actions are based on faith.  A genuine skeptic would just be a quivering mass of jello.  We skeptics are a highly selective lot. 

 

Nick 

 

Nicholas Thompson

Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology

Clark University

 <mailto:ThompNickSon2 at gmail.com> ThompNickSon2 at gmail.com

 <https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/> https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/

 

 

From: Friam <friam-bounces at redfish.com> On Behalf Of Marcus Daniels
Sent: Sunday, May 17, 2020 12:56 AM
To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group <friam at redfish.com>
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] from 5/15 virtual FRIAM

 

Stephen writes:

 

< If you have a belief that a collectively intelligent system could be built and you could be a member,  welcome to a Faith-based community. >

 

For example, to believe that COVID-19 could hurt someone you know does not involve a leap of faith.   It means being able to understand how models work and their assumptions, and following a calculation to a conclusion --  even if there isn’t any immediate evidence of death in the vicinity.   Planning around such a model is not faith-based so long as one knows what they don’t know.

 

I would say what you literally wrote is faith-based, because it supposes that a control system can take a particular form and be successful.   It’s a particular organization type than some may find utopian and others find dystopian.  What a system needs to be successful is a function of a situation, and the potential components available for implementing the system.  

 

It is also merely faith to believe that the norms of our government and democracy itself are robust, and that potential corrective measures that were not conceived of by the framers of U.S. Constitution will not be necessary for ensuring that the population can thrive.   The government is a big system, so it will have bugs and be prone to technical debt.   Sometimes refactors are needed and sometimes requirements change. 

 

If a small collectively intelligent system can be built, then it should be possible to build a large one too.  A large one will have more resources it can draw upon.   It boils down to what one thinks life is good for.

Going to church doesn’t interest me, but rapid mass transit and space exploration do interest me.   I want the big government because it can do cooler stuff.

 

Marcus

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