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<body><div style="font-family:Arial;">Steven,<br></div>
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<div style="font-family:Arial;">Fall of 1968, I abandoned physics and adopted Asian Philosophy (first semester at Macalester College). Since then, every spare moment, and many not so spare, was dedicated to learning and practicing. My vocation, quite by accident, was always programming/software/IT but everything in that realm is intensely informed by the philosophy.<br></div>
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<div style="font-family:Arial;">Like you, I have been totally underwhelmed by Alexander's Pattern language stuff and especially its adoption in the software community. I am really enamored with his early writing on "non self conscious process," "fit" as a design principle; "unfolding," "Timeless Way of Building," and a lot, but not all, of Nature of Order.<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">Given your career, "centered on the problem of how to help
humans be more effective/efficient through the leverage/mediation of
computers" really interests me. Englebart's paper on Augmenting Human Intelligence (circa 1965) was truly inspirational but I admit ignorance about how or if it had much impact. Nothing I have read in the area of UI / UX has seemed to have that kind of focus. Perhaps you could share some insights / references from your work?<br></div>
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<div style="font-family:Arial;">davew<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div><br></div>
<div>On Fri, Jan 11, 2019, at 1:03 PM, Steven A Smith wrote:<br></div>
<blockquote type="cite"><p>David -<br></p><blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;">Steven,<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">Is is a pleasure to do discourse
with you.<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">The pleasure is mutual.<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;">Minor clarification: When I
mention "sentient life" I do indeed include all life. In fact,
given that I take as a working assumption the Vedic (and then
Buddhist) notion that the entire universe, all the way down to
quanta is an admixture of purusa (mind) and prakrti (matter) so
even a 'string' is sentient. Pragmatically, I focus on
multi-cellular lifeforms that I can actually sense / interact
with.<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">This is the sense which I prefer and acknowledge the pragmatic
limits implied by "that which I can actually sense/interact with."
I would like to learn more about your Vedic (cum Buddhist?)
groundings in the philosophical (often shrouded in political)
discussions here. Or maybe it just helps that you have made them
explicit (or I have finally heard your explication of them).<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">"Willful ignorance" — I would
indeed assert that most people are willfully ignorant most of
the time, that the vast majority live lives that are
"unexamined" ala Plato. This is the reason that I am very,
very, wary of "pure democracy."<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">It seems to come with our language functions to be both willful and
ignorant. Animals which we presume to have no significant language
ability, have a very different quality of each "will" and
"ignorance" and I don't think "willful ignorance" really makes sense
for them except to the extent that we humans project that onto
them. My dogs can seem to exhibit willful ignorance, but I think
something less complicated is going on. They can definitely be
willful, and they do something which is like feigning ignorance
(e.g. pretending not to hear me until I rattle the milk-bone box,
breaking that illusion).<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;">Christopher Alexander spoke at
OOPSLA a decade ago — an architect talking to software
professionals. He noted that professional architects influence
roughly 10% of the built world, but software folk will influence
100 percent, and not just the physical "built" world, but every
aspect of life, redefining work, play. culture ....<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">I'm a fan of Alexander, mildly for his architectural/urbanist work,
almost not at all for his influence of SW and "design patterns", but
hugely for the abstract underpinnings of form and function.<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">"With great power comes great
responsibility." Alas the software folks have refused to accept
the responsibility that goes hand in hand with the power they
have. And this is a case of dramatic "willful ignorance" on the
part of the software community, but also those engaged in city
and social planning efforts. Everything they do affects people —
individually, collectively, socio-politically, and culturally —
and yet they are "willfully ignorant" of people.<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">Much of my work over the decades has been roughly in the realm of
"user interface"... not exactly or always directly involving
building UI's, but rather centered on the problem of how to help
humans be more effective/efficient through the leverage/mediation of
computers. The culture of "willful ignorance" in systems analysts,
software engineers, coders, etc. is extreme. And I believe it
inherits from the techno-utopian/techno-cratic mindset of
Scientists, Engineers, and Technologists in general. Present
(collective) company included. Pogo and Scott Adams both seemed to
have our number from early on: "We have met the enemy and they is
us!"<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">The attached paper was presented
at PURPLSOC (software, city planning, social change agents) in
Austria last fall. It became the featured paper of the
conference and proceedings. I think you might find it
interesting, and, hopefully, find some seeds for further
discussion of how a social construct might evolve from the kind
of individualism we both seem to resonate to.<br></div>
</blockquote><div style="font-family:Arial;">Thanks, I'll take a look. I knew through Jenny that you had been
(presenting?) at a conference on patterns last year, but hadn't
bothered to follow up. From the Abstract, I think I'll find plenty
of meat to chew on and try to respond responsibly to it.<br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;"> <br></div>
<blockquote type="cite" cite="mid:1547220418.1627278.1631943464.4CF568AF@webmail.messagingengine.com"><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
<div style="font-family:Arial;">[The professor at Macalester
College that inspired my interest in utopian/designed
communities was Hildegarde B. Johnson. Just remembered her full
name.]<br></div>
</blockquote><p>Just looked her up... fascinating story of maintaining/promoting
Geography in the Liberal Arts.<br></p><p>-sas<br></p><div style="font-family:Arial;"><br></div>
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