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<p>Nick -</p>
<p> And here I thought *I* was being "pithy", then you call me
out on my lithp?! ;^)</p>
<p> The strawman arguments have started coming out, I wonder if
anyone will gen up a steelman?</p>
<p>- tinman Steve</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 10/5/24 11:26 AM, Nicholas Thompson
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:CAAXA=WmkM5hCG-3i35kTc8SXzARf63HmtrknqmT7Nmo45xrH6w@mail.gmail.com">
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<div dir="ltr">
<div>So in what sense and for what purposes is this pithy
aphorism useful? What exactly is the pith?<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>If a metaphor, what is truth in the metaphor, the positive
analog. Nobody ever said that all metaphors are <i>entirely</i>
wrong.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>and yes, I am being pissy.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>n<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<br>
<div class="gmail_quote">
<div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Sat, Oct 5, 2024 at
11:04 AM steve smith <<a href="mailto:sasmyth@swcp.com"
moz-do-not-send="true" class="moz-txt-link-freetext">sasmyth@swcp.com</a>>
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px
0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">
<div>
<blockquote>
<p>All <i>Pithy Aphorisms</i> are wrong, some are useful?<br>
</p>
</blockquote>
<div>On 10/5/24 9:06 AM, Prof David West wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div style="font-family:Arial">my affection for the quote
derives from a metaphorical reading, not a literal one.
Something akin to Steve's differential rates of
evolution. I also would have eschewed 'god like' in
favor of 'magical' ala Clarke's dictum about any
sufficiently advanced technology.<br>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Arial"><br>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Arial">davew<br>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Arial"><br>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Arial"><br>
</div>
<div>On Fri, Oct 4, 2024, at 8:46 PM, Nicholas Thompson
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite" id="m_3719146269230241149qt">
<div dir="ltr">
<div>I think that this way of talking about emotions
precludes careful thought. First of all,
neurologizing emotions is just to hide the pea under
the wrong thimble. I don't think paleolithologizig
helps much more. Glen is correct that, whatever an
emotion is, its inputs and outputs are
ontogenetically and culturally determined. So,
fear, for instance, is a relation between something
that we take to be threatening and something that we
hope will be avoidance. Inputs and outputs are
everything. The rest is just arousal.<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>N<br>
</div>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div dir="ltr">On Fri, Oct 4, 2024 at 7:01 PM steve
smith <<a href="mailto:sasmyth@swcp.com"
target="_blank" moz-do-not-send="true"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">sasmyth@swcp.com</a>>
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote style="margin:0px 0px 0px
0.8ex;border-left:1px solid
rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">
<div>Emotions/Limbic systems evolve at genetic
rates, institutions evolve at <br>
</div>
<div> social/cultural rates (maybe the fastest
significant change can <br>
</div>
<div> happen/resolve is in multiple lifetimes?) but
technology is advancing at <br>
</div>
<div> must faster rates?<br>
</div>
<div> <br>
</div>
<div> Or is this wrong(headed) also?<br>
</div>
<div> <br>
</div>
<div> On 10/4/24 3:43 PM, glen wrote:<br>
</div>
<div> > None of that is true, however romantic it
might sound. Depending on <br>
</div>
<div> > how one defines "emotion", that smells
the most true. But the <br>
</div>
<div> > mechanisms of emotion are as coupled to
current reality as is every <br>
</div>
<div> > part of our bodies. To suggest that, say,
the Space Force or methods <br>
</div>
<div> > like quantitative easing are medieval is
just nonsense. Technology is <br>
</div>
<div> > more democratized than it has ever been.
Granted, it takes (a lot) of <br>
</div>
<div> > work to familiarize oneself with
something like how GPS works or how <br>
</div>
<div> > to NOT click on that phishing email. But
to suggest that it's <br>
</div>
<div> > "godlike" says more about the person than
it does about the state of <br>
</div>
<div> > technology.<br>
</div>
<div> ><br>
</div>
<div> > On 10/4/24 11:16, Prof David West wrote:<br>
</div>
<div> >> /"The real problem of humanity is the
following: we have Paleolithic <br>
</div>
<div> >> emotions, medieval institutions, and
godlike technology. And it is <br>
</div>
<div> >> terrifically dangerous."/ Edward O.
Wilson.<br>
</div>
<div> >><br>
</div>
<div> ><br>
</div>
<div> ><br>
</div>
<div> <br>
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<div>Nicholas S. Thompson<br>
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