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<p class="MsoPlainText">Mechanically, Grok seems kind of buggy to me. One thing that might be happening is that it has hit a run time limit for the account's subscription (or the absence of one) and fails to get that message back to the user because somewhere
in its internal conversation it was blocked.<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">I do see Mr. Musk bragging about how good Grok is at “over eighteen” topics. Well, that’s one way to stand out, I suppose.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Marcus<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Claude Sonnet 3.7 with Extend Thinking<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">----<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">There's no contradiction in Quine's position when we examine it carefully.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">What appears paradoxical actually reveals his nuanced understanding of how<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">language functions in scientific inquiry.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Quine distinguishes between two contexts:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">In established scientific domains, conflating metaphor with fact is<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">dangerous because it can lead to category errors and conceptual confusion.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Here, precision matters.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">At the "fringes" of science-where we encounter novel phenomena or unexplored<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">territories-metaphor becomes indispensable precisely because literal<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">language hasn't yet been developed for these domains.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">The key insight is that metaphors serve as temporary scaffolding. They help<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">scientists conceptualize unfamiliar territory and develop initial<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">hypotheses. However, as understanding advances, these metaphors should<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">either be refined into more precise literal descriptions or explicitly<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">recognized as metaphorical.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">This view aligns with Quine's naturalism and empiricism. He acknowledges<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">that all language, including scientific language, begins with the<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">metaphorical extension of familiar terms to new domains. The crucial point<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">is that we remain conscious of when we're using metaphor and don't mistake<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">the map for the territory.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Rather than contradicting himself, Quine is highlighting the tension<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">inherent in scientific language-we need metaphors to advance knowledge while<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">simultaneously maintaining vigilance against their limitations.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Gemini Advanced 2.5 Pro:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">----<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">(attached)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">-----Original Message-----<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">From: Friam <<a href="mailto:friam-bounces@redfish.com">friam-bounces@redfish.com</a>> On Behalf Of Prof David West<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Sent: Sunday, May 4, 2025 3:02 PM<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">To: <a href="mailto:friam@redfish.com">friam@redfish.com</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Subject: [FRIAM] Just broke grok3<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Query: Quine warns against conflating metaphor and fact but also states that<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">metaphor is essential at the fringes of science. Is there a contradiction<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">here?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">30 minutes, still no response.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Davew<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">.- .-.. .-.. / ..-. --- --- - . .-. ... / .- .-. . / .-- .-. --- -. --. /<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText">FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoPlainText"><span lang="ES">to (un)subscribe </span><a href="http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com"><span lang="ES">http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com</span></a><span lang="ES"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><span lang="PT-BR">FRIAM-COMIC </span><a href="http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/"><span lang="PT-BR">http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/</span></a><span lang="PT-BR"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">archives: 5/2017 thru present<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><a href="https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/">https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"> 1/2003 thru 6/2021 <a href="http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/">
http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/</a><o:p></o:p></p>
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