[FRIAM] FW: A PolyMath by any other name...

[thompnickson2 at gmail.com]

Thanks, Glen.  

I am particularly glad for your good humor because I have so valued your comments on some of what I have published.   Keep close a colleague who will read what you write.  There is no greater friend an academic can have. 

Nick 

Nicholas Thompson
Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology
Clark University
ThompNickSon2 at gmail.com
https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/
 


-----Original Message-----
From: Friam <friam-bounces at redfish.com> On Behalf Of u?l? ?
Sent: Monday, December 30, 2019 5:30 PM
To: FriAM <friam at redfish.com>
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] FW: A PolyMath by any other name...

You have *nothing* to apologize for. As Steve hinted, I suspect most, if not all, of us cringe a bit when reading our own stuff (or even hearing our own voice: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/dec/18/adam-driver-walk-out-interview-npr-fresh-air-voice). I have 3 stories explicitly related to the point: 1) Something I once wrote offended so many people, it earned me the nickname "Nazi", the story of which held a prominent place in my friend's PhD dissertation. 2) While supporting Swarm, something I wrote offended a person so much, they *demanded* an apology from the group. And 3) a good friend and mentor once called me a "digital austistic" due to my seeming insensitivity in online interaction versus my seeming sensitivity in meat space.

I won't tell any of those stories, here, to save y'all from yet another TMI share. But I can say I don't regret any of those utterings. Would I say them now? No. But that's precisely *because* they were learning experiences. The only thing that prevents learning experiences is the *lack* of engagement. So, as long as you stay engaged, then apologies are surplus sugar that none of us really need ... though some of us -- not me -- really like sugar. 8^)

On 12/30/19 2:19 PM, thompnickson2 at gmail.com wrote:
> Here I am, renewing my apology for yet a third time, it seems.
> 
> I was actually preaching my belief that we come to friam for different things, and nobody should try to dictate what FRIAM is about.  But I sure as hell had a strange way of putting it!  I am so grateful for Steve’s contemporary correction, which says precisely what I wish I had said.
> 
> I have written to the list.  If I need to do anything more to regain 
> your trust, please let me know.
> 
> All the best, and thank you for your many insights, some of which are 
> on matters I understand.
> 
> I look forward to understanding more.

--
☣ uǝlƃ

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