Which email has that parody of Trump attached to it? Very funny. On Thu, May 14, 2020 at 6:29 AM Steven A Smith <sasm...@swcp.com> wrote:
> > On 5/13/20 9:52 PM, Marcus Daniels wrote: > > Experiment with a modern implementation of generative adversarial networks > for a while and I think you’ll begin to feel less smug about the > superiority of first principles – sort of like a craft of Colonial > Williamsburg. Computer, just get me the equations and spare the drama. > > My mother was the source (vehicle) of many aphorisms, some of which I > found particularly maddening. > > "If you can't tell (the difference), it doesn't matter!" > > was perhaps the most notable and I suppose an archetypal example of > vernacular pragmatism (Nick). > > I *think* this discussion (or this subthread) has devolved to suggesting > that predictive power is the only use of modeling (and simulation) whilst > explanatory power is not (it is just drama?). > > It is not my feeling or experience or intuition that the explanatory power > (illusion) of deriving things from first principles is unimportant or > irrelevant, but I don't know that I have anything but "a strong feeling" to > back that up. When I went to college I had a modestly broad command of > math and basic science which I found very satisfying as a basis for > (thinking I did) understand a lot about the world as it unfolded around me > (dust-devils, thunderstorms, motorcycle accidents, auto mechanics, > mechanical constructions) but as I learned calculus, I somehow felt like > I'd been handed a whole new toolkit... a way to peel back the covers from > the myriad equations that had been handed to me with no real explanatory > power. > > Having the equations of motion had seemed like "enough" until I began to > explore their derivations. Most of my peers were in engineering and while > they also were learning calculus, they did not seem to have the same > fascination... they were much less interested (in my apprehension) in > "understanding things" than they were "predicting things" and even > prediction was in service to the utility of "building a thing". In > physics, each layer of more fundamental theory, no matter how hard or > obscure it was, was very satisfying. Again, my engineering peers were > puzzled by why I would care about relativity or quantum mechanics when they > saw so little (if any) application for it. Of course today, nearly 50 > years later, the applications are pervasive in the more advanced > engineering applications (electrooptics, materials science, etc.) > > I'll be interested to see how (if?) this distinction unfolds with others > here. Maybe my mother was right "if you can't tell the difference, it > doesn't matter". > > - Steve > > > > > *From: *Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> <friam-boun...@redfish.com> on > behalf of "thompnicks...@gmail.com" <thompnicks...@gmail.com> > <thompnicks...@gmail.com> <thompnicks...@gmail.com> > *Reply-To: *The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group > <friam@redfish.com> <friam@redfish.com> > *Date: *Wednesday, May 13, 2020 at 8:40 PM > *To: *'The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group' > <friam@redfish.com> <friam@redfish.com> > *Subject: *Re: [FRIAM] PSC Tornado Visualization (2008) [720p] - YouTube > > > > Old Philosophical Joke: > > > > Deep in a remote valley lived a tribe that had never been in contact with > the modern world … except for one monastery which corresponded with > Greenwich village to get the sunrise tables. The monks would get up 15 > minutes early and sound a bell, which the villagers believed was the cause > of the sun rising. It was said, “The monks awakened the sun from his > slumbers.” Because of this belief, offerings of every kind were left by > the village on the steps of the monastery, and the monks grew fat and > happy. > > > > In the course of the annual correspondence to get the new sunrise tables > from Greenwich, one of the British scientists questioned the morality of > the scam the monks were running. The monks responded, “As long as they get > their sunrise on time, who cares?” > > > > I care. > > > > Another old Philosophical Joke: > > > > A man who claimed to be able to fly, announced on his facebook page that > he was going to demonstrate his skill by jumping off the top balcony of a > residential tower. Psychologists were stationed at each balcony below with > stop watches and clipboards to document his behavior during his “flight”. > As he went by each successive balcony he was heard to say, “So far, so > good.” > > > > His widow cared. > > > > Your query, Marcus, highlights the difference between philosophical > pragmatism and the vernacular kind. > > > > Nick > > > > Nicholas Thompson > > Emeritus Professor of Ethology and Psychology > > Clark University > > thompnicks...@gmail.com > > https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/ > > > > > > *From:* Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> <friam-boun...@redfish.com> *On > Behalf Of *Marcus Daniels > *Sent:* Wednesday, May 13, 2020 9:23 PM > *To:* The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group > <friam@redfish.com> <friam@redfish.com> > *Subject:* Re: [FRIAM] PSC Tornado Visualization (2008) [720p] - YouTube > > > > Nick writes: > > > > “The result looks so much like iconic tornado vids that we wannabee > tornado chasers idolize that one suspects that the video was back > constructed from that film, rather than developing organically from the > physics.” > > Suppose the equations were extracted, or the behavior re-generated, from a > deep neural net (or whatever automated machine learning thing), but > nonetheless were predictive of other tornados. One might reasonably ask, > “Who cares?” > > Marcus > > .-. .- -. -.. --- -- -..-. -.. --- - ... -..-. .- -. -.. -..-. -.. .- ... > .... . ... > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn GMT-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam > unsubscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > archives: http://friam.471366.n2.nabble.com/ > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > > .-. .- -. -.. --- -- -..-. -.. --- - ... -..-. .- -. -.. -..-. -.. .- ... > .... . ... > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn GMT-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam > unsubscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > archives: http://friam.471366.n2.nabble.com/ > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > -- Frank Wimberly 140 Calle Ojo Feliz Santa Fe, NM 87505 505 670-9918
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