*"Nature abhors a category"* sayeth Nick. But categories are but a mere byproduct of an even more abhorrent practice — any use of "is." Category assignment may leave an event of a thing writhing on the plain, but saying that "X" is an event of a thing kills it dead, dead, dead.
davew On Sat, Oct 30, 2021, at 10:03 AM, thompnicks...@gmail.com wrote: > Sorry for bad typos. My eyes are hopeless in the morning. Correction below. > > I also regret my answer. I still like the question, “What do categories > want?”. I take it as, “What hopeless endeavor does a commitment to a > category in thought commit one to. First answer: “Just one more instance.” > Second answer: “Firm Boundaries”. Nature abhors a category. To assign an > event or a thing to a category is to pierce it with a vector of one’s own > choosing and leave it writhing on the plain of Life. Still, just as we are > hunters by nature, so are we category-assigners. Evolutionarily speaking, we > have been abducted by abduction. > > Nick > > Nick Thompson > thompnicks...@gmail.com > https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/ > > *From:* thompnicks...@gmail.com <thompnicks...@gmail.com> > *Sent:* Saturday, October 30, 2021 9:39 AM > *To:* 'The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group' <friam@redfish.com> > *Subject:* RE: [FRIAM] we are lost > > > Roger, > > I also regret my answer. But I still like the question. I take it as, “What > hopeless endeavor does a commitment to categories in though commit one to. > First answer: “Just one more instance.” Second answer: “Firm Boundaries”. > Nature abhors a category. To assign an event or an object to a category is > to piece it with a vector of one’s own choosing and leaving writhing on the > plain of Life. Still, just as we are hunters by nature, so are we > category-assigners. Evolutionarily speaking, we have been abducted by > abduction. > > Nick > > Nick Thompson > thompnicks...@gmail.com > https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/ > > *From:* Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> *On Behalf Of *Roger Critchlow > *Sent:* Friday, October 29, 2021 6:39 PM > *To:* The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group <friam@redfish.com> > *Subject:* Re: [FRIAM] we are lost > > > I was asking what categories, eg monads, comonads, all these abstractions on > the abstractions of mathematics, want, since that might help me understand > how they see their purpose, given that I was already being asked about the > purpose of a platonic solid. > > I hadn't thought about the prehistoric models of platonic solids crafted in > rock, they can have purposes like other material objects. Nor had I > considered making the jump from abstract mathematical constructs to groups of > people sharing characteristics. > > And I was being silly, but I was provoked. > > -- rec -- > > On Fri, Oct 29, 2021 at 1:36 PM Marcus Daniels <mar...@snoutfarm.com> wrote: >> Will AIs want the same things I want? I think Roger was just being silly, >> but `categories’ could be wrangled into to some vaguely adjacent thing like >> typed computer programs for autonomous control systems in a robot. Let’s >> call it a careful robot. Will all intelligent life be like humans and >> will they want love and recognition? Why must that be the case? Why must >> it be true for humans? Why does HR assume I even want a safe space? I’m >> reminded of George Packer’s Free America, Smart America, Real America and >> Just America. None of them really gave a damn about the others as far as I >> can tell. It is just a model, of course. >> >> https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/07/george-packer-four-americas/619012/ >> >> >> *From:* Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> *On Behalf Of >> *thompnicks...@gmail.com >> *Sent:* Thursday, October 28, 2021 11:30 AM >> *To:* 'The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group' >> <friam@redfish.com> >> *Subject:* Re: [FRIAM] we are lost >> >> >> Ok, So, Marcus, >> >> >> >> > What do categories want? >> >> >> >> Love, recognition and safety? Someone phone HR and get the ball rolling on >> a new policy! >> >> >> >> Spoken from the high perch of Irony. Irony is like wormwood, delightful in >> small doses but ultimately toxic. Do we not all want love, recognition, and >> safety? Do we also want excitement and challenge. Go figure! Some of us >> crave more of the one; some more of the other. Given the contradiction >> between those things, can we expect the right balance be guaranteed for each >> and every one of us, for all time? No. Of course not. But is that reason >> to mock human striving toward these goals? Or to mock Utilitarian attempts >> to facilitate their achievement? No. I don’t think so. Irony is a guilty >> pleasure. Even though I use it and enjoy it, I have to admit that it is a >> an abdication and fails as a policy. >> >> >> >> Nick >> >> >> >> Nick Thompson >> >> thompnicks...@gmail.com >> >> https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson/ >> >> >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Friam <friam-boun...@redfish.com> On Behalf Of Marcus Daniels >> Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2021 8:18 AM >> To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group <friam@redfish.com> >> Subject: Re: [FRIAM] we are lost >> >> >> >> >> >> > So, not only do we attribute teleology to inanimate objects, weather, >> > animals, and people, but also to the platonic solids. Which probably >> > leads to: >> >> > >> >> > What do categories want? >> >> >> >> Love, recognition and safety? Someone phone HR and get the ball rolling on >> a new policy! >> >> >> >> Marcus >> >> >> >> .-- .- -. - / .- -.-. - .. --- -. ..--.. / -.-. --- -. .--- ..- --. .- - . >> >> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv >> >> Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn UTC-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam un/subscribe >> http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com >> >> FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ >> >> archives: >> >> 5/2017 thru present https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ >> >> 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >> >> >> .-- .- -. - / .- -.-. - .. --- -. ..--.. / -.-. --- -. .--- ..- --. .- - . >> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv >> Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn UTC-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam >> un/subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com >> FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ >> archives: >> 5/2017 thru present https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ >> 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >> > > .-- .- -. - / .- -.-. - .. --- -. ..--.. / -.-. --- -. .--- ..- --. .- - . > FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv > Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn UTC-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam > un/subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com > FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ > archives: > 5/2017 thru present https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ > 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/ >
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