Thank You, Science!

Thoroughly Conscious Ignorance

"Science becomes a series of elegant puzzles and puzzles within puzzles—and who doesn’t like puzzles?"
This is absolutely right. The thrill of contemplating everything we can learn. Yes, I love to learn what is known, but it inspires me to realize that everything we learn means there's more to explore.

Or, to quote a less 'technical' source, "The world is so full of a number of things / I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings." 

From Scientific American, "What Science Wants to Know"

Anti-Intellectual Incompetence

 An interesting post from Massimo Pigliucci at Rationally Speaking.

I was particularly intrigued because I had just read yet another 'discussion' on religion vs. science, where the arguers for religion were chronically unable to discern the difference between proof and belief. If one cannot make that very gaping distinction, there is no hope of discussion. I admit to feeling there is no need for discussion. Religion, in this so global modern world, should be private and personal, and ought not to be imposed on others. My beliefs are mine; theirs are theirs. But provable information -- that is the realm of the public domain.

This article discusses another false dichotomy: intellectualism vs engineers. Timothy Ferris of 'Wired Magazine' argues that only productive technology is worthwhile (does he work for Perry?) and that thinking, ideas, and intellectual processes are a waste of time.

How, I wonder, did he get the education that allowed him to think about this? Not that he did much thinking. It is clear he is bias-promotion rather than genuine reasoning in his article.

Massimo makes several good points, most notably that Ferris "makes his case by cherry picking examples, distorting history, and simply ignoring what is not convenient for his thesis." He provides examples to support this claim.

Later, Massimo says, "five minute of serious reflection should have made Ferris realize that he created a straw man with precious little correspondence to reality." Again, he offers counter arguments worth considering.

I am, as with religion vs science, willing to allow both sides validity. I see them as reflecting different aspects of human nature and need. I have always been grossly suspicious of any premise that requires absolute exclusive validity. Nature vs Nurture. Particle vs Wave. Life is seldom so clear cut. My guiding principle is 'it's a spectrum' and from that beginning, I proceed, cautiously, to determine how dark or light the shades of grey are on any issue.

Well worth reading: http://rationallyspeaking.blogspot.com/2011/10/engineers-vs-intellectuals-how-timothy.html

70k Words in 39 Days -- Or -- Yes, I've Gone Bonkers

Not just words, mind you, but a revised and edited novel. Something I can be proud of.

I realized the other day that for the last, oh, 8 or 9 months I've been doing revision. And editing. Two full length novels, very different, but still.

Now these tasks are both challenging and rewarding, but I like to write, too.

I also need a break so I can step back from the story that's been getting my main focus before I attempt yet another full-length edit and then revision.

And I want a feeling that, yes! I've finished something (as much as any writing can ever be said to be finished).

These points combined gave me the idea to write a young adult novel of about 70,000 words, written, edited, revised by the end of August. I will allow more revision and editing in September, but I want it to be as close to ready to go as I possibly can make it by midnight, 31 August.

I hope to have it up as an ebook by mid-September. I have to learn all that stuff anyways, so that adds to my motivation.

I will be posting a daily word count, and occasional bits from the story. I'll add links to articles that give me ideas, or references to topics discussed.

I will also ask questions, seek advice, and maybe even run a contest to name a character or set a scene.

Hmmm - now that would be interesting. Let someone tell me where to set a scene and then have to work it into the story in a credible way. Fascinating....

Without further ado, I announce that as of today, after four days of writing, I have 16,230 words down.

I was feeling confident because I will have a lot of free time in August. But today a one hour errand ended up taking over three hours, and that has shaken my certainty a tad. Well, that just means more time writing tonight, right?

Writers Are Smart, and I'm Angry

I heard this in a conversation yesterday:  "She's so stupid she can't even add 2 + 2. I told her to take Creative Writing courses instead of math."

I am not good with snappy comebacks, and even if I were, the social setting would have precluded responding. I didn't want to be seen as creating a scene*. Besides, I know from experience that the speaker would say, "I didn't mean it that way."

A long history with said speaker has shown that he may like to believe he doesn't mean it that way, but he keeps saying things like that. I am skeptical of his self-knowledge, to say the least.

And yes, he knows I am a writer.

An angry, not stupid writer.

Obviously, as in all things in life, there is a spectrum. There's some really bad writing floating about, and more is put out every day thanks to ebooks and self-publishing.

All that means is there's more to wade through to get to the gems.

It does not mean that all, or even most writers are bad. Or dumb. Or anything else. Any more than a small percentage of fundamentalist maniacs with murder on their brains means that religion is inherently violent, or that a few teenagers who get drunk means that all youth is doomed to alcoholism.

I spend an hour, often closer to two every day reading science, philosophy, psychology; trying to get background for my writing. I read writing blogs trying to understand options, processes, and changing procedures in publishing.

I write. And write. And write, and strive to improve with whatever input I can coax and beg out of anyone who'll read my words.

You don't need to be a math teacher to be smart. You don't need a degree in physics. You do need a questioning mind that is open to -- no, actively seeking new information and new ways to see the world. A good writer spends their life doing just that.

Writers are smart. Talented, determined, brave, and above all, people who can face more rejection, more isolation, more years without any positive feedback on their dreams than any other profession I can think of.

Twitter.  #writersaresmart

I'm curious what you have to say in response to that offensive comment.

*why is it that when someone says or does something, it's always the person who takes them to task that's seen as 'causing a scene', and not the original offender?

Laughter As Philosophy - can it make us see reason?

This sounds to be a movie worth watching. I've looked at several interviews and clips; you can get links to more from youtube.

Bill Maher wants us to see that religion is created by humans to control other humans. As he says, 'no one knows'.

No one knows what happens when you die. Why would you accept the beliefs of someone who claims special knowledge? They're only human - just like you.

He hopes the rational 16% will stand up and be seen.

Maybe comedy will help. It certainly can't hurt.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHH2JItePlc

Why External Evaluation Really Helps

GrrlScientist often posts amazing stuff. Today was no exception.

I've been angsting over my comparative writing ability. I know - really stupid. After a certain technical competence is achieved, and a certain facility with words and style, it is so subjective.

But - this fascinated me. How do we assess ourselves, and others? How accurate are we in those assessments?

Interestingly, the less competent you are, the better you seem to think yourself. Competent people tend to over-rate others' performances, thus lessening their self-perceived skills.

Heartening conclusion: training and education - objective skills, do make us better at these judgements.

illusion of superiority

Cracked, and Writing is Despair - when it's not elation

I was doing my morning's routine of reading comics, then blogs. Science, philosophy; and there's a few writing ones I like to follow. Though for writing I mostly use Twitter - a random idea jumps out and says "Here! This is what you've been needing to think about!" For which I am truly, truly grateful.

Anyways, on one of the philosophy blogs I followed a link and discovered that  the book I've been working one for the last year is, apparently, a cheap flimsy watered-down version of the sort of novels some very famous (in the right circles) (which I obviously don't inhabit)  (which is another point of despair) person has been writing for many years now.

All my hundreds of hours of research, my hundreds of hours of writing, my in progress hundreds of hours of editing - for what?

And I am sunk once again in inescapable gloom.

What's the point? I know I am not unique, that no one is unique, that every story has been told thousands of thousand of times... but I was feeling pretty good about my book up to that moment.

I used to be a very stable person. Not without upheavals, but generally rational, reasonable, and not prone to gloom.

Since becoming a writer, my life is the proverbial roller-coaster. And not with slow steady swings from elation to despair.

Oh no. That would be too easy. Like a toddler with a light switch my brain leaps from extreme to extreme, within the same bleeding sentence.

So then I find this: http://www.cracked.com/blog/how-to-become-author-in-5-incredibly-difficult-steps/

I don't know how I hadn't seen it before. Cracked is a wonderful place for researched information in a quirky, irreverent style.

Being able to laugh, even though being reminded yet again (and I didn't need the reminder - I never forget) that I am not in the tiniest bit unique, made me feel better.

And I will write today. How could I not? It is who I am, for good or ill.

Life, Cilantro, and Philosophy

I must issue a disclaimer.

I am not a philosopher.

I've taken quite a few philosophy courses. For several of those I was fortunate enough to have a professor whose chief concern was making us think, rather than memorizing dates and themes. It is no surprise, then, that the philosophy professor in my novel takes this approach to her basic classes: teach them to think, to understand how to frame an argument, to identify fallacy, and you have given them skills that will enhance their lives.

Life, to me, is about ideas. Glorious, inspiring, thought-provoking ideas. Comfortable or not, ideas spark what is unique in us – our thoughts and dreams.

Human thought and action are shaping the world. I come down fully on the side of naming this the Anthropocene. We are too powerful a force to be ignored, even geologically. And what we do is not always good for the present or the future. But as a species, we seem to be helpless against beliefs. 

Beliefs and ideas are not the same. Some are working-valid. I believe that people should obey the law. The law says you do not allow religion in the schools. I believe that people who pray in school are criminals and should be held accountable as such. These are beliefs, but they are based on facts.

I also believe my cats are the most adorable creatures that ever lived. I know this is false. It is my opinion-belief. I can believe it if I wish, but I cannot, must not expect others to agree with me.

I know the difference between belief that is a personal opinion, and belief that is based on some evidence, and facts.

When I say 'I admire Bertrand Russell', this does not mean wholesale endorsement. Then I would be a Russell-ian, a follower rather than one who reads and thinks based upon what is read.

Following kills the mind. We need to learn to think. To question, analyze, and evaluate based on evidence, not authority.

When someone says, 'It's true. I read it in a book' they are admitting they aren't thinking for themselves. It doesn't matter what book it is – they are accepting dogma.

Now, if they say, 'It might be true. I read a report...' they are more likely to be thinking. First, they have qualified their statement, pending further proof. Second, they are reading reports, or studies, trying to get as close as they can to actual evidence. Third, they are not just reading the headlines, but the substance.

When I write about philosophy and writing, I am not issuing proclamations. I am offering connections I've seen, ideas that I've appreciated. You may, and almost certainly will see them differently.

And that is the beginning of dialogue – rational discussion of ideas. And that, to me, is the greatest joy in life.

Oh, the cilantro? Cilantro is like belief. A little bit can add spice to life. Too much, and it destroys everything else.

My evidence? Mostly anecdotal, I fear. Although I have read that cilantro is one of the love/hate flavors. Few people are neutral. Which makes me wonder why so many restaurants glop it into everything in great hulking handfuls... sorry.

Even a small amount of cilantro and I cannot taste anything else. I could be eating the most exquisite food in the world, and all I'd taste is that chalky, pungent (disgusting) flavor.

New tastes, new impressions, new ideas are too precious to miss.

I try not to be cilantro.

Science and Uncertainty

Four posts today, all on the topics of what we think we know, what we actually do know, and how we go about distinguishing between the two. And having distinguished, what do we do about it?

First up, recognizing that uncertainty is not an excuse for ignoring probable danger. The context here is global climate change. There is enough evidence to know that the climate is warming. Even if it were entirely natural, we still need to be working hard on ways to minimize the disruption (gentle word) climate shift will cause.  And yet the reaction is all too often complete denial (humorous take on argumentative reasoning here) or accepting it's happening, but not that it will cause problems. Neither response will help. Hence the phrase in Professor Juan Cole's post: "The Big Oil and Big Coal executives attempting to stop efforts to reduce emissions are thus in effect mass murderers of a future generation."

Read also Chris Mooney on uncertainty as a response.

Then there was a delightful post about established beliefs in science. Eventually testing wins over belief. That's why science improves the way we live and belief can't. Without science, we'd all be living in caves eating raw food and dying of simple injuries and diseases. But we'd have our beliefs! Such a comfort. The first hand account by Mpemba is a joy to read. And I loved footnote six. Finding observational information in all sorts of strange places.

Last is a distressing post about how we alter our own behavior to fit perceived stereotypes about ourselves. Apparently the ruling bodies of the Educational Testing Services want to keep women and minorities out of higher education? (don't sue me - change your testing!)