• asudox@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        “If you are right in the woods and no one is around to see it, were you really right?” is a philosophical thought experiment that raises questions regarding observation and perception.

        Can we assume the unobserved world functions the same as the observed world? – e.g., “does observation affect outcome?”

        A similar question does not involve whether or not an unobserved event occurs predictably, like it occurs when it is observed. The anthropic principle suggests that the observer, just in its existence, may impose on the reality observed.

        However, most people, as well as scientists, assume that the observer doesn’t change whether the tree-fall causes a sound or not, but this is an impossible claim to prove. However, many scientists would argue that a truly unobserved event is one which realises no effect (imparts no information) on any other (where ‘other’ might be e.g., human, sound-recorder or rock), it therefore can have no legacy in the present (or ongoing) wider physical universe. It may then be recognized that the unobserved event was absolutely identical to an event which did not occur at all. Of course, the fact that the tree is known to have changed state from ‘upright’ to ‘fallen’ implies that the event must be observed to ask the question at all – even if only by the supposed deaf onlooker. The British philosopher of science Roy Bhaskar, credited with developing critical realism has argued, in apparent reference to this riddle, that:

        If men ceased to exist sound would continue to travel and heavy bodies to fall to the earth in exactly the same way, though ex hypothesi there would be no-one to know it
        

        This existence of an unobserved real is integral to Bhaskar’s ontology, which contends (in opposition to the various strains of positivism which have dominated both natural and social science in the twentieth century) that ‘real structures exist independently of and are often out of phase with the actual patterns of events’. In social science, this has made his approach popular amongst contemporary Marxists — notably Alex Callinicos – who postulate the existence of real social forces and structures which might not always be observable.

        For example: In quantum mechanics, Schrödinger’s cat is a thought experiment that illustrates a paradox of quantum superposition. In the thought experiment, a hypothetical cat may be considered simultaneously both alive and dead, while it is unobserved in a closed box, as a result of its fate being linked to a random subatomic event that may or may not occur. This thought experiment was devised by physicist Erwin Schrödinger in 1935 in a discussion with Albert Einstein to illustrate what Schrödinger saw as the problems of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics.

        In Schrödinger’s original formulation, a cat, a flask of poison, and a radioactive source are placed in a sealed box. If an internal monitor (e.g. a Geiger counter) detects radioactivity (i.e. a single atom decaying), the flask is shattered, releasing the poison, which kills the cat. The Copenhagen interpretation implies that, after a while, the cat is simultaneously alive and dead. Yet, when one looks in the box, one sees the cat either alive or dead, not both alive and dead. This poses the question of when exactly quantum superposition ends and reality resolves into one possibility or the other.

        In conclusion: When there is noone to hear if you are right or not, your righteousness is not yet confirmed, thus you being in a superposition state where you are both right and wrong. Unless someone comes and hears your words, will then your righteousness be judged and stated.

    • SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      Metal Gear Solid 2 (released in 2001) predicted our current/future catch 22 scenario. If echo chambers are left in place everyone isolates themselves and surrounds themselves in their own half truths afraid of a larger forum.

      But the proposed solution is for AI to run everything behind the scenes censoring the internet to manipulate information and by extension the world.

      idk why this reminded me of that

    • KSP Atlas@sopuli.xyz
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      1 year ago

      Because in western society walking around naked in public is considered illegal and wrong

    • Spliffman1@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I thought of 2 reasons without even trying

      1. To not feel cold
      2. So mosquitoes don’t bite my cock

      I’m sure if I try I could come up with more

      • Speiser0@feddit.de
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        1 year ago

        Your arguments don’t work in heated, low-insect-rate buildings.

        Do you have more, or do you give in?

        • Spliffman1@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Oh I have a lot more, I like having pants on so when I scratch my asshole I can get a nice streak inside the pants and not moist aromatic fingertips. Also pants are a good fart holder so I can spread the smell over a larger area. Also pants are a good piss catcher for those late coming dribbles that wait till you are reinserting into pants to come charging out. Shoes are good too so I don’t get the cockroach mayonnaise on my feet when I smash them.

          Just a few thoughts

  • lightnsfw@reddthat.com
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    1 year ago

    I don’t even care if they agree with me as long as they can form a constructive argument against me and not go into hysterics just because my opinion differs from theirs.

      • aquinteros@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        The presentation went along like this:

        • context about social media and the problems with centralized models
        • some news articles about the reddit debacle and Elon being musk
        • overview of the dapps framework
        • the fediverse and the different apps in it
        • the concept of federation and how instances work

        at the end I mentioned what I considered to be the most important challenges and steps ahead for the fediverse, thinks like escalation, funding, onboarding and moderation it was fun, the class liked it, i think some were going to try mastdon, it’s a start!

  • hark@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    On the other hand, I can be smug about getting a lot of downvotes from who I can assume are mindless fools.

  • SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    I like turning off vote counts to keep me more honest. It makes me vote honestly because I myself like something, not just because others happen to like it a lot.

  • Queen HawlSera@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Honestly at this point I’m just glad I’m not getting autobanned because some moderator decided there was a way to interpret my words as advocating for genocide… God we need to get more of the Reddit Communities here so we can make that shitfest obsolete