More action from the Dennett thread, and more of me beating the anti-reductionist drum. Reducing isn’t explaining. Although it’s true, the quirks of quarksAre what we find when we reduceThe laws of rocks, of tuning forks,Of cats, of cars, of orange juice,The truth is, if I know the quirksOf quarks, and qualms of quantum statesThey …
Monthly Archive: March 2009
Mar 09 2009
The Digital Pack-Rat, Vol. 14
Ok, back to the list… On a pharyngula thread about a scandalously titled recent discovery about the evolution of sex. Well, not sex, per se, but having sex. Sorta. What we really need is a clearer fossil of the action… in action. To see if fishies copulate, thus little fishies born,We need some “more revealing …
Mar 08 2009
The Digital Pack-Rat, Vol. 13
Lucky thirteen! A fairly large one today, too–I have let this get away from me. I’ll start with one posted on Evolving Thoughts, (and later posted as a comment in the Dennett thread), commenting on the arguments regarding consciousness. Worth reading the original, BTW, and the comments. It seems to me philosophers have somewhat been …
Mar 05 2009
Truman The Octopus!
Ok, first go read the actual story. I’ll wait. It’s worth it. Come back when you are done, and you can read the verse. Teaser–it’s about an octopus, doing something really really cool. Oh, and… Truman is especially cool. I have pics of him on my camera–the dude is amazing. Truman the octopus saw the …
Mar 05 2009
Open Laboratory 2008!
Over at Bora’s, the announcement has been made–the 2008 Open Laboratory (the best science writing on blogs) is now available at Lulu, and people (or cuttlefish) like yours truly can proudly put up a nice clickable link like this:Which you can use to go and purchase your own copy. (It will be available from Amazon …
Mar 04 2009
The Introspection Fish
Another comment from the Dennett post. I have no eyes to look behindAnd view my brain, much less my mind;I cannot know your thoughts, and youAre blind to what I’m thinking, too.These are the facts; we can’t denyWe have no working “inner eye”Nor any form of ESP;Your thoughts cannot be seen by me. Your claim—that …
Mar 03 2009
Reductionism? Never Mind…
Another comment from the Dennett thread–those of you who have read my evolutionary biology valentine’s day poem will know that I am not a fan of reductionist explanations. It frustrates me a bit, to findThis parsing out of “what is mind”Seems always, always to have missedThat I am no reductionist!I am no fool; I won’t …
Mar 02 2009
To The Senator’s Health!
PZ reports that Senator Tom Harkin regrets that his National Center for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine has done what I, for one, would have bet against: it has disproven “too many” alternative therapies. I wonder if we can get something to make the Senator feel better… The Senator is needingA colonic or a bleedingOr perhaps …
Mar 02 2009
It’s Getting Verse And Verse!
The discussion in the Dennett thread continues–Phunicular is a phenom, and Thoughts is thoughtful (if wrong). Phinicular is archiving his own comments, or I would post several here; they are wonderful. I’ll just post my latest comment as an appetizer here: The nature of your question presupposes your position;The “phenomenal” you’re after is an artifact …
Mar 01 2009
Dude….
The department of oddities proudly announcesThe latest official new species of fish!It isn’t a swimmer—it more or less bounces—With features that Timothy Leary might wish. A species of frogfish, its fabulous featuresMake H. psychadelica second to none—Unique locomotion is one of this creature’sExciting behaviors—this fish is just fun! (A bit depressing–if you pay close attention, …
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