Search found 137 matches

by caliban
Sat Mar 24, 2007 2:52 am
Forum: Literature and Cinema
Topic: Why no serious sci fi movies?
Replies: 15
Views: 116946

here are a few other thought-provoking SF films: The Dead Zone, Strange Days, Twelve Monkeys and The Time Machine (the 2002 remake). For an absolute blast, there is The Fifth Element and, of course, Serenity. I'll actually disagree for once with Athena, although this is taste and preference. I myse...
by caliban
Fri Mar 23, 2007 11:29 pm
Forum: Literature and Cinema
Topic: Why no serious sci fi movies?
Replies: 15
Views: 116946

Gattaca

I personally like Gattaca. Although stylized--these are not real astronauts--the message is more subtle and thoughtful than many pseudo-SF flicks. Namely, it warns against seeing everyone through a single lens--the lens of their genome. Too often, particularly in the US, we tend to think a single id...
by caliban
Tue Mar 13, 2007 11:11 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

In a way it [science] is similar to having laws that can be edited by the subjects of those laws as opposed to a "divine" law that cannot change despite evidence. I don't think it's a coincidence that these two movements took off in the same time and place. I agree. Although this is surel...
by caliban
Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:50 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

While I partially agree with caliban and WW's statements above, I don't think science and philosophy are separable I agree there are philosophical assumptions underlying science--the ones you point out. And it indeed can be dangerous to make the mistake of "naive realism," which many scie...
by caliban
Tue Mar 13, 2007 2:48 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

That aside, that brings to the fore (at least, in my mind) the question of exactly when science--especially advanced science--shifts into philosophy and vice versa. Don't forget, science was originally called "natural philosophy." But the difference is, philosophy is primarily based upon ...
by caliban
Mon Mar 12, 2007 3:57 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

Thanks much. I'm very curious about the specifics on this, but don't want to take up time on the boards, so aside from Wikipedia, what do you suggest someone with a moderate physics background and rusty math start in exploring the alternatives to the Copenhagen interpretation? Some day I might writ...
by caliban
Mon Mar 12, 2007 3:05 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

I do see your point, and recognized a liberal intermingling of science and philosophy in that article. However, I think many/most of the greatest scientists acted out of conscious or unconscious philosophical motives - some acknowledged and some not. That's quite true. But in the end, you still hav...
by caliban
Mon Mar 12, 2007 2:15 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

I found the one in American Scholar - is that what you were referring to? Yes. Sorry, I guess I called it New Scholar. I think Creationism in many forms predates Big Bang, evolution, etc. and can be considered to be a theory of a sort (not a scientific one in that there is no real evidence for it)....
by caliban
Mon Mar 12, 2007 1:05 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

Robert Lanza is known for his work with stem cells at a private research firm. Like Stuart Kaufmann, an anesthesiologist who arrived at the concept of quantum microtubules in collaboration with Roger Penrose You mean Stuart Hameroff. Kaufmann has his own goofy ideas and spouts off at times, and my ...
by caliban
Mon Mar 12, 2007 11:29 am
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Biocentrism and the Anthropic Principle
Replies: 21
Views: 147063

I bumped into this on Wired yesterday, and thought this group might have some comments. I've not heard of the fellow, nor do I know anything about his work, so while the article is interesting I have no context. Maybe some of you do: Dear SC, There is a link to his "article" in the New Sc...
by caliban
Sun Mar 11, 2007 6:59 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Many Little Dimensions or One Big One?
Replies: 41
Views: 256069

Re: Preliminary report

Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe was not like this. That's good to know. Not to excuse Randall, but there is a lot of pressure, even if implicit, to dumb things down, and it is hard to know how to balance accessibility against telling the whole story. I worry that I have--in fact I know I have--...
by caliban
Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:50 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Many Little Dimensions or One Big One?
Replies: 41
Views: 256069

Re: Preliminary report

I'm afraid I don't read popular physics books, because they inevitably devolve to baby talk. I am now one-quarter into Lisa Randall's Warped Passages and the baby talk is irritating the hell out of me. You were warned. Although I haven't read it myself. Physics seems the most succeptible to baby ta...
by caliban
Sat Mar 10, 2007 12:25 pm
Forum: Literature and Cinema
Topic: Movies and Representing History: The Case of "300"
Replies: 20
Views: 140766

Re: I take issue

I do not wear blinders and am very much aware of their proclivities toward male/male relationships What I find funny--sort of--is the contrasting attitudes towards homosexuality and military life in different societies: Modern American: Can't have a military with it! Ancient Sparta (and others): Ca...
by caliban
Fri Mar 09, 2007 4:18 pm
Forum: Literature and Cinema
Topic: Movies and Representing History: The Case of "300"
Replies: 20
Views: 140766

Re: Reviews and comments on 300

There is one political/cultural aspect of this film that cannot be avoided. If the Persians had conquered Greece at that particular time, there would have been no Periclean Athens. In other words, no classical Greek golden age, with its innovations on drama, sculpture, political structure and philo...
by caliban
Thu Mar 08, 2007 6:56 pm
Forum: The Poetry and Prose of Science and Science Fiction
Topic: Many Little Dimensions or One Big One?
Replies: 41
Views: 256069

neurotic networks

Neural networks are way cool--once one understand what they are. Here's what neural nets do : Imagine you have a system to read some data and determine a response. It is sufficient to have a yes/no response. (The response can be more complicated by a series of yes/no on different issues, but it work...