1156
The Forum of Interesting Things / Re: Cheap/Free Mental Health Resources?
« on: July 03, 2013, 05:06:28 pm »
Continuing to add resources to the Google Doc, including some Canadian ones.
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1157
Philosophy & Science / Re: Is the Brain a Digital Computer?
« on: June 09, 2013, 04:21:15 pm »
I think you're misinterpreting the argument being made.
They are simply saying you can't think of consciousness as a program you can code and then run on any hardware/wetware/etc.
To think of consciousness as a program is to confer upon it the status of information, which is where Searle's accusation of dualism comes from.
The possibility that the brain uses systems akin to a computer to make consciousness works is a separate concern.
They are simply saying you can't think of consciousness as a program you can code and then run on any hardware/wetware/etc.
To think of consciousness as a program is to confer upon it the status of information, which is where Searle's accusation of dualism comes from.
The possibility that the brain uses systems akin to a computer to make consciousness works is a separate concern.
1158
Philosophy & Science / Re: Is the Brain a Digital Computer?
« on: June 08, 2013, 03:24:48 pm »
From Conscious Entities:
Quote
Our thinking is currently so coloured by the seductive analogy between brains and computers that this is hard to accept, but it must be remembered that the human brain is not a discrete-state machine. Computers are constituted that way precisely in order to guarantee that their behaviour is predictable with certainty (or in practice, with a very high degree of probability), and can be specified by the designer or programmer. Human beings, on the other hand, are not artefacts; they were never designed, or specified; they are the products of intentionless evolution, and no one ever declared that they should have only a finite number of valid states. In fact, just as the map shows an infinite number of routes, our brains have an infinite number of valid states.
It's clear, back on the mentalistic level, that if we had been the products of design rather than evolution, with our behaviour carefully specified in advance by a designer or programmer, we really could not be free, responsible, or indeed, people. The causal relations which operate within a brain are determined by the detailed physical constitution of that particular brain, but the causal relationships which operate within a computer are independent of its physical details, barring accidents.
Curiously enough, then, it turns out that those who see people as programs or data have something in common with those who would see them as immaterial spirits. The computationalists, at the end of the day, are not materialistic enough: they want people to be Platonic abstractions rather than the one-off physical objects they really are...
1159
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: June 05, 2013, 10:01:42 pm »
You do posit a good question on the car jackers doing me a favor by not raping me. I suspect it didn't occur to them, which I guess is more good fortune than some respect they accorded me.
I don't know if there's any big reason to worry about the word having different meanings, but that example does better illustrate the concern you have.
Scalzi may have the right of it at a theoretical level, with bonuses being accorded depending on intrinsic and extrinsic characteristics. Where I veer from Scalzi is his belief that such bonuses can be summed up without accounting for region, class, etc.
That said, I do think the usual lack of concern about sexual assault is a male privilege, though it would also be fair to ask if those men who are victims of sexual assault face equal, lower, or steeper barriers than women do in trying to make their voices heard.
I don't know if there's any big reason to worry about the word having different meanings, but that example does better illustrate the concern you have.
Scalzi may have the right of it at a theoretical level, with bonuses being accorded depending on intrinsic and extrinsic characteristics. Where I veer from Scalzi is his belief that such bonuses can be summed up without accounting for region, class, etc.
That said, I do think the usual lack of concern about sexual assault is a male privilege, though it would also be fair to ask if those men who are victims of sexual assault face equal, lower, or steeper barriers than women do in trying to make their voices heard.
1160
The Forum of Interesting Things / Re: Cheap/Free Mental Health Resources?
« on: June 05, 2013, 09:51:43 pm »
Yeah, I'm thinking about the website and maybe trying to do a little beyond the U.S.
My worry is that it'll be something that becomes hard to manage over time, but we'll see how it goes.
My worry is that it'll be something that becomes hard to manage over time, but we'll see how it goes.
1161
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 29, 2013, 09:39:27 pm »
'Privilege' just means benefit, it doesn't confer intrinsic worth over someone else.
Here, low probability of sexual assault is, in most situations, an advantage of being male.
For example, my friend and I was once carjacked and then put in the back seat so the thieves could find an ATM so we could withdraw cash for them. They also demanded they go to the house my friend was staying at (his aunt's), and robbed the place.
Now there were times I thought we'd be killed, but I never feared we'd be sexually assaulted. I suspect if we were women we'd at least have been groped/fingered, if not raped.
This is actually one of the few times I think there is a clear cut privilege, most other examples I see used in social justice circles don't IMO take into account factors besides gender/race/sexuality.
Here, low probability of sexual assault is, in most situations, an advantage of being male.
For example, my friend and I was once carjacked and then put in the back seat so the thieves could find an ATM so we could withdraw cash for them. They also demanded they go to the house my friend was staying at (his aunt's), and robbed the place.
Now there were times I thought we'd be killed, but I never feared we'd be sexually assaulted. I suspect if we were women we'd at least have been groped/fingered, if not raped.
This is actually one of the few times I think there is a clear cut privilege, most other examples I see used in social justice circles don't IMO take into account factors besides gender/race/sexuality.
1162
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 14, 2013, 09:16:13 pm »eta: Apologies if my tone seems harsher than necessary. I find I come across as more of a dick than intend to.
I constantly worry about this on the internet, so I end up overusing the exclamation mark to avert it!
Well, I am the resident Contrarian Wanker, so some of my dickishness is intentional. :-)
In the case of this topic I think low probability of sexual assault is pretty much a privilege of being male. I find it to be self-evident, so I cannot really fathom what the counterpoint is.
1163
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 14, 2013, 01:43:51 pm »
Seems odd to make some comment about seahorses and then bow out.
I thought you might be interested in engaging some larger amount of females who might disagree with you, rather than Bakker fans who are more likely to support your initial conclusions.
eta: Apologies if my tone seems harsher than necessary. I find I come across as more of a dick than intend to.
I thought you might be interested in engaging some larger amount of females who might disagree with you, rather than Bakker fans who are more likely to support your initial conclusions.
eta: Apologies if my tone seems harsher than necessary. I find I come across as more of a dick than intend to.
1164
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 13, 2013, 04:21:08 pm »
Huh?
Do you want a discussion about your question or not? [I saw you posted, but not your question about male privilege? If you want I'll do it for you.]
Do you want a discussion about your question or not? [I saw you posted, but not your question about male privilege? If you want I'll do it for you.]
1165
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 13, 2013, 03:24:52 am »
It's only locked because it hit twenty-something pages.
If you want an answer to your query, you can make a new feminism thread and repost your OP from here over there.
Topic seems dead here anyway.
If you want an answer to your query, you can make a new feminism thread and repost your OP from here over there.
Topic seems dead here anyway.
1166
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 11, 2013, 03:49:20 pm »
My point is if you want a discussion of this, you're better off finding a place that has a larger percentage of women posting.
It's up to you.
It's up to you.
1167
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 10, 2013, 01:21:38 am »
"Depends on whether you can describe the argument I'm putting forward (you don't have to agree with it, just be able to describe the idea of it correctly). Otherwise I'd be giving permission to link a missinterpretation of my argument, which would be all sorts of train wreck."
Wait, don't you have a Westeros account? You can just ask your question in the feminism thread.
Wait, don't you have a Westeros account? You can just ask your question in the feminism thread.
1168
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 09, 2013, 08:41:58 pm »
"demonstrating that men are bigger and stronger than women."
You mean on average right? And what does this have to do with feminism?
You mean on average right? And what does this have to do with feminism?
1169
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 09, 2013, 01:55:07 pm »
Seemed relevant to the topic. I think most people suffer from confirmation bias, and it's a good idea to explore why men are so resistant to feminism.
I'll also say I find the EkyannusIII references to accepting biology to be dubious, as there's no reference to any peer reviewed journals to clarify/support his points.
I am glad to see Meyna here, as I believe that makes at least one actual female who is interested in discussing such issues around these parts. I know Three Pound Brain largely reads as biased figures all agreeing with each other, so it would be good to have some female perspectives here.
eta: If you're interested I'd link this thread to Westeros as I'm curious to see the reactions.
I'll also say I find the EkyannusIII references to accepting biology to be dubious, as there's no reference to any peer reviewed journals to clarify/support his points.
I am glad to see Meyna here, as I believe that makes at least one actual female who is interested in discussing such issues around these parts. I know Three Pound Brain largely reads as biased figures all agreeing with each other, so it would be good to have some female perspectives here.
eta: If you're interested I'd link this thread to Westeros as I'm curious to see the reactions.
1170
General Misc. / Re: So, whut up with male 'privilege'?
« on: May 08, 2013, 03:03:51 pm »
Confessions of a Former Misogynist
"When I realised how my behaviour must have made my girlfriends feel, I felt sick. There wasn’t a feminist conspiracy to deprive nice men from getting sex and girlfriends. The girls I’d been out with hadn’t dumped me because I was ‘too nice’ or because I was depressed, but because I was an emotionally abusive arsehole. That’s not an easy thing to admit, but it’s a lot easier to fix once you’ve done it."
"When I realised how my behaviour must have made my girlfriends feel, I felt sick. There wasn’t a feminist conspiracy to deprive nice men from getting sex and girlfriends. The girls I’d been out with hadn’t dumped me because I was ‘too nice’ or because I was depressed, but because I was an emotionally abusive arsehole. That’s not an easy thing to admit, but it’s a lot easier to fix once you’ve done it."
