Complexity argument

THE WORLD QUESTION CENTER

Before developing a Theory of Everything, one might ask whether the human brain and its products are indeed capable of understanding the truths about the universe.

Karl Sabbagh, author of THE RIEMANN HYPOTHESIS, asks: "Why should we expect to be able eventually to understand how the universe originated, evolved, and operates? While human brains are complex and capable of many amazing things, there is not necessarily any match between the complexity of the universe and the complexity of our brains, any more than a dog's brain is capable of understanding every detail of the world of cats and bones, or the dynamics of stick trajectories when thrown."

Sabbagh invokes the complexity argument, but the fundamental problem is addressing the limits of our knowledge. Over 200 years ago, Kant divided the universe into two domains: phenomena and noumena, or in plain English, the knowable and unknowable domains. So that implies we must qualify ToE to mean: "Theory of Everything (knowable)" -- but then it is a misnomer because Everything does not really include everything. Perhaps the most interesting stuff is going on over in the world of noumena (like God playing dice to amuse himself in his infinite boredom). Or if one has any faith in decoherence theory (or the theory of multiple universes) there must be other versions of ToE which we cannot possibly access even in ordinary phenomena.

Self? Language & everything else

THE WORLD QUESTION CENTER

Suppose you have a complete theory of Everything (both knowable and unknowable), does it count if you cannot articulate it? A theory must be expressed in some language to make it comprehensible to another being. The limits of that theory is circumscribed by the limits of language, what language is capable of expressing. If something is ineffable, then it obviously falls outside of language, but more importantly, it falls outside of any possible theory.

Ask any mystic about his or her experiences, and I'll bet the conversation is about noumena. During discussions, we readily use the subject "we," just as I use "you" to address you. But who are "you" really? Some might say, body and soul. And there again the Kantian division between phenomena and noumena pops up -- for the entity "soul" cannot be pinned down in phenomena.

In his 1994 book "THE ASTONISHING HYPOTHESIS: The Scientific Search for the Soul," Francis Crick [co-discoverer of DNA] argued that the soul is an illusion perpetuated, like Tinkerbell, only by our belief in it. He wrote: "'YOU,' your joys and your sorrows, your memories and your ambitions, your sense of personal identity and free will, are in fact no more than the behavior of a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules."

Oceanic Feeling

The Oceanic Feeling : The Origins of Religious Sentiment in Ancient India

vide Jeffrey Moussaieff's influence from Daniel H.H. Ingalls, professor of Sanskrit at Harvard, and Louis Renou, Indologist in Paris. Interestingly in his 1990 book _Final_Analysis_ he wrote, "[I] slowly began to free myself from a belief that they [Pali and Sanskrit texts] were 'the truth.' They were simply one among a myriad of beliefs that owed their power primarily to the fact that people were born into them, or had the ideas drilled into them over and over."

William James used the phrase "oceanic feeling" to describe mystical religious experiences.

Hugh Everett bio notes

Einstein letter to boy Everett (quantum theorist)

When he was 12, Hugh wrote letters to Albert Einstein raising the question whether it was something random or unifying that held the universe together. Einstein was kind enough to answer. In a letter dated June 11, 1943, he wrote,

"Dear Hugh: There is no such thing like an irresistible force and immovable body. But there seems to be a very stubborn boy who has forced his way victoriously through strange difficulties created by himself for this purpose.
Sincerely yours, A. Einstein".

Later in his life Everett would write in this (unedited) Ph.D. dissertation:

"[W]e must renounce all hope of finding anything like the correct theory... simply because the totality of experience is never accessible to us."

This follows from his theory of multiple universes, also known as decoherence theory, since we are on one realized path among many branching superpositions each producing yet another universe (with a different 'copy' of ourselves). [see Sci.Am. 2007 December, pp.98-105 for more details]

Myths of PMA (not PMS ;-)

from: The 5 Myths of Positive Mental Attitude:

"Everyone who accomplishes anything - whether it’s earning a million dollars or becoming an award-winning actor - accomplish it the same way: by taking action.

Positive people have an edge because they believe the object of their desire is attainable. They come from a ‘can-do’ mindset. Their actions are not based on fear or scarcity, but based on possibilities. Thus, a positive attitude helps a person manifest their desires, not simply by dreaming about it, but by inspiring the person to take action.

It’s the action behind the attraction that makes the dream come true.

Even in external circumstances that seem out of our control, we can always control is our internal response. In fact, it’s the only thing we have absolute control over."

The only thing we could possibly have any control over: our inner awareness.

Defeat Brain Drain

Source: Mind Hacks: Ten Ways to Defeat Brain Drain

'Here are 10 ways you can beat brain drain.

1. Meditate -- By meditate, I mean sitting and closing your eyes for 20 minutes or so. Sit still and simply observe the thoughts that come into your mind. Don't try to solve any problems. Just watch and let go.
2. Take A Walk -- A brisk walk outdoors—especially in a park or someplace you are not familiar with will take your mind off your main task so it can relax. Pay attention to the scenes as you travel. Stop and smell the roses, as the cliche goes. Take a minute to see the beauty of panoramas.
3. Listen to classical music -- Sitting still with relaxing Mozart or Bach playing through headphones can transcend the brain drain. It will relax you while coaxing your mind to think about other things. (Editor: Here are some free classical music downloads.)
4. Read something entertaining -- There is nothing like a chapter of your favorite book to take your mind off the causes of your brain drain. Reading is an interactive action, so you keep your mind active, while relaxing at the same time. Tip: Use reading for 10-20 minutes as a reward for 30 minutes of focused work. Use an egg timer to keep track.
5. Reboot your brain with a caffeine nap. -- University studies show that drinking a cup of coffee and then immediately taking a 10-15 minute catnap gives you an energy boost. This is called a caffeine nap. I've found it works equally well for brain drain. (Just make sure you have something to do when you wake up, because you are going to be ready to rock and roll.)
6. Go to a movie. -- If you can fit in a two hour movie, at the theater, it is worth the time and money just so you can get away mentally and physically. Sitting in front of the big screen is a great way to take your mind off everything.
7. Listen to motivational CDs -- This is a tip I picked up from Steve Pavlina. When he's tired from intense thinking, he pops in a motivational CD. Although it might seem like this would be more work, it isn't. By listening, you can relax, and become almost passive, as the ideas and strategies gradually break the drain.
8. Play a sport -- Studies show that people who do a competitive sport such as tennis, basketball, golf, martial arts, or football are happier overall. To compete in the sport may make you tired physically, but will wake you up mentally. When you wake up mentally, brain drain stops being as big a problem.
9. Break down your project into bite-sized chunks -- Rome wasn't built in a day. Maybe you are trying to move your mountain in a day too. Take a half hour or an hour to take a close look at your projects. Are you trying to write a novel in one day, when it would be more practical to shoot for three pages of a novel a day? You might be in brain drain because you simply don't have sensible objectives.
10. Play a game -- Playing a game that gets you away from your draining thoughts is an excellent way to get past the sluggishness. You might prefer crossword puzzles or sudokus if you don't like video games. Either way, playing a game lets you know life doesn't always have to be so serious and focused. Make time for play too!

Remember, the good news is brain drain means you are using your brain at maximum capacity. The bad news is you are not giving your brain needed periods of rest. Rest is important for creative thinking and problem solving. Thus a series of short breaks between your work is necessary for you to work at a high level. So in planning your next intense project, be sure to scatter in several scheduled periods where you can take a break and give your brain some time to incubate.'

Paperless life

Palimpsest: the guide to a (mostly) paperless life | 43 Folders

"[R]ecognize that paper is all about process, whereas digital media are all about information and retrieval. One mustn't be afraid to whip out a scrap of paper when it's time to scribble impromptu notes, mark a manuscript for edits, or do some visual thinking. Equally, one must not hesitate to scan or transcribe and then throw away a piece of paper that has value only in the potential future usefulness of the information it represents, once the drafting and scribbling are done. Embracing paperless reference filing is not the same thing as rejecting paper's important role in your work."

The author then advocates scanning documents into PDFs (now an ISO standard) which are beautifully handled natively within OS-X Leopard.