Comments on: The wrongness singularity http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/ Random samplings from a universe of ideas. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 16:48:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Arbitrary Chronological Signifiers | Cosmic Variance http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15769 Arbitrary Chronological Signifiers | Cosmic Variance Sun, 31 Dec 2006 22:38:24 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15769 [...] The Wrongness Singularity [...] [...] The Wrongness Singularity [...]

]]> By: Greatist post ever - just how wong can a pundnt be? « High Quality Noise http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15768 Greatist post ever - just how wong can a pundnt be? « High Quality Noise Sun, 10 Sep 2006 23:50:28 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15768 [...] Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL. « Nickelodeon on riot duty The cultural ramifications of My Humps» [...] [...] Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL. « Nickelodeon on riot duty The cultural ramifications of My Humps» [...]

]]> By: Qubit http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15767 Qubit Tue, 16 May 2006 22:12:07 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15767 Who's We? Here in the UK we can't even use a hose pipe, never mind finding enough water to run an oil field! When you can't even get water into somebodys back garden, then you have no chance! No chance! Of getting water, to run all the oil fields, in a country where there is non. To run all the oil pumps, at full speed, in a country, you just invaded. Which has very little water, but needs loads of it. Would mean you just passed the Event Horizon! Who’s We? Here in the UK we can’t even use a hose pipe, never mind finding enough water to run an oil field!
When you can’t even get water into somebodys back garden, then you have no chance! No chance! Of getting water, to run all the oil fields, in a country where there is non.
To run all the oil pumps, at full speed, in a country, you just invaded. Which has very little water, but needs loads of it. Would mean you just passed the Event Horizon!

]]> By: JGG http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15684 JGG Mon, 15 May 2006 21:27:20 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15684 Mr. Reynolds is clearly an ignoramus. As far as I can tell. being a Canadian, Canada is both a liberal democracy and a net exporter of oil, mostly to the United States. Now, his believability quotient has just plummeted to below zero, putting him in a black hole. Unless of course, his definition of liberal democracy is Adolf's Germany which I'm sure as a citizen of the USA he doesn't have. Another liberal democracy that exports oil, and is second to Canada as a supplier to the USA is Venezuela, which is both liberal and democratic, Bush, Robertson et alia to the contrary. A third liberal democracy that exports oil is Peru. Gee, I don't know if there's a black holebig enough for this guy. Mr. Reynolds is clearly an ignoramus. As far as I can tell. being a Canadian, Canada is both a liberal democracy and a net exporter of oil, mostly to the United States. Now, his believability quotient has just plummeted to below zero, putting him in a black hole. Unless of course, his definition of liberal democracy is Adolf’s Germany which I’m sure as a citizen of the USA he doesn’t have. Another liberal democracy that exports oil, and is second to Canada as a supplier to the USA is Venezuela, which is both liberal and democratic, Bush, Robertson et alia to the contrary. A third liberal democracy that exports oil is Peru. Gee, I don’t know if there’s a black holebig enough for this guy.

]]> By: The Swamp » Harder, Better, Faster, Wronger http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15766 The Swamp » Harder, Better, Faster, Wronger Thu, 11 May 2006 13:46:12 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15766 [...] From Cosmic Variance, on Glenn Reynolds reaching a new state of wrongness: So in fact, Reynolds has managed to fit five units of wrongness into only four declarative statements! This is the hackular equivalent of crossing the Chandrasekhar Limit, at which point your blog cannot help but collapse in on itself. Although I disagree with the methodology (introducing a new clause and attaching wrongness to it without including it with the original statements), it is top notch physics humour. [...] [...] From Cosmic Variance, on Glenn Reynolds reaching a new state of wrongness: So in fact, Reynolds has managed to fit five units of wrongness into only four declarative statements! This is the hackular equivalent of crossing the Chandrasekhar Limit, at which point your blog cannot help but collapse in on itself. Although I disagree with the methodology (introducing a new clause and attaching wrongness to it without including it with the original statements), it is top notch physics humour. [...]

]]> By: Hawkeye http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15765 Hawkeye Thu, 11 May 2006 08:23:48 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15765 Of course, the fact that you don't know what it means to beg the question, nor does Tim Lambert, suggests a wrongness singularity all your own. Of course, the fact that you don’t know what it means to beg the question, nor does Tim Lambert, suggests a wrongness singularity all your own.

]]> By: Torbjörn Larsson http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-2/#comment-15764 Torbjörn Larsson Tue, 09 May 2006 22:40:04 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15764 Öööhhh... I meant "tentiveness marker". Döh! Öööhhh… I meant “tentiveness marker”. Döh!

]]> By: Torbjörn Larsson http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15763 Torbjörn Larsson Tue, 09 May 2006 22:38:19 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15763 Moshe: Very funny! One must remember to let go of the tail of the tiger at times. W: "Torbjööörn" This is double wrongness. The ö sound (which english speakers don't have) is also a tentative marker, akin to u in "Uuuuhhhh... Duuuhhh..." ie we say "Ööööhhh... Döööhhh...", so this spelling is both insulting and wrongly spelled. It is an example of a bozon. ""I think that if the cost of a commodity lowers all benefits." Wha? I'm missing something here; how does a drop in the price of a commodity, e.g. cotton, benefit all, e.g. everybody, including the cotton farmers?" I don't cotton much to economics, but I believe this would be the effect if the cost of the raw resource dropped. (Ie not the farmers gain.) Moshe:

Very funny! One must remember to let go of the tail of the tiger at times.

W:
“Torbjööörn”

This is double wrongness. The ö sound (which english speakers don’t have) is also a tentative marker, akin to u in “Uuuuhhhh… Duuuhhh…” ie we say “Ööööhhh… Döööhhh…”, so this spelling is both insulting and wrongly spelled. It is an example of a bozon.

“”I think that if the cost of a commodity lowers all benefits.”

Wha? I’m missing something here; how does a drop in the price of a commodity, e.g. cotton, benefit all, e.g. everybody, including the cotton farmers?”

I don’t cotton much to economics, but I believe this would be the effect if the cost of the raw resource dropped. (Ie not the farmers gain.)

]]> By: Mike http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15762 Mike Tue, 09 May 2006 18:57:05 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15762 This reminds me, years ago I thought of a formula for the speed of thought, basically, that the speed of thought was equal to the speed of light divided by the density of the brain in question. As we can see from the Perfesser's density, he is rapidly approaching the big ZERO. This reminds me, years ago I thought of a formula for the speed of thought, basically, that the speed of thought was equal to the speed of light divided by the density of the brain in question. As we can see from the Perfesser’s density, he is rapidly approaching the big ZERO.

]]> By: progdem http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15761 progdem Tue, 09 May 2006 18:54:21 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15761 A reply to #36 I believe. There are material conditionals (the truth conditions of which you stated) and there are counterfactuals. Counterfactuals are what we mostly use in English, and they are what are used in predictions. The standard semantics for them says that they are false iff at the nearest possible world where the antecedent is true the consequent false. You don't actually have to believe in different actual universes for this to work, but it can help in ways. It is odd to use simple propositional logic to come up with weird claims about the state of a prediction, since predictions, and all other counterfactuals were taken for awhile to be proof that the material conditional of propositional logic did not describe the 'if...then' of natural English, and so did not apply to much of any discourse. See David Lewis and Robert Stalnaker for books and articles which are way above my head but set out the semantics for these conditionals. Read correctly, as a counterfactual and not a material conditional, what Reynolds says is false, because the world would have to be very different than it is for his prediction to be borne out. The less like our world some possible world is, the farther away it is, so at the nearest possible world where the antecedent is true, the consequent is almost certainly false. A reply to #36 I believe. There are material conditionals (the truth conditions of which you stated) and there are counterfactuals. Counterfactuals are what we mostly use in English, and they are what are used in predictions. The standard semantics for them says that they are false iff at the nearest possible world where the antecedent is true the consequent false. You don’t actually have to believe in different actual universes for this to work, but it can help in ways. It is odd to use simple propositional logic to come up with weird claims about the state of a prediction, since predictions, and all other counterfactuals were taken for awhile to be proof that the material conditional of propositional logic did not describe the ‘if…then’ of natural English, and so did not apply to much of any discourse. See David Lewis and Robert Stalnaker for books and articles which are way above my head but set out the semantics for these conditionals.

Read correctly, as a counterfactual and not a material conditional, what Reynolds says is false, because the world would have to be very different than it is for his prediction to be borne out. The less like our world some possible world is, the farther away it is, so at the nearest possible world where the antecedent is true, the consequent is almost certainly false.

]]> By: Danalyst http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15760 Danalyst Tue, 09 May 2006 17:53:53 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15760 Is it possible that Cohen has put us inside the blackhole of non-reason? Could we be in a world different from the one we grew up in and not notice? Could the possible ways of being wrong be different now then they were before? Everything changes when you get nearer the singularity... Are we trapped in a world where wrongness cannot be factored out, corrected, or escaped? Oh God! Oh God! We're all going to die in here!!! Seriously though, the rule is that you can't be wrong and right at the same time in the same way. The rule is not that you can't be wrong in many ways all at once. In this particular case, we counted wrong. There is an implied positive assertion that invading = oil flowing. And this assertion is wrong in many ways. It relies on oil extractablity. It relies on our successful invasion. It relies on our sucessful occupation. It relies on the house of Saud not destroying it's oil fields when we invade. It relies on a competent execution of a well thought out strategy. It relies to some extent on luck. So let us revise our assertion to match the facts: Cohen can be wrong in more ways about a single assertion than anyone else in the world. He's like a constant to which everything else is relative. Think speed of light - but, you know, less bright... Is it possible that Cohen has put us inside the blackhole of non-reason?

Could we be in a world different from the one we grew up in and not notice?

Could the possible ways of being wrong be different now then they were before? Everything changes when you get nearer the singularity…

Are we trapped in a world where wrongness cannot be factored out, corrected, or escaped?

Oh God! Oh God! We’re all going to die in here!!!

Seriously though, the rule is that you can’t be wrong and right at the same time in the same way.

The rule is not that you can’t be wrong in many ways all at once.

In this particular case, we counted wrong. There is an implied positive assertion that invading = oil flowing.

And this assertion is wrong in many ways. It relies on oil extractablity. It relies on our successful invasion. It relies on our sucessful occupation. It relies on the house of Saud not destroying it’s oil fields when we invade. It relies on a competent execution of a well thought out strategy. It relies to some extent on luck.

So let us revise our assertion to match the facts: Cohen can be wrong in more ways about a single assertion than anyone else in the world. He’s like a constant to which everything else is relative.

Think speed of light – but, you know, less bright…

]]> By: Phoenix Woman http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15759 Phoenix Woman Tue, 09 May 2006 17:50:03 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15759 I see that the five/four ratio is only 1.25 instead of the 1.44 needed to form a black hole. But could we not invoke the presence of the Instacracker version of "dark matter" -- simply put, the idea that he is wrong simply on general principles, thus making a sixth wrong? I estimate that since Reynolds not only is wrong gazillions of times a day, but is either a) uncaring as to his wrongness or rightness, or b) actively promoting wrongness as rightness, that would suffice to declare him wrong on general principles, in addition to whatever specific wrongness he may be emitting at a given point in time. I see that the five/four ratio is only 1.25 instead of the 1.44 needed to form a black hole. But could we not invoke the presence of the Instacracker version of “dark matter” — simply put, the idea that he is wrong simply on general principles, thus making a sixth wrong?

I estimate that since Reynolds not only is wrong gazillions of times a day, but is either a) uncaring as to his wrongness or rightness, or b) actively promoting wrongness as rightness, that would suffice to declare him wrong on general principles, in addition to whatever specific wrongness he may be emitting at a given point in time.

]]> By: Splasho » How wrong can you get? http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15663 Splasho » How wrong can you get? Tue, 09 May 2006 13:43:07 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15663 [...] This analysis of a right-wing blogger’s claim is entertaining. So in fact, Reynolds has managed to fit five units of wrongness into only four declarative statements! This is the hackular equivalent of crossing the Chandrasekhar Limit, at which point your blog cannot help but collapse in on itself. It is unknown at this point whether the resulting end state will be an intermediate neutron-blog phase, or whether the collapse will proceed all the way to a singularity surrounded by a black hole event horizon. We may have to wait for the neutrino signal to be sure. [...] [...] This analysis of a right-wing blogger’s claim is entertaining. So in fact, Reynolds has managed to fit five units of wrongness into only four declarative statements! This is the hackular equivalent of crossing the Chandrasekhar Limit, at which point your blog cannot help but collapse in on itself. It is unknown at this point whether the resulting end state will be an intermediate neutron-blog phase, or whether the collapse will proceed all the way to a singularity surrounded by a black hole event horizon. We may have to wait for the neutrino signal to be sure. [...]

]]> By: 28thavenue.net » Physics humor http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15665 28thavenue.net » Physics humor Tue, 09 May 2006 04:43:54 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15665 [...] Ok this is funny… Instapundit open-the-spigot related… [...] [...] Ok this is funny… Instapundit open-the-spigot related… [...]

]]> By: Emboldened » Blog Archive » New State of Wrongness http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15666 Emboldened » Blog Archive » New State of Wrongness Tue, 09 May 2006 02:25:29 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15666 [...] Before quoting at length let me do two things. First, thank you Sean from Cosmic Variance for the wonderful post I am about to paste. Second, Paul, please never read my blog lest I, like Instapundit, am caught entering a new state of wrongness. [...] [...] Before quoting at length let me do two things. First, thank you Sean from Cosmic Variance for the wonderful post I am about to paste. Second, Paul, please never read my blog lest I, like Instapundit, am caught entering a new state of wrongness. [...]

]]> By: tofubo http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15667 tofubo Tue, 09 May 2006 00:54:01 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15667 <blockquote>anon on May 5th, 2006 at 8:16 am Wrongness is fermionic? Wouldn't that mean two wrongs make a right?</blockquote> no, but three rights make a left

anon on May 5th, 2006 at 8:16 am
Wrongness is fermionic? Wouldn’t that mean two wrongs make a right?

no, but three rights make a left

]]> By: Will http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15668 Will Mon, 08 May 2006 23:45:46 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15668 Groan. Brings new meaning to the word "pun-ditry" I guess. Groan. Brings new meaning to the word “pun-ditry” I guess.

]]> By: Parker http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15673 Parker Mon, 08 May 2006 23:19:05 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15673 God that is good. Too bad the InstaTesticle's readership are too busy parroting him to see stuff like this. God that is good. Too bad the InstaTesticle’s readership are too busy parroting him to see stuff like this.

]]> By: lambert strether http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15672 lambert strether Mon, 08 May 2006 22:34:37 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15672 The discipline of which this thread is implicitly a part, <a href="http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/Q/quantum-bogodynamics.html" rel="nofollow">quantum bogodynamics</a>, originates in software engineering. As is well known, "[B]ogons [the <a href="http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/B/bogon.html" rel="nofollow">elementary particles of bogosity</a>] also have tremendous inertia, and therefore a bogon beam is deflected only with great difficulty." And, unfortunately, we in the reality based community are serving as a bogon sink, and the VRWC is still in a position to serve as a bogon source. Can the forces of science be brought to bear to reverse our situation, and somehow deflect the bogon beams back onto their creators? The future lies ahead. However, the notion of calculating <em>degrees of wrongness</em> is a brilliant contribution to the field of quantum bogodynamics, similar to the discovery/invention of "charm," "spin", and "strangeness" in the field of quantum dynamics proper. The discipline of which this thread is implicitly a part, quantum bogodynamics, originates in software engineering.

As is well known, “[B]ogons [the elementary particles of bogosity] also have tremendous inertia, and therefore a bogon beam is deflected only with great difficulty.” And, unfortunately, we in the reality based community are serving as a bogon sink, and the VRWC is still in a position to serve as a bogon source.

Can the forces of science be brought to bear to reverse our situation, and somehow deflect the bogon beams back onto their creators?

The future lies ahead. However, the notion of calculating degrees of wrongness is a brilliant contribution to the field of quantum bogodynamics, similar to the discovery/invention of “charm,” “spin”, and “strangeness” in the field of quantum dynamics proper.

]]> By: Janus Daniels http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/comment-page-1/#comment-15671 Janus Daniels Mon, 08 May 2006 21:11:39 +0000 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/cosmicvariance/2006/05/05/the-wrongness-singularity/#comment-15671 Compared to the lie ratios of Republicans in office, Reynolds bombs... heh (pardon the expression). Has everyone forgotten this The Daily Show classic? Republican Representative Joe Barton of Texas: "This bill is based on the premise that we believe in private, free-market capitalism to develop the resources of this land in a cost-efficient manner." Jon Stewart: "Oh my God we have a winner! Congratulations, Rep. Joe Barton, you have achieved a lie-to-word ratio of one-to-one!" Joe Barton - dKosopedia: http://www.dkosopedia.com/wiki/Joe_Barton How soon we forget... Compared to the lie ratios of Republicans in office, Reynolds bombs… heh (pardon the expression).
Has everyone forgotten this The Daily Show classic?
Republican Representative Joe Barton of Texas:
“This bill is based on the premise that we believe in private, free-market capitalism to develop the resources of this land in a cost-efficient manner.”
Jon Stewart:
“Oh my God we have a winner! Congratulations, Rep. Joe Barton, you have achieved a lie-to-word ratio of one-to-one!”
Joe Barton – dKosopedia:
http://www.dkosopedia.com/wiki/Joe_Barton
How soon we forget…

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