Comments on: Spherical Race Horses and Market Models http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352 Free Radicals Mon, 06 Sep 2010 16:46:03 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc By: LabRat http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3861 LabRat Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:46:44 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3861 SmartDogs: That put a lovely mental picture of him in my head, screaming "REDUCE, GODDAMN YOU!" I'm tempted to find an old photograph of Skinner and turn that into a loltheorist... Kristopher: <i>It's numbers all the way down!</i> SmartDogs: That put a lovely mental picture of him in my head, screaming “REDUCE, GODDAMN YOU!”

I’m tempted to find an old photograph of Skinner and turn that into a loltheorist…

Kristopher: It’s numbers all the way down!

]]> By: bluntobject http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3860 bluntobject Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:31:28 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3860 My field is computer graphics, where "physics envy" is a bit different: much of the field is a series of hacks designed to get around the fact that we can't perfectly simulate the physics of light transport. (Of course, we don't have to shell out billions for supercolliders, either.) My field is computer graphics, where “physics envy” is a bit different: much of the field is a series of hacks designed to get around the fact that we can’t perfectly simulate the physics of light transport. (Of course, we don’t have to shell out billions for supercolliders, either.)

]]> By: SmartDogs http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3859 SmartDogs Fri, 21 Nov 2008 02:10:50 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3859 Yes! That's how Skinner made such a wrong turn in his ideas of the mind as black box and the absence of free will -- physics envy! Yes! That’s how Skinner made such a wrong turn in his ideas of the mind as black box and the absence of free will — physics envy!

]]> By: Kristopher http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3854 Kristopher Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:05:04 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3854 String theory is starting to collapse into Quantum-loop Gravity / 'brane theory ... we finally got it through most of the stringies' heads that all of the competing string theories collapse into Quantum-loop if you simply add one more dimension. BTW ... the very concept of cardinal numbers is simply a deep psychological construct. There is no possible physical proof that mathematics actually exists. But, it still remains a damned useful mind game, so I don't see it getting chucked out any time soon. String theory is starting to collapse into Quantum-loop Gravity / ‘brane theory … we finally got it through most of the stringies’ heads that all of the competing string theories collapse into Quantum-loop if you simply add one more dimension.

BTW … the very concept of cardinal numbers is simply a deep psychological construct. There is no possible physical proof that mathematics actually exists. But, it still remains a damned useful mind game, so I don’t see it getting chucked out any time soon.

]]> By: mdmnm http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3853 mdmnm Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:56:21 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3853 Re: "physics envy"- XKCD covered this a while back- http://www.xkcd.com/435/ Re: “physics envy”- XKCD covered this a while back-
http://www.xkcd.com/435/

]]> By: FabioC. http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3852 FabioC. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:03:29 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3852 A while ago I wrote a post with some points in common, but the models I know better are state equations for gases. There, the spherical horse is the ideal gas equation; good enough in everyday conditions but seriously inadequate when pressure, especially, goes up. The difference is, scientists and engineers doing industrial research are much less sentimental about their models than the dreaded social engineers. A while ago I wrote a post with some points in common, but the models I know better are state equations for gases.

There, the spherical horse is the ideal gas equation; good enough in everyday conditions but seriously inadequate when pressure, especially, goes up.

The difference is, scientists and engineers doing industrial research are much less sentimental about their models than the dreaded social engineers.

]]> By: MarkHB http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3851 MarkHB Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:04:35 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3851 Interesting and though-provoking. The old adage that springs most readily to mind is that there are lies, damn lies and statistics. I'm inclined to think that "Faith in the Model" is an awful lot like a lot of other faiths - a vulnerability to be guarded against, no matter how one may think one's "drawing strength" from it. Interesting and though-provoking. The old adage that springs most readily to mind is that there are lies, damn lies and statistics.

I’m inclined to think that “Faith in the Model” is an awful lot like a lot of other faiths – a vulnerability to be guarded against, no matter how one may think one’s “drawing strength” from it.

]]> By: LabRat http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3849 LabRat Thu, 20 Nov 2008 04:17:05 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3849 No, I was thinking of William Dembski's "No free lunch" theorem. The <i>physicists</i> barely understand String Theory- and even then, only those who've dedicated large chunks of their careers to it- that's why it's not taught in schools. Accordingly, if she thinks SHE gets it, she is in that class of people far too incompetent to know they're incompetent. No, I was thinking of William Dembski’s “No free lunch” theorem.

The physicists barely understand String Theory- and even then, only those who’ve dedicated large chunks of their careers to it- that’s why it’s not taught in schools. Accordingly, if she thinks SHE gets it, she is in that class of people far too incompetent to know they’re incompetent.

]]> By: Angela http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352&cpage=1#comment-3848 Angela Thu, 20 Nov 2008 04:01:53 +0000 http://www.atomicnerds.com/?p=1352#comment-3848 Sort of related question: I have a friend who is born again, and she claims that the reason String Theory isn't taught in schools is because it proves creationism or ID, or something like that. I wouldn't know String Theory if it fell in my lap, so...what do you know about the subject? Is ST the mathematical theorem you refer to above? Sort of related question: I have a friend who is born again, and she claims that the reason String Theory isn’t taught in schools is because it proves creationism or ID, or something like that. I wouldn’t know String Theory if it fell in my lap, so…what do you know about the subject? Is ST the mathematical theorem you refer to above?

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