Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
A Twist In A Solution To Newcomb’s Paradox
Let's take a break from the insanity and wade into cool waters to start the weekend. I'll take it that you've watched this video, which purports to give a solution…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
A Failed Argument Against Free Will: Predicting Actions
It is always hilarious when people rail against free will, who are especially flummoxed that Common Man believes in free will, and say "If only people realized their choices weren't…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
Judea Pearl Is Wrong On AI Identifying Causality, But Right That AI Is Nothing But Curve Fitting
Yep I've disagreed with Judea Pearl before on causality, and I do so again below; but first some areas of agreement. Some deep agreement at that. Pearl has a new…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
The New Religion Of Dataism (Another Version Of Man-As-God)
Dataism is the word coined by Yuval Noah Harari in his essay for an optimistic, practical implementation of Scientism. Just as divine authority was legitimised by religious mythologies, and human…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
Tipler’s Tipsy Parallel Universes of Quantum Mechanics
We're back on our Edge series of concepts scientists wished more people knew about. Today's entry is Frank Tipler's Parallel Universes of Quantum Mechanics. Tipler: In 1957, a Princeton physics…
Posted inCulture Fun Philosophy Statistics
A Coincidence: Coyne Zinged Me Before I Him — Or, The Coyne Fallacy Redux
After posting yesterday's article, Jerry Coyne Doesn't Have Free Will (poor fellow), I immediately saw hits coming to my place from Coyne's. It turned out that, unbeknownst to me, the…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
The I-Have-Big-Muscles Fallacy
Harvard graduate walks down the street where a 50-lb sack of cement blocks his way. He reaches down to shift it but discovers that despite all his might the bulk…
Posted inPhilosophy Statistics
Free Will The Result Of ‘Background Noise’?
Once again the lack of metaphysical training has led some scientists to say an incredibly silly thing. That free will "could be the result of 'background noise' in the brain."…
