Comments for Diverse Thoughts http://rogercostello.wordpress.com Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:16:28 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 Comment on The dangers of florescent light bulbs by James http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2009/07/22/the-dangers-of-florescent-light-bulbs/#comment-1302 James Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:16:28 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/?p=322#comment-1302 Energy efficient light bulbs are the easiest first step consumers and businesses can take towards reducing their energy consumption. Products have gotten light years better in the past few years and, in my eyes, indisputably better for 99% of applications. Both <a href="http://www.superiorlighting.com" rel="nofollow">CFL and LED light bulbs</a> run much cooler than incandescent bulbs, use energy much more efficiently, and do offer saving on your electricity bill. I am a vendor of energy efficient bulbs, so perhaps I am a bit biased, but I don't know why everyone doesn't switch today. Energy efficient light bulbs are the easiest first step consumers and businesses can take towards reducing their energy consumption. Products have gotten light years better in the past few years and, in my eyes, indisputably better for 99% of applications. Both CFL and LED light bulbs run much cooler than incandescent bulbs, use energy much more efficiently, and do offer saving on your electricity bill. I am a vendor of energy efficient bulbs, so perhaps I am a bit biased, but I don’t know why everyone doesn’t switch today.

]]> Comment on Isn’t clapping an odd thing we humans do? by William Hnyla http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2008/03/15/isnt-clapping-an-odd-thing-we-humans-do/#comment-1298 William Hnyla Sat, 12 Sep 2009 06:31:17 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/?p=279#comment-1298 clapping is to kill the bugs buzzing around one's head think about it; even when prehistoric man was gathered around the fire telling stories they wanted to wait till the end of the story to clap. The ancient Greeks with their outdoor theaters had to clap too some cultures stomp their feet; maybe they had crawling bugs clapping is to kill the bugs buzzing around one’s head
think about it; even when prehistoric man was gathered around the fire telling stories they wanted to wait till the end of the story to clap.
The ancient Greeks with their outdoor theaters had to clap too
some cultures stomp their feet; maybe they had crawling bugs

]]> Comment on Why learning longhand writing is important by MisterM http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/why-learning-longhand-writing-is-important/#comment-1296 MisterM Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:54:41 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/why-learning-longhand-writing-is-important/#comment-1296 The original post suggests that longhand writing is important not because it is inherently useful, but because "sophisticated hand manipulations" make you smarter. I'm all for kids being smarter. But lots of activities require hand work. Why not let them do something relevant? The original post suggests that longhand writing is important not because it is inherently useful, but because “sophisticated hand manipulations” make you smarter.

I’m all for kids being smarter. But lots of activities require hand work. Why not let them do something relevant?

]]> Comment on Why learning longhand writing is important by Jen Burke Anderson http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/why-learning-longhand-writing-is-important/#comment-1295 Jen Burke Anderson Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:22:20 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/why-learning-longhand-writing-is-important/#comment-1295 I find it interesting nowadays how people seem to use "political correctness" as a convenient catch-all scapegoat to blame for any particular thing in society they happen not to like. And what the hell does it even mean anymore? Bandying the phrase about is itself a form of politcal correctness, a refusal to truly engage or analyze anything. Let's assume you're using it in the cookie-cutter Fox News sense of a Liberal Elite cadre who overrun everything with their darned intellectual values of reason, critical thinking, and individual growth. OK. I am a liberal. I live in San Francisco. All of my friends are liberals who live in San Francisco or Berkeley. And not a single one of us advocates leaving longhand writing out of a child's education. In fact, this is the kind of thing we talk about constantly. We think it's insane. We advocate having a child's public school education include music, art, creative writing, field trips, and a wide variety of problem-solving skills that will give them the tools they need to develop as individuals. Unfortunately, policy makers do not feel the same way, and no, the policy makers are not us. I think the removal of longhand writing from school curricula has more to do with our automatic tendency (and Bill Gates's haranguing) to see technology as the answer to everything and to cave in to something that's new, bright, flashy, and makes a helluva lot of money for certain people. The other problem is the punitive policy of turning public schools into nothing more than standardized-testing mills, and I believe that policy did NOT come from liberals. I have never met a teacher who did not despise standardized testing. So rather than pointing a finger at a "political correctness" that doesn't really exist, can we instead embrace and demand genuine intellectual values on a mass scale to the point where government and democracy will have no choice but to respond? I find it interesting nowadays how people seem to use “political correctness” as a convenient catch-all scapegoat to blame for any particular thing in society they happen not to like.

And what the hell does it even mean anymore? Bandying the phrase about is itself a form of politcal correctness, a refusal to truly engage or analyze anything.

Let’s assume you’re using it in the cookie-cutter Fox News sense of a Liberal Elite cadre who overrun everything with their darned intellectual values of reason, critical thinking, and individual growth.

OK. I am a liberal. I live in San Francisco. All of my friends are liberals who live in San Francisco or Berkeley.

And not a single one of us advocates leaving longhand writing out of a child’s education. In fact, this is the kind of thing we talk about constantly. We think it’s insane. We advocate having a child’s public school education include music, art, creative writing, field trips, and a wide variety of problem-solving skills that will give them the tools they need to develop as individuals. Unfortunately, policy makers do not feel the same way, and no, the policy makers are not us.

I think the removal of longhand writing from school curricula has more to do with our automatic tendency (and Bill Gates’s haranguing) to see technology as the answer to everything and to cave in to something that’s new, bright, flashy, and makes a helluva lot of money for certain people.

The other problem is the punitive policy of turning public schools into nothing more than standardized-testing mills, and I believe that policy did NOT come from liberals. I have never met a teacher who did not despise standardized testing.

So rather than pointing a finger at a “political correctness” that doesn’t really exist, can we instead embrace and demand genuine intellectual values on a mass scale to the point where government and democracy will have no choice but to respond?

]]> Comment on Characterizing “shallow thinker” versus “deep thinker”? by Vu http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/10/29/characterizing-shallow-thinker-versus-deep-thinker/#comment-1294 Vu Sun, 30 Aug 2009 08:25:58 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/10/29/characterizing-shallow-thinker-versus-deep-thinker/#comment-1294 I think shallow thinker tends to judge more on what they see and understand at the moment and continues right away with that knowledge in persuit of their interests, while deep thinker uses the their knowledge in the moment to analyze possibilty and decide what else he needs to look for in oder to make a more complete decision on what he is to do. I think shallow thinker tends to judge more on what they see and understand at the moment and continues right away with that knowledge in persuit of their interests, while deep thinker uses the their knowledge in the moment to analyze possibilty and decide what else he needs to look for in oder to make a more complete decision on what he is to do.

]]> Comment on Don’t confuse an explanation of causes with an acceptance of results by Roger Costello http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/23/dont-confuse-an-explanation-of-causes-with-an-acceptance-of-results/#comment-1293 Roger Costello Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:00:16 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/23/dont-confuse-an-explanation-of-causes-with-an-acceptance-of-results/#comment-1293 The quote is from p. 17 in the book Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond The quote is from p. 17 in the book Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

]]> Comment on Don’t confuse an explanation of causes with an acceptance of results by shiasan http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/23/dont-confuse-an-explanation-of-causes-with-an-acceptance-of-results/#comment-1292 shiasan Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:13:11 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/23/dont-confuse-an-explanation-of-causes-with-an-acceptance-of-results/#comment-1292 Hi I was wondering whether you could please let me know the source (pg number, publisher and date published) of the above quotes? I would like to use them in my ToK essay, but I will need direct reference, and it would be great if you could help me out here Thanks Hi

I was wondering whether you could please let me know the source (pg number, publisher and date published) of the above quotes?

I would like to use them in my ToK essay, but I will need direct reference, and it would be great if you could help me out here

Thanks

]]> Comment on The whole is equal to the sum of the parts … versus … The whole is greater than the sum of the parts by Bill Waters http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/15/the-whole-is-equal-to-the-sum-of-the-parts-versus-the-whole-is-greater-than-the-sum-of-the-part/#comment-1284 Bill Waters Sat, 25 Jul 2009 20:13:43 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/09/15/the-whole-is-equal-to-the-sum-of-the-parts-versus-the-whole-is-greater-than-the-sum-of-the-part/#comment-1284 Are abstractions equal to the sum of their cognitive counterparts or are abstractions greater than the sum of their cognitive counterparts? Are abstractions equal to the sum of their cognitive counterparts or
are abstractions greater than the sum of their cognitive counterparts?

]]> Comment on Is Time Finite or Infinite? Time Before the Big Bang? by Tj New http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/07/23/is-time-finite-or-infinite-time-before-the-big-bang/#comment-1279 Tj New Sun, 19 Jul 2009 03:13:21 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/07/23/is-time-finite-or-infinite-time-before-the-big-bang/#comment-1279 If you use that aspect, the universe could have been created 5 minutes ago with all of our thoughts,memories,and behaviors already implanted in us... Who's to say that a god theory is closer to the truth than any other theory. (I contend that it is not even close) You are using an argument of adverse consequences which in no changes the facts of an existence of a supernatural being. If there are any positive facts to the existence anything supernatural (in your words god) please inform me. (Taking me to Mount Olympus doesn't count nor does the bible) If you use that aspect, the universe could have been created 5 minutes ago with all of our thoughts,memories,and behaviors already implanted in us… Who’s to say that a god theory is closer to the truth than any other theory. (I contend that it is not even close) You are using an argument of adverse consequences which in no changes the facts of an existence of a supernatural being. If there are any positive facts to the existence anything supernatural (in your words god) please inform me. (Taking me to Mount Olympus doesn’t count nor does the bible)

]]> Comment on An interventionist God, or a hands-off God? by Kevin http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/12/04/an-interventionist-god-or-a-hands-off-god/#comment-1278 Kevin Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:19:23 +0000 http://rogercostello.wordpress.com/2007/12/04/an-interventionist-god-or-a-hands-off-god/#comment-1278 Too bad an MIT professor can't see the flaw in this argument. If God intervenes and "from time to time violates the laws of nature" then it only follows that science's predictions based on those laws will be incorrect "from time to time". That certainly doesn't invalidate science, nor make it invalid to make predictions based upon the laws of nature. It simply means the universe isn't entirely mechanistic. It means that while science is extremely useful, it does have a limitation. *Gasp*. What about that idea that the laws of nature might not be able to predict everything? This seems entirely reasonable even when you just take human free will into consideration. For example, science cannot use the laws of nature to predict whether the cup on my desk will be there tomorrow. My colleague might exercise his free will and take it. Or, I might exercise mine and take it home to wash it. Too bad an MIT professor can’t see the flaw in this argument. If God intervenes and “from time to time violates the laws of nature” then it only follows that science’s predictions based on those laws will be incorrect “from time to time”. That certainly doesn’t invalidate science, nor make it invalid to make predictions based upon the laws of nature. It simply means the universe isn’t entirely mechanistic. It means that while science is extremely useful, it does have a limitation. *Gasp*.

What about that idea that the laws of nature might not be able to predict everything? This seems entirely reasonable even when you just take human free will into consideration. For example, science cannot use the laws of nature to predict whether the cup on my desk will be there tomorrow. My colleague might exercise his free will and take it. Or, I might exercise mine and take it home to wash it.

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