On Sun, Aug 14, 2022 at 12:04 PM Joel Dietz <[email protected]> wrote:
>> And either there was a reason you chose that action rather than another >> in which case you're a cuckoo clock, or there was no reason you chose that >> action rather than another in which case you're a roulette wheel. Where >> does this thing called "free will" enter the picture? Forget figuring out >> if we have it or not, just tell me what it is supposed to mean. I don't >> think it means anything, I think it's an idea so bad it's not even wrong. >> >> > *> Everything in common usage in the vernacular means something (i.e. it > has semantic utility). I already gave one common and useful definition* > Somehow I missed that, please repeat it. > *and you are welcome to check the OED for more.* > You're never going to find philosophical insight in the OED or any other dictionary because all the definitions in them are ultimately circular, they're all made up of words that have their own definitions that are also made up of words, and round and round we go. >> I can't prove there is not a teapot in orbit around the planet Uranus >> either, but there's no reason to think there is one and there are plenty >> of reasons to suspect there is not. >> > > *> This is exactly the difference between a reasonable assumption and > proof.* > Yep, and in science you can never prove an idea is correct but you can sometimes prove an idea is incorrect. And if it "*is basically unprovable by definition*" so you can't prove or disprove it then it's silly and is an idea so bad it's not even wrong. You only get a proof of truth in pure mathematics, not in science. John K Clark See what's on my new list at Extropolis <https://groups.google.com/g/extropolis> wet -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/everything-list/CAJPayv1s7d5eDX_0FnGgme9DtaT6CtE6zdfZrh%2Bp8-kxaPqDRA%40mail.gmail.com.
