sounds like a great dog Neil
On Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 5:58 AM, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > Maxwell is a stubby-legged Labrador and a bit of a wimp. He's a > sweetie. > > On Jan 22, 1:40 pm, rigs <[email protected]> wrote: >> My last was a lab-shepherd with high energy till he grew old- age 13. >> Also had a Chesapeake Bay retriever- another large dog that loves >> water. I have a large backyard but he really needed a field- stream- >> woods,etc. This cold is hard on paws- some fit their dogs with >> sweaters and booties.//Yes- it does seem the Brits collapse in snow >> and unusual weather but it's a strange year- even Jerusalem could make >> snowmen this year. Anyway- happy travels today. >> >> On Jan 22, 12:56 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > Max loves the snow - though we rarely drop much below freezing here >> > even with wind-chill. I'm off into Manchester today, assuming out >> > trains run on a quarter of an inch of snow, >> >> > On Jan 22, 1:07 am, Molly <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> > > brrr. We might be there overnight. The deep freeze. Wonderful >> > > world. We move through it regardless. >> >> > > On Jan 21, 10:24 am, rigs <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> > > > My earlier post has been diverted to outer space, it seems. >> >> > > > That loneliness may be a cover, you know. >> >> > > > Saul Bellow was a rascal. >> >> > > > The speed of information leads to surprise and a protean miss, often. >> > > > I look for patterns in history/culture and try to keep two columns- >> > > > pro and con with hope for the margins. The top tiers of government are >> > > > usually the culprits rather than their off-spring- and it's true of >> > > > tribes as well as complicated systems- the buck really does stop- even >> > > > in suitcases of cash and packets of Viagra. >> >> > > > My "dog" would need diapers- we're at -30 wind chill factor. >> >> > > > On Jan 21, 6:10 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> > > > > Of course, I don't expect anything tangled-up with government and >> > > > > academic bureaucracy to produce much practical. The gist was once >> > > > > that we should aim for praxis, a form of rational action. For some >> > > > > the guide was marxism, but most of us grew up with a form of >> > > > > Keynesian >> > > > > guide - the economics of full employment and FDR's never completed >> > > > > second Bill of Rights. More recently we have reverted to the control >> > > > > fraud of banksters and neo-classical economics. I was never much >> > > > > interested in the 'grand theory' - as a cop I was more interested in >> > > > > what people were hiding and lying about, as scientist the grand was >> > > > > excluded as rigorously as possible a the laboratory door and as a >> > > > > university teacher I was more interested in developing resourceful >> > > > > humans than daft, religious managerial theories. As a kid, my elder >> > > > > brother and sister always claimed I changed the goalposts in argument >> > > > > and as I grew up I discovered this was what argument was generally >> > > > > about - the goalposts changing name to root metaphor and paradigm. >> > > > > Experts in argument are bought like lawyers and have about the same >> > > > > ethics. When Socrates gestures at the Sophists claiming 'I know >> > > > > nothing, but even this is to know more than they' he is just being >> > > > > the >> > > > > smartest guy in the room. >> > > > > We say 'jaw-jaw' is better than 'war-war' - but there is no crucial >> > > > > experiment to decide in 'jaw-jaw'. The problem with argument is that >> > > > > it needs arbitration if human beings are involved in it and the seeds >> > > > > of its own destruction are laid in most people having no training in >> > > > > how it is constructed. If you get some training in this you can be >> > > > > bought like a lawyer as a mouthpiece. Machine knowledge bases and >> > > > > reasoning capacity potentially offer a democratisation of argument >> > > > > expertise, manufacturing capability, medicine, finance and much more >> > > > > - >> > > > > evidence-based practice for all. In practice, doing management >> > > > > information systems, one soon learns those currently in the know want >> > > > > to keep things that way. I believe the professions are currently >> > > > > preventing this as surely as those smashing machines in the >> > > > > industrial >> > > > > revolution. I believe this is the central issue of the moment - and >> > > > > my reasons concern the dream I have of the precipice of disgusting >> > > > > war,the dullness of politics, religion and literature. Economic >> > > > > growth is nearly all uninteresting - FlopBook and so on - and rarely >> > > > > about the growth of capital I would value. Would we could dream up >> > > > > something else - and why we cannot when 2% of labour can provide our >> > > > > food. I miss any sense of collective dreaming and find only the >> > > > > loneliness more 'primitive' people I've met would comment on in the >> > > > > first blush of their experience amongst us. >> >> > > > > On Jan 21, 9:18 am, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> > > > > > Those who have contributed to the thread have shown me there isn't >> > > > > > much general awareness of the 'technology'. There are already >> > > > > > intelligent systems like Watson (IBM) doing a fair job on embodied >> > > > > > expert knowledge (medical in this case). The general idea is in >> > > > > > this >> > > > > > from New Scientist: >> >> > > > > > In your wildest dreams, could you imagine a government that builds >> > > > > > its >> > > > > > policies on carefully gathered scientific evidence? One that >> > > > > > publishes >> > > > > > the rationale behind its decisions, complete with data, analysis >> > > > > > and >> > > > > > supporting arguments? Well, dream no longer: that's where the UK is >> > > > > > heading. >> >> > > > > > It has been a long time coming, according to Chris Wormald, >> > > > > > permanent >> > > > > > secretary at the Department for Education. The civil service is not >> > > > > > short of clever people, he points out, and there is no lack of >> > > > > > desire >> > > > > > to use evidence properly. More than 20 years as a serving >> > > > > > politician >> > > > > > has convinced him that they are as keen as anyone to create >> > > > > > effective >> > > > > > policies. "I've never met a minister who didn't want to know what >> > > > > > worked," he says. What has changed now is that informed >> > > > > > policy-making >> > > > > > is at last becoming a practical possibility. >> >> > > > > > That is largely thanks to the abundance of accessible data and the >> > > > > > ease with which new, relevant data can be created. This has >> > > > > > supported >> > > > > > a desire to move away from hunch-based politics. >> >> > > > > > Last week, for instance, Rebecca Endean, chief scientific advisor >> > > > > > and >> > > > > > director of analytical services at the Ministry of Justice, >> > > > > > announced >> > > > > > that the UK government is planning to open up its data for >> > > > > > analysis by >> > > > > > academics, accelerating the potential for use in policy planning. >> >> > > > > > At the same meeting, hosted by innovation-promoting charity NESTA, >> > > > > > Wormald announced a plan to create teaching schools based on the >> > > > > > model >> > > > > > of teaching hospitals. In education, he said, the biggest single >> > > > > > problem is a culture that often relies on anecdotal experience >> > > > > > rather >> > > > > > than systematically reported data from practitioners, as happens in >> > > > > > medicine. "We want to move teacher training and research and >> > > > > > practice >> > > > > > much more onto the health model," Wormald said. >> >> > > > > > Test, learn, adapt >> >> > > > > > In June last year the Cabinet Office published a paper called >> > > > > > "Test, >> > > > > > Learn, Adapt: Developing public policy with randomised controlled >> > > > > > trials". One of its authors, the doctor and campaigning health >> > > > > > journalist Ben Goldacre, has also been working with the Department >> > > > > > of >> > > > > > Education to compile a comparison of education and health research >> > > > > > practices, to be published in the BMJ. >> >> > > > > > In education, the evidence-based revolution has already begun. A >> > > > > > charity called the Education Endowment Foundation is spending £1.4 >> > > > > > million on a randomised controlled trial of reading programmes in >> > > > > > 50 >> > > > > > British schools. >> >> > > > > > There are reservations though. The Ministry of Justice is more >> > > > > > circumspect about the role of such trials. Where it has carried out >> > > > > > randomised controlled trials, they often failed to change policy, >> > > > > > or >> > > > > > even irked politicians with conclusions that were obvious. "It is >> > > > > > not >> > > > > > a panacea," Endean says. >> >> > > > > > Power of prediction >> >> > > > > > The biggest need is perhaps foresight. Ministers often need instant >> > > > > > answers, and sometimes the data are simply not available. Bang goes >> > > > > > any hope of evidence-based policy. >> >> > > > > > "The timescales of policy-making and evidence-gathering don't >> > > > > > match," >> > > > > > says Paul Wiles, a criminologist at the University of Oxford and a >> > > > > > former chief scientific adviser to the Home Office. Wiles believes >> > > > > > that to get round this we need to predict the issues that the >> > > > > > government is likely to face over the next decade. "We can probably >> > > > > > come up with 90 per cent of them now," he says. >> >> > > > > > Crucial to the process will be convincing the public about the >> > > > > > value >> > > > > > and use of data, so that everyone is on-board. This is not going >> > > > > > to be >> > > > > > easy. When the government launched its Administrative Data >> > > > > > Taskforce, >> > > > > > which set out to look at data in all departments and opening it up >> > > > > > so >> > > > > > that it could be used for evidence-based policy, it attracted >> > > > > > minimal >> > > > > > media interest. >> >> > > > > > The taskforce's remit includes finding ways to increase trust in >> > > > > > data >> > > > > > security. Then there is the problem of whether different >> > > > > > departments >> > > > > > are legally allowed to exchange data. There are other practical >> > > > > > issues: many departments format data in incompatible ways. "At the >> > > > > > moment it's incredibly difficult," says Jonathan Breckon, manager >> > > > > > of >> > > > > > the Alliance for Useful Evidence, a collaboration between NESTA and >> > > > > > the Economic and Social Research Council. >> >> > > > > > Hearts, minds and funding >> >> ... >> >> read more » > > -- > > > -- ( ) |_D Allan Life is for moral, ethical and truthful living. Of course I talk to myself, Sometimes I need expert advice.. --
