Quoting Krimel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > [Platt] > Many thanks for this summary. Much better than the Wikipedia article on > carbon for the great unwashed like me. Makes me wonder what the probability > is that such a versatile element exists at all. :-) In any case, I > appreciate your taking the time to answer. Always a quality experience to > learn something new. > > [Krimel] > I suspect the probability is fairly high given that the Periodic table is > rather like a spectrum of possibly configurations of subatomic particles. > The real issue is that given conditions like those we find here, what is the > probability of carbon forming into similarly complex configurations > elsewhere in the universe? Or given radically different condition might not > so other element play a similar role. Silicon is given as a possible > candidate because it occupies a similar position on the periodic table only > with more electrons than carbon. > > It is impossible to say without finding another example just how likely this > is but answering this question is one of the reasons for supporting further > research and space exploration. Even asking the question shows a certain > commitment to looking for likelihood and a desire to sharpen our estimates > of probability. (To find The Way, if you will) It also points to the > marvelous effects of probability and complexity. It is the shear number and > complexity of Static carbon patterns that give it its Dynamic Quality.
[Platt] I think we see Dynamic Quality differently. To me it's a moral force, like other forms of energy, that people respond to. You seem to see it as a capacity for change that some static patterns, not necessarily people, possess. Morality (value) doesn't enter into your view. Is that correct? ------------------------------------------------- This mail sent through IMP: http://horde.org/imp/ Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
