On Sun, 07 Jun 2009 03:20:48 -0700 Allen Esterson >On 6Jun09 Mike Palij suggested: >>Then again, as good scientists, the most parsimonious position >>would be that Tipsters don't blush because we have no evidence >>that they do. > >I'm not sure if Mike is being serious here,
Maybe... ;-) >but I'd say that the most parsimonious position is that there is >no evidence one way or the other. Let me explain my thinking: in the case of blushing one could argue that because most people blush, it is likely that Tipsters also blush because they should also be like most people (unless, of course, most of the posters here are just Michael Sylvester sock puppets ;-). If blushing exists, then a mechanism has to exist to allow it to occur. Parsimony, I think, would suggest that (a) we establish that "A" actually occurs and (b) only suggest a mechanism for why "A" occurs only if we are convinced that "A" does occur, otherwise disallow the mechanism because it requires us to make additional assumptions about the nature of reality. However, if instead of blushing I were to claim that "A" refers to the ability to read other people's minds (telepathy). Some people may claim that they have this ability while others would say that such an ability is impossible. Parsimony, I think, would suggest that (a) we establish that telepathy actually exists and (b) suggest mechanisms for how telepathy operates only after such evidence is established. So, I have no evidence that Tipsters can blush or have telepathic abililities but is it reasonable for me to assert that they have either ability or, in unique cases, both abilities? Okay, I'll ask: How many Tipsters can read minds? :-) >One kind of situation notorious for provoking blushing occurred in a >recent TV programme on the possible routes out of Africa for homo >sapiens: > http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00klf6j > >The presenter, Dr Alice Roberts, anatomist, paleopathologist, etc, has >wide experience of appearing on TV (in one series suddenly appearing >with hair dyed bright red), so she's hardly the self-conscious type: > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Roberts > >Nevertheless, in last Sunday's programme when shown a very early >example of a sculpted phallus (by a youngish male paleo-archaeologist) >she confessed that though she was an anatomist she found herself >blushing. Once or twice in lectures, during exchanges with students in class, the topic of discussion somehow turned sexual (I think I have succesfsfully repressed what was actually said) and one of the students yelled out something like: "Oh my God! The professor is blushing!" Needless to say, everyone in class laughed except for me. -Mike Palij New York University [email protected] --- To make changes to your subscription contact: Bill Southerly ([email protected])
