Participating in Social Media Surrenders One's Attention

The first thing I noticed was that I suddenly lacked an outlet for the compulsion not to write.1 It wasn’t news to me that I used social media for procrastination purposes, but without it, I found myself lacking an easy source for distractions. It dawned on me that I’d mostly stopped visiting websites directly and instead had been following the recommendations in my feeds to wherever they might lead me. My reading was no longer deliberate but curated by external forces that may or may no...

 Earthseed 11-20

11. The Paradox Why is the universe?To shape God. Why is God?To shape the universe. ∞ = Δ 12. A Tree A treeCannot growIn its parentsʼ shadows. ∞ = Δ 13. The Destiny of Earthseed Destiny of EarthseedIs to take root among the stars. ∞ = Δ 14. Consequences To get along with God,Consider the consequences of your behavior. ∞ = Δ 15. Power Struggles All strugglesAre essentiallypower struggles.Who will rule,Who will lead,Who will define,refine,confine,design,Who will dominate.All strug...

 Astrology as a False Science

"Excuse me," she said hesitantly, "but what effect do these minor planets have on our behavior and fortunes? I mean, you know, astrological influence?" He looked at her. "None." "None at all?" "No." "But if the planets affect our fortunes—" She stumbled to a stop at the dispassionately scornful look on the pale man's face, the slow way he shook his head. "Surely you'll agree that the planets order and control our destinies?" "They do not." "Not at all?" "No." "Then what does? Contro...

 Science Manipulates Language to Make it More Precise

Let us consider two spheres moving in different di- rections on a smooth table. So as to have a definite picture, we may assume the two directions perpendicu- lar to each other. Since there are no external forces acting, the motions are perfectly uniform. Suppose, further, that the speeds are equal, that is, both cover the same distance in the same interval of time. But is it correct to say that the two spheres have the same velocity? The answer can be yes or no ! If the speedo- mete...

 How Intuition Messed Up the Laws of Motion

A most fundamental problem, for thousands of years wholly obscured by its complications, is that of motion. All those motions we observe in nature that of a stone thrown into the air, a ship sailing the sea, a cart pushed along the street are in reality very intricate. To understand these phenomena it is wise to begin with the simplest possible cases, and proceed gradually to the more complicated ones. Consider a body at rest, where there is no motion at all. To change the position o...