06 FEB 2013 by ideonexus
Desiderata
Go placidly amidst the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your...
1 Also known as "Spock Thoughts."
11 APR 2011 by ideonexus
Lovelock Gets the Second Law of Thermodynamics Wrong
Let us again look at the laws of thermodynamics. It is true that at first sight they read like the notice at the gait of Dante's Hell; but in fact, tough as they are and although like income tax they cannot without penalyt be evaded, they can with forethought be avoided. The Second Law states unequivocally that the entropy of an open system must increase. Since we are all open systems, this means that all of us are doomed to die.
1 He gets this backwards. The Second Law only applies to closed systems. We and our planet are not closed systems, we are open systems; therefore, mortality is not required of us. In fact, the second law states that, so long as we can keep exporting entropy by taking in energy from outside sources, we can live forever.
11 APR 2011 by ideonexus
Cybernetics as a Trait of Living Organisms
One of the most characteristic properties of all living organisims, from the smallest to the largest, is their capacity to develop, operate, and maintain systems which set a goal and then strive to achieve it through the cybernetic process of trial and error. The discovery of such a system, operating on a global scale and having as its goal the establishment and maintenance of optimum physical and chemical conditions of life, would surely provide us with convincing evidence of Gaia's existenc... 1 
notes
notesThe feedback look, sensation and response to it, are a crucial characteristic of living beings. We feel that cold is a punishment, prompting us to find warmth, while learning skills involve feedback loops of rewarding.
