Notes from the Wired
This is a website where I write articles on various topics that interest me, carving out a bit of cyberspace for myself.
You shouldn't believe anything I talk about — I use words entirely recreationally.
Most Recent
Aug. 02
In Defense of Idealism
1. Introduction Recently, as part of a research practicum, I attended a lecture on epistemology. However, the lecture was not given by a member of the philosophy faculty but by a computer science professor who happened to be interested in philosophical ideas. During the lecture, he presented various epistemological positions, including naïve realism, empiricism, rationalism, idealism, positivism, and others.
He was also very opinionated about these theories. In particular, he was a strong supporter of verificationism and realism and highly critical of what we might call the more “subjective” approaches, such as idealism or constructivism. He repeatedly made fun of people in the humanities, where these theories are more common, arguing that they are ridiculous, that dialectics has long since been proven wrong, that the Weltgeist is a nonsensical concept, and so on. The overall message was essentially: we in STEM are the enlightened ones who know how much better realism is.
Aug. 01
Philosophical Ramblings #17: The Wings of Rebellion
A constant rebellion is necessary, because as soon as revolutionary elements come to power, corruption begins to set in. The desire to surrender to the most basic impulses is always present. Therefore, a process of continuous self-overcoming must govern every moment: every decision, every action, every breath.
Yet mere self-overcoming is not enough. It is not simply a matter of discipline or restraint, but of a transcendent conquest of oneself and one’s world: a revaluation of morality, societal conventions, and inherited beliefs. Most importantly, it is the mastery of one’s own mind, one’s desires, fears, and aversions, until they become fully subject to conscious will. But not the final conquest of the self, but the refusal to ever stop transforming and changing.
Jul. 29
Endure
Very good book. I really liked how it interweaves various stories about endurance while maintaining the overarching question of how it might be possible to run a sub-two-hour marathon. The author’s own story and the motivation that led him to write this book are also fascinating.
The book is packed with really interesting science, presenting many different theories that all attempt to explain what endurance actually is. It examines the concept from a wide variety of perspectives, ranging from physiology to psychology.
