Author: Denyse O’Leary | Page 33

stately Bengal Male Cat with beautiful spots Standing and Looking up on Isolated Black Background, Front view, Gorgerous breed

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 28, 2022

Categorized
Natural Intelligence

Tagged
Carly Cassella, Cats}

Researchers: Cats Do Recognize and Respond To Our Voices

_{If you are a cat’s human friend, he cares when you talk to him. Whether he will, or even can, do what you want is a separate question} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 28, 2022

8

Natural Intelligence}

Do cats care whether we talk to them or not? In a recent study, animal cognition experts found that cats may change their behavior when their “humans” are talking in a tone directed to them. But they don’t react the same way to a stranger who is talking that way or when the voice is directed elsewhere. Charlotte de Mouzon and colleagues from Université Paris Nanterre (Nanterre, France) investigated the way 16 cats reacted to “pre-recorded voices from both their owner and that of a stranger when saying phrases in cat-directed and human adult-directed tones.” With adult-directed tones, no “endearing” kitty talk is used. It might not be clear who the intended recipient of the message is, apart from what Read More ›

Excalibur in graduation hat on stone at sunset day. Congratulate the graduates or education congratulation or academic freedom concept. 3D illustration

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 27, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Peer Review, Politics, Science

Tagged
Academic freedom, Academic Freedom Conference (Stanford 2022), Colleen Flaherty, Eric Hedin}

Stanford’s Academic Freedom Conference Slammed by Academics

_{Opponents are angered by the fact that, although the conference will be live-streamed, it is by invitation only and no media are allowed} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 27, 2022

6

Censorship, Peer Review, Politics, Science}

Stanford Business School’s academic freedom conference, starting next week and headlined by tech entrepreneur Peter Thiel, is coming under fire. The organizers argue, Faculty organizers of the conference, from Stanford and several other institutions, promote it as follows: “Academic freedom, open inquiry, and freedom of speech are under threat as they have not been for decades. Visibly, academics are ‘canceled,’ fired, or subject to lengthy disciplinary proceedings in response to academic writing or public engagement. Less visibly, funding agencies, university bureaucracies, hiring procedures, promotion committees, professional organizations, and journals censor some kinds of research or demand adherence to political causes. Many parts of universities have become politicized or have turned into ideological monocultures, excluding people, ideas, or kinds of work Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 25, 2022

Categorized
Medicine and Health, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Placebo effect, Placebo effect (how it works), Ted Kaptchuk}

Placebo: The Power of the Human Mind Confounds Medical Research

_{Angelman syndrome, which creates a variety of developmental problems, has proven a challenge for researchers on that account} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 25, 2022

6

Medicine and Health, Philosophy of Mind}

We don’t often hear about researchers crying but when researchers at Ovid Therapeutics heard the test results for their drug, gaboxadol, they couldn’t help it. They were testing the sleep-inducing drug to help with the symptoms of Angelman Syndrome, a rare neurogenetic disorder that appears in infancy. It results in a variety of developmental problems such as walking and balance disorders, inability to speak or sleep properly, gastrointestinal issues, and seizures. It affects people in different ways and to different degrees. Notably, those who cope with Angelman smile and laugh a lot and have a normal lifespan. The OVID team had high hopes for gaboxadol in August of this year because even improving the quality of sleep would help sufferers Read More ›

press and media camera ,video photographer on duty in public new

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 20, 2022

Categorized
Media, Politics, Psychology, Relationships

Tagged
Dominick Mastrangelo, Gallup poll on trust in media, Media (trust in media), Trust (in media)}

Polls: Trust in Mainstream U.S. Media Still in Free Fall

_{Both the New York Times poll and Gallup poll illustrated that this week} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 20, 2022

4

Media, Politics, Psychology, Relationships}

A Canadian commentator has noticed a little-publicized fact about last week’s New York Times–Siena College poll of 792 registered voters. While the poll focused on the US mid-term elections next month, the information about how typical voters view mainstream media was most revealing. A majority not only don’t trust media but see them as a threat to democracy: A New York Times-Siena College poll published Tuesday found 59 percent of voters view the media as a “major threat to democracy,” while 25 percent said the press is a “minor threat” and only 15 percent said it poses no threat. The divide fell sharply along partisan lines, with 87 percent of voters who supported former President Trump in 2020 indicating they Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 16, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy, Physics, Science

Tagged
Ethan Siegel, Information as immaterial}

Why It’s Difficult for Science to Answer Some Basic Questions

_{Are we reaching the edge of the things science can tell us?} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 16, 2022

7

Philosophy, Physics, Science}

Science answers many questions but some questions test us because they are difficult by nature. They take us to the margins. Let’s look at some — why they test us: At Big Think, theoretical astrophysicist Ethan Siegel discusses five puzzles of fundamental physics, solving any one of which “could unlock our understanding of the universe.” They are, how did the universe begin, what explains neutrino mass, why is our universe matter-dominated, what is dark matter, and what is dark energy?: About our universe as matter-dominated: More matter than antimatter permeates the Universe. However, known physics cannot explain the observed matter-antimatter asymmetry. The Big Bang produces matter, antimatter, and radiation, with slightly more matter being created at some point, leading to Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 7, 2022

Categorized
Natural Intelligence}

The Remarkable Deceitfulness of Birds — But Is It Really Deceit?

_{The birds themselves are not agents making a moral choice to deceive; they are carrying out a behavior pattern they have inherited} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 7, 2022

4

Natural Intelligence}

When Clinton Francis, a specialist in bird behavior, challenged student Wren Thompson to find out how many types of birds use deceit in their defences against predators of their nests, he hardly expected to find that the number she was able to discover was 285: Mapping those behaviors onto the avian phylogenetic tree revealed that the trait spans from some of the most basal bird families, including pheasants and ducks, to more recently evolved taxa such as songbirds. “It’s pretty amazing,” Francis says, adding that he was surprised how “particular clades on the avian tree of life really just light up,” including blackbirds, warblers, and sparrows. The frequent and disjointed appearance of the behavior across the tree suggests it evolved Read More ›

Galapagos Giant Tortoise head shot smiling walking slowly on Galapagos Islands. Animals, nature and wildlife close up of tortoise in the highlands of Galapagos, Ecuador, South America.

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 6, 2022

Categorized
Natural Intelligence, Neuroscience}

How Can the Two-Headed Tortoise Have Different Personalities?

_{Many would be surprised to learn that either head had any personality, and yet…} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 6, 2022

4

Natural Intelligence, Neuroscience}

Recently, a “two-headed” tortoise at the Geneva Museum of Natural History reached the remarkable age of 25, thanks to constant care by his handlers: Janus also has two hearts, two pairs of lungs, and two distinct personalities. Sometimes the heads wish to go in different directions. “The right head is more curious, more awake, it has a much stronger personality,” Angelica Bourgoin, who leads the turtle’s care team, said. “The left head is more passive and loves to eat.” News, “Two-headed tortoise Janus celebrates 25th birthday” at DW (September 3, 2022) So how could the tortoise heads have two different “personalities?” Janus — despite the single name given — seems to be a set of conjoined tortoise twins. (Here’s a Read More ›

Woman reading online news on digital tablet

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
October 3, 2022

Categorized
Business and Finance, Media}

E-Books: What’s To Know About a New Way To Read

_{The electronic books might appeal to people with more interests than space to store stuff} _{Denyse O'Leary
October 3, 2022

3

Business and Finance, Media}

E-books, books you can read on your computer, are becoming an ever-bigger presence in the market. MarketWatch currently wants nearly US$6000 to tell your company the market share forecast. They now make up 21% of book sales. Clearly, e-books would appeal to people who have more interests and ideas than they have space to store stuff. According to MarketWatch, the market is growing by roughly 20% a year. One source describes it like this: The global eBook market is being driven by technological advancements and the sophistication of reading devices that provide an experience similar to reading a physical book. The increased use of smartphones and the multilingual capabilities are predicted to boost global demand for eBooks. “eBook Market Overview Read More ›

Expressive black man with microphone. Stand-up comedian on night background. Comedy show on local television. Old funny story.

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 30, 2022

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Politics, Social Media

Tagged
Babylon Bee (satire site)}

Is Dilbert part of a much bigger Cancel?

_{Humor consists largely in identifying the difference between our aspirations and our achievements} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 30, 2022

3

Arts & Culture, Politics, Social Media}

People who love workplace comedy might be surprised to learn that Dilbert has been Canceled by many U.S. newspapers, whose editor are morally outraged Comedy is one of the great casualties of wokeness. Comedians now have to navigate an ever expanding list of taboo subjects and forbidden targets. Superstar comedians like Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais stand accused of ‘punching down’ for mocking woke absurdities. Beloved characters in The Simpsons and even the knowingly offensive Family Guy have been altered following the charge of ‘cultural appropriation’. Meanwhile, many TV sketch shows and satirical programmes seem to have given up on telling jokes entirely, swapping humour for sermonising and ‘clapter’ comedy. So, is comedy doomed? Or is there hope outside of Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 28, 2022

Categorized
Censorship, Social Media

Tagged
Canada and Big Tech, Convoy 2022}

Big Tech Censors Worldwide — Yet It Isn’t a Government

_{Censorship has gone private and is thus much harder to detect and address} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 28, 2022

5

Censorship, Social Media}

Do we even know what Big Tech censors or why? Sometimes its choices matters as in the COVID-19 controversies: One warm weekend in October of 2020, three impeccably credentialed epidemiologists—Jayanta Bhattacharya, Sunetra Gupta, and Martin Kulldorff, of Stanford, Oxford, and Harvard Universities respectively—gathered with a few journalists, writers, and economists at an estate in the Berkshires where the American Institute for Economic Research had brought together critics of lockdowns and other COVID-related government restrictions. On Sunday morning shortly before the guests departed, the scientists encapsulated their views—that lockdowns do more harm than good, and that resources should be devoted to protecting the vulnerable rather than shutting society down—in a joint communique dubbed the “Great Barrington Declaration,” after the town in Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 25, 2022

Categorized
Panpsychism, Science

Tagged
Antonio Damasio, Avery Hurt, Christof Koch, Cosmopsychism (and fine-tuning), Galen Strawson, Giulio Tononi, James Shapiro, Olivia Goldhill, Philip Goff, Robert Wright, Sabine Hossenfelder on panpsychism}

Can Panpsychism Save Naturalism From Itself?

_{Panpsychism can be seen as an effort to save naturalism by acknowledging the reality of the mind while insisting that the mind is wholly natural} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 25, 2022

6

Panpsychism, Science}

This article is an excerpt of one that originally appeared in Salvo 61 (Summer 2022), under the title “Everything is Conscious? Panpsychism goes mainstream.” Panpsychism — the view that all of the universe participates in consciousness, which is most fully developed in humans — has been gaining popularity in science in recent years. Does that sound unbelievable? Is not science committed wholly to materialism and nothing but materialism? Will consciousness not soon be “explained” by an accidental glitch in brain wiring that natural selection retained? Science doesn’t seem nearly as committed to that view just now. A 2018 article at Quartz by Olivia Goldhill was titled “The idea that everything from spoons to stones is conscious is gaining academic credibility.” Read More ›

Once more unto the breach / 3D illustration of science fiction scene with robot general holding battle hammer rallying his android troops under a stormy dark sky

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 24, 2022

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Censorship, Surveillance

Tagged
Michael K. Cohen}

Oh, Not This Again: “AI Will Rise Up and Destroy Mankind”

_{The advances of AI raise a number of issues, yes. But the intelligences behind these advances are not artificial at all} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 24, 2022

4

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Censorship, Surveillance}

A new paper from researchers at Oxford University and Google’s Deepmind prophesies that “the threat of AI is greater than previously believed. It’s so great, in fact, that artificial intelligence is likely to one day rise up and annihilate humankind … Cohen says the conditions the researchers identified show that the possibility of a threatening conclusion is stronger than in any previous publication.” (MSN, September 15, 2022) How? Why? The research paper predicted life on Earth turning into a zero-sum game between humans and the super-advanced machinery. Michael K. Cohen, a co-author of the study, spoke about their paper during an interview. In a world with infinite resources, I would be extremely uncertain about what would happen. In a world Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 21, 2022

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
__has-video, Featured, Jay Richards, John Lennox, Nick Bostrom, Robert J. Marks, Selmer Bringsjord, Sophia the Robot, video}

Science Uprising 10: Asking the Impolite Questions About AI

_{Specifically about the big AI Takeover. Let's get past the TED talks} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 21, 2022

6

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

In Episode 10 of Science Uprising (September 21, 2022 10:35 min), we get a look at why — despite ultra-fashionable TED Talk-style doomsday claims — computers are not taking over. The short film starts with Sophia the Robot, that some hope will play a big role in health care for seniors: “Hello, world.” (0:13) “What emotion do you feel being awake in life?” “Curious.” Great. (Yikes…!) The film then cuts to the Oxford Future of Humanity Institute’s Nick Bostrom who announces to an enthralled gathering, “Machine intelligence is the last invention that humanity will ever need to make. Machines will then be better at inventing than we are now, as superintelligence with such technological maturity would be extremely powerful and Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 18, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy, Physics, Theism

Tagged
Laszlo Bencze, Quentin Persifor Smith}

Why Philosopher Quentin Smith Saw Belief in God as Unscientific

_{Reader Laszlo Bencze looks at his list of reasons for thinking so and offers some thoughtful comments} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 18, 2022

5

Philosophy, Physics, Theism}

In the first part of the discussion between Robert Lawrence Kuhn and Western Michigan University philosopher Quentin Persifor Smith (1952–2020) at Closer to Truth, “What Does a Fine-Tuned Universe Mean?” (Aug 31, 2022), Dr. Smith asserted that — while physicists may write about the fine-tuning of our universe in books aimed at the public — they do not discuss it in peer reviewed journals. Jonathan Bartlett supplied a number of references to such discussions in journals. In this second part of the discussion, Kuhn gave the floor to Dr. Smith to explain why he thought that belief in God is unscientific. A partial transcript follows, with some notes and comments interspersed: Quentin Persifor Smith: (7:20) But I think the real Read More ›

Portrait of paparazzi in a row with cameras and microphone

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 16, 2022

Categorized
Media

Tagged
Mainstream media decline, Pierre Poilievre}

Tales From Why Mainstream Media Don’t Matter Like They Used To

_{Two incidents highlight their declining ability to just plain report. That’s BECOME the news story in many situations} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 16, 2022

5

Media}

Recently, I wrote about the way mainstream media (MSM), facing a steep and steady decline in profitability, public interest, and public trust, have reached the point where politicians can ignore them with impunity. The politicians haven’t changed; rather, the voters have. MSM probably don’t play nearly as big a role in how voters (and consumers) make up their minds today as do social media — after all, social media is where the advertising dollars have gone, and it’s probably no accident… No longer needed for basic information, MSM now mainly advertise the views of a social elite to the public. A longtime newsman recently mourned the loss of objectivity, but the transition to upscale soapbox has made that loss inevitable Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 8, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind, Physics, Science

Tagged
God (nature of God), Julian Baggini, Origin of life hypotheses, qualia, Robert Lawrence Kuhn}

Philosophy: Can Red Have “Redness” If No Self Perceives It?

_{As Closer to Truth’s Robert Kuhn interviews philosopher Julian Baggini, they now tackle the question of “qualia” — part of the nature of conscious experiences} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 8, 2022

9

Philosophy of Mind, Physics, Science}

Yesterday, we looked at philosopher Julian Baggini’s argument that the unified self is an illusion. He spoke about this in the context of a discussion with Closer to Truth’s Robert Lawrence Kuhn. Kuhn, nearly midway through, steers the conversation toward qualia, that is, the inner experience we have of things. Red, an often-used example, is a color in the spectrum but it is also, for many, an experience. Serious and influential books have been written (2005 and 2017) about the history of the color and the experiences it evokes. Questions are interspersed between exchanges in the transcribed dialogue: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: (3:23) Let’s distinguish two factors that are flying around here. One is the concept of self — what it Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 7, 2022

Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Julian Baggini, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Self as concept}

Another Philosopher Argues That the Unified Self Is an Illusion

_{At Closer to Truth, Lawrence Kuhn interviews Julian Baggini, who claims, in terms reminiscent of Thomas Metzinger, that a unified self is an illusion} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 7, 2022

7

Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind}

University of Kent philosopher Julian Baggini, author of The Great Guide: What David Hume can teach us about being human and living well (2021), was interviewed recently by Robert Lawrence Kuhn at Closer to Truth (September 1, 2022). In the interview, Dr. Baggini asserted that, while consciousness is not an illusion, a unified self that persists through time is: Here is a partial transcript, interspersed with questions that arise from the discussion: Robert Lawrence Kuhn: Julian, my own internal feeling of awareness my consciousness seems like the most obvious fundamental thing in the world. You tell me it’s an illusion Why? Julian Baggini: (0:11) To be honest, consciousness isn’t an illusion. I mean clearly there’s awareness of the world. I Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 5, 2022

Categorized
Panpsychism, Religion, Spirituality

Tagged
Apophatic theology, Philip Goff}

Can Religion Without Belief “Make Perfect Sense”?

_{Philosopher Philip Goff, a prominent voice in panpsychism, also defends the idea of finding meaning in a religion we don’t really believe} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 5, 2022

5

Panpsychism, Religion, Spirituality}

Durham University philosopher Philip Goff, co-editor of Is Consciousness Everywhere? Essays on Panpsychism (November 1, 2022), has an interesting take on religion. While it’s common to assume that religious people are “believers,” he thinks that people can meaningfully be part of a religion without actually believing in it: But there is more to a religion than a cold set of doctrines. Religions involve spiritual practices, traditions that bind a community together across space and time, and rituals that mark the seasons and the big moments of life: birth, coming of age, marriage, death. This is not to deny that there are specific metaphysical views associated with each religion, nor that there is a place for assessing how plausible those views Read More ›

Man atheist throws all religions in the trash

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 4, 2022

Categorized
Philosophy, Religion, Spirituality

Tagged
Atheism, New Atheism, Scott Alexander}

Analysis: Can “Communitarian Atheism” Really Work?

_{Ex-Muslim journalist Zeeshan Aleem, fearing that we are caught between theocracy and social breakdown, sees it as a possible answer} _{Denyse O'Leary
September 4, 2022

6

Philosophy, Religion, Spirituality}

Zeeshan Aleem, an American journalist raised as a Muslim — but now an atheist — views his country as caught between “the twin crises of creeping theocracy and the death of conventional religion.” He seeks a new kind of atheism — communitarian atheism — as part of a solution: A rapidly increasing share of Americans are detaching from religious communities that provide purpose and forums for moral contemplation, and not necessarily finding anything in their stead. They’re dropping out of church and survey data suggests they’re disproportionately like to be checked out from civic life. Their trajectory tracks with a broader decades-long trend of secular life defined by plunging social trust, faith in institutions, and participation in civil society. My Read More ›

^{Type
post

Denyse O'Leary
Date
August 31, 2022

Categorized
Media

Tagged
News aggregators, search engines}

Longtime Newsman Mourns the Loss of Objectivity in Media

_{Peter Menzies notes that news media today are “overflowing with agenda-driven employees intent on publicizing their own opinions”} _{Denyse O'Leary
August 31, 2022

4

Media}

Reporter and editor Peter Menzies reflects on mainstream news media journalists’ revolt against objectivity in recent years. It’s not a pretty picture: News organizations overflowing with agenda-driven employees intent on publicizing their own opinions while suppressing or ejecting anyone guilty, in [Bari] Weiss’s words, of “Wrongthink,” have proliferated across North America. The Washington Post, for example, has had to battle its own reporters over their social media activism. Staff at National Public Radio, the U.S.’s federally funded, not-for-profit network, demanded and last year received the right to participate in demonstrations and voice political opinions in public. Peter Menzies, “Objectivity: What Journalists Hate but the Public Still Craves” at C2C Journal (August 31, 2022) Menzies, a Canadian, cites similar examples from Canada, where the overall situation Read More ›