Yes I’ve returned to original theme that I used for this blog. I prefer it because it seems more organized and I feel it is a better reflection of the content presented here.
Or maybe I think it’s cooler for some other, deeply psychological reason. Regardless, it is what it is.
I was thinking about something while riding the subway the other day. It was about judging, or perhaps a better word is “assessing.” The question today is: is it possible to judge a situation or “event” without prior knowledge and experience and have the result be useful, meaningful, relevant, and non-trivial.
As usual I’m going to use an analogy here. Picture yourself in deep space (the sci-fi lover in me comes out) and your floating there minding your own business when a circle appears in front of you. To bring this back to my original point, can you judge/assess the distance of the circle from your point in space? An example, in this case, of what I mean by “useful, meaningful, relevant, and non-trivial.” Since we’re interested in just the distance, an assessment telling us that it is a circle, or that it is blue is useless/meaningless/irrelevant/trivial to the needs and requirements of the judgment of distance.
It would seem to me that the answer to that question is no and the reason why is what really got me thinking. The reason why is because you have no information about the given situation. You do not have the size of the circle therefore some simple Pythagorean math is out, you do not have any form of comparison such as a car or planet with which to compare the circle etc. The point is that you could judge the distance to the circle if you had some prior knowledge, such as its size or something of known size with which to compare it. All of the cases though require some givens without which you cannot EVER find the distance to the circle (as far as I know).
So then, can we as humans judge any situation well or fairly if we have no connection or prior knowledge of it? Can the one who’s never felt love advise his brother on such a thing? Can a philosopher tell an engineer how to do his job? And would a childless, unmarried CEO really know what’s better for “labourers and their families?”
Part of what we do of course is try and find commonalities and similarities between situations, thereby giving us something on which to place our foundations for judgment. We’re all human and we crave security and food and warmth. But how far does that go, and how far can it go before we have to recognize that we’re out of our depth? It would seem that experience is the key to being a good judge. I suppose that’s the central idea of the concept of wisdom. A wise person is not one who necessarily knows everything but one who has experienced much and can offer valuable insights.
Rules and regulations attempt to be some sort of judge but they always seem to fall woefully short. Mind you, this could all be wrong, there may be a simple way to judge without the need for prior information and if you know what it is, I would love to hear it.
After missing yet another Saturday, I’ve decided I’m going to put Tom’s Opinion on a different schedule. Not that anyone is particularly bothered by this but I feel an odd sense of duty when I say that I’m going to post weekly. So now I’m saying that I’m going to post irregularly and without any schedule.
There, now I feel better 
.
The reasons:
My travel blog and thesis are just taking up too much of my time. I’ve always tried to keep this platform a place for my mental masturbation (not a journal of daily events). As it is now, I simply haven’t had much time to think. Hence the schedule change.
Cheers.
I’ve left this place post-less and unattended for too long and I apologize. All I can say is that I’ve been busy. Alas, the wheels of thought have resumed turning and I have once again ideas to write about.
Let me tell you something about myself. I’m very interested in the concept of efficiency. I’m probably mildly obsessed with it in fact. The desire to make things “better.” What’s the 3M (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company) moto? “We don’t make things, we make things better” or something like that. Sounds like an ideal place for me. The point is I love efficient things. However, I don’t think I’m the only one.
It seems to me that it’s a trait all of humanity has even if individual persons do not. What’s my evidence?
Let’s start with biology. An aspect of our existence we have no control over. Nature favours efficiency. You don’t have inefficient designs. When our species stopped brachiating our shoulders and upper bodies changed because it was a hindrance on the ground. The giraffe and it’s neck, the turtle and it’s shell, a duck’s webbed feet, etc. etc. The point is that nature seeks the most efficient design for the required function, not the most inefficient.
Let’s move to something more tangible; human societies. It seems that people always want to make things more efficient. Clay pots were always made to be more comfortable, sleeker, smoother, tougher. The tools to make those clay pots were also increasingly made to be more efficient. The tools and weapons in general of all primitive societies were made to be more efficient. Sharper edges so cutting could be faster and… yeah, more efficient. Stronger hafts so they wouldn’t break as often so that they didn’t have to be made as often because making the same tool over and over is… yeah, inefficient.
Consider how modern companies function. What’s the driving force? Profit right. Well what increases profit? Seems to me like the answer would be efficiency.
Cars on the road are made more fuel-what? Efficient.
The human obsession with “more” of everything and anything is always fed by an increase in efficiency. The question is whether the obsession is a desire for “more” or simply a preoccupation, known or unknown, conscious or unconscious with efficiency.
Sorry I haven’t posted in awhile folks. Moving to Norway has really taken much of my time and energy. However, I have managed to start a travel blog.
Check it out.