by Philip Yaffe
It is often said that specifies the true Opera science fiction from space horse's ability to investigate its main question of ethics, philosophy and sociology in situations so remote from modern life is viewed with greater clarity and less emotion. Recently I was reminded of this when I accidentally read a short story by Isaac Asimov.
Anyone who knows anything about science fiction, and science itself will almost certainly be familiar with this name. Author or editor of over 500 books, Asimov (1920-1992) was a professor of biochemistry at Boston University. He met science fiction generally considered one of the fathers of modern. He is also the ideal Bestselling author of works on popular science, mathematics, religion, Shakespeare, and a variety of other topics. The name of the short story is simply "common sense." This tells the intellectual debate between two astronaut crew of a space station solar energy channeled back to a crowded world and one of their robot workers. They formed part of the robot from the ground about a week previously sent. This is an advanced robot in comparison to other work stations. To his surprise, Cutie (Qt-1) the intellectual capacity of its own existence and its people speculate "master." Based on pure reason, he added that he was probably not his masterpiece. The following discourse between the two astronaut Cutie and is abbreviated for the purposes of this article, but nothing of importance is omitted. Cutie : "I have in the last two days in concentrated introspection, and the results are most interesting I started it safe to assume that I allowed I feel .. even exist, because I think, and the question that immediately arose was: ". Powell "Just what is the purpose of my existence ... '? / Strong> You fool I told you that we have made and if you do not believe us, we will be happy to take next " Cutie: " I do not accept any one theory on the basis of power must be secure, or this other nonsense - and it goes against all the dictates of logic to believe that you made me "Look you, I say this in no spirit of contempt, but look at the material that you have made soft and flabby, lacking endurance and strength, depending on the energy inefficient oxidation of organic material -! I do! (He shows no approval finger on the unfinished sandwich Donavon.) Please periodically in a coma and the least variation in temperature, which affects pressure, humidity, or intensity of Your radiation efficiency. "I, on the other hand, am a finished product. Directly I get the electrical energy and use it with almost one hundred percent efficiency. I. heavy metal I are constantly aware of and can stand extremes. These facts shatter the apparent motions can be no superior to another to create your own, without your silly notion. "
You may have noticed two important philosophical doctrine.
• René Descartes' famous. I think, therefore I am (cogito ergo sum) • No being can consider one another to create for itself a major creationist arguments against evolution. debate will go on. Cutie extended its logic to decide that space, stars and planets over the station does not actually exist. He invents his own religion. Committed to keep everyone at the station, the device collects the sun's energy is in perfect condition, it should be master and his prophet Cutie. Donavan and Powell just created earlier master, now replaced by robots, so the command can not be ignored frustrate all attempts of two astronaut dissuade Cutie something. I did not show the end of the story, because Asimov typical fashion, not what you'd expect. The most important thing here is not who won or lost, or if either is done, but the process of reasoning. The same consideration process is actually correct, because it is exactly the same. But how to apply it differs in two major ways: first Enforces them "weasel words." These are the words that seem to say something important, but the actual inspection to be less or no. Cutie thinks himself and the other robot "superior" to the astronaut, for the reasons enumerated above. Donavan Powell and of course do not agree that just having the body of metal instead of flesh and blood, such as energy consumption and digestion of food, not necessary to sleep, etc.., Make sure to think about the robot . The word "superior" therefore means that something else may Cutie astronaut. 2nd Both Cutie and the astronaut postulated decline because they have no other choice. Can not know everything about everything in the universe, we must all some conclusions. To the scientific mind, assuming that it is always subject to change based on new information. Among the non-scientific mind, belief is the foundation of the universe, either not tested or blind clinging to the test when they can wrong. press Cutie is fully convinced that Donovan and Powell never made it, because the idea is not logically follow from his postulates. Furthermore, he is not ready to test his theory. If Powell to prove that he rejects her, saying he refrained He just ideas. There Asimov story with great influence. Just plug "Isaac Asimov" + base into a search engine and you will find almost infinite reference here. The same theme is masterfully by HG Wells many years ago (1904) explored in his classic short story "The Country of the Blind." named while on vacation in Ecuador, Highlander Nunez slips and falls on the other side of the mountain into a valley cut off from the outside world by steep precipices. Several years earlier, a strange disease struck the Villagers living there, so blind all newborns. Innocent, the whole population became blind. If Nunez realize he was the only sighted person in the valley, he remembered saying, "In the land of the blind the one-eyed man is king." He believed, therefore, to teach him and manages people. But it did not quite happen. Over the generations, adapted Villagers life without sight. With no concept of sight, they do not understand Nunez attempts to explain it to them. Instead, he believes as delusional. When the Villagers (stunted earlier generations have their own eyeballs) the roughness of his eyeballs to discover them to be a brain tumor, what is his illusion. You want to cut them, for him to normalcy. back The moral of the two stories, and much more are they mean that these assumptions are dangerous and should be eradicated? Not at all. We could not live without these assumptions. For example, we can not move, if we assume, if we take a step, the ground will not support our weight when we can. Legs fall straight through Although this assumption is crawling with years of experience, but all fours as a baby, we have these and other assumptions, without thinking about it What is the story that any assumption that the possibility of a being that contains defective. We should always be ready to deal with the stigma, if it is revealed to us, rather than irrationally dismiss it just because it has been noticed before. Even the greatest minds sometimes fall into the irrational case. For example, asked Albert Einstein, one of the greatest minds of the 20th or any other century, the age-old, common-sense assumption that time is fixed, ie, a second, a minute, an hour is same for you as it was for me. But it is not. For ordinary purposes, we can assume that time is fixed. However, challenges this assumption led Einstein to develop the theory of relativity and to unlock the amazing potential of nuclear energy. Although he is the flexibility of mind to challenge and refute this most basic of these assumptions, the end of his life (1879-1955) Einstein to challenge some other basic assumptions then put accept the emerging science of quantum physics. He simply refused to believe that the universe can operate, the quantum physics said so. However, he was wrong. Quantum physics is now well established and the conclusions, however exotic, for the most part been proven experimentally. Oh, we are all human. For better or worse, we all want people frustration, hang some beliefs despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. In this regard, we have much in common Albert Einstein. A former writer with The Wall Street Journal and international marketing of Biographical Info Philip Yaffe communications market. Now semi-retired, he teaches courses in persuasive communication in Brussels, Belgium. Due to its clients English as a second or third language is his approach to writing and public space somewhat different from other communication coaches. He is the author of The Gettysburg Approach to Writing & Speaking Like a Pro . Contact:. Phil.yaffe phil.yaffe @ yahoo.com, @ gmail.com
A former writer with The Wall Street Journal and international marketing communication works
Philip Yaffe
. Now semi-retired, he teaches courses in persuasive communication in Brussels, Belgium. Due to its clients English as a second or third language is his approach to writing and public space somewhat different from other communication coaches. He is the author of The Gettysburg Process Writing and Speaking like a pro. Contact:. Phil.yaffe @ yahoo.com
. Now semi-retired, he teaches courses in persuasive communication in Brussels, Belgium. Due to its clients English as a second or third language is his approach to writing and public space somewhat different from other communication coaches. He is the author of The Gettysburg Process Writing and Speaking like a pro. Contact:. Phil.yaffe @ yahoo.com
