Saturday, June 21, 2014

June 2014 seminars at UC Berkeley

Foundations of Mind
UC Berkeley
3105 Tolman June 27 2pm

2:00 pm Terry Deacon (UC Berkeley):


How information lost its meaning (and how to recover it).

Professor Terrence W. Deacon

Abstract:
   The technical concept of information developed after Shannon (1948)
and those who have followed has fueled advances in many fields, from
fundamental physics to bioinfomatics, but its quantitative precision
and its breadth of application have come at a cost. It has undermined
its usefulness in fields distinguished by the need to explain function
and reference, such as evolutionary biology, cognitive neuroscience,
and the social sciences. And it may even be relevant to interpretive
problems arising in quantum physics.
   The current technical version of the concept has been so successful
in part because it is consistent with a tacit metaphysical principle
assumed ubiquitously in the contemporary physical sciences: that any
and all mentalistic properties should be excluded from playing
explanatory roles. But in order to provide the foundation for a
scientific theory of information that is sufficiently precise and
formal to serve fields as diverse as molecular biology and cognitive
neuroscience it is necessary to expand and slightly reformulate the
technical concept of information in a way that accounts for these
attributes that are not intrinsic to the conveying medium.
   The key to formulating a more adequate concept of information that
includes these most distinctive properties is to be found, ironically,
in more carefully attending to the physicality of information media. A
hint that this is important is captured in two distinctively different
uses of the concept of entropy (informational and thermodynamic). I
will demonstrate how referential information is based upon the
constraints generated by physical work introduced by thermodynamic
openness of an information medium and its susceptibility to contextual
modification. Physical work is also the relevant measure when it comes
to assessing the usefulness of information. In general, I argue that
it is the amount of work “saved” as a result of access to information
that determines its significance or usefulness.
   In this way the previously set aside properties of reference and
significance can be re-incorporated into a rigorous analysis of
information suitable for use in both the physical (e.g. quantum
theory, cosmology, computation theory) and semiotic sciences (e.g.
biology, cognitive science, economics).

3:30 pm Len Talmy (State University of New York at Buffalo):
Aspects of language differ in their accessibility to consciousness
Dr. Talmy will discuss the observable phenomenon that different aspects or components of language have different degrees of availability in consciousness. For example, we are generally more conscious of the meaning of a lexical form than of a grammatical form, of the use of a word than of the conditions of its use, of the meaning of a word or discourse than of the form, and of asserted content than of implied content. The general principle seems to be that consciousness is more associated with that portion or granularity of linguistic phenomena that is more relevant to current goals and concerns. The same pattern of differential consciousness seems to hold for other cognitive systems, such as visual perception and motor control.




Friday, June 20, 2014, 2:00 p.m., Beach Room, 3105 Tolman Hall

Jacob Needleman (San Francisco State University):

The metaphysics of consciousness A discussion of the primordial idea of man as microcosm: What is the relationship between the actual and potential levels of human consciousness and the vision of levels of consciousness and being in the universal world? What are the implications of this question concerning the idea of “state-specific” knowledge and the implied epistemological limitations of modern science vis-à-vis the fundamental questions of human life and understanding? The relationship between outer and inner knowledge of the mind will be explored.
Michael Ranney (UC Berkeley):
Boosting climate change wisdom, and maybe ethics, in a quasi-polarized era: www.HowGlobalWarmingWorks.org (now in Mandarin!) and empirical findings Prior work showed massive ignorance about global warming’s basic mechanism, yet a 400-word explanation (a) hugely improves readers’ understandings and (b) increases climate change concern and acceptance (Ranney et al., 2012; Clark, Ranney, & Felipe, 2013) — disconfirming “stasis theory,” which suggested futility in increasing public climate wisdom. Dr. Ranney now reports (1) replications/extensions of (a) and (b), (2) a study showing that seven apt statistics increase one’s global warming acceptance (Clark, 2013), and (3) the recently introduced www.HowGlobalWarmingWorks.org — a now-popular website including five short videos (0.9 to 4.7 min.). For Mandarin, see here. Dr. Ranney also analyzes public and non-public comments about the website/videos. Results will be situated with respect to various historical, societal, and perhaps even ethical dimensions.

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Prondzynski's reputation and extreme hacking

I have little doubt that a web search on fvp will reveal accolade after accolade , - so, aware of what it is to enter that darkness,  I have never done one.

In my recent communication with the Taoiseach, which featured the allegation that fvp attempted to bribe me in 2003 to drop my case, I had to do some research. For example, Ferdie decided to GO INTO LEINSTER HOUSE, WHERE THE IRISH PARLIAMENT SITS,  to offer the bribe. A mistake; there now is a record that in early 2003, he went to see John Gormley, who had not yet become one of the more corrupt ministers in Irish history

Ferdie's offer was this; if I walked away, he would pay my full salary until I got a new job. I refused, as I also refused the two years' salary offered via siptu by DCU's notorious conry. I should note that I have had no dealings with Gormley since 2006, when he again disappointed conventional decency and morality.

But that is not the focus here. When I attempted to look for the Irish supreme court case, the following reference emerged;

Cahill -v- DCU, [2009] IESC 80 (2009)


I googled it, without quotes; no results

Yet

Cahill -v- DCU, [2009] 80 (2009)

* 25 June 2014 - please note that quoting it  "Cahill -v- DCU, [2009] IESC 80 (2009)" and you get resullts including this blog*

gives results, indicating  the IESC, is what throws it off........means Irish supreme court. I am aware that "-" has a meaning of exclusion, but that is not the problem here This is lmost impossible to do by accident  and indicates that some extreme hacking has been done, perhaps to hide von Prondzynski's history as they prepare him to try the same trick in Scotland ie privatizing a state university with summary dismissal

 I have a PhD in computer science and have never seen this before. Remarkably, throw it into vlex, the legal database, and the same happens

http://ie.vlex.com/sources/3256/search?filters_order=source&textolibre=Cahill+-v-+DCU%2C+[2009]+IESC+80+%282009%29&translated_textolibre=



The document with the Supreme court verdict can be found by circuitous means . All costs  - at least 2 million- were awarded to Cahill, who was reinstated.

It is my view that much brilliant work in Ireland was stopped by an international cabal of scumbags who worked with the collusion of filthy free state bureaucrats. It has been the misfortune of me and mine to be subjected to this.

Please check out my "Ireland in crisis" book for further details