GR's Chipco Stomp Preview

[grip at netcom.com]

On Fri, 7 Feb 1997 andrew at cee.hw.ac.uk wrote:

> Well, having struck that Kabbalistic note, I will mention that
> yesterday I was recalling Gloaming's application of Zipf's work on
> frequencies and the MMPI test as employed on Slothrop. Notice how
> these tests have been made `objective', qua content-free, looking as
> they do at simple order, grouping clustering and correlation
> properties of chosen words and phrases rather than at their well known
> and perfectly-clear-thank-you-very-much meanings. All in the interests
> of objectivity and certainty, of course, on the spurious grounds that
> since we can only ascertain precisely what something means 99% of the
> time a true science of nature cannot depend on questions of
> meaning. 

Ah yes, the old MMPI. God what an awful test to take. When I joined the 
Peace Corp some years ago, I had to take it during training at San 
Francisco State College. A week or so later I was transferred to UCLA 
where they were starting a battery of tests and told to take it 
again. I protested. "Just have them mail down the one I just 
did.", I said with little hope. "No way.", he said with a gleam 
in his eye. "It'll be interesting to correlate the two." "Correlate 
schmorelate.", I thought to myself. I took the answer sheet and 
with number 2 pencil quickly and randomly filled it out. 

He looked at me with raised, questioning eyebrows as I turned it in after 10 
minutes. "Evelyn Woods", was all I said as I walked away.

grip