MDDM Ch.75 Cargo Cult Science

[Richard Fiero]

Bandwraith at aol.com wrote:
>. . . I must reference this 1974
>speech by one of my arch-rivals in plato's underworld,
>Rich Feynman, as one of the lingering "overtone"
>harmonics fingered by trp in the cargo hold set piece
>of ch. 75.
  . . .
Yeah, Feynman. That's the guy who at his Army physical exam 
when told to hold out his hands, held them out with one palm up 
and the other palm down. When told to turn them over he did so 
with the result that one was palm up and the other palm down.
Bad stuff happens to guys that even appear to threaten authority.

Earlier on, Paul Mackin wrote:
>Bandwraith at aol.com wrote:
> > . . . the resolution of Zeno's Doxies
> > were accompanied by the feeling that those doing the analyzing
> > were in a position of objectivity, i.e., could pick and choose the
> > values of "X" to be studied, and use the results to control the
> > outcome-  . . .

Exactly. There are also programs modelling social affairs as 
hard sciences in several disciplines by lifting metaphors from 
physics. Is there an identifiable mechanism at work?

>That technological inventions contibute to historical outcomes 
>would never be disputed. However it sounds here almost like 
>you are hinting at more. Sounds like you (or maybe 
>Pynchon)  are suggesting that the mathematical invention of 
>calculus changed thinking processes in some way as to allow an 
>intelligent acceptance of certain outcomes in the social and 
>political realms that without the insight of calculus might 
>not be acceptable or even occur. . .