AI and cognitive psychology rant (getting more and more OT - tell me if I should shut up)

[Robin Becker]

In article <3f8lpvsddmeltg69vkl2uu8u8cei7bb2cg at 4ax.com>, Stephen Horne
<steve at ninereeds.fsnet.co.uk> writes
>As I already mentioned, if a primitive person observes a car and
>theorises that there is a demon under the hood, that does not become
>true. Reality does not care about anyones perceptions as it is not
>dependent on them in any way - perceptions are functionally dependent
>on reality, and our perceptions are designed to form a useful model of
>reality.
We observe electrons and make up mathematical theories etc etc, but in
reality little demons are driving them around. :)

Your assertion that there is an objective reality requires proof as
well. Probably it cannot be proved, but must be made an axiom. The
scientific method requires falsifiability.

The fact is we cannot perceive well enough to determine reality. The
physicists say that observation alters the result so if Heisenberg is
right there is no absolute reality. Perhaps by wishing hard I can get my
batteries to last longer 1 time in 10^67.

Awareness certainly mucks things up in socio-economic systems which are
also real in some sense. I hear people putting forward the view that
time is a construct of our minds; does time flow?

This is a bit too meta-physical, but then much of modern physics is like
that. Since much of physics is done by counting events we are in the
position of the man who having jumped out of the top floor observes that
all's well after falling past the third floor as falling past floors
10,9,... etc didn't hurt. We cannot exclude exceptional events.
-- 
Robin Becker