References
Sometimes we like to steal intellectual credibility from the professionals. Here’s the who, what, and where. No one knows the why.
Asimov, Isaac (1920-1992)
The Three Laws of Robotics
Topics: Robotics, robot ethics
The three laws of robotics are designed to promote positive interactions between humans and robots. They apply primarily to sentient robots (which do not yet exist, in case you were wondering), but have some modern applications. The basic laws are:
1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.
Throughout Asimov’s prolific writing career, a number of different iterations of the laws appeared in his works. Critics suggest that the laws are too simplistic, and cannot account for the depth of social and moral interaction that will occur with robots when they attain artificial intelligence (AI).
Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Laws_of_Robotics
Habermas, Jürgen (1929-present)
Struggles For Recognition
Topics: multiculturalism, procedural liberalism
This paper is Habermas’ response to Charles Taylor’s Multiculturalism. He basically spends most of his time pointing out why Taylor is wrong. He agrees with Taylor’s claim that identity is dialogical (formed both by an individual or group and those with whom they are in a discourse). However, where Taylor thinks that procedural liberalism alienates group rights, Habermas thinks that Taylor is misinterpreting liberalism. Habermas also thinks that the idea of indefinite cultural survival is just silly, and ignores how cultures actually develop and evolve.
Link: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=99833165
Kant, Immanuel (1724-1804)
Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals
Topics: ethics, deontology, morality, metaphysics
Kant’s main point is this, and I quote:
“I ought never to act except in such a way that I could also will that my maxim should become a universal law.”
He then spends quite a bit of time tediously justifying this by exploring why people tend not to do this, why they should do this (creating a utopia he terms the ‘kingdom of ends’), and how the goodness of an action lies in its intention rather than its consequences. For Kant, morality is something that is not based in the empirical worldof experience, but is derived from the use of reason.
Link: http://www.earlymoderntexts.com/pdf/kantgw.pdf
Plato (~424-347 B.C.E.)
The Republic: Book VIII: Allegory of the Cave
Topics: Metaphysics, education, truth
Plato’s Socrates introduces us to the cave, a phenomenal world of the senses. In the cave, humans are shackled their entire lives and watch flickering and shadows projected onto the wall by guards moving back and forth in front of a fire behind them. The people in the cave believe what they are watching is, in fact, reality.
One prisoner is released from her shackles and forcefully dragged up and out of the cave. The newly unchained individual goes past the fire, and realizes the falsity of her previous ‘reality’ only to be pulled up and out into the sunlit world above ground. At first, the light of the sun is so bright that she can only look at it reflected in a nearby pond but slowly, as her eyes adjust, she is able to gaze directly at the sun and see it for what it is. Overjoyed with her discovery, the freed prisoner returns to the cave to tell those still chained of what she has seen and encourage them to share her experience. She is promptly and violently killed.
Philosophers tend to interpret this story as it relates to Plato’s Theory of the Forms: the cave is the realm of sensible experience while Reality is found above ground in the realm of the Forms.
Link: http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/platoscave.html
Rorty, Richard (1931-2007)
Human Rights, Rationality, and Sentimentality
Topics: multiculturalism, cultural relativism, sentimental manipulation
It’s short, and interesting, so I’m not bothering with a summary for you.
Link: http://www.usm.maine.edu/~bcj/issues/three/rorty.html
Ryle, Gilbert (1900-1976)
The Concept of Mind
Topics: logic, mind-body problem
Ryle takes issue with Cartesian dualism as evident in the mind-body problem, and coins the term ‘category mistake’. He also coined ‘the ghost in the machine’. He then engages in some rather engaging philosophical psychology (or psychological philosophy?).
Link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/7003453/Gilbert-Ryle-The-Concept-of-Mind
-
Recent Comments
Okay – very interesting – I knew the Asimov stuff but Plato I know little about. This is an interesting vehicle for a person to express themselves and gets me more interested in thinking about the utility of blogs. Blogs seem to me to be the opposite of the scientific literature – often speculative, illusional, perhaps fictional, may or may not contain actual facts, may not be produced by some one with the appropriate training, skills or expertise to be an authority on a particular topic(s) etc. etc.
So are blogs like a newspaper or a magazine article or another form of media expression? Some people in the media also uses blogs to support their other forms of media expressions.
While I am not really sure of the utility of blogs I suspect that to some people they are a way to get wide spread recognition that they have something to say to the world – even if what they have to say is of little interest to anyone but themselves.
On the other hand some bloggers seem to get famous and develop a mass following and are considered to be providing useful commentary on some segment of society.
Given the fact that there are probably millions of people out their blogging I assume the majority of people blog away with little impact on society until they get bored and get on with something useful. It would be nice to see a scientific study of why people blog and what type of positive influences blogging has on society. I presume blogs have some redeeming qualities.
So your job is to find that study(s) and email them to me!
I blog because i can’t afford to dink around university anymore, but i miss the writing.
Blogs may not be the best source of good information, i admit i fact check very little myself. . . . ..What bloggers are best at is poking holes in fake truths made up by more mainstream sources.
Bloggers are most often ranting lunatics, less educated Glen Becks. (which does not say much for us) That said, there are educated Bloggers, pedantic bloggers, insane bloggers, saintly bloggers, blogging Cat ladies, conspiracy bloggers (too many of them) and rambling bloggers. People blog on anything from Philosophy to BDSM and some times both at the same time. People get judgmental of bloggers and angry when someone blogs against a sacred cow of theirs. Blogging is for the intelligent and the stupid. Blogging is a conversation often between like minds and just as often between the mindless. What is it really. It’s a fun way to waste time and learn something from literary interaction.
One of the reasons I blog is to cast figurative fishing lines out to other people I would never be able to make contact with otherwise except via the world wide web.
Some “catches” are splendid. Others not so much. But–one never knows what will be at the other end of the cyber line until you reel it in.
Hola!.
PS–I, Robot–oh yeah, that made me subscribe to your blog.