Merry Christmas!
It Wouldn’t Be Christmas Without Krampus!
December 24, 2009 by karisullivanDo We Need to Believe in Free Will in Order to Behave Ethically?
December 20, 2009 by karisullivan
It’s fascinating that belief systems from Christianity to Objectivism are so centered around the idea of free will. A recent study suggests that strong general support for free will is at least somewhat cross cultural. I can’t think of a group of people (besides philosophers / psychologists / scientists) who don’t believe in free will.
I’ve wondered for some time if there is an evolutionary basis for the concept of free will. As we learn more about how our genes, childhoods, and social surroundings effect us, it’s amazing we take free will seriously at all.
Is there something about believing in free will that makes you more moral? A couple new studies seem to suggest that hearing anti-free will quotes makes people behave less ethically. In fact, if you are read an anti-free will statement, you’re more likely to spice up a bland food lover’s food with more hot sauce than you otherwise would. Ouch!
The only critique I have with these studies is that they only presented hard determinism as an alternative to free will, not compatibilism. In fact, compatibilism seemed to be confused with free will at times. I bet that hearing about hard determinism is a lot more likely to make people act unethically than simply hearing anti-free will statements. I would like to see a study contrasting the effects of learning about hard determinism with the effects of learning about compatibilism.
Will Men Leave Women for Robots?
December 16, 2009 by karisullivan
Will robots destroy all of humanity? I’m not sure, but there’s a case to be made that they’ll kill us off by permanently altering romantic relationships.
Check out these latest realistic robots being sold in Japan. While they may not technically be “sex bots,” they make me think that sex bots are going to arrive soon. Just the marketing alone for these robots (“You are attracted by her girlish gestures”) has to convince you. It seems inevitable that these robots will make human women romantically obsolete, at least in heterosexual relationships.
I believe that most men will completely or partially change over to new robot girlfriends. It all boils down to evolutionary psychology. Considering it’s pretty hard to keep some guys away from a skanky waitress at Perkins or a high school babysitter, do you think these sexy robots stand any chance? Don’t be fooled by appearances - these robots are not as innocent as they look! (Though it is pretty revealing that they look about fifteen years old.)
I can only imagine that these robot girlfriends will be programmed to entice every type of man around. They’ll do their job, and they’ll do it well. And I’m guessing many men will have a harem of these wide-eyed schoolgirls. Think about all the men addicted to their iPhones or Xbox 360s. Now imagine a super hot, super young looking group of women who never complain, never age, never get fat, and do whatever men want. Plus, they will likely have the personality of an iPhone. What man can resist that?
Modern women will just probably give up. We’ve got better things to do than botoxing, dieting, and waxing ourselves to death in order to stay in a perpetual state of looking almost high school aged. Maybe we’ll read Twilight instead. Maybe we’ll all go to medical school. Maybe we’ll opt to have relationships with other women. Maybe we’ll tear each other’s hair out competing for the few men who don’t prefer robots. No matter what, I have a feeling we’ll be having a lot less kids, unless these kids happen be sired by our robot boyfriends.
Are Ethicists More Unethical?
December 13, 2009 by karisullivan
I recently ran across a study that pretty convincingly showed that ethicists steal more books. I don’t know if I was really all that surprised to read this. Is it hilarious? Yes. Is it completely shocking? Not really.
Personal ethics are quite complex and likely to be very situational. I assume that our ethics change from moment to moment and from place to place. Even if you are a very ethical (or very unethical) person, there are many factors influencing your ethical choices. It stands to reason that simply studying ethics could change ethical behavior.
I could see a few scenarios that could lead to ethicists stealing more books than ordinary philosophers. It’s possible that ethicists feel like they are doing important work – work so important that they don’t need to be bothered with returning a library book. Psychologists call this phenomenon “moral credentialing.”
It’s also possible that studying ethics makes ethics seem more academic and less personally relevant. I find that the more studying I do in psychology, the less concerned I am with my own personal psychology. And if I do notice my own psychological reactions, I tend to view them through a more analytical lens. Maybe ethicists view their own ethical choices from a more analytical perspective. If so, that probably removes some of the guilt associated with committing unethical acts.
A final thought I had was that unethical people may be drawn toward studying ethics. It’s folk wisdom that people with psychological problems (either personally or in their family) are drawn toward psychology. Although I don’t know of any studies that back this up, it seems anecdotally true. It is plausible that something similar happens in the field of ethics. I can imagine people who were confused about their own ethical choices studying ethics. In this case, it’s unclear whether studying ethics is influencing ethicists in either a positive or negative way. It’s possible that studying ethics has absolutely no effect on ethical behavior and that all differences between ethicists and non-ethicists are due to self-selection.
I don’t know how to study the ethical choices of ethicists before and after they study ethics, but it would be interesting to do research in that area. It does seem like ethicists are more unethical than non-ethicist philosophers, at least when it comes to theft of library books. However, correlation is not causation, and it can’t yet be determined that studying ethics results in unethical behavior. Either way, the library book study doesn’t look good for the field of ethics. Either people drawn to ethics are already unethical, or studying the subject makes them unethical. Or both. Ouch.
Culture of Honor or Culture of Low Status?
December 12, 2009 by karisullivan
After living in Texas for just a few weeks, I quickly realized that the culture here is remarkably different from anything I’m used to. I was especially surprised to find this out, considering I grew up in Colorado, another non-coastal western state. What makes Colorado and Texas so different from one another?
Almost everyone is Texas is exceedingly polite and friendly. While this seems like it could only be a good thing, I have noticed that if I’m a bit short or sarcastic, it’s not well received. People seem to take any vague comment the wrong way. Furthermore, anytime I point out someone is wrong (like “My order didn’t have cheese” wrong not “You’re wrong about politics” wrong), it is never taken well.
I feel like I can’t read people in Texas well at all, and I also feel like they can’t read me. There is a huge communication gap, and I’m assuming it’s completely cultural.
After being baffled by Texans for over a year, I came across a study that changed my life: Culture of Honor. The study demonstrates that Southerners (Texans are included) get extremely defensive, hostile, and even violent when they suspect their honor is being challenged. All sorts of behaviors arise from this phenomenon, including the aforementioned over-the-top politeness and hostility when challenged.
As I read through the Culture of Honor book, I couldn’t help but nod my head and even exclaim out loud a lot of the time. The findings and observations rang so true to me. In my experience, many Texans are every bit as defensive, honor focused, and paranoid as this study makes them sound. Clearly there are exceptions, but I find that those people that are the exception have spent extended time outside of the South.
Some people have argued that the whole Culture of Honor theory is just a proxy for the Culture of Low Status. Obviously anyone who claims this did not read the original study, which was done with University of Michigan students, coming from high income (90-100K) families. If upper class students with a world view broad enough to go to Ann Arbor have Culture of Honor issues, it’s no wonder I’m encountering them in Austin as well. Despite its wealth and liberal attitudes, Austin still is in Texas!
Back in Boston
September 20, 2009 by karisullivan
We took a two year break from Boston trips, and I think it did us some good. I love Boston, and it felt great to be back. In some ways, I really felt reconnected to the city, and it was almost like falling in love with it all over again. Without any obligations for once, we were free to do anything we wanted, and as a result, I think we had our best trip ever.
Boston seems to be changing, and I’d say for the better. It’s a lot more modern than it used to be, and I think it seems less conservative / provincial. For example, I am noticing a lot more openly gay couples than before. Oh and so many dogs! I love seeing dogs everywhere, especially places where they’re not supposed to be like the T.
I also didn’t really feel much of a recessionary vibe in Boston and Cambridge, which makes sense. I think that this recession is still very zip code based, so while the affluent parts of Boston may be hit, they sure don’t feel like someplace like Portland, OR. Cambridge feels even more removed from the rest of the country than it used to. The average IQ there has to be a standard deviation away from the average IQ in some parts of Texas. Pretty amazing.
My only small complaint about Boston is that it’s in the middle of this huge Red Sox bubble. I lived in Boston in 1997, and I can say without a doubt that a lot of the fandom is very fair-weather based. Not the biggest deal, but a lot of bridge and tunnel types seem to flood the city on game days – and there’s a bit of a Disney / Vegas frenzy that I rather avoid.
Overall, I feel like this trip definitely sparked a bit of a change in how I feel about Austin. While there are some things I love (like Tex-mex and funky Austinites), I really miss the more serious, intellectual atmosphere of the Northeast. I miss good Chinese food and people wearing suits. I even miss the winter, and that’s really saying something!
Needless to say, I hope I’m back in Boston soon!
Three Rules I Should Always Remember
September 16, 2009 by karisullivan
1) The only way to make myself a better writer is to read more. This is the only way. There is no other way.
2) I am destined to embrace the things I mock. I love you Phish!
3) Going outside makes me happy. It’s doesn’t matter if it’s 0F or 100F, but it really helps if it’s about 70F.
Handmade Nation – The Good, The Bad, and The Very Ugly
September 6, 2009 by karisullivan
I was really hopeful about Handmade Nation. I love indie documentaries, and I’ve dabbled in kntting, sewing, batiking, and many other crafts since I was a kid. Unfortunately, this was the worst documentary I can remember seeing.
The good: The artists featured were very talented and inspiring. This movie did make me want to make more stuff.
The bad: The narrative was non-existent. The film quality was horrendous at times. The editing was really uninspired. I felt like all of the artists featured seemed really boring and even downright insipid. It’s a director’s job to draw people out, find their story, and do what it takes to make them seem interesting. Handmade Nation severely failed at this.
The ugly: Handmade Nation was so smug, self-congratulatory, and ideological that it made me sick. I really don’t need another heavy handed lesson on the evils of Wal-mart. And it’s extremely hypocritical too. People with Etsy stores can be just as capitalistic as anyone else. Have you ever seen the Twitter spam coming from some of these people? And while the crafting movement may want to preach about how green it is, then why is it mostly selling us cutesy stuff we don’t need?
Why can’t crafting be about working with your hands, being creative, exercising self sufficiency, and enjoying the fruits of your labor? To me, making it a political statement really is just defiling something I love.
Closing the Twitter Floodgates
August 6, 2009 by karisullivan
I love Twitter, but I’m pretty careful about who I follow. The sheer amount of stuff being pumped out to me through Twitter is extremely noisy and overwhelming. I’m sure plenty of people are nice enough as friends in real life, but I’ve learned that the most benign person can go on an unexpected, unprovoked tweeting rampage. And I ain’t got the time to read that crap. I don’t even have the time to ignore it whenever I see it!
I guess I could acquire a fancy Twitter client for filtering purposes, but I already use multiple computers and a cell phone to access Twitter. Syncing my filters on multiple devices for Twitter sounds like an exponential time suck. So, instead I propose that Twitter make some changes:
1) For the love of God, all that is holy, and all that is unholy… PLEASE LET ME TURN OFF DIRECT MESSAGES!
Oh sorry, was that annoying? Well it’s not as annoying as how much I get DM bombed on our @blogthings account. I know I could just unfollow these people, but the volume is too heavy to even manage it that way.
I also could be one of those businesses that just doesn’t follow anyone, but then people think you’re a dick.
I love direct messages on my personal account, and I simply do not follow anyone who I wouldn’t want to get messages from. I would follow more people if I could block direct messages from them. I just don’t want to give strangers that kind of access to me right away.
2) I would like to be able to delete individual tweets.
Sometimes the things people say annoy me. No big deal… I’m sure that I’m equally annoying.
Wouldn’t it be great if I could just delete a certain tweet from my view and move on? Since I can’t, I usually end up unfollowing people out of sheer irritation just because they’re tweeting a little too much about what happened on American Idol.
3) Let me filter out certain keywords.
Like deleting individual tweets, but much better, because I don’t want to hear anyone talk about Iran ever again. Seriously. You fuckers on Twitter burned me out on that shit. I don’t care if Ahmadinejad is currently sitting on your lap in a tutu. Just zip it.
4) I would like to be able to hide people’s updates when I feel like it, Facebook style.
My interest in certain people (especially those I haven’t actually spent time with offline) waxes and wanes. It’s just a fact of life.
When it comes to unfollowing a blog, I can just unsubscribe. No big deal, no one notices.
If I unfollow someone on Twitter, it occasionally becomes this huge drama. People sometimes say things like “It hurts to be unfollowed.” People feel snubbed, and that’s awkward, especially in a small city like Austin.
I would like to stop reading someone’s tweets in peace, especially if the decision is likely to be temporary.
I would love to follow hundreds of people on Twitter, but I feel like anytime I start following more than a few people, someone starts spamming my stream with stuff I really don’t want to see. If I could filter what I’m getting, I would be fine. Since I can’t really filter, I have to be highly selective about who I follow. I don’t like holding people to a near perfect standard, but it’s the only thing I can do to save my sanity!
The Land of 10,000 Julia Childs
August 2, 2009 by karisullivanMichael Pollan on the Food Network… and I couldn’t agree more:
We learn things watching these cooking competitions, but they’re not things about how to cook. There are no recipes to follow; the contests fly by much too fast for viewers to take in any practical tips; and the kind of cooking practiced in prime time is far more spectacular than anything you would ever try at home. No, for anyone hoping to pick up a few dinnertime tips, the implicit message of today’s prime-time cooking shows is, Don’t try this at home. If you really want to eat this way, go to a restaurant.
For the most part, cooking shows on television are not for cooks. So much is compressed into a thirty minute show that even seasoned cooks like myself can’t get much out of them. And even if you could learn from cooking shows on the Food Network, would you want to at this point? More and more, I see hosts using cake mixes and store bought hummus in their creations. That’s not cooking, and even if it is, I don’t need a tv show to teach me how to do that.
Even if cooking shows are for entertainment only, they still are sending viewers some pretty bad messages. These shows also play into a sick sort of “guru worship” that pervades our culture these days. It’s more about picking the right guru than the right cooking philosophy or ingredients.
It doesn’t matter whether you should saute or steam your vegetables. What matters is if you’re more of a Rachael Ray type or a Paula Deen type. Viewers are encouraged to identify with hosts and hopefully buy their overpriced muffin mixed. Unsurprisingly, the audience is rarely encouraged to truly experiment and learn in the kitchen. Your guru is there to do if for you instead.
But are things as hopeless as Pollan suggests in his article? Are cooking shows a toxic element of our food culture? Not if you turn off your television and go online. There are so many amazing amateurs doing internet cooking shows these days. They’re unlike what you see on the Food Network. Online cooking videos are instructional, interesting, and accessible. You’ve got very diverse culintary points of view, low start up cost, unlimited time, no editing, and no commercials. No wonder there is a cooking video for almost every taste, subject, and personal style. To be honest, it’s a huge oversight on Pollan’s part not to notice or mention YouTube chefs.
Even an average cooking show on YouTube is likely to be better than an average Food Network segment. If someone takes the time to make and edit a cooking video themselves, you better believe that they’re passionate… or at least entertaining and quirky. And while every video may not be a winner, there’s so many of them to choose from that it really doesn’t matter. If you do a video search for almost any dish, you’ll find a mediocre to amazing video showing you how to prepare it. And better yet, they almost all come with recipes.
Best of all, since amateur internet cooking videos are universally homespun, they have an authentic feel to them. You’re watching people cooking in their kitchen, free of studio tricks, make-up artists, and cleaning crews. Mistakes happen, words are fumbled, and family members accidentally enter the shot. That’s true entertainment.
Once again, the internet wins. Here’s a video of Julie Hasson, one of my favorite internet cooking show hosts cooking crackers from scratch. Everything a cooking show should be, and there’s plenty more on YouTube where that came from.
