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Re: YES YES YES and Hurrah

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Vladimyr Burachynsky

Re: YES YES YES and Hurrah

Dear Eric P. Charles,

Thank you for the Stomp/Romp. Too mild for a rant you behaved within the civilized parameters at all times. Toe on the line but let’s forgive that and cheer the sentiment.

I have to ask why even an intelligent person can make some kind of sense out of Gibberish.

Was it all the years of my marriage that left that stain? Is it an evolutionary legacy?

Something about our brains seems to Beg for Sense when there is none.

The fact is plain to everyone who attends a Magician’s performance.

We know better but for some reason people prefer their own explanations straight out of MAGIC books.

We even elect Morons who we pretend make some Sense.

We prefer magical explanations because they do not require any effort.

All Physicists are apparently insane because they intentionally look for difficult explanations.

We are probably discussing a regressive part of Human nature linked with superstition, optical illusions , alien visitations, secret conspiracies, and talking spirits.

I applaud the vigor with which you dispatched the Wicked Witch of Popular/Group Opinion.

Keep up the Good Stomp. Arm yourselves gentlemen or the Viagra adverts will swamp reason.

Luckily I am reading Umberto Eco’s “Foucault’s Pendulum “ and am in the mood for a clever Anti-Populist satire. He has a beautiful description of using a word processor to scramble anything so that it appears Cryptic. He even includes a small Basic program for deranging letters. Apparently Cryptic equals Important for most people. What is wrong with our species to believe in such fairy tales?

I curse St Augustine who claimed belief was greater than reason.

Madness in Groups seems very fashionable lately.

Vladimyr Ivan Burachynsky PhD

[hidden email]

120-1053 Beaverhill Blvd.

Winnipeg,Manitoba, R2J3R2

Canada

(204) 2548321 Land

From: [hidden email] [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of ERIC P. CHARLES
Sent: February-11-12 8:08 PM
To: Greg Sonnenfeld
Cc: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] YES

Since people are replying about the scrambled-word message....

<rant>
I will continue to stress that these "skills", while interesting, are the opposite of impressive. Under virtually any other circumstances, the ability to carefully discriminate things is considered a "higher" ability, a sign of more sophisticated achievement, and, in the extreme, a mysterious and nigh-magical ability to attend details others are not sensitive to. In contrast, in virtually any other circumstances, the inability to distinguish things is considered a sign of "lesser" skill.

For some odd reason though, when people send around these emails, it is asserted that our inability to distinguish a well-written word from a scrambled word demonstrates the magical and mysterious power of the Human Mind. It does not demonstrate mysterious skill, it demonstrates a (perhaps mysterious) lack of skill. The real mystery, if there is one, is why a person so well trained in reading would be fooled by such a simple manipulation. This might well be worth investigating, but for the same reasons that other types of optical illusions are worth investigating.
</rant>

Eric

On Sat, Feb 11, 2012 08:06 PM, Greg Sonnenfeld <[hidden email]> wrote:

The fox who lnoegd for grpaes, bdelohs wtih pian

The tpimetng cutelsrs wree too hgih to gian ;

Gierved in his haret he fcored a clreseas slmie,

And cierd , They are srahp and hlrday wotrh my wlhie .

;-)

****************************
Greg Sonnenfeld

“The scientists of today think deeply instead of clearly. One must be sane to think clearly, but one can think deeply and be quite insane.”

On Sat, Feb 11, 2012 at 5:46 PM, Nicholas Thompson <[hidden email]> wrote:

Why would anybody pass on a hopeless task followed by indecipherable gibberish. List has reached a new low.

PS (};-])

From: [hidden email] [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Rich Murray
Sent: Thursday, February 09, 2012 1:32 AM
To: kyle paxton; The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group; Rich Murray
Subject: [FRIAM] YES

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: kyle paxton <[hidden email]>
Date: Wed, Feb 8, 2012 at 6:56 PM
Subject: FW: YES
To: richard t murray <[hidden email]>

Date: Wed, 8 Feb 2012 18:16:54 -0800
From: [hidden email]
Subject: Fw: YES
To: [hidden email]; [hidden email]; [hidden email]; [hidden email]; [hidden email]; [hidden email]; [hidden email]

Subject: Fw: YES

To:
Date: Wednesday, February 8, 2012, 11:13 AM

----- Forwarded Message -----

To:
Sent: Thursday, February 2, 2012 10:15 PM
Subject: FW: YES

yes, I can -- no problem at all! It is amazing

If you can do this, pass it on to friends with the word YES in the subject, but only if you can read this.
A Short Neurological Test

1- Find the C below..
Please do not use any cursor help.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOCOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

2- If you already found the C, now find the 6 below.

99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999
99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999
99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999
69999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999
99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999
99999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999

3 - Now find the N below. It's a little more difficult.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMNMM
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

This is NOT a joke. If you were able to pass these 3 tests, you can cancel your annual visit to your neurologist. Your brain is great and you're far from having a close relationship with Alzheimer.

Congratulations!

eonvrye that can raed this rsaie your hnad.
To my 'selected' strange-minded friends:

If you can read the following paragraph, forward it on to your friends and the person that sent it to you with 'yes' in the subject line.

Only great minds can read this
This is weird, but interesting!

If you can raed this, you have a sgtrane mnid too

Can you raed this? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.

I cdnuolt blveiee that I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd what I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in what oerdr the ltteres in a word are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is that the frsit and last ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can still raed it whotuit a pboerlm. This is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the word as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? Yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! If you can raed this forwrad it

FORWARD ONLY IF YOU CAN READ IT
Forward it & put 'YES' in the Subject Line

============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org

============================================================

FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv

Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College

lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org

Eric Charles

Professional Student and
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Penn State University
Altoona, PA 16601