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Poll

Yes, it is here: What was the MOMENT OF THE WEEK?

Clinton describes AI emergence over burgers.
- 0 (0%)
S'not that incredible.
- 0 (0%)
We've been dreaming of that stuff for over 100 years!
- 0 (0%)
Whoa, I better STOP and CONSIDER the deep PHILOSOPHICAL IMPLICATIONS!
- 1 (1%)
"Innovation Fatigue"
- 1 (1%)
But that leads to COMPLACENCY!
- 0 (0%)
You can look at the stars and say "they sure are pretty"...
- 0 (0%)
...not if you want to GET to them someday.
- 2 (2%)
Years of therapy to not have a panic attack.
- 0 (0%)
Applied Robotics centerfold!
- 5 (4.9%)
Okay, you know what, I'm just gonna play this friends-style.
- 0 (0%)
Way to use the ol' willpower, Marten!
- 1 (1%)
C'mere. (WELP)
- 16 (15.7%)
SweetTits Cameo!
- 6 (5.9%)
I said, "You're Trouble."
- 0 (0%)
I'm in trouble.
- 14 (13.7%)
My grandma's doing okay... stick around a few weeks longer?
- 7 (6.9%)
GOLD MEDALIST!
- 1 (1%)
GRAMMY WINNER!
- 1 (1%)
FIRST MAN TO MARS!
- 5 (4.9%)
TIME MAN OF TEH YEAR!
- 9 (8.8%)
"Yeah, that'd be pretty cool."
- 33 (32.4%)

Total Members Voted: 92


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Author Topic: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)  (Read 119933 times)

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #50 on: 05 Dec 2011, 09:28 »

She seems to have gotten used to it pretty quickly.

The major ramifications of the existence of AnthroPCs are more religious than philosophical, but maybe we shouldn't go there.

The philosophical implications of free will in something that everyone acknowledges is a machine are pretty interesting.

The ethical implications have clearly been a major issue in the QC world.

If AI philosophers come to different conclusions from human ones, which is correct?

Are humans not the pinnacle of creation, but instead a necessary step to the creation of our successors?
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #51 on: 05 Dec 2011, 10:09 »

Man, it's really strange that someone would make the argument that progress should be examined philosophically.  Uh...yeah, the Wright brothers didn't think about the consequences of airplanes, they had bigger concerns...so no one should?  So...irresponsible....
It's an ice cube effect, opposite of a snowball effect, and often a backlash to fringe groups.  The fewer people think "maybe we should consider not progressing in this way technologically, even if it means lowering our potential standard of living, because hey maybe it's a gateway drug to the illusion of international understanding or nukes which are good for no one," the fewer people will think so.
Still, I'm willing to be irresponsible to advance the cause of our robot masters.
Because they would, realistically, replace us once we can mine asteroids.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #52 on: 05 Dec 2011, 10:22 »

An interesting point buried in Marigold's dialogue is that history-making events/ideas/processes are often not recognized as history-making while we're in the middle of them (for example, newspapers in the Wrights' hometown ...)
« Last Edit: 05 Dec 2011, 10:31 by DSL »
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #53 on: 05 Dec 2011, 11:48 »

Maybe they should have, Marigold. Not while they were in the air, of course.

That said, I'm bored. Wanna go back to the Faye/Angus storyline. Or see what Marten and Padma are up to. I know I'm a drama queen.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #54 on: 05 Dec 2011, 12:04 »

GibbsSmacks all round I think
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #55 on: 05 Dec 2011, 12:14 »

Philosophy has mostly taken for granted that philosophers were always human.

Now there's a new viewpoint in the world, a fresh look at all the old questions.

I know you used the word "mostly" as a qualifier but I still want to point out that the school of Philosophy of Mind has been talking about things like that for a hundred-plus years by now. There's been a lot of brain power and a ton of ink devoted to the fact that Philosophy regarding the human condition is inescapably tied to its experience by humans. What that means in itself is up to some pretty heavy debate depending on what school of thought you end up traveling down but the question is pretty widely noted and discussed.

I would even venture to make the argument that the entire school of Phenomenology is an attempt to look at the human experience in such a way as to explain it to one who hasn't had the same experience. I would imagine that the QC AI Philosophers would be pretty big into Phenomenology and Hume (who was not a Phenomenologist, strictly speaking, but had a really interesting Philosophy of Mind).
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #56 on: 05 Dec 2011, 13:38 »

Man, it's really strange that someone would make the argument that progress should be examined philosophically.  Uh...yeah, the Wright brothers didn't think about the consequences of airplanes, they had bigger concerns...so no one should?  So...irresponsible....
It's an ice cube effect, opposite of a snowball effect, and often a backlash to fringe groups.  The fewer people think "maybe we should consider not progressing in this way technologically, even if it means lowering our potential standard of living, because hey maybe it's a gateway drug to the illusion of international understanding or nukes which are good for no one," the fewer people will think so.
Still, I'm willing to be irresponsible to advance the cause of our robot masters.
Because they would, realistically, replace us once we can mine asteroids.

It depends on the nature of the progress. AIs are one such example, when humanity proves capable of literally producing a unique intelligence there are actually some big philosophical questions that come with that. Do we give them the right to vote, to participate equally in society with humans? If no then we're effectively making them eternal second class citizens, but if we do there are issues that come up with an AI being able to vote. If they can copy themselves endlessly does each copy get a vote? What about that fact that the machines are hypothetically immortal? IF you want to avoid AIs what about cloning? I'm not saying that progress shouldn't occur, hell I'm a bit of a futurist and I get really annoyed when fundies start trying to pollute the pool of knowledge with things like creationism or say that we're 'playing god' when we study genetic manipulation or research. Doesn't mean though that there aren't questions that should be asked.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #57 on: 05 Dec 2011, 15:04 »

Marigold's attitude is the reason that the discovery of a planet that is solidly in the habitable zone of its star is going mostly unnoticed today, a minor headline in the science section of news sites- if they have a science section- instead of front page news. Most of them will simply carry the AP report, which spends a good portion of its length repeating basic facts, like what a light year is. The cable news channels will mention it as a 30 second blurb every cycle, and the network news will spend about 15 seconds on it.

I don't like Marigold's attitude.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #58 on: 05 Dec 2011, 15:23 »

Not sure where I see the problem here, at least with this particular example.  Don't get me wrong, I'm as excited as the next sci-fi geek about the possibility of another habitable planet out there.  But let's face it, no one currently living will ever see it up close, and giving the next generation even odds at reaching is generous at best.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #59 on: 05 Dec 2011, 16:21 »

Barring an Alcubierre drive.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #60 on: 05 Dec 2011, 16:55 »

Is the question whether AIs should be given rights, or whether or not the rights are really ours to give, and not simply theirs to take, just as we do?
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #61 on: 05 Dec 2011, 17:42 »

Seems to me Wil dresses the same way sometimes.  White shirt with a bowtie.

I have friends who's clothing arrangement is basic. One dresses entirely with a black T-Shirt and black Jeans. Very rarely does he dress up in something else.

I also have a friend who used to have 14 pieces of clothing (7 shirts, 7 pants) for the entire week. THATS it. Then he had to move to a much colder climate..... :lol:

And one friend only dressed up in white panties. of course, that was a part of the D/s relationship she had with someone.....

Barring an Alcubierre drive.

Or jump gate technology.
« Last Edit: 05 Dec 2011, 17:52 by cesariojpn »
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #62 on: 05 Dec 2011, 19:15 »

Or an Infinite Improbability Drive? Give it a really hot cup of tea and turn 'er on! 

It's funny but offputting at the same time that Clinton is literally getting worked up over all the "implications" <air quotes>.  I read it as a slap at a certain kind of geek that gets hung up on "implications" -- I mean, can  you imagine some guy in 1907 who started getting hyperventilating over the 'implications' of air travel? He'd be just as much of a geek then as Clinton is in the QCverse now. 

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #63 on: 05 Dec 2011, 19:29 »

Marigold's attitude is the reason that the discovery of a planet that is solidly in the habitable zone of its star is going mostly unnoticed today, a minor headline in the science section of news sites- if they have a science section- instead of front page news. Most of them will simply carry the AP report, which spends a good portion of its length repeating basic facts, like what a light year is. The cable news channels will mention it as a 30 second blurb every cycle, and the network news will spend about 15 seconds on it.

Some slight consolation for you: the story made it to the front page of the ABC news site in Australia.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-12-06/earth-twin-planet-discovered/3714358

Edit: The Sydney Morning Herald is also carrying the story down in its "technology" section:

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/nasa-confirms-superearth-that-could-hold-life-20111206-1ofx3.html

« Last Edit: 05 Dec 2011, 19:35 by Tova »
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #64 on: 05 Dec 2011, 19:33 »

NPR gave it 3:54, and that was without all the basic edumacation on lightyears...
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #65 on: 05 Dec 2011, 21:02 »

It's a little depressing that nobody has yet to insert the nice, healthy medium of the discussion in the comic. People should be amazed at the very thing that Marigold implies isn't interesting: They have these robots, and they could easily take over, and they haven't. That's a miracle. It's not something where we should wonder when they will, and we shouldn't just throw it away as if it were as natural as anything else. This is something on a completely different level than anything else mankind has managed, and the only two ideas presented are paranoia and apathy. I feel like Hanners will need to step in next, or things will just continue to go south in this conversation.
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Re: WCDT Dec. 5-9, 2011 (2071-75)
« Reply #66 on: 05 Dec 2011, 21:03 »

I'd say the big one is freedom of movement? The ability to fly implies that people from formerly isolated communities and nations will suddenly be able to interact and intermix freely, because journeys that used to take weeks, months, or years can now be completed in days.

I was visiting my great-aunt Muriel in 1995, a few months before her death. She was born in Shanghai in 1896. She recounted how her father had showed her a newspaper - delivered by steamship, two months after its publication - with big headlines about a couple of guys named Wright and their aeroplane.

She paused, looked thoughtful, and said "And I've also watched men walk on the Moon."

We just get so damned blasé at times...
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #67 on: 05 Dec 2011, 21:29 »

Is the question whether AIs should be given rights, or whether or not the rights are really ours to give, and not simply theirs to take, just as we do?
People who believe in social contract theory would say that both parties would have to agree before even the most basic rights could be enforced.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #68 on: 05 Dec 2011, 21:57 »

Seems to me Wil dresses the same way sometimes.  White shirt with a bowtie.

I have friends who's clothing arrangement is basic. One dresses entirely with a black T-Shirt and black Jeans. Very rarely does he dress up in something else.

I also have a friend who used to have 14 pieces of clothing (7 shirts, 7 pants) for the entire week. THATS it. Then he had to move to a much colder climate..... :lol:

And one friend only dressed up in white panties. of course, that was a part of the D/s relationship she had with someone.....


I've sometimes thought about going the 3 or 4 pairs of pants, 3 or 4 t shirts route as far as clothing goes.  Then there are the people trying the 100 item challenge, where you try to pare down your personal items to 100 or less, although there's some flexibility of what might count as an item ie your CD collection might be considered one item.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #69 on: 05 Dec 2011, 22:14 »

NPR gave it 3:54, and that was without all the basic edumacation on lightyears...

Who cares about NPR aside from "Car Talk" and "A Prairie Home Companion?"
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #70 on: 05 Dec 2011, 23:55 »


Barring an Alcubierre drive.

Or jump gate technology.

Let's not compare Babylon 5 to a solution of Einstein's equations. Even if the latter is judged to be impractical  :-)

The discovery of that planet is in the news page of the web version of a local paper. Currently their most read article actually within the news section. You still need to scroll the page down quite a bit to find it. The top of the page is dominated by stories like: "a dog bit a man - he had to quit his job", "a woman in England was buried live, but dug her way out of the grave" (IDUHG might like her style), "a well-liked writer of crime novels died", "it's independence day today"... Of course, the news pages is not the front pagre. You gotta love their priorities. :roll:
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #71 on: 06 Dec 2011, 01:07 »

Maybe they should have, Marigold. Not while they were in the air, of course.

That said, I'm bored. Wanna go back to the Faye/Angus storyline. Or see what Marten and Padma are up to. I know I'm a drama queen.

We'll get there eventually. I just go where my brain takes me.

Also writing the Marten/Padma thing is agonizing
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #72 on: 06 Dec 2011, 01:20 »

Jesus the one time I complain about where the comic's going and it's when Jeph just happens to pop in. Now I feel bad  :-(

Goin to bed before I embarrass myself further.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #73 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:17 »

Don't feel bad! I know these Clinton strips are a digression, but they're where my brain's been at lately. I have the Marten/Padma thing totally planned out, which strips a lot of the fun out of it for me because nothing is a surprise. But we'll get back to it soon. I just gotta play out this string of metaphysics jokes first.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #74 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:21 »

Is that a robot pin-up Momo is looking at?
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #75 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:27 »

Philosophy has mostly taken for granted that philosophers were always human.

Now there's a new viewpoint in the world, a fresh look at all the old questions.

Momo's getting a fresh look at something, anyway.


(Edit - Is it wrong that I was too freaked out by Jeph's avatar to realise "Oh wow, it's him"?)
« Last Edit: 06 Dec 2011, 02:32 by Dust »
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #76 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:30 »

I don't mind these strips. We're delving into stuff the strip has yet to really talk about. The technological differences between our world and the world of QC have so far been somewhat ignored, so it's kind of nice to let the storyline chill out for a short bit while we find out how the characters feel about their rapidly changing world. I like peeking into characters' minds, so this is perfectly enjoyable for me.

I can understand the stress involved in the Marten/Padma stuff. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with all that and especially with Faye and Angus. But this detour is a good one. :)
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #77 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:45 »

Don't feel bad! I know these Clinton strips are a digression, but they're where my brain's been at lately. I have the Marten/Padma thing totally planned out, which strips a lot of the fun out of it for me because nothing is a surprise. But we'll get back to it soon. I just gotta play out this string of metaphysics jokes first.

[emphasis added]


Not for us!!!!! You're killin' us man!!
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #78 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:49 »

Is that a robot pin-up Momo is looking at?

My guess for the title is "Applied robotics". Not sure about either word in the title, though. Did anyone watching ustream see a close-up?

Of course, that doesn't rule out the possibility of centerfold images of questionable content. May be they have mags marketed solely to APCs?
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #79 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:56 »

Applied Robotics seems clear enough to me; I imagine the fold-out as a system diagram, or maybe a detailed flowchart of some sort.  From Momo's expression, she doesn't have built-in knowledge of how she works - or perhaps the book is startlingly out of date, as DIY books often are (because later technology isn't accessible as DIY).
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #80 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:57 »

Just gotta ask, am I the only one who actually *likes* Clinton?  He may be a little creepy, but it's all well-meaning, enthusiastic creepiness.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #81 on: 06 Dec 2011, 02:59 »

I can't decide if I love Clinton or hate him. It could be both.

As much as I can entirely appreciate his viewpoint, it seems like he should also maybe try and understand that the biggest concerns aren't always the most important in our day to day lives. Macro's cool and all, but you still gotta operate on the micro no matter how much you might wish otherwise.

It might help though if I could figure out exactly what his deal is. Is he stupid, or crazy, or what? I mean for a guy who seems to take a lot of interest in the subject he has an odd tendency to occasionally slip into self-evidently false information, or to take the simple to outlandish conclusions. That all could easily be another manifestation of his complete lack of social graces though. He seems to lack the filter that would prevent a normal person from vocalizing certain thoughts. It might actually prove enlightening to see what his thoughts on the issue look like after he writes them down and organizes them, as I assume his school requires on occasion.

He's probably too relatable for me to genuinely dislike though. Like looking in a funhouse mirror.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #82 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:00 »

Let's not compare Babylon 5 to a solution of Einstein's equations. Even if the latter is judged to be impractical  :-)

Hush, I could've done worse. Sci-Fi is littered with enough stupid tech it's not remotely funny.

Is that a robot pin-up Momo is looking at?

Vacuum tubes are sexy. That, or in the QC universe, Nerd Guys are about on par as Import Models in terms of popularity in hotness form. Of course I could be crass and say that she's looking at the QC version of a Sex Doll. A fully autonomous sex doll.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #83 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:35 »

For comic #2072...

1. Art-wise, interesting height comparisions of the quartet.  Hannelore is noticably taller than the rest of them, and Marten is the same height as Hanners, which means he is pretty tall too?  Which asks the question of who among the QC-cast would be considered "average" height?

2. Also art-wise, not sure what it is exactly, but Hannelore's lips look very strange.  Perhaps it is the front-angle &/or the coloring.

3. When someone, even a robot, looks at a magazine in such a vertical fashion and with such an expression on their face, one generally draws the naughtier conclusion :evil: .  Makes me wonder what kind of "Applied Robotics" is being showcased in that magazine...  ("Look at the hardware ports on that one!  I would totally RAM-interface that!")

4. I also do not disagree with Clinton's opinion.  "Techno-complacency" is one of the major reasons NASA is all but shut-down :cry: , and why we have so little scientific research purely for scientific research, rather than for what can be profitable from it.  It can be said that we are not reseraching science, we are strip-mining it.

5. Conversely, thinking too much about it as Clinton has been wont to do is just as bad.  Either you wind up not being able to think beyond what you see (thus severely limiting creativity) or you wind up obsessing over it over any other ideas (see: "nerd rage!").

6. Uh-oh...  Jeph is starting to check in the WCDTs again...?  That is like The Spirit of Sauron starting to coalesce into the Lidless Eye of Mordor.  Soon he will send out his pwhodges and Is it cold in here?'es into the forums to lay waste to us all (wait- does Jeph even have 9+ board moderators...?  Maybe I should have used a Marvel's Galactus reference instead... :psyduck: ).
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idontunderstand

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #84 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:40 »

I can actually relate to what Hanners is saying in the last frame. I mean, not as far as getting a panic attack but my stomach made several turns whenever I looked up and realized just how insignificant I am and how large the world is and how many places I will never see in my lifetime. Dunno how I got over it, really.
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Skewbrow

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #85 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:47 »

May be the total perspective vortex told you that you really are a cool guy?
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #86 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:55 »

Didn't expect this kind of attitude from Marigold to be honest :| it's almost as if she's... religious :psyduck:.

Edit: And that while she's wearing an XKCD shirt!  :-o
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pwhodges

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #87 on: 06 Dec 2011, 03:56 »

does Jeph even have 9+ board moderators...?

There are currently six admins (including Jeph, Cristi, and the guy who runs the server) and six global mods; all have logged on this year, but most have not posted for some time now.  Of these twelve, I am the one whose history in the forum is the shortest.  There has also been one mod (that I know of) who got banned, and came back later under a different username but no longer as a mod; also another mod who left the forum and had her account deleted.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #88 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:00 »

I like this particular story arch  good to see momo again
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #89 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:06 »

Definitely looks like there's a double-polaroid catching Momo's attention, there.
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idontunderstand

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #90 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:08 »

May be the total perspective vortex told you that you really are a cool guy?

Haha!  :mrgreen:

GOD SPOKE TO ME
AND HE SAID
"SIR

YOU

ARE

RAD"
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Yarin

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #91 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:08 »

I bet its robot porn
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hobo386

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #92 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:14 »

1. Art-wise, interesting height comparisions of the quartet.  Hannelore is noticably taller than the rest of them, and Marten is the same height as Hanners, which means he is pretty tall too?  Which asks the question of who among the QC-cast would be considered "average" height?

The height of all the cast members tends to fluctuate quite a bit, but typically...

Elliot is about a head taller than anyone
Hanners is a little bit taller than Marten.
Dora is a little bit shorter than Marten.
Dora is a bit taller than Faye
Tai is shorter than everyone but Momo.
Wil is probably about Marten's height.

As for numbers, I'd say they range somewhere around:
Elliot -6'6"-6'9"
Hanners - 5'10"-5'11"
Marten - 5'8"-5"10
Padma - 5'7"-5'9"
Dora 5'7"-5'9"
Faye - 5'6"-5'8"
Marigold - 5'4"-5'7"
Clinton -5'4"-5'6"
Tai -4'11"-5'2"
Momo - 4'7"-5'1" (She tends to fluctuate in height based on who she is next to)
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Yarin

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #93 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:21 »

Not a lot of 6 footers
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Skewbrow

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #94 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:26 »

Hmm. If Hannelore is 5'10", then Sven is about 6'6". Sven is taller than the others, but I would have thought may be 6'3"-6'4".
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hobo386

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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #95 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:32 »

I'd put some of the other guys in the 6 foot range maybe, but even in real life maybe 1 in 3 guys is 6' tall, and Marten doesn't look much taller than most of the girls, so I peg him as being a little on the short side of average.

Hmm. If Hannelore is 5'10", then Sven is about 6'6". Sven is taller than the others, but I would have thought may be 6'3"-6'4".
He looks around 6'3"-6'4" in that pic to me. But like I said, people seem to fluctuate in height quite a bit in this comic.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #96 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:39 »

Gotta say that I was pleasantly surprised by Marigold's perspective on things.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #97 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:47 »

What the heck is Momo reading ?!?  :?

And I dont care how far it is to the stars, I just want a Star Trek style Spaceship with Warpdrive RIGHT NOW ! :-D
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #98 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:53 »

If AI philosophers come to different conclusions from human ones, which is correct?

Neither.  As soon as we have a correct answer to something it ceases to be philosophy, and becomes science.  Vast swathes of stuff that used to be considered philosophy are now sciences of one kind or another.  The only sad thing about this is that philosophers sometimes forget it.  Academic philosophy in the past 300 years has slowly transitioned from being about the world to being mostly scholastic:  arguing about what this or that philosopher "really means" when they say that or this.

And as someone else pointed out about a relative born in the late 1800's:  what we see today in terms of technological change is pretty tame compared to two generations ago.  By the time my grandmother (born in 1884) was my age (almost 50) she'd seen electrification, heavier-than air flight, mass-produced automobiles, moving pictures, radio, the first global war and the first five years of the Great Depression.  And women got the vote in there somewhere too (at least in Canada... your history may differ.)  What I've lived through has been pretty tame in comparison, although the Moon landing may count as enough to trump the rest.
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Re: WCDT 2071-75 (Dec. 5-9, 2011)
« Reply #99 on: 06 Dec 2011, 04:57 »

Marigold's attitude is the reason that the discovery of a planet that is solidly in the habitable zone of its star is going mostly unnoticed today, a minor headline in the science section of news sites- if they have a science section- instead of front page news. Most of them will simply carry the AP report, which spends a good portion of its length repeating basic facts, like what a light year is. The cable news channels will mention it as a 30 second blurb every cycle, and the network news will spend about 15 seconds on it.

I don't like Marigold's attitude.

I gotta go with Marigold on this one actually.  yea, it might be interesting, buts its not something that affects my day-to-day.

I think that for those who follow the view that eventually science will give us the answer to everything; every discovery, no matter how major or minor, is amazing since its a step towards that ultimate "everything" answer. 

If you follow the view that there is no end, that for every discovery, there's still another one over the horizon, then the hype factor gets toned down a bit, otherwise you'd risk stopping your pursuit of new knowledge once you (falsely, according to this view) think you've finally reached the ultimate answer.

I might be fascinated with things like that, but purely from an abstract standpoint.  Practically, nothing about it actually affects me though, so i don't need to go around being a pretentious - - - - that feels the need to talk about nothing but that, like certain characters who are really starting to annoy me :)
« Last Edit: 06 Dec 2011, 05:05 by NotsoAverageJoe »
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