A random study of predictability of non-linear, randomized, non-deterministric and chaotic systems under consideration of external influencing factors.
Oh lord, apparently Hillary Cass has bought into the conspiracy theory that "sissy hypno porn is turning the kids trans!" It's absolutely infuriating and naked bigotry that anyone pretends she is a neutral, honest, or scientific researcher. I am going to bet within the year that she will blame either George Soros or Bill Gates for the transes, or come out as an anti-vaxxer.
Great write-up by @annaleen on the modern history of the pseudoscience of "brainwashing" and how it has been (/tried to be) used for mostly nefarious ends.
We can say this "psychopolitics" is part and parcel of what the great political scientist Richard Hofstadter termed the "paranoid style in American politics".
Awesome to see a mention of Liang Qichao and how his term "xinao" (wash-brain) which meant modernization was usurped and became a negative connotation. He was one of the great early reformers who wanted to modernize Chinese philosophy by seeking a radical break from Confucianism. Pankaj Mishra's "From the ruins of empire" does a great job of his intellectual response to western imperialism in remaking Asia.
First time also hearing/reading about "stochastic terrorism".
Given the trash from Pamela Paul in the NY Times the other day, it's worth upping this again. From @juliaseranolast May, debunking Paul's word salad months before it was written.
Note how none of these meticulous examinations of the science ever make it into the NY Times.
"The first step when confronting a pseudoscientific belief is to not bother arguing it"
This has been my strategy for years, and it's worked pretty well. People with hokum ideas are often frustrated that they get insta-corrected before they get to explain their reasoning, and that makes them more entrenched. Convincing them out of that position often means more listening than talking on my part.
#Bigfoot (also known as Chewbacca Sasquatch) is a mythical creature alleged by some to live in remote North American forests in the Pacific Northwest. As there is zero real evidence for the existence of Bigfoot, the study of the "beast" is considered to be a #pseudoscience. Bigfoot is also one of the more famous examples of #cryptozoology.
Bigfoot is sometimes described as a large, hairy, bipedal hominid creature, and many believe that this animal, or its close relatives, may be found around the world under different regional names, such as the #Yeti of Tibet and Nepal.
The most famous sighting is the 1967 Patterson-Gimlin film, which shows a hairy bipedal figure walking away from the camera.
In case anyone thinks "alternative" medicine is harmless: this guy, a real doctor, killed his wife by insisting she use lethal doses of selenium, in addition to "herbal supplements", while inexplicably (to me) denying her actual diagnosis.
I would have called it impossible. Health cultists almost never get criminal penalties. Homeopaths and acupuncturists are still free. I guess the difference is that they only occasionally (unintentionally) harm people, where injecting bleach is just too obviously and literally poisoning your patients.
Good news, though: these people are now convicted criminals.
Anti-vaxxer Aaron Rodgers makes a fool of himself mocking Travis Kelce as 'Mr. Pfizer'
“Aaron Rodgers is a fool. …it's been established for years now.”
“One of the most popular athletes of our time. … Mocking someone who is asking people to get flu and COVID shots that could save lives. This is where we are. It's all so foolish.”
Signal’s Meredith Whittaker: AI is fundamentally ‘a surveillance technology’
And the stakes are not small:
“The use of AI is also surveillant. These are ultimately surveillance systems that are being marketed to those who have power over us generally: our employers, governments, border control, etc., to make determinations and predictions that will shape our access to resources and opportunities.”