Robert Nozick, a #libertarian#philosopher, wanted you to imagine that you are offered a sophisticated machine which can perfectly simulate all the things you deem most pleasurable.
He asks you now: would you prefer this to real life?
Nozick assumes you don't & uses that as a justification against (#ethical) hedonists.
Thought experiments can be #tested (to a degree) by actually asking people.
Philosopher Felipe de Brigard actually did ask students to determine the validity of Nozick's claim. He separated them into 3 groups: 1. No info of what their real life is like, 2. Prisoner, 3. Hyperwealthy artist.
He found that while most people choose the machine in group 2., the answers in group 1. & 3. were almost equal.
I’ve spent #Today (so far) being totally relaxed and doing no productive work (ok, I helped unload the dishwasher). I’ve watched some #AdamSavage#Tested videos, worked on customizing a new laptop bag, and wrote a blog post. Glorious. I wish this was the rule, not the exception.
I'm going to have a bit of a #tech#rant (less charitable people might say #whine) here. If you just want jokes and cute bunny pictures, feel free to skip this one.
Object of my #ire this week? #Furnaces. I'm not even going to rant about their main control boards; most of that's been said better than I could say it, by others with more knowledge than I.
As you might have #guessed, the motor in my other furnace #failed last week.
I've removed it from the furnace and #tested it, and just like the first one, the motor itself checks out fine - no #electrical or #mechanical#problems at all.
The #electronics in it have failed. And only a few months after the other one. It's almost like they're #designed to #fail; otherwise, how could you make a ton of #money by #charging#monopoly prices for what is otherwise a #generic 1/2 HP motor?
Looking for a #Linux distribution that stands out from the crowd? 🔍 Say hello to #openSUSE! Why? Enterprise-Grade Strength - both 🪨 solid & ⚡️ fast & #tested releases - #opensource 💚 - rollback & backup solutions built in & much more. Get it at get.opensuse.org