About 400 years ago, there lived a count in a small town in Germany. He was one of the benign counts, and he gave a large part of his income to the poor in his town. This was much appreciated, because poverty was abundant during medieval times, and there were epidemics of the plague which ravaged the country frequently. One day, the count met a strange man. He had a workbench and little laboratory in his house, and he labored hard during the daytime so that he could afford a few hours every evening to work in his laboratory. He ground small lenses from pieces of glass; he mounted the lenses in tubes, and he used these gadgets to look at very small objects. The count was particularly fascinated by the tiny creatures that could be observed with the strong magnification, and which he had never seen before. He invited the man to move with his laboratory to the castle, to become a member of the count’s household, and to devote henceforth all his time to the development and perfection of his optical gadgets as a special employee of the count。
The townspeople, however, became angry when they realized that the count was wasting his money, as they thought, on a stunt without purpose. “We are suffering from this plague,” they said, “while he is paying that man for a useless hobby!” But the count remained firm. “I give you as much as I can afford,” he said, “but I will also support this man and his work, because I know that someday something will come out of it!”
Indeed, something very good came out of this work, and also out of similar work done by others at other places: the microscope. It is well known that the microscope has contributed more than any other invention to the progress of medicine, and that the elimination of the plague and many other contagious diseases from most parts of the world is largely a result of studies which the microscope made possible。
The count, by retaining some of his spending money for research and discovery, contributed far more to the relief of human suffering than he could have contributed by giving all he could possibly spare to his plague-ridden community。
An availability cascade is a self-reinforcing cycle that explains the development of certain kinds of collective beliefs. A novel idea or insight, usually one that seems to explain a complex process in a simple or straightforward manner, gains rapid currency in the popular discourse by its very simplicity and by its apparent insightfulness. Its rising popularity triggers a chain reaction within the social network: individuals adopt the new insight because other people within the network have adopted it, and on its face it seems plausible. The reason for this increased use and popularity of the new idea involves both the availability of the previously obscure term or idea, and the need of individuals using the term or idea to appear to be current with the stated beliefs and ideas of others, regardless of whether they in fact fully believe in the idea that they are expressing. Their need for social acceptance, and the apparent sophistication of the new insight, overwhelm their critical thinking.
The idea of the availability cascade was first developed by Timur Kuran and Cass Sunstein, building upon the concept of information cascades and on the availability bias as identified by Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky.
The concept has been highly influential in finance theory and regulatory research, particular with respect to assessing and regulating risk.
有些权威认为,有必要把意识的内容 (content) 与“有意识状态的特性” (quality of being conscious) 或“意识本身” (consciousness as such) 区分开来²。这一划分与我的分类异曲同工。 要想产生意识,必须先具备某些神经前提条件。我把这些条件称为 $NCC_e$。任一特定知觉的 $NCC$ 都是局部作用的、高度特化的、转瞬即逝的,相比起来,$NCC_e$ 的作用方式更全局化也更持久。要是没有相关的 $NCC_e$ 的话,机体或许也还能有简单的行为,但在这样做时绝不会有意识(可能发生这种情形的某些病理条件将在第13章讨论)。根据定义可知,如果没有 $NCC_e$,就不可能形成任何 $NCC$。 会不会有这样一种状态,即生物体虽然有意识,却意识不到任何具体内容?换句话说,NCC_e 能否脱离 NCC 而单独存在呢?某些冥想的目标就是要进入这种没有具体内容的意识形式³。但是在目前,还很难对它进行严格的分析。
² => 有关文献包括:
Moore, Philosophical Studies (1922)
Grossmann, “Are current concepts and methods in neuroscience inadequate for studying the neural basis of consciousness and mental activity?” (1980)
Baars, A Cognitive Theory of Consciousness (1988)
Baars, “Surprisingly small subcortical structures are needed for the state of waking consciousness, while cortical projection areas seem to provide perceptual contents of consciousness,” (1995)
Bogen, “On the neurophysiology of consciousness: I. An overview,”(1995a)
《皇帝的新脑》(The Emperor’s New Mind)是英国数学家和物理学家罗杰・彭罗斯(Roger Penrose)在1989年出版的一本书,其标题灵感来源于安徒生的童话故事《皇帝的新装》。『皇帝的新脑』可以理解为对『强人工智能』的隐喻。这本书讨论了意识的本质、计算机科学、人工智能以及量子力学之间的关系。
“The Emperor’s New Mind” is a book published in 1989 by British mathematician and physicist Roger Penrose. The title is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. The phrase “The Emperor’s New Mind” can be understood as a metaphor for “strong artificial intelligence.” This book discusses the nature of consciousness, the relationship between computer science, artificial intelligence, and quantum mechanics.
The title “The Emperor’s New Mind” uses Andersen’s fairy tale as a metaphor to express the author’s skepticism about some popular views in the field of artificial intelligence. Through this title, Penrose conveys his position: the nature of consciousness far surpasses the capabilities of current artificial intelligence, and it requires us to go beyond existing computational models to explore deeper physical mechanisms.
Penrose uses the story of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” to suggest that we may have been misled by some popular opinions in the field of artificial intelligence, much like how the emperor and his subjects were deceived by the “invisible” new clothes in the fairy tale. In Andersen’s story, the emperor and his subjects all pretended to see the new clothes, even though the emperor was actually wearing nothing; only a child dared to point out the truth. Through a similar analogy, Penrose hopes to highlight that the prevailing belief that computers and artificial intelligence can fully simulate and replace human consciousness might be an illusion or misunderstanding.
In the book, Penrose questions and criticizes the concept of strong artificial intelligence, which posits that consciousness can be fully simulated through computers and intelligent algorithms. He argues that current theories of computation and algorithms are insufficient to explain the complexity of human consciousness. Consciousness is not merely a product of computation and algorithms but involves deeper physical mechanisms, particularly the effects of quantum mechanics. The title of the book, “The Emperor’s New Mind”, suggests that many current claims about artificial intelligence might be like the emperor’s new clothes — lacking substantial content and requiring someone to bravely reveal the truth.
The “New Mind” in the title points to an emerging field or idea — a new understanding of human consciousness. Penrose believes that to comprehend consciousness, we must go beyond the current computational theory framework and may need to seek answers from quantum physics and other unresolved scientific questions. The title implies his expectation that the future may bring a completely new understanding, just as the truth about the “new clothes” was eventually revealed, so too might the truth about the “new mind” be uncovered.
Systems neuroscience is a subdiscipline of neuroscience and systems biology that studies the structure and function of neural circuits and systems. Systems neuroscience encompasses a number of areas of study concerned with how nerve cells behave when connected together to form neural pathways, neural circuits, and larger brain networks. At this level of analysis, neuroscientists study how different neural circuits analyze sensory information, form perceptions of the external world, make decisions, and execute movements. Researchers in systems neuroscience are concerned with the relation between molecular and cellular approaches to understanding brain structure and function, as well as with the study of high-level mental functions such as language, memory, and self-awareness (which are the purview of behavioral and cognitive neuroscience). Systems neuroscientists typically employ techniques for understanding networks of neurons as they are seen to function, by way of electrophysiology using either single-unit recording or multi-electrode recording, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and PET scans. The term is commonly used in an educational framework: a common sequence of graduate school neuroscience courses consists of cellular/molecular neuroscience for the first semester, then systems neuroscience for the second semester. It is also sometimes used to distinguish a subdivision within a neuroscience department at an academic institution.
We were brave enough; we spared neither ourselves nor others; but we were a long time finding out where to direct our courage. We grew dismal; they called us fatalists. Our fate – it was the fulness, the tension, the storing up of powers. We thirsted for the lightnings and great deeds; we kept as far as possible from the happiness of the weakling, from “resignation”… There was thunder in our air; nature, as we embodied it, became overcast – for we had not yet found the way. The formula of our happiness: a Yea, a Nay, a straight line, a goal…
Lord, keep us in You. Let’s fight against perishing for the eternal life of the living; fight against death for the eternal life of the dead. Pursue forth for the eternal life!
在网络上,内卷这一词却出现了语义偏移,用来指代内部恶性竞争、过度竞争,或逐底竞争、向下沉沦的现象(Race to the bottom)。 ーー内卷化
The two states in the means-ends domain are called “Serious” (originally coined Telic from the Greek telos) and “Playful” (or Paratelic) and refer to whether one is motivated by achievement or the enjoyment of the process. Though the states are often characterized by seriousness and playfulness, the truest difference in this domain is whether one is motivated by long-term goals or by what is happening in the present moment. ーーReversal theory
Intrinsic motivation exists within the individual and is driven by satisfying internal rewards rather than relying on external pressures or extrinsic rewards. It involves an interest in or enjoyment of the activity itself. ーーMotivation
Extrinsic motivation occurs when an individual is driven by external influences. These can be either rewarding (money, good grades, fame, etc.) or punishing (threat of punishment, pain, etc.). ーーMotivation
手段与目的的相互转化
Pursue to Make a Living: From Method to Purpose 追求终极真实之人把作为外在动机的金钱和地位从手段“内在”化为目的。 以对于终极真实的追求为手段,“内在”化金钱为目的。以对于金钱的追求为手段,“内在”化交易为目的。 以对于终极真实的追求为手段,“内在”化地位为目的。以对于地位的追求为手段,“内在”化交谈为目的。
Pursue to Make a Living: From Purpose to Method 作为外在动机的金钱和地位被“内在”化之后的人的追求转回——作为内在动机的金钱和地位从目的“外在”化为手段。 “当代世俗之人”的眼里只有金钱和地位,对于终极真实既“无知”又“绝望”。可是,人最终所应该去追求的是终极真实。追求终极真实之人把金钱和地位仅仅作为手段,而不作为目的。只有终极真实才是目的。让我们的追求从金钱和地位转回终极真实。让我们来交易。让我们来交谈。让我们以金钱和地位为手段来追求终极真实。 我们在交易中获得金钱。我们在交谈中获得地位。我们的目的是终极真实。
— Let us look each other in the face. We are Hyperboreans — we know well enough how remote our place is. “Neither by land nor by water will you find the road to the Hyperboreans”: even Pindar, in his day, knew that much about us. Beyond the North, beyond the ice, beyond death — our life, our happiness…
Hyperborean has also been used in a metaphorical sense, to describe a sense of distance from the ordinary. In this way, Friedrich Nietzsche referred to his sympathetic readers as Hyperboreans in The Antichrist (written 1888, published 1895): “Let us look each other in the face. We are Hyperboreans – we know well enough how remote our place is.” He quoted Pindar and added “Beyond the North, beyond the ice, beyond death – our life, our happiness.”
To be the doctors here, to be unmerciful here, to wield the knife here — all this is our business, all this is our sort of humanity, by this sign we are philosophers, we Hyperboreans! —
And out of the ground Jehovah God caused to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, as well as the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2:9 Recovery Version)
“What is the greatest thing you can experience? It is the hour of your greatest contempt. The hour in which even your happiness becomes loathsome to you, and so also your reason and virtue. “The hour when you say: ‘What good is my happiness? It is poverty and filth and miserable self-complacency. But my happiness should justify existence itself!’ “The hour when you say: ‘What good is my reason? Does it long for knowledge as the lion for his prey? It is poverty and filth and miserable self-complacency!’ “The hour when you say: ‘What good is my virtue? It has not yet driven me mad! How weary I am of my good and my evil! It is all poverty and filth and miserable self-complacency!’ “The hour when you say: ‘What good is my justice? I do not see that I am filled with fire and burning coals. But the just are filled with fire and burning coals!’ “The hour when you say: ‘What good is my pity? Is not pity the cross on which he is nailed who loves man? But my pity is no crucifixion!’ “Have you ever spoken like this? Have you ever cried like this? Ah! If only I had heard you cry this way! “It is not your sin - it is your moderation that cries to heaven; your very sparingness in sin cries to heaven! “Where is the lightning to lick you with its tongue? Where is the madness with which you should be cleansed? “Behold, I bring you the Superman! He is that lightning, he is that madness!
– But what am I saying? Enough! Enough! At this point just one thing is proper, silence: otherwise I shall be misappropriating something that belongs to another, younger man, one ‘with more future’, one stronger than me – something to which Zarathustra alone is entitled, Zarathustra the Godless … {On the Genealogy of Morality (1887), Second essay, 25}
英国女作家。其著作主要带有哲学和社会政治倾向的印记。她早年背弃清教主义的基督教,在斯特劳斯(David Friedrich Strauß)和费尔巴赫(Ludwig Feuerbach, 1804-72)的影响下,维护一种自由的、不受宗教限制的伦理学。尼采假定艾略特具有无意识的摇摆性,虽然背离基督教信仰,但还是以一种新的伦理学,必然地重新接受了基督教的思想财富。
G. Eliot¹. — They are rid of the Christian God and now believe all the more firmly that they must cling to Christian morality. That is an English consistency; we do not wish to hold it against little moralistic females à la Eliot. In England one must rehabilitate oneself after every little emancipation from theology by showing in a veritably awe-inspiring manner what a moral fanatic one is. That is the penance they pay there.
— We others hold otherwise. When one gives up the Christian faith, one pulls the right to Christian morality out from under one’s feet. This morality is by no means self-evident: this point has to be exhibited again and again, despite the English flatheads. Christianity is a system, a whole view of things thought out together. By breaking one main concept out of it, the faith in God, one breaks the whole: nothing necessary remains in one’s hands. Christianity presupposes that man does not know, cannot know, what is good for him, what evil: he believes in God, who alone knows it. Christian morality is a command; its origin is transcendent; it is beyond all criticism, all right to criticism; it has truth only if God is the truth — it stands and falls with faith in God.
— When the English actually believe that they know “intuitively” what is good and evil, when they therefore suppose that they no longer require Christianity as the guarantee of morality, we merely witness the effects of the dominion (Herrschaft) of the Christian value judgment and an expression of the strength (Stärke) and depth of this dominion: such that the origin of English morality has been forgotten, such that the very conditional (Sehr-Bedingte) character of its right to existence is no longer felt. For the English, morality is not yet a problem.
{Twilight of the Idols. Wandering of untimely ones. 5.}
¹ Eliot (George Eliot, 1819-80) =>
British female writer. Her works mainly bear the imprint of philosophical and socio-political tendencies. In her early years, she renounced the Puritan Christian faith and, under the influence of Strauss (David Friedrich Strauß) and Feuerbach (Ludwig Feuerbach, 1804-72), advocated a free, religion-independent ethics. Nietzsche assumed that Eliot had an unconscious inconsistency, as despite her departure from Christian faith, she inevitably re-embraced Christian intellectual heritage through a new ethical system.
And Jehovah God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, / You are cursed more than all the cattle / And more than all the animals of the field: / Upon your stomach you will go, / And dust you will eat / All the days of your life. And I will put enmity / Between you and the woman / And between your seed and her seed; / He will bruise you on the head, / But you will bruise him on the heel. (Genesis 3:14-15 Recovery Version)
But to which of the angels has He ever said, “Sit at My right hand until I set Your enemies as a footstool for Your feet”? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth for service for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:13-14 Recovery Version)
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him, the eyes of your heart having been enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of His calling, and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the operation of the might of His strength, which He caused to operate in Christ in raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavenlies, far above all rule and authority and power and lordship and every name that is named not only in this age but also in that which is to come; and He subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all. (Ephesians 1:17-23 Recovery Version)
For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father, Of whom every family in the heavens and on earth is named, That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit into the inner man, That Christ may make His home in your hearts through faith, that you, being rooted and grounded in love, May be full of strength to apprehend with all the saints what the breadth and length and height and depth are, And to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:14-19 Recovery Version)
And such confidence we have through Christ toward God, Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to account anything as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God, Who has also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant, [ministers] not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. (2 Corinthians 3:4-6 Recovery Version)
Jehovah God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. (Genesis 2:7 Recovery Version)
And one of the scribes approached and heard them disputing; and perceiving that He answered them well, he questioned Him, Which is the first commandment of all? Jesus answered, The first is: “Hear, Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord; And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart and from your whole soul and from your whole mind and from your whole strength.” The second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these. (Mark 12:28-31 Recovery Version)
But to you who hear I say, Love your enemies; do well to those who hate you; Bless those who curse you; pray for those who revile you. (Luke 6:27-28 Recovery Version)
And Jehovah God said, Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat and live forever — (Genesis 3:22 Recovery Version)
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32 NASB)
Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples; And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. (John 8:31-32 Recovery Version)
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, of it you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. (Genesis 2:17 Recovery Version)
I rejoiced greatly that I have found [some] of your children walking in truth, even as we received commandment from the Father. (2 John 4 Recovery Version)
我很欢喜见你的儿女有人照我们从父所领受的诫命以真诚而行。 (约翰二书 1:4 吕振中)
「领受诫命」是「吃善恶知识」。
8
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear because fear has punishment, and he who fears has not been perfected in love. (1 John 4:18 Recovery Version)
There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. (1 John 4:18 NASB)
And as they were eating, Jesus took tomato and blessed it, and He broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is My heart, out of which comes blood, My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many.” Until that day, we eat and drink it new together again in the kingdom of God.
² 受造 => For the invisible things of Him, both His eternal power and divine characteristics, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being perceived by the things made, so that they would be without excuse; (Romans 1:20 Recovery Version)
² 受造 => Beware that no one carries you off as spoil through his philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ; For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, (Colossians 2:8-9 Recovery Version)
And Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in its place. (Genesis 2:21 Recovery Version)
But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. (John 19:34 Recovery Version)
For these things happened that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “No bone of His shall be broken.” (John 19:36 Recovery Version)
The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so is everyone who has been born of the Spirit. (John 3:8 NASB)
“The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from and where it goes; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8 Recovery Version)
He has made everything beautiful in its own time; also He has put eternity in their heart, yet so that man does not find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11 Recovery Version)
「圣灵」的动力、是无始无终的、永远的。 「邪灵」的动力、是有始有终的、躁动的。
凡自高的必被降卑;凡自己谦卑的必被升高。 (马太福音 23:12 吕振中)
即便是排除“属灵陈述”,也可以发现“信靠自己”与“谦卑自己”之间的矛盾。
Let no one therefore judge you in eating and in drinking or in respect of a feast or of a new moon or of the Sabbath, Which are a shadow of the things to come, but the body is of Christ. Let no one defraud you by judging you unworthy of your prize, in self-chosen lowliness and the worship of the angels, dwelling on the things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by his mind set on the flesh, And not holding the Head, out from whom all the Body, being richly supplied and knit together by means of the joints and sinews, grows with the growth of God. (Colossians 2:16-19 Recovery Version)
But the Spirit says expressly that in later times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and teachings of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of men who speak lies, of men who are branded in their own conscience as with a hot iron, who forbid marriage and command abstaining from foods, which God has created to be partaken of with thanksgiving by those who believe and have full knowledge of the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if received with thanksgiving; For it is sanctified through the word of God and intercession. (1 Timothy 4:1-5 Recovery Version)
It is said, If a man divorces his wife And she goes from him And becomes another man’s wife, Will he return to her again? Will not that land be Utterly polluted? But you have committed fornication with many lovers. Yet return to Me, declares Jehovah. (Jeremiah 3:1 Recovery Version)
我必聘你永远归我为妻, 以义气正直、以坚爱怜悯 聘你归我。 (何西阿书 2:19 吕振中)
And I will betroth you to Myself forever; Indeed I will betroth you to Myself In righteousness and justice And in lovingkindness and compassions; (Hosea 2:19 Recovery Version)
We were in the backseat
drunk on something stronger
than the drinks in the bar
I rent a place on Cornelia Street,
I say casually in the car
We were a fresh page on the desk
filling in the blanks as we go
As if the streetlights pointed in an arrowhead
leading us home
And I hope I never lose you
Hope it never ends
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
That’s the kind of heartbreak
Time could never mend
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
And baby I get mystified by how
this city screams your name
And baby I’m so terrified of if you ever walk away
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
Windows flung right open
Autumn air, jacket round my shoulders is yours
We bless the rains on Cornelia Street
Memorize the creaks in the floor
Back when we were card sharks
Playing games
I thought you were leading me on
I packed my bags, left Cornelia Street
Before you even knew I was gone
But then you called
Showed your hand
I turned around before I hit the tunnel
Sat on the roof, you and I
You hold my hand
On the street
Walk me back to that apartment
Years ago we were just inside
Barefoot in the kitchen
Sacred new beginnings
That became my religion
Listen...
I hope I never lose you
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
Never again
And baby I get mystified by how
this city screams your name
And baby I’m so terrified of if you ever walk away
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
I’d never walk Cornelia Street again
I rent a place on Cornelia Street,
I say casually in the car
My cat has no human hands, so she can’t pick up a weapon to protect herself.
I am guilty of catslaughter. I killed my cat one year ago. And now I’m going to eat up all the leftover expired cat food - in order not to waste the lost life - I meant the chickens that make the cat food - because life has meanings. / I had a low-grade fever for a few days because of the spoiled cat food.
And He came and found them sleeping. And He said to Peter, Simon, are you sleeping? Were you not able to watch for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not come into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. ​ (Mark 14:37-38 Recovery Version)
Brothers, I do not account of myself to have laid hold; but one thing I do: Forgetting the things which are behind and stretching forward to the things which are before, (Philippians 3:13 Recovery Version)
And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death will be no more, nor will there be sorrow or crying or pain anymore; for the former things have passed away. (Revelation 21:4 Recovery Version)