[UA] Epistomology

[Epoch]

On Fri, 15 Jun 2001, Greg Stolze wrote:

> Speaking of epistomology (that is, the branch of philosophy that deals with
> how we know what we know) I once wrote a SF story about a first encounter
> between humans and an alien race who looked remarkably like giant box-elder
> bugs.  These aliens had all kinds of funky powers -- instantaneous
> teleportation, gravity defiance, truly trippy stuff.  After thirty years,
> we finally get to the point where we can converse with them.  We want to
> know how they can teleport interstellar distances.
> 
> They want to know how we can make buildings.
> 
> So a human tries to explain architecture to them.  "It's EASY.  Look,
> you've got geometry, right?"
> 
> The aliens don't.
> 
> "Okay, well look at this + figure.  If the lines are straight, you can see
> how the opposite interior angles HAVE to be equal, right?"
> 
> "Uh... why?"
> 
> "Well, you can JUST SEE that's true!  I mean... I mean, it only makes sense
> that way."

(It's not true in the real world, by the way.  Euclidean geometry maps
only approximately to the real world.  Riemannian geometry is the real
model...  As far as we can tell, at least.  And we have explored other
geometries of various kinds, where our axiomatic assumptions are
different).

Mike

--
"Like H.P. Lovecraft's dark and inbred Maine, only with grits!"
		- Greg Stolze


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