Jump to content
Objectivism Online Forum


  • Content Count

  • Joined

  • Last visited

1 Follower

About jrs

  • Rank

Previous Fields

  • Country
    United States
  • State (US/Canadian)
  • Real Name
    James Richard Spriggs
  • Copyright
    Public Domain

Contact Methods

  • Website URL
  • ICQ

Profile Information

  • Location
    Gaithersburg, Maryland
  • Interests
  1. See "The Age of Reason" by Thomas Paine. He uses the Bible to disprove itself. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Age_of_Reason
  2. Donahue seemed to change and become much more favorable to her as the interview progressed. I learned two things from the interview: 1. She explained why she refuses to answer certain kinds of questions: Because the questioner is gratuitously insulting her and she refuses to sanction that kind of behavior. 2. She clarified why she would not support a woman as commander-in-chief of the armed forces: Because of the nature of female sexuality, a woman could not be happy ruling over all the men with whom she associates. So a woman who would accept such a position would have to be self-sacrificing, thus immoral, thus unworthy to be a leader.
  3. If you are concerned that the mayor is scamming you or misapplying the tax law in your case, then I suggest that you consult a tax attorney licensed in Ohio. If you are wondering what the moral justification for the tax law is, then I ask you what makes you think that there is any moral justification for it?
  4. If you want something which is always positive and always rising, then it is hard to beat Ravel's Bolero.
  5. Several of you have referred to the evaporation of black-holes. The rate of evaporation is inversely proportional to the square of the mass. So except for microscopic black-holes, evaporation is negligible. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawking_radiation for more details. I have been away so long, I have forgotten how to spell-check on this forum.
  6. Einstein's equation "E = m*c*c" says that energy and mass (inertia) are two different names for the same thing, but measured with different units. Energy is a quantitative attribute of matter and radiation; it is not an entity in its own right. Potential energy is difficult to define because it depends on what you take as a reference level (starting point). For example, the binding energy of atoms in molecules is negative compared to the energy which they would possess as separated atoms. But the energy of diatomic oxygen and diatomic hydrogen is positive compared to water.
  7. Since member number 2,508 has revoked ALL permissions to use his writing (except for a certain customer of his), I presume that I cannot even use his name or quote from his posted message. In fact, it would appear that GreedyCapitalist must immediately delete all of his messages from the forum to avoid violating his copyright. Oddly, this would include the message which makes his demand. How bizarre.
  8. It is nice to know that the rumors of her demise are unfounded.
  9. I would not blame technology. Rather, I would say that it is their failure to deal with the complexities of their environment whether technological or otherwise. Ayn Rand stressed that reason was Man's means of survival. Reasoning works better with more intelligence. So it should not be surprising that intelligence is selected for. Could it be the upper class which is having fewer children rather than the more intelligent people? Right back at you.
  10. First, I should have said that I was trying to answer the question by giving a theory analogous to MPT -- "efficient horse racing odds" is analogous to "efficient stock prices". Whether the theories are true is another question. My guess is that they are very close to being true, but not exactly. Yes, but that average is weighted by the amount that the person bets. Someone who had a "system" that actually worked would probably keep increasing his bets (or investments) until he shifted the odds sufficiently that he no longer had an advantage, taking administrative costs (commissions, taxes, his time, etc.) into account. That is why the race track (or market) is (nearly) efficient.
  11. You can not consistently beat the odds betting on horse races (unless you are fixing the races).
  12. Thank you. Yes, but the whole point is to explain the "rise in IQ scores over the past 30 years". What makes you think that? Yes, different skills are needed today than were needed in the past. But intelligence is not a skill; it is the ability to acquire skills. I think that your understanding of evolution is wrong. Evolution can change a species significantly in one generation, if the selective pressure is strong enough. For example, Dutch elm disease has virtually exterminated the vast majority of elms which are susceptible to it. The next generation will come only from the survivors from which they will inherit resistance. You got me there.
  13. Dave: Please modify the metablog to include the author's name or user-id at the beginning or the end of the message. I do not like having to follow links to get that information. If people are getting smarter (which is quite possible), it is not a result of anything learned (culture). There have been adequate challenges and stimuli to learning in every period of time. Rather, it is a result of Darwinian evolution. Stupid people are killing themselves off in many ways -- automobile accidents are a prime example. The decline in knowledge of various specific subjects is due to the definitions of what one needs to know in those subjects (and the choice of important subjects itself) becoming outdated. Taking history for example, people no longer learn about the crucial events of the first millennium because they are too busy learning about things in the third millennium.
  14. God's truth. (Just kidding about the "God" part.)
  15. Define by essentials! What is the essence of sex? Transfer of genetic information from one member of a species to another leading to the creation of a new member combining genetic information from both parents. Anything else called "sex" is either foreplay or a perversion.
  • Create New...