Stolen from Slashdot: Siena Heights University just added a course in Simpsons Philosophy. And I thought that “Physics of Star Trek” course I took in college was out there…
3 replies on “Simpsons Philosophy”
OT: Physics of Star Trek
Those readers with long memories will remember that
I promised to write about the issues I had with
Krauss’ The Physics of Star Trek. Rather
than just complaining about what I think he got wrong,
I’ve decided I’m better off doing out all the
calculations he alludes to and publishing them. That
way, if I’m the one who’s wrong, the mathematically
inclined readers out there can spot my mistakes.
Anyway, that’s a big project, which is unlikely to
start before my thesis is finished. (The funding for
that runs out in April, so there’s a definite deadline
ahead.)
Ok.
My girlfriend had to read The Simpsons and Philosophy for a Satire class this semester. Being the huge nerd that I am, I also read this book. If this is what they’re basing the course on, I certainly hope it’s a very short course.
It’s a two-credit course
I haven’t read the /. article, but on the radio that’s what they said. One of the books they will be using is called “The Doh of Homer”.
Aside from the similarities to “Waiting for Godot” in terms of the absurdness of life and existensialism, the one thing I can think of that definitely applies to philosophy is good old Sockrats’ “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Every now and then they’ll have an ep where one or more of the family members kinda look at themselves objectively, basically say “Yep, we’re really screwy”, but then follow to say “That’s exactly the way we like it.”
It reminds me that I’ve been meaning to dig up my books and notes and see if Sockrats ever mentioned the idea of ignorance being bliss. It seems like a statement that is pure antithesis to Plato’s writings, and prolly ancient Greek thought in general, but it seems like it would have made for a great Socratic dialogue, especially if it were with Gorgias or another sophist.
The idea of ignorance of bliss rings much to me of eastern philosophy, at least where one is just busy trying to experience life as unfettered as possible. I’m saying this because some of the ancient Greeks come off as closet eastern philosophers. I’ve probably been reading Pirsig too much. But the way Socrates always kinda circles back around to admitting he knows nothing; Gorgias’ (and pretty much everyone in the socratic dialogues) failure to describe an abstract good; Heraclitus’ description of what-there-is being in a state of constant change; all of that stuff kinda tickles my brain.
/me takes philosophy-major-wannabe hat back off and gets back to comp-sci career.
OT: Physics of Star Trek
Those readers with long memories will remember that
I promised to write about the issues I had with
Krauss’ The Physics of Star Trek. Rather
than just complaining about what I think he got wrong,
I’ve decided I’m better off doing out all the
calculations he alludes to and publishing them. That
way, if I’m the one who’s wrong, the mathematically
inclined readers out there can spot my mistakes.
Anyway, that’s a big project, which is unlikely to
start before my thesis is finished. (The funding for
that runs out in April, so there’s a definite deadline
ahead.)
Ok.
My girlfriend had to read The Simpsons and Philosophy for a Satire class this semester. Being the huge nerd that I am, I also read this book. If this is what they’re basing the course on, I certainly hope it’s a very short course.
It’s a two-credit course
I haven’t read the /. article, but on the radio that’s what they said. One of the books they will be using is called “The Doh of Homer”.
Aside from the similarities to “Waiting for Godot” in terms of the absurdness of life and existensialism, the one thing I can think of that definitely applies to philosophy is good old Sockrats’ “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Every now and then they’ll have an ep where one or more of the family members kinda look at themselves objectively, basically say “Yep, we’re really screwy”, but then follow to say “That’s exactly the way we like it.”
It reminds me that I’ve been meaning to dig up my books and notes and see if Sockrats ever mentioned the idea of ignorance being bliss. It seems like a statement that is pure antithesis to Plato’s writings, and prolly ancient Greek thought in general, but it seems like it would have made for a great Socratic dialogue, especially if it were with Gorgias or another sophist.
The idea of ignorance of bliss rings much to me of eastern philosophy, at least where one is just busy trying to experience life as unfettered as possible. I’m saying this because some of the ancient Greeks come off as closet eastern philosophers. I’ve probably been reading Pirsig too much. But the way Socrates always kinda circles back around to admitting he knows nothing; Gorgias’ (and pretty much everyone in the socratic dialogues) failure to describe an abstract good; Heraclitus’ description of what-there-is being in a state of constant change; all of that stuff kinda tickles my brain.
/me takes philosophy-major-wannabe hat back off and gets back to comp-sci career.