Science and Math!

You calling Economics irrational?! I will cut you ! >:/

It's quasi-rational.

edited 25th Sep '11 10:17:42 AM by TheyCallMeTomu

Economics relies too much on "well, this should happen" and then it gets all upset when people get irrational. I think you economists read too many papers by structural-functionalist sociologists.

I am now known as Flyboy.

You have a fundamental misunderstanding of what economics is. Economics is the study of what markets do. Any commentary on how to fix economics is politics ;P

You structural-functionalist pansy!

I suppose you don't even know what that is. Oh well.

I am now known as Flyboy.

@Dark Confidant: Ah, the Kakutani fixed point theorem. Nice.

By the way, this (from the wiki page for the fixed point theorem) cracked me up:

@Tzetze:

Granted. But the Greeks Wrote the Book (literally) on planar and solid geometry, and you cannot tell me that this would not give a lot of material for making fun magicky-looking diagrams, as they in effect did for astronomy... And, in any case, renaissance neoplatonists really should have known better.

Bah, perhaps we should make up a numerological system for the third millennium. It would be nonsense, obviously, but maybe we could make it into the sort of nonsense that will force occultism-interested people to study some cool math

edited 25th Sep '11 12:10:05 PM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

Well, I doubt New Age got many people to study crystallography or quantum mechanics.

"Atheism is the religion whose followers are easiest to troll"

Perhaps they could be convinced to, if they were told that studying the properties of the crystallographic groups is the key for unlocking the lost knowledge of Atlantis or something.

And, judging from the titles of their books, apparently they already like 'quantum' a lot, don't they?

Granted, most of them could not recognize a ket if it got stuck in their bra, but they could learn...

edited 25th Sep '11 12:09:09 PM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

I trust you've got good basis for this speculation.

"Atheism is the religion whose followers are easiest to troll"

Geology and meteorology have been forgotten as well. And those are two of my favorite sciences... along with physics, astronomy, psychology, logic, and music (yes music, though I suppose if you want me to be more specific, music cognition and theory). I'm not so much a big fan of math, though I know it's required in most of the previous mentioned sciences. I like it better as a language, I suppose, than actually doing it myself.

I'm working on it.

@OP, Why is psychology considered by you to be a soft science?

Dutch Lesbian

Because it's based a lot on qualitative data and observations, rather than quantitative data.

I suppose I should make another category for geology, meteorology, and astrology, but I'm not even sure they're groupable together. Ah well.

I am now known as Flyboy.

Lolwut? I must have done something else at uni then because I collected alot of quantitative data.

Dutch Lesbian

Well, I know there's lots of numbers in it. After all, to a certain extent, sociology is what happens when you blow psychology up to the macro level and throw in economics for some good mind fuckery. However, any science that deals with human opinion and thought process is going to be soft at the end of the day, because it's hard—if not impossible—to do in the same objective manner as, say, doing random math calculations for physics or some mixing of matter in chemistry...

I am now known as Flyboy.

Thats why I said it was a Hardsoft science, too hard to be mixed with sociology and not hard enough to be with physics,chem and bio.

Dutch Lesbian

<Sheldon Cooper> GEOLOGY IS NOT A REAL SCIENCE! <Gets gunned down with paintguns>

I considered going into geology after high school, actually. As I considered going into chemistry. But then I went with math, and, even though I am quite happy with my study and research subjects, I cannot help wondering if I should have chosen something else and being annoyed at my lack of knowledge in these subjects.

Oh well, a consolation is that I know that if I had chosen, I dunno, chemistry I would now be wondering if I should not have chosen math instead

edited 25th Sep '11 2:30:16 PM by Carciofus

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

Oh you did not just imply that psychology is a harder science than sociology.

Geology isn't a real science? When did that happen? 0_o

I am now known as Flyboy.

• clicks my fingers*

Oh yes I did.

Dutch Lesbian

Study ALL the sciences! :D

Anthropology's cool. :3

ᐅᖃᐅᓯᖅ ᐊᑕᐅᓯᖅ ᓈᒻᒪᔪᐃᑦᑐᖅ

Give me enough money to be a gentleman-scholar and not have to worry about publications, teaching positions and all that stuff and I might do just that

But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.

Psychology has a nifty little thing called neuroscience.

I was going to say, "silly psychologists and their Freud," and then I looked over and saw Karl Marx standing there with the other big sociologists and had to sigh...

I am now known as Flyboy.

Well, at least you're not dissing Jung.

>Implying Psychologists use Freud.

Dutch Lesbian

Neuroscience is a different field, not a subset... they work together, but then so do psychologists and sociologists.

And there are interesting psychologists before Freud, you know. Like William James.

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