this post was submitted on 11 Apr 2024
276 points (94.2% liked)

Science Memes

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top 17 comments
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[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

Not a problem. Glad to help.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 months ago
[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago

The universe started with a Big Bang, I guess it makes sense it'd go out on the BIG HONK

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago

Well, that happens sometimes

[–] [email protected] 7 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Do I truly know the goose, or am I simply aware of its existence? Considering the universe has not ended, it would seem that simply being aware of the goose's existence is not enough to truly "know" the goose, and as such indicates that the word "unknowable" does not refer to knowledge of the goose's existence, but instead refers to understanding the goose. This is a good example of knowing being erroneously conflated with understanding.

Understanding implies knowledge, but the reverse is untrue. Knowing that 2+2=4 doesn't help you do simple arithmetic if you don't understand why 2+2=4; it simply allows you to announce "4!" whenever asked what 2+2 is equal to. If you were asked, "what does 2+1 equal" you would be understandably befuddled as you lack the understanding to deduce that 2+1 is one less than 2+2, and therefore is equal to 3.

A good example of this concept could be the overhyped "LLM". An LLM contains a lot of knowledge about many different things. However, it understands none of it. The result is that simple changes in how requests are phrased can radically change the accuracy of the information received. It doesn't understand how a car works, and so it doesn't understand that fueling a car with water is impossible. All it knows is that the word "gasoline" (or "petrol" for those of you in Europe) is typically involved when discussing cars, internal combustion, and fuel sources in the same breath.

To return to our goose, it seems the goose is perfectly knowable, in that I'm capable of being aware of its existence; but it is in fact the understanding of the goose which is impossible. I hope to understand the goose some day. Perhaps once this reality is gone, a newer, better one may take it's place.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago

Yeah but you try saying 'ununderstandable' after a couple of drinks

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago

I thought this had already happened several times.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 7 months ago

oops!

Oh no!

now reality will end

Oh thank god

[–] [email protected] 6 points 7 months ago

Drat. Not again!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 months ago

Know thyself

[–] [email protected] 29 points 7 months ago (1 children)

and now reality will end.

FINALLY.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 7 months ago

Don't you dare get my hopes up.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 7 months ago

Well, shit. Sorry everyone, I'm new here.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 7 months ago
[–] [email protected] 9 points 7 months ago (1 children)

I'm going to assume that there is no context here that I'm missing.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 7 months ago

embrace the void, brother

[–] [email protected] 8 points 7 months ago