1. Home
    1. Start Here: Study Guide
    2. Community Standards And Posting Policies
    3. Terms of Use
    4. Moderator Team
    5. Site Map
    6. Quizzes
    7. Articles
      1. Featured Articles
    8. All Blog Posts
      1. Elli's Blog / Articles
  2. Wiki
    1. Wiki Home
    2. FAQ
    3. Classical Epicureanism
    4. Physics Wiki
    5. Canonics Wiki
    6. Ethics Wiki
    7. Search Assistance
    8. Not NeoEpicurean
    9. Foundations
    10. Navigation Outlines
    11. Key Pages
  3. Forum
    1. Full Forum List
    2. Welcome Threads
    3. Physics
    4. Canonics
    5. Ethics
    6. Uncategorized Forum
    7. Study Resources Forum
    8. Ancient Texts Forum
    9. Shortcuts
    10. Featured
  4. Latest
    1. New Activity
    2. Latest Threads
    3. Dashboard
  5. Podcast
    1. Lucretius Today Podcast
    2. Episode Guide
    3. Lucretius Today At Youtube
    4. EpicureanFriends Youtube Page
  6. Texts
    1. Overview
    2. Diogenes Laertius
    3. Principal Doctrines
    4. Vatican Sayings
    5. Lucretius
    6. Herodotus
    7. Pythocles
    8. Menoeceus
    9. Fragments - Usener Collection
    10. Torquatus On Ethics
    11. Velleius On Gods
    12. Greek/Latin Help
  7. Gallery
    1. Featured images
    2. Albums
    3. Latest Images
    4. Latest Comments
  8. Calendar
    1. Upcoming Events List
    2. Zoom Meetings
    3. This Month
    4. Sunday Zoom Meetings
    5. First Monday Zoom Meetings
    6. Wednesday Zoom Meeting
    7. Twentieth Zoom Meetings
    8. Zoom Meetings
  9. Other
    1. Featured Content
    2. Blog Posts
    3. Files
    4. Logbook
    5. EF ToDo List
    6. Link-Database
  • Login
  • Register
  • Search
Everywhere
  • Everywhere
  • Forum
  • Articles
  • Blog Articles
  • Files
  • Gallery
  • Events
  • Pages
  • Wiki
  • Help
  • FAQ
  • More Options

Welcome To EpicureanFriends.com!

"Remember that you are mortal, and you have a limited time to live, and in devoting yourself to discussion of the nature of time and eternity you have seen things that have been, are now, and are to come."

Sign In Now
or
Register a new account
  1. Home
    1. Start Here: Study Guide
    2. Community Standards And Posting Policies
    3. Terms of Use
    4. Moderator Team
    5. Site Map
    6. Quizzes
    7. Articles
      1. Featured Articles
    8. All Blog Posts
      1. Elli's Blog / Articles
  2. Wiki
    1. Wiki Home
    2. FAQ
    3. Classical Epicureanism
    4. Physics Wiki
    5. Canonics Wiki
    6. Ethics Wiki
    7. Search Assistance
    8. Not NeoEpicurean
    9. Foundations
    10. Navigation Outlines
    11. Key Pages
  3. Forum
    1. Full Forum List
    2. Welcome Threads
    3. Physics
    4. Canonics
    5. Ethics
    6. Uncategorized Forum
    7. Study Resources Forum
    8. Ancient Texts Forum
    9. Shortcuts
    10. Featured
  4. Latest
    1. New Activity
    2. Latest Threads
    3. Dashboard
  5. Podcast
    1. Lucretius Today Podcast
    2. Episode Guide
    3. Lucretius Today At Youtube
    4. EpicureanFriends Youtube Page
  6. Texts
    1. Overview
    2. Diogenes Laertius
    3. Principal Doctrines
    4. Vatican Sayings
    5. Lucretius
    6. Herodotus
    7. Pythocles
    8. Menoeceus
    9. Fragments - Usener Collection
    10. Torquatus On Ethics
    11. Velleius On Gods
    12. Greek/Latin Help
  7. Gallery
    1. Featured images
    2. Albums
    3. Latest Images
    4. Latest Comments
  8. Calendar
    1. Upcoming Events List
    2. Zoom Meetings
    3. This Month
    4. Sunday Zoom Meetings
    5. First Monday Zoom Meetings
    6. Wednesday Zoom Meeting
    7. Twentieth Zoom Meetings
    8. Zoom Meetings
  9. Other
    1. Featured Content
    2. Blog Posts
    3. Files
    4. Logbook
    5. EF ToDo List
    6. Link-Database
  1. Home
    1. Start Here: Study Guide
    2. Community Standards And Posting Policies
    3. Terms of Use
    4. Moderator Team
    5. Site Map
    6. Quizzes
    7. Articles
      1. Featured Articles
    8. All Blog Posts
      1. Elli's Blog / Articles
  2. Wiki
    1. Wiki Home
    2. FAQ
    3. Classical Epicureanism
    4. Physics Wiki
    5. Canonics Wiki
    6. Ethics Wiki
    7. Search Assistance
    8. Not NeoEpicurean
    9. Foundations
    10. Navigation Outlines
    11. Key Pages
  3. Forum
    1. Full Forum List
    2. Welcome Threads
    3. Physics
    4. Canonics
    5. Ethics
    6. Uncategorized Forum
    7. Study Resources Forum
    8. Ancient Texts Forum
    9. Shortcuts
    10. Featured
  4. Latest
    1. New Activity
    2. Latest Threads
    3. Dashboard
  5. Podcast
    1. Lucretius Today Podcast
    2. Episode Guide
    3. Lucretius Today At Youtube
    4. EpicureanFriends Youtube Page
  6. Texts
    1. Overview
    2. Diogenes Laertius
    3. Principal Doctrines
    4. Vatican Sayings
    5. Lucretius
    6. Herodotus
    7. Pythocles
    8. Menoeceus
    9. Fragments - Usener Collection
    10. Torquatus On Ethics
    11. Velleius On Gods
    12. Greek/Latin Help
  7. Gallery
    1. Featured images
    2. Albums
    3. Latest Images
    4. Latest Comments
  8. Calendar
    1. Upcoming Events List
    2. Zoom Meetings
    3. This Month
    4. Sunday Zoom Meetings
    5. First Monday Zoom Meetings
    6. Wednesday Zoom Meeting
    7. Twentieth Zoom Meetings
    8. Zoom Meetings
  9. Other
    1. Featured Content
    2. Blog Posts
    3. Files
    4. Logbook
    5. EF ToDo List
    6. Link-Database
  1. EpicureanFriends - Home of Classical Epicurean Philosophy
  2. Kyle
  • Sidebar
  • Sidebar

Posts by Kyle

Sunday Weekly Zoom.  12:30 PM EDT - This week's discussion topic: "The Universe Is Infinite In Size And Eternal In Time." To find out how to attend CLICK HERE. To read more on the discussion topic CLICK HERE.
Regularly Checking In On A Small Screen Device? Bookmark THIS page!
  • Give Us an Example of God!

    • Kyle
    • December 29, 2024 at 4:28 PM

    > For god cannot be conceived apart from thought


    I was confused by this phrase, but I think in context this must mean that god/a god can't be conceived of as a thoughtless being (like a p-zombie).

  • Brain Damage and Religious Fundamentalism

    • Kyle
    • September 26, 2024 at 11:10 AM

    Possibly related: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geschwind_syndrome (there's evidence this is what happened for Ramana Maharshi)

  • What Would Epicurus Say To Someone Who Complains "The World Is Unjust / Life Isn't Fair"?

    • Kyle
    • September 26, 2024 at 11:03 AM
    Quote from Cassius
    Quote from Kyle

    He might disagree with the premise and instead argue we should be grateful and that Nature makes it easy to acquire the good and avoid the bad if we pursue natural and necessary desires.

    Does that mean that if someone came up to an Epicurean and said "The World isn't just!" or "Live is Unfair" that a proper response would be. "You're looking at it wrong and you shouldn't see it that way...."

    What if the person says further:

    - What you're saying doesn't change anything about fairness or justice!

    - So in fact you are agreeing with me: The World ISN'T just and Life ISN'T fair!

    - That's what you're telling me?

    Display More

    I remember this one video saying that Epicureans promoted the use of stigma as the natural way of enforcing justice:

    Maybe we can argue that it is our responsibility to enforce justice by stigma?


    > Life ISN'T fair

    Life and the world have no divine providence in Epicureanism, so justice is up to humans.


    > There never was an absolute justice, but only an agreement made in reciprocal association in whatever localities now and again from time to time, providing against the infliction or suffering of harm.

    However, we should be grateful to Nature for "making" life desirable/choice-worthy and such that the good is easy to get.

  • What Would Epicurus Say To Someone Who Complains "The World Is Unjust / Life Isn't Fair"?

    • Kyle
    • September 26, 2024 at 10:37 AM

    He might disagree with the premise and instead argue we should be grateful and that Nature makes it easy to acquire the good and avoid the bad if we pursue natural and necessary desires.

    As long as we can achieve our basic needs, and we are free, we can be truly happy even without great wealth:

    > The cry of the flesh is not to be hungry, thirsty, or cold; for he who is free of these and is confident of remain so might vie even with Zeus for happiness.

    > Since the attainment of great wealth can scarcely be accomplished without slavery to crowds or to politicians, a free life cannot obtain much wealth; but such a life already possesses everything in unfailing supply. Should such a life happen to achieve great wealth, this too it can share so as to gain the good will of one's neighbors.


    He admonishes ungrateful attitudes or excessive desires:

    > Nothing is enough to someone for whom what is enough is little.

    > Don't spoil what you have by desiring what you don't have; but remember that what you now have was once among the things only hoped for.


    This VS seems to argue that people who do unjust things suffer some consequences (so it's like there's some justice built in):

    > Neither he who is always seeking material aid from his friends nor he who never considers such aid is a true friend; for one engages in petty trade, taking a favor instead of gratitude, and the other deprives himself of hope for the future.

  • Joshua Reads The Opening of Lucretius Book One - 1743 Edition

    • Kyle
    • November 6, 2019 at 11:27 AM

    > Another thing I want to figure out is how to start the opening location on the first screen lower on the page at the beginning , as I am thinking that might help as well.

    Yes, I'm certain this can be done by modifying the script. I'll see if I can solve it later today.


    > I am also wondering if I can just break down the audio into separate files, and process it separately by "chunks" and give the video a chance to catch up that way.

    You could break the audio and text file into corrosponding chunks and run the python script for each chunk, I was thinking about making the script do this for you if you specify the chunks so you don't have to run the python script for each chunk.

  • Joshua Reads The Opening of Lucretius Book One - 1743 Edition

    • Kyle
    • November 6, 2019 at 11:03 AM

    Hmm, the text scrolling can be wonkey because it applies a consistent scroll speed to a voice with variable speed. It averages out as shown at the end, but the text can get so behind that you can't see the words being spoken. The only way to solve this would be to give the user the option to set keyframes (like telling the text-scrolling engine what part of the text is being read at the middle of the audio, then the engine could change the times before and after the keyframe to help stabilize the text scrolling).

  • Where I'm At Philosophically (Questioning Objectivism)

    • Kyle
    • November 3, 2019 at 10:33 PM

    I need to find the time to analyze the ideas holding me back from seriously pursuing pleasure:

    I'm still trying to work things out when it comes to my philosophy, I've been studying objectivism for a while but it has led me down a road where I feel like it's not the life I want to live. I need to think carefully because I think Epicurus might be right about how to truly live the best life, but I need time to also do university and do my interviews. Like, maybe I need to carefully analyze the questions I have, but right now it seems like a whole lot of questions and a whole lot to analyze that I need to find the right place where I can do this in an organized way.

    I think Epicurus has a more intuitive approach to observing what your desires are, looking to your nature. I think we need a great level of open mindedness to discover what our nature desires, but after all this time I dont understand how Ayn Rands philosophy will point you there. Do I need reason to justify playing and enjoying my finite life? Shouldn't reason be instrumental to living the best life rather than reason for reason's sake.

    I was in this discussion forum with people that were rationalists and objectivists for a long time, but I think it's kind of a nutty place where they have very strange ideas that just dont match up with my experience, definitely contradict epicureanism, and I almost cannot accept will lead to the best life.

    The thing that really disturbed me which led me to leaving that place was when I was told by the leader that.... and this is a long story I need to explain that I'm forced to go to church with my zealot christian younger brother because my parents are very controlling, occassionally malicious, and irrational, and I talked about this in the discussion forum. And I was fed up with the sermon message they were talking about one day which was about "sexual immorality". The objectivist rationalist philosophy discussion group leader said "you dont understand the cultural battles, gays are hostile against the church. That pastor is supporting the church and therefore are defending civilization and is on the side of the good." I dont know if it's a coincidence I became sick for a few days after that. I know I wouldn't be able to argue against this guy because hes too clever. But why should I argue against this guy? Why am I going down this road, how does this lead to the life of true enjoyment?

    Epicurus focused on the important things, like undermining any superstitions. I think undermining the disturbing psychological afflictions my religious upbringing brings me a tremendous physical peace. Why should I focus on anything Epicurus showed was vain?

    It's late, I'll just post what I wrote. The key point is I need to have a relatively organized analysis of the reasons why I'm choosing to follow Epicurus and abandoning these other ideas. Reason should be instrumental to living my best life.

    (There's still lots of good ideas from these non-Epicureans, like being honest when talking about philosophy and using abstractions to solve problems (But this should be instrumental to pleasant living)).

    Am I (becoming) epicurean? <--- I didn't know where I should post this, you're free to move it Cassius, if you read this.

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 8:53 PM

    Sorry the titles are too hard to implement for me to work on it unless you think they're necessary

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 8:23 PM

    Yes I can make a title. I'm working on that now.

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 7:59 PM

    You can move the text (x-position, 'center')

    replace x-position with something like 10

    (i think this will work, i'd test a short clip first).

    I'm making the web app, it's gonna take a bit i have to learn how to do APIs

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 7:04 PM

    I know how to fix that error,

    https://askubuntu.com/questions/8731…cted-by-moviepy

    First of all, I install libmagick++-dev by using sudo apt install libmagick++-dev. Secondly, I follow the suggestion from reddit. Specifically, I open policy.xml of ImageMagick by using command: sudo vim /etc/ImageMagick-6/policy.xml and then comment the @ policy by change from <policy domain="path" rights="none" pattern="@*" /> to <!--<policy domain="path" rights="none" pattern="@*" /> -->.

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 5:46 PM

    Admittedly, my server is going to be very slow, so a 15 minute video will take an hour to create.

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 4:24 PM

    I've decided to make a Web Application like I described earlier, it would be very enjoyable to make

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 3:55 PM

    Then it should work, and yes, the TTS takes time. Then it should show a progress bar once Moviepy starts to load the audio

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 3:52 PM

    Yeah I should make it print something at the start to let you know it's working.


    It takes a very long time to create the video.

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 3:47 PM

    An installer will work..

    I'm also considering making this into a web application so that you can just create the video by pasting text into a website and download it from the website

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 2:11 PM

    ok, I have work and after like 5, I can set up easy install instructions

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 1:55 PM

    BTW it will only work with MP3 (I could change that tho if y'all want, I think I will add m4a)

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 1:54 PM

    > What kind of text-to-speech engine are you using?

    The python library will use whatever is native to your operating system, in my case it's using Mac.

    I tested the human reading option and it works.

    Here's a demo of human reading

  • Technology Question - How Best To Create "Video" With Speech Matched To Scrolling Text

    • Kyle
    • October 11, 2019 at 1:39 PM

    I added the option for choosing a premade audio file and it should work well. I'd recommend not leaving any silence at the beginning or end of the audio file so it matches with the scrolling text.

    The scrolling text will use the length of the audio file you give it (in AUDIO_FILE, if you leave it blank it will generate audio through TTS) in order to calculate its scrolling speed.

    I uploaded the changes. Next I'm going to create an installer so it's easy for others to use

Unread Threads

    1. Title
    2. Replies
    3. Last Reply
    1. Mocking Epithets 1

      • Like 2
      • Bryan
      • July 4, 2025 at 3:01 PM
      • Comparing Epicurus With Other Philosophers - General Discussion
      • Bryan
      • July 4, 2025 at 6:43 PM
    2. Replies
      1
      Views
      101
      1
    3. Don

      July 4, 2025 at 6:43 PM
    1. Best Lucretius translation? 12

      • Like 1
      • Rolf
      • June 19, 2025 at 8:40 AM
      • General Discussion of "On The Nature of Things"
      • Rolf
      • July 1, 2025 at 1:59 PM
    2. Replies
      12
      Views
      678
      12
    3. Eikadistes

      July 1, 2025 at 1:59 PM
    1. Philodemus' "On Anger" - General - Texts and Resources 19

      • Like 1
      • Cassius
      • April 1, 2022 at 5:36 PM
      • Philodemus On Anger
      • Cassius
      • June 30, 2025 at 8:54 AM
    2. Replies
      19
      Views
      6.2k
      19
    3. Don

      June 30, 2025 at 8:54 AM
    1. The Religion of Nature - as supported by Lucretius' De Rerum Natura 4

      • Thanks 1
      • Kalosyni
      • June 12, 2025 at 12:03 PM
      • General Discussion of "On The Nature of Things"
      • Kalosyni
      • June 23, 2025 at 12:36 AM
    2. Replies
      4
      Views
      713
      4
    3. Godfrey

      June 23, 2025 at 12:36 AM
    1. New Blog Post From Elli - " Fanaticism and the Danger of Dogmatism in Political and Religious Thought: An Epicurean Reading"

      • Like 3
      • Cassius
      • June 20, 2025 at 4:31 PM
      • Epicurus vs Abraham (Judaism, Christianity, Islam)
      • Cassius
      • June 20, 2025 at 4:31 PM
    2. Replies
      0
      Views
      1.7k

Latest Posts

  • Conveying Epicurean Philosophy: Study and Practical Applications

    Adrastus July 5, 2025 at 12:53 AM
  • Mocking Epithets

    Don July 4, 2025 at 6:43 PM
  • Sorites Argument Referenced in Cicero's Academic Questions

    Cassius July 4, 2025 at 6:17 PM
  • Cicero's Summary of the Four Main Arguments Against the Possibility of Knowledge

    Cassius July 4, 2025 at 5:58 PM
  • Episode 289 - TD19 - "Is The Wise Man Subject To Anger, Envy, or Pity?" To Be Recorded

    Cassius July 4, 2025 at 3:16 PM
  • What place does "simple" have in Epicureanism?

    Kalosyni July 4, 2025 at 2:08 PM
  • Episode 288 - TD18 - Tusculan Disputations Part 3 - "Will The Wise Man Feel Grief Or Other Strong Emotions?"

    Don July 4, 2025 at 8:27 AM
  • Epicurus' Prolepsis vs Heraclitus' Flux

    Bryan July 3, 2025 at 9:40 PM
  • Prolepsis of the gods

    Cassius July 3, 2025 at 7:47 PM
  • Eudoxus of Cnidus - Advocate of Pleasure Prior To Epicurus

    TauPhi July 3, 2025 at 11:09 AM

EpicureanFriends - Classical Epicurean Philosophy

  1. Home
    1. About Us
    2. Classical Epicurean Philosophy
  2. Wiki
    1. Getting Started
  3. Frequently Asked Questions
    1. Site Map
  4. Forum
    1. Latest Threads
    2. Featured Threads
    3. Unread Posts
  5. Texts
    1. Core Texts
    2. Biography of Epicurus
    3. Lucretius
  6. Articles
    1. Latest Articles
  7. Gallery
    1. Featured Images
  8. Calendar
    1. This Month At EpicureanFriends
Powered by WoltLab Suite™ 6.0.22
Style: Inspire by cls-design
Stylename
Inspire
Manufacturer
cls-design
Licence
Commercial styles
Help
Supportforum
Visit cls-design