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  1. EpicureanFriends - Home of Classical Epicurean Philosophy
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Posts by Godfrey

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  • Voula Tsouna Zoom Presentation This Thursday, May 27, at 12 Noon EDT

    • Godfrey
    • May 26, 2021 at 2:45 PM

    From Googling "apprehension:"

    understanding; grasp, "the pure apprehension of the work of art." Similar: comprehension, realization, recognition, appreciation, discernment

    This sounds like "getting it" as opposed to the process (thinking, logic, reasoning, etc) that leads to "getting it."

  • Voula Tsouna Zoom Presentation This Thursday, May 27, at 12 Noon EDT

    • Godfrey
    • May 25, 2021 at 7:23 PM

    I just registered and the confirmation email includes a link to a handout of excerpts of the relevant texts, fwiw.

  • Where Is Epicurus In The "School of Athens"?

    • Godfrey
    • May 19, 2021 at 11:13 PM

    As an aside, it just occurred to me that the architectural setting is Roman, not Greek. As far as I'm aware the Greeks didn't build with arches but with posts and lintels, developed through the classical orders.

    If this has any relevance to the discussion at hand, it may indicate that Raphael wasn't taking a literal view as to who was who and had another, overarching (pardon the pun) agenda.

  • Episode Seventy-One - The Formation Of the World (Our Part of the Universe)

    • Godfrey
    • May 19, 2021 at 8:17 PM

    Hicks and Yonge both use "rebound," as does Mensch, although she seems to arrange the passage differently:

    Quote

    44 The atoms are in constant motion for eternity. [He says later on that they also move with equal velocity, the void yielding equally to the lightest and the heaviest.] Some travel great distances from one another, while others continue to oscillate in place when they find themselves entangled or enclosed in a mesh of atoms. 45 This is because each atom is separated from the rest by void, which cannot provide any resistance; and the atom’s solidity makes it rebound after any collision, no matter how distant, whereupon it finds itself entangled in a mesh of atoms. Of these motions there is no beginning, since they are caused by the atoms and the void.

  • Episode Seventy-One - The Formation Of the World (Our Part of the Universe)

    • Godfrey
    • May 19, 2021 at 4:51 PM

    This idea of continuous motion and vibration, to me, makes much more sense than the swerve!

    Also from Herodotus:

    Quote

    60. Further, one must not assert that the unlimited has an up and a down in the sense of an [absolutely] highest and lowest point. We know, however, that what is over our heads from wherever we stand, or what is below any point which we think of—it being possible to project both indefinitely—will never appear to us as being at the same time and in the same respect both up and down. For it is impossible to conceive of this. Consequently, it is possible to grasp as one motion the one conceived of as indefinitely [extended] upwards and the one conceived of as indefinitely [extended] downwards, even if a thousand times over a thing moving from us towards the places over our heads should arrive at the feet of those above us or a thing moving from us downwards should arrive at the head of those below us.

  • Philosophy as a Way of Life by John Sellars

    • Godfrey
    • May 13, 2021 at 4:24 PM

    This article was of interest to me because of it's overall theme and how Sellars related to Lucretius. Lucretius doesn't show up until the end but is considered to be a good example of living philosophy. I like the approach because it doesn't rely on "spiritual exercises" or specific daily practices but is more of an approach to integrating philosophy into one's life.

    Beware! He does say that Lucretius' goal was tranquility, but aside from that I found it to be a quick and worthwhile read.

    Files

    PhilosophyAsAWayOfLife_Sellars_13pp.pdf 118.35 kB – 3 Downloads
  • Research Assistance Question - Cross-platform or Syncing E-Reading

    • Godfrey
    • May 2, 2021 at 12:43 PM

    That's a good question! I've been using Kindle for books and Google Play Books for pdfs. I haven't checked to see how well GPB syncs as I read most e-stuff on my tablet. GPB seems to be limited in the file size that it will accept, so I downloaded ReadEra pdf reader on my tablet to read and bookmark the Epicurean Friends version of Lucretius. ReadEra only works on Android though as far as I know.

    It would be nice to find a reader for pdfs and epub that works as well as Kindle does for mobi! Plus there's my love/hate feelings toward Amazon....

  • Sedley - Epicurus and The Transformation of Greek Wisdom

    • Godfrey
    • May 1, 2021 at 5:54 PM

    Here's my two cents:

    Sedley at his finest: he discusses how the proem to book 1 is a direct response to Empedocles' poem On Nature and a transition from Empedocles philosophy to that of Epicurus. Then he constructs the contents of Epicurus' On Nature and has a couple of charts showing how this correlates to Lucretius DRN. Later he posits that the final book or two of DRN correlates to the Peripatetic Theophrastus via Epicurus.

    He further posits that Lucretius was in the process of a rewrite at the time of his death, and that he had only completed books 1-3. His theory is that Lucretius first put Epicurus On Nature into verse, then was reworking the structure of his poem to fit his goal of persuasion as opposed to Epicurus' goal of exposition. He describes Epicurus' books as the contents of a series of lectures, btw.

    As to the plague of Athens, Sedley's theory is that it was Lucretius' initial pass, to be reworked. He presents the overall DRN as a cycle of books beginning with pleasure and ending with pain, and posits that the plague of Athens portion would probably have been reworked to show how an Epicurean deals with pain, similar to Epicurus on his deathbed.

    He's kind enough to translate 99% of the Greek and Latin; overall it reads quite well for a layman such as me.

    Makes me want to read DRN yet again!

  • Getting Started - Initial Thoughts on 3D Printing

    • Godfrey
    • April 28, 2021 at 8:52 PM

    The Epicurus side of the double herm seems to be the best likeness of the batch.

    https://www.myminifactory.com/object/3d-prin…ie-vienna-21407

  • Getting Started - Initial Thoughts on 3D Printing

    • Godfrey
    • April 28, 2021 at 3:10 PM

    https://www.myminifactory.com/scantheworld/

    I just came across this site for various 3D models. There are a few of Epicurus, of varying quality. There may be others of interest on the site as well. I noticed that there are other "myminifactory" links above but I don't know if they're part of this site or not.... At any rate, here's yet another link!

  • Boscoreale Cup Resources

    • Godfrey
    • April 26, 2021 at 2:05 PM

    Doesn't look like the same cup judging by the profile of the top rim and the detail of the garland.

  • Alt-tech outreach

    • Godfrey
    • April 26, 2021 at 12:19 PM

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 25, 2021 at 3:33 PM

    It seems then that the behavior being debated as instinctual is quite complicated since it involves two beavers and a division of labor. This, to me, makes it sound more like learned behavior. But since it doesn't seem to be clear what constitutes instinct, there is the possibility that this degree of complexity may be instinctual.

    In Don's example I wonder if the beaver that built a dam was male or female :/

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 24, 2021 at 3:48 PM

    Bailey is explicit that concepts clarify sensations. According to modern science, sensations confirm "pre-rational concepts." In conscious thought we use concepts to clarify sensations, but Barrett argues that rationality is somewhat of an illusion since so much of the process occurs subconsciously through predictions, simulations, affect, etc.

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 24, 2021 at 3:41 PM
    Quote from Don

    When I say Anticipations are similar to "mental concepts" in modern neuroscience, I'm not talking about rational reasoning

    Don I was going to make exactly that point. "Pre-rational concepts" are what I would consider to be the faculty as well as the "etchings."

    I'm curious as to whether there is any functional equivalence between "pre-rational concepts" and "rational concepts" or if it's just confusing terminology. It seems as if they may be different levels of usage of the faculty, but I don't know if that's neurologically correct.

    An illustration that comes to mind is of breathing: we breathe subconsciously to stay alive, but we can also consciously control our breathing.

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 23, 2021 at 8:23 PM
    Quote from Cassius

    Ok Godfrey you started this. What would you say to Elli's Greek beavers who need training in building dams?

    I would think that beavers would need to learn to build dams. But one of Don's links explains that they don't, so if that's correct then as good Epicureans ;) that should be our basis for going forward.

    Meanwhile, I got around to reading the links that I attached earlier. It turns out that one is pretty useless, but the other describes some of the history of this debate (although not specifically beavers). I've attached the paper from the second link here. Better minds than mine have wrestled with this for a long time!

    So I guess the bottom line is "damned if I know!" (Sorry, I couldn't resist. )

    Files

    Instinct--Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior.pdf 175.41 kB – 4 Downloads
  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 22, 2021 at 10:58 PM
    Quote

    Ha that article seems to imply they just want peace and quiet!

    They're seeking absence of pain :D

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 22, 2021 at 10:55 PM

    So according to these videos there is some sort of predisposition to build and to sing. Would this be a "faculty?" A biological "sketch" and thus a DeWitty Anticipation? Would subsequent learned behavior still be an Anticipation? Is it appropriate to draw a line between the two or could both be considered Anticipations?

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 22, 2021 at 9:05 PM

    Actually it may be quite a rabbit hole! :rolleyes:

    Here are a couple of links that I found that look promising, but I haven't read them yet:

    https://home.uchicago.edu/~rjr6/articles…%20Behavior.pdf

    https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/animal_instincts

  • Is There A Relationship Between "Anticipations" and "Instinct"?

    • Godfrey
    • April 22, 2021 at 8:42 PM

    Interesting video! In the terms of the video, the question that I'm asking is whether complex behaviors are actually innate. To me, the behaviors listed as simple are innate, biological, and would not involve an Anticipation.

    Assume that you go to a bird's nest, take an egg, and rear the bird that hatches from the egg away from other birds. Once it is fully grown, if you release it will it fly south for the winter? Will it exhibit mating behavior appropriate to its species if it comes across a bird of the opposite sex? Will it wake up early to sing? These seem to me to be learned behaviors, but that's just theorizing on my part. Theoretically speaking, maybe the bird would seek warmth as a precursor to migrating, and have some awkward teenage sexual attraction to the other bird as a rudimentary mating behavior. Both of these not quite developed behaviors could be Anticipations in the sense of the "sketch" that DeWitt refers to. As to singing, there is probably a joy of making noise which may eventually lead to a song of sorts.

    But do seeking warmth, having sex, and making noise really rate as Anticipations? They seem to be just simple biological functions of seeking pleasure; adding the specific behaviors of flying to San Juan Capistrano, doing a specific mating dance and singing a particular birdsong seem to me to be learned behaviors. If this is correct, then an Anticipation would be considered social and not innate.

    Somebody has probably done experiments along these lines, which could provide useful observational evidence to work with. If I have a chance I'll try to track some down!

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