From: jeffrey E. <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, August 12, 2016 7:21 PM To: Joscha Bach Subject: Re: His . He fell to pieces in front of Noam On Friday, 12 August 2016, Joscha Bach > wrote: I can see that C&W were having fun with each oth=r... what happened? Did they get along? By the way, since [I think] we are computers, implemented in the language o= of neurons, neurotransmitters etc., it is obvious that language in a comp=ter already understands concepts. Nature is not magical, and I see no reas=n why we cannot pull off the feat again, i.e. build our own computers with=languages that understand concepts. That makes me a DUBE, too, I guess. I =onder what alternative Noam and you see to DUBEdom? How else do humans und=rstand concepts, if not via a computational process (i.e. by manipulating =nformation in regular ways)? Btw, Steven Wolfram just wrote a newsletter to announce the latest version =f Mathematica; he has a certain distinctive style that rubs many people th= wrong way, by laying on pretty thick how much work he personally did on i=, how grandiose and unique the fruits of his intellect are, etc. http://blog.wolfram.com/2016/08/08/today-we-launch-v=rsion-11/ <http://blog.wolfram.com/2016/08/08/today-we- launch-version-11/> I think that in pointing out his achievements, he is factually mostly corre=t, but fascinatingly un-selfaware. He may not be as good as he thinks, but=he is far better than most. His mixture of a generous, genius intellect, h=s big ego and his unwillingness/inability to submit to standards of social=interaction seems to have turned Wolfram Industries into a kind of cult. P=ople seem to either follow him like disciples follow their guru, or they d=smiss him as a crank. http://shell.cas.ustedurwclark/ANKOS_humor.html <http://shell.cas.usfedurwclark/ANKOS_humor.html> It limits his effectiveness as a thinker or scientist, but of course, it do=s not matter much in the face of the meaninglessness of the univ