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GeneralRe: Apologies..for slowing down. Pin
megaadam29-Dec-17 1:20
professionalmegaadam29-Dec-17 1:20 
GeneralRe: Apologies..for slowing down. Pin
abmv29-Dec-17 3:32
professionalabmv29-Dec-17 3:32 
GeneralRe: Apologies..for slowing down. Pin
Herman<T>.Instance29-Dec-17 0:54
Herman<T>.Instance29-Dec-17 0:54 
GeneralAPOD Pin
R. Giskard Reventlov28-Dec-17 21:01
R. Giskard Reventlov28-Dec-17 21:01 
GeneralRe: APOD Pin
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 23:05
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 23:05 
GeneralRe: APOD Pin
lopatir29-Dec-17 0:58
lopatir29-Dec-17 0:58 
GeneralRe: APOD Pin
R. Giskard Reventlov29-Dec-17 1:05
R. Giskard Reventlov29-Dec-17 1:05 
GeneralShooter or Farmer ? : quote of the millennia PinPopular
BillWoodruff28-Dec-17 20:06
professionalBillWoodruff28-Dec-17 20:06 
"When the members of the Frontiers of Science discussed physics, they often used the abbreviation "SF." They didn’t mean "science fiction," but the two words "shooter" and "farmer." This was a reference to two hypotheses, both involving the fundamental nature of the laws of the universe.

In the shooter hypothesis, a good marksman shoots at a target, creating a hole every ten centimeters. Now suppose the surface of the target is inhabited by intelligent, two-dimensional creatures. Their scientists, after observing the universe, discover a great law: "There exists a hole in the universe every ten centimeters." They have mistaken the result of the marksman’s momentary whim for an unalterable law of the universe.

The farmer hypothesis, on the other hand, has the flavor of a horror story: Every morning on a turkey farm, the farmer comes to feed the turkeys. A scientist turkey, having observed this pattern to hold without change for almost a year, makes the following discovery: "Every morning at eleven, food arrives." On the morning of Thanksgiving, the scientist announces this law to the other turkeys. But that morning at eleven, food doesn’t arrive; instead, the farmer comes and kills the entire flock
Liu, Cixin | The Three-Body Problem (Remembrance of Earth’s Past) [^], also see: [^]

Bill the Obscure's version: A drunken wild turkey stumbled into a farmer's barn on the day sacred to the four-headed god, Mashup, when the rite of "Happy Meal" was being observed. The farmer ... prohibited from killing anything other than one, or more, of his wives on this holy day ... poured out his best corn, and the turkey ate until he could barely waddle away back into the forest.

The turkey went back to his flock ... who all marveled at this obvious miracle: only in their dreams had they ever seen a fat turkey ! When this overstuffed turkey described the farmer, the barn, the scrumptious repast of corn: all the turkeys fell flat on their bellies, wings outstretched in supplication ...

Thus began the religion of the farmer, and the next day all the turkeys followed the (now hungover) prophet of their new religion into the farmer's barn.

The farmer locked them in the barn, quickly built a large pen outside for them, then herded them from the barn into the pen ... he seized the turkey-prophet by his neck, and called out: "Wives two, and three ... bring a knife; we'll eat this one today, praise be to Mashup."

The other turkeys congratulated their newfound prophet on his glorious fate ... if they began to feel cramped in their crowded pen, began to feel famished because only a handful of old corn that reeked of mildew had been thrown in their pen ... well, some explained that as a test of their faith; some said that the acts of a god never make sense in terms of turkey weltanschauung; others said they were receiving deserved punishment for what they had done wrong ... although not one turkey could define what "wrong" was.

One turkey loudly proclaimed that after they had been killed and eaten by the farmer and his wives they would become gods, and live in a land of corn with no need for feathers to fly. This turkey was proclaimed the new prophet by acclimation.

The rest of the story ? You already know it.
«While I complain of being able to see only a shadow of the past, I may be insensitive to reality as it is now, since I'm not at a stage of development where I'm capable of seeing it.» Claude Levi-Strauss (Tristes Tropiques, 1955)


modified 29-Dec-17 3:34am.

GeneralRe: Shooter or Farmer ? : quote of the millennia Pin
CodeWraith29-Dec-17 5:21
CodeWraith29-Dec-17 5:21 
JokeRe: Shooter or Farmer ? : quote of the millennia Pin
Shuqian Ying29-Dec-17 20:33
Shuqian Ying29-Dec-17 20:33 
GeneralCascading Upgrades Pin
#realJSOP28-Dec-17 10:24
professional#realJSOP28-Dec-17 10:24 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades Pin
Foothill28-Dec-17 10:26
professionalFoothill28-Dec-17 10:26 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades Pin
#realJSOP28-Dec-17 11:11
professional#realJSOP28-Dec-17 11:11 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 13:11
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 13:11 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
Mycroft Holmes28-Dec-17 13:30
professionalMycroft Holmes28-Dec-17 13:30 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
#realJSOP28-Dec-17 14:56
professional#realJSOP28-Dec-17 14:56 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
OriginalGriff28-Dec-17 20:06
mveOriginalGriff28-Dec-17 20:06 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
H.Brydon29-Dec-17 9:38
professionalH.Brydon29-Dec-17 9:38 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
OriginalGriff29-Dec-17 10:07
mveOriginalGriff29-Dec-17 10:07 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
OriginalGriff28-Dec-17 20:02
mveOriginalGriff28-Dec-17 20:02 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 21:56
A_Griffin28-Dec-17 21:56 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
Foothill29-Dec-17 3:04
professionalFoothill29-Dec-17 3:04 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
jschell1-Jan-18 7:42
jschell1-Jan-18 7:42 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades (with "Passengers" spoilers) Pin
Foothill2-Jan-18 3:17
professionalFoothill2-Jan-18 3:17 
GeneralRe: Cascading Upgrades Pin
Daniel Pfeffer28-Dec-17 22:15
professionalDaniel Pfeffer28-Dec-17 22:15 

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