Why do many not see/ understand the GREY

System

OK.... 2 + 2 = 5 for large values of 2.

This any other variations makes perfect sense to me.

I see life and every thing in it as VARIABLES.  Many I know will see one interaction and draw a conclusion. Yet a short time later when they see what appears to be the same interaction but with a different outcome; become totally confused as if some rule has been broken.

We see it with coffee all the time.  Machine a, Bean A and Grinder A = X  and if X can not be had on a Different Machine then there is confusion... 

Then I saw this and had to agree...  People are becoming so polarised and "grey" is being left out -  The modern world is becoming Binary 

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Point of View: Is our digital world making us more "binary?"

A few days ago, my husband and I were talking about what it takes to advance within a large company and, in particular, the growing need for the so-called "soft skills" - the ability to deal with and manage people, create a consensus, work with a team, motivate others and so forth. He said something that struck me as particularly perceptive and that explained why so many talented and brilliant people in the IT industry get "stuck" in positions at a certain level. What he said was that IT professionals "tend to think in binary."

That makes sense. The computer world as we've always known it is built on binary; it's a world of ones and zeros, where the light switch is either on or it's off - there is no such thing as a dimmer. Binary is simple and easy to understand. It's all about precision; in the old analog world, things were much more fluid. Compare tuning in a radio station; with an analog tuner, you fiddled with the dial and the signal faded and strengthened until you found the best sound somewhere between 101 and 102 on the dial. With a digital tuner, you move in precisely defined steps and you know your station is located at 101.4.

Precision is great for dealing with machines but it's not so great for dealing with people. When we get into the "binary" way of thinking, we tend to see everything in absolutes. Something or someone is either good or bad, smart or stupid, a friend or an enemy. The world is painted in black and white, with no nuances of gray in between.

You've probably heard the old joke: There are only 10 kinds of people, those who understand binary and those who don't. But it's not just people who understand the binary number system that are influenced by the move to a digital way of thinking. As computing has gone mainstream and as technical knowledge has seeped into the collective consciousness, it seems as if more and more people have adopted the binary way of thinking. Maybe that's one of the reasons our population seems to be so polarized these days. Many people seem to see their own choices and opinions as the only "right" way to do or think.

Folks are fiercely adamant about which computer platforms or cell phones they use and defend their choices with a fervor that once was reserved for religious zealots. People define themselves by their political parties and actually feel that they can't be friends with someone from the opposite side of the partisan aisle.

We have "zero tolerance" policies in our schools and courtrooms, policies that don't concede there is a difference between being caught in the classroom with an aspirin vs. a bag of heroin, or having a butter knife in one's locker vs. an AK-47.

It's a one or it's a zero; it's a drug/weapon or it's not.

Even in the computer world, I'm not sure this is really the best way to approach most things outside of machine code. The responses I've heard about Windows 8 and Office 2013 (both in public betas) have been very binary: some folks are gushing about how great the new OS and productivity apps are. Others hate them. It seems as if I'm hearing fewer folks in the middle (although I am one of those few folks, who likes some of the changes and isn't so crazy about others).

As a matter of fact, computers in the distant future might not use binary code at all.

Theoretically, at least, the next giant step forward in computing will involve quantum mathematics, based on the behavior of particles at the subatomic level, in which data is represented by qubits instead of binary bits. Whereas a bit can only be in one of two states (one or zero), a qubit simultaneously has the possibility of being in any one of a number of states. The advantage of quantum computers is that they will be much faster and able to process exponentially more data than traditional binary machines.

Quantum computers are still a long way down the road, but the concept shows that even a machine that processes logic doesn't have to be limited to "all or nothing" thinking.

[color=rgb(128, 0, 0)]Maybe all of us would be happier and do a better job of getting along with each other if we learned to give up our binary way of processing information and making decisions.[/color]

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My close mate is a mad Quantum physics person and after 30 years of research is about to have his latest work published. 


While the first  28 years it was a hobby, in the last 18 months he has taken on a double degree and a masters and due to complete in the first few months of next year... We are expecting future advancements such as the cochlear ear being transformed into full real sound and even the development of a system that will restore sight.  In short, an AI system that can take different variables due to the way it manages and computes in a  quantum type fashion... 


Further more the implementation of quantum processors may not be so far away as many think....

He however still only drinks International roast    :rofl:

derrilex

Maybe he drinks IR to eliminate the variables. Crap is crap. :rofl: :rofl:. Good reading and certainly food for thought. All those Holden vs Ford nutters were way ahead of their time :D

madpierre

on 1344734377:

Many people seem to see their own choices and opinions as the only "right" way to do or think. He however still only drinks International roast    :rofl:

Key is this. A seeming inability/desire to take into account any point of view other than our own. We have been conditioned to be more selfish and self-seeking through a combination of less security in our world, along with a 'system' (both political and economic) which has pushed/led us to this greater lack of security. People no longer give a damn about anyone else (yes, a generalisation I know) in everyday life (as opposed to times of disaster). And so it is more difficult to comprehend another's' situation or point of view.  There seems to be a greater propensity for self-serving individuals rising through company ranks to positions where there is a greater need to be more flexible. Regards the IR.....Coffee is good, International Roast is called coffee, therefore International Roast is good.  :rofl:

C-man

I'm not ever going to read that, I am confused enough.

UNM

Nothing wrong with binary. Some of us can count to 31 on the fingers of one hand and 1023 using both. Just one of the many wonders of binary and a logical thought process. Ones and zeros can allow many more shades of grey than you might think (far more than 50 or whatever it is in the book). Just look at PWM control - it is either on or off and yet allows for excellent roaster control. But on a similar vein, Baroness Greenfield seems to believe we are raising a generation of children (thanks to video games) that suffer from 'kiddie dementia' http://spong.com/article/25558/Baroness-Greenfield-Video-Games-Lead-to-Kiddie-Dementia Computers, you see, are evil and we would be better served by going and hugging a (coffee) tree.