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vgr's profile
Venkatesh Rao
Venkatesh Rao
Venkatesh Rao
@vgr

Tweets

Venkatesh Rao

@vgr

This is my conversational account. For my work follow @ribbonfarm, @breaking_smart, @artofgig. Tweets are 90% vacuous views, apathetically held. Mediocritopian.

Los Angeles, CA
venkateshrao.com
Joined August 2007

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    1. Venkatesh Rao‏ @vgr 21 Apr 2019
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      If you exclude reading, writing, speaking, and listening (ie use of language, including math or code) as mere table stakes, how would you define “intellectual” in terms of essential non-language behaviors that non-intellectuals typically don’t exhibit?

      61 replies 6 retweets 67 likes
    2. Brian Sniffen‏ @BrianSniffen 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @vgr

      An intellectual computes a function not efficiently computable by a non-intellectual—because of having key state (from canon, grand tour), or computational superiority.

      1 reply 1 retweet 2 likes
    3. Venkatesh Rao‏ @vgr 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @BrianSniffen

      Canon = language input. Which leaves your definition resting on grand tour alone (by which I assume you mean actual wide-ranging travel)

      1 reply 1 retweet 0 likes
    4. Brian Sniffen‏ @BrianSniffen 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @vgr

      Oh! I misunderstood, because that function is from linguistic input to output. I don’t think I could be convinced of an intellectual with a vow of silence.

      1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
    5. Venkatesh Rao‏ @vgr 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @BrianSniffen

      I’m not saying they don’t use language. I’m saying that such use cannot be part of the definition I’m looking for. It’s like asking “what besides above-average height characterizes basketball players?” I’m blocking out the obvious bit.

      1 reply 1 retweet 2 likes
    6. Brian Sniffen‏ @BrianSniffen 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @vgr

      I can’t tell whether you’re asking “except height” or “except playing basketball”

      2 replies 0 retweets 3 likes
      Venkatesh Rao‏ @vgr 21 Apr 2019
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      Replying to @BrianSniffen

      So you’re saying “intellectual” is as finitely circumscribed an activity as basketball? Intellectualism *is* use of language the way basketball is playing basketball?

      4:45 PM - 21 Apr 2019
      • 4 Likes
      • ⎺⸔ᵕ∴kyl∴ᵕ⸕⎺ William Strohmacher Alien Queen
      2 replies 0 retweets 4 likes
        1. New conversation
        2. Brian Sniffen‏ @BrianSniffen 21 Apr 2019
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          Replying to @vgr

          I am prepared to believe in a nonhuman, nonlinguistic intellectual. But I’m going to have more questions about the bit after the comma than the bit before. Until then? Yeah. Intellectual is metacognition, and language is needed for the strange loop.

          1 reply 0 retweets 7 likes
        3. Melo Magolego‏ @melomagolego 22 Apr 2019
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          Replying to @BrianSniffen @vgr

          Intellectual likes playing with Lego blocks AND figuring out different possible block combinations. Language is medium to communicate a Lego block combination to another; telepathy could also achieve comms. For public intellectual, the Lego blocks are public policy.

          1 reply 1 retweet 0 likes
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        1. Alien Queen‏ @alienhumanqueen 21 Apr 2019
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          Replying to @vgr @BrianSniffen

          I don’t know if it is, but it seems that way.

          0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
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