Friday, 15 August 2025

Monty Hall paradox and other puzzles


Monty Hall Problem - Numberphile


 Sleeping Beauty Paradox - Numberphile

Monty Hall paradox and other puzzles

Please find below the link to the PDF file of the document with the Monty Hall paradox and other puzzles.  This document is an extract from the book "There Are Two Errors in the the Title of This Book" page 90 - 96:

Thursday, 3 July 2025

The Great Learning - resources

 


What did Confucius want you to learn? The Great Learning 大學 Part 1

Overview of The Great Learning

Please find below the link of the PDF file of Overview of The Great Learning:


The text - Professor A. Charles Muller translation

Please find below the link of a PDF file of the A. Charles Muller translation of The Great Learning.


The James Legge translation on the Chinese Text Project website

Please find below the link to the Chinese Text Project web page with the James Legge translation. 
https://ctext.org/liji/da-xue


Translation in Chinese 

Chinese translation: 

My YouTube videos playlist on The Great Learning

2507 大學 the great learning


Sunday, 8 June 2025

Confucianism - Great learning

 
見賢思齊焉;見不賢而內自省也 - 論語, 里仁篇, 第十七章
When we see men of worth, we should think of equalling them;
when we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves
-  The Analects, chapter 4.17.

Confucius

Confucius (孔子, Kǒngzǐ), born Kong Qiu (孔丘) 551 BCE in the state of Lu ( 魯, modern-day Shandong, China), was a profoundly influential Chinese philosopher, teacher, and political thinker during the Spring and Autumn period [1]. 

He is best known for founding Confucianism, a system of thought that emphasises moral integrity, social harmony, respect for elders, and the importance of education and ritual [2].

Rather than claiming to invent new ideas, Confucius saw himself as a transmitter of ancient wisdom. His teachings, preserved in the Analects, advocate for virtues like ren (仁 benevolence), yì (義 righteousness), li (禮 ritual propriety), and xiao (孝 filial piety), which he believed were essential for cultivating both personal character and just governance [3].

His legacy has shaped Chinese civilisation for over two millennia and continues to influence East Asian cultures and ethical thought around the world. 

References:



3. World History Encyclopedia - Confucius: https://www.worldhistory.org/Confucius/

Four Books and Five Classics

The Four Books and Five Classics are authoritative and important books associated with Confucianism, written before 300 BC. They are traditionally believed to have been either written, edited or commented by Confucius or one of his disciples. Starting in the Han dynasty, they became the core of the Chinese classics on which students were tested in the Imperial examination system.

The Four Books (四書; Sìshū) are Chinese classic texts illustrating the core value and belief systems in Confucianism. They were selected by intellectual Zhu Xi in the Song dynasty to serve as general introduction to Confucian thought, and they were, in the Ming and Qing dynasties, made the core of the official curriculum for the civil service examinations. 

The Four Books are:
  • Great Learning《大學》
  • Doctrine of the Mean 《中庸》
  • Analects《論語》
  • Mencius《孟子》

The Five Classics (五經; Wǔjīng) are five pre-Qin Chinese books that form part of the traditional Confucian canon. Several of the texts were already prominent by the Warring States period. Mencius, the leading Confucian scholar of the time, regarded the Spring and Autumn Annals as being equally important as the semi-legendary chronicles of earlier periods. During the Western Han dynasty, which adopted Confucianism as its official ideology, these texts became part of the state-sponsored curriculum. It was during this period that the texts first began to be considered together as a set collection, and to be called collectively the "Five Classics".

The Five Classics are:
  • Classic of Poetry《詩經》
  • Book of Documents《尚書》
  • Book of Rites《禮記》
  • I Ching (Book of Changes)《周易》
  • Spring and Autumn Annals《春秋》

References:


Great Learning

The Great Learning or Daxue was one of the "Four Books" in Confucianism attributed to one of Confucius' disciples, Zengzi. The Great Learning had come from a chapter in the Book of Rites which formed one of the Five Classics. It consists of a short main text of the teachings of Confucius transcribed by Zengzi and then ten commentary chapters supposedly written by Zengzi. 

The "Four Books" were selected by the neo-Confucian Zhu Xi during the Song dynasty as a foundational introduction to Confucianism. 

References:


The text - Professor A. Charles Muller translation

Please find below the link of a PDF file of the A. Charles Muller translation of The Great Learning.


The James Legge translation on the Chinese Text Project website

Please find below the link to the Chinese Text Project web page with the James Legge translation. 
https://ctext.org/liji/da-xue

Monday, 2 June 2025

Meaning of Life - Exploring Possible Answers


What is the meaning of life?

It is clear that there are multiple valid answers to this question. The use of the definite article "the" in the question might suggest that there is one specific answer for each individual. Therefore, it becomes even more important to respect diverse worldviews and beliefs.

Professor Joshua Seachris, in his article "The Meaning of Life: Contemporary Analytic Perspectives," breaks down this traditional question into three parts: sense-making, purpose, and significance.

Sense-Making

This aspect of the question often involves placing something within a larger context or framework. Meaning is about intelligibility within a broader scope, about "inserting small parts into a larger, integrated context".

Consequently, the answers often take the form of creation stories and worldviews that people adopt. For religious individuals, God created the universe. For those with a scientific inclination, the Big Bang explains its origin. Some people may hold both religious and scientific beliefs, accepting a deity as the force behind the creation while acknowledging the scientific explanation of its unfolding.

By adopting a creation story and worldview, individuals can position themselves within the world and make sense of their existence.

Regardless of whether these worldviews are supernatural or not, there will always be unanswered questions. It is futile to continually ponder questions that have no answers.

For example, with the scientific explanation of creation, one might ask:
  • What caused the Big Bang?
  • Why was the universe created?
Ultimately, there is no definitive answer to these questions.

Similarly, with supernatural explanations of creation, one might ask:
  • Why did God create the universe?
  • Why did God create so many living species?
  • Who created God?
  • Why does God exist?
Again, there is ultimately no definitive answer.

Purpose

The purpose of one's life could simply be to fulfill the roles one plays within one's community. Consider a colony of ants. Some are drones, some are worker ants, and one or more are queen ants. Each has a distinct role. Fulfilling these roles effectively could be considered their life's purpose.

For humans, the situation is more complex. Individuals often take on multiple roles. A person might be a mother and wife at home, a teacher at work, and a volunteer at church. Her purposes in life could include raising her children, being a good teacher, and contributing to her church community.

However, some individuals may feel dissatisfied with the roles they have assumed, leading to a sense of lacking purpose in life.

Significance

This aspect of the question addresses what makes one's life meaningful. Susan Wolf's fitting-fulfillment theory suggests that a meaningful life is one that satisfies both subjective and objective values.

The "fitting fulfillment view" of the meaning of life, as proposed by Susan Wolf, posits that a life is meaningful when it is both subjectively meaningful to the individual and when the objects or activities they find meaningful are also objectively valuable. Essentially, it requires a "good fit" between subjective experience and objective worth.

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

Subjective Meaningfulness: Individuals must care deeply about something, be engaged in it, and experience it as meaningful. This involves feeling a sense of purpose, passion, or love for the activities or objects in their lives.

Objective Worth: The things that individuals find meaningful must also be valuable in themselves, not just to the individual. This could include contributing to society, advancing knowledge, or creating beauty.

The "Good Fit": A life is meaningful when there is a match between an individual's subjective experience of meaning and the objective worth of the things that evoke that feeling.

In other words, it is not enough to simply enjoy something; it must also possess objective value for life to be considered truly meaningful.

For example, someone might find joy in collecting stamps. However, if the stamps are merely worthless trinkets, Wolf's theory would argue that this activity, while enjoyable, does not significantly contribute to the meaning of their life. Conversely, a life dedicated to scientific research, even if it is not always enjoyable, could be considered meaningful because it has objective value for society.

An Aboriginal perspective

Please see the following for details:

PDF File for printing

Please see below for a PDF file of the above post for printing:


Reference:

"The Meaning of Life: Contemporary Analytic Perspectives" in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy by Professor Joshua Seachris.

Thursday, 8 May 2025

Meaning of life

What is the question?


What is the question "What is the meaning of life?" actually asking?  Is it asking:
  • What is the purpose of life?
  • Why do I exist?
  • Why do I exist in this body and in this place?
  • Why do I have this mind and personality?
  • Why does the universe exist?, etc.
The following article 'The Meaning of Life: Contemporary Analytic Perspectives' from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy by Professor Joshua W. Seachris discusses this question:



The CV of the Professor Seachris can be found here: 

We need to know the question in order to try to answer it.  Could we formulate some clear direct questions so we can attempt to answer them?

Some videos on YouTube

The following are a couple of videos of Professor Seachris.  The first video gives a general introduction to the question of meaning of life.  The second video was probably presented to an audience of philosophers.  You may find this second video too technical.


What is the Meaning of Life? (Joshua Seachris)

Meaning Of Life Conference - Joshua Seachris

YouTube playlist with lectures on The Meaning of Life

"Meaning of Life Conference: Videos" by Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University

What are the answers?


What might be some possible answers to the questions that we formulated above? 

The following article from Wikipedia provides some ideas relating to the meaning of life:

Additional resources


Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy - African Philosophical Perspectives on the Meaning of Life

Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy - The Meaning of Life: Early Continental and Analytic Perspectives

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - The Meaning of Life

Sunday, 16 March 2025

Valid Patterns, Fallacies, and Paradoxes

Valid Patterns

Valid patterns of reasoning are applicable for deductive reasoning.


Fallacies

Please see the Fallacies page on this blog. 

Paradoxes

Philosophical paradoxes are statements or situations that seem contradictory or illogical on the surface, yet can reveal deeper truths about the nature of reality, logic, and language. Some famous examples include the Liar's Paradox, the Sorites Paradox, and the Grandfather Paradox. 

The Liar's Paradox:

Description:
A statement that claims its own falsehood, creating a self-contradictory situation.

Example:
"This sentence is false." If the statement is true, it must be false, and if it's false, it must be true.

Significance:
This paradox highlights the limitations of self-referential statements and the complexities of truth and falsehood

Some thoughts on Critical Thinking

Some thoughts on critical thinking

Potentially true until proven false

People may not be able to make a valid or strong argument.  Some of the things they say may not be true.  These do not make what they wish to say false though.  Their conclusion could still be true.

Burden of proof

The burden of proof (Latin: onus probandi, shortened from Onus probandi incumbit ei qui dicit, non ei qui negat – the burden of proof lies with the one who speaks, not the one who denies) is the obligation on a party in a dispute to provide sufficient warrant for its position.

Improving understanding through arguments

In discussion with others, rather than proving someone else's argument wrong, it is more beneficial to reflect on our own belief, assumptions and reasoning.

Other thoughts

What other thoughts do you have?  
Do you think critical thinking is useful?





Monty Hall paradox and other puzzles

Monty Hall Problem - Numberphile  Sleeping Beauty Paradox - Numberphile Monty Hall paradox and other puzzles Please find below the link to t...