The Importance of Theory

This piece, Theory, and Why It's Time Psychology Got One on the Notes From Two Scientific Psychologists blog got my attention in three areas.

First, it is (sadly) a thorough and succinct statement of everything that my original field is struggling with. We don't have a baseline theory, and without one we can only argue from different viewpoints.

In my working field, W. Edwards Deming famously said (or is famously misquoted as saying?) "Without theory, there can be no experience." What me means (I think) is that unless you have a thorough baseline, you can only observe and react. No experience, no learning can be gained because learning and experience result from something in discord with what we believe. No belief, no discord, no experience, no learning.

The third area is that this article is a really good primer on what "science" is all about, and how the scientific method actually works to structure our advance of knowledge.

Without that thinking, you couldn't be reading this at all, unless I had handed you a clay tablet with the words scratched on it. All of our technology is built on the structured accumulation of knowledge. Without a baseline of theory, everything is as "right" as everything else. And that is the problem today - the attack on science we see in the media, from both the left and right wings of the political spectrum, is built on that fundamental premise.

Ideas = Things

For those of you who don't know what this is, let me explain. The image is a 3D model of the lower receiver of an AR-15 rifle.

In the USA, a firearm generally has one critical part that is considered the controlled item. This is the part that is, legally, a "gun." It has the serial number on it. All of the other parts are just that - parts, and are available to pretty much anyone.

If you have that controlled part, then you can buy the rest and build your firearm.

For the AR-15 rifle, that controlled part is the lower receiver. It is the part that hold the magazine, and contains the trigger and fire control parts. The upper receiver holds the barrel and pins to the lower receiver. You can order a complete upper receiver with a simple internet search and a credit card. You an buy one cash-and-carry from a retail store. The same goes for the parts and bits that go into the lower receiver.

One unique aspect of the AR-15 design is that the lower receiver actually doesn't have to deal with a lot of stress. It just holds things together. Though it is usually made of aluminum, there are commercially available ones made of tough composite plastics.

What makes this particular 3D model significant is that it appears on the "Thingiverse" site where people exchange such files for use on their 3D printers. Combine that with the fact that 3D printers are rapidly coming down in price, and today anyone who can afford a computer and is willing to hack a bit to get something working can have a 3D printer. While this design might be a little challenging for the home-units, it won't be for long.

It has always been legal in the USA for an individual to construct a firearm for personal use. A license is needed to transfer that a firearm that you made to another person, but not to make one. There are (onerous) restrictions against making full-auto weapons, silencers, and a few other things. In general, though, you can legally build pretty much anything you can purchase across the counter at a sporting goods store.

This hasn't been a real issue because making things like this is generally difficult, and requires specialized tools and skill. At least it did.

With 3D printing technology, you download the file, and press "Print."

The line has been crossed between possessing mere information and being able to easily turn that information into "things."

While an AR-15 with a lower receiver made from extruded ABS plastic is not likely to be as rugged as one machined from an aluminum forging, I have no doubt that it could be made to work.

In the Soviet Union, photocopiers and printing presses were dangerous things. They had to be licensed, registered, and were heavily regulated. Somehow, ideas spread anyway.

Now the same level of technology can make things, not just spread ideas.

hmmmm...

P.S. - the difference between an AR-15 lower receiver and its selective-fire military cousin is a slightly different internal geometry and another hole.

Government and Medical Fraud

Randi's challenge to homeopathy is simple. Prove your claims.
I have no issues with that at all.

Randi believes that it should be illegal for pharmacological retailers to sell these products, or at least illegal to sell them without some kind of information that states they are ineffective.

He implies that he believes that government should do more to regulate this industry.

Make no mistake, I believe that anyone making claims that homeopathic "medicine" works is lying. This stuff is some of the purest water you can get.

The question for me is "What is the government's role in regulating nothing?"

If I said "Drink this bottle of water and it will cure cancer" would you believe me?
You are stupid if you do.