Complex Philosophy
"The universe, society, people and brains are fundamentally complex, not simple, philosophy should be as well."
Ken Solis, MD, MA
Philosophers as well as scientists contemplate and study the universe, respectively, by dividing it into manageable "chunks" so that our finite minds can better understand its many intricacies. That strategy is understandable, even laudable for many circumstances and pragmatic reasons.
Still, we must acknowledge the universe is one interconnected whole and not actually divided into separate chunks that operate independently of each other. At some point in time and for many reasons we should also strive to put the pieces back together to better understand our universe as a more complete whole.
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A few fields of study do try to integrate different disciplines for such a purpose. Complexity science is one of those fields. As the name implies this discipline examines the origins, machinations, and various phenomena of "complex" systems (a.k.a. complexities). This web site is dedicated to offering some ways to better understand the some of the major queries put forth by philosophy by using the tools and insights offered by complexity science as well as related foundational disciplines such as thermodynamics and information theory.
If technical terms like "thermodynamics," "entropy," and "signal to noise ratio" sound intimidating, do not worry. I will be using minimal math, avoiding jargon when possible, and employing only the basics of these large and profound disciplines. I am personally "turned off" by the use of arcane words, pedanticism, overly complicated sentence structure, and dwelling on non-pragmatic, dead-end postulates, e.g. "Are we actually just brains in a vat? Response: "Ok, maybe . . . but probably not and we can't prove it one way or another, so let's move on!"
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In the end, I will likely be charged by "real philosophers*" as offering a naive, pragmatic turn on philosophy. I might have a difficult time arguing against such an assessment. However, I have to concur with William James (1842-1910), the American philosopher-psychologist. To paraphrase him: "hey, it's gotta work, or what's the point!?"
* I have a masters of arts degree in bioethics plus many hours of independent study and work. I have also studied a number of other areas in both philosophy and sciences (see biography). The advantage of this broad, but in some places "shallow" background, is that I am not deeply wedded to preceding paradigms or "ways of thinking." There are dangers as well, including most dangerously, overstating what I think I know. Still, the propositions that will be made might often times provide new food for thought at the very least.
