Multidisciplinary Musings: Law, Culture, and the Mind in the Digital Era

The life and work of Georg Cantor offer a captivating glimpse into the complex yet sometimes painful relationship between academic research and mental health. While Cantor's groundbreaking contributions to mathematics and philosophy through his development of set theory showcase the transformative power of innovative academic research, his personal psychological and psychiatric struggles, fueled by rivalries and intrigues within the university, highlight the ongoing absence of an academic environment that, if not encouraging, at least respects truly creative research. Video in Greek:

Ayn Rand, a Russian-American author and philosopher, significantly influenced 20th-century thought through her development of Objectivism. This philosophy emphasizes rational self-interest and individualism over collectivism and altruism. In her most famous work, "Atlas Shrugged," Rand presents a dystopian future where the most capable individuals retreat from society due to the increasing adoption of collectivist policies. This serves as a thought experiment demonstrating the indispensability of individual contributions to societal well-being. Rand's ethical theory, particularly expounded upon in "The Virtue of Selfishness," argues that self-interest is a moral imperative. According to her, one's primary moral responsibility is to achieve one's own well-being, and this ultimately leads to a healthier society. This position stands in contrast to more traditional ethical theories that prioritize altruism or the well-being of the collective. Critics often ...

Joe Matt, the trailblazing American cartoonist renowned for his series "Peepshow," died of a heart attack on September 18, 2023, while channeling his life onto paper at his drawing desk. More than just a series of doodles, "Peepshow" was a diary in ink that delved into the dark recesses of Matt's psyche—addressing taboo topics like pornography and masturbation, while artfully exploring the complexities of mental health and sexuality. In "Peepshow," Matt offered a masterclass in vulnerability, serving up raw introspections and existential conundrums that made readers both squirm and resonate. And he did it all with an artistic panache characterised by meticulous lines, vivacious characters, and innovative panel layouts that would've made even the most prudish reader take a second glance. But Matt's work was more than self-absorbed  introspection—it was a sociocultural critique wrapped in comic form. Born from the cultural currents of the 1980s a...

Prof. Paula Sweeney   has recently published a paper delving into the relationship between humans and their avatars, understood as a proxy relation. The central focus is to provide a conceptual framework for comprehending the human-avatar proxy relationship, which draws from traditional understandings of proxies while also considering the unique features of online versions. The paper further investigates the conditions under which a person can be deemed accountable for the actions executed by their avatar proxy. A significant distinction is made between avatars as proxies and 'uploads', the latter referring to transferring thoughts and memories from an organic brain to a computer, leading to philosophical debates around personal identity. The paper also touches upon the ethical concerns surrounding the use of avatars as proxies, given that the individuals they represent can be held responsible for the avatar's actions. A salient point is the epistemic gap in the proxy relat...

The innovative and flourishing Sumerian civilization, nestled between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, greatly influenced the foundations of modern society approximately 5,000 years ago. Recognized as the birthplace of writing, urban centers, science, and legal systems, Sumer's ingenuity originated from its pioneering inhabitants. Its pre-eminent city-state, Uruk, which housed up to 40,000 residents, showcased remarkable architectural achievements, including the renowned ziggurat dedicated to Anu, predating even Egypt's Great Pyramid. The necessity for record-keeping, propelled by its agricultural triumphs, led to the invention of writing around 3500 B.C. Merchants utilized clay tablets, inscribed with symbols, which evolved into the sophisticated Sumerian script by 3200 B.C. This reed-impressed writing system, termed cuneiform due to its wedge-shaped appearance, became an essential communication tool, spreading throughout Mesopotamia via trade and conquests. Despite being a do...

Professor Roger Walsh* delves into the nature and purpose of human consciousness. He believes it is essential to approach the question of consciousness from multiple perspectives including evolutionary theory, biology, neuroscience, cultural studies, and spiritual studies. Each discipline provides a unique insight into consciousness. Evolutionary theorists are divided: some view consciousness as an accidental byproduct, while others see it as essential for survival, a sophisticated means through which DNA replicates. Neuroscientists generally posit that consciousness arises from the brain's processes. Those in cultural studies argue that our consciousness is largely shaped by the culture we grow up in. From a spiritual or contemplative perspective, it's believed that the primary state of human consciousness is somewhat clouded. Therefore, one of the primary tasks of consciousness might be to refine and understand itself better. The meditative traditions provide methods for this...

Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (1929–2018) was an eminent American author, primarily recognized for her speculative fiction, encompassing the Hainish universe science fiction and the Earthsea fantasy series. Her work deeply reflects the influence of cultural anthropology, Taoism, feminism, and the writings of Carl Jung. Le Guin frequently incorporated anthropological perspectives and Taoist principles of balance in her stories. She was renowned for challenging conventional speculative fiction norms, with her groundbreaking use of dark-skinned protagonists in Earthsea and innovative stylistic techniques in works like "Always Coming Home" (1985).  Her narratives prominently tackled themes of race, gender, sexuality, and maturation, often delving into alternative political constructs as seen in "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" (1973) and the anarchist utopian novel "The Dispossessed" (1974). Notably, "The Dispossessed" underscores the juxtaposition of a...

In Hefei, China, the world's most advanced quantum communication network has reportedly been developed. The network is composed of three quantum devices and a central server, and it is as close to an unhackable quantum internet as we have gotten yet. The network shares some features with conventional communication networks, such as transmitting information through optical fibers. However, the light traveling in the quantum network comes in chunks whose quantum properties are used to encode information. This makes it impossible for an eavesdropper to intercept the information without being detected. Quantum communication is a big advance in quantum networks, and it has the potential to revolutionize the way we communicate. The technology uses the principles of quantum mechanics to transmit information securely over long distances. It is based on the idea that if two parties share a pair of entangled particles, they can use them to transmit information securely. Any attempt to interc...

What rendered the 1980s a distinct epoch? Could it possibly be the indifference towards the influence that others' opinions exerted on us, and consequently, the absence of self-censorship? Alternatively, could it be that the cultural/sexual revolution or backlash originated from the grassroots, with the elites attempting to suppress it, as is customary? Contrary to our contemporary era of inverted logic/reality, various anti-authoritarian movements act with more authority than ever in history, being imposed top-down by state bureaucrats using familiar methods such as aggressive raids, asset confiscation, abduction and imprisonment, psychological coercion through an endless, psychologically destructive "judicial" process, and so on. When the band Fat White Family began over a decade ago, its goals were defined by a desire to challenge the inoffensive and static indie music scene. The essence of punk, if viewed as a counter to the societal status quo, was about pushing boun...

  In her paper " Trusting social robots ", Paula Sweeney, lecturer at the University of Aberdeen, discusses the need for a more robust account of our ability and willingness to trust social robots. The author argues that existing accounts of trust and of trusting social robots are inadequate. The feature of a façade or deception inherent in our engagement with social robots both facilitates and is in danger of undermining trust. The author utilizes the fictional dualism model of social robots to clarify that trust in social robots, unlike trust in humans, must rely on an independent judgment of product reliability. The author identifies that the facilitator of the trust we bestow on social robots appears to be their ability to mimic human-to-human social behavior. However, it is an expected link between human behavior (the outer) and human attitudes (the inner) that facilitates trust between humans, and as this link is missing in the case of social robots, our willingness to ...

  “Ten Trips” is a book written by neuropsychologist Andy Mitchell, who describes his personal journey of taking 10 different drugs as “a douchey forty-nine-year-old psychedelic virgin”. The author provides a detailed account of his experiences with each drug, including the physical and psychological effects of each. Mitchell also provides some historical context for each drug, including its origins and cultural significance. E.g., with ketamine, he found himself in a "strange, dreamlike state," feeling as though he was "disconnected from reality". This drug, originally synthesized in 1962 for anesthetic purposes, has since been sought after recreationally for its distinct dissociative effects. In contrast, Mitchell's experiment with LSD was marked by "vivid colors and patterns" that brought on a pronounced sense of "euphoria". This compound, which was first created in 1938, gained immense popularity in the counterculture movement of the 1960...

The concept of unimaginable time prompts philosophical inquiries into our ability to truly comprehend vast durations and the nature of our mental representations of time. Classic theories of the sublime, as described by thinkers like Kant and Burke, point towards certain objects or ideas being so vast that they elude complete comprehension. Imagination, in this context, isn’t about creativity, but a type of perceptual grasp. Historically, imagination referred to perceiving an object wholly in one view, but in modern discourse, it also refers to the ability to conjure up mental images of something absent. Time, however, isn’t perceived through external senses, but we have a subjective sense of its passage, influenced by our experiences. Notions of extreme temporal durations, such as the time separating cosmic events, challenge our imaginative capabilities and may even be incomprehensible in their entirety, echoing Kant's mathematical sublime. Objects or concepts, be they physical or...

Erika Dyck is a professor at the University of Saskatchewan who studies the history of psychedelics with a special interest in the legacy of Humphry Osmond, the British-born psychiatrist who coined the term pyschedelic, gave Aldous Huxley his first dose of mescaline, and conducted pathbreaking work using LSD to help alcoholics stop drinking. Among Osmond's best-known patients was Bill W., the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. Reason sat down with Dyck at the MAPS Psychedelic Science 2023 conference held in Denver this June, where a reported 13,000 people gathered to talk about all aspects of today's psychedelic renaissance. We talked about why drugs such as MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD are making a comeback; how tensions are rising between indigenous people and medical practitioners; and whether prohibitionists have finally lost the war on drugs.

Digital content, by virtue of its intangible nature, does not inherently exist but resides solely within the metaphysical realm of knowledge. It pertains predominantly to the human imaginative capacity. Thus, any attempt to criminalize such content is an endeavor to penalize human imagination, an act that should fall under the domain of personal ethics and aesthetics rather than state coercion. Here is an example: In the analog era, music sharing fostered trust within communities. The internet revolutionized access but raised concerns over content impermanence and corporate control, evidenced by incidents like Amazon's content modifications and HBO Max's removal of shows post-WarnerMedia and Discovery merger. Such actions reignited interest in physical media, although diminishing availability led some to illicit methods, aka digital "piracy". Historically, pirates have inadvertently preserved culture, as seen with "Nosferatu" and CBS radio broadcasts from WW...

  "It is well understood that fear is a coercive tool used to buttress authoritarian regimes, but Peckham argues that fear also underpinned the development of liberal democracy: our ideas about individual freedom emerged not only in opposition to autocracy, but out of a fear of other people, of mob rule, of anarchy." In his a book, “Fear: An Alternative History of the World", Robert Peckham, a historian who studies how fear has influenced human history, traces the role of fear in various events and phenomena, such as the witch hunts, the colonial conquests, the world wars, the Cold War, the AIDS epidemic, and the covid-19 pandemic. Peckham shows how fear can be used by those in power to manipulate people's emotions and actions, but also how fear can be a positive force that helps us to survive and change. Nevertheless, Peckham’s narrow focus on Western history and its lack of a clear thesis or conclusion deprives his book of a universal application. Based on The Time...

In "The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary", author Sarah Ogilvie found “an above average number of ‘lunatics’” among the Dictionary People. “Was it their madness that drove them to do so much Dictionary work, or was it the Dictionary work that drove them mad?” In the Oxford English Dictionary, a "Dr WC Minor"is referred to as a contributor only to be discovered later that, while he was an American surgeon, he was also a paranoid schizophrenic probable sex addict who had been committed to Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum after shooting a man dead. Another subeditor and reader, John Dormer – who seems from his quotations (“humbug”, “minx”, “hanky panky”) to have been rather fun – was admitted to Croydon Mental Hospital aged 35 in 1907, hearing voices. Eustace Frederick Bright, who started contributing as an 18-year-old medical student, was addicted to cocaine and morphine, and died of an overdose, aged 29, on the toilet fl...

“…my experience, my experience is… you go, talk to kindergarten kids or first grade kids… you find a class full of science enthusiasts and they ask deep questions… What is a dream? Why do we have toes? Why is the moon round? What's the birthday of the world? Why is grass green?... These are profound important questions they just bubble right out of them... You go and talk to 12th grade students and there's none of that, they've become leaden and incurious… Something terrible has happened between kindergarten and 12th grade and that's not just puberty…”

Crime fiction has become deeply intertwined with real-world tragedies and acts of violence, both in Iceland and globally. This intertwining is often a product of the sensationalized portrayal of real events by the media, resulting in narratives that meld fact and fiction. One salient point of discussion in this realm is Rachel Chestnut's 2018 essay, "Is True Crime as Entertainment Morally Defensible?", which challenges the ethical foundation of both producing and consuming stories based on actual events. In the aftermath of major global incidents like 9/11, the persistent drug wars, and the increasing femicides in Mexico, the popularity and relevance of crime fiction have surged. Intriguingly, Iceland, known for its tranquility and low crime rates, has seen a boom in the genre. Icelandic writers, influenced by worldwide violent trends and localized scandals, have produced notable works such as "The Flatey Enigma" by Viktor Arnar Ingólfsson, "The Silence of ...

📷: Freud with his daughter Anna and his granddaughter Eva, 1927 " As people grow up, then, they cease to play, and they seem to give up the yield of pleasure gained from playing. But whoever understands the human mind knows that hardly anything is harder for a man than to give up a pleasure which has once experienced. Actually, we can never give anything up; we only exchange one thing for another. What appears to be a renunciation is really the formation of a substitute or surrogate. In the same way, the growing child, when he stops playing, gives up nothing but the link with real objects; instead of playing, he now phantasies. He builds castles in the air and creates what are called day–dreams. I believe that most people construct phantasies at times in their lives. This is a fact which has long been overlooked and whose importance has therefore not been sufficiently appreciated”.  Freud in Creative Writers and Day Dreaming ( 1908). Page 145, Standard Edition Visit: instagram @f...

Here are the findings of the "Ultimatum Game":   Visit Prof. Anthony Gill's article at the AIER – American Institute for Economic Research