Email exchange between Noam Chomsky and a private individual discussing scientific models

On Fri, Aug 7, 2015 at 12:55 PM, Noam Chomsky <i > wrote: What you suggest is very much the model that has been current in the behavioral sciences for many years. It has a record of colossal failure, and for good reasons, | think. It’s disproven, but keeps coming back, most recently with Big Data illusions. A child doesn’t grow arms and legs rather than wings, or a mammalian vs insect visual system, the way an ant searches for food. Rather, the path of development is sharply restricted (and evolution follows constraints too). Acquisition of language (and other cognitive achievements) seems very much like physical growth. Highly contentious in the field, but in my opinion that’s a comment on the failures of the field. From: jeffrey E. [mailto:jeevacation@gmail.com] Sent: Friday, August 07, 2015 12:44 PM To: Noam Chomsky (> Subject: Re: Re: ants and evolution work by trying things and finding the best solution. math and physics works by algorithms. Im suggesting that maybe just as a child sends out many connections and then discards the unused might be a better template for biological thinking. On Fri, Aug 7, 2015 at 10:33 AM, Noam Chomsky = ti(‘i‘zi wrote: There were plenty of warnings about one currency. Not heeded, unfortunately. Appreciate the invitation, but leisure time? Is that an English phrase? OK for ants, but don’t see how it helps us. Noam From: jeffrey E. [mailto:jeevacation@gmail.com] Sent: Thursday, August 06, 2015 10:28 AM To: Noam Chomsky <j Subject: Re: bad for them , good for you. no need to have only one currency, its old fashioned. . you are of course welcome to use apt in new york with your new leisure time, or visit new Mexico again. ants find the shortest route to food, by trying many and discarding what doesn't work, no algorithm. , no input or output , only a goal. . sounds closer to our probem On Thu, Aug 6, 2015 at 8:15 AM, Noam Chomsky <P wrote: Bad news. We decided not to go. | was invited to talk at the Parliament, but what can one say? That aside, they’ve got plenty of people giving them bad advice. HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_025900