People From Bristol

"The main object of cybernetics is to supply adaptive, hierarchical models, involving feedback and the like, to all aspects of our environment. Often such modelling implies simulation of a system where the simulation should achieve the object of copying both the method of achievement and the end result. Synthesis, as opposed to simulation, is concerned with achieving only the end result and is less concerned (or completely unconcerned) with the method by which the end result is achieved. In the case of behaviour, psychology is concerned with simulation, while cybernetics, although also interested in simulation, is primarily concerned with synthesis. Most of the major developments in models and theories of artificial intelligence have taken place in the western world — mostly, indeed, in the US and Britain — and it was only relatively recently that "core developments", as opposed to more peripheral developments and applications, have spread over Europe and the Soviet Union."

"The title of the book, The Brain as a Computer, is intended to convey something of the methodology involved; the idea is to regard the brain itself as if it were a computer-type control system, in the belief that by so doing we are making explicit what for some time has been implicit in the biological sciences."

"The word 'cybernetics' is still new to many people, even though it has now been an accepted word of our language for some ten or fifteen years. Speaking generally, cybernetics is the scientific study of control and communication. It is an attempt to give an integrated account of both physical and biological systems in terms of their capacity to communicate between different points of the system, and in terms of their control. There has been considerable research into general methods of communication in recent years, and this has been primarily the work of communication engineers, who are trying to discover in general terms what they themselves are doing."

"In many ways it is true to say that syntax is mathematical logic, semantics is philosophy or philosophy of science, and pragmatics is psychology, but these fields are not really all distinct."

"George... equates cybernetics with behaviorism, states that cybernetics regards human beings and animals as essentially very complicated machines."

"George has some important (if not necessarily original) things to say and he has the positivist’s ability to avoid confusing abstractions. He holds strongly that the construction of inductive process machines will produce devices that can go far beyond the abilities of their inventors (a more general statement concerning Weiner’s recent argument in Science... He sees the importance of eventually gaining physiological statements to supplement psychological process description."

"Cybernetics is still headline news, and increasingly we hear about its applications to new fields of scientific and industrial endeavour. Stafford Beer's new book Cybernetics and Management is an admirable account on the relation that exist between cybernetics and the problems of management in industry [and]... covers a range of applications that have not previously been dealt with in print."

"Cybernetics is concerned primarily with the construction of theories and models in science, without making a hard and fast distinction between the physical and the biological sciences. The theories and models occur both in symbols and in hardware, and by 'hardware* we shall mean a machine or computer built in terms of physical or chemical, or indeed any handleable parts. Most usually we shall think of hardware as meaning electronic parts such as valves and relays. Cybernetics insists, also, on a further and rather special condition that distinguishes it from ordinary scientific theorizing: it demands a certain standard of effectiveness... The concept of an effective procedure springs primarily from mathematics, where it is called an algorithm... The principal aims of cybernetics may be listed under three headings: (1) To construct an effective theory... [of] the principal functions of the human organism... (2) To produce the models and theory in a manner that realizes the functions of human behaviour by the same logical means as in human beings. This implies the simulation of human operations by machines... (3) To produce models which are constructed from the same colloidal chemical fabrics as are used in human beings."

"Scientists are typically good at making scientific progress, but not particularly good at articulating what the progress consists of."

"The aim of science is to falsify theories and to replace them by better theories, theories that demonstrate a greater ability to withstand tests."

"The confirmations of novel predictions resulting from bold conjectures are very important in the falsificationist account of the growth of science."

"Establishing by observation that there is just one black swan falsifies "all swans are white". This is an unexceptional and undeniable point. However, using it as grounds to support a falsificationist philosophy of science is not as straightforward as it might seem."

"Which facts are relevant and which are not relevant to a science will be relative to the current state of development of that science."

"The experienced and skilled observer does not have perceptual experiences identical to those of the untrained novice when the two confront the same situation."

"Many kinds of processes are at work in the world around us, and they are all superimposed on, and interact with, each other in complicated ways."

"No matter which comes first, the facts or the theory, the question to be addressed is the extent to which the theory is borne out by the facts. The strongest possible claim would be that the theory can be logically derived from the facts. That is, given the facts, the theory can be proven as a consequence of them. This strong claim cannot be substantiated."

"Science progresses by trial and error, by conjectures and refutations. Only the fittest theories survive."

"Empiricism and positivism share the common view that scientific knowledge should in some way be derived from the facts arrived at by observation."

"It should be no news to anyone that the perceptual judgements of individuals can be unreliable for a range of reasons. The challenge, in science, is to arrange the observable situation in such a way that the reliance on such judgements is minimised if not eliminated."

"A far as perception is concerned, the only things with which an observer has direct and immediate contact are his or her experiences."

"Science describes not just the observable world but also the world that lies beyond the appearances. This is a rough statement of realism with respect to science."

"Two normal observers viewing the same object from the same place under the same physical circumstances do not necessarily have identical visual experiences, even though the images on their respective retinas may be virtually identical."

"The greater the number of conjectured theories that are confronted by the realities of the world, and the more speculative those conjectures are, the greater will be the chances of major advances in science."

"A mature science is governed by a single paradigm."

"Science is widely esteemed. Apparently it is a widely held belief that there is something special about science and its methods."

"A mouse lived in a windmill in Old Amsterdam"

"We asked for steak and chips, They brought us something stewed, It smelt like it was off, And it looked extremely rude."

"I told the wife, "We'd be better off in Blackpool.""

"We was getting nowhere And so we had a cuppa tea"

"Right said Fred"

"A little mouse with clogs on, Well I declare"

"If you are thinking of ending your life because you are depressed, or cannot cope with the pressures of this difficult world, do not use this book. … Please respect the true intentions of Final Exit: the right of a terminally ill person with unbearable suffering to know how to choose to die."

"Too soon is to waste the good aspects of life, and perhaps unkind to those who love and need you. Too late means you might lose control."

"Frequently I am asked if I will take my life when I have a terminal illness. My answer is: "I'll wait and see." If my dying is bearable, the pain well managed, and my self-control and dignity are not damaged, then I shall hang on and die naturally. But if I am one of the unlucky few who suffer abysmally, then I shall make a quick exit. This book is intended for readers who think much the same as me."

"Ugh! The plastic bag! Agreed. Not very aesthetic, but not so bad with a little a little prior practice to become accustomed to it."

"I tend to choose a doctor in the forties age range, male or female, in general preference to an older one. … They understand the full implications of modern medical technology a great deal better than their elders, are more open to new ideas, and usually are keenly aware of today's medical controversies, including law and ethics."

"If you have to help a person die, say nothing. Let the police do their own sleuthing."

"But he will have his memories, Lance - long after we've forgotten him."

"It must be hard just to be someone's girlfriend."

"I trust him implicitly but that doesn't stop women coming on to him. It infuriates me when women approach him [Ioan] and kiss him full on the mouth right in front of me. They obviously don't think of me as any competition now that I'm a brunette. I think I might have to go blonde again!"

"I went brunette for a film called Fascination and I loved it."

"The British male has no interest in women. You could get all your clothes off and lie on the sofa and go "Come and get me baby" and they go, "Wanna cuppa tea?""

"Good Lord. I’d be lying if I said I’d never Googled myself, but it honestly never occurred to me to add ‘naked’ to my search criteria. Sure enough, there have been five nude ‘episodes’. And I know this is self-destructive but somehow I find myself on a ‘nudescenes’ forum where linus22 is arguing that I have odd-shaped nipples. Do I? Oh God! That thought never occurred to me! One more for the self-esteem list."

"I fought the director for a week to stay blonde, but, eventually, I had to give in. It's amazing how differently people react to you if you're not a blonde. Shortly after I'd dyed it, I walked past a building site and got no reaction whatsoever, and then I tried to get a cab and not one stopped. Getting a cab in London is difficult at the best of times, but being blonde certainly helps."

"I love going out and it is a bit sad when the photographers stop asking you for your picture."

"I'd rather have Prada shoes than eat."

"And I'm amazed at how many guys hit on you when you're brunette. I've had a few occasions where I've found a stray hand on my knee, which never happened when I was an icy blonde. Blokes obviously get drunk and think: 'I might as well try it on a brunette - she'll probably be grateful.'"

"Treason doth never prosper: what's the reason? Why, if it prosper, none dare call it treason."

"Best fishing in troubled waters."

"From your confessor, lawyer and physician, Hide not your case on no condition."