Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : Disk Drive Sector Discussion Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stitch who wrote (1986)	1/2/1998 1:40:00 PM
From: Pierre-X	Respond to of 9256

OFF TOPIC Thanks Stitch. <chuckles> You articulated that really well, much better than I could have hoped to. Instinctive response to "prey" vs. solving differential equations! <ggggg> PX

To: Stitch who wrote (1986)	1/2/1998 10:28:00 PM
From: Bill Martin	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9256

Re:I think Zoologists and animal behaviorist will tell you that the dog that catches a frisbee isnt solving a differential equation but is responding to a trained system of reward coupled with an instinctual skill of responding to the movement of "prey". Yeah, but that's because a Zoologist probably can't solve differential equations and doesn't want to admit the dog can! I realize the dog doesn't solve a differential equation in the classical sense, but to anticipate where a ball will fall is indeed a system of differential equations. Somehow you've got to solve them to arrive at the right spot. It may be done by table look up approximation (i.e. trial and error until you've generated the right "tables" in your brain) or it may be that your brain functions as an analog computer of sorts (remember those patch panels from waaaay back?) which is implemented in neural nets. The general form of the solutions may indeed even be hardwired into the brain, but the right terms for solving the equations have to be somehow arrived at by the person/dog doing the catching! Nobody can do it first try. Whether one accepts the differential equations argument by the way, I still believe the dog "anticipates" where the ball will fall. Bill