the net self.

today i read a most excellent paper. it reminded me why studying philosophy is what i'm doing with my life these years. it said many exciting things. in it, the author asked that i consider three figures-- the first diagrams a propostional attitude (known outside the discipline of philosophy as a "thought"); the second, a classical gas law; the third, heartbreak [sometimes philosophy is as good as a poem-- it uses language that's not everyday language to say something true-- irreducibly true-- about everyday]:

(x) (p) (q) [((x believes that p) &
(x believes that (if p then q)))
∆ (barring confusion, distraction, etc.,
x believes that q)]

(x)(P)(V)(µ) [((x has a pressure P) &
(x has a volume V) & (x has a quantity
µ)) ∆ (barring very high pressure or
density, x has a temperature of
PV/µR)]

(x) (p) [((x desires with all his heart that
p) & (s learns that ~ p))
∆ (barring unusual strength of character,
x is shattered that ~ p)]

none of this is really what the paper was about.