A surprisingly large number of unsettled questions in philosophy arise from the difficulty of meshing:
A. our theoretical understanding of what things are "really" like (physics, atoms, etc.)
with
B. our direct, first-hand experiences as humans.
Examples:
(1) Ethics - most people experience a visceral feeling that some things are inherently and universally morally wrong (e.g., murdering children). Yet it's unclear what, in the universe of atoms (or in physics), could make (o...
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mathematics
The Reciprocation Problem
The "reciprocation problem": a mathematical tragedy in relationships regarding how often people should ask each other to hang out
The Setup
Person X and person Y are friends (or lovers or close work colleagues or whatever). Person X and Person Y happen to both feel the same way about each other (i.e., equal amounts of interest, affection, lust, respect, etc.)Person X's ideal is to make plans with person Y every two weeks, whereas person Y (who has a lower amount of free time, or less need...
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