07132016
Some Terms
Dogma: A belief
or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being
questioned or doubted http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dogma
Teleology: a doctrine
explaining phenomena by final causes
:The
fact or character attributed to nature or natural processes of being directed
toward an end or shaped by a purpose
The
use of design or purpose as an explanation of natural phenomena
Note:
Sometimes “teleological” is divided in to two categories extrinsic; such as when discussing the purpose of a human made
object or process, and intrinsic; where
the discussion is within the context of “nature or natural processes of being
directed toward an end or shaped by a purpose.” ibid
Boundary
Condition(s)
(from Defining and Conceptualizing
Sustainability Using The Natural Step & Human Socially Obligate Boundary
Conditions, AWG Appendix C)
A "Boundary Condition" is a concept I borrow from mathematics. In this use of the term, it a condition
imposed on a solution so as to obtain the desired
outcome. It could also be viewed
as what bounds
a solution space, so as to derive a range of possible solutions
to further analyze
and choose from. In this case, the
desired outcome, is
that humans survive
as a species
(or daughter species)
for as long as possible.
It is also assumed
that space/time, and all environments are in a state of constant
change.
Fixed Boundary Condition
Of or pertaining to the composite of basic biological, geological, and physical laws/processes; that apparently do not change with time.
Obligate Boundary Condition
A set of parameters or conditions that evolved in a specie, that limits its behavior at a given
point in space time. May change
in adaptation to new changing
conditions.
Socially Obligate Boundary
Condition
A set of social parameters or conditions that evolved
in a specie, that limits its behavior
at a given point in space time. May change in adaptation to changing
conditions, including but not limited to social conditions.
Cultural
Universals(s)
(also
called an anthropological universal or human universal), is an element,
pattern, trait, or institution that is common to all human cultures worldwide. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_universal
Proposition:
Dogmatic thought is a boundary condition
If/then, why
is the question of what type of boundary condition important
Whether
something is instinct/in the wetware,( i.e., an obligate boundary condition),
or an expression of the epigenetic process, or simply a learned
behavior/characteristic is relevant to the amount of effort/time is needed to
change it.
The
danger to our species of dogmatic thought is it’s essential characteristic.
Dogmatic thought/dogma takes a human proposition that is only supported the
logical fallacy of argumentum ad verecundiam (argument from or to authority)
and state it as a fixed boundary condition.
It
is actually a socially obligate boundary
condition that for the relevant individual/group, is “virtual” fixed boundary
condition. This reduces any potential solution space, there on its face is not
supportive of adaptation/survival. But it may be more damaging than that, and
have a broader impact of the person/people who hold to the dogma,
Like
the bending of light by a black hole, the dogma may warp perception itself,
even distorting the cognizance and understanding fixed boundary conditions
themselves.
Then
consider that “Behavioral, environmental stimuli, thought, and emotions may
also cause neuroplastic change” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroplasticity
and especially consider Activity Dependent Plasticity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Activity-dependent_plasticity
Dogmatic thought may become internalized
and be a method. will “train” the brain, thereby reducing the creativity, curiosity,
and narrow the person’s intellectual ability: especially in analysis of complex problems that involve the
world in general and conspecifics in particular.
An
example of a predominately benign I would call useful, method would be the “scientific
method https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_method . It is very useful since it is open ended,
does not contain an intrinsic teleology, and is an iterative process without
closure. It is supportive of creativity, learning, innovation and therefore in
and of itself of high adaptive/survival value.
Dogma
essentially imposes an answer prior to any question. We often see a dogma that is also intrinsically
teleological. In our history they often then have an element of pseudospeciation
that in the face of external contradictions gives rise to some serious mischief
(such as Nazism, The Inquisition, Soviet agricultural policy in the 1920s-1930s,
Fundamentalist Islamic terrorism, etc. ).
Google
Scholar search string result for:
dogma creativity
Re Cultural
Universals
Are
cultural universals obligate boundary conditions or socially obligate boundary
conditions, or a mix of both depending on the particular characteristic? In
ethology it is assumed that any behavior or category of behavior shared by a
specie that has separated population historical, are biologically based, and
not learned. That would argue for cultural universals being called
biological/instinctual.
But
with our understanding of epigenetics being in the early stage that it is, I prefer
not to propose an answer to the question.
But
to combine all that is touched upon here, lets look at an example of a type of dogma
as being expressions of bundled sets of cultural universals.
Religion.
A
central elements of religion is dogma (
a word common in theological discourse, defined as “a belief or set of beliefs
that is taught by a religious organization/ a doctrine or body of doctrines
concerning faith or morals formally stated and authoritatively proclaimed by a
church” http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dogma
Here
are some/the main cultural universals expressed in the complex behavior set
religion:
Discrimination
Symbolic
Capacity
Tendency
to Dichotomize
Enculturation
Cultural
Coherence
Narrative
Construction
Sense
of distinctive peoplehood
Imitation
Emulation
Supernatural
entities beyond the visible/palpable
A
concept of life after death
Most
religions are teleological. So we will add in the historical observed attendant
Pseudospeciation Socially Obligate Boundary Condition (PSOBC), primary relevant
cultural universals:
Extra-genetic
transmission of language
Kin
Terms (language)
Binary
conceptual discrimination (language)
Historic
linguistic change
Childhood
physical aggression (more so in males)
Recognition
of individual faces
Sense
of distinctive peoplehood
Relatives
distinguished from non-relatives
Conflict
at individual & group levels
Ethical
dualism; different rules for in-group/out-group
Belief
in supernatural entities
Territoriality
Historical
& origin narratives
Dispersal
of groups
Discrimination
(pseudospeciation )
Fear
of strangers
Negative
identification of us/them
Cultural
construction of perception (collective assimilation)
Sense
of self as subject/object
A
simple, observable basic set of phenotypic level expressions.
a.
A man, a woman who self identify as Christian have a child and raise it. There
is a significant probability the child will self identify as Christian.
b.
A man & woman, self identify as Muslim, and they have and raise a child.
There is a significant probability the child will self identify as Muslim.
c.
A man and a women self identify as [ insert name of religion here] have a child
and raise it. There is a significant probability with initially self-identify
as [ insert name of religion here], but due to a variety of elements of the child’s
world line, it later self identifies as an atheist.
d.
A man, a woman who self identify as atheist have a child and raise it. There is
some probability the child will self identify as atheist depending on the
elements of its world line.
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