Hansen's MagNET

I used to think that the truth had intrinsic value, that searching for the truth was a worthwhile pursuit, needing no arguments. Now, I’m not so sure anymore. I’m not saying truth is not worth searching for, I’m only saying it isn’t by default worth searching for. It might be, at times. It might not be, at other times. If I’m right about this – that truth isn’t necessarily worth pursuing – then a question … Read entire article »

Why talk to someone who begins a discussion with the words “I refuse to change”, or “I’m curious to hear what you have to say, but nothing can change my mind”, or “if the point of this discussion is you trying to convince me to do something differently than the way I do now, then let’s stop now”? At this point, a discussion is pointless. And often this is the case, even if people do … Read entire article »

I have a book in front of me, as always. But this one is different. I want to read it, I really want to read it, but somehow I’m afraid, I’m afraid it will shatter me. It’s Paul Feyerabend’s “Against Method”, an anarchistic approach to philosophy of knowledge and philosophy of science. I’m already inclined to agree with him, I think, but actually going through some hundred pages, most likely filled with arguments for having … Read entire article »

Thinking is what I do, most of the time. I do little else. I read, I write – and in between these two activities I think. I don’t write as much as I read. I don’t know why. It might boil down to insecurity in my own abilities as a writer. It might be something else. It’s hard to say, really. But I do write, and I do read. When I read, I read this, … Read entire article »