Monday, July 19, 2010

Shaving Complications with Occam’s Razor

Ever brought up a problem amongst friends or family only to have it explode like Mt Vesuvius?  It’s as though the more people discuss your problem, the more unmanageable said problem becomes.   I believe this happens quite a bit in government or in corporate America where you just know politicians and company execs sit in “very very board rooms” chewing over problems until the solutions require billions of dollars and thousand-page policies.    

I generally subscribe to a simpler point of view and while I have no problem going to my friends for help when I really need it, I also realize that as human beings, we are ever sharpening our tendency to over-complicate matters. 

That said, I keep thinking about the principle of Occam’s razor which states, "Entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity.”   To put it more simply, “The simplest explanation is usually the correct one.”

Can’t figure out why that guy won’t call your friend?  He doesn’t want to.

Wondering why your son won’t leave his devil girlfriend?  He doesn’t want to. 

Questioning why your cousin can’t get out of debt?   She doesn’t want to (not enough to stop spending more than she makes, in any case).  

I know I sound harsh, but the bald truth is people generally do what they want to do no matter what words come out of their mouths.   And yet we waste so much time and energy providing excuses for their behavior because we simply cannot accept that simple deduction.   

It all comes down to risk and reward, I think.  A person does a thing because it’s worth it for them to keep doing it.  Conversely, s/he doesn’t do a thing because it isn’t as worth it.   I keep having to remember this as I work my way through my life and my book. 

Why don’t my children make their beds every morning without me screeching about it?  They really don’t want to.   My screeching is the risk they’re willing to take in order to reap the reward of not having to make the bed.

Why doesn’t my heroine forgive my hero from the onset?  She doesn’t want to so I had better provide a damn good reason for her risking a relationship with him from the get go. 

The simplest explanation is usually the correct one.  

So how about you?  To what complication--life, plot or otherwise--can you apply Occam’s razor?

99 comments:

2nd Chance said...

Well, I see this more conversly. "Why can't my sister quit smoking? She can."

Granted, she also doesn't want to enough!

"Why can't I finish the read aloud revisions I've begun?"

Hee, hee. Because I keep losing my voice!

In all honesty, I'd rather use Occam's razor to assign responsibility outside of myself whenever possible. Until I'm ready to change things, then it's mine.

OK, my sis will tell you that according to me, it's always my responsibility, I'm nuts that way.

J Perry Stone said...

Oh it absolutely works to assign responsibility. I just didn't want to come out of the gate with that much truth.

Why don't I have a book contract yet? My fear of rejection is greater than my desire to be published.

There. I've said it.

Sin said...

I agree. The simplest explanation is usually the fastest way to solve the problem. That's why we should all be equipped with ice picks.

Hellie said...

I get the "He doesn't want to" but that's never enough for me. WHY doesn't he want to? I need to know the motive. It doesn't have to be earth-shattering. It doesn't even have to be something I even subscribe to (i.e. his horoscope said so), but I have to know what it is and I have to believe he really subscribes to it.

WHY is always the most important question to me.

Subscribing to this, if I explain why I don't call Deerhunter EVERY morning, you'd say it's because I don't want to. That's not necessarily true. I want to talk to Deerhunter. What I don't want to do is talk to his damned answering machine for the billionth time, and I typically call at a time in the morning that 9 times out of 10 he doesn't pick up. So it's not because I don't like him in that I don't want to call him, but that I don't want to talk to his machine.

Hellie said...

That’s why we should all be equipped with ice picks.

Eventually you even run out of space on 40 acres of farmland to hide bodies, Sin. Stab judiciously.

Julie said...

Or Uzis!

Though honestly, my weapon of choice is a few well chosen words aimed in the miscreant’s direction …

Donna said...

This is intriguing. I think we all do a "cost-benefit" analysis in situations -- like your kids, is it worth it to hear yelling so that I can avoid something I don't want to do? Or like Hellion not wanting to deal with the answering machine again -- is it worth it to go through the aggravation, etc.

Sometimes the simplest thing is to AVOID analyzing and just do what you always do. (Yeah, like Sin and the ice pick. LOL)

Marnee Jo said...

I like this so much, JP. It is true, that people tend to micro-examine things they don't want to accept outright.

But this can apply to how characters view themselves as well, right? My hero doesn't want to admit that he cares so much for what society thinks of him and his family. My heroine doesn't want to admit that she can't forgive herself for her choices. Does that count?

Irisheyes said...

I was thinking along the same lines as Hellion and Marnee. The simpliest answer might be "they just don't want to", but human nature always wants to know the whys of any situation.

I tend to be one of those over analyzers. I always want to know why - what motivates the decisions people make. Especially when the decisions seem just bizarre or flat out crazy or completely against character. Probably why I love to read character driven stories about ordinary people solving life's ordinary problems.

Melissa said...

I'm obviously someone who complicates things too much because I can't get a handle on the simplicity. Like Hellie, I want to know why a person doesn't want to do something. I also want to know what I can do to change that person's mind. LOL

For some reason, I get all confused thinking about "doesn't want to." I mean, we're asked all the time "what does a character want most" that it's hard to think of what he/she doesn't want. The opposite of what he wants? This is why I have trouble with Algebra. LOL

Hellie said...

I will grant you that an alarming percentage of people don't analyze WHY they do something beyond the "I don't want" phase. (Which sounds like a toddler to me. Can't you hear the little one shrieking that? "No! I don't want to!" "Why?" "I just don't!") If you want to evolve from having a toddler mentality, I think it's best to know thyself and figure out why the hell you're acting like a lunatic.

I do know that there are a lot of people who aren't interested in being that self-aware, and they seem very happy with their lot.

Donna said...

I'm one of those over-analyzers, and even worse, I think that people in real life have a character arc, so they'll change! LOL

It would be so much easier to NOT be an over-analyzer. Sigh. Is there a twelve-step program? If not, I need to know WHY. LOL

Melissa said...

I think that people in real life have a character arc, so they’ll change!

Exactly! And when they don't, then I guess that's where the need to write and fix things comes into play. LOL

Bosun said...

By all means. DO NOT give Sin an ice pick. Though we wouldn't need the farm since we have an entire ocean to throw them in. And the Kraken would love the snacks.

I'm in the "Let me complicate that for you" group. My father has said for years I can complicate anything. Which makes my inability to complicate the lives of my characters quite ironic.

There are plenty of times I do things and wonder WHY? Like eat that can of chocolate frosting. I know I have a reason, and it's not a pretty one, but I choose not to think about it. Facing down the demons isn't worth it...yet. :)

When reading, I can go with a character doing something I don't understand as long as it's not completely out of the realm of who they've been to that point. And as long as I eventually get the "why?" somewhere along the story.

Bosun said...

Donna - I think the bigger problem comes when we don't do that cost/benefit analysis. People often run headlong into things without thinking about the consequences. Thanks to them, we have all those funniest videos and idiots on the internet shows.

How many people have to bust their ass dancing on a table before we all learn to stop climbing up on tables?!

Donna said...

I can think of PLENTY of good reasons for eating the can of chocolate frosting.

1. It was getting too close to the expiration date and you didn't want to waste it.
2. You wouldn't buy a new one until this one was gone, and if you don't buy things, the economy will come to a screeching halt.
3. You need to know how to describe chocolate for an upcoming scene in your WIP.
4. It's better than putting an ice pick in somebody's vital organs.

Donna said...

Exactly! And when they don’t, then I guess that’s where the need to write and fix things comes into play. LOL

Melissa, no wonder I'm so tired! I'm writing everyone's scripts, and when they don't follow it, I have to revise. . .whew! LOL

J Perry Stone said...

That works, Sin. :)

Hellie, apply Occam's razor to why Deerhunter doesn't pick up and then react accordingly. Use Sin's icepick if need be.

There is a certain freedom in this. Read the actions instead of the words, and accept them. The razor cuts through all the agitating.

Donna said...

Terri, you're right about the people who don't weigh the risks ahead of time -- I envy them in a way, because they're not bogged down with all the angst I go through. LOL

And those people who DOCUMENT their poor choices -- LOL -- well, they are creating a visual encyclopedia of what NOT to do. A modern day cautionary tale. LOL

Cinthia Hamer said...

As always, an awesome post, J.

I am also plagued with the "why's". It's something I believe is simply human nature, and something many of us struggle with letting go.

That said, I think if more people would just accept that things are what they are and they may never know the why, they are apt to be more content. That's my theory anyway.

As writers, however, we must put forth the why. We can't just allow our characters to be. We need to provide our readers with the reasons (motivations) behind their words and actions. Without this, there is no story. No reason for the reader to keep reading.

J Perry Stone said...

Julie, put your bullet words away!

Agreed, Donna. In a strange way, Occam's razor cuts through analysis. Ever listen to a group of women analyzing a relationship? I keep thinking of that Sex and City episode where Miranda was told, "He's just not that into you??"

I've had boyfriends who behaved so selfishly, had I simply accepted that they weren't as into me as I was into them, I'd have saved myself a lot of heartache.

Hellion said...

How many people have to bust their ass dancing on a table before we all learn to stop climbing up on tables?!

It's not the issue we're not aware it could happen. We just think it's not going to happen to us. We're not going to be the ones who die in an auto-accident if we drive too fast (when everyone else is too). We're not going to lose our tubetop in public when we reach for something on the top shelf in Walmart (the only place you can wear a tubetop and not be questioned.)

We're going to keep dancing on tables because we don't think we're the ones who are going to fall. Arrogance, man. Hubris will bring down mankind every single time.

J Perry Stone said...

Marn, it definitely applies to characters. I think, in fact, it helps make them more believable.

I agree with you all that human nature lends itself to asking why. Thinking about "why" helps us to accept the "what is" portion of Occam's razor. But when people start providing excuses for everyone, that's when I think the razor shaves through the bullshit. I honestly feel it saves people a lot pain.

Donna said...

J, you are so right about OR cutting through the analysis. But I think the reason I do all that analyzing is because I think once I know the WHY, I can FIX THINGS. LOL

Unfortunately that kind of thinking has also prolonged the life of some relationships -- to the man's benefit, not mine. LOL

Bosun said...

Donna - Those are all excellent reasons to eat that frosting. Number 4 being the best. Though there's also 5. It tastes freaking awesome.

Which is the only reason I ever need...

J Perry Stone said...

That said, OR isn't the end all. It's the starting point that helps get to acceptance quicker. But, as Cindy said, as writers, we are required to put forth the "why."

There are always reasons for why a person does or doesn't want to do a thing. It does come down to "cost benefit" as Donna put it.

J Perry Stone said...

Hellion, is that tube top/Walmart story biographical??

Janga said...

But that simple acceptance means admitting that the behavior of the other is beyond our control, J. Intellectually I understand that truth, but emotional acceptance is still a fierce struggle. i don't know if I'll ever reach the point of accepting the limits of what I can do--or what I'm responsible for.

A provocative post!

J Perry Stone said...

Janga said: "But that simple acceptance means admitting that the behavior of the other is beyond our control, J. Intellectually I understand that truth, but emotional acceptance is still a fierce struggle."

I agree completely, Janga. And that "letting go" part of life is something I too can't quite accept yet. I sometimes feel as though I'll lose so much if I let go. But I forget that I'll also lose this crazy neurotic grappling I do.

It is an intellectual/emotional distinction.

J Perry Stone said...

As for you being in the "Let me complicate that for you" group, Terri, nuh uh.

As your friend I tell you, nuh uh.

Quantum said...

At one time people believed that the earth was at the center of the solar system and the planets and sun moved on incredibly complicated orbits around the earth.

It took the genius of Copernicus and Kepler to place the Sun at the center, when the planets then moved in simple elliptical orbits around the sun.

Finally Newton with the law of gravity explained everything with one simple equation which was so compelling that everyone now believes it.

Thats Occam's razor at work in Science.

Unfortunately people are much more complicated and there is no equivalent of Newton's theory to explain it all..not yet anyway.

So you can still get away with complicated convoluted explanations of weird, apparently illogical, behavior.....for now.

So complicate away Terri!
Me, I like the ice pick. *grin*

Marnee Jo said...

JP - I’ve had boyfriends who behaved so selfishly, had I simply accepted that they weren’t as into me as I was into them, I’d have saved myself a lot of heartache.

Wow. Preach it sister.

Bosun said...

WTH?! Why all the italics? Who pushed the wrong button????

Bosun said...

I turned the act of writing a pitch into a dramatic tragedy befitting the angstiest Greek playwrites. I assure you, I can complicate. LOL!

Though I'm also on Janga's team here. Admitting things are what they are is an absolute surrender of control. An impossibility!

Marnee Jo said...

Clearly I messed up my italics.

Sin said...

Wow. The Russians really are after us, Jules.

Sin said...

See, Q, appreciates allowing me to express myself as an individual.

Q, you wanna go ice picking with me? *grin*

Bosun said...

Waving the magic wand didn't work. I'm out of ideas.

Bosun said...

Well, I can't figure out how to turn them off. Let me try something.

Turn off italics

Now, let's see how this looks.

Sin said...

And while I'm feeling ultra cool and not having to use the italics, Hells, I wanna hear about this tube top extravaganza.

Donna said...

There's got to be a SIMPLE reason for this. . . LOL

Sin said...

There's nothing in the programming that will allow to alter or change the way comments are presented. So I'm not seeing how a permanent italics has gotten stuck.

Bosun said...

Okay, I get an extra ration of rum for figuring that out.

Bosun said...

I had to edit Marn's comment. LOL! Whatever she did as a closing tag totally changed the page!

Bosun said...

I would tell you but if I type it again, I'm afraid the italics monster will be unleashed again.

Marnee Jo said...

muhahaha.....

*ahem* sorry, something in my throat.

seriously I have no idea what I did.

Bosun said...

I see Sin doing that big crane kick thing from Karate Kid. LOL!

Donna said...

Dang! Don't mess with Marn -- she's got superpowers!

J Perry Stone said...

Um, clearly I'm not the person to chime in on a technical difficulty.

So Terri said: "Admitting things are what they are is an absolute surrender of control."

Terri, stop putting all your shiz out there for everyone to see. They're going to know it's obviously YOU cropping up in my characters.

J Perry Stone said...

And Marnee, seriously. If only we got a redo on several of out relationships, hm?

2nd Chance said...

Wow, all words are special this morning!

The why of anything dependson perspective. I'm on the box with Terri, I can complicate everything. I find it endlessly amusing to consider the multi-facets of why anyone does anything! Sometimes to a place of forgiveness (especially self forgiveness), sometimes to a place where an ice pick sounds perfect...sometimes to the place where it's best to just giggle and move on.

People are complicated and seldom follow the logical answer, which is really what Occam is about. Not sure emotionally, that Occam works for social structure.

And I'm going to think of a good example when my brain wakes up further.

Hellion said...

I think even if I wasn't a writer, I would still be interested in the WHY of something. But then I'm not very interested in accepting something at its simplest reasoning.

Well, I would in one case, but my student worker would say I was being sexist again and question why I have that attitude, which I'm not sure why I have that attitude.

J Perry Stone said...

I do agree with Q. Occam's razor is particularly of use in the scientific method.

It's interesting to apply it the more subjective fields of art, music, lit and people.

Q, know of any more interesting scientific theories we can plug in??

J Perry Stone said...

Okay, Hellie, dish. Details, please.

Hellion said...

Hellion, is that tube top/Walmart story biographical??

No, but that doesn't mean I'm not expecting to still show up in those Walmart Photos in emails that get passed around. I still go out in public in questionable attire.

J Perry Stone said...

Okay so what should I Google?

"Hellie, Walmart, wardrobe malfunction"?

2nd Chance said...

*faints

Hellie agrees with me?

Hellion said...

People are complicated and seldom follow the logical answer, which is really what Occam is about. Not sure emotionally, that Occam works for social structure.

I totally agree with this.

Donna said...

Hellie, I thought it was a website -- not just emails. :) So you could be a celebrity in no time at all!

Hellion said...

That sounds like a good google.

*LOL*

The sexist remark was: "Occam's Razor works on men because they're simple. It wouldn't work on women because we couldn't let it alone."

To which my student worker said, "What man turned you into this attitude? Was it your dad?"

"No, I think my dad is great."

I mean, how do you sum up "men" and high school/college? I mean, men aren't really men then, are they? They're just hormonal little fckwits really, but back to JP's point of the blog, about arriving to the simplest answer so you can let go of the emotion--I can't just sum it up that they're a bunch of hormonal little fckwits who made my life hell because they have the sensitivity of rocks. I still want to make them pay.

Bosun said...

It is a website.

http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/

Bosun said...

I just don't buy that this applies to one sex more than the other. The truth is, sometimes "I don't want to" really is the answer. The problem stems from us. If that person not wanting to somehow reflects on us, then "I don't want to" simply isn't good enough. We want more, we need more, but the bottom line is, sometimes there just isn't anything more.

J Perry Stone said...

"...about arriving to the simplest answer so you can let go of the emotion."

That's the point of my blog?

*thinking*

Yup. That's the point of my blog ... the last part especially.

As for the first part, the simplest answer is USUALLY (I have to emphasize that because it doesn't assume ALWAYS) the right one.

Donna said...

*throws Bo'sun overboard*

Your last post? That's WAY too much maturity for my taste. LOL :)

2nd Chance said...

Even with women, when you dig deep enough, it works. The thing is...women understand women and so what seems complicated for men, isn't for women...

I don't know if it's sexist, I think it's just the way we are. And it isn't necessarily true anywhere else in the world other than here, in America.

J Perry Stone said...

"The problem stems from us. If that person not wanting to somehow reflects on us, then “I don’t want to” simply isn’t good enough. We want more, we need more, but the bottom line is, sometimes there just isn’t anything more."

Agreed. Doesn't make the pill any less jagged though, huh Ter? It's our own baggage that won't let us accept.

Bosun said...

*dries off and throws towel at Donna*

I never claimed to be immune to it. LOL! I've done the online dating thing and you exchange two or three messages and then *POOF* the guy disappears. That will tie me up for weeks trying to figure out what the heck I did. LOL!

Hellion said...

I just don’t buy that this applies to one sex more than the other.

I get that. Which is why I'm sexist. I'm not without flaws, you know.

Bosun said...

Re: the applying to both sexes. I just mean my dad will still look at me and ask, "Why can't your mother keep her car clean?!"

They've been married more than 40 years. She's never going to keep that car clean just like he's never going to get those tidy whiteys in the hamper. LOL! So it's not just woman wondering about men is all I'm saying. :)

Donna said...

*snaps Terri with towel*

I have my mature moments too. LOL And I'm the same way about trying to figure out how MY behavior caused somebody else to do something I can't understand. Yeesh. Why do I have to be responsible for it? LOL

2nd Chance said...

Key point here! Responsibility! It's a burden, it's a gift. If, and I do mean IF, we are responsible them we have the power to change things. If we totally abdicate responsibility, we are powerless.

It may drive me insane, but I choose to assume responsibility in the end, after following convoluted paths of logic back to the beginning of time.

But that's me.

Bosun said...

Oh, that's a good point. We take responsibility for things that just aren't ours to take. Hellie says this about me all the time, but I forget what she calls it.

Hellie, what is my complex?

Bosun said...

Again with the control aspect. If I did it, I can fix it. If I admit it has nothing to do with me, I can still fix it.

But that's just me.

LOL!

Hellion said...

If we totally abdicate responsibility, we are powerless.

This makes sense with why we'd want to know WHY something is done and assume or eventually arrive to the conclusion WE had something to do with it (i.e. He didn't call because I didn't laugh at his jokes). It's our control freak natures.

2nd Chance said...

Ah, the optimistic fixer! No wonder your bosses love you!

I guess I don't mean so much I can fix what has already happened, I don't actually travel in time, but I can, hopefully, fix it so it don't happen again!

Bosun said...

That was very mature of Chance. Donna needs to snap her with the towel too.

2nd Chance said...

I'm not sure control and responsibility are interchangable...

Donna tries throwing me overboard and me Kraken will catch afore I hit the water and set me back at the bar. He knows if he does good, he gets the empty rum kegs.

He likes ta play with them!

Donna said...

I wasn't gonna throw you overboard, Chance. I was gonna snap you with the towel. But the Kraken did a pre-emptive strike and ate my comment before I could do anything!

Yeesh. You and Marn with the blog superpowers today!

Irisheyes said...

I think that "if I just knew why, I could fix it" attitude is the control freak's mantra. I should know. And I do think that knowing why sometimes helps but then accepting that that's just the way it is and you can't change it helps too.

Probably why I've studied personality types and relationship dynamics so much. Knowing why guys act like guys (or introverts act like introverts, or control freaks need control) does actually help me to deal with the craziness. If for no other reason it takes the blame off me - where I would automatically place it every time. There is something wrong with me and that is why he's not calling or being a jerk or whatever else someone does to make you feel miserable.

Di R said...

Wow, I missed yesterday and it was all boobs, beads, Jungle Juice, and breaking kids out of camp. And today it's J makining me think, people overboard, more boobs- at Walmart (scary, scary thought. Whew!

I don't usually question other people's actions. My DH is used to me saying, "Why, oh never mind. I don't really want to know."

I have enough drama in my own life without taking on anyone else's.

Di

Laura T said...

"It’s as though the more people discuss your problem, the more unmanageable said problem becomes."

My house is a mess because I don't want to clean it. There I said it. Also, JP, I am going to try to live by this for a week and get back to you. I am going to recognize when I don't want to do something, and do it anyway. (of course only if it will not kill me and all other safeguards and so on)

I'll keep a mini journal and get back to you. There, how is that for making your simply profound post more complicated? :);)...

Julie said...

Chance said “I’m not sure control and responsibility are interchangeable…”
I don’t think so either , Chance. Because some times trying to take control is the irresponsible thing.
Like when a person has an adition. You cannot, should not try to control if for them. They need to do that for themselves. The only thing that you should do is hold them accountable for their choices. No excuses.
So your responsibility is holding them responsible.

Bosun said...

Irish - The blame game. Grrrrr.....I hate that one and I do it all the time. So understanding people makes that better? Huh.

Di R - We've been rocking right along, haven't we? LOL! You never know what you're going to see over here. The latest pirate tube tops are for sale behind the bar. They double as drink cozies.

Laura T - We're going to need to see that journal when you're done. And now wiping off the tear stains. LOL!

Julie said...

Addiction!
not adition ... jeez ... Damn Russians!

Donna said...

The latest pirate tube tops are for sale behind the bar. They double as drink cozies.

Dang! Either those are some big drinks, or I'm gonna have to use one tube top per bazoom.

*sucks stomach in*

I want a cupcake.

Bosun said...

I damn near soaked my keyboard. Don't be throwing bazooms around like that. Warn a girl.

Chance, where are those shamwows?

Donna said...

Here's the towel you threw at me earlier. :)

Irisheyes said...

Irish – The blame game. Grrrrr…..I hate that one and I do it all the time. So understanding people makes that better? Huh.

For me it does. It helped me a lot in dealing with my DH - a personality type directly opposite of mine. It helped to know he wasn't intentionally being an a$$. It also has helped me when it comes to parenting. I'd be a big bundle of guilt if I didn't realize that my kid's foibles and idiosyncrasies are sometimes just who they are and I didn't make them that way.

Bosun said...

Thanks, doll.

Irish - I'm not sure it's from understanding, but I have made progress through accepting. My ex is an ass because he's an ass. I didn't make him one and the choices he made to screw everything up (or leave out the "up") were his fault, not mine.

However, this little enlightenment took YEARS to reach.

Donna said...

You know, if I give up feeling responsible for everybody else's actions. . .I'm gonna have a LOT of free time all of a sudden.

I won't know what to do with it.

I know! I'll eat a can of frosting. LOL

Irisheyes said...

*LOL* Donna! It is very freeing!

I'm glad you found the light, Ter!

Quantum said...

Sin said: Q, you wanna go ice picking with me? *grin*
You know me Sin. How can I resist such an offer! :lol:

JP said: Q, know of any more interesting scientific theories we can plug in??

Well, Newton wasn't the end of the story. Quantum theory emerged to mess up Newton's beautifully simple picture. It still hasn't been resolved, and modern string theory seems the best option at present. String theory is so hellishly complicated though, as if Terri might have influenced its formulation! Using Occam's razor ass about front or something. *grin*

Second Chance said: the thing is…women understand women and so what seems complicated for men, isn’t for women…

Oh yeh! Could explain a lot though ... using Occam's razor of course. :lol:

Julie said...

Modern string theory seems the best option at present.

So Q, does this mean that you are advocating wearing thongs instead of old-fashioned briefs!?
;) LOL

Julie said...

After using Occam’s razor of course!

*giggle-snicker*

2nd Chance said...

I take no responsibility for the pirate tube tops. They be the Bo'suns latest brainstorm. I'm still working out me business plan fer Pitching by Proxy services...

String theory, folding universes, chaos theory...I love science!

I especially love turning it topsy turvy in my books! ;-)

Julie said...

From Wiki …. The theory poses that these strings can vibrate, thus giving the observed particles their flavor, charge, mass and spin.
Strings vibrating as the observed particles charge & spin? Ooohh Like …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qbeIwn5jR8

Wiki goes on to say … The earliest string model, the bosonic string, incorporated only bosons, although this view evolved to the superstring theory,
Bosons? Bosons? Ooohhh gosh they must mean bosoms! Indeed! Well a bosom string incorporating ONLY Bosoms would be quite a view. Though I wouldn’t call it Super.
I’d call it TMI! So put a bottom string thong thing with that bosom string or …
“Put some damn pants on!”
My opinion.

Julie said...

Darn it the Link should have been ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtaZ48fERfc

Not that Bob doesn't do a good job at his discriptive prose.

Quantum said...

Bosons? Bosons? Ooohhh gosh they must mean bosoms! Indeed! Well a bosom string incorporating ONLY Bosoms would be quite a view. Though I wouldn’t call it Super.
I’d call it TMI! So put a bottom string thong thing with that bosom string or …
“Put some damn pants on!


:lol: Julie, you would be surprised by some of the theories that emerge from behind closed doors. Its all to do with interpreting strange phenomena. Though your interpretation looks pretty good to me! :D

Julie said...

Quantumy,
You would be surprised that I AM Not surprised! And all I'll say is "Sir, I DO believe that any theory that poses that can something can vibrate, charge, and spin was indeed Thoroughly tested out behind closed doors."

Closed bedroom doors! ;)