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That is exactly the point. You're implying that the current definition (as interpreted by you) is the only possible meaningful definition. History shows this do

by mentat 11y ago

That is exactly the point. You're implying that the current definition (as interpreted by you) is the only possible meaningful definition. History shows this doesn't work out for all definitions.

austenallred 11y ago
I don't think he/she was. He/she was trying to explain how the technology is so advanced that it almost changes the very nature of what "swimming" is.
- mentat 11y ago
  Does swimming have a nature? This may be a topic too deep for HN based on current down voting but there are substantial philosophical arguments not withstanding the historical one that such things do not have natures. The historical argument I think is pretty basic. Would people from a century ago recognize competitive swimming as swimming? How about 2 centuries ago? A millennium? When does the nature of swimming get fixed?
  - Nadya 11y ago
    This was settles centuries ago. Riding on the water in a boat is called "sailing" and using your body to move through the water is called "swimming". The nature of "swimming" is defined as the verb "to swim". Which curtails that one is not "sailing". So no boats involved. There is some to be said about "drifting" (e.g floating on ones' back) being a form of "swimming" but I think that's the only grey line and as for a competition I don't think "drifting" would ever win in a race. If one wishes to "drift" as their method of "swimming" they will lose the race.
    - mentat 11y ago
      The things you don't realize you don't know...
- Someone 11y ago
  My implicit statement was that few, if any, sports competitions can do without rules. See, for example, the "fastest car" competitions. Fairly free, but at some time they had to introduce a "powered through the axles" variant because real cars got beaten by earth-touching jet planes. Even extremes such as "who gets to Mars first" has implicit rules. If I had to drop a few hundred nukes on earth to win that, I doubt people would remember me as the first to get to Mars.

by mentat 11y ago

That is exactly the point. You're implying that the current definition (as interpreted by you) is the only possible meaningful definition. History shows this doesn't work out for all definitions.

austenallred 11y ago

I don't think he/she was. He/she was trying to explain how the technology is so advanced that it almost changes the very nature of what "swimming" is.

mentat 11y ago
Does swimming have a nature? This may be a topic too deep for HN based on current down voting but there are substantial philosophical arguments not withstanding the historical one that such things do not have natures. The historical argument I think is pretty basic. Would people from a century ago recognize competitive swimming as swimming? How about 2 centuries ago? A millennium? When does the nature of swimming get fixed?
- Nadya 11y ago
  This was settles centuries ago. Riding on the water in a boat is called "sailing" and using your body to move through the water is called "swimming". The nature of "swimming" is defined as the verb "to swim". Which curtails that one is not "sailing". So no boats involved. There is some to be said about "drifting" (e.g floating on ones' back) being a form of "swimming" but I think that's the only grey line and as for a competition I don't think "drifting" would ever win in a race. If one wishes to "drift" as their method of "swimming" they will lose the race.
  - mentat 11y ago
    The things you don't realize you don't know...
Someone 11y ago
My implicit statement was that few, if any, sports competitions can do without rules. See, for example, the "fastest car" competitions. Fairly free, but at some time they had to introduce a "powered through the axles" variant because real cars got beaten by earth-touching jet planes. Even extremes such as "who gets to Mars first" has implicit rules. If I had to drop a few hundred nukes on earth to win that, I doubt people would remember me as the first to get to Mars.