4 ms·

I tried reading GEB years ago and then gave up, but then I read "I Am A Strange Loop" and thought it was fascinating. I think the latter is just smaller version

I tried reading GEB years ago and then gave up, but then I read "I Am A Strange Loop" and thought it was fascinating. I think the latter is just smaller version of the former, but more concise as he/they was able to think about it for a few more years.

leephillips 6y ago
he/they?
- jdonaldson 6y ago
  Hofstadter is a polymath, and he's arguably changed the understanding of the philosophy of existence as much as the understanding of these philosophies have changed him. I actually like using "they" to describe this process.
  - leephillips 6y ago
    Because he’s too smart to be just one person?
    - jdonaldson 6y ago
      Maybe we recognize the contributions and influences of others in his work? Hofstadter is a big time guy, but he's not a self-centered egoist like Kurzweil. He'll regularly talk about the ideas he's bounced around with buddies like Daniel Dennett, etc. I see him as more of a poet than a philosopher or scientist. He is piecing together little bits of truth from many, many, different domains and showing how they reach the same conclusions. There's been nobody like him for over 50 years, so it's very difficult to draw comparisons to others, or even measure the impact of his contributions.
      - mprovost 6y ago
        I talked myself into one of his classes as an undergrad and definitely came away with the belief that he was the smartest person I would ever meet. It's been 23 years and that's still true and I'd take a bet today that it will continue to be true for the rest of my life.
        jdonaldson 6y ago
        Agreed. He's a humble guy, but it's also very humbling being around him and listening him to talk. As I've gotten older, I have to look back at my STEM career in academia and industry, I have to say that he's the last individual that I've really been in awe of.
- misiti3780 6y ago
  i actually wasnt sure if there was more than one person involved in all of this work...so i hedged.
verdverm 6y ago
Strange Loop is much more approachable and in many ways is a more refined and concise treatment of his ideas
ppezaris 6y ago
The latter is a much smaller version of the former. GEB's central theme has to do with levels of meaning, which is delivered not only in substance but also in form. One has to look no further than Contracrostipunctus, or the final dialogue to see it on full display. https://godel-escher-bach.fandom.com/wiki/Contracrostipunctus https://godel-escher-bach.fandom.com/wiki/Contracrostipunctu... hidden in the dialogue as the first letter of each phrase is the acrostic "Hofstadter's contracrostipunctus acrostically backwards spells 'J.S. Bach'" which, when read acrostically backwards does indeed spell J.S. Bach.

leephillips 6y ago

he/they?

jdonaldson 6y ago
Hofstadter is a polymath, and he's arguably changed the understanding of the philosophy of existence as much as the understanding of these philosophies have changed him. I actually like using "they" to describe this process.
- leephillips 6y ago
  Because he’s too smart to be just one person?
  - jdonaldson 6y ago
    Maybe we recognize the contributions and influences of others in his work? Hofstadter is a big time guy, but he's not a self-centered egoist like Kurzweil. He'll regularly talk about the ideas he's bounced around with buddies like Daniel Dennett, etc. I see him as more of a poet than a philosopher or scientist. He is piecing together little bits of truth from many, many, different domains and showing how they reach the same conclusions. There's been nobody like him for over 50 years, so it's very difficult to draw comparisons to others, or even measure the impact of his contributions.
    - mprovost 6y ago
      I talked myself into one of his classes as an undergrad and definitely came away with the belief that he was the smartest person I would ever meet. It's been 23 years and that's still true and I'd take a bet today that it will continue to be true for the rest of my life.
      - jdonaldson 6y ago
        Agreed. He's a humble guy, but it's also very humbling being around him and listening him to talk. As I've gotten older, I have to look back at my STEM career in academia and industry, I have to say that he's the last individual that I've really been in awe of.
misiti3780 6y ago
i actually wasnt sure if there was more than one person involved in all of this work...so i hedged.

verdverm 6y ago

Strange Loop is much more approachable and in many ways is a more refined and concise treatment of his ideas

ppezaris 6y ago

The latter is a much smaller version of the former. GEB's central theme has to do with levels of meaning, which is delivered not only in substance but also in form. One has to look no further than Contracrostipunctus, or the final dialogue to see it on full display. https://godel-escher-bach.fandom.com/wiki/Contracrostipunctus https://godel-escher-bach.fandom.com/wiki/Contracrostipunctu... hidden in the dialogue as the first letter of each phrase is the acrostic "Hofstadter's contracrostipunctus acrostically backwards spells 'J.S. Bach'" which, when read acrostically backwards does indeed spell J.S. Bach.