Perhaps if you're a scientist the experiments are better designed. I, for
one, often create experiments simply to see if something will work better
than it did before. I believe that is the definition being used here by
Jimbo. Moreover, most people seem to hold this definition of the word.
Finally, despite all the philosophy regarding human nature, I will continue
to apply good faith in this situation until such time as I feel that it can
not be used. Yes, we as humans tend towards centralization of control and
of all things for the purposes of simplification; I do not see that as being
the root cause of this issue, though. There was a problem, and it
demonstrated an inherent problem in the system. To solve that problem
steps have been taken in an attempt to see if the problem will be corrected.
--Martin
On 12/7/05, The Cunctator <cunctator(a)gmail.com> wrote:
On 12/6/05, Martin Osterman <stonewallgrant(a)gmail.com> wrote:
Perhaps my newness to the encyclopedia (member as
of March, 2005) has
left
me feeling naieve. However, I'm inclined to
give Jimbo the benefit of
the
doubt. He says it's an experiment, so
I'm inclined to go with that.
On what grounds do you suggest that this is a "permanent policy change"
in
the guise of an experiment?
Primarily because experiments are better designed. I think part of the
problem is that what I'm thinking of as an experiment is different
from how Jimbo's using the word. He's probably just using it to mean
"I'm making a change and I'm not 100% certain of what will happen,
even though I'm pretty sure it'll be good."
Whereas I expect "experiment" to mean "I'm making a change and I
don't
know what will happen, but I've put in place mechanisms to measure as
many of its effects as I can, so that I will be able to determine
whether it is good or not."
My suggestion is also based in a little appreciation for the
immutability of human nature, which suggests that all institutions
institutionalize, that is, tend towards restrictiveness, hierarchy,
and centralization of control. Steps in that direction are rarely
reversed. This is a small step, but its direction is clear.
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