[extropy-chat] Blind Watchmaker

[Amara Graps]

Hi Keith,

(me)
>>But Dawkins was earlier.
>>
>My first meeting of Keith Henson was at his house for a social event
>>where I remember him demonstrating Dawkins' game on his Apple Lisa
>>(this was 1986 or so).
(Keith)
>Ah yes.  The game was Blind Watchmaker and is discussed in Dawkins'
>book of that name.

The funny thing about that Mac software is the programmer managed
badly the Macintosh resources, and I heard complaints that the
biomorphs were messing with the operating system! (I think my friend
needed to reinstall the OS after running it.)

>There was also a BBC Horizon program of the same name featuring
>Dawkins explaining evolution.  Normally the BBC Horizon programs
>became Nova programs in the US, but not that one which was judged too
>offensive to the religious right for US eyes to watch.  I had a copy
>which I used to show groups of smart kids in the Silicon Valley area.
>I might even still have it.

(looking...)

 From Dawkins' web site, where a person can order the video:

http://www.simonyi.ox.ac.uk/dawkins/WorldOfDawkins-archive/Dawkins/Work/videos.shtml

Hmm.  Even though BBC Horizons has some incredible programs available
easily now:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/index.shtml

their 1987 Blind Watchmaker isn't listed, so it seems you must follow Dawkins'
advice for a more lengthy and expensive procedure to order.

Amara

-- 

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Amara Graps, PhD          email: amara at amara.com
Computational Physics     vita:  ftp://ftp.amara.com/pub/resume.txt
Multiplex Answers         URL:   http://www.amara.com/
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"It is intriguing to learn that the simplicity of the world depends
upon the temperature of the environment." ---John D. Barrow