[ExI] EP and scale

[Keith Henson]

> Keith Henson <hkeithhenson at gmail.com>:
>> To take this discussion up to a meta level, why to people read and
>> post on mailing list at all?
>>
>> The reason is rooted in stone age evolution, particularly in
>> reproductive success. ?Can anyone clearly state the logic?

(Will Steinberg)

> At first your hint seemed off-puttingly specific, but then I realized:
> yes, of course, you can say the same of just about all uniquely human
> behavior.
>
> It seems to me that we can only clearly trace the history of mailing
> lists as far back as the agricultural revolution, when people were apt
> to gather around and suss out why things don't always grow when you
> plant them (thus setting the stage for astronomy), but you seem to
> have a definite correct answer in mind. Do tell.

People read and particularly post on mailing list to improve their
status in the eyes of their peers.

The reason people engage in status seeking behavior is utterly simple:
 In the environment of evolutionary adaptedness (EEA) high status was
strongly correlated with reproductive success.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolutionary_psychology#Environment_of_evolutionary_adaptedness

We don't live in a stone age EEA any more.  Status (at least that you
can gain on a mailing list) isn't likely to get you the additional
reproductive opportunities that a successful hunter got in those days.
 Even playing in an indie rock band is a more effective way to get
nooky.  (And with birth control, even getting more mating
opportunities may not translate to more offspring.)

> Keith Henson <hkeithhenson at gmail.com>:
>> Will Steinberg <steinberg.will at gmail.com>:
>>> Am I wrong in assuming this? ?What makes coherence possible for plants that
>>> would not apply to brains?
>>
>> Coherence doesn't apply to either. ?The scale is wrong. ?What goes on
>> in brains is many orders of magnitude away from where quantum effects
>> show up.
>
> "This theory requires long-lived quantum coherence at room
> temperature, which never has been observed in FMO. Here we present the
> first evidence that quantum coherence survives in FMO at physiological
> temperature for at least 300 fs, long enough to perform a rudimentary
> quantum computational operation. This data proves that the wave-like
> energy transfer process discovered at 77 K is directly relevant to
> biological function."
>
> http://arxiv.org/abs/1001.5108
>
> So, barring the potential invalidation of that research, coherence
> certainly applies to at least one. Try again.

Consider the coherence length and the size of a brain.  At the speed
of light, how far can a signal get in 300 fs?  How far for typical
nerve signal propagation speeds?

Keith Henson
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L5_Society