Judith,
in the continuing use of the word on lists with some philosophical
side-burden (Mind, Conscness, Dualism, and some more I have frequented
over the past decade+) RELAXED into something like "directed to a
goal" "purposeful to achieve an end", not necessarily the 'final' one.
Which is in 'our' parlance wrong (I think).
This is the meaning I used 'teleologi(cal) ' in my post.
The Webster absolutistic meaning is of course valid.
I will come back to justify my 'maliciousness' in the sense how
prediction and anticipation is thought of usually.
John M
----- Original Message -----
From: Judith Rosen <mailto:***>
To: *** <mailto:***>
Sent: Thursday, April 01, 2004 8:58 PM
Subject: Teleology
The Webster's Dictionary defines Teleology (from the Greek: telos
or teleos; "an end" and ology; "study of") as 1. The study of
final causes. 2. The fact or quality of being directed toward a
definite end or of having an ultimate purpose, especially as
attributed to natural systems. 3. A belief, as in that of
vitalism, that natural phenomena are determined not only by
mechanical causes but by an overall design or purpose in nature.
Vitalism is the dirty word here. That's the connotation that is
the kiss of death in science. It basically says that only God can
make a tree or even know how one really works-- that living
systems are outside the purview of science. So my father was
extremely thorough in disproving any hint of telos in Anticipatory
Systems and in presenting all his ideas via accepted channels
(mathematics, physics, systems theory, category theory, etc) even
as he was proving those channels were currently inadequate to do
the job. What he was trying to show is that one simply has to
widen what is allowed in science and then all things are possible.
The prohibitions that have strangled physics' ability to deal with
biology are all artificial and unnecessary, anyway.
Judith