rattus rattus' blog » self-reference

Oberserving myself . . .

rattus — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:05:47 +0000

I am observing.

I am observing myself.

I am observing myself observing myself.

I am observing myself observing myself observing myself.

. . . and so on and so forth . . .

I am observing myself observing myself … being lazy.

I am observing myself observing myself … being lazy observing myself.

. . .

[X]

Who knows

rattus — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:21:16 +0000

An Ouroboros still

rattus — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:47:31 +0000

Ouroboros illustration by Good Winter

This fascinating illustration, a variation of the Ouroboros theme, I luckily found at the Good Winter Tumblr blog. (Click the picture to see the original version.)

[X] [X] [w]

Who is fooling who

rattus — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 14:23:47 +0000

If someone tells you, about whatever you had in mind, that it might just be your body making a fool of you, deceiving you, enslaving your mind,
this is not obviously a lie but a lie nonetheless.

Not explaining explanation

rattus — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 21:47:50 +0000

How can we explain explanation? Of course, dictionaries explain explanation. With ease, and without a word about self-reference. Though, implicitly (they explain a lot).

I wonder whether they have to in order to sell. Like scientists need to stick to objectivity in order to get funded. (This explains a hell of a lot.)

So, we can explain explanation (like we can think about thinking). Imagine we cannot. — I can’t. Now explain that you cannot!

I cannot explain why I cannot explain that I cannot explain. This is my explanation.

Ouroboros

rattus — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 22:00:27 +0000

This and that

rattus — Sat, 11 Mar 2006 20:22:31 +0000

This sentence does in fact not have the property it claims not to have.
– Robert Boeninger

A wonderful example of a not so obvious self-contradictory sentence. It is discussed in Metamagical Themas: Questing for the Essence of Mind and Pattern by Douglas R. Hofstadter. Some more examples of paradoxical statements, a great illustration of troublesome self-reference, and why it simply is all about this and that may be found in the h2g2‘s entry on “self-reference“.