Background Most GenXers and Millennials were introduced to the Wolfenstein franchise back in the early 90s, after Id Software bought the IP and created Wolfenstein…
Author: Micah Tillman
Micah has a Ph.D. in philosophy and a B.A. in computer science. He plays and makes video games, thinks philosophically about pop music, and loves fractals.
I Get Angry When People Like Stuff
Posted in Life
I don’t like Dragon Ball Or Dragon Quest Why? Well, my friend, it is because Akira Toryama‘s character designs make me angry. And you know…
Does it count as a cheap mystery if you narrate a story in everyday English, but change a few key terms to keep readers on their toes?
Computer Programming Is Practical Philosophy
Posted in Friendly Philosophy, and Life
Modern programming requires you to be a philosopher: you have to understand what the world is made of and how those things interact to model them in code.
Computer Programming as a Lesson in Faith
Posted in Life, Theology, and Thinking Out Loud
Computer programming is a creative activity in which you have to build coherent, rational systems. This can teach us something about faith.
The Magic of Computer Programming
Posted in Life, and Thinking Out Loud
What drew me to computer programming was getting to be creative. Later, I heard someone say the whole thing is like magic. They were right.
Do You “Make,” or “Take,” a Decision?
Posted in Friendly Philosophy, and Language
In the UK, people “take” decisions. In the US, we “make” them. Believe it or not, that difference actually makes a difference.
Our forebears asked: “Why go to school during war?” “Why fund science in addition to security?” Now we ask, “Why do anything but fight for justice?”
The Pragmatic Case Middle Reality: Replies and Objections 1
Posted in Levels of Reality, and Technical Philosophy
“We ought to take middle reality as realest because it is what our senses lead us to focus on.” But don’t they reveal generalities first?
The Pragmatic Case for Middle Reality: Replies and Objections 2
Posted in Levels of Reality, and Technical Philosophy
Last time, I argued that intellectual and perceptual maturity attunes us to middle reality — if we judge the middle in terms of parts and wholes. The better we…
You’d expect organisms that survive to be attuned to reality, and most attuned to what is most real. We’re attuned to things that are on the middle level of reality. So . . .
When I say reality is realest in the middle, what do I mean? Well, let me explain. No, please let me explain. This is so important to me. Pleeeeease
Imitating Aristotle leads us to conclude that reality is in the middle. And we should imitate Aristotle. Down with reductionism and its opposite!
Idea: Reductionism is incompatible with one form of generalism, but not the other. Reductionists believe reality is at the bottom. You don’t really exist. You are just your parts,…
Idea: There are good reasons for believing that the more original a thing is, the realer it is. Let’s call reality-is-at-the-top-ism in general, “generalism.” The…
There’s a mix of reasons for believing that larger, more inclusive things are realer. Some of them seem perfectly reasonable. Others are questionable.
Starting October 1st, it is officially Pumpkintide. But what is Pumpkintide? Where did it come from? What is it’s purpose?
“A Good Melody Needs Cohesion and Concealment” A good melody needs three pairs of properties. The first is cohesion and concealment. Without one, it falls…
Idea: There are four good reasons for being a reductionist. At the cellular, molecular, or quantum level, you don’t exist. But it’s those lower levels of reality…