X-Envelope-to: ETHICS-L@UGA.BITNET
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.ethics-l
Date:         Thu, 16 Apr 1992 10:49:13 -0400
From:         "Valdemar W. Setzer" <vwsetzer@IME.USP.BR>
Subject: Re: TV & computers again

 Tim Weaver writes:

>I won't deny that I go into the trance state that you described in the
>experiment.  I've never had the equipment hooked up to my head.  But I
>would argue that I've simply put my mind in a state to absorb information.
>I will also agree with you that TV enforces this state of mind more so
>than books simply because there's no break in the information being fed.

The main problem lies not in the "break" allowed by books (and not by TV
or Radio), but in the fact that when reading you have to make a mental effort,
either imagining the situation described by the author or associating his
concepts with yours. Radio is not as bad as TV, because it requires the
imagining to complete what the speaker is telling, but TV brigs the image
with it, so there is nothing left for the poor viewer to do mentally. Another
point is that you may read in a different speed than someone else, but
Radio and TV force the same speed (massification effect).

William Hugh Murray writes:

>It is interesting that V. Setzer reserves his antipathy for the most
>wide-band medium but likes radio and print.... VS dislikes TV
>because his "working hypothesis" is that it stupifies the individual.

I never said that I have "antipahty" for this medium  or "dislike" it
and  "like" some other ones. Sure I also have feelings, but in this case
I think it is **very** important that everybody realizes that I was
expressing concepts and not feelings. My feelings cannot be absorbed by
other people; feelings are individual. On the other hand, concepts may be
universal and are "real" as long as they are strongly connected to perceptions
(which do not have to be only physical...). So everybody may check them to
come to the conclusion that I have been right or not. May be I should be
more clear here: we can certainly transmit feelings to other people,
but not in the form of feelings; we transmit them through words, gestures,
sounds. Now concepts are transmited as concepts. Thinking is self-sustained
(in fact, the only self-sustained "thing" in the world -  as long
as it is not mental representation ["Vorstellung"], which is again individual).
And now comes the point. For me, books (or written matter) are the correct
way of transmitting information, not radio or TV. When you read a book, your
freedom is totally preserved; you have full control of what you are doing,
and not being influenced by sounds or images transmitting unconscious
feelings. With these concepts in mind, I have developed a preference for
books, which may be interpreted by Murray as "liking" them. But this
feeling of liking is completely based upon concepts.
The importance on thinking and concepts were the motivation I had for stating
months ago that, in order to discuss computer ethics, one needs a world
vision, or a concept of what the world is (remeber my subject "need of a
Weltanschauung"?). It is interesting to find a similar position  in recent
msgs.
My main preocupation about computer ethics is how this machine influences
people's mentality, points of view, "Weltanschauungen".

Tim Weaver writes:

>When you limit yourself to the simple writing of the program, I agree
>with most of what you said and the points on which we disagree are
>sufficiently minor that I don't want to waste bandwidth on them.  However
>this is true only if you limit yourself to the writing of the program.

Be careful! My points apply to all forms of what I call "open software", that
is, software which permits the user to combine commands in an infinite number
of ways. It includes program development, but text editing as well. I will
state that computer text editing induces undiscipline in writing. This
may not be too disastrous for adults, which have eventually already
developed a good discipline of writing, but may have terrible influences
upon children. Isn't that a good Computer Ethics topic?


Valdemar W. Setzer
Dept. of Computer Science
University of Sao Paulo
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU