From: gerald_a_levy (gerald_a_levy@MSN.COM)
Date: Wed Jan 28 2004 - 08:33:24 EST
Hi again Andy. > Do many scientists have a clear grasp of the notion of 'mental capacity'? > Science seems to have been slow in relating it to the social relations > of production, to labour. Scientists often have a socially naive perspective that their role is to "advance knowledge". A (progressive) minority comprehend how their intellectual labor generally serves an agenda shaped by capital and/or the state. The percentage of scientists who have meaningful "relative autonomy" over their research agenda and the terms and conditions of their employment is, I believe, small indeed. The grasp of scientists of 'mental capacity' is also related to their professional training and education in which particular philosophic and ideological concepts of science and the role of the individual are advanced. [Digression: One 'mental capacity' of our species is the capacity for humor. There are many types of labor (e.g. teaching), and other forms of social interaction, that are enriched by this capacity. Computational ability can not replicate this capacity except in the most primitive form (e.g. puns). Comedians and actors, including (most) teachers, need not worry that their labor will be performed by machines.] In solidarity, Jerry
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