From: brian harper (harper.10@osu.edu)
Date: Fri Aug 01 2003 - 16:33:26 EDT
At 02:17 PM 8/1/2003 +0000, Josh Bembenek wrote:
Josh quoting Dembski:
>Suppose now that we represent a photon passing through the filter with a
>"1" and a photon not passing through the filter with a "0." Consider the
>specification 11011101111101111111..., namely, the sequence of prime
>numbers in unary notation (successive 1s separated by a 0 represent each
>number in sequence). For definiteness let's consider the prime numbers
>between 2 and 101. This representation of prime numbers is ontologically
>subjective in the sense that it depend on human subjects who know about
>arithmetic (and specifically about prime numbers and unary notation). It
>is also epistemically objective inasmuch as arithmetic is a universal
>aspect of rationality. Moreover, once this specification of primes is in
>place, the precise probability of a sequence of photons passing through
>the filter and matching it is ontologically objective. Indeed, that
>probability will depend solely on the inherent physical properties of
>photons and polaroid filters. Specified complexity therefore is at once
>epistemically objective (on the specification side) and ontologically
>objective (on the complexity side once a specification is in hand).
First, thanks for the article by Dembski.
According to this paragraph the sequence of prime numbers
is a specification. With this in mind let me ask whether
a Fibonacci series would also be a specification?
The Fibonacci series is generated by the simple growth rule:
any term in the series is the sum of the previous two.
One gets the ball rolling by specifying the first two numbers.
The most natural way to start seems to be with 0 and 1,
which gives the Fibonacci series:
0 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 ...
To further the notion that this is a specification consider
that the ratio of successive pairs in the Fibonacci series
rapidly approaches the Golden Ratio.
So, for IDers let me ask. Is this series a specification?
Brian Harper
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