Ed Porter wrote:
====<ED PORTER= Richard, If you will remember, I actually wrote a post,
admitting to having to eat my words, at least in part, saying there was
something to your complex systems analysis viewpoint. >
</ED PORTER>====
Yes, understood and appreciated.
You know, when I talk about the complex systems issue I feel like an
engineer from Morton Thiokol who knows about the temperature
vulnerability of O-rings. Take a look at this extract from
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/may2003/chal-m06.shtml:
"In the hours before the fatal launch, engineers from Morton-Thiokol
warned NASA officials about the potentially dangerous effects of cold
weather on the solid rocket boosters and particularly the O-rings."
...
"Reacting to intense pressure to go ahead with the launch, officials at
the Marshall Space Flight Center took the unusual step of asking
Morton-Thiokol to *PROVE* that launching the shuttle was unsafe.
Normally NASA demanded the opposite, i.e. that subcontractors prove a
system was safe. When the engineers stuck to their position that launch
conditions were unsafe, Morton-Thiokol management, not wanting to cause
problems for a high profile customer, overruled them and gave NASA
approval to launch."
[emphasis added]
I feel like I am at a launch decision meeting, trying to raise my
concerns. After I speak there is a moment of embarrassed silence,
followed by some words from a few people who present a complete
misunderstanding of what I was talking about. Then a little more
silence. Then "Well, yes, but I think we all agree that this is not
really a concern.... so, are we all agreed (except for Loosemore) that
the project is on track for a successful conclusion?"
So when I see you write things like "Below are the most recent
discussions concerning possible missing conceptual problems that might
stand between us and AGI. These comments all relate to important issues
to be dealt with - but it is not clear any of them represent a major
conceptual problem for which we have no reasonable potential
solution...", I just have to laugh.
Richard Loosemore
-------------------------------------------
agi
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