Where is Opponent Process?

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steadyeddy
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Where is Opponent Process?

Post by steadyeddy »

Does anybody know if Opponent Process still lurks here? It's been nearly a year since he posted and I always enjoyed his unique perpective. The exchange below remains one of the most amusing things I've ever read here!
Opponent Process wrote:
rokidtoo wrote:
Opponent Process wrote:you could also ask why so many Americans are obese. it's not from lack of information. it's all about behavior, root motivations.
Are you qualified to make this assertion? Are you a doctor? Have you performed any research in this area (searching websites doesn't count)?
----Jim
yes I'm a neuroscientist studying motivation for both natural and artificial rewards.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by LadyGeek »

This thread is now in the Local Chapters and Bogleheads Community forum.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by dumbmoney »

I miss him too.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by Alex Frakt »

Perhaps he's too busy. A cursory search via his e-mail address shows 3 academic publications so far this year. I obviously can't reveal his name or e-mail address, but if you send a PM a notification will get sent to his e-mail and it appears to be one he uses regularly.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by sscritic »

But why would you? He is busy; he has chosen to spend his time elsewhere. I think it's somewhat like how you treat celebrities; I stood next to Kobe Bryant at Disneyland, but I didn't say a word to him. He has a right to his own life; it's not my place to interfere.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by VictoriaF »

sscritic wrote:But why would you? He is busy; he has chosen to spend his time elsewhere. I think it's somewhat like how you treat celebrities; I stood next to Kobe Bryant at Disneyland, but I didn't say a word to him. He has a right to his own life; it's not my place to interfere.
Who is Kobe Bryant?

Victoria
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by nisiprius »

Alex, thanks for the reassurance.

Victoria, I believe you are showing off. Of course I would never be so snarky as to post a link like this one:

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=kobe+bryant

So you will never know that he won the gold medal for the speediest performance of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony in the 2011 Classical Music Games in Kuala Lumpur, with a time of 19:49.28, breaking the 20 minute mark that was long thought to represent an ultimate limit to human capability.
His ignorance was as remarkable as his knowledge. Of contemporary literature, philosophy and politics he appeared to know next to nothing. Upon my quoting Thomas Carlyle, he inquired in the naivest way who he might be and what he had done. My surprise reached a climax, however, when I found incidentally that he was ignorant of the Copernican Theory and of the composition of the Solar System. That any civilized human being in this nineteenth century should not be aware that the earth travelled round the sun appeared to be to me such an extraordinary fact that I could hardly realize it.

"You appear to be astonished," he said, smiling at my expression of surprise. "Now that I do know it I shall do my best to forget it."

"To forget it!"

"You see," he explained, "I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skilful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones."
Last edited by nisiprius on Sun Dec 02, 2012 7:47 am, edited 8 times in total.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by livesoft »

nisiprius wrote:Oh, Victoria, I believe you are just showing off. I would never be so snarky as to post a link like this one:

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=kobe+bryant
How about this link: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/02/fashi ... ility.html :)
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by Levett »

Hi Victoria,

Kobe Bryant is the son of Joe Bryant! :D

Who is Joe Bryant?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Bryant

I am old enough to have watched his pop play. :wink:

Lev
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by JSMill »

nisiprius wrote:
His ignorance was as remarkable as his knowledge. Of contemporary literature, philosophy and politics he appeared to know next to nothing. Upon my quoting Thomas Carlyle, he inquired in the naivest way who he might be and what he had done. My surprise reached a climax, however, when I found incidentally that he was ignorant of the Copernican Theory and of the composition of the Solar System. That any civilized human being in this nineteenth century should not be aware that the earth travelled round the sun appeared to be to me such an extraordinary fact that I could hardly realize it.

"You appear to be astonished," he said, smiling at my expression of surprise. "Now that I do know it I shall do my best to forget it."

"To forget it!"

"You see," he explained, "I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skilful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones."
Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by sscritic »

JSMill wrote: Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session, but I didn't bother him either. Do you bother all the Knights you see on the street?
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by HueyLD »

Alex Frakt wrote:Perhaps he's too busy. A cursory search via his e-mail address shows 3 academic publications so far this year. I obviously can't reveal his name or e-mail address, but if you send a PM a notification will get sent to his e-mail and it appears to be one he uses regularly.
I certainly hope that he comes back after the crunch time.

Speaking of running into famous people in public places...

As a general rule, I leave them alone unless (s)he shows an interest in having a conversation with me. I did have an interesting encounter with the most popular weather forecaster in town. He was apparently comfortable with being recognized, and I took advantage of his friendliness and had a fantastic conversation with him. He even mentioned a bit of our conversation that evening on the weather segment. :D
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by Valuethinker »

sscritic wrote:
JSMill wrote: Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session, but I didn't bother him either. Do you bother all the Knights you see on the street?
sscritic

Am I being thick here?

He died in 1930.

I googled your quote (to see if you were quoting someone else) but, in fact, Google sent me back here.

I have been to his consulting rooms (to see a doctor there, in fact). Devonshire Place.

Can you let me in on the joke?
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by chaz »

VictoriaF wrote:
sscritic wrote:But why would you? He is busy; he has chosen to spend his time elsewhere. I think it's somewhat like how you treat celebrities; I stood next to Kobe Bryant at Disneyland, but I didn't say a word to him. He has a right to his own life; it's not my place to interfere.
Who is Kobe Bryant?

Victoria
Kobe Bryant plays basketball.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by nisiprius »

sscritic wrote:nuerosciences
What, didn't they teach you "E before U except after Q?" The correct spelling is neurosceinces. :)
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by chaz »

nisiprius wrote:
sscritic wrote:nuerosciences
What, didn't they teach you "E before U except after Q?" The correct spelling is neurosceinces. :)
I like the humor.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by VictoriaF »

Valuethinker wrote:
sscritic wrote:
JSMill wrote: Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session, but I didn't bother him either. Do you bother all the Knights you see on the street?
Can you let me in on the joke?
sscritic is testing if I will ask who Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is.

Victoria
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by chaz »

VictoriaF wrote:
Valuethinker wrote:
sscritic wrote:
JSMill wrote: Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session, but I didn't bother him either. Do you bother all the Knights you see on the street?
Can you let me in on the joke?
sscritic is testing if I will ask who Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is.

Victoria
He never played basketball.
Chaz | | “Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." Woody Allen | | http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by baw703916 »

chaz wrote:
VictoriaF wrote:
Valuethinker wrote:
sscritic wrote:
JSMill wrote: Sherlock Holmes! Love it.
I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session, but I didn't bother him either. Do you bother all the Knights you see on the street?
Can you let me in on the joke?
sscritic is testing if I will ask who Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is.

Victoria
He never played basketball.
Did he attend neuroscience conferences?
Most of my posts assume no behavioral errors.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by nisiprius »

VictoriaF wrote:sscritic is testing if I will ask who Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is.
"Sir Arthur Conan Doyle? Both great."

--Allan Sherman, The Ballad of Oh, Boy. (at about 1:54). OK, the chorus actually sings "Sir Arthur Conan and Doyle" which for me spoils the joke... I've wondered if they blew the line.

For US-ians, a pretty good age-weighted trivia contest to see how many of the references in the song you can identify. Boglehead-related: Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith? Sylvia Porter? And also: Chief Justice Warren? Barry Goldwater; Edna St. Vincent Millay; safflower oil; The Twist; Khruschev; "Colonel" Glenn; Bo Belinsky; David Dubinsky; Newton B. Minow. And, for that matter... Allan Sherman, himself.
Last edited by nisiprius on Sun Dec 02, 2012 4:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by nisiprius »

baw703916 wrote:
sscritic wrote:I also once stood next to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the bathroom at a nuerosciences conference where I gave the talk at the plenary session...
Did he attend neuroscience conferences?
Perhaps someone is confusing him with Lord Brain.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by Phineas J. Whoopee »

sscritic wrote:But why would you? He is busy; he has chosen to spend his time elsewhere. I think it's somewhat like how you treat celebrities; I stood next to Kobe Bryant at Disneyland, but I didn't say a word to him. He has a right to his own life; it's not my place to interfere.
Musician James Taylor did the same when he encountered me in the lobby of the midtown Sheraton. Very polite feller, I thought to myself.

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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by sscritic »

Valuethinker wrote: Am I being thick here?

He died in 1930.

Can you let me in on the joke?
I was combining the original reference to Opponent Process as being a neuroscientist, Victoria's question about who Kobe Bryant is, livesoft's link to the "humblebrag" (a false accusation in my opinion), and nisprius's reference to Sherlock Holmes to my statement about not bothering people who prefer to be left alone, some of whom are celebrities. I thought the bathroom was a nice touch: of course, back in the 20s the urinals would have been the full length ones, not the tiny wall hangers they have today. A month or two ago I took one of my granddaughters to the bathroom in my local Natural History Museum and got to show her that little piece of history.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by NAVigator »

Your museum has an interesting exhibit on "natural history".

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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by Jerilynn »

sscritic wrote: got to show her that little piece of history.
Just be careful with that "little piece of history". Overuse can cause blindness.
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Re: Where is Opponent Process?

Post by chaz »

Jerilynn wrote:
sscritic wrote: got to show her that little piece of history.
Just be careful with that "little piece of history". Overuse can cause blindness.
But education is good.
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