| Saturday,
December 30, 2006 Jerry,
Let me see if I can paraphrase your position on using
IQ in schools.
Since IQ is correlated to performance in school the
school system should determine the IQ of all students and then assign IQ-
students to 'skill' school and IQ+ students to 'symbol manipulation' school.
Its easy to see how dangerous the 'study' of ephemeral
traits of people can be by just doing a mental experiment. Just substitute a
word or phrase for the pair 'IQ' in the above statement and see what you'll
be saying. For instance, try these words:
1. Aryan,
2. Tikriti,
3. Citizen,
4. Palestinian,
5. Arab,
6. White,
7. Male, etc.
The flaw in the study of IQ versus school path is that
it requires a person (we'll call him the FIRST PLUS) to assign the value of
the plus/minus attribute to the first group of students. This, invariably
and immediately, brings the FIRST PLUS's prejudices into play. Including his
prejudice that he is a member of the plus group.
The FIRST PLUS could then further divide the plusses
into plus-plus and plus-minus groups and then require the plus-plusses to
assign the plus/minus attribute to subordinate plusses, etc. Consider how
many prejudices are involved now.
Even if somehow this system could be started it brings
up the system problems:
1. If the FIRST PLUS determines that the IQ cutoff
point is 100 then what should the subordinate plusses do with students whose
IQ is 99.9? After all, they're ALMOST plusses. 2. What will the FIRST PLUS
do when there is a surplus of minuses?
I think we should just go with the Declaration of
Independence:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness. — that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among
men…”
I know I would be happier if I were free to choose the
school I attend. To me the ability to do with my life whatever -I- want is
included in my right to Liberty and my right to the pursuit of happiness.
My right to Life might also be in play if I were a
surplus minus.
As this applies to schools I think:
1. Make the schools as equal as possible. 2. Try to be
sure that each student learns a 'base set' of knowledge and skills. 3. Let
the students assign themselves to a life path.
Rule 2 above requires that some person decide what the
'base set' is. I don't know what to do about that except to make the
selection as open as possible.
Ephraim F. Moya
I see. We are to ASSUME that all the children
are above average and treat them all alike. Even if this dooms many to most
to 12 years of useless public schools that teach them little of relevance to
what they will actually be doing.
And of course we do NOT assume that all
can learn to read in the first grade and hold the teachers accountable for
doing that. (If we did that, we might in fact remedy some of the problems of
the system.)
You should be happy, because we do about
what you say. We assume that all the kids are equal. We then have No Child
Left Behind, which requires the teachers to spend most of their time in
those equal classes bringing up those about to be left behind, and thus
those who might get ahead don't get much opportunity to do so. This may be
wasteful of a valuable resource, but it works for equality.
Of course many see this coming and send
their children to private schools where they do NOT assume that all are
equal and that none will be left behind, but enforce standards and spend a
good bit of time with the successful students. Note that -- at least last
time I saw the statistics -- more than half of the public school teachers
send their children to non-public schools. Perhaps they know something?
Equality over effectiveness, all by
assumption; this would be the very definition of Political Correctness. And
perhaps that is as it should be, but I have seen few convincing arguments.
Being free to choose the school to attend:
will you support vouchers? We currently spend $11,000 per student in the
public schools. A $5,500 a year voucher would do better work for half the
cost -- and allow anyone to attend a school of his choice, at least if he
can get into that school. Or would you require that schools accept and
retain anyone who asks to be let in?
But that would still be preferable to what
we do now. Will you support vouchers and choice?
==========
Subject: Free & Low Cost Industrial Trades Training
Course Materials
Dear Jerry,
Free world quality self-study courses are available
online for anyone wanting to *do* something about 'industrial trades'
training. The local educators may not cooperate, or might want too many
millions and still not be capable of producing trained students.
1. Basic "Shop" techniques.
http://shopdawg.com/images/handtools.pdf
How to use hammers, hacksaws, files, vises, etc.
2. U.S. Navy "EDTRA" technical correspondance courses.
http://shopdawg.com/navman.htm
These are archived PDFs, including electronics,
electrical, basic steel working, introduction to hand tools and introduction
to machining.
3. Basic Engineering Training.
http://www.eh.doe.gov/techstds/standard/standard.html#1001
The U.S. Department of Energy "Fundamentals
Handbooks". These were originally written for training nuclear reactor
operators. All the handbooks contain extensive generic information on their
subject matter:
--- DOE Fundamentals Handbook, Classical Physics (142
pages) --- DOE Fundamentals Handbook, Electrical Science (4 separate
volumes, 4 separate pdf files) --- DOE Fundamentals Handbook,
Thermodynamics, Heat Transfer, and Fluid Flow (three volumes) --- DOE
Fundamentals Handbook, Instrumentation and Control (two volumes) --- DOE
Fundamentals Handbook, Chemistry (two volumes) --- DOE Fundamentals
Handbook, Engineering Symbology, Prints, and Drawings (two volumes) --- DOE
Fundamentals Handbook, Material Science, (two volumes) --- DOE Fundamentals
Handbook, Mechanical Science (two volumes)
The US Government spent millions developing these
training courses and manuals. I suggest trying these for subject matter
content before paying $100s & $1000s for other texts that can easily be
inferior or merely equivalent material.
Machinist Training.
Lathes and mills for basic machinist training can be
costly. And they'll get more costly as the dollar depreciates because the
low end tools are made in China these daze. Individuals and groups may want
to consider actually *building* machine tools as part of an entry level
training program. The late David Gingery will teach you how, using low cost
parts and free "junk".
http://www.lindsaybks.com/dgjp/djgbk/series/index.html
This series has sold over 500,000 copies since 1980.
David Gingery is a great example of what 'trades education' can achieve. He
was not a 'symbol manipulator' but he still contributed more to society than
many legions of modern "Ph.ds".
Foundry.
Doing things 'the Gingery way' requires some basic
small scale foundry work. This mechanical engineer
http://stephenchastain.com/store.htm has written a series of high
quality how-to books on small scale ferrous and non-ferrous foundry work,
including how to build and operate your own cupolas and furnaces.
Foundry Fuels.
Those who progress this far will discover foundry
fuels are costly for routine operations. Propane is expensive, and
industrial metallurgical coke is both expensive and impossible to source in
many areas in less than railroad car quantities.
Don't fret, go here:
http://gasifiers.bioenergylists.org/?q=gallmeierretort This is a
metallurgical grade charcoal retort prototype I'm now testing. I designed
and built this from common items using common shop tools. It uses scrapped
hardwood pallets for feedstock and process fuel. I'll tell anyone needing
foundry fuel for educational purposes precisely how to build and operate
one. My email address is at the bottom of the article.
The above methods require little paper money and rely
entirely on locally available tools and materials. They do demand heavy
investments of personal time and effort.
So people who prefer to find solutions in paper money
should probably wait until 2008. I'm sure their saviour will be on the
public ballot by then.
Best Wishes,
Mark
ps I have no financial connection with any concern
listed above.
=================
Since the discussions have returned to "Empire vs.
Republic", Dr. Pournelle, I'll refer to Orson Scott Card's recent column:
http://www.ornery.org/essays/warwatch/2006-12-03-1.html
A few take-away thoughts:
"...a Syrian village...thrived in rocky country whose
soil was good only for growing olive trees. This village sustained a
ridiculously high population for many, many years -- a population that was
far higher than could be supported from the agricultural yields of that
area. "So what were they living on? Trade. They grew their olives and
shipped the oil abroad. Apparently their oil was so highly regarded
throughout the Mediterranean that it enabled them to import almost all the
food and wine they required to sustain their population.
"They had specialized. It worked very well for them --
until the whole system of trade broke down and there was no way for them to
get their goods out to their potential markets. Either it was no longer safe
enough to transport their oil and sell it profitably, or the markets had
dried up because of the crash of the economy elsewhere."
"What people overlooked was that everything depended
on the Roman Army. The army wasn't carrying the goods, it wasn't even
actively protecting the trade. The army was mostly stationed at the border,
while the economy boomed in an empire so safe that none of the cities had
walls. But the economic system that offered so much prosperity could only
last as long as merchants could trust in the safety of the goods they
transported, and as long as people could remain in place to do their work
instead of having to flee barbarian invaders."
"For a century, America has been the great cushion to
absorb the shocks that might have brought down western civilization."
"The result, over the past sixty years, has been a pax
Americana covering much of the world. And the world has prospered
fantastically wherever the American military sustained it.
"Let me say that again: As with Rome, the American
military has been the wall behind which a system of safe trade has allowed
an extraordinary degree of specialization and therefore mutually sustained
prosperity."
There is more... Thought provoking and worth the read
to me.
Charles Brumbelow
Kipling had much
to say about that.
Take up
the white man's burden,
Send forth the best ye breed!
Go bind your sons to exile,
To serve your captives' need.
When did we inherit that burden? What did
we do to earn that curse?
The Roman system collapsed thoroughly
under the weight of tax farmers and a burgeoning bureaucracy, until it was
decreed that each man must take up his father's line of work.
During the first half of the 200s, economic activity in the empire
declined, especially in the empire's western half, where roads
deteriorated despite programs to restore them. Economics was little
understood by what there was of government under the military-emperors,
and governmental policies added to the decline, as did the continued
imbalance in trade and the flight of the empire's bullion
eastward. During the first half of the century taxation encouraged men
of commerce to hoard their money rather than invest it. To pay soldiers,
emperors debased money, and government began paying its debts in money
that it would not accept from citizens as payment of taxes.
Of course nothing of the sort could happen to
us as we police the world.
=========
Subject: Good analysis from Lebanon
is over here:
http://www.michaeltotten.com/archives/001352.html
I didn't initially read the initial piece but there's a
link from part two (the link above) to it. Pretty good info on the political
situation in Lebanon.
J
Indeed. I have no way of knowing how accurate
that is, but it sounds about right.
==========
Subject: solar power,
Jerry
One of the problems with solar power is that it is
produced as low-voltage direct current. This means that for centrally
generated solar power to be useful it must be converted to high-voltage
alternating current for transmission.
Ironically, most electronic devices transform medium
voltage (110 volts here, 220 volts elsewhere) AC to . . . low voltage DC.
This, of course, suggests that if practical and affordable home-sized
photovoltaic systems become available, electronic devices might start
shipping with DC inputs in addition to AC inputs.
The efficiencies involved in leaving out the two
transformation processes would mean that less generated power would be
needed to get work done by electronic devices, which would make locally
generated solar power more attractive.
Another thought: LED-based lighting is now available,
and prices are beginning to fall. This is another potential use for direct
current power sources. Again, LED's are much more efficient than
incandescent lights, so that a provider of DC current would need to provide
less power to get the same work done.
And then there are the electronic refrigeration units.
Do they need AC or do they use DC? Recalling that an air conditioner is
basically a refrigerator, and recalling that electric motors work quite well
with DC, it seems to me that there is a real place for building-based solar
power. In fact, the peak generation efforts of solar power would occur
during peak demand: during the hottest days.
Supplement the whole thing with standardized gas-core
nukes, and we would not need coal for anything other than making gasoline.
Ed
It will take time, but yes, that might be
practical. Particularly since cooling it mostly needed in daytimes.
============
Dr. Pournelle,
Where to begin in dealing with Mr. Moya's views on
education?
1) Jerry, you clearly don't believe in segregating
students solely based on IQ. You repeatedly stress that IQ is not the only
factor that determines success. You merely state the obvious. Some students
will do well with symbolic manipulation. Some will not. There will be a
significant correlation with IQ. Efforts to make all competent in
ever-increasingly complex levels of symbolic manipulation is doomed to
frustration and failure. On the other hand, it creates a bottomless money
sinkhole for professional educators.
2) A student who has limited ability with symbolic
manipulation cannot "choose" to do calculus, although he may make an
excellent auto mechanic. This does not diminish his worth as a person in any
way.
3) Letting each student decide what "base set" of
classes to take is letting the inmates run the asylum. In the best case, the
student will choose a grab-bag of classes which interests him. In the worst
case (which will happen frequently), the student will choose the path of
least resistance. In neither case will a student become adequately educated.
4) The appeal to the Declaration of Independence is
particularly ironic. Most of the Founders would probably have thought the
notion of mandatory universal public education rather bizarre.
Cheers, Steve Chu
Indeed.
===========
Jerry,
I am troubled by the position of one of your readers:
"1. Make the schools as equal as possible." Why? To 'make' everybody the
same? Discriminating on the basis of ability and achievement is proper and
constructive. Achievement should weigh more heavily than ability, partly
because it takes ability to achieve and partly because it demonstrates the
productive use of ability.
We are all created equal, we are not all the same.
True equality is our worth as human beings. Demanding equality in other ways
is forcing falsehood upon us - we might or might not be 'equal' in our
economic worth, cultural worth, etc. We are all different, and our
contributions to the world will almost certainly vary as much as we do. That
means that when objective measures are applied some will contribute more
than others do in various areas. That's reality. It says nothing about our
worth as human beings. Falsely hobbling people by forcing sameness does not
promote equality. It destroys people's spirit.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all
men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the
pursuit of Happiness. — that to secure these rights, governments are
instituted among men…”
Yes! Exactly what it says! Unfortunately, at least one
of your readers grossly misinterprets the meaning.
You have the right to PURSUE happiness. You do NOT
have the right to be my brain surgeon. You do NOT have the right to be
anybodies' brain surgeon. If you CAN make the grade, and you DO make the
grade... then remember that patients can still choose another surgeon. Or
would you outlaw their right to choose?
You can choose your life path to the destination of
your choice. You might get there. You might not. Choosing your path IS your
right. Getting to your destination is NOT your right.
Regards, George Gillan
===========
Subject: How do we counter Pournelle's Iron Law in
education
Dr Pournelle
How do we counter Pournelle's Iron Law of Bureaucracy
in the education industry? Shall we outlaw teacher unions? Shall we impose
control from without, like civilian control of the military? How do we
guarantee quality?
I don't think teachers are a monolithic block of
incompetents. A former classmate of mine returned to our old high school as
an English teacher. After three years of frustration trying to pound
appreciation of the language and the literature into heads ill-suited to the
task, he instituted threshhold testing that divided the students into
different groups. The different groups were taught different curricula and
graded according to mastery of their respective syllabi. Note that the
outcome would be a letter grade reported in the same class regardless of to
which group a student was assigned. But the students quickly realized they
were segregated according to ability.
The upshot was that one student complained to her
parent who was a member of the school board. My friend actually had to
appear before the board to defend his actions. It was a kangaroo court. By a
vote of four to three my friend kept his job. But the parent vowed "to get"
the teacher the next year after the election changed the composition of the
board.
Last I heard, my friend was selling class rings to
graduating seniors. He said he made more money and did not have to deal with
asinine politics.
Maybe we get the education system we deserve instead
of the one we want.
Respectfully h lynn keith
You have asked the relevant question. I
don't think I have an answer.
==============
On IQ and Socio-Economic Status
Often overlooked in the discussion of IQ and SES is
that many adults end up above or below the SES in which they grew up. Jensen
puts the number here at 33-50% of the adult population. What explains this
upward and downward mobility? According to Jensen, the most important factor
is educational achievements related to IQ.
As for parental SES and child IQ, of course there is a
notable correlation. More meaningful is that the correlation between adult
SES and IQ (.50-.70) is significantly higher than the correlation between
parental SES and IQ (.30-.40).
Let me quote Jensen here:
"SES is an effect of IQ rather than a cause. If
SES were the cause of IQ, the correlation between adults' IQ and their
attained SES would not be markedly higher than the correlation between
children's IQ and their parents SES."
P
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