¶ … Goedel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, Douglas Hofstadter unleashes a multifaceted theory of mind and consciousness. One of the central motifs or metaphors the author uses in Goedel, Escher, Bach is music. The Bach component of the book begins in depth starting on page 607, when the author presents the question, "Who Composes Computer Music?" The author claims, "There are various levels of autonomy which a program may seem to have in the act of composition," (Hofstadter 607). However, the computer-generated compositions follow predictable algorithms. The songs, riffs, and sounds computers generate are qualitatively different from those that are created by human beings. Computers and brains are different, Hofstadter points out, in that computers cannot experience self-consciousness. Self-consciousness remains one of the core barriers to artificial intelligence. Given there is no "who" in a computer, a computer program cannot create music any more than...
A computer can generate sounds and riffs according to what Hofstadter calls the "grammar of music," (626). Musical rules and syntax govern computer-generated music. On the other hand, human-generated music adds an extra dimension that comes not from mastery of an instrument or command of musical structure. Hofstadter states that human-generated music is "expressive to some strange subconscious regions of our minds," (626). Music comes from the soul, which computers do not have. The subtle nuances underlying notes, tension, and imperceptible differences between human-generated and computer-generated music show that a computer program can never write beautiful music so much as it can write technically precise music.The reaction on the part of the community of language researchers has ranged between the grudging acceptance that some multiple word collocation do exist in the lexicon, and the lexicon re-conceptualized as incorporating elements from all levels of linguistic structure. "According to this second view idiomatic expressions represent one end of a continuum which places highly analyzable and semantically decomposable utterances at one end, and highly specified, semantically opaque
), there is far more to their use than simple memorization. Instead, as English moves into a lingua franca situation in global economics and politics, students of English need to understand idioms in order to respond and understand context as well as fact. Not doing so reduces ESL speakers to a reduced form of English and a larger scenario of uncomfortability within community, school, and therefore, culture (O'Keeffe, McCarthy and
Literal Language In literature, authors have a plethora of literary devices which they can use to interest the reader and make their words more powerful. These tools provide the author with the ability to convey far more than they might have been able to without it. Unfortunately, this abundance of potential literary tools available can, in less skilled hands, make comprehensibility of written language very difficult. One of the most
Using humans as guinea pigs in a study of what happens to the body when syphilis is left untreated borders on the viciousness of some of Nazi Germany's "human experiments" on innocent Jews. Meanwhile, Satel goes on to point out that notwithstanding the DNA evidence of biological similarities, there are dramatic differences in how medicine views ethnic differences, and there lies the controversy which is one of the main themes
Americans hate paying taxes. Idioms that for example place death and taxes in the same category prove this. There are some very specific reasons why Americans do not enjoy paying taxes, and these are examined below. Apart from the mere principle behind this sentiment, are also some concrete and even valid motivations for attempting to evade the obligation to pay taxes. These include reasons relating to government corruption and
Language acquisition is an aspect that comes about every day yet it is a mystic achievement of childhood. An important element learned is that language is acquired by means of knowledge and cognition of the semantic, syntactic, phonological, pragmatic and morphemic aspects of written as well as oral language. For instance, the children will respond to the languages that they hear in their environment. Children do in fact react to
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now