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Where exactly is the line drawn for how much and what type of human intervention is required? When I cook food, human intervention is causing chemical reactions
by GoldenRacer 3y ago
Where exactly is the line drawn for how much and what type of human intervention is required? When I cook food, human intervention is causing chemical reactions that change the composition of the food. I doubt many people consider grill marks to be unnatural or synthetic.
- simiones 3y agoI think the line is typically drawn at any human intervention. I doubt many humans consider steaks to be a naturally occurring phenomenon. Now, there is a secondary fuzzy notion of "artificial" typically used in relation to "chemicals". I don't think that definition stands up to most serious scrutiny, and is at any rate unrelated to this article.
- asow92 3y agoThat's exactly what's being—albeit atypically—advocated for here: That even steaks are a naturally occurring byproduct of humans and cows because humans and cows naturally exist.
- simiones 3y agoSure, but then of course absolutely everything is "naturally occurring". Plastic is a naturally occurring substance, computers are naturally occurring objects, C++ is a natural language. Perhaps then only miracles from God (for those who believe in such things) are unnatural?
- asow92 3y agoNow you're getting it.
- simiones 3y agoI am, but this is just not what those words mean, to anyone.
- asow92 3y agoIt may be heterodox, but it’s what it means to me, and I’m sure I’m not completely alone in feeling so.
- MacsHeadroom 3y agoPlenty of people do not believe the conceptualization of a natural/synthetic divide does any good. There are entire subsets of philosophy, feminism, cyborg theory, etc. which talk about this.
- asow92 3y agoIn your example, I’d opt for supernatural over unnatural, and I get your meaning.