"If a tree falls..."

[Page Stephens]

Tell that to anyone involved in quantum mechanics and see how far it gets
you as a description of wave functions. <grin>

Page Stephens

----- Original Message -----
From: "Duane Campbell" <dcamp at CHILITECH.NET>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2005 6:57 PM
Subject: Re: "If a tree falls..."


> ---------------------- Information from the mail
> header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Duane Campbell <dcamp at CHILITECH.NET>
> Subject:      Re: "If a tree falls..."
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Original message:
>
>> Can anyone help me determine the origin of the philosophical conundrum
>> "If
>> a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?"
>>
>> Fred Shapiro
>
> I am frankly surprised to see such a question from an esteemed language
> professional. It is not a philosophical conundrum at all. It is a semantic
> question intended to play on the man in the street's ignorance of how
> language works. There are two answers, and both are simple. If by "sound"
> you mean the waves set off by the tree falling, the answer is "yes." If
> you
> mean "sound" as the interpretation of those waves by the appropriate part
> of
> the brain, the answer is "no."
>
> Does that sound right?
>
> D