Uranus cites influence of Neptune

"In 18xx, Alexis Bouvard hypothesized that deviations in the expected orbit of Uranus could be due to the influence of an as yet unseen planet orbiting farther out."

That's an unproblematic use of the word "influence," one that Mark wouldn't object to. But I'm wondering how we should assign influence when the ideas of the influencing agent are misunderstood.

E.g., suppose that, upon the actual discovery of Neptune in 1846, Uranus feels a sudden sense of liberation. Up 'til then, reasons for its deviations have been hypothesized but never proven. Now the reasons are confirmed as good ones, the deviations given a definitive rationale. Uranus decides to take things further. It reasons that, owing to Neptune's having already knocked it off its expected path, the very existence of Neptune must authorize Uranus to deviate as far as it wants to from any path. Now, this is a total misunderstanding of the significance of Neptune, but Uranus isn't a rigorous thinker. In fact, Uranus had never deviated at all. Its path was set by the constraints of gravitational forces, including Neptune's. The "expected path" had been what was off, not Uranus's actual motion. But Uranus can't see this, no matter how much we try to explain. Uranus takes the existence of Neptune as a license to deviate, and deviate it does.

I think the "influence" of Thomas Kuhn is much like the "influence" of Neptune, an influence that's based on a misunderstanding. If I am to have much influence myself, I fear that my influence will be similarly ill-derived.

( Without the discovery of Neptune, would Uranus have acted as it did? )

Punching The Lights Out Of Do Re Mi

Natalie Angier in the New York Times about why music is easier to remember than jokes are (In One Ear And Out The Other):

"The brain has a strong propensity to organize information and perception in patterns, and music plays into that inclination," said Michael Thaut, a professor of music and neuroscience at Colorado State University. "From an acoustical perspective, music is an overstructured language, which the brain invented and which the brain loves to hear."

A simple melody with a simple rhythm and repetition can be a tremendous mnemonic device. "It would be a virtually impossible task for young children to memorize a sequence of 26 separate letters if you just gave it to them as a string of information," Dr. Thaut said. But when the alphabet is set to the tune of the ABC song with its four melodic phrases, preschoolers can learn it with ease.

And what are the most insidious jingles or sitcom themes but cunning variations on twinkle twinkle ABC?

Really great jokes, on the other hand, punch the lights out of do re mi. They work not by conforming to pattern recognition routines but by subverting them. "Jokes work because they deal with the unexpected, starting in one direction and then veering off into another," said Robert Provine, a professor of psychology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and the author of "Laughter: A Scientific Investigation." "What makes a joke successful are the same properties that can make it difficult to remember."

(Warning: Article is distressingly devoid of jokes.)

"Smart People Frequently Produce Unfortunate Or Even Idiotic Outcomes"

I wish I had the time to read more economics blogs; besides Krugman and DeLong, I often look at The Baseline Scenario (James Kwak and Simon Johnson). E.g., this post, "Much Worse Than You Think: International Economic Diplomacy." Contains the terms "stupid" and "idiotic" and "borderline malpractice."