A nest-building bird that followed a procedure mechanically -- add a piece to what we have so far by entwining it in a certain way, leaving ways to use it for the next bit, and preserving a local curvature of such-and-such -- could consistently produce nests with no knowledge of the overall shape its procedure leads to. — Srap Tasmaner
If I put together a jigsaw puzzle by selecting a piece at random and then performing a brute-force search for pieces that connect to it properly -- matching shapes and colors, the usual rules -- and then repeat this process with the new edges of my work in progress until the puzzle is complete, I can be successful without having any idea what the final form will be. — Srap Tasmaner
Lining up the middle of the sock instead of the top now strikes me as a really curious leap of insight in itself... — Srap Tasmaner
Sure. But you can't generally insert male into female starting in the middle, only in this case you can by modifying the shape of the receiving object so that a cross-section from the middle is now the mouth. — Srap Tasmaner
insert male into female starting in the middle — Srap Tasmaner
I still don't have clearly in view how to take the application of a method. A method should be a procedure that can be mechanically followed, and may need to be for purposes of reliable reconnaissance, but the sort of "pathologies of method" you describe are failings at the, I don't know, monitoring and supervision level, maybe what you mean by "methodology". — Srap Tasmaner
This is all a bit abstract -- hence the socks! -- but I think what we're talking about is finding a reliable approach to making use of formalization without becoming beholden to it, without letting it dictate terms ("looking where the light is best" and related problems).
Is this how you see it? — Srap Tasmaner
Method 1 has other flaws: it is harder to line up the lower section of the sock so that it seats properly, and sometimes results in a misalignment that requires lots of twisting, and sometimes even that is not enough and you're forced to start all over; it also puts considerable strain on the sock and I suspect contributes to earlier sock-failure (especially if there is a noticeable transition between the top and bottom sections). — Srap Tasmaner
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