| | Analogy - drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect
Analogy plays a significant role in problem solving, decision making, perception, memory, creativity, emotions, explanation, and communication. It lies behind basic tasks such as the identification of places, objects, and people.
It has been argued that analogy is "the core of cognition" (Hofstadter in Gentner et al. 2001).
Analogy has been argued to be the basis of common law.
(WASHINGTON, DC) -  Doctors at the National Research Hospital of the Americas announced startling new numbers in the growing epidemic of analogies. “We’ve seen an overall 32 percent increase in general analogies, with a staggering 57 percent increase in weak analogies and an overwhelming 172 percent increase in Bulk Analogy Deficient (BAD) analogies,” said chief researcher Dr. Amalgam Hoffstadder. “It would be like if the sea suddenly was filled with turtles and… damn. Excuse me.” The paper attributes the steep rise to an increasingly complex world. “Our studies show that as knowledge becomes more specialized, public discussions become more difficult and more frequently fall back on analogy to make points clear. It would be as if you were a caveman and you suddenly met an astronaut… damn.” The startling rise in BAD analogies seems to come from increasingly desperate rhetorical techniques from proponents of ideological extremism. “If you have a fundamentalist Christian arguing with a card-toting Communist they’re going to resort to extreme analogies to make them feel they’re winning. That was not an analogy just there. It wasn’t,” said Dr. Hoffstader. Experts believe we will only see the problem grow as there is currently no incentive to curb analogy usage. “It would be as if you filled an inner tube with snakes and then threw it off the Empire State Building aiming for a thimble full of whiskey. Oh I give up,” finished Hoffstader. Some researchers also believe the analogies may be caused by a virus.
A cheeky article, all in good analogy humor.
Reminds of a zany life adventure (as I often find myself an unprepared participant) that I could not even believe was taking place before my eyes.
(Am I really here? Is this a dream? Am I a shinji? Who's a shinji?)
I was once in a serious business discussion with a man (that supposedly had a bachelor's degree... well at least a GED)... that felt the use of analogies would dangerously "sidetrack things." So they shouldn't even be used during an "open discussion."
Maybe his method of cognition was different than other homo-sapiens. Maybe he wasn't even a homo-sapien. He sure was homo... something?
Maybe comparing something to something else can make a head hurt. I guess for some... when analogies "pop-up" it is akin to "a caveman suddenly meeting an astronaut."
Damn it... that was another analogy!
They are just so hard to avoid!
Curse this foundation of our abilities to perceive and communicate! Haha... but at the end of the day... the lesson is:
If u are ever going to have a serious discussion with someone involving business or law... and they decide to tell you in the middle that they don't want analogies to come into the discussion. Especially while you are in the middle of explaining one.
Don't try to explain it to them in a different way. Realize that they are not as dumb as they look at that moment... and they are just trying cleverly (in an ironically un-clever way) to pull one over on you and leave you with as little possible. Cause when the going gets tough, they are a desperate opportunist and un-exceptional manipulator.
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| | Posted 4/20/2009 10:44 AM - 24 Views - 2 eProps - 2 comments
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