2004-07-19 22:07:31.509683+00 by Dan Lyke 8 comments
Dave's Picks had a link to the Ethical Philosophy Selector. Even as I've aged and acquired a healthy dose of pragmatism... well... my results weren't exactly a surprise.
[ related topics: Objectivism Dan's Life Ethics ]
comments in ascending chronological order (reverse):
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-20 13:19:23.61105+00 by: Nancy
hmmm...I'm not nearly educated enough in philosophy to really grasp all the possibilities of this exercise, but for what it's worth (little to nothing I'm guessing) I did match 100% with Spinoza, a Determinist. 52% with Ayn Rand, even though I do believe in the virtue of selfishness (though I don't pretend to grasp the whole of her philosophy), and Plato and I were a distant 7% match...does make me curious to learn more...
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-20 17:05:40.038688+00 by: Mars Saxman
Ouch - it suggests 100% match with Ayn Rand for me. Either there's a lot of slop in their algorithm, or Rand's devotees have done a really bad job at marketing her ideas...
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-20 17:22:31.831736+00 by: Diane Reese
Never fear, Mars. The "100%" designation in these surveys is the number they assign to your best match, and work the other percentages downward from there. Although they're not very clear about it, they are not actually claiming any of us have a 100% match with the philosophies of our top selection (which in my case is apparently Kant, followed closely by Sartre -- except I don't do the God thing, hmm...)
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-20 19:59:42.138175+00 by: meuon
Not sure how good a test it was, I found the wording difficult, and it was only 12 questions. But for the record: Aristotle 100%, Spinoza 86%, Stoics 78%...
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-20 23:56:38.784579+00 by: polly
interesting...aquinas 100%, aristotle 97%, didn't know i had it in me, lol. though these tests are certainly not 100% accurate, they do give you a moment to think about something other than the run of the mill same-o-same-o. thanks, dan.
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-21 00:00:27.249242+00 by: Larry Burton
It appears that I'm an epicurian.
#Comment Re: made: 2004-07-21 13:59:29.65672+00 by: Shawn
Hmmm... I didn't really have a guess going in, but I can't say I'm surprised: A tie between Nietzsche and Stoic.
#Comment Re: my observation made: 2004-07-21 17:24:51.893883+00 by: DaveP
I'm finding that the test is pretty darned sensitive. I've taken it three times now and come out with three completely different answers. I'm planning to write more about it later in the week, but for now, I think there are two things to be aware of. The "priority" for each answer is very important in the results, and the test was most useful for me as a way to say "hey, I should go look at more by this philosopher".