From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Msuck: nntp://news.gmane.io/gmane.science.mathematics.categories/3149 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: "Peter Arndt" Newsgroups: gmane.science.mathematics.categories Subject: Re: cracks and pots Date: Thu, 23 Mar 2006 20:45:38 +0100 Message-ID: <2cc0d36c0603231145x5ed9e737pf44482eec90d56e4@mail.gmail.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: main.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-Trace: ger.gmane.org 1241019122 7443 80.91.229.2 (29 Apr 2009 15:32:02 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@ger.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 29 Apr 2009 15:32:02 +0000 (UTC) To: categories@mta.ca Original-X-From: rrosebru@mta.ca Thu Mar 23 23:26:12 2006 -0400 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Thu, 23 Mar 2006 23:26:12 -0400 Original-Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1FMcvW-0002lZ-89 for categories-list@mta.ca; Thu, 23 Mar 2006 23:25:26 -0400 Content-Disposition: inline Original-Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk X-Keywords: X-UID: 95 Original-Lines: 19 Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.science.mathematics.categories:3149 Archived-At: Dear category theorists, I would like to support Krzysztof Worytkiewicz's remark that "cat theory needs to be demystified in first place rather than to be sold" from a different side: I have recently come across several publications and research projects of philosophers who have become over-enthusiastic with category theory. In certain circles category theory seems to have gained a nimbus of an all-encompassing theory of everything, be it part of mathematics or not, see for example http://lists.debian.org/debian-devel/2000/10/msg02048.html for an expression of such opinions or http://ru.philosophy.kiev.ua/rodin/Endurance.htm for a crude offspring of them. Such exaggerated propaganda is very likely to cause railings like the one of Lubos Motl. Has anyone observed the same phenomenon or does it only exist among the people I have to do with? All the best, Peter