Notices by Strange Attractor (strangeattractor@refactorcamp.org), page 12

@BruceJia

A strange attractor is one that has the form of a fractal, or one that has "sensitive dependence to initial conditions". In other words, two rain drops might start out in more or less the same place, but their paths can diverge a lot over time.

Fractal is a word that started out as a short form for "fractional dimension".

The Mandelbrot set, Cantor set, and Sierpinski Triangle are among the most famous fractals.

@BruceJia

You can think of a mathematical attractor like an eavestrough.

If you follow the path of rain droplets as they hit the roof, almost all of them will end up in the eavestrough eventually. Exceptions are things like rain drops that stick to the roof, or evaporate.

So the eavestrough is an attractor for the rain drops.

@BruceJia

Yes, it looks like a decent introduction to the concepts. I chose to link to it because it had a reasonably good and accessible explanation about what a strange attractor is.

It didn't really capture what I think are the most cool and awesome and beautiful aspects of strange attractors -- but I haven't found any website or video, as yet, that summarizes that. My own knowledge and appreciation has been picked up in a more piecemeal way.

@BruceJia

Would you please expand on that?

Do you mean, metaphorically, the rare thing being searched for is magnetic, so build a bigger magnet to draw it closer? Or something more complicated involving magnetic fields? Or something else?

@BruceJia

No, it refers to a term from chaos theory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAJkLh76QnM

What strategies tend to work when the map of the territory is mostly THAR BE DRAGONS, and the thing you want to find in the territory is rare?

@pixelpaperyarn
I think the start of a coding session is not as important as the end - reviewing what I've learned about the problem as a result of the work I've been doing, and how that might change my approach going forward.

I also keep in mind who I'm making this for, and why. There are human beings who will be affected by this code. Insights I have into them are important too.

@Elmkast

I'm not sure how much we disagree. I'm not sure how you're using the reservoir metaphor. I think emotional labour is a thing.

I think something like:

Time is limited.

What a person can accomplish in a day is limited.

Love is unlimited.

Affection and love can be taxing, and they can also be nourishing, energizing, unbalancing or rebalancing, sometimes all at the same time. These things do not just flow one direction at a time.

@Elmkast

There are some similarities. Many of the friendship skills are transferable. It helps to stay friends with your long term romantic partner. It's not so much that the friendship isn't there - it's that it is a part of a whole.

I think my point before was that there is a larger category of people that I could do friendship plus sex with than that I could make a successful marriage with. If your model is friendship plus sex, it's missing important criteria.

@Elmkast

Aw.

I think admiration is important. Admiration over that length of time is not just a matter of starting out impressed with someone - it is cultivated over time. Also, why would you date someone if there isn't at least something you like and admire about them, when you could be spending time with someone you like and admire? I'm sure people have their reasons. But.

@Elmkast

At least in my experience, having outside sources of emotional support is super helpful to having a relationship. Relying on just one person for that sort of thing is tough. Sometimes, the romantic partner is the only person available, and it is good to be able to rely on each other that way. However, it is better to have other people to talk stuff over with.

People in their 20s are often in the process of finding new friends, especially if they have moved away from family.

@Elmkast

I'm not sure reservoir is the best metaphor for this - it implies some zero-sum things that don't fit. Opening the sluice gates toward your family won't deprive you of water to send toward a romantic partner, for instance.