Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Wikiality

Along the same lines as my last post on those little bits of wisdom that people like to quote (and believe) without even thinking about it, I found this word, "wikiality" on the Urban Dictionary.

7 user-provided definitions for it are given on this page. Here's the most popular one and the one I like best:
1. Reality as decided on by majority rule. Based off wikipedia's 'majority rule' fact. Featured on The Colbert Report July 31, 2006.

Wikiality refers to the changing of reality or truth via a Wikipedia-like system, allowing the public to change facts as long as there are others that agree.

6. A word coined by Stephen Colbert of the Colbert Report meaning Wikipedia's reality. Anything said by wikipedia, which may or may not be contrary to actual reality. A Democracy on facts.

Wikipedia (Wikiality): Albert Einstein was a pantheist.

Einstein (Reality): It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly.

Of course, the Urban Dictionary is made up of wikialities itself, that's because it's a slang dictionary, and slang by the very nature of itself is defined by the popular acceptance of its meaning.

It's always good to consider the source of your "facts" before accepting them as such. For instance, Big Tobacco has a set of "facts" for you that might differ from the facts you'll get from the American Lung Association or the American Cancer Society. As one of the entries on the provided link says, "Galileo was wrong".

I will continue to use Wikipedia as a valuable resource (and keep in mind that it's all user-submitted), and don't think it's less reliable than the encyclopedia on the shelf, a school textbook, ancient scriptures, or the stuff from the News media (actually, it's more reliable than some of those). I am also a bit of a Relativist and reject the concept of universal truth. My reality may be different than yours... in fact, I know it is because our perceptors and filters are different. If there is a universally true definition of the meaning of life, the universe and everything (42!!!!), I don't think I'm any more capable of understanding it than this cat here.

I will keep using wiki, I think it's fascinating and fun just to surf around on it, which is called "wiking off" or "wikisurfing" on the Urban Dictionary, making me a "wikipedestrian", among other things. ;-)

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5 comments:

Blueberry said...

Just getting out in the heat! Joe Ely and Double Trouble at Zilker on Wednesday, Keep Austin Weird event, Hot Sauce Festival, wheee.

The Alamo is showing "Dark Side of the Rainbow" on Sep 3. Like to catch that one sometime. Some of the above events could be called "The Hot Side of Oz"

Michael Bains said...

I just watch HGttG again last night.

Still no closer to decipherin' 42. Must be cuz I had a chance to move into Apt 42, but took 43 instead. It has the refinished floors and tiles.

Is that a metaphor for me bein' overly attached to material stuff??

I'm thinkin' "uh huh..."

Blueberry said...

Fox Mulder lived in Apt. 42. I'm sure that Apt. 43 would have been much nicer thought. There! I've mentioned Fox Mulder on this blog twice this week, and in both cases it's about there not being coincidences on the X-Files.

I would think that 43 is just one better than 42 -- like Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap said on his amp going to eleven, "11 is one louder".

Mark Wyatt said...

Galileo Was Wrong!

This is a fact and a book by Robert Sungenis and Robert Bennett (Ph.D.'s).

www.galileowaswrong.com

Mark Wyatt
veritas-catholic.blogspot.com

Blueberry said...

Fascinating.