Re:Eric Engstrom, co-creator of DirectX, has died
by CRConrad on Tuesday December 15, 2020 @06:40AM
(#25429329)
> What do you mean by projections?
@Jtsummers puts it as “Map the problem into other domains”; another interpretation (or a variation on the same) is “look at it from a different angle” or “look at it in a different light”. Do both -- move around with your light source, shine a torch/flashlight at your problem, and different shapes will be “projected” onto the wall behind it. Kind of like, if you are familiar with Hofstadter's _Gödel, Escher, Bach_ -- remember that “G,E,B” cube pictured on the cover of many editions? A more or less abstract “thing” or idea can be “projected” into different practical views depending on perspective. In actual practical work talking about “projections” can of course feel a little highfalutin’; to me it's a bit like always talking about your RDBMS tables or views as “relations”.
But in a more philosophical sense it is of course perfectly valid. And AFAICS it's an age-old idea in Western philosophy; what I described above is essentially precisely what is known as _Plato's Cave_. (Which incidentally is why @tenken’s identifying it as “Eastern” feels quite peculiar to me.)
@Jtsummers puts it as “Map the problem into other domains”; another interpretation (or a variation on the same) is “look at it from a different angle” or “look at it in a different light”. Do both -- move around with your light source, shine a torch/flashlight at your problem, and different shapes will be “projected” onto the wall behind it. Kind of like, if you are familiar with Hofstadter's _Gödel, Escher, Bach_ -- remember that “G,E,B” cube pictured on the cover of many editions? A more or less abstract “thing” or idea can be “projected” into different practical views depending on perspective. In actual practical work talking about “projections” can of course feel a little highfalutin’; to me it's a bit like always talking about your RDBMS tables or views as “relations”.
But in a more philosophical sense it is of course perfectly valid. And AFAICS it's an age-old idea in Western philosophy; what I described above is essentially precisely what is known as _Plato's Cave_. (Which incidentally is why @tenken’s identifying it as “Eastern” feels quite peculiar to me.)