looking for patterns vs. dreaming up patterns (was Re: ecommerce was Re: [uf-discuss] Principles of Microformats?)

[Benjamin West]

> Ah, thanks for the context Ben.  The quote makes more sense in that context,
> but I still feel makes a statement that I wouldn't make.
>

Oops! I didn't mean to do anything like that!

> It's an interesting hypothesis, but I believe what I was pointing out from
> the IRC conversation is that you may wish to pursue more formal study in
> those fields (anthropology/ethnology/psychology in particular) and refine
> your hypotheses accordingly before spending time trying to prove or disprove
> it.

> You may find that similar hypotheses may already be proven/disproven in the
> formal fields and thus you won't have to duplicate the effort. If not, you
> will likely be able to at least refine your hypothesis to build on existing
> work.
>

Tantek, your advice is always welcome.  I may have under-represented
myself in an attempt to be humble.  I don't have the formal education
that an "expert" would.  However, I have taken several college level
classes, and my current reading list is comprised of the materials
that you are suggesting.  The subject also includes cognitive studies,
which has been the concentration of most of my recent reading
activities.
Anyway, this is probably way off topic of uf-discuss now, but if you
have suggestions for particular programs nearby or books to read, I'm
all ears.

Thanks,
Ben