So he believes in aliens and all-creating gravity, but not in God?
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greg-233 — 15 years ago(October 18, 2010 04:10 PM)
In a previous post you wrote:
"This also means that in some parallel universe, a Supreme Being would also exist, since according to the Many Worlds Interpretation of QM, every thing that can happen does happen. And once a God emerges, He would use His omnipotence to muscle in on other universes!"
I'm not sure how the existence of parallel worlds would mean the existence of a "Supreme Being". As you've mentioned, David Deutsch believes in the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, but he is an atheist. I actually have his book,
The Fabric of Reality
. The book is dedicated to Richard Dawkins, along with Hugh E2000verett, Karl Popper and Alan Turing.
"As for Sagan, he had his own religion called "exo-biology.""
One should be careful when using a word like "religion". The young Earth creationist Kent Hovind described evolution as a religion when it clearly isn't. As Michael Shermer has said in
Why Darwin Matters
, "If a branch of science like evolutionary theory is a tenet of religion, than the definition of religion is so sweeping that virtually everything is a religion, rendering the word meaningless." -
al666940-3 — 15 years ago(October 23, 2010 07:02 PM)
Quick list of stuff you guys have mentioned:
- Multiple parallel universes
- Infinite unbound universe
- Every possible outcome creates a new parallel universe
- Dark matter (not mentioned, but I'll throw that one in anyway
You what those things have in common?
1.- They are wild speculations with no supporting evidence whatsoever.
2.- They are by themselves even more unrealistic/implausible/contradictory than the concept of God will ever be. - What's the evidence of multiple universes again?
- If the universe is curve and you can reach eventually your starting point, then by definition is FINITE!!!!! About as infinite as any sphere. Plus unless matter/energy keeps being created on a daily basis, there's only so much of both to go around, and since the universe is comprised of both, it cannot be infinite.
- That notion is utter B.S., the number of parallel universes would be infinite, plus where would all that matter/energy required to recreate ALL the known universe come from? And add to it the "notion" that each universe would be infinite and/or unbound, how does thta make sense in any way?
- Scientists from Mexico already proposed serious alterations to Newton's second law to account for all that extra gravitational pull people think it must come from "dark matter" (it's definition is quite similar to God's: something that cannot be seen, touched or proved in any way but yet it's all over)
See the point?
At least E.T. are plausible and realistic.
And about that "western civilization was based on Christianity" nonsense (as a Catholic myself): - I don't remember the Greeks and Romans (before Christ) being Christians, or Jews for that matter, hence the 10 commandments didn't factor in any way.
- If anything, western civilization is PAGAN based.
Islam is ONLY gaining strength because:
1.- Western countries are not breeding fast enough (with comfort and/or the increaising costs of raising a family, people simply don't or cannot have more than 2 kids, I myself cannot afford another one, even though I would love to have more, but simply cannot) to keep their populations.
1.- Poor countries, where the kids HELP the family make money (at expense of their future education), do not have those problems and therefore have as many kids as possible, especially Muslim countries where the women are nothing more than breeders (at least that's how they are regarded and raised).
The rest is simple math. And muslims are very good with math (remember who gave us the concept of 0 among many other things)
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AssetsonFire — 15 years ago(December 19, 2010 05:17 PM)
Chip on your shoulder much? I'm sure you'd be more accomodating if he dismissed aliens and embraced god. If you're so smart, understand that people have opinions and aren't all blessed with your unimpeachable objectivity. Deal with it.
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pirce — 14 years ago(June 20, 2011 04:07 AM)
There are more than a 100 billion stars in the Milkyway galaxy, most of which have planets orbiting them..
There are several hundred billion galaxies in the universe, each having about the same amount or more stars in them.
To assume that earth is the only planet with life on it seems pretty arrogant to me. The opposite actually seems a more probable answer in light of current knowledge.
The possiblity of a supernatural being controlling everything in the universe requires moving outside current scientific methods and information and therefore is harder to believe in than238 life outside of earth. -
al666940-3 — 13 years ago(May 31, 2012 09:14 AM)
"To assume that earth is the only planet with life on it seems pretty arrogant to me"
Not really if you care to remember that the conditions that make life possible are one of TRILLIONS of possible combinations/succesion of events where the slightest alteration or combination or order in events simply negates the possibility of life.
I advise you to stay away from any casino, with your current assumptions you'll be lucky to leave with your clothes on.
"The opposite actually seems a more probable answer in light of current knowledge"
What current knowledge exactly? Even if primitive life forms (bacteria) were found to exist elsewhere (not proven yet), it's still billions of combinations/succession of events away from INTELLIGENT life forms.
"The possiblity of a supernatural being controlling everything in the universe requires moving outside current scientific methods and information"
Only if you pretend to explain stuff outside the scope of science, like say love, beauty, good/evil, etc. Or are you asserting that anything that can't be explaiend by science is tehrefore invalid and non existent?
And for that matter, stuff like "dark matter/energy" are supposed scientific concepts that are bordeline god-like: stuff we cannot see/hear/perceive/prove in any way yet are supposetly all over affecting everything. -
megArnold — 13 years ago(July 04, 2012 10:38 AM)
Hawking does NOT believe that God doesn't exist, but as a scientist, it's not his job to rule on the existence or non-existence of God.
Additionally, to the agnosticism that is a prerogative for science, Hawking expresses a deistic standpoint:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deism
"The universe is governed by the laws of science. The laws may have been decreed by God, but God does not intervene to break the laws."
(S. W. H.)
This is why we distinguish between belief (as in religion) and knowledge (as in science). People should know the difference. Hawking does.
When people don't understand the difference, we get creationists and atheists.
Grammar:
The difference between knowing your sh**
and knowing you're sh**. -
al666940-3 — 13 years ago(August 09, 2012 08:55 AM)
We already have tons of examples here to draw upon:
- The Spaniards coming to America
- The Moors coming to Europe
- The Buddhist coming anyhwere.
The only religion I'm aware of that's not interested in recruiting is the Jewish one. But that's simply because of their belief they are the Chosen Few, thus no need apply (no judgement on my part).
Why should aliens be different really? You should really see Contact.
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King-Grim — 13 years ago(August 14, 2012 11:46 AM)
Aliens are a hundred thousand million billion times more likely to exist than God. In the infinite, unbelievable vastness of space it's pretty much a given that it can't be only the one single insignificant has spawned life, and many millions of forms of it at that. While a single, all powerful, conscious creator of thb68is insanely vast universe is, frankly, rather a far fetched premise.
This forum is afraid of me. I have seen its true face. -
al666940-3 — 13 years ago(August 17, 2012 03:57 PM)
"Aliens are a hundred thousand million billion times more likely to exist than God. In the infinite, unbelievable vastness of space it's pretty much a given that it can't be only the one single insignificant has spawned life"
About as likely as there are life forms based on other stuff besides carbon. Say bubble gum, kalhua, rat $h!t, you name it.
Actual inteligent life occuring anyhwere at 111call depends on some many countless complex factors happening one afetr another, you would be more likely to hit the jackpot on every slot machine in every casino in Vegas in a row. See what happens when anybody hits two in a row (the movie Casino explains it quite clearly)
"While a single, all powerful, conscious creator"
Compared to what? The only other alternatives are:- a forever existing universe (violates entrophy and thermodynamic laws)
- a self creating universe (enter all-powerful God-like gravity)
Both are just as hard to swallow, heck even harder in fact.
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Reema2688 — 10 years ago(August 11, 2015 09:46 AM)
While I personally don't believe in parallel universes, but there is one episode of Through The wormhole, which makes a very compelling case of its existence.
As for God, I think over the years people have massively distorted the concept of God & spirituality. I don't personally subscribe to religious beliefs, coz to me, those come across as some man-made manifestations for ease of ruling, making the society be more inclined to morality and ethics, though the irony is, now religion has become majorly responsible for disrupting the social fabric to quite an extent. But yes, spirituality is something everyone should aspire to connect to - though that equals to being a believer or atheist, I am not sure.
The problem with social media - Idiots now got a voice -
FascistAnarchist999 — 10 years ago(August 11, 2015 09:35 PM)
I watched something about wormholes and time travel sometime back. It was hosted by that Chinese or whatever Physicist. I can agree on some of that that I watched. As for the Parnell universes, it indicated that we existed on apparel universes doing different stuff,etc. This will never be proven, just like atheist say that God can't be proven.
"What is there more proof of, us existing on parallel universes or the existence of God? I would say, "The existence of God because of this and that." Others would say the parallel universes because being that are own universe exists, there might be others. I believe that other universes do exist, but not in the parallel form.
Being that we live in a 4 dimensional universe, does that mean that passed those dimensions is where this universe ends and the other begins?