Archive for October 2014
Do We Live in the Matrix?
Unfortunately, our almighty simulators may… have programmed us into a universe-size reality show — and are capable of manipulating the rules of the game, purely for their entertainment. In that case, maybe our best strategy is to lead lives that amuse our audience, in the hope that our simulator-gods will resurrect us in the afterlife…
Read MoreThe Promiscuous Universe
The promiscuous nature of the multiverse may be unappealing (William James, who coined the word, called the multiverse a ‘harlot’), but it is hard to eliminate. As a final insult to unity, the laws of quantum mechanics indicate that the universe is continually splitting into multiple histories or ‘worlds,’ out of which the world that…
Read MoreUnknowable universe
In truth, if [the universe is] infinite, then the fraction that we can see is not very small. Rather, it is exactly zero. And if we indeed have a sampling size of zero, then our conclusions about the nature of the Cosmos at large are so untrustworthy as to be worthless. ((http://www.hudsonvalleyalmanacweekly.com/2012/01/27/an-unknowable-universe/))
Read MoreGoswami’s Monist Idealism
Once we recognize that biological mutation (which includes the mutation of prebiotic molecules) is a quantum event, we realize that the universe bifurcates in every such event in the transcendent domain, becoming many branches, until in one of the branches there is a sentient being that can look with awareness and complete a quantum measurement.…
Read MoreGoswami’s take on the Anthropic Principle
The question always arises, “The universe is supposed to have existed for fifteen billion years, so if it takes consciousness to convert possibility into actuality, then how could the universe be around for so long?” Because there was no consciousness, no sentient being, biological being, carbon based being, in that primordial fireball which is supposed…
Read MoreA Giant Brain
According to a study published in Nature’s Scientific Reports, the universe may be growing in the same way as a giant brain – with the electrical firing between brain cells ‘mirrored’ by the shape of expanding galaxies. The results of a computer simulation suggest that “natural growth dynamics” – the way that systems evolve –…
Read MoreBeyond Science
…if science is dealing with something real, though permanently beyond it, then this suggests that a more fundamental reality exists as a kind of ground of being for everything as we perceive it too. Moreover, that ground exists outside of space and time – which actually is not so startling a comment: the laws of…
Read MoreRegions of the Brain
Magic mushrooms may give users trippy experiences by creating a hyperconnected brain. The active ingredient in the psychedelic drug, psilocybin, seems to completely disrupt the normal communication networks in the brain, by connecting “brain regions that don’t normally talk together,” said study co-author Paul Expert, a physicist at King’s College London. The research, which was…
Read MoreChildren and Pre-Conventional Morality
Stage 1 – Obedience and Punishment The earliest stage of moral development is especially common in young children, but adults are also capable of expressing this type of reasoning. At this stage, children see rules as fixed and absolute. Obeying the rules is important because it is a means to avoid punishment. ((http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/kohlberg.htm))
Read MoreHigher Stages? A Christian Perspective on Kohlberg‘s Theory of Moral Development
Biblical teaching cannot easily be harmonized with the content of Kohlberg‘s theory, especially his hierarchy of moral reasoning which considers self-interested pursuit of reward, avoidance of punishment, and seeking to please God as lower, relatively inferior forms of moral reasoning. The Christian Scriptures present people with a broad spectrum of valid reasons for doing what…
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