A majority of the religious debates that I get in to are usually between evangelical Christians and such. Most of the time, they are completely unwilling to change their mind about their beliefs. Which makes debating the facts and evidence behind their beliefs completely irrelevant to them.
So, what I think would be a better approach is to debate the root of the problem: the individual him/herself. They are usually closed-minded and unlikely to change. Bring this up with them and describe how this may be harmful to others and themselves.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
"New Atheist" movement
I just read this article online talking about new atheism clubs being started in high schools across the country and got to thinking why this is. A majority of new atheists in this movement are primarily in the 18-25 range of age. This is the age of college students and primarily, those individuals moving out of their parent's houses in order to live on their own and start making their own life decisions. In my opinion, no other age group seems logical.
Once someone reaches the teenage years, they become pissy and rebellious. If this happens to lead to atheism, then great. However, once someone grows up to the 18-25 age group, most move out and start living on their own. So they have no more reason to be rebellious. Why would they remain atheists then? This should prove that atheism is not a fad or something that will fade. It is an idea that, once accepted, remains with you forever.
The college student age group seems the most "new atheist" potential because they are learning who they are and how to live their lives. This leads to all sorts of experimentation, and not just sexual as most people would imply from this, but also experimentation in religion. Personally, that is where I first raised questions about religion. Although, I started earlier in freshman or sophomore year of high school. Experimentation and progress is a good thing.
Once someone reaches the teenage years, they become pissy and rebellious. If this happens to lead to atheism, then great. However, once someone grows up to the 18-25 age group, most move out and start living on their own. So they have no more reason to be rebellious. Why would they remain atheists then? This should prove that atheism is not a fad or something that will fade. It is an idea that, once accepted, remains with you forever.
The college student age group seems the most "new atheist" potential because they are learning who they are and how to live their lives. This leads to all sorts of experimentation, and not just sexual as most people would imply from this, but also experimentation in religion. Personally, that is where I first raised questions about religion. Although, I started earlier in freshman or sophomore year of high school. Experimentation and progress is a good thing.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Let's Discuss Utopia
What is it? How close are we? What needs to be done to get there?
The purpose of life for most everyone would be seeking happiness and I think the same goes for all of society. Believe it or not, I think we're closer to utopia than people realize.
Utopia is the ideal, perfect society of the future that we all strive for, but what makes up a Utopian society? I think it would comprise of these few things: (1)complete and total freedom, (2)no economy, (3)no crime, (4)no discrimination, and (5)no countries (world 'government'). {(6)Suggestions?}
(1)Complete freedom would include the ability to do literally anything you wanted, even kill a person. *Gasp* "How is that Utopian?" you might be asking yourself. Well, I believe with future cloning technology and whatever other techniques we may develop that I couldn't possibly imagine, murder wouldn't be an issue...or at least death wouldn't. You could be reborn exactly how you were before you died. This could be done by the use of 'cyberbrains' (yourself in the body and mind of a robot), but perhaps there are biological ways of accomplishing this as well.
(2)No economy would mean everything you might ever want is free. No more money and no more buying and selling. I think with 3d printing tech we can eventually print out whatever we want whether it be, a chair, food, a car, another 3d printer, or anything. The only thing limiting this is the amount of matter we have available, but the Earth is a big place and it's very small compared to just about everything else in the universe.
(3)No crime seems like it might contradict complete freedom. If you have the freedom to kill, rape, and steal, then how do you stop crime? The trick would be to make criminal behavior no longer a crime or to fix everyone's psychology in some way so that criminal tendencies don't exist. This seems a bit inhumane, though, to alter the way people think. However, what's the alternative? Put the person in jail for the rest of their life where they'll live with other disturbed individuals, or take them to a psychologist to permanently fix whatever is wrong and send them back into the real world? Technology and advances in psychology should allow us to literally wipe out extreme behavior (and I don't mean wipe your very humanity away or whatever makes you who you are as an individual). The other suggestion I made, "make criminal behavior no longer a crime" is in reference to above when I stated we could clone someone if they were killed, so murder wouldn't even be a crime anymore.
(4)No discrimination falls under the same category as no crime. Either the psychology of discriminatory people will need to be changed or everyone in society will evolve over time to be more acceptable towards all people, much the way our morality has evolved.
(5)No countries would lie somewhat in the complete freedom and no discrimination area as well. The world could not be separated because this would contradict the no discrimination aspect. The government system wouldn't be like anything today because we would literally have no or very few issues to solve. There wouldn't be a need for politics in a place where nothing needs to be debated.
So, you must be wondering now why I think we're closer to Utopia than most people probably think. Well, mostly due to technology and machines, we don't hardly have to do any farming, mining, or anything by our own backbreaking work anymore. With continuously more powerful computing power each year, eventually we'll have reliable robotics. 3D Printing isn't a very difficult technology, either. So, I think within my lifetime, maybe when I'm 80 or something, we may just reach a point where Utopia is a real possibility.
P.S. I realize there may be a hell of a lot more involved in creating a Utopian society, but the majority of issues can be solved by advances in technology.
The purpose of life for most everyone would be seeking happiness and I think the same goes for all of society. Believe it or not, I think we're closer to utopia than people realize.
Utopia is the ideal, perfect society of the future that we all strive for, but what makes up a Utopian society? I think it would comprise of these few things: (1)complete and total freedom, (2)no economy, (3)no crime, (4)no discrimination, and (5)no countries (world 'government'). {(6)Suggestions?}
(1)Complete freedom would include the ability to do literally anything you wanted, even kill a person. *Gasp* "How is that Utopian?" you might be asking yourself. Well, I believe with future cloning technology and whatever other techniques we may develop that I couldn't possibly imagine, murder wouldn't be an issue...or at least death wouldn't. You could be reborn exactly how you were before you died. This could be done by the use of 'cyberbrains' (yourself in the body and mind of a robot), but perhaps there are biological ways of accomplishing this as well.
(2)No economy would mean everything you might ever want is free. No more money and no more buying and selling. I think with 3d printing tech we can eventually print out whatever we want whether it be, a chair, food, a car, another 3d printer, or anything. The only thing limiting this is the amount of matter we have available, but the Earth is a big place and it's very small compared to just about everything else in the universe.
(3)No crime seems like it might contradict complete freedom. If you have the freedom to kill, rape, and steal, then how do you stop crime? The trick would be to make criminal behavior no longer a crime or to fix everyone's psychology in some way so that criminal tendencies don't exist. This seems a bit inhumane, though, to alter the way people think. However, what's the alternative? Put the person in jail for the rest of their life where they'll live with other disturbed individuals, or take them to a psychologist to permanently fix whatever is wrong and send them back into the real world? Technology and advances in psychology should allow us to literally wipe out extreme behavior (and I don't mean wipe your very humanity away or whatever makes you who you are as an individual). The other suggestion I made, "make criminal behavior no longer a crime" is in reference to above when I stated we could clone someone if they were killed, so murder wouldn't even be a crime anymore.
(4)No discrimination falls under the same category as no crime. Either the psychology of discriminatory people will need to be changed or everyone in society will evolve over time to be more acceptable towards all people, much the way our morality has evolved.
(5)No countries would lie somewhat in the complete freedom and no discrimination area as well. The world could not be separated because this would contradict the no discrimination aspect. The government system wouldn't be like anything today because we would literally have no or very few issues to solve. There wouldn't be a need for politics in a place where nothing needs to be debated.
So, you must be wondering now why I think we're closer to Utopia than most people probably think. Well, mostly due to technology and machines, we don't hardly have to do any farming, mining, or anything by our own backbreaking work anymore. With continuously more powerful computing power each year, eventually we'll have reliable robotics. 3D Printing isn't a very difficult technology, either. So, I think within my lifetime, maybe when I'm 80 or something, we may just reach a point where Utopia is a real possibility.
P.S. I realize there may be a hell of a lot more involved in creating a Utopian society, but the majority of issues can be solved by advances in technology.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Why I Hate Online Job Applications
You know when you're doing an application online, or just about anywhere, they make you do a sort of personality test? I wonder if anyone ever tells the truth on those things. Of course the employer is going to be looking for a happy, go-lucky, leader-type and if you told the truth then you'd never get a job. I think it's a little discriminatory in a way for introverts like myself.
Introverts are naturally inclined to shy away from any social situation and remain alone. It's not that we hate people, but that we prefer to be by ourselves. This is greatly misunderstood by almost everyone that isn't introverted. They don't even seem to understand the concept of always wanting to be alone.
Anyways, this is hurtful in the world of business because in order to work in this environment you need to be able to attend meetings, speak publicly, work with many other people, and talk talk talk.
So, my point is...job application questions need to be fixed or at least recognition of the introvert vs. extrovert-society problem exists.
Introverts are naturally inclined to shy away from any social situation and remain alone. It's not that we hate people, but that we prefer to be by ourselves. This is greatly misunderstood by almost everyone that isn't introverted. They don't even seem to understand the concept of always wanting to be alone.
Anyways, this is hurtful in the world of business because in order to work in this environment you need to be able to attend meetings, speak publicly, work with many other people, and talk talk talk.
So, my point is...job application questions need to be fixed or at least recognition of the introvert vs. extrovert-society problem exists.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Capitalism: Side-effects may include greed, pollution, and crimes against humanity
Capitalism is a failure. There are plenty of disasters across the world that could have been prevented or their after effects could have been greatly relieved but thanks to greedy corporations and the capitalist ideology, these disasters occur and are never fixed.
Capitalism definition:
An economic system based on a free market, open competition, profit motive and private ownership of the means of production. Capitalism encourages private investment and business, compared to a government-controlled economy. Investors in these private companies (i.e. shareholders) also own the firms and are known as capitalists.
The main issue that I have with the Capitalist system is the 'profit motive' system of running things. If your main objective is profit, then ethics and humane actions are less important. Some examples would include global climate change, New Orleans & Katrina, West Virginia mining explosion, the BP oil spill, Bhopal chemical disaster, etc. To the corporation, there is no benefit or reward in fixing these disasters. In the capitalist system, when you spend money to fix something like this, your stock prices go down and you lose business and profit. In other words, you are either punished for helping people or rewarded for doing nothing. I have nothing against small businesses and the process of making profit, but it's when a business commits a terrible crime to humanity or the environment and does nothing for the sole purpose of keeping profit and income coming into the company. That peeves me off.
Capitalism definition:
An economic system based on a free market, open competition, profit motive and private ownership of the means of production. Capitalism encourages private investment and business, compared to a government-controlled economy. Investors in these private companies (i.e. shareholders) also own the firms and are known as capitalists.
The main issue that I have with the Capitalist system is the 'profit motive' system of running things. If your main objective is profit, then ethics and humane actions are less important. Some examples would include global climate change, New Orleans & Katrina, West Virginia mining explosion, the BP oil spill, Bhopal chemical disaster, etc. To the corporation, there is no benefit or reward in fixing these disasters. In the capitalist system, when you spend money to fix something like this, your stock prices go down and you lose business and profit. In other words, you are either punished for helping people or rewarded for doing nothing. I have nothing against small businesses and the process of making profit, but it's when a business commits a terrible crime to humanity or the environment and does nothing for the sole purpose of keeping profit and income coming into the company. That peeves me off.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Dear Hollywood
Stop pumping out the same generic action, romance, cartoon, horror flicks. I understand it is good business to pump out as many movies as possible so more people will want to come to the theaters, but at least learn a lesson from the countless, brilliant movies that have ever been made. Brilliant movies are long, epic, have many brain bending twists, fantastic visuals/actors/aesthetics.
You are in the business of story telling and I'm somewhat sick of seeing unoriginal stories. However, I must say, Inception was great work. That is the kind of movie I ask of you. I want to see more originality, thought, and brain power involved in the process. To help you out, I shall list a few story ideas that I have come up with over the past couple months.
1. In the future, advancing technology has allowed us to create a spaceship that should allow us to live for vast amounts of time in the void of space. Unfortunately, due to war, global warming, and whatever other issues, the world meets apocalypse and almost all life is wiped from the face of the Earth. Many more years into the future, a somewhat more primitive race of humans discover the spaceship buried under sand or ice or what have you. The Earth is slowly recovering but not quickly enough for what's left of the human race. So, a group of people prepare the ship for launch. I'd call it an Ark of sorts.
2. A man learns he has cancer and has only a few days left to live. Plans the most
elaborate and fantastic death or suicide so he will be remembered forever.
3. The internet gains consciousness and becomes a super powerful god-like entity.
4. A student researcher working for a very well respected physicist is responsible for doing some kind of project, but skips it to go to a party or some other nonsense. It turns out that the project he was supposed to work on would finally determine how the Big Bang of the early Universe was triggered. Due to the strict nature of the physicist, the student decides to lie and states "God" was the conclusion of his research (which never took place). In order to defend himself, the student takes his 'research' to the local news station. Point: it causes a domino affect and a whole ass load of trouble for the respected physicist. But it all works out in the end and leave the audience guessing as to how the Big Bang evidence turns out.
I'd write the scripts or books myself but I'm not necessarily a writer. Get to it Hollywood! I've already given you a good start.
You are in the business of story telling and I'm somewhat sick of seeing unoriginal stories. However, I must say, Inception was great work. That is the kind of movie I ask of you. I want to see more originality, thought, and brain power involved in the process. To help you out, I shall list a few story ideas that I have come up with over the past couple months.
1. In the future, advancing technology has allowed us to create a spaceship that should allow us to live for vast amounts of time in the void of space. Unfortunately, due to war, global warming, and whatever other issues, the world meets apocalypse and almost all life is wiped from the face of the Earth. Many more years into the future, a somewhat more primitive race of humans discover the spaceship buried under sand or ice or what have you. The Earth is slowly recovering but not quickly enough for what's left of the human race. So, a group of people prepare the ship for launch. I'd call it an Ark of sorts.
2. A man learns he has cancer and has only a few days left to live. Plans the most
elaborate and fantastic death or suicide so he will be remembered forever.
3. The internet gains consciousness and becomes a super powerful god-like entity.
4. A student researcher working for a very well respected physicist is responsible for doing some kind of project, but skips it to go to a party or some other nonsense. It turns out that the project he was supposed to work on would finally determine how the Big Bang of the early Universe was triggered. Due to the strict nature of the physicist, the student decides to lie and states "God" was the conclusion of his research (which never took place). In order to defend himself, the student takes his 'research' to the local news station. Point: it causes a domino affect and a whole ass load of trouble for the respected physicist. But it all works out in the end and leave the audience guessing as to how the Big Bang evidence turns out.
I'd write the scripts or books myself but I'm not necessarily a writer. Get to it Hollywood! I've already given you a good start.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Centrifuge Spaceship...not as great as I thought
So, lately I've been fascinated with the idea of a spaceship creating artificial gravity using centrifugal force.
If you don't know what a centrifuge is:
After thinking about the concept used in space as a sort of artificial gravity, I've concluded that it may only work completely if you are just sitting there. If you start to walk in a certain direction then you will get different results. I've drawn up some images to explain it:
There is also the issue with jumping. If you jump, it may appear to you that you are moving backwards but in reality the ground beneath you is moving forward without you. Also, if you were to jump then what exactly is keeping you from the zero gravity affects of space? Would you not just float there and perhaps never return to the ground?
So my conclusion is that my high expectations for centrifuge as a type of artificial gravity were wrong. It's a little depressing to think 'back to the drawing board' but that's how it works. My wonderful imagined spaceship is no longer valid :(
If you don't know what a centrifuge is:
After thinking about the concept used in space as a sort of artificial gravity, I've concluded that it may only work completely if you are just sitting there. If you start to walk in a certain direction then you will get different results. I've drawn up some images to explain it:
There is also the issue with jumping. If you jump, it may appear to you that you are moving backwards but in reality the ground beneath you is moving forward without you. Also, if you were to jump then what exactly is keeping you from the zero gravity affects of space? Would you not just float there and perhaps never return to the ground?
So my conclusion is that my high expectations for centrifuge as a type of artificial gravity were wrong. It's a little depressing to think 'back to the drawing board' but that's how it works. My wonderful imagined spaceship is no longer valid :(
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