Draft chapter on Humanism, Science and Skepticism for comments….
Humanism: Science, Reason and Skepticism[1] What are science and reason? Humanists expound the virtues of science and reason. But what are science and reason? And we should we think it wise to rely on them? By science, I shall mean that approach to finding out about reality based on the scientific … Draft chapter on Humanism, Science and Skepticism for comments….
Baudrillard and pseudoprofundity
Here is a quote from Baudrillard that Prof Paul Taylor chose for the Radio 3 programme we recorded to be broadcast tonite at 10pm (I am talking about pseudo-profundity and bullshit and pointing a finger at some post-modern thinkers – listen here for a week [I am on from about 14mins30]): For ethnology to live, … Baudrillard and pseudoprofundity
Religious Belief Systems of Persons with High Functioning Autism
Abstract: The cognitive science of religion is a new field which explains religious belief as emerging from normal cognitive processes such as inferring others’ mental states, agency detection and imposing patterns on noise. This paper investigates the proposal that individual differences in belief will reflect cognitive processing styles, with high functioning autism being an extreme … Religious Belief Systems of Persons with High Functioning Autism
If There Is No God, Then Why Do So Many People Believe in God?
A reader recently asked me this question. I was raised Catholic and even as a child I just couldn’t believe that if there was a God who created the universe and, by extension, us, that He wouldn’t expect us to use our brain to reason and learn was was real and unreal. My major concern, … If There Is No God, Then Why Do So Many People Believe in God?
The Flat Earth Society
Yes, there really is a Flat Earth Society. They even have a website. Your name Your email Subject Your message (optional)
Prosblogion: Physicist Sean Carroll on God and Modern Physics
Kenny Pearce at Prosblogion comments on Sean Carroll’s essay, “Does the Universe Need God?“, which we linked to a couple of days ago. The article is a model of constructive dialog between philosophy and physics. Carroll shows engagement with the major philosophical arguments under discussion, and does not come off as condescending or dismissive. He … Prosblogion: Physicist Sean Carroll on God and Modern Physics
Sean Carroll: Does the Universe Need God?
That is the title of Carroll’s essay in The Blackwell Companion to Science and Christianity. Carroll argues that cosmology doesn’t require or support theological hypotheses. An online copy is available at the blog, What There Is and Why There Is Anything. LINK Your name Your email Subject Your message (optional)
From Victor Stenger: Higgs and Significance
(Reblogged on behalf of Victor Stenger. This article was originally published on The Huffington Post here.) As the world knows, on July 4 it was announced that the Higgs boson, or a reasonable facsimile, has been seen by two independent experiments at CERN. The statistical significance reported was expressed as “5-sigma.” Let’s look at what … From Victor Stenger: Higgs and Significance
“God Particle” Discovery Means Woes for Atheists?
Check this out: https://i.imgur.com/Y69cF.png According to some Tweeters, the recent (probable) discovery of the Higgs Boson (unfortunately tagged “The God Particle” by physicist Leon Lederman) has some people once again writing obituaries for atheism. Of course, it seems unlikely that these particular individuals have advanced degrees in physics, philosophy, or theology, so their pronouncements should … “God Particle” Discovery Means Woes for Atheists?
LINKS: Scientific American Summarizes the Cases For and Against the Multiverse
“The Case for Parallel Universes: Why the multiverse, crazy as it sounds, is a solid scientific idea” by Alexander Vilenkin and Max Tegmark (HT: Explicit Atheist) “Does the Multiverse Really Exist?” by George Ellis Your name Your email Subject Your message (optional)