Down The Rabbit Hole

The science is in favour of a 'flow' state. This is where we take on a challenge that is just about achievable. Conversely, if the challenge is too di...

A lot of the worshipping for both god/s and the Queen is tradition. An all-powerful god would know how much we love them without the need for worship,...

To honour or show reverence for (usually god/s). Support for the Queen is consistently above 80%. Much more than the percentage of us Brits that belie...

The Queen of England is treated as a demigod - riches, rituals, songs, and even the final say on whether bills become law. Surely advanced humans or E...

Should we worship them? And when we are visited by advanced ET?

He says the question of whether there were other universes is "irrelevant". He appears to propose quantum fields as the default state of reality.

No, it is proposed as a simple default state. This is different from an infinite series of big bangs, as proposed by Roger Penrose? Aren't you just pu...

I mean as an explanation for where everything came from (such as Lawrence Krauss proposes). The view you expressed of an infinite series of big bangs ...

You're not impressed by the above arguments about an infinite series of big bangs? It does seem absurd that something has existed forever with no expl...

You don't think something more basic such as a quantum field is a better explanation?

You mean like an infinite series of big bangs?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeahffPMR5c The alternative is something coming from literally nothing.

Like Al-Ghazali's orbiting planets, it's not necessarily logically impossible, just counter-intuitive. An infinitely ticking stopwatch is a better exa...

I don't know if you've read the book, but this was the response I gave when asked about Oppy's Philosophical Perspectives on Infinity: "A lot of the c...

How about an infinity ticking stopwatch? Any number it shows would contradict its infinite ticks?

I didn't say always in time. If it was created, it began to exist. I'm not obsessed with orbiting planets y'know :lol: It's Al-Ghazali's example, that...

Okay, so you're saying Al-Ghazali's orbiting planets are unintuitive but not logically impossible? Sorry to move the goalposts, but what if instead of...

I understand what you are saying; a total number of orbits and infinite orbits are incompatible. It still seems absurd that any extra orbits we sudden...

Like Bayesian inference? Updating the probabilities for a hypothesis as new data comes in.

For punch I added "even if you suddenly sped the faster planet up further". It is absurd that both planets would have done the same amount of orbits?

The trouble is, we don't have any experience with "nothing" in the literal sense. What evidence have we got to say things don't just pop into existenc...

Having always existed means it didn't start to exist.

Yes, ostensibly a clock that has always been ticking cannot exist. How about the infinite number of red books and infinite number of black books, that...

Create means "bring something into existence". This cannot be done for something that has always existed.

Although this infinite series of bangs runs into the paradoxes, it might be the most plausible option. Sir Roger Penrose seems to think so. I don't se...

I chose the word "seems" as I wanted the poll to be inviting to everyone, not just those with a reasoned answer (if such a thing exists for this quest...

If there is not literal nothingness, there is some thing(s). As @"PoeticUniverse" has said in other threads, the thing(s) making up the infinite past ...

This infinite series of universes would still have no reason or explanation for its existence. As this is an infinite series of events, it still runs ...

I was surprised by the results too. And the comments aren't reflecting these results.

(1) The thing(s) making up the infinite past would have no reason or explanation for their existence (2) An infinite past is paradoxical. E.g. Planets...

No I don't. It seems to me that something having an infinite past is the least absurd option. Nonetheless, you must agree that something just existing...

I'll have you know, I do know what I'm talking about on the subject of nothing :joke: I wasn't sure if you was serious. When responding, I did add the...

Contrary to the results of my poll so far, something from literally nothing intuitively seems more far-fetched to me. However, as @"Gnomon" pointed ou...

I think it was Bertrand Russell that said something to the effect that even dreams/illusions are real. You seem to be referring to the idea expressed ...

There is only evidence that brains experience reality.

42 pages later, any nearer to the answer?

The article you provided a link to suggests documents leaked by scientists show the Wuhan Lab had an extensive collection of coronaviruses which they ...

How are they running the vaccination programme?

Yes, that makes perfect sense. I'm guessing the change will be gradual - it may take a few generations for people to give up the old ways. I don't thi...

Have you heard of the futurist Jacque Fresco? He believed technology would make laws redundant.

If we forget about the fact that the monarch has to sign off for a bill to become a law (called Royal Assent) :grimace: the UK parliament is supreme. ...

The bills could still be drafted by professional politicians, and the questions then put to the electorate electronically. The same question is not to...

I agree. The UK government's new police bill would make protest that causes "serious annoyance" illegal. I'm sure the US First Amendment wouldn't stan...

It was only the other day I heard about the Texas Heartbeat Act. Looks like legal challenges are pending, but apparently the Supreme Court is more pro...

I had directly voting for legislation in mind, but directly voting for our leaders/representatives would be less controversial. I understand the 2016 ...

I doesn't seem right to call it the people's will when the people can rarely control it. Direct democracy would be as pure as you could get, but faili...

Yes, I didn't mean completely undemocratic. Clearly the people's will is restricted by a constitution.

Our view that there is no correct answer seems to meet the definition of moral nihilism. Although, I think moral nihilism is commonly used to refer to...

It makes perfect sense that doing something now to affect a future person (such as planting a bomb to kill them or having sex and forcing them to be a...

Makes sense to me.