Recent content by sidestreet

Step back from the link in the OP to http://www.keelynet.com and you’ll find that the whole site is a time capsule of Internet hoaxing and pseudo-science at the turn of the century. Is there a project anywhere that is capturing this online stuff for the future? The site is named for John...

Hypothesis: The concept of morals (any morality) is due to the fact that it became useful at some point in our evolution. Same goes for religion (any faith). Both are natural, to that extent, but both must be flexible and so neither is absolute. Religion helps define the tribe and the moral code...

On the maths side, couldn't say it better than dx. Science isn’t about certainty, it’s about doubt. It works by removing falsehoods. What is left may be labeled truth, but only in the sense that a theory does a good job until a better one comes along. If the Qur'an really does make...

Having read through the thread, apologies if I missed anyone making this point before. We evolved to perceive things but it ain’t necessarily so. When Kirk is beamed-up by Scotty, how does the transporter know exactly where the ground stops and Kirk starts? Is the dirt on his boots part of...

I remember a speculation by a neuroscientist. Can’t remember his/her name, but it should brighten your day. It says that I am just a narrative made from different regions of the brain vying for attention. That would explain, for example, why dreams are unrealistic - in REM sleep only a few...

The issue would be that it is possible to imagine our universe as a bubble of space-time, in which we are trapped forever, that exists within something else that has neither space nor time, i.e. it depends on the definition of the word universe. Whether that stands-up to inspection by a...

Tac-Tics’ Game of Life analogy is a good one. Can a creature in the game fully determine how its universe came into existence, and would it then find the explanation logically sound? The argument says probably not, since the alien-programmer-god type of solution would be unlikely to comply with...

If I see an appeal from Médicos Sin Fronteras following a disaster, saying they urgently need money to fly in penicillin and tents, I would probably pick up the phone, punch in my credit card, and give because they need the money now and tomorrow is too late. But dealing with a disaster...

But the cost of living in developing countries is also lower than developed countries. After all, that’s why companies invest there. Investment, by generating skills and wealth, has great potential for good provided that it is well controlled. More than just sending food parcels anyway. And...

Is that a symptom caused by us not sharing our wealth, or would it happen anyway?

I think that’s my poor wording. The nub is to treat logic in the same way as everything else - if there is no outside/pre-existence to our universe then ‘logic’ is a member of our universe. The inconsistency is then that somehow god can then be treated differently, existing in some...

Fully agreed. My point is that plonking it in a collection box isn't nearly as useful as working out where it would do the most good and following it through.

The ‘rosy glow’ is a reference to do-gooders taking actions just to make themselves feel good, so I take it we're on the same page there. How so? I'm new here - is there any way of making it clear which message is being replied to, other than quoting it?

Exactly the subject in the other forum. You've given me a conspiracy theory:)

If I don’t choose to give then my wealth stays up. If I alone choose to give then my wealth goes down, I don’t make much impact, if any (I’m not a Bill Gates) but I get a rosy glow. If I encourage many others to give then I use up a lot of time but it may lead to more trade, richer culture...