Brief History of Time

Pondering · King of the Jungle Joined: 15 Sep 2005 Posts: 1506

Stephen Hawkings' "A Brief History of Time" is available on-line here for free....I'm going to assume folks know who he is, but linked to wikipedia if you don't. WoW....Highly recommend the book for a layman level understanding of the scientific understanding of the universe...there is only one equation in the whole book (E=mc2), and I don't think that's revolutionary for anyone...

Absolutely mindboggling that there are folks "figuring" out the universe thru math and reason...and supporting those ideas thru observation.

Anyway, couldn't figure out where else to put this and this seemed most "appropriate"
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Ana · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:11 am Post subject:

This book is very good. It really does a good job of summarizing the physics of our universe, picking on the topics people most want to know about, while explaining how it all works. It is a fairly easy read, too.

That is so awesome that they put it online for free! The printed version is, of course, way better, if simply because of the quantity of diagrams.

...That's right, I like my books with pictures...
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P1234567890 · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 8:12 am Post subject: Re: Brief History of Time

Pondering · King of the Jungle Joined: 15 Sep 2005 Posts: 1506

agree...but that's a choice. Sadly, as we've debated elsewhere, many folks are so emotionally attached to their belief systems that they refuse to even consider other possibilities.

As the resident agnostic/weak-Deist, things like this are great. As I said before, I come seeking knowledge...and that's a knowledge underscored by observable, demonstrable facts. I can form opinions and beliefs out of ether.

Here's the rub for me (and it's kind of a catch-phrase from the movie Contact ), if we were created solely to serve and love God, then the whole thing seems like a terrible waste of space...
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Links of note:"Review for Doubting Christians"
Sheep, Wolves, and Sheepdogs
“You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong...You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.” - Ronald Reagan

P1234567890 · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 1:01 pm Post subject:

An interesting point to be made about Stephen Hawking and the Big Bang is that his discoveries still leave room for the existence of God; it just pushes things back more. It is perfectly reasonable to think that God created the singularity from which the Big Bang came.

...Which raises another very interesting point: people who believe that God created the singularity are pretty harmless when compared to people who are devoted to the more "hands-on" religions.

I'm going to throw a conjecture out there. Anyone who is interested, feel free to respond:

I conjecture that the more abstract and detached a religion is, and the more "purely spiritual" it is (as opposed to being grounded here in reality), the less harmful it is.

For example, the Big Bang Deists are a benign bunch, whereas people whose religious beliefs are prescriptive and deal with the real world such as Christians and Muslims see their religions cause pain and suffering all the time.

I haven't really formulated a coherent argument in my mind about the cause and effect of this yet, but it basically has to do with how the religions interact with everyday life. If you tell people they shouldn't have abortions, and then they don't, and that ruins their lives, then you've actually caused harm. By contrast, what kind of harm can Big Bang Deists cause?
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Ana · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 2:08 pm Post subject:

lone-traveler · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 5:37 pm Post subject:

The Universe in a Nutshell

that's what I've been trying to say lololl...

and a nutshell in a universe.. Very Happy

that'd be me ... Laughing

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Ana · Posted: Fri Jun 16, 2006 9:56 pm Post subject:

Here's an interesting article I stumbled across:

Famous British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking says pope told him not to study beginning of universe.

P1234567890 · Posted: Sat Jun 17, 2006 4:10 am Post subject:

Pondering · King of the Jungle Joined: 15 Sep 2005 Posts: 1506

howdy all...late to the party as I've been gone to the beach for a week of vacation...catching back up at work now and then off to Boy Scout Camp with my son...so I've missed alot of interesting chat...anywho.....

Haven't finished the book yet, but will soon. Truly recommend it to all...

One of the interesting take aways so far for me is that the more scientists study, the less they know...for example, some of the theories governing the exansion of the universe break down if you run them in reverse...for example 2+3 = 5 when moving forward but 5-3=4 going the other way...especially near the point of "zero time" or the Big Bang...pretty cool.
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Links of note:"Review for Doubting Christians"
Sheep, Wolves, and Sheepdogs
“You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong...You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.” - Ronald Reagan