Post by Justin Chao on Jul 22, 2015 19:03:39 GMT
WEEK 1
1. Why was Socrates sentenced to death? 2. Why is there a conflict (for some) between science and religion?
Socrates was subjected to death for the very reason many radical thinkers of our times have been executed: for being misunderstood. Such radical thinking he had, that it served more use in confusing Melitus than it did enlightening him. To Melitus, Socrates was a rambling and incoherent old man; the addition of Socrates' questioning of validity of the Gods to the government simply added more incentive for him to prosecute Socrates for his crimes. Further adding to the image of guilt was Socrates lack of reaction or negative emotion even under the punishment of death toward is accusations. Indeed, he treats it as a learning experience, exclaiming “[Meletus] brings a wonderful accusation against me, which at first hearing excites surprise: he says that I am a poet or maker of gods, and that I invent new gods and deny the existence of old ones; this is the ground of his indictment”. These combined factors equate to why Socrates was both sentenced to be executed, and why he so easily accepted his punishment.
In a very simplified reason: the main source of division between science and religion is that science is never right, but religion is never wrong. For science, there is the ability to adapt to the situations and times, and to work off the adaptations and improvements for future fruition of ideas. Religion cannot work this way because the idea that an omnipotent deity or being COULD be wrong, one which entire lives, cities, or even civilizations revolve around, is blasphemous to the state of the religion. This is why phrases like “The word of God” are used, because they give a sense of credibility because the “speaker” is a higher presence than ourselves as humans, and therefore cannot be subjected to the same rules and regulations we apply to the words of man. This level of credibility in science is only reserved for discoveries that have been tested by the scientific method, which means they must be proven right before they can be accepted as right.
WEEK 2
1. Why is understanding physics and the general rules of the universe so important in doing philosophy? 2. What is eliminative materialism? Provide three examples of it.
Understanding physics and the general rules of the universe are important when discussing philosophy because it underlines the rules the necessitate what exactly is philosophy. In its most basic definition, philosophy can be seen as the science of the fundamental nature of knowledge. Essentially, philosophy answers the questions that humans ask, but have not found a concise response due to lack of concrete knowledge and facts. An understanding of the universe helps to paint a clearer picture about the questions that philosophers ask. For example, the idea of the consciousness for a philosopher may follow that of Descartes, where “I think, therefore I am”. However, physics helps to narrow down exactly what exactly “I” am. Just as the brain can be considered an infinite machine of emotions, thoughts, and opinions, it can also be seen as a finite organ that simply works off of the different electrical signals and chemicals being introduced. Thus the bottom line importance of physics is that it allows for a medium that is grounded in reality, making concepts that were once abstract more tangible and easily understood.
Elimination materialism is when the mind is examined under a materialistic view, and certain illogical philosophies are “eliminated” in favor of newer and modern answers. What may be seen as common sense as an answer to a situation, is in fact completely false. As shown in both The Great Mystery and the required videos, many occurrences that can easily be explained by science now, such as the change in weather or the cause of disease, were once blamed on the acts of supernatural beings or deities. It was Zeus' anger at the people, not the collision of a hot and cold front, that lead to thunderstorms. It was the result of uncleansed sin and lack of repent, and not flea ridden rats, that resulted in the spreading of the bubonic plague. It was the alignment of the stars and planets in a certain way, not mutual attraction and respect, that lead to a successful relationship.
WEEK 3
1. Why is the theory of evolution so important in understanding how human beings behave? 2. Which questions do you think evolutionary theory cannot answer?
The theory of evolution is helpful in explaining and understanding how humans behave because it gives reason why humans behave the way they do. Essentially, if the cliché phrase that Darwin coined “the survival of the fittest” is applied, it is easily seen that the behavioral patterns that humans exhibit are the result of generations of reproduction. Had these behaviors had lead our ancestors astray, or not been adequate at surviving in the then environment, it would have died out because it had not proved its practicality for survival. For example, the Spartans were infamous for their ferocity in battle, but also of how they reared the children that would become the citizens. Already the nature of the environment means that any child raised would be in a constant aura of belligerence, but to add into that, any child that did not exhibit such traits would be cast away. Thus the behavior is not just taught into the future generations, but unconsciously bred down in the genetic line.
In my opinion, the concept of evolution makes it impossible to explain the idea of a soul. How or does genetics affect the soul, whether or not the environment one is raised can make an impact on the purity of the soul, or whether or not the soul even really exists. They all seem like fruitless questions that are interesting and tingle the curiosity of humans, but fail to be answered by the theory of evolution. It ties in with the quantum physics mentality that if it cannot be measured, then it does not actually exist. Even with over 100 billion people to live and die on this planet, there has been no circumstantial evidence that a soul exists in the blood lineage that is also passed down. Though its existence can arguably be the most important factor to future humans, in the present era the very least, the soul so far both cannot be measured nor made relatable in the science of evolution.
1. Why was Socrates sentenced to death? 2. Why is there a conflict (for some) between science and religion?
Socrates was subjected to death for the very reason many radical thinkers of our times have been executed: for being misunderstood. Such radical thinking he had, that it served more use in confusing Melitus than it did enlightening him. To Melitus, Socrates was a rambling and incoherent old man; the addition of Socrates' questioning of validity of the Gods to the government simply added more incentive for him to prosecute Socrates for his crimes. Further adding to the image of guilt was Socrates lack of reaction or negative emotion even under the punishment of death toward is accusations. Indeed, he treats it as a learning experience, exclaiming “[Meletus] brings a wonderful accusation against me, which at first hearing excites surprise: he says that I am a poet or maker of gods, and that I invent new gods and deny the existence of old ones; this is the ground of his indictment”. These combined factors equate to why Socrates was both sentenced to be executed, and why he so easily accepted his punishment.
In a very simplified reason: the main source of division between science and religion is that science is never right, but religion is never wrong. For science, there is the ability to adapt to the situations and times, and to work off the adaptations and improvements for future fruition of ideas. Religion cannot work this way because the idea that an omnipotent deity or being COULD be wrong, one which entire lives, cities, or even civilizations revolve around, is blasphemous to the state of the religion. This is why phrases like “The word of God” are used, because they give a sense of credibility because the “speaker” is a higher presence than ourselves as humans, and therefore cannot be subjected to the same rules and regulations we apply to the words of man. This level of credibility in science is only reserved for discoveries that have been tested by the scientific method, which means they must be proven right before they can be accepted as right.
WEEK 2
1. Why is understanding physics and the general rules of the universe so important in doing philosophy? 2. What is eliminative materialism? Provide three examples of it.
Understanding physics and the general rules of the universe are important when discussing philosophy because it underlines the rules the necessitate what exactly is philosophy. In its most basic definition, philosophy can be seen as the science of the fundamental nature of knowledge. Essentially, philosophy answers the questions that humans ask, but have not found a concise response due to lack of concrete knowledge and facts. An understanding of the universe helps to paint a clearer picture about the questions that philosophers ask. For example, the idea of the consciousness for a philosopher may follow that of Descartes, where “I think, therefore I am”. However, physics helps to narrow down exactly what exactly “I” am. Just as the brain can be considered an infinite machine of emotions, thoughts, and opinions, it can also be seen as a finite organ that simply works off of the different electrical signals and chemicals being introduced. Thus the bottom line importance of physics is that it allows for a medium that is grounded in reality, making concepts that were once abstract more tangible and easily understood.
Elimination materialism is when the mind is examined under a materialistic view, and certain illogical philosophies are “eliminated” in favor of newer and modern answers. What may be seen as common sense as an answer to a situation, is in fact completely false. As shown in both The Great Mystery and the required videos, many occurrences that can easily be explained by science now, such as the change in weather or the cause of disease, were once blamed on the acts of supernatural beings or deities. It was Zeus' anger at the people, not the collision of a hot and cold front, that lead to thunderstorms. It was the result of uncleansed sin and lack of repent, and not flea ridden rats, that resulted in the spreading of the bubonic plague. It was the alignment of the stars and planets in a certain way, not mutual attraction and respect, that lead to a successful relationship.
WEEK 3
1. Why is the theory of evolution so important in understanding how human beings behave? 2. Which questions do you think evolutionary theory cannot answer?
The theory of evolution is helpful in explaining and understanding how humans behave because it gives reason why humans behave the way they do. Essentially, if the cliché phrase that Darwin coined “the survival of the fittest” is applied, it is easily seen that the behavioral patterns that humans exhibit are the result of generations of reproduction. Had these behaviors had lead our ancestors astray, or not been adequate at surviving in the then environment, it would have died out because it had not proved its practicality for survival. For example, the Spartans were infamous for their ferocity in battle, but also of how they reared the children that would become the citizens. Already the nature of the environment means that any child raised would be in a constant aura of belligerence, but to add into that, any child that did not exhibit such traits would be cast away. Thus the behavior is not just taught into the future generations, but unconsciously bred down in the genetic line.
In my opinion, the concept of evolution makes it impossible to explain the idea of a soul. How or does genetics affect the soul, whether or not the environment one is raised can make an impact on the purity of the soul, or whether or not the soul even really exists. They all seem like fruitless questions that are interesting and tingle the curiosity of humans, but fail to be answered by the theory of evolution. It ties in with the quantum physics mentality that if it cannot be measured, then it does not actually exist. Even with over 100 billion people to live and die on this planet, there has been no circumstantial evidence that a soul exists in the blood lineage that is also passed down. Though its existence can arguably be the most important factor to future humans, in the present era the very least, the soul so far both cannot be measured nor made relatable in the science of evolution.