You mean, technology as the third arm after maths & physics? — Ron Besdansky
It follows from the first two - knowing about atoms and how they behave enabled us to invent the transistor, for example. — Ron Besdansky
I've been reading "The Mind of God" by Paul Davies. It pretty much covers my area of interest though, of course, it doesn't answer the question of WHY we know so much. — Ron Besdansky
My current view is there is "something" at a higher level of "existence" than time and space. Whether it's "guiding us", and to what end, I can't imagine. Nor can we probably inquire into "it" in any meaningful way - we stand in relation to whatever "it" is as, say, ants to the earth they inhabit. — Ron Besdansky
My reason for joining is to establish contact with others who are interested in what I consider the most important question one can ask:
"How (and why) did human beings come to be able to know so much about how the Universe works?" — Ron Besdansky
How (and why) did human beings come to be able to know so much about how the Universe works?" — Ron Besdansky
I appreciate that evolution happens very slowly, but I don't see how knowing a quark from a boson can help make it any more likely that I will survive to produce more offspring. — Ron Besdansky
My reason for joining is to establish contact with others who are interested in what I consider the most important question one can ask:
"How (and why) did human beings come to be able to know so much about how the Universe works?" — Ron Besdansky
- if not biological, then what? - spiritual? - see my quote below from A R WallaceBut to be really direct about it, the answer to that question doesn’t lie with evolutionary theory, in my opinion. Please note, I am not pushing any kind of creationist or ID bandwagon. But I don’t automatically assume that all human capabilities can be automatically explained in biological terms. In other word, at a certain point, we as a species began to transcend the biological. And how that happened is also a fascinating question, but it’s a meta-physical question by definition. — Wayfarer
We know deep things because the non physical mind is conscious. The brain is only a means for the mind to engage with the physical world. — EnPassant
Posty McPostface - suggests I read Plato - do you have a specific reference please? — Ron Besdansky
if not biological, then what? - spiritual? — Ron Besdansky
non physical mind is conscious — EnPassant
What is the "non-physical mind"? Is it the sum of all the information stored in our brains, like the software is to the hardware of a computer? — Ron Besdansky
"How (and why) did human beings come to be able to know so much about how the Universe works?" — Ron Besdansky
How (and why) did human beings come to be able to know so much about how the Universe works?" — Ron Besdansky
but I don't see how knowing a quark from a boson can help make it any more likely that I will survive to produce more offspring. — Ron Besdansky
P.S: Knowing a quark from a boson might turn out to be invaluable though; mastery over gravity (or other elementary forces and quantum particles) could be a game-changer for human success and survival. — VagabondSpectre
Get involved in philosophical discussions about knowledge, truth, language, consciousness, science, politics, religion, logic and mathematics, art, history, and lots more. No ads, no clutter, and very little agreement — just fascinating conversations.