Vagueness and the Aftermath - A sporadic diary

[kinboshi]

stargazing was absolutely amazing -- currently reading Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw's new book on quantum theory -- absolutely amazing.

how they can know all of these things that they know or think about the universe is just simply mindblowing.

Have you read, "Why does E=MC²?" also by those two?  A good read, and I'll have to get on to The Quantum Universe as well (although for some reason it's more expensive on the Kindle than it is in hardback at the moment - which grates me).

[kinboshi]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/mc2-Biography-Worlds-Famous-Equation/dp/0330391658

That's also a good read.  I had that book, lent it to Tikay a few years ago along with some other books...

[RED-DOG]

There was a bit about Gypsies on the local news programme in London earlier this week, bout the lack of places for them to pitch, which you won't have seen, living out in the sticks and that.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b019p4fv/Inside_Out_London_16_01_2012/

That was a good, balanced piece. Thanks Andrew.

[mulhuzz]

stargazing was absolutely amazing -- currently reading Brian Cox and Jeff Forshaw's new book on quantum theory -- absolutely amazing.

how they can know all of these things that they know or think about the universe is just simply mindblowing.

Have you read, "Why does E=MC²?" also by those two?  A good read, and I'll have to get on to The Quantum Universe as well (although for some reason it's more expensive on the Kindle than it is in hardback at the moment - which grates me).

i have read that too, fantastic. bought them both at xmas for myself and absolutely lapped them up. I must admit I felt a tad disappointed when I found out that in fact E does not equal emm cee squared...

also fantastic from stargazing/back to earth was the moment where Brian Cix said 'yeah, if you don't think we landed on the moon, go on, turn over now to ITV, I don't want you here!'

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me in a way nothing else ever has. My brain isn't good enough for the nitty gritty though (it likes language, not science) but if I could my time again I'd have taken a physics degree instead of law. I might still do that.

[kinboshi]

You should go to the 'Uncaged Monkeys' shows if you get a chance.  They're properly geektastic.

[RED-DOG]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

[tikay]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

Me too, hence I am trying to widen my vocab a bit, I am embarrassed to repeat the same words so often.

We should really work on this, it would be terrific splendid beautiful super amazing astonishing excellent really quite good sensible.

[mulhuzz]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

seriously though - the fact that, for example, 'we' (the clever scientists) can predict the maximum mass of a white dwarf star based on the idea that every particle can be (and is, ish) everywhere in the universe at the same time, but no two particles can be at exactly the same place at the same time and then years later see the theory vindicated in testing tens of thousands of white dwarves and finding that not a single one has exceeded the limit is just amazing. What other word is there for that?

Another, even more mindblowing example? Did you know that when you move your arm, the electrons in your arm 'communicate' with all of the other electrons in the whole entire universe to make sure that no two of them occupy the same 'energy state' at any one moment in time.

How do we know these things? Simply. Amazing.

[david3103]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

seriously though - the fact that, for example, 'we' (the clever scientists) can predict the maximum mass of a white dwarf star based on the idea that every particle can be (and is, ish) everywhere in the universe at the same time, but no two particles can be at exactly the same place at the same time and then years later see the theory vindicated in testing tens of thousands of white dwarves and finding that not a single one has exceeded the limit is just amazing. What other word is there for that?

Another, even more mindblowing example? Did you know that when you move your arm, the electrons in your arm 'communicate' with all of the other electrons in the whole entire universe to make sure that no two of them occupy the same 'energy state' at any one moment in time.

How do we know these things? Simply. Amazing.

and yet people will tell you that there is no God

[kinboshi]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

seriously though - the fact that, for example, 'we' (the clever scientists) can predict the maximum mass of a white dwarf star based on the idea that every particle can be (and is, ish) everywhere in the universe at the same time, but no two particles can be at exactly the same place at the same time and then years later see the theory vindicated in testing tens of thousands of white dwarves and finding that not a single one has exceeded the limit is just amazing. What other word is there for that?

Another, even more mindblowing example? Did you know that when you move your arm, the electrons in your arm 'communicate' with all of the other electrons in the whole entire universe to make sure that no two of them occupy the same 'energy state' at any one moment in time.

How do we know these things? Simply. Amazing.

and yet people will tell you that there is no God

and because of that people will tell you that there is no God.

[RED-DOG]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

seriously though - the fact that, for example, 'we' (the clever scientists) can predict the maximum mass of a white dwarf star based on the idea that every particle can be (and is, ish) everywhere in the universe at the same time, but no two particles can be at exactly the same place at the same time and then years later see the theory vindicated in testing tens of thousands of white dwarves and finding that not a single one has exceeded the limit is just amazing. What other word is there for that?

Another, even more mindblowing example? Did you know that when you move your arm, the electrons in your arm 'communicate' with all of the other electrons in the whole entire universe to make sure that no two of them occupy the same 'energy state' at any one moment in time.

How do we know these things? Simply. Amazing.

and yet people will tell you that there is no God

and because of that people will tell you that there is no God.

Lots of people will tell you about lots of different Gods, each one the only true God, and each jealous of the other.

[mulhuzz]

edit: I know I use the term amazing etc alot when it comes to this stuff, but it fascinates me

Lol. I seem to use 'Amazing' 'Fabulous' 'Astonishing' 'Stunning' 'Wonderful' 'Incredible' etc in almost every post, but that's how I see the world.

seriously though - the fact that, for example, 'we' (the clever scientists) can predict the maximum mass of a white dwarf star based on the idea that every particle can be (and is, ish) everywhere in the universe at the same time, but no two particles can be at exactly the same place at the same time and then years later see the theory vindicated in testing tens of thousands of white dwarves and finding that not a single one has exceeded the limit is just amazing. What other word is there for that?

Another, even more mindblowing example? Did you know that when you move your arm, the electrons in your arm 'communicate' with all of the other electrons in the whole entire universe to make sure that no two of them occupy the same 'energy state' at any one moment in time.

How do we know these things? Simply. Amazing.

and yet people will tell you that there is no God

i don't generally debate religion etc as each to their own, but why not:

click for bigger

Click to see full-size image.

[SuuPRlim]

yes monkeys!

finally something I know about

ooohh ahhh ohhh ahhhh ahhhh ooohhh ahhhh

[david3103]

Ok, humour me for a moment...

I lay no claims for any specific deity, nor have I spent time reading Hawking, Dawkins or Cox in depth so bear with me...

As I understand it the argument from the Dawkinistas is that, because the whole thing is so vast, so amazingly complex and so staggeringly difficult to understand, it must have all happened by chance.?

A collision of neutrons or Higgs-Boson bits or whatever; a spot of evolution and here we all are debating how it happened from locations around the world in pretty much real time.

The means by which we now debate this, the worldwideweb, is vast, amazingly complex, and difficult to understand.
and developed, as does much technology through a series of evolutionary changes (survival of the fittest saw off 8track and betamax and both of the surviviors of those battles were in turn rendered extinct by further progress) .

Did the internet just happen 'by chance' through some form of Big Bang?



ninja edit - I'm not looking for a fight, just some interesting and thought provoking debate

[tikay]

yes monkeys!

finally something I know about

ooohh ahhh ohhh ahhhh ahhhh ooohhh ahhhh

You've adapted well to the dynamic of this Diary, Dave, as a good poker player would adapt to his Table.