Community > Posts By > howzityoume

 
howzityoume's photo
Tue 05/29/12 12:44 AM



i never said it always existed, i said i didn't know and more than likely would never find out. but funny how god and the universe are paralleled the way they are. god built the heavens and the earth in 6 days, the universe and everything in it was created in a fraction of a second... and neither could be true, IMO...


I'm not too sure what you are referring to here, I believe the universe is ancient, no problem with that. I've got no problem with the big bang theory either. I'm just wondering where matter/energy came from.

howzityoume's photo
Mon 05/28/12 01:37 AM


Wow! You took something from a completely different part of physics and used it to prove a point that is not the point that was made.

Where, exactly, do the dark energy and the dark energy particles come from that appear in open space and cause the expansion of our universe? What are the laws of physics that allow the universe to expand?

The bottom line, to use your words, is that the universe is an open system, not a closed one as you stated, and that we don't know where energy comes from or what the laws of physics are there if we could get there.

You are using the second law of thermodynamics, which is a law and a pretty good one, and using it as an absolute in a place where you don't even know if it works. Your points are escaping reality's notice.

And your above post about the conservation of energy did not explain where the virtual particles go. A brief existence is still existence.
Well said, he does not even see the contradictions in his own position.

He states with certainty that which the brightest minds would willingly admit uncertainty.

This is the egoism of creationism.


Haha

Pot calling the kettle black!

howzityoume's photo
Mon 05/28/12 01:29 AM

I did assume we both knew what the word universe means: the definition includes all matter.
. . . and this is the standard for purely philosophical conversations, but as was explained by metal a few posts ago, that is a useless definition when dealing with actual physics.

Most physicist would define the universe as space time within the bounds of physical law, or something similar. Basically when things get weird enough or do not apply to the normal laws of physics it would not be considered our universe. Most modern physicists call this a pocket, or bubble universe.

This stuff gets deep, and I am not a cosmologist, but am a physicist. I find these conversation intriguing, but remain skeptical of many hypothesis that get called theories and IMHO do not deserve the title theory because they may not have predictive power yet, or may have very large problems that need fixing such as the landscape problem, or the vacuum energy problem.

However, the further we go the more we learn that nature is complex, but understandable.

Evolution however is the topic, and since we cannot assume energy had a beginning, you cannot assume a creator created it all. In fact a more consistent approach is to assume energy has always existed in one form or another. Even without time, there is energy.

The physical properties of the universe share relationships. Just like the weight of a rock in the surf shares a relationship with how far up the beach you find it. The force needed to push the rock relates to its distance up the shore as it relates to its mass. These same relationships are what allow matter to build in complexity.

There is a kind of natural selection of organic molecules which allow more and more complex compounds to be formed by simple processes such as convection and heat. Given time amino acids form, then lipid bi-layers can trap them, and they can then grow in complexity protected from escaping the lipid bi-layer.

This is the basic idea behind one theory of abiogenesis.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6QYDdgP9eg
Explained by an award winning biologist, instead of my vague recollections.


However its worded, matter exists, where did it come from? This is a simple point, no matter what the current definition of "the universe" is. Where did the forces/matter/energy in these universes come from?

I am getting this kind of response:
Matter always existed, let's not think about where it came from and just accept that fact.

That is neither logical nor scientific, I would refer to that logic as a "head-in-the-sand" approach.

howzityoume's photo
Sun 05/27/12 11:44 PM
Edited by howzityoume on Sun 05/27/12 11:56 PM

Seen this topic and couldn't resist. So I'll throw in my 2 cents.

I used to think about this kind of stuff constantly than I realized that the answer wouldn't change anything about me or how I viewed the world so I pretty much opened up my mind to accept either.

Being an accident or being created by an alien would not make much difference to me, I'm here and I'm going to enjoy myself. The quote "I'd rather be damned for who I am than accepted for what I'm not" kinda dismissed the latent fear the overly religious types like to throw around.

Whether he exists or not is very relevant to you, even if you prefer to have an agnostic approach. "Enjoying youself" becomes a bit meaningless when you mature over time in the light of the deeper satisfaction you can get from doing good for others (Maslows hierarchy). With the desire to do good comes the heightened conscience of avoiding damaging others, whether you do this from a religious point of view or not. When you realise that you continuously damage others and yourself and can't help it, is when your conscience will turn you to God because we do need help, being a "good person" doesn't actually come naturally. So let's see how you fare from now, I am guessing interesting times ahead for you.

howzityoume's photo
Sun 05/27/12 11:28 PM
Edited by howzityoume on Sun 05/27/12 11:52 PM
Actually, in a serious discussion of creation, cosmology is one of the most discussed aspects. "Before the big bang" is a mystery that may answer the question with some sort of definity but it is a very hard question to answer.

If the energy that created our universe was just another expansion bubble from a multiverse with infinite expanding bubbles, the notion of divine influence changes.

Evolution may allow mankind to eventually control the stars in ways described in science fiction using hard science. As our science grows and we gain the power to do the unthinkable, we must consider that we have only been using advanced technology for a century. An addition 100,000 years of science may bring abilities we could only attribute to gods now.

How ironic if a passing alien race bred hominids for intelligence.

In my work I have met many scientists and engineers who believe in God and many are also Christians. Not one, in many discussions, has ever indicated any disbelief in the standard theory of evolution. Where God is involved, evolution was just his way of making it happen.

Thanks for acknowledging that "before the big bang is a mystery". that is my whole point, no-one knows where this universe came from(universes as per your explanation), or how matter formed, its a simple point to understand. Without any evidence to the contrary the theory of a creator stands on equal footing for the creation of matter. Its only the strong tendency to regard "God" as an illogical entity that would disregard God as a valid theory for the source of energy/matter.


This creationist theory, being presented here, of all creatures existing at the same time and dying off, is just silly and very bad science. Trying to force facts to meet a bad theory doesn't work very well.


Evolution is forcing facts, what is observed is "devolution". The inserting of damaging genes into chromosomal patterns and extinction of species. The species that are left either undergo microevolution to fill the ecological gaps, yet maintain their chromosomal patterns without any useful gene insertions. Or they devolve, reducing their complexity. This is what is observed with genome sequencing: damaged or reduced number of useful functional genes over time. Inserted genes have no usefulness.

howzityoume's photo
Sat 05/26/12 02:41 AM

again, where does it end or start? we can only see so far... your talking about the known universe, which we still know little of that.


No. I am not talking about the known universe, I'm talking about the universe as described in Wikipedia, it includes ALL MATTER/ENERGY, and because of this it is a closed system with a certain mass/energy. No known mechanism can break the law of conservation of energy/mass and so for now those who don't believe in God have to settle for an unknown inexplicable source for all energy/mass. This is a simple point, most people would simple agree that the source of matter is unknown.




howzityoume's photo
Sat 05/26/12 02:31 AM
Technically, you've got it backwards. We have the "big bang" theory (which is a part of the "where it all came from" concept; and the creator view.


The big bang theory does not explain where matter came from, it just assumes matter and energy was all consoladated in one place.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 02:58 PM

I read an interesting article some time back. I don't remember where. It was about the meaning of the word "universe". Not too long ago, our universe was the Milky Way. It was all we could see and all we knew existed. It was the "one" verse so we called it the universe.

Hubble came along and changed all that by seeing other galaxies and measuring their speed away from us. Not long after, we discovered the background radiation of the the big bang ... and it was everywhere.

The universe keeps growing and so does it's definition.

Physics came to define the possibility mathematically of where the big bang might have come from. Different universes, parallel universes, alternate realities, and quantum realities became multiverse possibilities. So the logical thing to do was discard the term universe for "everything" and just make it mean "what we can see and measure".

To a large degree we can see holes in the universe, but we don't know where they go or what they mean. CERN is trying hard to take a peek.

The bottom line is that if one is to use the term "universe" to describe truly "everything", that which it describes may include mostly what we cannot see or perceive in any way and the vast majority of it may not follow the laws of physics as they have become known to us in this tiny part of existence.


Well maybe one day they will discover a way in which matter can be created from nothing. Until then we have the knowledge that matter exists and yet we do not understand where it originated. We have the creator theory and the "I've got no idea how it all arrived" view. I prefer the creator theory.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 02:49 PM




The universe is not a "closed system."

Take my word on it.

laugh


of course not, there is no way it could be...

You guys are being a little silly here. If its not closed, what matter and energy can possibly exist outside the universe??? Nothing is outside the universe.


when was the last time you were out of the universe? where is the edge of the universe? how do you know that nothing is outside of the universe? you cannot comprehend what you do not know, meaning that since we don't know where the universe starts or ends, how can we comprehend what is outside of it when we have nothing to base it on?

I did assume we both knew what the word universe means: the definition includes all matter.
The universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists,[1] including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space.[2][3]

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 02:20 PM
Edited by howzityoume on Fri 05/25/12 02:23 PM


The universe is not a "closed system."

Take my word on it.

laugh


of course not, there is no way it could be...

You guys are being a little silly here. If its not closed, what matter and energy can possibly exist outside the universe??? Nothing is outside the universe.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:53 AM







this can be argued with the theory that our universe is expanding according to science.


By expanding, they mean that its travelling outwards, the scientists don't mean that there is more matter observed over time. As I said, this would break one of the basic laws of physics, the law of conservation of energy/mass.

Hallelula! Atheists also believe in miracles, the spontaneous creation of matter from nothing that breaks well established and scientific laws of physics. Welcome to the world of the supernatural :) lol
there is no proof that it came from nothing. just a speculation from scientists, like the god theory. if it fits, it must be true. I don't believe in either, by the way...


Sorry I don't get the argument that matter or energy just always existed. There had to be an origin.
So whats the origin of your divine deity?


Good question, you see I have no problems with impossibilities and supernatural inexplicable events. The scientific inability to explain some things can often be a pointer towards the supernatural. In the same way as some believe energy always existed , I believe God always existed. I believe BOTH VIEWS involve a miracle because physics cannot explain the origin of matter.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:49 AM





Mass can be converted into energy, but then later it can be turned back into mass again. that is why i think the universe recycles everything and could be trillions of years old.


True, I believe the universe is ancient too, but how do you think that mass or energy first appeared trillions of years ago? Science relies on the fact that we cannot create energy or mass out of nothing, in a closed environment, the total ALWAYS remains constant.(Its a scientific law)


i don't have that answer, that seems to me to be a question that can never really be answered. i don't really question where or when the universe started, that is just to complex and something we don't have the knowledge to answer right now. everything they think is just a guess, and will be for a long time to come.


Aaaah, so you agree that you have no answer to the inexplicable observation of matter existing, you believe the universe is full of energy that just was there and you do not understand how it got there. You believe in a force that just appeared out of nowhere and yet God seems far-fetched to you?

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:41 AM



The fact that the universe exists, means a miracle has occurred, mass and energy came from nothing, with no scientific explanation.
This is an assertion without any facts to support it.

If energy can become matter (and we know it can empirically) and energy has always existed, then just like water turns into ice needs no creator to make it happen, energy turning into matter needs no creator.

Your argument is an argument from ignorance, you are really saying that you cannot understand how it could be otherwise, thus it cannot be otherwise.

Science makes no such assumptions.

(Its a scientific law)
Science, even the laws, are descriptive, not proscriptive.




Your whole argument crashes down with your one single statement "energy has always existed".

My argument is simply "where did that energy originate?"
You seem to have missed my point.


i think it makes more sense to believe energy has always existed, rather than it came from nothing. name one thing that comes from nothing, please...


Exactly, that is my point you are making for me. The enrgy came from somewhere, I ask you ...where?

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:40 AM





this can be argued with the theory that our universe is expanding according to science.


By expanding, they mean that its travelling outwards, the scientists don't mean that there is more matter observed over time. As I said, this would break one of the basic laws of physics, the law of conservation of energy/mass.

Hallelula! Atheists also believe in miracles, the spontaneous creation of matter from nothing that breaks well established and scientific laws of physics. Welcome to the world of the supernatural :) lol
there is no proof that it came from nothing. just a speculation from scientists, like the god theory. if it fits, it must be true. I don't believe in either, by the way...


Sorry I don't get the argument that matter or energy just always existed. There had to be an origin.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:36 AM

The fact that the universe exists, means a miracle has occurred, mass and energy came from nothing, with no scientific explanation.
This is an assertion without any facts to support it.

If energy can become matter (and we know it can empirically) and energy has always existed, then just like water turns into ice needs no creator to make it happen, energy turning into matter needs no creator.

Your argument is an argument from ignorance, you are really saying that you cannot understand how it could be otherwise, thus it cannot be otherwise.

Science makes no such assumptions.

(Its a scientific law)
Science, even the laws, are descriptive, not proscriptive.




Your whole argument crashes down with your one single statement "energy has always existed".

My argument is simply "where did that energy originate?"
You seem to have missed my point.

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:32 AM



this can be argued with the theory that our universe is expanding according to science.


By expanding, they mean that its travelling outwards, the scientists don't mean that there is more matter observed over time. As I said, this would break one of the basic laws of physics, the law of conservation of energy/mass.

Hallelula! Atheists also believe in miracles, the spontaneous creation of matter from nothing that breaks well established and scientific laws of physics. Welcome to the world of the supernatural :) lol

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:27 AM



Mass can be converted into energy, but then later it can be turned back into mass again. that is why i think the universe recycles everything and could be trillions of years old.


True, I believe the universe is ancient too, but how do you think that mass or energy first appeared trillions of years ago? Science relies on the fact that we cannot create energy or mass out of nothing, in a closed environment, the total ALWAYS remains constant.(Its a scientific law)

howzityoume's photo
Fri 05/25/12 10:17 AM
Edited by howzityoume on Fri 05/25/12 10:24 AM

What is this assertion based on?

Why does matter need to be created? (hint: is someone creating ice when water turns into ice?)




Sorry, I'm not following the question? Matter exists and it came from somewhere. Ice already existed as matter, it was water before, so I don't get your example.

Wikipedia:

The law of conservation of mass, also known as the principle of mass/matter conservation, states that the mass of an isolated system (closed to all matter and energy) will remain constant over time. This principle is equivalent to the conservation of energy, in the sense when energy or mass is enclosed in a system and none is allowed in or out, its quantity cannot otherwise change (hence, its quantity is "conserved"). The mass of an isolated system cannot be changed as a result of processes acting inside the system. The law implies that mass cannot be created or destroyed, although it may be rearranged in space and changed into different types of particles; and that for any chemical process in an isolated system, the mass of the reactants must equal the mass of the products.



Mass and energy in the universe remain absolutely constant: Wikipedia

The nineteenth century law of conservation of energy is a law of physics. It states that the total amount of energy in an isolated system remains constant over time. The total energy is said to be conserved over time. For an isolated system, this law means that energy can change its location within the system, and that it can change form within the system, for instance chemical energy can become kinetic energy, but that energy can be neither created nor destroyed. In the nineteenth century, mass and energy were considered as being of quite different natures.

Since Albert Einstein's theory of special relativity showed that energy has an equivalent mass (see mass in special relativity), and mass has an equivalent energy, one speaks of a law of conservation of mass-energy as an updated version of the nineteenth century law. All particles, both massive such as protons and massless such as photons, respectively have energy and mass equivalents.
.



The fact that the universe exists, means a miracle has occurred, mass and energy came from nothing, with no scientific explanation. Whether we believe in God or no God, Einstein's theory of special relativity was broken, matter came from nothing. Instead of the combination of mass/energy remaining constant, it increased to current levels even though we do not observe or understand how its possible for matter to create itself, and physics relies on the 100% observable and reliable law of conservation of mass-energy.

howzityoume's photo
Thu 05/24/12 11:42 PM
Edited by howzityoume on Fri 05/25/12 12:09 AM


http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/evo_science.html

Evolution has made predictions, and they have come true.



Scientifically literate, modern day creationists like to pick apart the whole of the tapestry of accepted beliefs that fall under the umbrella of 'the theory of evolution'. I find this to be more logical than insisting, without explanation why, that the entire theory be accepted or rejected as a whole. Sometimes the evidence for one aspect of evolution doesn't really apply to another aspect; and even when it does, it can be very difficult for sincerely critical non-experts to understand and appreciate why.

If I was a creationist, I wouldn't see that collection of predictions as evidence for the whole of the theory of evolution, but, at best, would connect each example with some sub-set of the theory of evolution.


Edit: I said the above after skimming the first 3 examples on that page, and based on what I had previously read of 'examples of predictions based on evolution'. Having now read the entire page, I'm really impressed by much of it.


I was reading through some of those arguments, and I think the problem with evolutionists is that they find difficulty getting into the creationists mindset. I found all the evidence put forward in the first few pages unconvincing, all pointing to creationism as well as evolution.

For example, here's a quote, showing that they didnt even consider creation as an option, because creation would immediately explain why two creatures of similar shape and ability would have the most similar proteins. To assume common descent instead of common intelligent creator (that repeats the best design instead of using random designs every time he creates an organism) is merely an assumption. Humans and chimps use their hands and brains better than other organisms, any logical engineer would assume an intelligent designer would have huge overlaps of major portions of the design of two inventions with similar function. Imagine two cars with slightly differing engine sizes (1.6L and 1.8L) being produced by one factory in completely different ways, each being more functional and less functional in certain areas. No, the factory comes up with the best combination of functional features, a basic core design, and then moulds that design around the differences. This is intelligent design. This is DNA.


Humans and chimpanzees have the exact same cytochrome c protein sequence. The "null hypothesis" given above is false. In the absence of common descent, the chance of this occurrence is conservatively less than 10-93 (1 out of 1093).


On the contrary, the chance of two very similar organisms having a unique genetic feature common to both, is very high if you consider an intelligent designer, their statistics are nonsensical when a creator is considered.

And as I said to rskit, both the creation of matter and the creation of life itself are statistically impossible processes, they just do not spontaneously occur. For this very reason, scientists should at least consider creationism as an empirically possible alternative.


The following quote is a strong argument that favours evolution, but I have come across it before and there is a simple explanation for similar virusses found in similar chromosomal patterns: similar weakpoints. Chimps are therefore susceptible to the same retrovirus insertions. Once inserted, they are passed on genetically to the next generation. Of the 300000 retrovirusses in humans we share seven or more with chimps, this small amount of shared retroviruses just points to similar susceptibility in our closest design match.

In humans, endogenous retroviruses occupy about 1% of the genome, in total constituting ~30,000 different retroviruses embedded in each person's genomic DNA (Sverdlov 2000). There are at least seven different known instances of common retrogene insertions between chimps and humans, and this number is sure to grow as both these organism's genomes are sequenced (Bonner et al. 1982; Dangel et al. 1995; Svensson et al. 1995; Kjellman et al. 1999; Lebedev et al. 2000; Sverdlov 2000). Figure 4.4.1 shows a phylogenetic tree of several primates, including humans, from a recent study which identified numerous shared endogenous retroviruses in the genomes of these primates (Lebedev et al. 2000). The arrows designate the relative insertion times of the viral DNA into the host genome. All branches after the insertion point (to the right) carry that retroviral DNA - a reflection of the fact that once a retrovirus has inserted into the germ-line DNA of a given organism, it will be inherited by all descendents of that organism.


howzityoume's photo
Thu 05/24/12 11:00 PM

I am really not a big fan of having these conversations devolve into a battle of bashing religion, or really anything. In fact I want to apologize to howsit for myself being snarky earlier in the thread. We can argue our positions without that level of discourse.


Thanks for that, I didn't take it personally, when I come across stuff like that I just like to highlight it because I can , LOL