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Showing posts with label man. Show all posts
Showing posts with label man. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Monday, July 22, 2013
Neil deGrasse Tyson: Ego and our cosmic perspective.
I think that Professor Tyson really nails it here.
Ego is really the biggest obstacle to recognizing scientific truth about our origin and the reality of our place in the cosmos.
After all if you believe that everything around you was created simply for your benefit, and that you yourself were created in God's image, why would you want to believe otherwise?
I'm sure you have seen Fundamentalists who get EXTREMELY agitated at the idea that man evolved from a monkey. And correcting them by telling them that man did not evolve directly from the modern chimpanzee but rather that they both share a common ancestor, and in fact also share a common ancestor that once dwelled in the oceans, only agitates them further.
In truth it is a matter of perspective. I once had a friend tell me, back when I used to feel obligated to challenge people's faith on daily basis, that the problem was I was trying to offer them truth in exchange for eternal life. Which in fact was like trying to feed a starving man a breadcrumb when they just knew there was an all you can eat buffet awaiting them over the horizon.
To me the idea of being part of this universe and having the ability to bask in its magnificence while exulting in our increased understanding of it, makes me feel blessed. Not by a God, but simply due to my existence, and the intellect to appreciate it.
I think that if we are going to make progress with our understanding we have to stop being so damn selfish, and recognize that the beauty of our existence is in its connection to everything else, NOT in our toddler like expectation that everything we experience was given to us for being special and unique.
Thoughts?
P.S. By the speaking of Professor Tyson you have to see this awesome new trailer for his upcoming Cosmos series. Prepare for awesomeness.
Ego is really the biggest obstacle to recognizing scientific truth about our origin and the reality of our place in the cosmos.
After all if you believe that everything around you was created simply for your benefit, and that you yourself were created in God's image, why would you want to believe otherwise?
I'm sure you have seen Fundamentalists who get EXTREMELY agitated at the idea that man evolved from a monkey. And correcting them by telling them that man did not evolve directly from the modern chimpanzee but rather that they both share a common ancestor, and in fact also share a common ancestor that once dwelled in the oceans, only agitates them further.
In truth it is a matter of perspective. I once had a friend tell me, back when I used to feel obligated to challenge people's faith on daily basis, that the problem was I was trying to offer them truth in exchange for eternal life. Which in fact was like trying to feed a starving man a breadcrumb when they just knew there was an all you can eat buffet awaiting them over the horizon.
To me the idea of being part of this universe and having the ability to bask in its magnificence while exulting in our increased understanding of it, makes me feel blessed. Not by a God, but simply due to my existence, and the intellect to appreciate it.
I think that if we are going to make progress with our understanding we have to stop being so damn selfish, and recognize that the beauty of our existence is in its connection to everything else, NOT in our toddler like expectation that everything we experience was given to us for being special and unique.
Thoughts?
P.S. By the speaking of Professor Tyson you have to see this awesome new trailer for his upcoming Cosmos series. Prepare for awesomeness.
Friday, June 01, 2012
Scientists believe they have found the "Holy Grail of Human Evolution."
Feast your eyes on what a group of scientists call the Holy Grail of human evolution.
A team of researchers Tuesday unveiled an almost perfectly intact fossil of a 47 million-year-old primate they say represents the long-sought missing link between humans and apes.
Officially known as Darwinius masillae, the fossil of the lemur-like creature dubbed Ida shows it had opposable thumbs like humans and fingernails instead of claws.
Scientists say the cat-sized animal's hind legs offer evidence of evolutionary changes that led to primates standing upright - a breakthrough that could finally confirm Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.
"This specimen is like finding the Lost Ark for archeologists," lead scientist Jorn Hurum said at a ceremony at the American Museum of Natural History.
"It is the scientific equivalent of the Holy Grail. This fossil will probably be the one that will be pictured in all textbooks for the next 100 years."
This is why I ALWAYS choose facts over faith. Faith locks me in a box while facts hold the key to my release.
Can I just mention how much I LOVE that they named this little guy Darwinius masillae?
I would almost like to allow myself to believe in an afterlife so that I could imagine Charles Darwin looking down form heaven and smiling at how well his theories are holding up.
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