Category Archives: critical thinking

Is Mathematics A Universal Language?

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My friend Funlop posted a question on his Facebook status the other day asking whether or not math was universally true. As is so often the case, I am no expert on the subject, but I found it an interesting question and thought I’d provide my thoughts.

Math is universally true in that it will work in any part of the universe, but I don’t think math is a universal language or that it is “true” in the sense that there is only one math. I believe that math could be explained to other forms of intelligent life, should we encounter any, but they wouldn’t come up with what we have come up with for understanding mathematics. Math is, at least as I understand it, our attempt to make sense of the world’s patterns and sequences. Those patterns and sequences all follow physical laws, but I believe the means by which we understand them are highly dependent on our experiences.

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What If When I Die There Really Is A Heaven?

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I get asked this all the time by theists of all shapes and sizes. What if I’m wrong? What if there really is a God/Allah/pantheon of weird supernatural creatures/whatever and I have to face them when I die? For some reason, people seriously consider that this is a scary question that I will not have an answer for. Well, they’re wrong on both counts.

For starters, there is no God. I’m not saying it is physically impossible that the universe has a creator, just that it is highly doubtful to the point of being laughable. There is no evidence of any of this God stuff, and no evidence that anything found in any book of theology would at all be in line with the opinions of this supposed creator. All of the theological tomes are self-contradicting and clearly relate to the time and place they were written in and the opinions and thoughts of the authors.

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Everything Happens For A Reason?

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I don’t think a day goes by when at least one of my gujillion friends on Facebook doesn’t post somewhere that everything happens for a reason. I figured, being a dick, I would offer that this statement is absolutely correct. In fact, everything happens for a myriad of reasons. But none of those reasons are the usual supernatural crap that people spout off about.

You see, when people say that everything happens for a reason, they mean things like the people who have hurt them or loved them or whatever were in some way sent to you for that very purpose. If it was an experience that hurt, it was meant to toughen you up. If it was an experience that was awesome, it was meant to reward you. In other words, it’s just more magical thinking.

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The Error Of My Ways

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Let me make this perfectly clear, I refuse to accommodate religious opinions. I don’t care how deeply held your beliefs are or how they help you through your hard times or if you still accept science. Couldn’t care less. And you religious people should feel the same darned way.

I’m not saying we can’t be civil in our discourse. Even when we discuss the subject in areas where we are greatly passionate, we owe it to ourselves and each other to discuss clearly and fully. Losing our civility will drag the conversation to the lowest levels and neither of us will get anywhere.

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Let’s Play, Acupuncture!

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In an article I read yesterday on Respectful Insolence entitled Acupuncture works for polycystic ovary syndrome except when it doesn’t–which is always, Orac makes the valid point that “[w]hatever disease there is, chances are that you’ll be able to find an acupuncturist claiming that he can treat it and a study claiming that acupuncture is useful for treating it.” I don’t doubt this at all. I bet the same could be said for chiropractic, but for today lets give the green wiener to acupuncture.

Now, as I write this, I haven’t stacked the deck. If there are no hits that I can find, I’ll fess up to that. But I’m going to come up with three illnesses and see if I can google an acupuncturist who claims they can fix the problem. But first, a few words about acupuncture.

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Oil And Energy

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I heard recently that if one in ten vehicles were hybrids, we would end our dependence on foreign oil. I have no idea if that statement is true it not, but exploring alternatives is not just in our best interests, it is fast becoming a necessity.

Oil, despite what some will tell you is not a renewable resource. In theory, we can make a series of synthetic products as good or better than the oil we currently suck out of the ground, but still we suck and suck. It keeps many people gainfully employed, people like me who, at least until the end of the year, work for oil and gas companies. Those high gas prices people bitch about? Yeah, those keep food on a whole lot of tables.

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Jail Time Or Church Time – Separation Of Church And Hey Look At The Shiny Thing!

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I’m all for creative sentencing. Not every crime needs to result in financial burden or jail time. Sometimes there are better ways to make someone see the error of their ways. But sending them to church? For real? That’s just stupid.

Likewise, I wouldn’t suggest making them watch a year’s worth of Bullshit or spend a year going to science class. There is no correlation between either of those activities and someone realizing the error of their ways. And guess what, Christians? I’ve never heard of any data that legitimately shows a relationship between church attendance and being a good person. Going to church for a year doesn’t make you a better person. Going to church for a year means that for a year you went to church. Did you listen? Did you absorb all the good stuff? What about the mountains of bad?

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Remaining Silent

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I do not have it in me to be silent. I am a classical example of the term loudmouth. And I am glad of it. I wasn’t always this way. There was a time when I was very quiet. Most people who know me think I am making that up when I tell them, but it is very much the truth.

I was raised in a family of entertainers. My mom was a classically trained singer who sang in the church choir. My dad was a teacher beloved by his former students and the kind of guy you could always find in a crowd by listening to his wonderful rolling laugh. My sister was a singer and actress everyone seemed to know. I was a skinny little shadow of a kid. I just didn’t stand out in a crowd. It wasn’t until high school drama that I began to be comfy in my own skin and find my voice. I remember answering a question near the end of my grade ten math class and having the guy in front of me guffaw, “holy crap, you can talk?”

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Morning Thoughts

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This morning, I had a coffee on my front porch and stared at the beautiful sky in the attached picture. What a wonderful way to start a day. I felt all philosophic and content, and it put me in the mood to write.

The faithful often brag of their amazing wonder at the world, but to me, the faithless have them beat. I do not see how saying “god did it” to everything is an act of wonder. I would say it is a harsh dismissal.

The sky is not a firmament. It is an atmosphere filled with a variety of chemicals.

The exact composition of those chemicals is not the result of a plan for human life. It is a result of billions of years of amazing occurrences; objects colliding, objects gravitating, stars exploding, chemicals bonding, bacteria excreting, water evaporating, and who knows how many other factors.

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Gamers – They May Be Socially Devoid Misfits, But They Just Solved A Serious Decade-Old Problem

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Creativity is often the biggest weapon when faced with a problem, and that notion is illustrated so clearly by the story of FoldIt. If you aren’t familiar, FoldIt is a game for people to fold proteins. That may not sound enticing when you could be battling legions of Hell Wraiths and hooking up with hot adventurers in Warcraft, but for those of us out there who love a good puzzle, FoldIt is the king in my anything-but-humble opinion.

So you’re folding proteins. What’s the big deal? Well, FoldIt is sneaky. The purpose of FoldIt is to bend many minds to one of the more complicated aspects of biology, the seemingly limitless way in which proteins can be folded. There’s an excellent explanation of what I’m talking about on the Neurologica blog today.

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