On Wed, Feb 15, 2017 Telmo Menezes <te...@telmomenezes.com> wrote:

>
>> ​>​
>> Dark Matter and Dark Energy remain complete mysteries.
>
>

​> ​
> As far as I can tell, what we have is a falsification of current
> theories. They appear to be good enough approximations for many
> things, but then they fail at predicting the expansion rate of the
> universe right? Maybe it's dark matter, maybe it's something else,


​They are 2 separate mysteries. Dark Matter is a mysterious something that
makes up 28% of the universe and holds galaxies and clusters of galaxies
together. Dark Energy is a even more mysterious something that makes up 69%
of everything and causes the expansion of the entire universe to
accelerate. And about 4% of the universe is made of the sort of normal
matter and energy that until about 20 years ago was the only type we
thought existed.

There is a straightforward extension of General Relativity and Quantum
Mechanics that explains Dark Energy, however it gives a figure that is
10^120 too large, it's been called the worse mismatch between theory and
observation in the entire history of science. I think it's fair to say we
really don't have a clue about Dark Energy, and Dark Matter is almost as
confusing.      ​

​> ​
> If science failed so far at explaining something, then it doesn't
> ​
> matter?


​Science has an explanation for consciousness that works beautifully,
consciousness is the way information feels when it is being processed
intelligently. What science doesn't yet have is a complete theory
explaining how to produce intelligence, but enormous progress has been made
in just the last few years. ​


>
>> ​>​
>> The study of intelligence, now that's important!
>
>
> ​> ​
> That is a statement of faith. Gizmo worshiping.


​At least 3 times a week ​for the last 5 years somebody on this list has
accused me of being religious, apparently in the hope that I'll burst into
tears and cry myself to sleep. It's not going to happen,


> ​> ​
> Yes, it's important in
> ​
> a sense. I too am interested in having medical breakthroughs, freedom
> ​
> from labour and all the nice things that AI can bring.


​It's important even if you're only interested in philosophical problems,
such as why did Evolution bother to make conscious animals at all.  ​



>
>
> ​> ​
> I don't quite understand why an omnipotent being
> ​
>  would "want" anything, He should already have it.  Nevertheless the
> ​
>  religious say God does want certain things and they know exactly precisely
> ​
>  what they are and they insist on telling us about it; and they also insist
> ​
> God can't get what He wants on His own, we have to help the poor fellow
> ​
>  achieve His aims.
>
> ​> ​
> You are describing Abrahamic religions. I don't believe in them either.
>

​I don't think the​
 Hindu religion
​ is significantly less stupid. There are some forms of Buddhism and
​Taoism that aren't stupid but they aren't religions, they don't say
anything about God, don't say faith is a virtue, and don't even claim they
are revealing something new about the world, instead they are doing
something much more modest, they are giving personal advice; they are
saying this is a way to be happy. Not the only way, maybe not the best way,
just a way.

​>​
> I think you are not interested in what Bruno has to say. There's
> nothing wrong with that, but it's just a personal preference of yours.
>

​Well yes, but how could not being interested in something not be a ​personal
preference.

John K Clark


>

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