Comments for Wondering Fair

Comment on Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 by Bruce

Bruce — Tue, 29 May 2012 19:32:53 +0000

I enjoyed your posts. I think its fascinating that a universalist Platonic view of math and logic seems to be assumed by many theoretical physicists and mathematicians today. But I don’t know if anyone really knows if that’s the case. I favor the more “Intuitionist” approach, which says that math and logic are a extensions of human intuition, and more like a language. The question is whether math is tied to reality or is it tied to human perceptions of reality, and I favor the latter. Krauss and Co. seem to just assume the former.

I also though you might like my post below:

http://spokanefavs.com/culture/science/get-your-free-universe-right-here

Thanks,
Bruce

Comment on Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 by Dave Benson

Dave Benson — Mon, 28 May 2012 23:31:08 +0000

Thanks for the encouragement, and especially for the quote – I’ve heard other portions of Dillard’s novel quoted, but not this snippet. Looks like I should add it to my reading list! … blessings,
Dave

Comment on What if I Can’t Believe? by Chris Ellinger

Chris Ellinger — Mon, 28 May 2012 01:05:39 +0000

Thank you. This has made a difference to me today.

Comment on Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 by René Breuel

René Breuel — Sat, 26 May 2012 11:27:42 +0000

Beautiful quote! Sounds like an article in the making : )

Comment on Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 by Ryan

Ryan — Fri, 25 May 2012 02:39:09 +0000

One more thing… Your posts on Krauss reminded me of a fantastic quote from Annie Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek:

We don’t know what’s going on here. If these tremendous events are random combinations of matter run amok, the yield of millions of monkeys at millions of typewriters, then what is it in us, hammered out of those same typewriters, that they ignite? We don’t know. Our life is a faint tracing on the surface of mystery, like the idle, curved tunnels of leaf miners on the face of a leaf. We must somehow take a wider view, look at the whole landscape, really see it, and describe what’s going on here. Then we can at least wail the right question into the swaddling band of darkness, or, if it comes to that, choir the proper praise.

Comment on Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 by Ryan

Ryan — Fri, 25 May 2012 02:33:35 +0000

Really appreciated this three part series, Dave. Thanks for the clarity (and humour) you brought to a very interesting and important subject. You summarize it well here:

If Universes can literally pop into and out of existence, how can one control for any variable? What certainty can one have of any conclusion? In what sense is this better for science than positing a stable God who providentially upholds the “regularities of nature”? I wonder, alongside C. S. Lewis, “Has it come to that? Does the whole vast structure of modern naturalism depend not on positive evidence but simply on an a priori metaphysical prejudice? Was it devised not to get in facts but to keep out God?”

My money is still on God, too :).

Comment on Naturalistic Faith by Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 « Wondering Fair

Universe from Nothing – a load of Krauss, part 3 « Wondering Fair — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:00:15 +0000

[...] world.[4] Yet supposing ‘science’ will find the answer in this case is yet another instance of naturalistic faith, and it’s more than this sceptic can [...]

Comment on If God Does Not Exist by Dave Benson

Dave Benson — Mon, 21 May 2012 01:19:16 +0000

Hi SciAwakening,
thanks for your reading suggestions. Just finished exploring Krauss’s “A Universe from Nothing” and have written a 3 part response on Wondering Fair blog, starting today (21 May 2012) … see http://wonderingfair.com/2012/05/21/universe-from-nothing-a-load-of-krauss-part-1/. I’m not sure, by Krauss’s own definitions, if he really addresses the problem Helder raised in this WF article, i.e., how can something come from ‘nothing’ … as his definition of nothing sounds awfully like something – it’s a semantic shift … but more on that in part 3 of my post. Best wishes in your own musings on such important and foundational questions,
Dave Benson.

Comment on A Predictable Life? by René Breuel

René Breuel — Thu, 17 May 2012 08:09:01 +0000

Great to hear that, welcome! I hope WF keeps on blessing you!

Comment on One True Religion? by Tom

Tom — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:01:41 +0000

In my prison work, I deal with a vast variety of seekers. And why not? They are all pretty much wandering in the desert … and have been for many years. My approach to each incarcerated offender is this: we are all children of God and heirs to the Kingdom.

I encourage them to search for a belief system that gives them inner peace (and, I say to myself, let the Holy Spirit do the rest). My only bit of advice is that they shy away from any denomination or religion that puts down another. The truth needs no comparison. One does not rise up by putting another down.