Some of us still think Loeb is way off the beam about Oumuamua but at least he is talking about how you would know that something is designed. If anyone is interested, it is called the design inference.
Month: January 2021
Was the universe “made for us”? Sabine Hossenfelder weighs in. Rob Sheldon comments
The question, addressed by theoretical physicist Sabine Hossenfelder, is more complicated than it appears at first.
Is “consciousness” a useless concept? Michael Egnor makes the case
Egnor: Our mental life is a composite of abilities — arousal, sensation, perception, locomotion, reason, etc., and these abilities appear to subsist in modified form despite dramatic changes in the body and brain.
At New Discourses: The university as a Woke mission field
Jones: I’m sad to say it, but I believe that Critical Social Justice ideology—if not beaten in the war of ideas—will destroy the liberal foundation of American society.
The computer revolution did not show that information could be produced from nothing
Computer engineer Robert J. Marks and colleagues demonstrated that there is still no such thing as a free lunch where information is concerned.
Humans had tools before opposable thumbs?
Those of us who have never had non-opposable thumbs might have some trouble understanding the problem but hey, we can learn.
Why “Follow the science” is an empty slogan
Ilana Redstone: First, statistics don’t interpret themselves. There are often multiple, competing explanations for the same result, and we are left to choose among them.
Fun: The new bad is “species-ist” language
Will it become a crime to use words like “catty” or names like “Gordon Gecko”?
Ancient tuatara turns out to have two mitochondrial genomes
We remember when genetics was simple and determinist.
Apparently, according to some, the tragedy of eukaryote evolution is a difference between men and women
According to some: Every single problem currently haunting our culture would go away had the history of life not taken one really, really tragic step: the evolution of eukaryotic from prokaryotic life.
Avi Loeb talks to Sean Carroll at Preposterous Universe about why he thinks Oumuamua represents extraterrestrials
He ends up, we are told, sounding like an ID type.
The original ID theorist, whether he knew it or not, was Alfred Russel Wallace
The video is up now.
Butterfly flight is much more advanced than thought
It turns out the butterflies had the aerodynamics right.
Has the Smithsonian converted to creationism about crocodiles?
At the Smithsonian: Surviving crocodiles did not change throughout millions of years because they arrived at an equilibrium where they were efficient and versatile enough that they did not need to evolve to exist, reports the Conversation.
Michael Egnor: From a medical perspective, “consciousness” adds nothing to the description of mental states
In his view, “ “Consciousness ” is a meaningless term that too often misleads us, and it shouldn’t be used in medicine, neuroscience, or philosophy: “Consciousness” is a very vague term and, ultimately, I don’t think it has any useful meaning at all, apart from other categories such as sensation, perception, imagination, reason etc. Aristotle Read More…