Big Bang

[GlennB]

Postulating an eternal and inexplicable god or life-force that existed beyond the boundaries of the embryonic physical universe in order to create it doesn't help me understand anything, I'm afraid. It creates more complex questions than it answers.

 

Although cosmology is fascinating I accept that there will be no answer in my lifetime, and just jog along regarding my spell on the planet as all I'm going to get.

[yoxer]

"I understand Quantum Mechanics, but that is just a heap of old tosh mate. "

 

with regard to time travel it maybe of benifit to go over the double slit experiment which Ive no intention of explaining as Im sure you'll have an easier time of reasearching than I did and anyone stating that they understand quantum mechanics obviously understands nothing

[chesters1]

mmmmmm double slit

[Janet]

anyone stating that they understand quantum mechanics obviously understands nothing

 

...and your reason for that assertion is?

 

Janet

[corydoras]

...and your reason for that assertion is?

 

Janet

I hope he never needs an MRI or a CAT scan. You wouldn't want to trust your health to a device designed and built by those who understand nothing. Maybe we'll get Bohred to death waiting for a reply Janet

[Ken L]

anyone stating that they understand quantum mechanics obviously understands nothing

 

Perhaps this was simply a bit of humour. The sentiments are afterall consistent with the views of the great and the good:

 

If you are not completely confused by quantum mechanics, you do not understand it. John Wheeler.

 

It is safe to say that nobody understands quantum mechanics. Richard Feynman.

 

Quantum mechanics makes absolutely no sense. Roger Penrose

[Steve Walker]

OK, and I think this is what Steve W is also saying in a way. Seems a bit dicey to me to postulate billions of universes and big bangs when there is no evidence for them, but I accept this is the answer many astrophysicists would go for*.

 

 

Yes, same sort of thing - but you don't need to postulate the existence of alternate realities, you just need to postulate that if they did exist, their physical constants would also have to be internally consistent in order for any consciousness produced to be postulating anything at all!

 

To me, there is a circularity in the argument:

 

1. There is a force which wants there to be human consciousness

2. The existence of human consciousness requires the "fine tuning" of the universe

3. Because the force which wants there to be human consciousness has got what it wants, it must have been responsible for the fine tuning

4. Therefore, the existence of the fine tuning proves #1

 

If we instead consider human consciousness to be merely an emergent property of a reality with the defining parameters of this one, like stars and snowflakes and the tricarboxylic acid cycle and Aston Martins, and don't start from the belief that something wanted it to occur, then we do not need to assume that the 'something' intervened to make it occur.

[chesters1]

hmmm if there were alternative realities would it be 50-50 in yours the big bang was the cause of it?

i like 50-50 even the universe fits into it

ofcourse 50-50 is disliked by everyone with vested interests their research makes the odds different but in reality 50-50 is all there is ,it is or it isnt ,it did or it didnt etc etc

50-50 is great you need no research grants nor nuffin ,if you think theres a 50-50 chance of anything happening half the results did half did not

 

we are here wondering why things exist in reality we had a 50-50 chance of not being here at all so whats all the fuss about ? things happen for no reason at all even the evolution of us clever humans happened for no particular reason it did, on a billion similar planets it probably didnt on a further billion it perhaps did but there was no reason to it theres no reason in anything just the luck your on the "did" side of 50-50

 

50-50 is good for you ,when you drive your car you have a 50-50 chance of coming back home (you died or didnt) when you do come home you can rejoice and hoorah !!!if you dont you wont

life is simpler on the 50-50 outlook why complicate it ,i'm off down the pond i may or may not return ,good enough for me

Edited November 30, 2009 by chesters1

[Steve Walker]

Modern schools of statistical analysis:

 

Conventional Statistics

Bayesian Statistics

Chester's Statistics

 

[ColinW]

Two points

 

1. Believing you understand what you have read about quantum mechanics is not the same as understanding quantum mechanics. As an electrical engineer I know the effect of an electric field on an electron. That doesn't mean I have the slightest idea what is really happening. I don't know (or even know of) ANYONE who knows what an electron is!

 

2. Moving forward is space-time does not require vast amounts of energy. I am doing it now.