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[Zironic]

Well, We celebrate Yearmas, which is basically, get stuff when you want to, and we also celebrate "That one holiday on the 25th day of the last month" day. It's not very complex. In fact, to change from the current method of holidays to the holidays of Holistic Nihilism is like changing pants. Nothing but a different color. Also, Yes Aqizzar, that is brilliant! Every nothing day is an unbirthday and every everything day is birthday.

[Armok]

Anyways, The person who usually browses and moderates is ThreeToe, so if you want to threaten people with moderator support, you should choose the right god-sphere.

I thought armok was being sarcastic. Apparently not. However, I do have to inform you Armok, Religion is an organized belief system that involves spirituality. So, technically if you believe in the Dust Theory, then it is your religion or part of it.

It is not organized nor does it have anything to do with spirituality. Also, religions are faith-based, and INTENDED to be so, admittedly by the practiser. I on the other hand try to be as rational as absolutely possible, assigning as close to the Bayesian correct probability as absolutely possible.
Thirdly, religions are memetic, while Dust Theory can in principle be invented identical by everyone separately.

Also, was my link broken or something? From the sound of you people I must have linked to timecube or something by mistake...
I don't think anyone here except me actually understood a thing the article said...  I thought this community was smart, once.

Ninjaedit: Except Psyco Jelly, atleast there is one sensible person here.

[Vector]

I just found THE most inspiring, beautiful, deep, and meaningful thing I ever read. It is the first time I have from an outside source experienced the same conclusions that shape, or rather define, my own thought and being, the things I feel at the very, very deepest. This is probably the most important text you will ever read in your life.
Just follow this link.

Very nice   Thank you for sharing.  I somewhat disagree with some of the mathematics used, however.  It is readily apparent that the man has very little number-sense.

[Psyco Jelly]

I don't actually know what Eva is. I should ask her.

Well, taken out of context...

Anyway, yeah.  It shouldn't matter much at all.  We do occasionally pretend to be religious when visiting some friends, but that's more as a precautionary measure.

Yeah, my grandparents are hardcore southern baptists. I act christian because I don't want them to go apeshit...

[Leafsnail]

Well, it's not bad as a piece of philosophy.  I just don't like the way it drags in science and maths and pretends to be something it isn't.

[lumin]

I'm not sure what topic we're on in this thread, but I thought the OP's link was very interesting.

I started a thread similar to this topic a few months ago, about how it is already proven that a "God" exists based on the spheres of reality (I liked the fish/bicycle comparison in the article).

I think it's cool to think about the universe, as human beings know it, as merely another "tide pool" of comprehension.  Perhaps one day, in a few billion years or so, the descendants of humans will perceive the Milky Way galaxy no more important than a drop of water under a microscope.

I think thoughts such as this makes the existence of a higher being or "God" not just believable, but incontrovertible.

[Jackrabbit]

No, no, no, a million times no. You cannot post a link to something you personally find profound and interesting, Armok, and expect all and sundry to agree. People have differing opinions and as such some will have a different opinion to you. The majority of the people who responded did and you are going to have to accept that. Claiming that you're the only person (well, you and anyone who agrees with you) who understands the thing, because you believe in it very strongly seems to imply to me that if someone doesn't agree with it, you're just going to claim they didn't understand it instead of simply accepting that these people have a differing viewpoint to you, and that reeks of the religious crap that most of the real fanatics pull: "how could you not believe in God! You can't understand what God is and means or else you wouldn't say that!".

I'm not bothered about whether the site you provided is right or not. If you want to believe it's right, that's fine. But don't claim that you're the only smart person here simply because other people think that it isn't.

[Aqizzar]

Also, was my link broken or something? From the sound of you people I must have linked to timecube or something by mistake...
I don't think anyone here except me actually understood a thing the article said...  I thought this community was smart, once.

Your link is working perfectly Armok, and I have been reading it.  That no one else had the life changing revelation you did does not make us idiots, thank you very much.

[Zironic]

Someone link the time cube below your post.

[Vector]

Anyways, The person who usually browses and moderates is ThreeToe, so if you want to threaten people with moderator support, you should choose the right god-sphere.

I thought armok was being sarcastic. Apparently not. However, I do have to inform you Armok, Religion is an organized belief system that involves spirituality. So, technically if you believe in the Dust Theory, then it is your religion or part of it.

It is not organized nor does it have anything to do with spirituality. Also, religions are faith-based, and INTENDED to be so, admittedly by the practiser. I on the other hand try to be as rational as absolutely possible, assigning as close to the Bayesian correct probability as absolutely possible.
Thirdly, religions are memetic, while Dust Theory can in principle be invented identical by everyone separately.

Also, was my link broken or something? From the sound of you people I must have linked to timecube or something by mistake...
I don't think anyone here except me actually understood a thing the article said...  I thought this community was smart, once.

Ninjaedit: Except Psyco Jelly, atleast there is one sensible person here.

1. Second post or so linked to TimeCube.

2. By Dust Theory itself, the world where religion is true and Dust Theory is not is just as viable as the world where religion is false and Dust Theory is true.

Wait... I knew there was a problem here.  He's using a "set of all sets argument," which in this case runs screaming into Russel's Paradox.  We're never going to be able to say much about Dust Theory until mathematics gets off its bum and figures out how to resolve stronger set-theoretical notions.

3. Religion can also be in principle invented by everyone separately.  It is improbable, but it is possible.  The fact that we might not arrive at a certain belief by virtue of fully rational processes does not mean that we cannot come to it with other thought patterns.

4. Comprehension or lack thereof of a single article does not equate to intellect.

5. Other math error--he says we're much more likely to find small numbers when running around than large ones.

This is completely false.  Suppose that each digit has a 1/10 probability of being chosen.  Then we have that

P(5) = 1/10, P(5098765543) = (1/10)¹⁰.

...

But then we realize that our notation is dumb, and that 5 == 0000000005, so P(5) is actually (1/10)¹⁰ as well, using that computation.  We can reconcile this by saying that each digit has a "probability of termination" δ, so that the probability of some number showing up in the 10ⁿth place is δⁿ.  Of course, the question remains as to what the "termination constant" of our universe is, and whether or not it changes with time.  I suppose it would have to be fixed, given the Second Law of Thermodynamics.


Well, anyway.  It was beautifully written, but it has some rather grievous flaws.

[Emperor_Jonathan]

I was reading Armoks link and well, I didn't find it awe-inspiring, life-changing, deeply profound nor did it match up with my views - mainly because I don't care about that stuff.

[Cthulhu]

Also, was my link broken or something? From the sound of you people I must have linked to timecube or something by mistake...
I don't think anyone here except me actually understood a thing the article said...  I thought this community was smart, once.

Your link is working perfectly Armok, and I have been reading it.  That no one else had the life changing revelation you did does not make us idiots, thank you very much.

That's because you don't understand Armok, cubic and wisest human, and the concept of four-day cubic planet in 24 hours because you're brainwashed by evil teachers and religion to sacrifice your children for your own survival in evil life.

[Aqizzar]

2. By Dust Theory itself, the world where religion is true and Dust Theory is not is just as viable as the world where religion is false and Dust Theory is true.

Wait... I knew there was a problem here.  He's using a "set of all sets argument," which in this case runs screaming into Russel's Paradox.  We're never going to be able to say much about Dust Theory until mathematics gets off its bum and figures out how to resolve stronger set-theoretical notions.

5. Other math error--he says we're much more likely to find small numbers when running around than large ones.

This is completely false.  Suppose that each digit has a 1/10 probability of being chosen.  Then we have that

P(5) = 1/10, P(5098765543) = (1/10)¹⁰.

...

But then we realize that our notation is dumb, and that 5 == 0000000005, so P(5) is actually (1/10)¹⁰ as well, using that computation.  We can reconcile this by saying that each digit has a "probability of termination" δ, so that the probability of some number showing up in the 10ⁿth place is δⁿ.  Of course, the question remains as to what the "termination constant" of our universe is, and whether or not it changes with time.  I suppose it would have to be fixed, given the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

I smell bread and burning rubber, but I think I understand this.  Or not.  Thank God I went for Liberal Arts.

That's because you don't understand Armok, cubic and wisest human, and the concept of four-day cubic planet in 24 hours because you're brainwashed by evil teachers and religion to sacrifice your children for your own survival in evil life.

Wait, what am I saying?  Curse those evil racist seven-day teachers!

[LegoLord]

I had actually decided not to comment on it, since it apparently is what Armok has already spoken of elsewhere, which I didn't find a particularly attractive philosophy.  What I did say was to steer things away from flame by pointing out to Armok that he worded something poorly, hoping he'd re-word it or explain what he meant more fully.

[Enzo]

OK, despite a general distaste for philosophy, I decided to give that a quick perusal. One question.

As our thoughts become more powerful, our repertoire of useful interpretations will grow. We can see levers and springs in animal limbs, and beauty in the aurora: our "mind children'' may be able to spot fully functioning intelligences in the complex chemical goings on of plants, the dynamics of interstellar clouds, or the reverberations of cosmic radiation.

Our mind children, able to manipulate their own substance and structure at the finest levels, will probably greatly transcend our narrow notions of what is.

Our mind children will probably be able to navigate the alternatives with increasing facility.

What the hell are mind children?