CategoryPhysics
Physicists propose to test the finetuning of the universe
Their thesis is based on cosmic inflation theory and on the behavior of dark matter, whose nature remains unknown.
Is Physicalism Dead? And Is Psychology Today Here to Bury It?
Physicalism argues that the mind is simply the activities of neurons in the brain and consciousness is an illusion that they generate
Did Stephen Hawking End His Career by Giving Up on Truth?
A philosopher argues the case. But has the rejection of truth in physics spread widely into popular culture?
Are We Now Giving Nobel Prizes to Cheerleaders?
Even though both John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton are brilliant researchers, there were much more obviously deserving recipients
When Einstein Clashed With Philosopher Bergson Over Time
Bergson’s point, back in 1922, was that clocks, however accurate, don’t read themselves; they are interpreted by conscious beings
Renowned Chemist James Tour To Speak on New “Sci-Fi” Material
Tour is speaking at COSM 2024 on his work with graphene which, despite its astounding qualities, originates in pencil lead
Does a “Spiritual Particle” Explain Human Consciousness?
Trying To Refute Free Will Without Being Sure What It Is…
Stephen Barr offers some thoughts on neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky’s Determined, which argues against free will
Can Free Will and Predestination Both Be True?
Seemingly contradictory arguments can sometimes be resolved from a higher level perspective. Quantum mechanics vs. classical physics provides an illustration
Physicists: Perhaps Life Is a Unique State of Matter
A physics gathering next week at the University of Rochester will explore the significance of the fact that life, unlike non-life, needs and uses information
Research: Our Brains Float Between Two Phases, Dodging Disorder
Our minds just never quite get used to that
Does Time Exist? That’s Not As Clear As We Might Think
We picture a clock when we think of time but, physicists note, that’s not how we experience it as living beings
Interstellar Space Travel: But Why Not Dream?
What would we need to trim the daunting energy requirement for space travel down to size? It's a challenge
Interstellar Travel: Fantasy or Destiny?
The energy required to power a spaceship to a nearby star, given current tech, is 4,800 times the total energy consumption of the United States in the year 2022
What Drives the Belief That We Live in a Computer Sim Universe?
The lack of evidence for the sim is admitted — but then we are challenged to prove that it ISN’T true…
Astrophysicist: Electricity Can Account For Human Consciousness
Ethan Siegel set out to show that there is no design in the universe and that included reducing consciousness to electricity, with the details still to be ironed out
Science Team Argues, Consciousness Came Before Life
Can the authors take issue with Darwinian evolution claims while maintaining a materialist stance?
Consciousness Observes Different Laws From Physics
At Closer to Truth, British philosopher and pastor Keith Ward provides an example to host Robert Lawrence Kuhn
A Physicist Tries to Avoid the Fact of Design in Our Universe…
Physicist Alexander Vilenkin of Tufts University argues, against apparent fine-tuning, that our universe’s cosmological constant should have a special value like zero, but doesn’tIn his discussion with Robert Lawrence Kuhn at Closer to Truth, Tufts physicist and cosmologist Alexander Vilenkin addresses the question, “Is the Universe Fine-Tuned for Life and Mind?”: If the deep laws of the universe had been ever so slightly different human beings wouldn’t, and couldn’t, exist. All explanations of this exquisite fine-tuning, obvious and not-so-obvious, have problems or complexities. Natural or supernatural, that is the question. Vilenkin — who is also a professor of evolutionary science — concedes the main point: Alexander Vilenkin: [0:40] Well yeah that’s right. It appears that the Universe is fine-tuned in the sense that there are about 30 constants of nature which take some specific value: if you look at these numbers, they look Read More ›