Category: Science | Page 21

red dwarf star sun space view, 3d render

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News
Date
May 1, 2021

Categorized
Science

Tagged
Extraterrestrials (ET), Habitable zone}

Could Red Dwarf Stars Host Planets With Intelligent Life?

_{Red dwarfs are much more numerous than brighter yellow dwarfs like our sun} _{News
May 1, 2021

6

Science}

Our Sun is a yellow dwarf star, shiny but comparatively short-lived. Red dwarfs are said to be the most common and longest-lived type of star in our galaxy. They are long-lived because they do not emit much radiance. How large are their habitable zones? A key problem turns on how much light they emit that is useful for life. That was quite a topic of discussion earlier this year at Centauri Dreams (dedicated to “Imagining and Planning Interstellar Exploration”). Astronomer and mathematician Henry Cordova offers some thoughts: All else being equal, the radiant flux received by the planet must then be directly proportional to the luminosity of the star, and inversely proportional to the square of the planet’s distance from Read More ›

At the Factory: Automation Engineer Uses Laptop for Programming Robotic Arm. New Era in Automatic Manufacturing Industry.

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Stephen Berger
Date
April 27, 2021

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Philosophy of Mind, Science

Tagged
Dimensions, Humanity (essence), Paul Sutter, Reality, senses, Universe}

Will Humans Ever Be Fully Replaceable by AI? Part 1

_{We must first determine, what is a person and what is the nature of the universe in which a person can exist?} _{Stephen Berger
April 27, 2021

15

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Philosophy of Mind, Science}

The title question has been around for quite some time. In this discussion, I would like to take an ontological look at this question. What is the essential nature of being a person? To fully replace humans, what must AI machines become capable of? IF we want to consider the possibility of making humans obsolete, we need to know what is the essence of humanity? What is the ontological nature of a person? What characteristics define being a person? Even before we can address the essential nature of a person, we must identify the essential nature of the universe in which that person exists. What is the universe? How many dimensions does it have? Can the universe, or in it Read More ›

Collage of portraits of young emotional people on multicolored background in neon. Concept of human emotions, facial expression, sales. Listening to music, delighted, winner, shocked. Flyer for ad

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News
Date
April 26, 2021

Categorized
Business and Finance, Education, Ethics, Science, Surveillance, Work

Tagged
Emotional recognition technology (ERT), emotions, Human emotions, Kate Crawford}

AI Prof Sounds Alarm: AI “Emotion Detectors” Are Faulty Science

_{An industry worth over $30 billion uses emotion recognition technology (ERT) on school children and potential hires} _{News
April 26, 2021

4

Business and Finance, Education, Ethics, Science, Surveillance, Work}

Kate Crawford, a principal researcher at Microsoft, and author of Atlas of AI (2021), is warning at Nature that the COVID-19 pandemic “is being used as a pretext to push unproven artificial-intelligence tools into workplaces and schools.” The software is touted as able to read the “six basic emotions” via analysis of facial expressions: During the pandemic, technology companies have been pitching their emotion-recognition software for monitoring workers and even children remotely. Take, for example, a system named 4 Little Trees. Developed in Hong Kong, the program claims to assess children’s emotions while they do classwork. It maps facial features to assign each pupil’s emotional state into a category such as happiness, sadness, anger, disgust, surprise and fear. It also Read More ›

Futuristic heads up display blue green abstract interface

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Eric Holloway
Date
April 26, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Benford's Law, Carl Sagan, Chance, Conspiracy theories, design in nature, design inference, Explanatory Filter, Intelligent design theory, Probability, Voter fraud allegations (in U.S.), William Dembski}

How the Explanatory Filter Can Help Quash Conspiracy Theories

_{I found Dembski’s explanatory filter quite helpful in investigating voter fraud claims} _{Eric Holloway
April 26, 2021

10

Philosophy, Science}

William Dembski’s explanatory filter is a decision strategy for identifying events that are unlikely to have happened purely by chance. The filter proceeds in three main steps, which can be illustrated via the plot device in Contact, a novel (1985) by Carl Sagan, followed by a film (1997): Eliminate events of large probability (necessity): A radio telescope receives a pattern of beeps and pauses. Perhaps the pattern seems strange to us but we could just be overinterpreting inevitable space noise. Eliminate events of medium probability (chance): The pattern turns out to be a sequence of prime numbers. However, large randomly generated numbers sometimes feature apparent patterns (five 5s in a row, for example) that don’t signify anything. Specify the event Read More ›

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News
Date
April 25, 2021

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Mathematics, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Technocracy

Tagged
1984 (book), George Orwell, totalitarianism}

How Orwell’s 1984 Can Be Seen As an Argument for God’s Existence

_{Atheism is not only fundamental to the power of the Party in 1984 but is also its central weakness} _{News
April 25, 2021

5

Arts & Culture, Mathematics, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Technocracy}

University of Nebraska political science prof Carson Holloway (pictured) asks, “Does discrediting the existence of God promote enlightened thinking or a lack of objective reality?” Unpacking the social structure in George Orwell’s classic totalitarian dystopia, 1984 (1949), he observes that not only does the Party have the power of life and death but the atheistic Party faithful fear death as utter annihilation: Atheism is the moral basis of the Party’s unlimited hold on its own members because it makes them terrified of death as absolute nonexistence. Like any government, the Party in 1984 has the power to kill disobedient subjects. Party members, however, view death not just as the end of bodily life, but as a complete erasure of their Read More ›

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News
Date
April 24, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Arik Kershenbaum, Convergent evolution, Dan Falk, Extraterrestrials (ET), Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy (2021)}

Zoologist: Law of Evolution Can Predict What Aliens Will Be Like

_{Arik Kershenbaum’s new book argues that convergent evolution on Earth helps us understand what to expect from extraterrestrial life} _{News
April 24, 2021

5

Philosophy, Science}

Cambridge zoologist Arik Kershenbaum, author of Zoologist’s Guide to the Galaxy (2021), thinks that convergent evolution here on Earth can offer us guides to what must happen on other planets that can support life. “Convergent evolution” means that radically different life forms arrive at the same solutions. He told science writer Dan Falk in an interview: Sometimes this “convergence” of traits is for something obviously useful, like wings. But sometimes convergence produces bizarrely similar creatures that share so many characteristics, it can be hard to believe they’re not closely related. The recently extinct thylacine [a large predatory marsupial native to Tasmania and mainland Australia], for example, could easily be mistaken for a peculiar breed of dog, but it’s much more Read More ›

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News
Date
April 24, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind, Science

Tagged
Confirmation bias, Flynn effect, Intelligence quotient (IQ), James Flynn}

Are We Humans Getting Smarter or Have We Peaked?

_{The really surprising thing, science writer David Robson notes, is that it may not matter as much as we think} _{News
April 24, 2021

5

Philosophy of Mind, Science}

The Flynn effect — where tested intelligence increased over past generations due to better health and more education — is said to be slowing. Of course, such findings are difficult to assess because they are subject to value judgments. But David Robson, author of The Intelligence Trap: Why smart people make dumb mistakes (2019), offers some useful observations, including asking what does the Flynn effect really measure?: James Flynn himself has argued that it is probably confined to some specific reasoning skills. In the same way that different physical exercises may build different muscles – without increasing overall “fitness” – we have been exercising certain kinds of abstract thinking, but that hasn’t necessarily improved all cognitive skills equally. And some Read More ›

Purple transparent molecule model over purple

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News
Date
April 22, 2021

Categorized
Mathematics, Science

Tagged
Aristotle, Bruce Gordon, Michael Egnor, Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Physics, Thomas Aquinas}

Could the World Above the Level of the Particle Be Superposed?

_{It’s been done with molecules. After that, there are barriers} _{News
April 22, 2021

6

Mathematics, Science}

As ancient philosophers said, entities in the universe become comprehensible when they are reduced from potentiality to actuality.

IS the Moon There If No One Looks? Or Is There No “There” There?

_{Elementary particles do not need to be in a particular place until they are observed and then that's where they are} _{News
April 21, 2021

7

Mathematics, Philosophy, Science}

The spins of elementary particles can be separated from their positions, just as the grin was separated from the Cheshire Cat.

In Quantum Physics, “Reality” Really Is What We Choose To Observe

_{Physicist Bruce Gordon argues that idealist philosophy is the best way to make sense of the puzzling world of quantum physics} _{News
April 20, 2021

7

Mathematics, Philosophy, Science}

In last week’s podcast,,” our guest host, neurosurgeon Michael Egnor, interviewed idealist philosopher of science and physicist Bruce Gordon on how the quantum physics that underlies our universe makes much more sense if we have a non-materialist view of reality. Even then, it challenges our conventional view of how nature “must” work: https://episodes.castos.com/mindmatters/Mind-Matters-130-Bruce-Gordon.mp3 A partial transcript, Show Notes, and Additional Resources follow. Michael Egnor: When I was in college, I was a biochemistry major and I took some courses in quantum mechanics. It was noted in the course that when you look at the most fundamental properties of subatomic particles, matter seems to disappear. That the reality of the subatomic particles is that they’re mathematical concepts. It utterly fascinated me Read More ›

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Robert J. Marks
Date
April 18, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
god, Goldbach's Conjecture, Incompleteness theorems (Gödel), Kurt Gödel, Peter Atkins, Scientism, Stephen Hawking, String theory, Theism, Theory of Everything, William Lane Craig}

How Materialism Proves Unbounded Scientific Ignorance

_{There is an infinite number of things that are true that we cannot prove scientifically and never will} _{Robert J. Marks
April 18, 2021

6

Philosophy, Science}

Science is based on a glut of laws from physics, chemistry, mathematics, and other areas. The assumption of scientific materialism, as I understand it, is that science has explained or will explain everything. The final conclusion of scientific materialism, also known as scientism, is nicely captured in a question chemist Peter Atkins asked philosopher William Lane Craig in a debate: “Do you deny that science can account for everything?” Scientism’s assumption that science can establish everything is self-refuting. Careful analysis shows that there is an infinite number of things that are true that we cannot prove scientifically and never will. Stephen Hawking saw the tip of the iceberg of this truth when he said, “Up to now, most people have Read More ›

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Michael Egnor
Date
April 18, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Religion, Science

Tagged
Featured, Five Ways (Aquinas), Jerry Coyne, Prime Mover, Thomas Aquinas}

Why the Universe Itself Can’t Be the Most Fundamental Thing

_{Atheist biology professor Jerry Coyne is mistaken in dismissing my observation that proofs of God’s existence follow the same logical structure as any other scientific theory} _{Michael Egnor
April 18, 2021

7

Philosophy, Religion, Science}

Jerry Coyne has posted in reply to my observation that God’s existence can be demonstrated by the ordinary methods of science. That is to say, all proofs of God’s existence are scientific theories in the sense that they have the same logical structure as any other scientific theory that proposes explanations for the natural world. Scientific theories are inductive in that they depend upon evidence in the natural world to reach a conclusion. Thus demonstrations of God’s existence, for example Thomas Aquinas’s Five Ways, are scientific theories in the sense that Newton’s Law of Gravitation, Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, Quantum Mechanics, and Darwin’s Theory of Evolution are scientific theories. Scientific theories can demonstrate the existence of things outside of nature Read More ›

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News
Date
April 17, 2021

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Science

Tagged
Avi Loeb, Extraterrestrials (ET), Extraterrestrials (malevolent), John Gertz, Michio Kaku, Moon, Oumuamua, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI)}

SETI Director Warns: Those Aliens Could Be Malevolent

_{Harvard astronomer agrees: We’ve sent a lot of signals in recent years; they may have got them. But now what?} _{News
April 17, 2021

4

Arts & Culture, Science}

As the Mars Rover Perseverance bumps around looking for fossil bacteria and such, many students of possible ET life are becoming surprisingly cautious about what it might mean: “We have no reason to believe that technological advancement and altruism or morality are somehow linked,” SETI researcher Andrew Siemion told Inverse. “There probably are malevolent civilizations elsewhere in the universe so that’s certainly something that we should consider as we continue to explore the universe.” Siemion, who’s the director of the Berkeley SETI Research Center and principal of the alien-hunting Breakthrough Listen project, is invoking a tension at the heart of any project searching for alien life. Successfully finding it would change the world — but there’s also no guarantee humanity Read More ›

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David Zeiger
Date
April 17, 2021

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Religion, Science

Tagged
Unbelievable (book)}

Sci-fi Saturday: New NBC X-files Clone “Debris” Feels Disjointed

_{Perhaps that’s intentional, though many critics aren’t getting it yet} _{David Zeiger
April 17, 2021

2

Arts & Culture, Religion, Science}

Debris by J. H. Wyman (TV series, 2021, 13 episodes): “Two agents from two different continents, and two different mindsets, must work together to investigate why.” Debris, J. H. Wyman’s third major foray into science fiction (Fringe, and Almost Human being the others), seems to be getting a cool reception from critics and viewers alike. But maybe it needs time to coalesce. However, time and a forgiving audience are in short supply these days in the crowded entertainment landscape. The show’s premise is that an alien spacecraft has broken up in our solar system and crashed to earth, creating the “Debris” of the title. Of course, these artifacts cause strange “advanced technology” effects (not magic) and our government agents must Read More ›

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News
Date
April 16, 2021

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Medicine and Health, Science

Tagged
Erik J. Larson, John Horgan, Marvin Minsky, Myth of Artificial Intelligence (book)}

Why Did a Prominent Science Writer Come To Doubt the AI Takeover?

_{John Horgan’s endorsement of Erik J. Larson’s new book critiquing AI claims stems from considerable experience covering the industry for science publications} _{News
April 16, 2021

5

Artificial Intelligence, Medicine and Health, Science}

At first, science writer John Horgan (pictured), author of a number of books including The End of Science (1996), accepted the conventional AI story: When I started writing about science decades ago, artificial intelligence seemed ascendant. IEEE Spectrum, the technology magazine for which I worked, produced a special issue on how AI would transform the world. I edited an article in which computer scientist Frederick Hayes-Roth predicted that AI would soon replace experts in law, medicine, finance and other professions. John Horgan, “Will Artificial Intelligence Ever Live Up to Its Hype?” at Scientific American (December 4, 2020) But that year, 1984, ushered in an AI winter, in which innovation stalled and funding dried up. By 1998, problems like non-recurrent engineering Read More ›

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News
Date
April 16, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Bruce Gordon, Consciousness, Cosmopanpsychism, Featured, Franz Brentano, Idealism, Materialism, Michael Egnor, Panpsychism, Panpsychism (vs. materialism), Thomas Nagel}

A Physicist and Philosopher Examines Panpsychism

_{Idealism says everything is an idea in the mind of God. Panpsychism says everything participates in consciousness (thus is not just an idea)} _{News
April 16, 2021

9

Philosophy, Science}

Bruce Gordon thinks that, for a thing to be conscious, there must be something that it “is like” to be that thing. Can panpsychism demonstrate that?

Why Should We Believe Atheists on the Subject of God?

_{Logic and evidence both point to the existence of God, whatever atheists may think} _{News
April 11, 2021

4

Philosophy, Religion, Science}

Noting a recent article by philosopher Steve Meyer at The Federalist, neurosurgeon Michael Egnor comments, The public square is replete with books and articles written by atheist scientists claiming that cosmology or genetics or evolution properly understood disproves the existence of God. These atheist scientists profoundly misunderstand the implications of their science; they couldn’t be more wrong. As in his new book, The Return of the God Hypothesis, Dr. Meyer points to three particularly clear advances in modern science. Michael Egnor, “The God Hypothesis Versus Atheist Science Denial” at Evolution News and Science Today (April 5, 2021) The three arguments he addresses are ● The Big Bang: “The existence of a moment of beginning of our universe in an almost Read More ›

Flying Car, Future Air Car 3d Concept, Futuristic Vehicle In The City, Car Concept - 3D Rendering

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News
Date
April 10, 2021

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Science

Tagged
Futurism}

Sci-fi Saturday: What If Futurism Doesn’t Mean Smarter People?

_{Comic scenes would dot the aerial landscape, dispelling the usual earnestness of sci-fi films} _{News
April 10, 2021

10

Arts & Culture, Science}

“Floaters” at DUST by Karl Poyzer and Joseph Roberts (March 25, 2021, 4:03 min) “High in the sky of a sci-fi metropolis a lone spaceship is confronted by a much larger and more intimidating vessel. When the bigger ship asks the small one why they share the same identification number a strange quandary forms and a mile-high debate ensues.” This comic short (4 min) makes clear that a futurist landscape need not be inhabited by evolved superheroes or philosophical aliens. It could be inhabited by the same sort of people the traffic cop stops every day. Or denser. This animated film uses architectural rather than cartoon style. It also uses a technique too often neglected these days*: We hear the Read More ›

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News
Date
April 10, 2021

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Environment, Science

Tagged
Cloning, Dan Robitzski, Dinosaurs, DNA, Ecology, Elephants, Neuralink}

Neuralink Cofounder: We Can Bring “Exotic” Dinosaurs To Life Now

_{Whether Max Hodak can do that or not, many scientists ponder, when SHOULD we try to bring back extinct species?} _{News
April 10, 2021

6

Arts & Culture, Environment, Science}

Neuralink is currently best known for brain-computer interfaces, including a test monkey playing pong ball with his mind. But Elon Musk’s co-founder Max Hodak has a bigger idea: Breed and engineer “super exotic novel species”of dinosaurs: “We could probably build Jurassic Park if we wanted to,” Hodak tweeted on Saturday. “Wouldn’t be genetically authentic dinosaurs but [shrugging emoji]. Maybe 15 years of breeding + engineering to get super exotic novel species.” Dan Robitzski, “Neuralink Co-founder Says We Have the Tech to Build An Actual Jurassic Park” at Futurism Any life forms that resulted from dino DNA studies would not be “genetically authentic” dinosaurs because we don’t have living dinosaur sexual cells to work with. They might, however, be more or Read More ›

Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover is exploring surface of Mars. Perseverance rover Mission Mars exploration of red planet. Space exploration, science concept. .Elements of this image furnished by NASA.

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News
Date
April 10, 2021

Categorized
Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Dirk Schulze-Makuch, Extraterrestrials (ET), Great Filter Hypothesis, Michio Kaku, Nick Bostrom}

Why Some Experts Hope We DON’T Find Life on Mars

_{Many thinkers worry about what will happen if the extraterrestrials land. But will they feel worse if we never find ET?} _{News
April 10, 2021

6

Philosophy, Science}

Recently, prominent theoretical physicist Michio Kaku (pictured) told media that reaching out to extraterrestrials is a “terrible idea.” Kaku, author of The God Equation: The Quest for a Theory of Everything (2021). So long SETI, after all these years? Well, not quite. He explains, Soon we’ll have the Webb telescope up in orbit and we’ll have thousands of planets to look at, and that’s why I think the chances are quite high that we may make contact with an alien civilisation. There are some colleagues of mine that believe we should reach out to them. I think that’s a terrible idea. We all know what happened to Montezuma when he met Cortés in Mexico so many hundreds of years ago. Read More ›