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Author Topic:   if other Life is Discovered wouldn't this Pose a problem?
NosyNed
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Posts: 9004
From: Canada
Joined: 04-04-2003


Message 11 of 107 (48840)
08-05-2003 9:18 PM
Reply to: Message 9 by Dr Cresswell
08-05-2003 1:13 PM


Re: I answer not as a creationist
"Magic" is a short word for anything that lies outside of the physical world. For anything that can be speculated upon without any limits to what the imagination can conjure up.
It can be a geni in a bottle or a god in the sky. There is no difference between tham as far as the explanatory power they offer. It is all "magical".

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NosyNed
Member
Posts: 9004
From: Canada
Joined: 04-04-2003


Message 12 of 107 (48842)
08-05-2003 9:29 PM
Reply to: Message 10 by Agent Uranium [GPC]
08-05-2003 8:54 PM


Fortunate accident
The occurance of life in many places can't, as has been said, tell us much about how it came about.
It may, if we can get there to study it, help us understand how life can arise.
If that is by a low probability process (and we demonstrate that very well) then as more cases arise we would have to ask how that could be. Is something we don't understand "helping" it along? Or is our demonstration of "low" probability wrong in some way?
If it is by a reasonable, less low probability process then finding lots would just demonstrate that it is easy for it to arise and there is no need for any "guidance". But we need some idea of how before we can determine this.
If we don't have any idea of how it arises but we find (through remote sensing) that it has arisen often that would indicate that whatever process is involved is, in fact, not low probability (yes, yes, there may be a supernatural explanation -- but there always is--(invoking it the face of the unknown is simply another case of God of the Gaps and not interesting either theologically or scientifically). It may help use pick candidate conditions and processes.
It is beginning to look like the process may not be low probability. In which case no invocation of "magic" is needed.

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NosyNed
Member
Posts: 9004
From: Canada
Joined: 04-04-2003


Message 100 of 107 (55931)
09-17-2003 1:45 AM
Reply to: Message 99 by Shimbabwe
09-16-2003 11:17 PM


Re: Thanks for the reply, Zephyr
OK that PE, how is it not Darwinian was the question you were asked.

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NosyNed
Member
Posts: 9004
From: Canada
Joined: 04-04-2003


Message 105 of 107 (56810)
09-21-2003 6:30 PM
Reply to: Message 104 by uranium_235
09-21-2003 4:51 PM


"it appears"
I think it would be more correct to say we just don't know enough to make an estimate yet.

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