try to appreciate...

[rlortie]

Many of you may recall the video of the gigantic model railroad built in Germany that went the internet rounds.
That model is now expanded to a "massive" city -- and now even has a miniature working airline,
working police and fire departments, crooks, the whole magilla -- and it won't be completed 'til 2020!
There is a funeral and a gorgeous cathedral. It is mind boggling!
http://devour.com/video/miniatur-wunderland/

[iacob alex]

Hi Ralph !
This movie is amazing : the people knows to manage extremely sophisticated motion ,but not the "self" motion due to gravity and inertia.

It appears contrary to all reason or common sense...are we as hamsters in a cage of thinking,or we are missing the starting point,something alike that "old" game with a wire and a moving magnet ?

All the best ! /Alex

[rlortie]

LED that is said to put out more light than electricity consumed.

http://www.lighting.co.uk/news/mit-crea ... 37.article

The published paper is here:
http://prl.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v108/i9/e097403

[rlortie]

Subject: God vs Science: "Assumptions"
A little long but good, hang in there, it gets interesting near the end.

Ralph

Science
"Let me explain the problem science has with religion ."The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand.

'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?'

'Yes sir,' the student says.

'So you believe in God?'

'Absolutely '

'Is God good?'

'Sure! God's good.'

'Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?'

'Yes'

'Are you good or evil?'

'The Bible says I'm evil.'

The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible! He considers for a moment. 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?'

'Yes sir, I would.'

'So you're good...!'

'I wouldn't say that.'

'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.'

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Can you answer that one?'

The student remains silent. 'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. 'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?'

'Er..yes,' the student says.

'Is Satan good?'

The student doesn't hesitate on this one.. 'No.'

'Then where does Satan come from?'

The student falters. 'From God'

'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?'

'Yes'

'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created everything,then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.'

Again, the student has no answer. 'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?'

The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.'

'So who created them ?'

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question. 'Who created them?' There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. 'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?'

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.'

The old man stops pacing. 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?'

'No sir. I've never seen Him.'

'Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?'

'No, sir, I have not.'

'Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?'

'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.'

'Yet you still believe in him?'

'Yes'

'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist... What do you say to that, son?'

'Nothing,' the student replies.. 'I only have my faith.'

'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'

The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of His own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat? '

' Yes.

'And is there such a thing as cold?'

'Yes, son, there's cold too.'

'No sir, there isn't.'

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain. 'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit down to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees. Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.'

Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.

'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?'

'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?'

'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?'

'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. 'Flawed? Can you explain how?'

'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains. 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.' 'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it.' 'Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?'

'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.'

'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?'

The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided. 'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.' The student looks around the room. 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into laughter. 'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelt the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so... So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.' 'So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?'

Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. 'I Guess you'll have to take them on faith.'

'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,' the student continues. 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?' Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We see it Everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in The multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.'

To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.'

The professor sat down.

Albert Einstein the above student, wrote a book titled 'God vs. Science' in 1921....

[justsomeone]

Thanks Ralph. Loved it.

[murilo]

Really great, Ralph!

[Furcurequs]

...hmmm....

I would have expected even a young Einstein to have known at least a little Hebrew scripture.

Isa.45

1. [7] I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

Dwayne

Edited to add:

Oh, and I didn't realize that young Albert was a Christian, either.

[ovyyus]

Dwayne, you're letting facts get in the way of the story :D

[murilo]

The competition NEVER sleeps:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJv58SXx ... re=related

Take much care, PM guys! You already lost!

[ovyyus]

Just another hoax.

[path_finder]

For the next hollydays don't miss the visit of the Tchernobyl nuclear site, with an official tour operator (160 USD, cheap):
http://www.ukrainianweb.com/chernobyl_u ... tAodUnUAWg

[Furcurequs]

In regards to apparent facts:

Einstein was then asked to what extent he was influenced by Christianity. "As a child I received instruction both in the Bible and in the Talmud. I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene."[22] Einstein was then asked if he accepted the historical existence of Jesus, to which he replied, "Unquestionably! No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life."[22]

He stressed however in a conversation with William Hermanns that, "I seriously doubt that Jesus himself said that he was God, for he was too much a Jew to violate that great commandment: Hear O Israel, the Eternal is our God and He is one!' and not two or three."[43] Einstein lamented, "Sometimes I think it would have been better if Jesus had never lived. No name was so abused for the sake of power!"[43]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_ ... t_Einstein

Dwayne

[rlortie]

Dwayne,

I gather that my "story" of the student and professor has created some curiosity about Einstein and his religious beliefs.

To set your mind at ease, my story was just that. "a story" Einstein was not the student nor did the professor exist. I quoted it just as it has been written for God only knows how many years.

http://www.snopes.com/religion/einstein.asp

I quote Bill;

Dwayne, you're letting facts get in the way of the story :D

If you search deep enough you will learn how the story was first illuminated. I used it as a parable to illustrate how science assumes something does not exist, simply because they have not found it.

Ralph

[ovyyus]

I used it as a parable to illustrate how science assumes something does not exist, simply because they have not found it.

Science might assume that an idea is not feasible if it flies in the face of common sense and/or if it goes against all experimental data to date. But the purpose of science is to search out things that have not yet been found.

[Trevor Lyn Whatford]

Hi Ovvyus,

Planetary movement prove perpetual motion exists, Fact! The wheel experiment are inconclusive as the worst examples are used, and can be explained by the function of geometry and forces acting on a wheel, most of which are drop weight experiments wherein there is always going to be more weight at the bottom, most of the true one sided force wheels have not been built yet as there is no data to be found on the internet, so you are using out of date data of old experiments as empirical evidence wherein there is no empirical evidence until every conceivable experiment has been tested. I have personally built many experiments and can only explain there failings on the geometry, more force at the bottom, but still leaves more question than answer when tapping leverage as the maths model is not conclusive and the figures do not tally with the experimental findings.

Empirical is experiment evidence not theory! But you are working on a theory that the experiments done are conclusive to experiments that have not been finshed yet, so stop this Empirical BS until it is Empirical and that is not at this time!!!
With Respect Trevor

Edit,

But the purpose of science is to search out things that have not yet been found.

It must have been asleep for over 300 years!