Regarding Sea Breeze's comment of "science that disproves evolution" there is no such science. There is no science which disproves evolution. There is some science which has disproved some specific former hypotheses of evolution, but evolution itself has not been disproved. Some web sites and books of creationists (including of intelligent design) have articles which purport to disprove evolution (and Sea Breeze quotes from a number of them) but none of them actually disprove evolution. At best, they point out a flaws with some specific claim made by some evolutionist scientists about some aspect of evolution (such as some interpretations of some specific fossils).
If there actually were some "science which disproves evolution" great attention to it would be proclaimed by the mainstream media, and there would be articles in mainstream science journals and popular magazines of science which would proclaim such. But such has not been proclaimed in such sources.
If not the WT/JW relgion where else are 'we' to go? Why not atheistic/scientific philosophical naturalism?
by Disillusioned JW 99 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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Disillusioned JW
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Disillusioned JW
There is a very fascinating recent science news article called "Dead fish breathes new life into the evolutionary origin of fins and limbs" located at https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220928113007.htm . It says in part the following.
'Corresponding author Professor Donoghue said: "Tujiaaspis breathes new life into a century old hypothesis for the evolution of paired fins, through differentiation of pectoral (arms) and pelvic (legs) fins over evolutionary time from a continuous head-to-tail fin precursor.
"This 'fin-fold' hypothesis has been very popular but it has lacked any supporting evidence until now. The discovery to Tujiaaspis resurrects the fin-fold hypothesis and reconciles it with contemporary data on the genetic controls on the embryonic development of fins in living vertebrates."
Corresponding author Min Zhu of VPP, Beijing, added "Tujiaaspis shows the primitive condition for paired fins first evolved. Later groups, like the jawless osteostracans show the first evidence for the separation of muscular pectoral fins, retaining long pelvic fins that reduced to the short muscular fins in jawed vertebrates, such as in groups like placoderms and sharks. Nevertheless, we can see vestiges of elongate fin-folds in the embryos of living jawed fishes, which can be experimentally manipulated to reproduce them. The key question is why did fins first evolve in this way?" '
The recent science news article called "Revealing the genome of the common ancestor of all mammals" located at https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220928094821.htm says in part the following.
'Every modern mammal, from a platypus to a blue whale, is descended from a common ancestor that lived about 180 million years ago. We don't know a great deal about this animal, but the organization of its genome has now been computationally reconstructed by an international team of scientists.
... The scientists found nine whole chromosomes, or chromosome fragments in the mammal ancestor whose order of genes is the same in modern birds' chromosomes.
"This remarkable finding shows the evolutionary stability of the order and orientation of genes on chromosomes over an extended evolutionary timeframe of more than 320 million years," Lewin says. In contrast, regions between these conserved blocks contained more repetitive sequences and were more prone to breakages, rearrangements and sequence duplications, which are major drivers of genome evolution.'
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Disillusioned JW
Folks at the book sale at the local library where I purchased the science book by Krauss and the science book by Simpson I also purchased the following two books which are quite informative and beneficial for those embracing an atheistic secular way of life.
- Living the Secular Life: New Answers To Old Questions, by Phil Zuckerman. The book is copyright 2014. The dust jacket says the author "is a professor of sociology and secular studies" and the author of Faith No More and Society Without God.
- The Happy Atheist, by PZ Myers. The book is copyright 2013. The outside back cover of the paperback says the following. "On his popular science blog, Pharyngula, PZ Meyers has entertained millions of readers with his infectious love of evolutionary science and his equally infectious disdain for creationism, biblical literalism, intelligent design theory, and other products of godly illogic. This funny and fearless book collects and expands on some of his most popular writings, giving the religious fanaticism of our times the gleeful disrespect it deserves by skewering the apocalyptic fantasies, magical thinking, hypocrisies, an pseudoscientific theories advanced by religious fundamentalists of all stripes."
In the chapter "One Nation Free of Gods" Meyers says that if people do not question God, do not question America, and they mix the two ideas together, then "you've got a lovely recipe for blind obedience." He then says the following two paragraphs.
'I usually complain about religion, but I have to add another target: patriotism. It's the same thing, opening a door to unthinking authoritarianism, and it always leads to oppression. Quite contrary to the claims of fanatical Christians, the heart of a thriving democracy has to be constant questioning of the operation of the government. To marry religion to our government would be antithetical to its founding principles, and even to regard those founding principles as inviolate and somehow imbued with godly authority would be a betrayal.
When I was growing up in the 1960s and 1970s, defenders of the status quo threw around a common slogan: "My country, right or wrong." Even at my young age, that always seemed insane. If my country is wrong, shouldn't I want to change it?'
Those stated ideas of PZ Meyers are definitely true! That is well said, PZ Meyers!
Also at the book sale was the atheistic book called The Atheist's Guide to Reality: Enjoying Life Without Illusions, by Alexander Rosenberg. I didn't notice that book until a beautiful female (of about age 18-20) picked it up in order to buy it. I wished I had found it first since the book seems (based upon its tile) very good. I think she said she found it in the self-help section; it was not in the religious section. An atheistic approach to thinking and to life can be thrilling and joyful!
A moment ago I found the following description (on Amazon's website) about the book.
'A book for nonbelievers who embrace the reality-driven life.
We can't avoid the persistent questions about the meaning of life-and the nature of reality. Philosopher Alex Rosenberg maintains that science is the only thing that can really answer them--all of them. His bracing and ultimately upbeat book takes physics seriously as the complete description of reality and accepts all its consequences. He shows how physics makes Darwinian natural selection the only way life can emerge, and how that deprives nature of purpose, and human action of meaning, while it exposes conscious illusions such as free will and the self. The science that makes us nonbelievers provides the insight into the real difference between right and wrong, the nature of the mind, even the direction of human history. The Atheist's Guide to Reality draws powerful implications for the ethical and political issues that roil contemporary life. The result is nice nihilism, a surprisingly sanguine perspective atheists can happily embrace.' -
Disillusioned JW
The review at https://philosophycompass.wordpress.com/2012/03/12/the-atheists-guide-to-reality/ of Rosenberg's book is very unsettling to me in some respects. Some of what it says are ideas I have read elsewhere, but other ideas it says go beyond what I have elsewhere. As a result, I might not would have liked reading Rosenburg's book. As to whether some of the most unsettling ideas are true or false, I don't know which is the case.
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Disillusioned JW
On page 6 of this topic thread I brought up the topic of "UFOs/UAPs". Related to that is a news article called "NASA builds team to research Unidentified Aerial Phenomena" (at https://www.upi.com/Science_News/2022/10/21/nasa-unidentified-aerial-phenomena-research-team/8171666374111/ ) . It was issued today (Saturday, October 21, 2022) and it says in part the following.
'Oct. 21 (UPI) -- NASA announced Friday the selection of 16 people for its new independent study team to research Unidentified Aerial Phenomena.
The team, which includes accomplished professors, researchers and leaders in science, will begin their studies on Monday. They will set a basis for future UAP studies by reviewing unclassified data.
... "Exploring the unknown in space and the atmosphere is at the heart of who we are at NASA," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA headquarters in Washington. "Understanding the data we have surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena is critical to helping us draw scientific conclusions about what is happening in our skies. Data is the language of scientists and makes the unexplainable explainable."
... In 2021, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence published a report, stating it did not have enough information to conclude an explanation for 143 of 144 UAP reports received since 2004.'
By the way. I regret that I made the typographical error of misspelling the word "religion" as "relgion" in the title of this topic thread. I don't notice the error until it was too late to revise the title of the topic thread.
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Disillusioned JW
Eek, another typo. In prior my post instead of saying "I don't notice ..." I meant to say "I didn't notice ...".
Further information: https://www.inverse.com/science/nasa-ufo-uap-study-team-members provides information about each of the 16 people for NASA's new independent study team to research Unidentified Aerial Phenomena.
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Disillusioned JW
News article: Those in the USA who don't believe in God are a fast-growing force in politics – and they’re typically even more politically active than white evangelicals, according to an article! See https://theconversation.com/americans-who-arent-sure-about-god-are-a-fast-growing-force-in-politics-and-theyre-typically-even-more-politically-active-than-white-evangelicals-193073 (published on October 27, 2022). The article was written by an Assistant Professor of Political Science.
The author defines atheists and agnostics as follows. "Atheists believe that there is no higher power in the universe, while agnostics contend that a higher power may exist but it’s impossible to know for certain." He next says the following. "By 2021, that share had risen to just about 12%. But atheists and agnostics are often left-leaning in their political persuasion, and their rapid ascendance in the American religious landscape is proving much more consequential to the Democratic Party than the GOP." According to the political scientist who wrote the article the following is the case.
"Just 4% of people who align with the Republican Party say that they are atheist or agnostic. That same figure was 3% when Barack Obama won the White House in 2008.
However, according to my analysis of the CES data, 1 in 5 Democrats today are atheist or agnostic, an increase of eight percentage points from 2008.
... when it comes to political protests, there’s no doubt that secular Americans are more politically engaged. In 2020, 18% of atheists and 16% of agnostics said that they had gone to a march or rally about a political issue, versus just 5% of white evangelicals, based on CES data. When it comes to donations, the gulf is even wider. In 2020, half of all atheists made a political donation, along with 43% of agnostics. In comparison, only about a quarter of white evangelicals made a political donation to a candidate or party."
The growing proportion of non-God believers who are very active in voting and funding in USA politics might have been a huge factor why the Democratic party did so much better in this month's mid-term USA elections than what the Republican party expected.
I became a voter in political elections (in 2008) after I stopped considering myself a believing JW. About two years after casting my first political vote, I ceased believing in God/god and in everything supernatural. Since becoming a voter I have been very active in voting. All of the Democrats (and all or nearly all of the ballot measures) I voted for in the primary and general elections of this year (in both the partisan races and in the nonpartisan races) won in my state! I voted very progressive.
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slimboyfat
Wherever I go, there I am
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Disillusioned JW
Article about longevity: "The Science Behind NMN–A Stable, Reliable NAD+Activator and Anti-Aging Molecule" (at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7238909/ ). The article says in part the following.
"In June of 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) released the 11th edition of its International Classification of Diseases, and for the first time added aging.1 The classification of aging as a disease paves the way for new research into novel therapeutics to delay or reverse age-related illnesses such as cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and neurodegeneration.2,3 Nutrient sensing systems have been an intense focus of investigation, including mTOR (the mammalian target of rapamycin) for regulating protein synthesis and cell growth; AMPK (activated protein kinase) for sensing low energy states; and sirtuins, a family of seven proteins critical to DNA expression and aging, which can only function in conjunction with NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), a coenzyme present in all living cells.4
Across the kingdom of life, an increase in intracellular levels of NAD+ triggers shifts that enhance survival, including boosting energy production and upregulating cellular repair.5 In fact, the slow, ineluctable process of aging has been described as a “cascade of robustness breakdown triggered by a decrease in systemic NAD+ biosynthesis and the resultant functional defects in susceptible organs and tissues.”6 Aging is marked by epigenetic shifts, genomic instability, altered nutrient sensing ability, telomere attrition, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, stem cell exhaustion, and dysregulated intercellular communication.7,8
By middle age, our NAD+ levels have plummeted to half that of our youth.9 Numerous studies have demonstrated that boosting NAD+ levels increases insulin sensitivity, reverses mitochondrial dysfunction, and extends lifespan.10,11 NAD+ levels can be increased by activating enzymes that stimulate synthesis of NAD+, by inhibiting an enzyme (CD38) that degrades NAD+, and by supplementing with NAD precursors, including nicotinamide riboside(NR) and nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN).12,13 A conceptual framework called NAD World, formulated over the last decade by developmental biologist Shin-ichiro Imai, MD, PhD, of Washington University School of Medicine, posits NMN as a critical, systemic signaling molecule that maintains biological robustness of the communication network supporting NAD+.6
Taken orally, NMN is rapidly absorbed and converted to NAD+.14 In numerous studies, supplementation with NMN has increased NAD+ biosynthesis, suppressed age-related adipose tissue inflammation, enhanced insulin secretion and insulin action, improved mitochondrial function, improved neuronal function in the brain, and more. Here, we look at the science behind NMN, its stability, possible pharmacokinetics, transport, function, and ability to induce biosynthesis of NAD+.15 Supplementing NMN may be an effective nutraceutical anti-aging intervention, with beneficial effects on a wide array of physiological functions.16"
I plan to start taking NMN supplements. The scientist who authored the book called Lifespan: Why We Age-And Why We Don't Have To" says he takes NMN and resveratrol supplements and has reduced his biological age by 10 years. I started taking resveratrol more than a month ago, but I have temporarily paused my intake of it.
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Disillusioned JW
Sadly there is an article dated today which is called "FDA says NMN cannot be sold as a dietary supplement in the US" (at https://longevity.technology/news/fda-says-nmn-cannot-be-sold-as-a-dietary-supplement-in-the-usa/ ). I am upset with the FDA saying NMN cannot be sold as a dietary supplement in the US, and as a result I might try to buy it this week from a local vitamin store before it is too late!