hamilcarr
JoinedTopics Started by hamilcarr
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Endosymbiosis --- A challenge to Dawkins' Universal Darwinism
by hamilcarr ininspired by dawkins' notion of universal darwinism, biologists have been trying to prove that all sorts of evolution can be explained by a simple paradigm of random mutation and natural selection.
because of dawkins' ardor to spread the word, many have no idea there's far more to discover about evolutionary mechanisms beyond natural selection.. one of these challenges to dawkins' universal darwinism is called the endosymbiotic theory, popularized by lynn margulis in the 90s.
she's known for her bold rejection of some neo-darwinian interpretations.
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McCain and the Catholics
by hamilcarr inin light of the recent discussions on catholicism on this board, i thought this news item would be interesting.
may 14, 2008minister backing mccain apologizes to catholicsby laurie goodsteinthe rev.
john c. hagee, the evangelist whose anti-catholic remarks became a scandal when the republican presidential candidate, senator john mccain, received his endorsement with great fanfare, has issued a letter expressing regret for any comments that catholics have found hurtful.. the letter came after weeks of efforts by influential catholic republicans to encourage him to draft an apology that would repair any damage to mr. mccains campaign.. mr. mccains pursuit of an endorsement by the pastor came under intense scrutiny at the same time that the democratic front-runner, senator barack obama, was embroiled in controversy over incendiary remarks by his former pastor, the rev.
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Wordless World
by hamilcarr ini don't mean a world without any language or communication, but a world in which words are taken for what they really are, namely human constructions, and not as the foundations of supertheories.
i think we've all been seeking for words without really defining them, such as 'truth', 'beauty', 'happiness', etc.
hence, the realisation of these pursuits can make us happy or desperate.
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Are elders angels?
by hamilcarr init's amazing to see how all the supernatural beings mentioned in the bible are supposed to have a counterpart in real world, more specifically within the hierarchical wt structure.
a previous wt study pointed out that the governing body corresponds to jehovah in its capacity of sending out representatives.
jesus was said to correspond to the class of missionaries taught by the governing body, just like jesus (or michael) had been instructed by his heavenly father.
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Public Acceptance of Evolution --- A Comparative Study
by hamilcarr inhere's an illuminating graph showing the acceptance of evolution in different industrialized societies, from a science article by miller, scott and okamoto (2006).
as you can see, only turkey has a lower acceptance than the us.
the participants were asked to assess the following statement: "human beings, as we know them, developed from earlier species of animals".
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Fact and Fiction --- A Difficult Relationship
by hamilcarr inthe latest wt issue deals with the question: "why god saved noah --- why we should care".
belief in the scientific accuracy of the genesis account is supposed to be of paramount importance.
consider the following quotes:.
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Teleology, Design and Intuition
by hamilcarr inan intelligent cause or an undirected process?
harmonia praestabilita (leibniz' version of the more fashionable "fine-tuned universe") or a blind watchmaker?
many discussions on id revolve around the validity of teleological arguments.
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Objections To Evolution
by hamilcarr injust curious: are there any objections to evolutionary biology beside these refuted on wikipedia:.
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3objections to evolution's scientific acceptance3.1evolution is just a theory, not a fact3.2evolution is controversial or contested4objections to evolution's scientific status4.1evolution is a religion4.2evolution is unfalsifiable5objections to evolution's evidence5.1evolution has never been observed5.2past evidence for evolution has been overturned5.3evolution's evidence is unreliable or inconsistent6objections to evolution's plausibility6.1life is too unlikely to arise by chance6.2evolution does not explain certain human behaviors7objections to evolution's possibility7.1evolution cannot create complex structures7.2evolution cannot create information7.3evolution violates the second law of thermodynamics8objections to evolution's morality8.1evolution says that humans are animals8.2evolution leads to immorality and social ills8.3evolution leads to atheism .
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God --- Artist or Engineer?
by hamilcarr ini've been wondering whether god should be seen as an artist or an engineer.
the hebrew verb commonly translated as 'created' in genesis 1:1 bears the meaning of 'to cut out', hinting at god being a sculptor.
in its endeavour to imitate scientific language, the intelligent design movement, on the other hand, wants us to believe that god is an engineer who consciously designed the entire universe.
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Christian Unity --- At What Cost?
by hamilcarr inmany leave the wts organisation because they are in search of christian freedom, while others stay within because they're proud of being a part of a group which displays christian unity, even though they often doubt some of the decisions of the gb.
i think it's hard to deny that jws demonstrate a remarkable unity in both doctrinal issues and everyday topics.. what do the concepts "christian unity" (1 cor 1:10) and "christian freedom" (ga 5:13) mean to you and how do they relate to one another?
are these terms not mutually exclusive, hence, is it possible to be really free if you are required to be "fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought' (nwt)?.