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Comments by Quetzalcoatl


401. Youngest galactic supernova (not aliens) found

Comment #180310 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 2:37 pm

BNCbright-

stars are balanced between the expansive effect of the fusion and the contracting gravitational effect of its mass. With the outer burning layers blown off, the inner layers are cooler, and gravity wins the battle. It collapses inwards. The key thing is the star becomes very dense as the matter is compacted around the core. That's why neutron stars (for instance) have savage gravity when they are comparatively small.

402. The Neural Buddhists

Comment #180308 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 2:34 pm

Diacanu-

you forgot "gets the credit when small children miraculously survive natural disasters, not blamed for the many other deaths".

403. Youngest galactic supernova (not aliens) found

Comment #180295 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 2:02 pm

Very cool.

404. The Neural Buddhists

Comment #180289 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 1:52 pm

Epeeist-

his book, "Black Man" is pretty good. He's got a fantasy book coming out in the summer, that ought to be an interesting take on the genre!

405. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180143 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 9:13 am

Tyler-

I think the Northwest passage has been navigable before now. And the Antarctic is actually getting colder overall.

406. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180131 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:54 am

al-rawandi-

you're not feeling too optimistic today, are you?

I'm not tremendously worried about global warming, since we should be able to adapt to it. Personally, I think it's quite likely there'll be big wars to come in the Middle East.

407. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180129 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:48 am

A railgun could work, but it would have to be pretty powerful to accelerate anything to escape velocity.

EDIT- magnetics would have to be used.

408. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180125 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:45 am

There's a lot of work going into suborbital craft at the moment, they could be an option. Scramjet research could also be promising.

The space elevator idea is a good one. It would be a monstrous initial cost, and we'd have to knock an asteroid into orbit to tether the other end to. But once the elevator was built, it would be a relatively cheap and safe way to transport things to and from orbit.

409. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180115 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:26 am

Anna-

It isn't enough that we've polluted the earth? Now we have to extend it to space?


It would hardly be "polluting" space. Besides, we have plenty of rubbish up there already, defunct satellites, discarded rocket boosters and the like.

410. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180112 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:23 am

Al-Rawandi-

Why don't we just load rockets up with the nuclear waste and shoot it at the sun, or random directions into space? That would get rid of it no?


Fat chance. People are too phobic about nuclear waste, and would go on about "what if the rocket exploded? Then the waste would be scattered everywhere" and blah blah blah. This is part of the reason the idea of using nuclear engines to power spacecraft never took off.

411. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #180106 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 8:17 am

Caudimordax-

Pebble Reactor

I have the same problem with the Posting Guidelines. When you open it, if you highlight the text and drag down, it will scroll down further so you'll be able to see the URL information. Hope that helps.

412. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #180066 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 6:53 am

Tyler-

careful, he has a problem with people who are picky about punctuation.

413. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #180055 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 6:37 am

Well, I only said it because I watched Apocalypse Now yesterday.

414. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #180049 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 6:26 am

Al-Rawandi-

Dodging IED's is a far better way to prove your dedication. IMHO.


Perhaps. But flying over the streets of down-town Basra in a helicopter firing on insurgents to the strains of "Ride Of The Valkyries" would probably be cooler.

415. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #180039 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 6:15 am

Al-Rawandi-

purely out of curiosity; can you become a citizen after joining the navy, marines and air force as well, or is it just the army?

416. Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens

Comment #179958 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 3:15 am

Epeeist-

as long as they're feathered snakes with wings, I'll be happy.

417. Vatican: It's OK to believe in aliens

Comment #179952 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 3:05 am

Corylus-

do you mean this one?

image name

418. A natural selection

Comment #179903 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 1:23 am

Philip-

it's essentially the default statement on evolution, so he had to say it. But otherwise, this is very reasonable behaviour.

419. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179897 by Quetzalcoatl on May 14, 2008 at 1:08 am

Caudimordax-

I recommend after typing your post in, highlighting and copying it. Hopefully then if it gets eaten you can just re-enter it.

jayalenik-

I hope that comment to MaxD was merely an unfunny "joke", since otherwise it makes you look like a twit.

420. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #179684 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:58 pm

Shaden-

the idea that there's not enough space for storing nuclear waste is a common one, but I don't think there's much to support it.

Rian-

I saw through your childish ploy. :)

421. The Neural Buddhists

Comment #179682 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:56 pm

Vergil-

he's only saying that because the jabberwock told him to. He's a mouthpiece for that strange creature, and nothing more.

422. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #179672 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:49 pm

riandouglas-

with all the weird quantum powers Jesus has (according to Tipler), we should probably catch him, keep him comatose and hook some cables up to him to power the world.

423. The Neural Buddhists

Comment #179668 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:44 pm

Frankus-

that's my point. I take issue with the idea that the mind "transcends itself". It doesn't- like you say, the answer is in the brain. And since mind and brain are essentially the same.....

424. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #179660 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:35 pm

Reseach is going on around building fusion plants, as opposed to nuclear fission. If we can crack that technology, it's probably the way to go.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fusion_reactor

425. The Neural Buddhists

Comment #179654 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:26 pm

The mind seems to have the ability to transcend itself and merge with a larger presence that feels more real.


Oh does it really?

First, the self is not a fixed entity but a dynamic process of relationships. Second, underneath the patina of different religions, people around the world have common moral intuitions. Third, people are equipped to experience the sacred, to have moments of elevated experience when they transcend boundaries and overflow with love. Fourth, God can best be conceived as the nature one experiences at those moments, the unknowable total of all there is.


This is all very New-Agey and ambiguous.

426. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179651 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:16 pm

Al-Rawandi-

I think many people here already are crazy.


Wibble.

427. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179634 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 12:58 pm

MaxD-

you can borrow this one:

(:>) The Bird

428. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179619 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 12:45 pm

Colwyn-

they're called Minicons, appropriately enough.

429. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179615 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 12:40 pm

Colwyn-

it doesn't sound like an impressive Transformer.

430. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179592 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 12:18 pm

I'm disappointed to learn that the "ironman" does not involve flying metal suits.

431. 'My daughter deserved to die for falling in love'

Comment #179573 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 12:08 pm

How long is an Ironman? Longer than a marathon?

432. How to reconcile Richard Dawkins?

Comment #179446 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 8:57 am

Irate-

Steve's blog can be found here: http://zarbi.livejournal.com/

433. God seekers go public

Comment #179409 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 8:13 am

Konquererz-

I agree. It's hard to imagine what experiments you could do to confirm that something is irreducibly complex, and therefore designed.

Annabanana-

I'll keep my fingers crossed. ;)

434. God seekers go public

Comment #179398 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 7:58 am

Annabanana-

you mean you're not already on drugs? Huh. You learn something new every day.

435. God seekers go public

Comment #179390 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 7:45 am

Philip-

I'm afraid you have been channeling Satan. You forgot what we were taught in school- "Kids! Say no to Satan!"

Or something like that, anyway.

436. God seekers go public

Comment #179386 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 7:33 am

Philip-

technically Dembski and Behe WOULD qualify as peers.

And what Ice Age? Everyone knows the evidence for Ice Ages is a lie created by Satan to make us believe that the world is older than 6,000. Open your eyes, man!

437. Americans pray at the pump for cheaper petrol

Comment #179259 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:31 am

Brian-

Do you mean Clover as in the plant, or the brand of butter? I'm not sure which is more disturbing.....

438. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #179248 by Quetzalcoatl on May 13, 2008 at 1:10 am

txpiper-

Selection is not a discriminating process or a mysterious, complicated force. It is not a partner with mutations. It is organisms dying in an environment that they cannot survive in. That's it. All the rest of it is hype.


This is total nonsense. You have morphed selection into fairy godmother.


Is it more nonsensical than the notion of the Anti-Christ?

You're reverting to argument from incredulity, which really doesn't accomplish anything around here. Have you looked at ANY of the papers that Calilasseia went to all that trouble to list for you? I doubt it.

439. Evolution: What is 'Natural'?

Comment #178917 by Quetzalcoatl on May 12, 2008 at 8:20 am

Irate_atheist-

I think I see Artful's argument. It's quite good.

1) Humans make mistakes.
2) Therefore humans are imperfect.
3) The Bible says that humans are imperfect.
4) Therefore the Bible is correct.
5) Therefore God exists.

It's simple, really, for the appropriate definition of simple.

440. Evolution: What is 'Natural'?

Comment #178906 by Quetzalcoatl on May 12, 2008 at 8:07 am

A thought is not one and the same thing as the physical / material represetation of it.


Just repeating the assertion doesn't mean others will accept it.

Hence, when we make spelling mistakes or typos the "word" or "thought" that we intended may be different from its actual, black and white (or whatever) representation of it. The message is independent of the medium. Do you see my point?


Nope, that's to do with people not being able to spell. That's more to do with language, not the mind/brain "question".

441. Evolution: What is 'Natural'?

Comment #178816 by Quetzalcoatl on May 12, 2008 at 5:23 am

Rian-

I thought you wrote the blog in response to this actually :-)


actually I wrote it in light of the discussion on another post of my blog! Apparently it's the topic of the moment.

442. Evolution: What is 'Natural'?

Comment #178807 by Quetzalcoatl on May 12, 2008 at 5:05 am

Artful-

There is no "general decision procedure", only a willingness to take seriously the possibility that God could have used the medium of "the word" to make Himself known to us via the operation of reason in engaging with this "word", and also awareness of the rich panoply of literary devices available to the writers whom he inspired so to make himself known.


Then how can you know that your interpretation is any more valid than another? You can't.

Ironically, I recently wrote a blog post on this very subject. This discussion is an excellent example.

443. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #178802 by Quetzalcoatl on May 12, 2008 at 4:54 am

Txpiper-

I don't see context as an issue


You must have fun at Bible Study.

444. Evolution: What is 'Natural'?

Comment #178485 by Quetzalcoatl on May 11, 2008 at 1:41 pm

Artful-

I notice you Dodged the rest of Epeeist's post. Shocking.

445. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #178427 by Quetzalcoatl on May 11, 2008 at 11:56 am

Txpiper-

Calilasseia,

I'm afraid you're caught up in the attempt to morph selection into something that it simply is not. I think you are also somewhat out of date.


I literally had to stifle my laughter here. Calilasseia knows a LOT about this.

In my view, as it relates to mutations, these are much ado about nothing. I don't know of anyone who resists the idea of speciation, or microevolution, adaptation and selection for that matter. These are all indisputable


Huh? Mutation is one of the mechanisms by which all of the above occur. How can it be "much ado about nothing".

Incidentally- have you read Rev's latest comment yet? That'll teach you to actually read your links in future.

You'r reminding me more and more of Seeker_Of_Truth. He also got stuffed in debate, largely by the links he posted.

446. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #178403 by Quetzalcoatl on May 11, 2008 at 11:00 am

txpiper-

I haven't advocated any particular belief. I've only questioned the conventional ones. Right now, I think it is important to focus on the accepted "mechanisms for change".


You remind me of Seeker_Of_Truth.

If you're genuinely interested in learning, check out some of the papers Calilasseia named.

447. Atheists are nice people who will roast in hell, says Cardinal

Comment #178103 by Quetzalcoatl on May 10, 2008 at 1:52 pm

Diacanu-

and if he's not present in Hell, then he can't know what is going on in Hell. Therefore he isn't omniscient either.

448. Anti-Evolution Film Misappropriates the Holocaust

Comment #177971 by Quetzalcoatl on May 10, 2008 at 4:50 am

I notice that ALL of Riverrun's posts on this thread have now disappeared! This is bloody ridiculous!

449. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #177670 by Quetzalcoatl on May 9, 2008 at 1:03 pm

Steveroot-

my knowledge on this is limited, but couldn't it be passed on to offspring in the form of the genetic template for immune systems that, for instance, produced higher levels of "basic antibodies"?

450. Lying for Jesus?

Comment #177618 by Quetzalcoatl on May 9, 2008 at 11:20 am

Txpiper-

Well, I will grant you this. That is about the most novel treatment of the problem of stasis that I've ever heard. What would you say has changed about them?


On reflection, I could have phrased my point better, but it is still valid. There have been minor changes, such as the Indian gavial crocodile, which has a specialised narrow snout for catching fish.

In any event, evolution still occurs at the genetic level, the most obvious example being the adaptation of the immune system to new diseases. Mutations that cause changes in the body shape will still occur, but if environmental conditions are such that the mutation does not convey any particular selection advantage over "normal" crocodiles, it is less likely that the mutation will become a fixed trait.

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