James Le Fanu: Why Us? (The limitations of science)

by dhw, Thursday, July 09, 2009, 08:23 (5615 days ago) @ BBella

BBella writes: I do not feel I am arguing against the theory of the Big Bang. Everything has its beginning, but they all arise the same, from that which came before. This means to me there are no true "beginnings" only marked changes that we who are observers of these changes mark...all which is nothing more than one ever evolving Uni-verse. - Although I can't argue against the concept of an ever evolving universe, I'm not sure why you want to distinguish so rigidly between "true beginnings" and changes. Prior to the Big Bang, we can assume there was no Earth. Prior to the cooling and stabilizing of the Earth, we can assume there was no life on Earth. A new planet (Earth) and a new development (life on Earth) mark two changes in the Universe and two beginnings. - You wrote earlier: "Life emerging from non-life would be a real jump of evolution, wouldn't it? Some-thing from no-thing." A real jump, yes, but non-life is not no-thing. The great question in this context is whether inanimate material can make itself animate. We all obviously accept that animation took place, or we wouldn't be here, but we have no evidence for any of the explanatory theories, and so the origin of life on Earth is still an unsolved mystery. - Your suggested solution to the mystery is that "all life could be ever existing and ever evolving", but without evidence of life elsewhere, we know only that there must have been a beginning here. If there were a million planets harbouring life and evolution, however, your theory would have backing, as would the atheist faith in unknown natural laws. From a neutral point of view, therefore, in our present state of ignorance one could argue that your theory is as plausible or implausible as any other, including abiogenesis, God, Amma and Nommo, earth-diver, hero twins, sky-father and earth-mother etc. As usual it simply boils down to what you personally find convincing. That's what all such beliefs boil down to, even if a large number of believers don't believe it!