I'm not saying it is aliens... But it is aliens ;-)

[Robert]

Boffins closer to solving what causes weird radio bursts from space
Could it be... no way, seriously? Aliens?
It's probably not aliens

Chatterjee also said it could be a “neutron star embedded in a very powerful nebula produced when it was born from the death of a very massive star. Or it may be something more exotic – part of the fun for us is seeing clever theorists come up with different ways of explaining the observations after we challenge them.”

Another alternative could also be small clumps of matter falling into a black hole, Kaspi said. “They would have to be truly remarkable clumps given how bright these events are. We really do not understand how the process works.”

A third possibility is that the signal comes from an advanced alien civilization. The Breakthrough Listen, a project launched to scour the universe for signs of extraterrestrial technology, has identified FRB 121102 as a potential match.

Vishal Gajjar, another coauthor of the paper and a postdoctoral fellow at the SETI Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley, said: "We can not rule out completely the ET hypothesis for the FRBs in general."

 

[Kesa]

I just read an article about alien abductions. So i am wondering how many of you highly intelligent peoples believe in aliens? Especially the grays.

For me, i would like to say yes because aliens are awesome but unfortunately i am going to have to say no.

 

[redrumloa]

I just read an article about alien abductions. So i am wondering how many of you highly intelligent peoples believe in aliens? Especially the grays.

For me, i would like to say yes because aliens are awesome but unfortunately i am going to have to say no.

I have a hard time with almost all abduction stories. I dismiss probably 95% or more out of hand as they don't pass the smell test. That said, aliens exist in the universe? That is a mathematical certainty. Only the most Loney Toon Theist Creationist should be arguing the point these days.

As for the Greys specifically and whether they have visited the earth? That is less quantifiable, but I will go with yes in all seriousness. There is just too much circumstantial evidence dating back to prehistoric cave art to point to such a being. I don't believe in some abstract hard wired "collective imagination" as some have suggested.

 

[redrumloa]

Who is the Russian boy who claims he was born on Mars, how old is Boriska Kipriyanovich now and what has he said?

Scientists have been left perplexed after a young Russian claimed to have lived on Mars in his previous life

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

Who is the Russian boy who claims he was born on Mars, how old is Boriska Kipriyanovich now and what has he said?

Scientists have been left perplexed after a young Russian claimed to have lived on Mars in his previous life

It could be that the SUN, or Russia, or both, are trapped in a time warp and have gone back to the 70s when these sorts of things were very popular. Perhaps Spielberg will make a movie about it.
Whatever happened to the blind Russian boy that could read books with his buttocks? Or was that a Chinese girl? Can't really remember.

 

[Robert]

US government is ignoring UFO sightings, says former Pentagon insider
The craft might not be alien, but could suggest that China, Russia or some other country has secretly developed incredibly advanced technology

 

[cecilia]

I just read an article about alien abductions. So i am wondering how many of you highly intelligent peoples believe in aliens? Especially the grays.

For me, i would like to say yes because aliens are awesome but unfortunately i am going to have to say no.

As of right now there's no evidence of aliens.
I'm hoping The Vulcans come along and say hello but probably not anytime soon.

 

[metalman]

I just read an article about alien abductions. So i am wondering how many of you highly intelligent peoples believe in aliens?

$cientologists believe the earth is filled with aliens ( thetians thrown in volcano by Xenu ) , and Xenu's DC8 space plane was found on the moon ( NASA photo of plane )

Why do so many smart people believe in $cientology?

 

[Robert]

Why do so many smart people believe in $cientology?

Being smart is not *that* much protection when it comes to believing absolute nonsense.
And not just Scientology - any established form of god bothering is demonstrable rubbish but there are plenty of phd-toting believers.

That said, the better informed one is, the better equipped one is to spot the nonsense. Perhaps a little ironically, science is probably the best tool one can use to demonstrate the absurdity of Scientology (or any other religion). One problem with this is our disinclination to properly critique that which brings us some form of comfort, be it religion, irrational conspiracy theories or anything else people cling to for reasons other than logic.

 

[metalman]

Being smart is not *that* much protection when it comes to believing absolute nonsense.
And not just Scientology - any established form of god bothering is demonstrable rubbish but there are plenty of phd-toting believers.

Belief in 'God' is part of human nature, some say it is genetic, Atheism is belief in 'The Great Double Null' ( Deity = Null, Morality Standards = Null )

People who are not members of a traditional religion are those most likely to join a cult like $cientology, Heavens Gate, Peoples Temple, Gaia Cult of Global Warming, or Raëlism

Raëlism is a UFO religion, who have a women go topless day, to attract new members

 

[Robert]

Belief in 'God' is part of human nature, some say it is genetic

Maybe, maybe not but it makes no difference to the point that being smart is no guarantee against belief in nonsense.

Atheism is belief in 'The Great Double Null' ( Diety = Null, Morality Standards = Null )

Atheism is not belief in anything. It's the lack of belief in a deity.
But you know that.

People who are not members of a traditional religion are those most likely to join a cult like $cientology...

You differentiate between "traditional religion" and "cult".
I don't.
Reminds me of a close relative who thinks Scientologists are crazy yet believes in all sorts of Christian absurdities.

But, as I said, we're reluctant to apply logic to that which brings us comfort.

Now, that is part of human nature.

 

[metalman]

You differentiate between "traditional religion" and "cult".

All religions started out as cults

Cult: a very small percentage of the population who rally around a living leader who defines the rituals, teachings and beliefs of the followers, often live in a commune

There are different types of cults, The Totalitarian cults are the bad type.
Totalitarian Cults: charismatic, authoritarian leaders, followers live in a commune, followers brainwashed using sleep deprivation and isolation, followers must shun non-believers, including close relatives,

Traditional Religion: Initial charismatic leader is dead, has a long history, is followed by a significant percentage of population, have a written standardized teachings
Examples of Traditional Religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Skihism, Taoism

Reminds me of a close relative who thinks Scientologists are crazy yet believes in all sorts of Christian absurdities.

All religions have non-logical dogma. The Morality Standards which are taught to believers is how a religion should be judged. Different religions have very different standards of morality.

 

[Robert]

All religions started out as cults

All religions are cults.

Cult: a very small percentage of the population who rally around a living leader who defines the rituals, teachings and beliefs of the followers, often live in a commune

That may be one definition but there are others, e.g.

A system of religious veneration and devotion directed towards a particular figure or object.
Origin
Early 17th century (originally denoting homage paid to a divinity): from French culte or Latin cultus ‘worship’, from cult- ‘inhabited, cultivated, worshipped’, from the verb colere.

That's pretty much a description of religion.

All religions have non-logical dogma.

Indeed and just one of many reasons that I have no truck with any of them other than an admitted fascination in their origins.

The Morality Standards which are taught to believers is how a religion should be judged. Different religions have very different standards of morality.

There might be something in that but it's a little simplistic for me. Sure, judge standards of morality but don't just accept the nonsense because "all religions have it".

 

[metalman]

There might be something in that but it's a little simplistic for me. Sure, judge standards of morality but don't just accept the nonsense because "all religions have it".

Religion is what moved mankind past tribal behavior. Religion was the motivation for increasing literacy and education.

The psychology of being watched affects behavior and conformity to societies rules, A uniform standard of morality increases trust among members of the group

 

[Kesa]

Why do so many smart people believe in $cientology?

There seems to be a correlation between people with abnormally high IQ levels and a lack of social IQ's. I know a girl who has maybe an IQ of 150+ and one day after attending a vegan free BBQ lunch at uni was so impressed by them within 3 hours of meeting them she had quit uni, gone home and moved all her stuff onto their Krishna farm. All i could do was watch in horror.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

Religion is what moved mankind past tribal behavior. Religion was the motivation for increasing literacy and education.

To rise to the next step you often need to leave the previous step behind.

 

[metalman]

To rise to the next step you often need to leave the previous step behind.

So you and Neil deGrasse Tyson believe in Scientism

https://twitter.com/x/status/748157273789300736

That a society governed only by science and logic will result in Utopia

20th century secular utopian plans have failed every time tried because:

A) Rationality is subjective
B) Evil policies can be scientifically rationalized
C) Science has no morality

If you fixate on the non-logical dogma you are misunderstanding that having a belief in religious morality inoculates you against Scientism.

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

That a society governed only by science and logic will result in Utopia

Nah. It results in better stuff. The computers that Moses had were total crap. Come to think of it, so were all the computers in the dark ages and the Renaissance. Still, once we hit on Science as a way to know things we've done pretty well.

20th century secular utopian plans have failed every time tried because:

A) Rationality is subjective

I'm not sure that's the case. However, just because a thing is rational to one person doesn't mean it's going to be good for another.

B) Evil policies can be scientifically rationalized

Policies can be morally rationalized as evil (while at the same time others rationalize them as good)

C) Science has no morality

Nor does the rain, nor the sun, nor the Earth and the universe.

If you fixate on the non-logical dogma you are misunderstanding that having a belief in religious morality inoculates you against Scientism.

No it doesn't., If you entertain one non-rational belief you are more likely to entertain others. And nobody gets their morals from their religions. They have morals and attribute them to their religions (which would be apparent to them if they ever read their scriptures to discover the morals actually written therein). And religion/scientism is a false dichotomy. Relying on science and logic to know the universe doesn't automatically bring you to scientism.

 

[metalman]

No it doesn't., If you entertain one non-rational belief you are more likely to entertain others. And nobody gets their morals from their religions. They have morals and attribute them to their religions (which would be apparent to them if they ever read their scriptures to discover the morals actually written therein). And religion/scientism is a false dichotomy. Relying on science and logic to know the universe doesn't automatically bring you to scientism.

https://twitter.com/x/status/969939225180364805

"overcome the taboo of cannibalism"
"Soylent Green" the other white meat
Science!


In the future there will no longer be a need to have elections, “political scientists” will select our leaders
If SCIENCE can determine the candidate to vote for, why have an election?

 

[FluffyMcDeath]

https://twitter.com/x/status/969939225180364805

"overcome the taboo of cannibalism"

That taboo is something that quite a few religions have managed to overcome. And they are still religions even if they aren't "Christian". Religions can justify anything. There is plenty of evidence that child sacrifice was a part of the ancient religions of the middle east including in traditions that lead to Judaism.

In the future there will no longer be a need to have elections, “political scientists” will select our leaders
If SCIENCE can determine the candidate to vote for, why have an election?

Science might not agree with you there - since science has to account for human psychology as well wherein ruling needs a certain amount of buy in from the ruled - especially in a society that requires such enormous organization as our current and hopefully future technological civilizations require.