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Intelligent Design ...

Iacchus

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So, why does the Universe seem so comprehensible and completely "intelligible?"
 
Iacchus said:
So, why does the Universe seem so comprehensible and completely "intelligible?"
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Because people who think that the Universe seems so comprehensible and completely "intelligible" don't understand what they're talking about...
 
Iacchus said:
So, why does the Universe seem so comprehensible and completely "intelligible?"
Click to expand...
The universe seems "comprehensible and intelligible" because it seems to follow consistent and ordered rules, at least on the sort of scale on which we're accustomed to observing it. Order is necessary for life, as the systems of chemical reactions necessary for life as we know it are dependent on each individual reaction behaving predictably. If the universe didn't follow consistent rules, life would not have been able to evolve as these systems of reactions would not work reliably. Any life form capable of observing the universe would therefore have to be living in a universe with consistent rules.
 
I second Megalodon with a quote from Stimpy:
In other words, it only seems simple if you actually understand it so little that you have no comprehension of how complicated it actually is. This appears to be exactly the case.
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~~ Paul
 
Megalodon said:
Because people who think that the Universe seems so comprehensible and completely "intelligible" don't understand what they're talking about...
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What makes you so "sure?" :D
 
Beacuse if you understood the universe, even to the limited level possible for human beings that really try to understand, you would not need to ask the question.

Hans
 
Paul C. Anagnostopoulos said:
I second Megalodon with a quote from Stimpy:

In other words, it only seems simple if you actually understand it so little that you have no comprehension of how complicated it actually is. This appears to be exactly the case.
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~~ Paul
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Oh, I see, we've gotten it down to an exact science now, huh? :D How could this be possible?
 
MRC_Hans said:
Beacuse if you understood the universe, even to the limited level possible for human beings that really try to understand, you would not need to ask the question.

Hans
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I believe that we are all here to learn. You don't agree with this assessment? However, if nothing was comprehensible, what would there be to learn?
 
Iacchus said:
I believe that we are all here to learn. You don't agree with this assessment? However, if nothing was comprehensible, what would there be to learn?
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And whatever has that to do with what I said?

Hans
 
Iacchus said:
So, why does the Universe seem so comprehensible and completely "intelligible?"
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So, what do you comprehend about the universe? What is so completely "intelligible" about it, to you?
 
Mojo said:
The universe seems "comprehensible and intelligible" because it seems to follow consistent and ordered rules, at least on the sort of scale on which we're accustomed to observing it. Order is necessary for life, as the systems of chemical reactions necessary for life as we know it are dependent on each individual reaction behaving predictably. If the universe didn't follow consistent rules, life would not have been able to evolve as these systems of reactions would not work reliably. Any life form capable of observing the universe would therefore have to be living in a universe with consistent rules.
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That's a very good point. In which case it's turtles all the way up, and turtles all the way down, correct? So, would you care to venture a guess as to why the Universe "is" so consistent?
 
MRC_Hans said:
And whatever has that to do with what I said?

Hans
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I'm saying that there is so much about this Universe that we "do" understand. Now, whether the Universe is fully explainable (to us anyway) is not the issue. The fact that it's explainable at all, suggests that it must be wholly consistent with its nature (from top to bottom), otherwise there would be nothing to explain.
 
Ehr, yes. The universe is fully consistent with its nature. At least that is the materialistic POV. Welcome ;).

Hans
 
Iacchus said:
I'm saying that there is so much about this Universe that we "do" understand. Now, whether the Universe is fully explainable (to us anyway) is not the issue. The fact that it's explainable at all, suggests that it must be wholly consistent with its nature (from top to bottom), otherwise there would be nothing to explain.
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The consistent nature of the sahara suggests that the whole world must be a sandy, scorching place... and the consistent nature of antartica suggests exactly the opposite.
 
Megalodon said:
The consistent nature of the sahara suggests that the whole world must be a sandy, scorching place... and the consistent nature of antartica suggests exactly the opposite.
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No, the consistent nature of Sahara suggestes that other places that have the same overall conditions will also be deserts, and by golly, they ARE!

Hans
 
MRC_Hans said:
No, the consistent nature of Sahara suggestes that other places that have the same overall conditions will also be deserts, and by golly, they ARE!

Hans
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I do believe he was poking fun at Iacchus' argument ;).

So, why does the Universe seem so comprehensible and completely "intelligible?"
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Go read up about recent quantum mechanics. That doesn't seem "comprehensible and intelligent" at all. Young's slit experiment anyone? Quantum entanglement?
 
Iacchus said:
That's a very good point. In which case it's turtles all the way up, and turtles all the way down, correct?
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Oh look, a non-sequitur.
So, would you care to venture a guess as to why the Universe "is" so consistent?
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No, because I don't think that this is a question it is possible to answer in a meaningful manner. I'm sure you've already guessed, though, judging by your thread title. But that's all your opinion here is: a guess.
 
Mojo said:
Oh look, a non-sequitur.
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How so? I'm just saying that through and through, it should remain consistent with itself. Isn't this in effect what you were saying?

No, because I don't think that this is a question it is possible to answer in a meaningful manner. I'm sure you've already guessed, though, judging by your thread title. But that's all your opinion here is: a guess.
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So, we have meaning for just about everything else (in reference to the original post), except for the origin of meaning. Very interesting ... indeed. So, does this mean that everything we think, say and do is totally unfounded?
 
Originally posted by Iacchus
So, does this mean that everything we think, say and do is totally unfounded?
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Nah, that's pretty much only true for you.

The rest of us are not afraid of learning. And there is plenty out there you could find (say, in a library, if you ever set foot in one) that would answer enough of your questions that you would be ashamed of most of your posts here.
 
Iacchus said:
The fact that it's explainable at all, suggests that it...
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I have been trying to find a logical conclusion to this statement. All I can come up with is that "it" is explainable and that "it" is material. I'm sure that there are other conclusions and I simply lack imagination but I don't get your conclusion.

...must be wholly consistent with its nature (from top to bottom)...
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The problem might be one of semantics. Could you give us an example of something that is not "wholly consistent with its nature" and is not explainable (aside from anything abstract)?
 
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