Mid Term

Guidelines
1. Be sure to place your entire midterm on your website and when youare finished send a link of yourtest to your teacher directly at http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/occamsrazor/post?postID=au1F4_XqO06FwY5Dp_J1lhs-c1VOsRAB2bo3iprsKMqq-QSnSZHVfIKXaCmkDuj93KbSC6VGL93pdAaybQ
2. Make sure that it is YOUR OWN work and that if you use otherauthors please be sure toquote and/or cite the material appropriately. Plagiarism will not betolerated and you will receivean "F" automatically for the examination.
3. The test is due NO LATER than April 3 at midnite.
MIDTERM
4. What is your real name?Answer: Syed
5. What is your "user" name?Answer: syedhussain19876. What is your email address that you use for this class?Answer:
7. Name and address for your website.Answer: Phil 8 http://syedhussain1987.blogspot.com/
8. Have you done all the reading for the first three weeks?Answer: Yes, I did. Initially I had trouble understanding most of the readings. It was kind a hard to understand. But after reading them second time, the ideas were clearer.9. Have you watched each of the films that were required?Answer: Yes, I did.10. Please place here all of the postings you have done for thisclass (you can copy and paste them)
9. http://syedhussain1987.blogspot.com/

11. Why does Richard Dawkins consider religion a "virus" of themind? Do you agree or disagree?Substantiate your view.
Answer: Well, the question would leave you with only two options of course; Agree or disagree. But there could be different and several reasoning behind each of agreement or disagreement. I personally disagree with this theory it may be because I am a bit of a religious person. However, I think considering a brain to be a virus is silly. I think the reason why the children are unfocused is because there is no religion in the school systems or not even religion practice in their home. If someone’s lifestyle is not based on religion, then of course he/she will think of it as a virus in his/her life. Religion makes life organized
As I said earlier, different thinking could lead you to agreement or disagreement. If one thinks religion as a self actualization, then one would definitely agree with the theory that religion is a “virus”. There are several countries who are dominated by religion. There are several laws based on religion. And government enforced these laws for citizens’ protection. If a person from such country agrees with the theory that “religion is a virus”, then isn’t he basically trying to say that all laws enforced by government are viruses? Similarly, one can also think religion as a virus of mind. Even Dawkins considers religion a “virus” because it was created by humans, and the religion controls a human mind. But again, I totally disagree with the theory as my religion always given me independency, guidance, choices, and most valuable thing it gave me to respect everyone, from an infant to elders. And of course, respecting everyone is definitely not a virus
12. Give an example of a "cargo cult" belief and critically analyzeit from a scientific perspective? Hint:think of something that people believe in that lacks overwhelmingevidence to support it.Answer: Cargo Cult, which is also known as group of unorthodox religious movements, is also used in business and science to refer to a particular type of myth. In other words, cargo cults were basically created from the illogical beliefs of individuals. There are several examples of it if it comes to only religious movements. Believing on resurrection, Easter, New Year’s Celebration in different countries are some great examples from only religious perspectives. However, on the other hand, if we take a look into cargo cults related to science perspective, we can still come up with several best examples on which we can debate from days to years and yet not much evidence even after debating about them. There are few of the best examples I would like to point out. The biggest one is Big Bang. Fortunately or unfortunately, but NASA is still into this theory. “Although the Big Bang Theory is widely accepted, it probably will never be proved; consequentially, leaving a number of tough, unanswered questions.” (http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/universe/b_bang.html). Some other good examples of cargo cults are Aliens and UFO’s. There are varieties of people who really believe on these three examples. There have been programs on TV explaining in detail about them. But still, there is still no solid evidence of any existence. Funny thing is, people are still into these myths and are too eager to find truth and evidences.

13. How does one do "science" according to Richard Feynman? Why isthis form of science so important to human beings? How can such a view of science help enrich one's appreciation for beauty? Be sure to give YOUR own example of Feynman's point (no "flowers" allowed).Answer: Richard Feynman mentions that science is that in which science is so deeply embedded throughout our lives and daily life’s. Feynman’s expresses that like the structure of DNA which is perfect. Another example are Math, which is also most of the time very accurate if you do it right, furthermore, try solving a problem; you will get the result what you expect. I personally think that he is right that the science is used in our daily lives even though we don’t realize to some extent.
14. Give your interpretation of the movie "Karma."Answer: I think Karma was trying to give a message that relates to cause and effect. What we do today or in the current time, that will affect the future. Even though, the movie itself is very short. But one can easily interpret a definite expression because of Karma. Karma is basically the concept of action or deed of an individual. But there are few exceptions in Karma. Like, actions (good or bad) performed by someone in the state of Moksha do not really create karma. Therefore, not all actions of an individual can be said Karma.
The movie “Karma” also reminded me one of the best Bollywood’s movie “Moksha” which has several incidents of Karma. Like the movie Karma, which basically explained thoroughly in just few minutes that whatever you do bad will receive badly in return. Of course everyone will die one day. But no one would like to get hit by a car or killed by the girlfriend.
15. Explain, in brief, Darwinian evolution and why John MaynardSmith's contribution is important inthinking differently about survival of the fittest.Answer: Darwinian evolution is known for non-existing creator. That means there is no god, every man, monkey, or fish were born by their common ancestor. John Maynard Smith contributed to evaluation theory so much that he has set standards how we learn today. According to Wikipedia “as many more individuals of each species are born than can possible survive; and as, consequently, there is a frequently recurring struggle for existence, it follows that any being, if it vary however slightly in any manner profitable to itself, under the complex and sometimes varying conditions of life, will have a better chance of surviving, and thus be naturally selected. From the strong principle of inheritance, any selected variety, will tend to propagate in its new and modified form”. I think by analyzing what is the purpose, social behavior and other good stuff leads us to new theories but also leads us to many problems with questions left.
16. What are Freeman Dyson's views on the "design" of the universeor the purpose of humakind?Answer: Freeman Dyson’s best statement towards life is; "Life doesn't make sense unless you believe in some kind of purpose." If we try to elaborate more of his thinking about mankind, life and the universe, it is not very hard to say that he exclaimed the universe to be a direct connection to the mankind.
Dyson had also said, “Religion is an observance not a belief.” I personally contradict with the statement. The biggest reason of my contradiction is if religions were an observance, then humankind would not stick with one religion and they would have followed several religions at the same time.
Dyson’s statement about science and religion but not neglecting universe: “Science and religion to be two windows that people look through, trying to understand the big universe outside, trying to understand why we are here. The two windows give different views, but they look out at the same universe. Both views are one-sided, neither is complete. Both leave out essential features of the real world. And both are worthy of respect.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeman_Dyson). One may find his statement very affirmative if one’s not too much into religion. However, I personally disagree with the statement about religion. Almost every religion explain that why we are here in this universe. And finally, “do you think we are wise enough to read God’s mind?” is his simply the best expression on the question that what is the meaning or purpose of life? Well, I think that if we just focus on and try to determine the meaning or purpose of life instead of reading God’s mind, we are wise enough to find the answer ourselves.
17. What IS the "secret" that Faqir Chand discovered about religion
and its founders?
Answer: Faqir Chand's words rebel against his culture by claiming that gurus sell themselves as the gatekeepers to enlightenment. That what makes the difference is how we as individuals feel about what we have experienced in our life, what our impressions are and what suggestions we might have. This has a lot to do with our life styles and what we have grown up to see and hear. It is what you have decided to put your faith in and what you choose to believe. Onece he said in his interview "People say that my Form manifests to them and helps them in solving their worldly as well as mental problems, but I do not go anywhere, nor do I know about such miraculous instances."(http://www.angelfire.com/realm/bodhisattva/chand.html). He accepts that he doesn’t do any miracles but he proceeds in a way that people get thinking that he did a miracle.
18. Explain the movie Eleven and what is YOUR interpretation of it?In other words, what is the underlying message that thedirector is trying to convey?Answer: The message was that nice people or people who are doing the job correctly don’t always get the result what they expected. People who don’t do their job or what they’re not suppose to be doing, always causes problems. This movie is the one of the greatest short movies I have ever seen, and for some reason I still remember it. In “Eleven”, we observed a journalist who is researching the death on a racial irritated killing. Furthermore, the major message in the movie was that the hate crimes and hatred is a blind and outrageous view people hold.
19. Why is distinguishing the message from the medium so important?Use the Da Free John article as your context.Answer: Da Free John, is convincing towards his message. His good styles in writing are accepted among his followers. When trying to find truths in a message, particularly from a medium, it is easy to be swayed to the wrong direction. One, who is searching for answers, is usually innocent to believe anything, just to have his/her concerns or problems solved. It is easy to mix the medium and the message, when you can’t separate the two. When you receive a “message” it’s usually because you’re looking for an answer. Many religious organizations today promote false teachings. Their members have been misused in an effort to control their lives. They have also been overly concerned with money collections, this goes back to honesty. The person who is searching for an answer must know common knowledge of what he/she searching for exactly. If the person has no clue what is the right answer, than they are easily fooled with wrong information.
20. What are Bertrand Russell's reasons for NOT being a Christian?Do you agree or disagree with him? GIVE RATIONAL ARGUMENTS FOR your position (pro or con).Answer: Bertrand Russell’ reasons for NOT being a Christian has a very long list of arguments. Russell said that man can never fully understand god, world, or even himself. That is the main reason Russell not being a Christian. He also said that if Christianity was true, it would’ve made more sense to him. He doesn’t understand that how god became so infinitely powerful. Another major argument is “If God created man then who created God?” If you find faults in Christ, then you can’t be a Christian. A true Christian is a full believer in Christ. Russell has many doubts in Christianity and all the Christ believes. I think that he’s too negative towards Christianity. If he really wants to be a Christian than he should leave his scientific thinking and think positive towards Christianity.

21. Give a summary of Jim Lett's field guide to critcal thinking (inyour own "300" words, no more). Don't use quotes but write it like aletter to a friend explain how to think critically in light of Lett's numerous points.Answer: Jim Lett states that we are responsible for our sources of information and if the information is reliable or not. We live in a world that internet is so powerful that can manipulate the true image of a story. He used the term “FLCHRS” where F stands for falsifiabililty, L for logic, C for comprehensiveness, H for honesty, R is for replicability and S stands for sufficiency. Think of this as a falsifiability of a true claim, once you try to find something wrong about truth, you already thinking differently and thinking in depth of a true claim. If one is making statements they need to have factual evidence to support their claims.
22. Why does Kurtz believe that skepticism should be applied toreligion? Do you agree or disagree?Answer: I kind of agree with Kurtz. Skeptical inquiry should be applied to all human fields. That is the only way to bring up the true without mystification or fairy tales. I personally think we should do research to some extent, so we can find some pure scientific evidence. If they start changing beliefs or doing things I don’t agree with, I will do my own research into this faith and find the truths or falsities myself. My religion is very open and teaches me to study everything.
23. Why is pretext, text, and context important in analyzing a bookor an argument. Provide your own example.Answer: Pretext always helps the reader to understand the text better. Context is like an assistant to that of the text. This has been standardized in books and serves us superbly. The pretext servers us good too organizes information for future reference. Organization is a great method of categorizing it into a simple form. Pretest helps us understand details of the text what we might don’t know.
24. What is a "transformative" UFO encounter and does the author ofthe Himalayan Connection really believe in UFOs as genuineexraterrestials?Answer: The UFO sighting are minds illusions that get us thinking that we actually seen UFO. If there is any UFO, I bet our smart scientist would’ve proved it long time ago. Where ever UFO sightings have been reported, were nothing more than falling stars or disguised military operations. A “transformative” UFO encounter is when there isn’t any physical proof for a UFO encounter, but “there are symbols emerging from a separate ontological ground of consciousness.” The author of this article doesn't seem to believe in UFO's. He states several times that there has to be an explanation for the things seen. The only explanation I can think of is military operations.
25. How does one think more critically when using online sources?(Hint: think of one of the required articles). Substantiate yourviews.Answer: I think the online sources articles provides so much information that can make us think further, or even provide so much useful information that can help us think critically in depth of a subject. With so much information on click of a button or browsing through informational sites, it’s hard to identify the truth and reliable information. You can’t always document what you find on the Internet. When going into a library and using the systems there, you have a better and more accurate source of reliable data. Besides, on the internet, anyone can post information that can be misleading and the reader most of the time might not even catch it.
26. What are Steven Weinberg's views on religion? Do you agree ordisagree?Answer: I completely disagree with Steven Weinberg’s views; I think he goes too far criticizing religion: “Religion is an insult to human dignity”. With or without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.” “A religion may assert that the universe is governed by that sort of God (designer), rather than some other sort of God, and it may offer evidence for this belief, but it cannot explain why this should be so”. (Wikipedia) To him, physics has a better explanation for the universe than religion. Besides, I was reading his family history; they had similar thoughts about religion.

27. Why is Sam Harris an atheist? Explain his reasons. Can you argueagainst his views? If so, how?Answer: He has most of the points really good; religions are getting too complex with negative publicity with their own religion. Actually it’s not people’s fault, but really are those extremist who think they can change the world with their evil things. However, Harris’s argument that religion is hypocritical is understandable because religion asks us to believe in it blindly. The one weakness in his argument is that God doesn’t exist through science and that is not possible without the support of practical evidence. Therefore, He did make his choice, and I personally believe that religion has many good things and without flaws.
28. Of the first five installments of BEYOND BELIEF which speakerdid you find most persuasive? Explain why.Answer: The event Beyond Belief was held by group of scientist, philosophers, and political commentators. Krause was persuasive as spoke and clarified the arguments that I thought were interesting. One of the strong points from Krause was that science provokes individuals to further develop and analyze their opinions through their experiments and their own resources. Beside, all the fighting between science and religion supporters, I think they should complement each other, since they can’t prove each other wrong.
29. Ken Miller argues against Michael Behe's notion of irreduciblecomplexity and the notion of intelligent design in biology. Is heright? If so, explain. If not, give your reasons why not.Answer: Ken Miller, explained in order to make complex theories, we must come up with simpler version first. If we try to jump and do complex stuff, we are surely going to have difficulties. Starting off with simpler version of the work, most of the time makes it easier. I totally agree with him. Miller’s strongest point was that of molecular structure. I personally think that Miller is honestly the one with the better argument because he has stated that through his demonstration to re-human and ape chromosome prove the evaluation factor.
Furthermore, I feel in intelligent design is an argument suitable for religious arguments. Science and religious arguments will never work together because of the foundations of their origin. Not only that, but the believers of religion and science believers won’t come together.
30. In the conference BEYOND BELIEF, which speaker did you find tobe the weakest in terms of substance? ExplainAnswer: I liked almost every one of them, the reason I might choose one because of my vocabulary, my vocabulary is not that good. But, to be honest, I didn’t like Steven Weinberg remarks on religion. For example, especially that comment against religion “Religion is an insult to human dignity, without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.” (wikipedia). His, instant, aggression towards religion made his views seem weak. The truth is, I don’t know why he felt his views were right, because he focused on how “wrong” religion was instead of telling us why his views were right.

Week 6: Post 3 - CRITICAL THINKING FILMS

The Zahir by Jorge Borges, was kind a weird film. First i didnt get the real purpose, i did watch it twice. I think what happened was the coin (Zahir) "suppose" to bring bad luck or someting. I think what really happened was that there was some mind controlling thing going on. When that guy gets a coin from th bar, right after that he starts acting weird and seeing some sort of objects that are not true. At the end, he said that there was god behind that coin.

Week 6: Post 2 - ASSIGNED READINGS

Richard Dawkins is a professor and a scietist. He talks about frequently asked questions, basicly questions that have been asked numerous times. One of the questions is "What do you feel is the purpose of evolution?" Professor mentions that their is no purpose in being passed down the genes. The genes are passed without any meanings, that means they survive on their own.

I personally think, that is true that the genes are passed without any purpoe. They basiclly survive on their own just like we "human" do. There is another interesting question that how chimpanzees and human have same types of dna. In the question there is also percentage of sharing same dna. The professor goes ahead and explains that it doesnt matter if they are sharing same dna. Further more, I personally think that is amazing that we share same dna.

Week 6: Post 1 - EXPERT LECTURE

DNA and the Brain by Dr James D. Watson, that is pretty awesome that he discovered DNA structure at the age of 23. He has wrote number of books and he works at the leading scientist research. Looks like a man who accomplished alot. His life was changed with a photograph is Maples. He mentioned that within months of working on DNA theory or project, he accomplished double helix. I actually looked up on wikipedia about this video, Watson is in the history.

I really like when he mentions that dont afraid of asking help. There are people who can do certain things way better, if you just ask them, it will faster the process of what your doing. Than he goes on explaining nature vs. nature, than cure vs. nature. I liked his jokes through out the video. Further more, he talks about roma, genes, and our life. He also tells how study of dna can cure the disease such as autism. Autism is a most extreme of its kind.

Week 5: Post 1 - EXPERT LECTURE

John Polkinghorne is a scientist and mathematician. He's been involved with natural theology. Natural Theology is theory that tries to find proofs of god's existence. Polkinghorne tell's about what he thinks of god existence, he says that the human can understand so much of the nature and life. He also mentions that the universe is a transparent. He also talked about all god things and how its hard to think details what god really is.

John also says that no one has seen god. There might forms of god something like beauty and nature. But he also says that he doesn't know the answer to that question. He also mentions what god can do or what he cant. There is a god of love, and there is a god who cant do something in particular. He talks about all kinds of gods nature.

Syed