tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3870753358375957551.post5399265150252932289..comments2023-10-24T07:32:29.450-07:00Comments on Daily Eccentricities: Translating my jibberishXtianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03289383245542074791noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3870753358375957551.post-45660371568526202502008-02-12T20:06:00.000-08:002008-02-12T20:06:00.000-08:00*To clarify, only the last part of line of the las...*To clarify, only the last part of line of the last line (the reference to the land before time) is the joke....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3870753358375957551.post-22577327607964165102008-02-12T20:04:00.000-08:002008-02-12T20:04:00.000-08:00I've seen this whole movie a while ago when in Hig...I've seen this whole movie a while ago when in High School. It was Max's fav film for a long time, and I think Alvin also liked it a lot too. From a filmmaking perspective, I am unimpressed overall. From a philosophical perspective, there were about 2 or 3 scenes that I found thought-provoking, innovative, and expressed well. The ending dialogue, quoting from Philip K. Dick, is one of the best scenes. The other I remember was talking about filmmakers trying to capture the "essence of God/God's handywork" on film. <BR/><BR/>This scene did not stand out in my memory. Personally, i think you explain things better than he does. I find it difficult to structure a proper response to everything he said, as the chain of thought to me pulls in different directions. <BR/><BR/>However, I find the 'problem of free will' and vague and strange statement. He would prefer to be a cog?? Really?? No free will=no responsibility is the only benefit I can see, and I consider that the "easy-way-out-for-the-cheating-spouse-backup-excuse #2."<BR/><BR/>The demon of Laplace, which I can see attracts you as a character/story concept inspiration, is certainly a cool concept. Good video game/movie character! However, I find that if one can believs in the powers of this demon, than the existence of God should be just as easy to believe. <BR/><BR/>A common argument which can explored more deeply for the existence of God, or something beyond...a creator...is that all things have an external or separate cause/creator. Example: Thoughts-Brain-Quarks-....<BR/>The human mind has trouble picturing things without a creator, such as a piano that comes from nothing. Not wood...not a carpenter...nothing. We instead picture a piano OR nothing...but here we again have trouble, because nothing is also a difficult concept. (We usually picture darkness or an empty room, but there is still darkness and still a room).<BR/><BR/>My main point I wanted to make, is borrowed from a brilliant guy in the Matrix Box Set documentary on Philosophy/Science. I don't remember his name, but here is his point told by me, not as well as him:<BR/><BR/>Since Newton began formulating laws of physics, science has focused on discovering the answer to the question "how?". How fast does the apple fall from the tree? How does lava form? How is the human brain capable of multi-tasking? Etc. This "how" question, was often solved through creating a formula, thereby quenching the human thrist for knowledge and explanation. All great mysteries explained, right?? Wrong. <BR/><BR/>Obviously, not all "How?'s" have been answered yet. And the bigger point is, science...in choosing to answer the question "how?", avoids the question (the more tricky one, as the answer cannot be defined as clearly)...of "Why?"<BR/>Why does the apple grow on the tree instead of out of a shrub? Why would anyone invent a lava lamp? Why does the human mind have the abilities that it does? Why do we have minds? Why am I here? Why do I reply to this blog at all?<BR/>Philosophy and Religion are often classified as forming out of a need to answer the big WHY? questions.<BR/><BR/>Sure, it may be a mathmatician's dream to find a formula for questions like these, to find that everything has probabilty and can be calculated. <BR/><BR/>But doesn't this take even greater faith than to simply say, "Maybe God is a decent mathmatcian himself, which he put to use in creation ("Past") and we are simply observing Him now ("Present") at work (or His work at work) when we observe "Laws of Nature" playing out as efficiently and randomly as they have since the beginning of time, and the land before time*?<BR/><BR/>*the last line is a reference to a children's dinosaur movie and is meant for comedic reliefAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com