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OK. That was difficult to follow. What you seem to be saying is that individuals who, for whatever reason, feel greatly challenged by and uncertain about their situation can be "pushed over the edge" by certain ideas. That seems reasonable. If people are "on the edge" then, by definition, it takes very little to "push them over". However, that sensitivity applies only to those edge-dwellers. The rest of humanity just ignores dumb ideas, or indulges in some corrective education, or trolls a litte. Even among the edge-dwellers, a group whose membership card I have occassionaly carried, almost all would treat your opening idea with a yawn, or a giggle. Screams would lie beyond the event horizon. Clearly you have an interest in science. Why not take advantage of that interest by educating yourself further through discussion on this forum - discussions based on solid science, not crazy ideas.

Just to be fair, it isn't referring to religion. It doesn't say "rational religion"; it says "rational foundations". As with other institutions, like nationalism and capitalism, the canon may sound outlandish, the practices may seem bizarre, but a function is served: somebody benefits.

A Vortex Aurora over Iceland Image Credit & Copyright: Christophe Suarez Explanation: No, the car was not in danger of being vacuumed into space by the big sky vortex. For one reason, the vortex was really an aurora, and since auroras are created by particles striking the Earth from space, they do not create a vacuum. This rapidly developing auroral display was caused by a Coronal Mass Ejection from the Sun that passed by the Earth closely enough to cause a ripple in Earth's magnetosphere. The upper red parts of the aurora occur over 250 kilometers high with its red glow created by atmospheric atomic oxygen directly energized by incoming particles. The lower green parts of the aurora occur over 100 kilometers high with its green glow created by atmospheric atomic oxygen energized indirectly by collisions with first-energized molecular nitrogen. Below 100 kilometers, there is little atomic oxygen, which is why auroras end abruptly. The concentric cylinders depict a dramatic auroral corona as seen from the side. The featured image was created from a single 3-second exposure taken in mid-March over Lake Myvatn in Iceland.

That is the $64,000,000 question!

Why open a thread on an oxymoron?

I'll take that anytime as a compliment, since I'd like to think I'm in this group. Nice post by the way +1

I am being nice. I simply asked you to provide some data to support your assertion/belief. That is basic. If you file an expense report at work your boss will ask to see the receipts. If you tell the police you were at the movies when the bank was being robbed they'll ask to see the ticket stub. It is not that they aren't being nice, it is how the world (and especially science) works. I even said "please". 😊

When an idea is shown to be false, we move on to the next. MOST ideas end up being false. Age only restricts the time you've been able to spend studying science. Perhaps you haven't yet figured out how deeply layered scientific knowledge is. Seriously, it's like putting together a jigsaw puzzle cut from the layers of an enormous onion. You can get some pieces to fit together, but you need more of the puzzle before you can start guessing what the rest of it looks like. Does that make sense? I'm not sure how it's applicable here, but the science is certainly discussable. You still assume your idea, which was falsified, is supposed to "blow our minds"? The replies you got showed that your idea can't be correct, so I don't know why you think we'd be "hurt" by it. Again, MOST ideas are wrong, and that's only bad if you don't acknowledge it. Wrong isn't horrible. Nobody is shocked by an idea that isn't true. You aren't challenging mainstream science the way you think you are. Only if you promise to find someplace else to learn about science. You're a smart person who is ignorant in many areas, which describes most of our membership. If you leave here, find someplace that will help you learn.

Thermodynamic equilibrium is a probabilistic phenomenon. There is a VERY small probability of a VERY RARE arrangement of constituents particles. This probability is not 0 though, so if we wait THAT long, it will perhaps happen.

If proton decay is real, that would be the real endpoint. Before that, there is baryonic matter which can be manipulated and from which energy can be extracted. After decay, you just have a dispersed cloud of leptons and photons. And thermodynamic equilibrium, where no work can be done. I would search on "proton decay" to see what conjectures are for timelines of such decay.

I'm always confused with panspermia. I've always seen it as taking the problem somewhere else. The formulation of plausible molecular mechanisms for life in a variety of plausible scenarios is what's key for me. Whether it happened in a young Earth or in a young Mars or Venus, is kinda lateral to me, as all young Solar-System planets that are candidates are similarly extreme and alien to us from the limited confines of eukaryot, multicellular life. I just love your last thought, and brings me memories of Carl Sagan. I have that feeling very often.

Less chocolate for the cult, per capita. That's why the initiation rites are so...grueling. But the answer is no. The OP has been banned, so witty retorts are moot.

2 reasons. One is various radioactive materials inside the earth, with billion year half-lives, and the other is a yellow orb sending us thermal radiation from a 6000K surface.

The process of learning something has the same effect on the brain as exercising our muscles. If we practice exercise regularly, they will increase in size and become stronger. The same thing happens to the brain. By making it work, we change its structure while improving certain functions. Let's talk about the specific processes that occur in our brain when we learn new languages. The first time I heard words in dutch. I decided to study this language and this country in general https://www.amazon.com/Dutch-Frequency-Dictionary-Vocabulary-Dutch-English/dp/9492637340 . I think it's fascinating and beautiful.

Evidence shows there are some measurable effects: The brain grows in size: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121008082953.htm The brain is better integrated: https://news.psu.edu/story/334349/2014/11/12/research/learning-languages-workout-brains-both-young-and-old

Come on, now. I answered your question. Is that how you'd like to be treated? That's not even a knick to your ego, and there aren't pedestals that go so high. Inow is lying. Have some integrity. How about you give some evidence that faith in humanity has some merit as a concept? That's a really easy thing to do and it's always more worthy of an endeavor than S.T.A.L.K.E.R. sadism