zapatos

So based on your post after this one, why do you say it is as if the light were embedded in space-time? It sounds as if you are saying the light is just going along for the ride as space expands, as opposed to having more space to travel through.

Welcome back!

You are also not allowed to sell GM corn if you did not pay for GM corn. If someone growing non-GM corn has their crop pollinated by the GM corn growing next door, they could be subject to litigation if they sold their crop. Organic crops sell for a higher price than GM crops. If the organic crop is pollinated by GM crops the value of the (used to be) organic crop goes down.

There is no meaning or point of life, so feel free to choose any meaning or point that you'd like.

How did you come to this conclusion that you are asking about? Can you supply some more detail?

Yes, they can. Unless they are buying patented seeds from someone like Monsanto.

No. Farmers can make their own seed corn from this year's crop to plant next year. If they do so they do not need to buy corn seed each year. The issue comes up with, for example, Monsanto's patented genetically modified corn. Farmers are not allowed to make their own seed corn from this year's crop and plant it next year. If they want to plant Monsanto's corn they must buy it each year. The point I was making is that no one makes you buy Monsanto's GM corn next year. You can buy it elsewhere or make your own. This is done all the time. I'd like to see evidence that this results in the loss of thousands of lives.

Not to mention that no one ever has to buy the seeds. They instead choose to buy the seeds. If the farmers didn't think it was the best decision for them they wouldn't be doing it.

Yep. You got him. Well done!

Ok, I have read through that thread and this is my evaluation: Generally the members here are very knowledgeable about the topics they discuss, some because of interest, many because of graduate studies, and many because they work in the field they are discussing. Because they are very knowledgeable they quickly identify problems that come up in people's posts. If they think you are wrong they will tell you. If they are unsure what you are saying they will ask questions. And because people are people, sometimes they get frustrated and appear less friendly. I suspect that you have a lot of potential in science but little formal education. Because you are curious you ask a lot of questions. Because you have little formal education many of your questions cannot be answered as they were asked. This results in people telling you if they think you are wrong and asking you questions if they are unsure what you are saying. And you being a person, sometimes you get frustrated and appear less friendly. Because of the difference in education levels it is my opinion that conversations between you and many of the other members of this site are not going to be fruitful. I'm afraid you are in over your head. If you hang around and listen in (like I do a lot) you will likely learn much. Ask questions when you'd like, but if people claim they don't understand what you are talking about, it is probably because what you are saying doesn't make sense the way you said it. You would probably be better off investigating it further yourself and trying again later when you know the material better. I believe you are mistaken that people are using the identity of others in responding to you. I think what you were saying wasn't clear to any of them and so they all responded in the same manner. I admit that what you said wasn't clear to me either. Please don't take any of this as an attack on you personally. I think your interest in science is commendable but you are trying to participate at a level that is above your head. It is my hope that you stick around and that eventually you will be able to help people learn in the future as much as you can learn now. One of the things you'll find around here is that people speak their minds. It may not be pleasant all the time but it is usually not personal. That is just the way conversation goes at this level. It generally works better if you try not to take offense.

If I understand you correctly, you are saying that, for example, someone with the name zapatos, with the avatar of Bugs Bunny, will respond to a post of yours, but that person is not me (the real zapatos). Is that correct? It is instead someone else using my name and avatar and pretending to be me? If I got that wrong, please clarify. Can you point us to a series of posts where you believe this has happened?

Can you be specific about what happens? What do you mean by 'inaccessible'? Any error messages? I'm wondering if you have also ruled out your local network or ISP.

I hope I am not out of line by jumping into this conversation when I have not been directly addressed.... No one is hijacking anything. A third person contributing in no way keeps the original two people from talking to each other. Threads are also going to have fewer contributors and be much less robust if you are not allowed to respond to certain posts.

Have you tried accessing the sites with a different device when you encountered the problem?

I would think the scream is related to everything else you are doing. If you are attacked you want to get away and will use all means at your disposal. You will kick, hit, run, spit, and yell. Some things work better than others but screaming works pretty well. Battle cries add a distinct advantage, whether on offense or defense. Next time someone is bothering you, scream at them at the top of your lungs and see whether or not it gives you an advantage.

JohnB, Great response. Very logical and clearly articulated. It appears to me that scientists generally believe that man is a large contributor to climate change. If your evaluation of the situation is correct, what is your explanation for the rather strong difference of opinion between them and you (and others of course)? For example, do you feel they are misinterpreting data, or have a social/political agenda?

Tell that to the train hurtling toward you from behind as you wallow in ignorant bliss, walking down the tracks listening to your ipod.

Light we see from the early universe, say 12 billion years ago, has been travelling toward us for 12 billion years and has just now arrived. Because space has been expanding, the distance the light has had to travel has been increasing over the years. Even though the source of the light may have only been several billion light years from us when it was generated, the increase in space between us has resulted in a much greater distance for the light to travel.

I agree with Severian StringJunky on this. To the uneducated and scientifically illiterate, especially those who grew up in heavily religious communities, I'm not in the least bit surprised they cannot make a good judgement call between some unknown scientist and their pastor/parents/friends/family.

Yeah, I thought at first it looked far away, but then there seems to be some detail I shouldn't be able to make out from a distance.

I love this kind of stuff. Doesn't matter to me if it is a fake, a real film of something common, or a real film of something alien. I just like it when things get shook up a bit. What do you suppose we are viewing in this film?

I was not suggesting that you should be held responsible for someone else's actions. I was simply stating that the thread was indeed degenerating into a bitch fest, whether you had anything to do with it or not. I avoided acknowledging those negative emotions during the entire 'reputation' thread. Avoiding it is a worthy effort, but if avoiding it fails, then it is time to step up and say something. This whole discussion of the reputation system and the mods has become a farce. The reputation system is given to the users by the forum, with a general expectation as to how it will be used. But no one is under any illusions. The users themselves will determine how it is ultimately used. I understand someone expressing their concerns about it, but discussing it for 14 pages is ridiculous. It's a rep system, anonymously assigning points to anonymous people. This is not someone's MCAT score. The mods work for free to help make this site as good as it is. I know from experience that the more someone volunteers to help the more they become the target of criticism. The mods are the ones using their best judgement, on their own time, to improve our experience. Again, I understand someone expressing their concerns, but given that the mods are not really making any life or death decisions, I think it behooves us all to back off a bit and cut them some slack.

It may not have been your intention for it to be so but that is what it became in short order. Read again the first three posts in this thread by Aethelwulf and tell me whether or not he was crapping on the moderators.

Is what you said supposed to have anything at all to do with my comment? You've been doing nothing but bitching, complaining, insulting, and whining since you've arrived at this site. It's getting old. Please move on to debate and discussion. It could turn out to be more pleasurable for you and will certainly be more pleasurable for those around you. The world does not revolve around you, and is not about to change because some tiny, insignificant aspect of it is not to your liking. Surely you can find something more meaningful to discuss than whether or not someone put a gold star on one of your posts. You complained earlier that people may not listen to what you say based on a reputation point. I can assure you that your behavior is having a much bigger impact on your reputation than mere 'reputation points'.