The scary, the strange, the paranormal...

[zarkwon]

We are animals, not separate from them. We need clothing only because we have spread far from the land into which we evolved.

 

[spiritwalker]

We are animals, not separate from them. We need clothing only because we have spread far from the land into which we evolved.

yay someone else who doesn't try to be different than animal

 

[Barn Owl]

Can't do those quote things...but why would a species evolve in survival to a point where they had to expend energy by killing and then preparing other fauna just to keep warm?

Why don't we have a good fur instead of the remnants of a warm coat?

Sorry but I firmly believe something gave us a jag or the like to see what happens.

 

[Barn Owl]

We are animals, not separate from them. We need clothing only because we have spread far from the land into which we evolved.

Far too quick for my liking, too quick for what we've become.

 

[rik_uk3]

That makes sense. One of the world’s preeminent astrophysicists, Carl Sagan, believed that “the interest in unidentified flying objects derives, perhaps, not so much from scientific curiosity as from unfulfilled religious needs.”

Andromeda, the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way is 2 million light years away. This means that if there were aliens in Andromeda, it would take them longer than 2 million years to get here. The Andromeda galaxy is considerably larger than our galaxy. If life were common in the universe, there should be many times more of it in Andromeda.
We have been sending radio waves for less than 100 years. It will be another 2 million years before those signals reach our closest neighboring galaxy. They don't know we're here. The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) has extended out to 40,000 light years from earth (in comparison, the galaxy is 100,000 light years across) No signal from any extraterrestrial stellar system has ever been detected.
Recent scientific studies demonstrate that the universe is much less hospitable to life than it would seem from our unique Solar System and planet. A large proportion of our galaxy is uninhabitable. Parts of it would not even be expected to produce rocky planets. The highly unlikely collision that produced our large moon prevented the earth from being a water world. It also ejected the majority of our primordial atmosphere, which prevented the earth from going through a runaway greenhouse effect similar to what happened to Venus, our sister planet. Finally, our Solar System is unique in that it has large gas giants located only in the outer regions. Other systems discovered have gas giants located either near their star or in both inner and outer regions of their planetary system. The presence of gas giants near the star would eject any rocky planets from orbit. The presence of gas giants in the outer region of planetary systems is absolutely necessary for the survival of advanced life forms. Without Jupiter, the number of catastrophic collisions that the earth would experience would be at least 10,000 times greater. So instead of suffering massive species extinction events every 100 million years, the earth would experience these events every 10,000 years. Only bacteria and other simple life forms would be able to survive this kind of bombardment - no advanced life could ever form in the vast majority of planetary systems. These problems indicate that there would be no more than 150 advanced civilizations within our galaxy - and, more likely, we are completely alone in our galaxy.

It is not possible to travel at speeds greater than the speed of light - the physics of the universe prevent it. Second, traveling near the speed of light is impractical for biological organisms. Collisions with particles even the size of a grain of sand would be catastrophic. An even worse problem is that the light from ordinary stars would be blue-shifted all the way to the gamma end of the spectrum when traveling near the speed of light. These gamma rays would destroy all biological life - even if it were in suspended animation (if that were possible). In essence, these problems would restrict the speed of travel to well below the speed of light. The most optimistic estimate for the presence of extraterrestrial civilizations would put them 2000 light years apart (google Drake Equation). With no intermediate habitable stopping points, space travel over this distance would be impractical. So, even if we are not alone in this galaxy, it would be highly unlikely that any extraterrestrial civilization could have visited us.

Agreed, if you travel at the speed of light or near it. SOL is another 'Absolute' that may well be trashed in the future; I'm not saying you will actually travel faster than light but it may be you cover ground faster than the SOL...worm holes etc. Like you I'm no physicist but enjoy looking at the options. I am familiar with the Drake Equation. We get 'three score and ten' who's to say others don't get 'Three millennia and ten'.

We are still in the first day of nursery School when it comes to science, we are still learning to daub paint on a cave wall...so much to learn yet, so ignorant of what is possible.

As for ' unfulfilled religious needs', not in my case, but can you imagine the uproar if an off world ship landed, that could raise a few religious questions in the ring.

 

[Green Weasel]

A friend was Head gardener at a big country house that has been turned into an upmarket hotel. Occasionaly they ran corporate days for guests that included clay pigeon shooting and I would be roped -in to set up and operate one of the clay traps in a rhodedendron clearing. Nearly every time i entered the place I'd catch a glimpse of what I could only describe as chocolate -box people. All hooped skirts and Georgian style clothing as if they'd stepped from the side of an old Quality Street tin !. Just flash and they were gone . It was briefly weird but not worrying and i did'nt mention it to anyone .
On one occasion the young trainee gardener was sent there on some errand and he really took some persuading. He finally went ,after which his boss laughed and said ."Poor old Dave . He's convinced that bit of woods is haunted !".

When I was a Keeper on a local farm I was out at all times of the day and night and enjoyed it for the most part, but there was one dark wooded valley -again a rhodedendron wood - that I hated to be in as dusk fell . I would get out as quick as I could and never looked back once . Just did'nt like it . It may just be a coincidence that I found what was identified as a Saxon spearhead there one day . That was strange in itself as I'd walked the path hundreds of times and not spotted it just laying amongst the leaves.

 

[spiritwalker]

theres lots of animals without fur they just stayed where its warm (were we where once) we got said fur coats to put on to go up north

 

[zarkwon]

I'm from up north, we don't wear fur coats we wear t-shirts.

 

[zarkwon]

Agreed, if you travel at the speed of light or near it. SOL is another 'Absolute' that may well be trashed in the future; I'm not saying you will actually travel faster than light but it may be you cover ground faster than the SOL...worm holes etc. Like you I'm no physicist but enjoy looking at the options. I am familiar with the Drake Equation. We get 'three score and ten' who's to say others don't get 'Three millennia and ten'.

We are still in the first day of nursery School when it comes to science, we are still learning to daub paint on a cave wall...so much to learn yet, so ignorant of what is possible.

As for ' unfulfilled religious needs', not in my case, but can you imagine the uproar if an off world ship landed, that could raise a few religious questions in the ring.

All good points. Just asking for a little rationalism is all.

 

[Grendel]

BLIMY!
What I can of worms I have re-opens after a 3 year no post!:yikes:

Must admit I can understand where the non-believers fit since as a believer in science and logical answers before I had the various experiences with unexplainable things I too would totally discount there being paranormal.
I’m used to death and suffering through the nature of my job over the years ( I’m a nurse not a serial killer before you ask) so I can understand why something may a come back to ease the livings grief but I would still prefer to see it with my own eyes to believe in it fully.

Sorry if that makes little sense but on my 4th pint of G&T.

 

[zarkwon]

Far too quick for my liking, too quick for what we've become.

I don't know what that means I'm afraid. You feel it in your water? We originated as a species of great ape 200,000 years ago. It was about 65-75 thousand years ago we migrated from Africa. How long do you think it should have taken? We haven't become anything, we are the same homo sapiens we were then.

 

[Grendel]

We originated as a species of great ape 200,000 years ago. .

But where did the DNA to form this ape come from?????

 

[zarkwon]

BLIMY!
What I can of worms I have re-opens after a 3 year no post!:yikes:

Must admit I can understand where the non-believers fit since as a believer in science and logical answers before I had the various experiences with unexplainable things I too would totally discount there being paranormal.
I’m used to death and suffering through the nature of my job over the years ( I’m a nurse not a serial killer before you ask) so I can understand why something may a come back to ease the livings grief but I would still prefer to see it with my own eyes to believe in it fully.

Sorry if that makes little sense but on my 4th pint of G&T.

Personally I'm surprised it hasn't been closed down yet, someone mentioned god after all. There's always someone willing to play the "I'm offended" card when anyone discusses the possibility of the non-existence of god and complain to the mods. Usually sneakily in my experience so as to not to have to face the accusation that they are doing it because it's the only course left open to them in the face of the overwhelming absence of evidence for their position. I had to change my sig last year after someone complained the Darwin fish offended them.
That should do it

 

[zarkwon]

But where did the DNA to form this ape come from?????

Sorry mate. I don't understand the question. Could you expand a bit please?

 

[_mark_]

Thought I'd been punched in the back one night on t'moor, turns out I'd just leaned on an electric fence!

 

[Barn Owl]

I don't know what that means I'm afraid. You feel it in your water? We originated as a species of great ape 200,000 years ago. It was about 65-75 thousand years ago we migrated from Africa. How long do you think it should have taken? We haven't become anything, we are the same homo sapiens we were then.

Doesn't seem long in terms of evolution to me.

 

[Loenja]

I tend to lump god, fairies, pixies, ghosts, Leprechauns, evil space aliens and other "paranormal" stuff into one category.

B****cks

same, but im still not 100% comfortable on my own at night

 

[zarkwon]

Doesn't seem long in terms of evolution to me.

Certainly it isn't. As I mentioned. We were the same anatomically speaking then as we are now.

 

[santaman2000]

Sorry mate. I don't understand the question. Could you expand a bit please?

I'll try to expand. You responded to another post that the difficulty with believing in a supreme being (1 difficulty anyway) was the question of "who crated the supreme being? And who crated whoever created him? It would have to go back into infinity." I agree (partially) The problem with scientific explanation is the same though. I do believe in evolution. However if you trace it backwards before life itself began, to the beginning of the universe (the big Bang is the excepted theory); just what caused the big bang? And if/when we discover that then what caused that event and so forth on back into infinity? Why is it any more logical (or illogical) to believe either if neither can be traced to a definite beginning? And if one belives in science (and I do) then that is the ultimate goal.

 

[santaman2000]

Certainly it isn't. As I mentioned. We were the same anatomically speaking then as we are now.

Actuall we'r about twice the size now (or possibly more) than then. Also we've lost the use of our appendix and our wisdom teeth.