No fair, was busy today, I also want a turn (I won't get it locked since, according to Thraxas, I don't get threads locked). So:
Quote: " With the current state of knowledge, we actually can't know if there is true randomness or not."
Right you are, sir. With
your knowledge, as humans, you cannot. With
my knowledge, I can. I even know why we exist.
Quote: "Quote:"I would say true randomness doesn't exist"
As far as Newtonian Physics is concerned, no, it doesn't. But Quantum Physics has something to say about that."
Quantum Physics gets thrown in my face a lot. To use the example you linked, just because you cannot predict, with absolute certainty, the precise length of time an atom stays stable doesn't prove anything other than
you cannot predict, with absolute certainty, the precise length of time an atom stays stable. Just a while back people would have laughed at you for saying micro-organisms existed, let-alone that they were causing deaths and not some great deity whose passtime it was to smite naughty people who ruined their hands stroking. You cannot prove randomness any more than I can disprove it, maybe even less given the track record of scientific progress. Short version: your example proves there may be a cause or factor science has overlooked or is not aware of with regard to an atom. It's a matter of interpretation of a result now, isn't it: All birds have wings, therefore a moth is a bird.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to put down your opinion because I encourage free thought. I'm saying to always be mindful of evidence provided. Consider things for what they are. My claim is based on not finding enough evidence to support randomness. It's not that I'm proving it doesn't exist, I'm failing to find evidence that it does. This is rational thought, to not accept something as true without proof. It becomes irrational thought when we actually start drawing "factual" conclusions based on the presupposition that a theory or hypothesis is, beyond any reasonable doubt, true.
(I'm not saying we shouldn't believe in things without logical reason, I mean not all my beliefs are logical; many are "feelings". This is actually part of what makes this existence beautiful, after all, even if there is no life after death and there's no immortal fame, we're living for ourselves and what we want from life).
Disclaimer: Everyone is welcome to challenge what I've said, I won't turn it ugly. In the spirit of maintaining peace of The Posting Competition, I shall not say anything more either, I just wanted to add my tuppence as it isn't targeted so much at the subject but rather the broader picture of life, how we look at the world and how it shapes our views.
My fun having now been had, I've nothing useful to contribute to the current topics except that I like pie.
"... hands are ruined by repetitive stroking..." -- MrValentine
"I was in nASA before it was cool" -- Original nASA Members (nonZero, DJD and TheComet)
