Re: Has science discovered the supernatural?

On Thu, 22 Sep 2005, Wall of Sleep <Sabotage@xxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Mark VandeWettering wrote:
>> On 2005-09-21, Wall of Sleep <Sabotage@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>
>>>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_universe
>>>
>>>http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2001/parallelunitrans.shtml
>>>
>>>http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/space/spacechat/livechat/michio_kaku.shtml
>>>
>>>These links are for those who say there is no evidence of a supernatural
>>>world. It turns out that the much pursued "theory of everything" only
>>>works if there are multiple dimensions beyond what is observable (the
>>>current estimates are 11 or 12 dimensions), and parallel universes (also
>>>unobservable - although the effects of their existence explain many
>>>unanswered questions).
>>
>> And yet, we have no actual evidence that such things exist.
>>
>>>I'd just like to point out that these universes are *by definition*
>>>supernatural - since the natural laws that govern this universe may or
>>>may not apply to them.
>>
>> Flesh out this argument for me: assume the laws of this universe *do*
>> apply. In what sense is it then reasonable to say that these other
>> universes are supernatural?
>
> Well, first off, the theory is that the laws of nature don't apply or
> are different in these parallel universes.

IANACosmologist, but I think the usual conceptions is that the physical
constants are all that would differ at the fundamental level.


> Therefore, since the term "supernatural" is applied to something
> that is not bound by the known laws of nature *of this universe*,

You're definition is evolving before our very eyes! Is this a
transitional form, or the final product?


> the term applies in a general sense. Granted, these universes may
> have their own laws, and those laws are "natural" within those
> universes, but to us, in our universe, they meet the accepted
> definition of supernatural.

So stuff usually thought of as supernatural -- gods, demons, ghosts,
magic -- are merely in the wrong universe, and would be perfectly
'natural' back home?

--
Bobby Bryant
Austin, Texas

.

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