Re: How Darwinian evolution evolves into a religion

On Dec 11, 7:22 pm, "Steven L." <sdlit...@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
noctiluca wrote:
On Dec 11, 8:05 am, Occidental <Occiden...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Sunday, December 9. 2007
How Darwinian evolution evolves into a religion

http://maggiesfarm.anotherdotcom.com/archives/7023-How-Darwinian-evol...

<snip filler>

This is long enough, but these sophomoric musings could go on and on.
(Mind you, this is written mainly from the standpoint of philosophical
naturalism/materialism, as if that were the ground I stand on. It's
not. When I hear the Messiah - or even listen to Alicia Keys, I cannot
stand on that ground. And that's my point - no-one really can for very
long unless they deaden their brain.)

It's not clear whether or not you agree with this article, but I will
proceed on the assumption that you have posted it because you do.

The argument appears to be that materialists cannot be capable of
genuine aesthetic appreciation. As I, a materialist (or what Wilkins
likes to call a physicalist) sit here listening to the third section
of Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms I feel compelled to suggest that
this view is utter nonsense.

I cannot imagine why someone might think that a personal commitment to
transcendental phenomena of some kind would be a prerequisite for
deeply engaging a piece of music or some other art form.

Care to enlighten me?

Music or any other art form created by humans are bad examples because
a) they are the products of human thought, and b) musical tastes vary so
widely.

But I've always been struck by the way our observations of the cosmos,
and of the universe, resonate so well with our aesthetic sense.

Humans, of course, evolved long before telescopes were invented. For
all those millennia, all we could see were a bunch of white flickering
dots in the sky.

But now we have telescopes, and space probes, and it seems that 99% (at
least) of humans find those sights awesome and beautiful--not repulsive
or sickening. Note too the popularity of planetarium shows all over the
world. It seems to be a lot less controversial than rock music or rap
music or abstract art, which many people just can't stand.

Why should we all be hard-wired to appreciate the beauty of planetary
vistas, nebulas, galaxies of every imaginable shape, etc., when we never
saw them before? We've all heard people say they can't stand rap
music--but have you ever heard people say they can't stand to look
through a telescope at the Universe because they find the sight hideous?
And if not, why not?

Why isn't the Universe hideous to us?

Most of the universe has an atom or two per cubic meter. Nearly every
visible object is so cold it would freeze us rapidly or vaporize us in
an instant. Many of the pictures released by NASA are made in parts of
the spectrum that are not visible to the eye. The colors given to to
the invisible are selected for maximum eye appeal. If they released
ugly pictures, they would lose popular support and funding. Except for
the first Mars rover pictures. Those were cool, but a barren landscape
is not exactly breathtaking.

I think 99% of the population would look through a telescope out of
curiousity, then would be ready to do something more fun - like
drinking.

OTOH, we are descended from successful farmers who were fascinated by
the night sky enough to develop calendars. Those cultures without a
star watcher were pushed aside.

--
Steven L.
Email: sdlit...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Remove the NOSPAM before replying to me.
--
Greg G.

If extremist hooligans march in the streets and there are no media to
cover it, do they make a sound?
--
Mark Morford

.

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