Thread: "Just a theory"

Originally Posted by Thane

Wish it was easier to present formulae here. I get 5. I'm just interpreting the formula structure incorrectly somehow.

Possibly...

Here's a link: http://mathworld.wolfram.com/BinetsF...erFormula.html

Originally Posted by drgoodtrips

Possibly...

Here's a link: http://mathworld.wolfram.com/BinetsF...erFormula.html

That's a hell of a lot better than the ones I found.

Ok, now I'll try it out

Works now.

How I would've presented it:

F(n)=[(1+sqrt5)^n - (1-sqrt5)^n] / 2^n(sqrt5)

Guess it's pretty much the same thing. Just MY goofy ass interpretation is all.

Now I get F(1) = 1

Originally Posted by Thane

Works now.

How I would've presented it:

F(n)=[(1+sqrt5)^n - (1-sqrt5)^n] / 2^n(sqrt5)

Guess it's pretty much the same thing. Just MY goofy ass interpretation is all.

Now I get F(1) = 1

I can't bring myself to do that - in all the programming languages I use on a day to day basis, [] means something much different than ()

Originally Posted by Mad_Michael

No scientific theory can ever be "proven to be true". That is epistemologically impossible.

Science generally works on the theory that all theories are 'tentatively true' until proven otherwise. Gravity has not yet been disproven, ergo, we speak of the "theory of gravity". Likewise with the 'theory of evolution".

Seems simple enough.

And please note that a theory must be "falsifiable" or it cannot be considered scientific.

I really disagree with these kinds of responses to Creationists. Mad_Michael, I know you were just trying to be helpful, but by using such a high standard to deciede whether evolution has been proven or not, you're doing Ms. M a disservice.

Evolution is proven. It is a "fact". A laymen's use of the terms "fact" and "proven" fit the Theory of Evolution quite well. Evolution is proven beyond any and all reasonable doubt, just as the Theory of Gravity is proven beyond all reasonable doubt.

Evolution is a proven fact. Giving overly complex answers to creationists serves only to confuse them.

Originally Posted by drgoodtrips

I can't bring myself to do that - in all the programming languages I use on a day to day basis, [] means something much different than ()

I see Hey and since you're a program language writer.

You're going to laugh at this one Maybe not

I was thinking awhile back. This is evil ok

What you do is have a link online somewhere. The link is titled "the last act of a suicide bomber". It's in a little film clip format and shows an eye level veiw (what the bomber would be seeing) of this suicide bomber strolling into a large crowd of people somewhere. At the very last, you see his hand go into his jacket and fiddle with something. Then, you see an extremely short bit of smoke and fire and noise and then the WHOLE computer screen goes blank. The computer that was being used to VEIW the file is forced into an uninterruptible DOD hard drive format/wipe of ALL data. Everything would be unrecoverable. O.S. wouldn't matter. The drive would need to be reformatted and an O.S. reinstalled.

Probably not doable ....... but maybe

Originally Posted by moses_the_red

I really disagree with these kinds of responses to Creationists. Mad_Michael, I know you were just trying to be helpful, but by using such a high standard to deciede whether evolution has been proven or not, you're doing Ms. M a disservice.

No, I don't believe I am.

Originally Posted by moses_the_red

Evolution is proven. It is a "fact".

Evolution is proven to occur - it certainly exists. However, it has not been conclusively proven to account all aspects of human physical existance. Some believe that the amount of 'proof' presently available is sufficient to consider this theory tentatively true, and I'm inclined to agree, but in absolute (or scientific) terms, no theory can ever be proven "true". This is the key concept here.

Originally Posted by moses_the_red

A laymen's use of the terms "fact" and "proven" fit the Theory of Evolution quite well. Evolution is proven beyond any and all reasonable doubt, just as the Theory of Gravity is proven beyond all reasonable doubt.

No. Gravity may be considered "beyond all reasonable doubt", but we are talking science here, not law. "Beyond all reasonable doubt" is a good standard for law - it is a poor one for science.

Originally Posted by moses_the_red

Evolution is a proven fact. Giving overly complex answers to creationists serves only to confuse them.

Evolution of the Human Species is not an absolutely provable fact and never can be. One cannot and will not lower the bar of precise language just to accomodate the confused notions of lay people.

Originally Posted by moses_the_red

I really disagree with these kinds of responses to Creationists. Mad_Michael, I know you were just trying to be helpful, but by using such a high standard to deciede whether evolution has been proven or not, you're doing Ms. M a disservice.

Evolution is proven. It is a "fact". A laymen's use of the terms "fact" and "proven" fit the Theory of Evolution quite well. Evolution is proven beyond any and all reasonable doubt, just as the Theory of Gravity is proven beyond all reasonable doubt.

Evolution is a proven fact. Giving overly complex answers to creationists serves only to confuse them.[/QUOTE]
In this thread, my goal was to make the terminology used by scientists plain to everyone, regardless of what opinions they have. The concepts are really not incredibly difficult, and I think that everyone in this thread is more than sufficiently equipped intellectually to handle them.

And yes, evolution is "proven" in the layman's sense of the word, but I really don't want to cloud the issue here. As far as theories go, evolution is just another one, like gravitation or relativity, and none of them are "provable" scientifically. The biggest selling point from where you stand is to demonstrate to people that evolution is in the same "bucket" as gravity, relativity, and spherical earth, in terms of classification. Once people understand that, it is easier for them to understand concepts surroudning theories, both scientifically and from the layman's point of view.

Originally Posted by drgoodtrips

Evolution is proven. It is a "fact". A laymen's use of the terms "fact" and "proven" fit the Theory of Evolution quite well. Evolution is proven beyond any and all reasonable doubt, just as the Theory of Gravity is proven beyond all reasonable doubt.

Evolution is a proven fact. Giving overly complex answers to creationists serves only to confuse them.
In this thread, my goal was to make the terminology used by scientists plain to everyone, regardless of what opinions they have. The concepts are really not incredibly difficult, and I think that everyone in this thread is more than sufficiently equipped intellectually to handle them.

And yes, evolution is "proven" in the layman's sense of the word, but I really don't want to cloud the issue here. As far as theories go, evolution is just another one, like gravitation or relativity, and none of them are "provable" scientifically. The biggest selling point from where you stand is to demonstrate to people that evolution is in the same "bucket" as gravity, relativity, and spherical earth, in terms of classification. Once people understand that, it is easier for them to understand concepts surroudning theories, both scientifically and from the layman's point of view.

The likelihood that evolution is how we came to be does NOT mean that there isn't a God though. So many beleive that evolution is an idea that is against God and it just isn't.

Loo-o-o-o-ong topic this one

Originally Posted by Thane

The likelihood that evolution is how we came to be does NOT mean that there isn't a God though. So many beleive that evolution is an idea that is against God and it just isn't.

It is against the literal interpretation of Genesis. However, as I've noted repeated at this forum, the Roman Catholic Church has officially accepted evolution (and big bang theory) as compatible with Christian theology under the "watchmaker" analogy.

Originally Posted by Thane

Loo-o-o-o-ong topic this one

Short attention span I'd say. I know of several 100 page+ threads still going strong on other forums (one is on Abortion, the other is God vs Atheism). 4 pages is nothing.