A random side note.

You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!
Question to discuss:
Is life an over valued assembly of complex molecules? Does affirming this question make your answer to it inherently meaningless?
Stranger: aw man too many long words for half 5 in the morning
You: Are you looking for a philosophical discussion or is your mood abnormally depressing?
Stranger: first, i don't know
Stranger: second, i don't know
Stranger: third, again with the long words!
Stranger: i'd say depressing
You: I'd have to agree with that assessment.
Stranger: same here. it's looking for an argument that'd just go around and around
You: I'm guessing that this person is quite intelligent, perhaps doubting whatever religious beliefs they hold.
Stranger: maybe.. i mean i have religious belief and i'd never question that
Stranger: i don't think..
You: Maybe they've been affected by a death recently, or maybe they've just been thinking about death because of some initiating factor.
Stranger: you are smart :O
You: Stranger sir, I'd just like to say, if your philosophical foundation is not shaken every single day, you are not living a life worth mentioning.
Stranger: hopefully not the former, possibly the latter
Stranger: why would you think that?!
You: Every day should be used to learn something new to possibly contradict your beliefs and lead you to see in a new light that what you once held sacred.
You: To be complacent is to be dead.
Stranger: im not complacent
Stranger: i just believe what i believe.. i mean i dont go questioning it everyday
Stranger: but i look at things from different points of view
Stranger: do you question your beliefs every day?
You: I do, especially when reading.
You: Otherwise, I get quite bored.
Stranger: are you part of a religion?
You: I am not.
You: I'm an Atheist.
You: I've considered a universe created by some deity, and I consider it boring.
Stranger: seriously? so what do you believe ahppened? :O
Stranger: happened*
You: I believe that a giant cosmological event happened that we don't have the capacity to understand, at least not yet.
Stranger: i think its interesting! i mean one man/woman with all the power? woop!
You: There are multiple theories, each with their merits, but right now, we have nothing conclusive.
You: I'm glad too, as conclusiveness is boring.
You: It leaves no room for creativity.
Stranger: so what do you think happens when we die?
Stranger: that we're just gone?
You: And a monotheistic god wouldn't have a gender.
You: You can think of our consciousness as gone, but our bodies become other things.
You: Every atom in our body has been recycled by everything on this planet thousands upon thousands of times.
Stranger: monotheism is belief in one God/goddess, yeah? then it'd have to be male or female..
You: More likely than not, many of us have atoms that once belonged to George Washington or Queen Victoria.
You: If a god makes a people in its image, then it would have to be androgynous.
You: The concept of dichotimized sexes is impossible with a god that creates people in its image.
You: Unless the god is a hermaphrodite.
Stranger: i think it is :O
Stranger: nah, i'd say He's a man
Stranger: and that, idk, he can relate to women or something
You: So, he's homosexual?
Stranger: nope
Stranger: don't think so.
You: What affirms your belief in a higher power, if you don't mind my asking?
Stranger: it's like.. if a girl could relate to something a boy was going through, or vice versa, you know?
Stranger: dude, you're super smart.. all these words.. hell. yeah, sure i dont mind
You: Words hold the power of existence.
Stranger: well i grew up with it, went to school with it, went to mass and learned about it..
You: Have you ever thought of a universe sans god?
You: Pictured, from beginning to end, the birth and death of the human race?
Stranger: like i've thought about it, but never really considered it.. if that makes sense.
Stranger: like i could think about it, but then i know God would save us :)
You: It's comforting, I realize that.
You: That's not life, however; life is meant to be explored and delved into, a puzzle to be solved and slowly but surely understood.
You: The god concept turns that puzzle into a mural to be framed and never solved.
Stranger: i do explore and delve, just like you or anyone else would.. but i always know i have Him to come back to, you know?
Stranger: like i don't go far
Stranger: hmm i see your point.. but i still think of the world as a huge puzzle, just because God created us and it doesn't mean it makes any sense to me :P
You: How old do you believe the Earth is?
Stranger: millions upon millions of years old..
You: How did the Earth come to be formed, then?
Stranger: God made it
You: I'm not grading you on what I think is correct. I want your opinion.
Stranger: yeah, i get what you mean :)
You: Just a snap of the fingers, then?
Stranger: like He can do things that no one else can.. we'd never really understand how He did it, even if we knew
You: You know what would be an interesting thought?
You: That your concept of god is actually a very advanced scientist using methods so advanced and powerful that it would take centuries, nay millennia, to understand.
Stranger: .. wait, what? you mean, God is a very advanced scientist etc..?
You: That he used some type of gravitational array to construct the planet and used samples of his own DNA to create the building blocks for the human race.
You: I'm saying that it's a very interesting thought, not that there was such a person.
You: In that sense, yes, there was a single creator of humans, but not necessarily of the universe.
Stranger: yeah, that's interesting! i mean, that's probably how He did it
You: So, if you think that's probably how he did it, then he isn't god.
You: If he's only a scientist who can create a planet, he isn't powerful enough to create a universe.
Stranger: i'd say He created all of the planets and stuff, and made the universe.. like earth would only be one part
You: What do you think of when you look at stars?
Stranger: like philosophically (that the right word to use?) or spiritually?
You: Just implicitly, internally, what do you think?
You: What's your first reaction?
Stranger: that they're very pretty and small signs of people we lost
You: What do you mean by "small signs of people we lost?
You: "
Stranger: i know they're actually other planets and stuff, though
Stranger: as in, people who've passed on to heaven. little signs that they're still here
You: How does a star indicate that someone has passed on to heaven?
Stranger: it doesn't really.. but it's just a sign from then, like a little hello or something
You: I'm not sure I understand. Every single star we see in the sky (give or take a few) has been viewed by billions upon billions of people, and those stars have remained constant over the centuries that we have charted them. How does that indicate that someone is saying "hello from heaven?"
Stranger: reminds us of them :)
Stranger: sorry if i sound dumb or uneducated on the topic.. we're just not taught any of this astronomy in school and if we ask the teachers any questions, they answer with things from like the bible and stuff
You: Have you ever considered studying astronomy yourself?
You: It's a very fascinating subject, especially cosmology and the formation of solar systems.
Stranger: nope.. it's interesting, but i wouldnt get far in it
You: Why not?
You: Why limit yourself?
Stranger: really? the words sound pretty cool :)
Stranger: ehh my family wouldn't be impressed, you could say
You: And since when do they determine your level of intelligence?
You: Or what you want to learn?
Stranger: they don't.. but i'd have to travel.. and they'd want me at home to like be involved in the church groups and stuff.. and be a doctor lol
You: Why would you have to travel?
You: I'm afraid I don't quite understand.
Stranger: i don't think there's any colleges here that do astronomy :P
You: Where is here?
Stranger: like i don't know anything in it, as i said we're not taught it in school really (the odd bits, but nothing big) so i wouldnt really get it
Stranger: ireland
You: Really?
You: I'm quite sure that there are a few good universities in Ireland, especially ones that teach astronomy and physics.
Stranger: really? well i might search up on it :) thanks. thinking of being a teacher though
You: Of what?
Stranger: religion and irish probably!
You: Well, isn't that boring?
You: That's a tired old subject.
Stranger: which one?
You: Why not study something much more interesting an innovative?
You: and*
Stranger: 'cause like.. i don't know, i sound like a total wimp when i say this, but anything like that would be really crazy in my community's eyes, i think
You: Dublin Institute of Technology is quite good.
You: And so what of your community?
You: Your "community" doesn't decide how to live your life.
Stranger: yeah, they don't.. but they're all i have :P
You: Sure, they can poke or prod you in one direction or the other, but after a certain point, you have the choice.
You: Last I checked, there are 20 million+ living in England. I'm certain that a you can find a good mates there to replace your community.
You: Even Trinity teaches physics.
Stranger: i know.. like i understand that, i know that i ultimately can do whatever i want.. but i don't know, going for a far out career but risking the loss of the people i've known my whole life.. i don't know
You: People you've known your whole life would respect whatever decision you make if they actually care about you.
Stranger: sorry, talking all about my life is probably boring you!
You: If not, they are just using you to make another version of themselves.
You: Not at all.
Stranger: are you sure? stop me, whenever you like.
You: I am.
You: True friendship or love is marked by support and respect for one's decisions.
You: Especially if the decision is not life-threatening.
Stranger: i mean.. i would like to teach, genuinely would.. but (okay, don't get me wrong, i love God and everything) everyone i knew would have a freak attack if they knew i wasn't going to stay in the village i grew up in, stay with mass every week and stuff
You: Oh my.
Stranger: that's a nice thought about friendship :) i'll keep that in mind, thanks!
You: There is so much more to the world than a small village in Ireland. There is so much to explore, so much to see, so much to experience, that limiting yourself is masochism.
You: I can tell that you're using the community as a crutch and a reason not to rise above and beyond what you've been for your entire life.
Stranger: i'm worried though.. it'd be like leaving everyone behind
You: Every bird must fly away one day.
Stranger: i don't think i'd have the heart or guts. i wanna explore definitely :) and they'd be fine with that, once i came back
Stranger: if it meant not going to heaven though.. i don't know
You: Why would leaving home mean not going to heaven?
You: I somehow doubt that living on your own and being self-sufficient is defined as a sin in any version of the bible.
Stranger: i don't know, im confused about the whole thing
Stranger: they say i'd be turning my back on god if i betrayed the people who loved and raised me all my life
You: Read into that statement.
You: Look at it.
You: How is it betrayal to want to make a better life for yourself?
Stranger: i'd be leaving them.. they want me to stay, and despite that i'd be leaving anyway? i mean, i think it'd be easier just to be a teacher, keep them all happy and still have god on my side.. you know?
You: But why would god not be on your side if you left?
You: Isn't god forgiving?
You: Wouldn't god understand that you want to be your own person?
You: God isn't subject to the whims of a small community in Ireland.
Stranger: it's sinful though to disobey your parents and people who love you..
You: Who said that?
Stranger: the bible
You: In what passage?
Stranger: i don't know, that's just what i've been told since i can remember
You: Ok then.
You: Find a bible.
You: Read through it.
Stranger: subject to the whims..? what do you mean?
You: Look to see if it says that "disobeying your parents and the people who love you," even though you are able to make your own decisions, is a sin.
You: I mean that god does not follow the beliefs of a small community of people in Ireland.
Stranger: i know it is though, 'cause i've been told in school and at home and in mass and everything.. like i could try looking for it, i guess..
Stranger: i think it might be bad to question it though
You: Do or do not, there is no try.
You: Why?
You: Because you might insult someone for being wrong?
Stranger: i might be shunned or something
You: And if they shun you, they don't respect you.
Stranger: we're always told that we should have faith in God no matter what. that we don't need proof or anything to believe in His love and belief in us
You: And what respectable human being needs to be around people who don't respect them?
You: That's fine, but maybe you should check on whether or not what you're being told about god is actually in the bible.
Stranger: but like.. i don't think its a matter of disrespect.. i think its more that that's what they've been told, so they'd do the same?
Stranger: if that makes sense.
You: So, it means that they aren't thinking for themselves?
You: So why continue living in a community like that?
Stranger: i mean its easy to say that i could go off to college, be shunned by everyone and left on my own than to actually do it.. i really do appreciate your advice though, i don't get much, so thank you very much
You: No problem.
Stranger: because it's easier to stay here than risk being forbidden in heaven and ignored by my family for the rest of my life..
You: But wouldn't you feel better about having made it on your own?
You: All right.
You: Have you ever read through the bible?
Stranger: not the full way, nope. we learned about parts in school and stuff, but i've never read it through.. we're supposed to though lol
You: Perhaps you should.
You: There's an interesting little part about aliens that I found funny.
You: But read through it
You: And judge whether or not your community is truly adhering to an archaic manuscript.
Stranger: aliens? XD
Stranger: i would, i really would like to.. but if i ended up questioning it.. i dont even want to know what would happen lol
You: Yes, aliens. I'm quite serious.
You: You'd grow as a person.
You: That's all it takes to learn, to question your beliefs.
You: It's enlightening, it's frightening, it's exciting, it's beautiful, it's vehemently necessary.
Stranger: but what if God knew i was questioning them..?
You: God gave you the faculty of free thought.
You: If you didn't use it, it would be an affront to god.
Stranger: i guess..
Stranger: i'm still not sure though, its all too scary and worrying to think about most of the time
You: You might as well use what god gave you. If not, what use is the organ between your ears and behind your eyes?
Stranger: i dont think i can explain what i mean, i dont know how to put it in words..
You: Try.
Stranger: like i know its necessary to use my brain and stuff, and figure things out for myself, i know that one hundred percent.. but at the same time i know im not meant to question god
You: If god didn't want you to question him, he wouldn't have given you the ability to do so.
Stranger: im not meant to question the monks and nuns in school, the priests and nuns in mass, and my parents/family and community.. im meant to just accept everything
You: You're meant to do nothing except what you actually want to do.
Stranger: but im told so much that i should have blind faith in God forever..
You: And these people who tell you, how would you rate their lives?
You: How interesting are they?
You: How much are they actually enjoying the experience of being human?
Stranger: i'd say they have good lives! :)
You: Why is that?
Stranger: they have a whole village of people and the love of god, and are happy:)
You: How do you know that god loves them?
You: The love of god isn't something that is easily measured.
Stranger: He blessed them with good things
You: Such as?
Stranger: friends, homes, churches, good luck, everything they've ever had
You: These things can be found in countries of people who don't believe in god, or believe in multiple gods.
Stranger: cause they have the blessing of God too. or if they don't believe, they'd been blessed with brilliant minds and can create amazing things!
You: Every mind is the same (not counting disabilities). Every person has the faculties to do great things. It's how that mind is applied that makes the difference.
Stranger: i see.. but.. okay, i might know how to explain what im trying to get across a bit more if i ask you something.. do you mind if i do?
You: Go ahead.
Stranger: what's your biggest fear?
You: Living a life where I feel bored and useless.
You: Ennui is one hell of a motivator.
Stranger: well, i was hoping for something like spiders (XD) but okay! (dont worry anyway, you seem to definitely live a life far from useless with all your amazing logic :) )
let's say you want to become a doctor, okay? so you're growing up all happy as larry lalala, and everywhere you go, everyone you see, says that if you become a doctor, you'll fail and your life will turn into something where you're always bored and feel useless, so you should just be a.. teacher. so even though now you're scared, 'cause its your biggest fear, you still want to be a doctor. but if you just did something else like become a nurse, the risk factor wouldn't be there.
so would you still become a doctor, risking your biggest ever fear, or settle for something a little less and avoid it?
Stranger: oops instead of nurse, i meant to say teacher*
You: Doctor.
You: Why limit myself?
Stranger: would you really though? :/
You: Yes.
You: How do those people know I'll fail?
You: Do they really have so little faith in my abilities?
You: If so, what's the point of having them around if they're only going to undermine my dreams?
Stranger: ohh.. i never thought of it as people's dreams being undermined..
Stranger: then let's say they know you'll fail cause a higher power says so..
You: What higher power is there than your own faith in yourself?
Stranger: :S god..
You: No person can ever actually know what god thinks.
You: God is god for a reason.
You: If someone knows what god knows, does that not make that person a god himself?
Stranger: no, but the bible..
Stranger: ahhh i don't know, im truly so confused.. im sorry, i wish i had better answers for you
You: You know your answers.
You: You've just never had the confidence to say them,
Stranger: i cant say them in real life
You: You can.
You: You have a mouth
You: You have vocal chords.
You: You can say them
Stranger: this is the first time i've ever really said them (typed :P).. it feels wrong, you know?
You: There is nothing stopping you aside from your own fear.
Stranger: do people in your life know you're atheist..?
You: They do.
Stranger: what did they say when you told them?
Stranger: im sorry if that's too personal
You: Nothing, because they respect me for who I am.
You: I have a few very religious friends.
You: If we discuss religion, it's only in passing, because that's not what really matters between us.
Stranger: they didn't like shut you out or anything..?
You: Not at all.
You: Friendship isn't contingent on one's religious beliefs.
You: If it is, it's not friendship.
Stranger: i don't have any friends outside my village..
You: I'm sure that there are some people within your village who think like you do and are afraid to speak their minds.
You: It's natural that people don't want to upset their parents, but if parents can't accept their children for who they are, well, they're not good parents, sad to say.
Stranger: they should be, we'd be completely isolated lol
You: Not at all. You'd have each other.
You: How old are you?
Stranger: 16, im almost 17..
You: So you're about to start at a university, correct?
Stranger: after this year is over, yes. september 2012
You: And you wish to study medicine?
You: Or biology, whatever the precursor to medicine is?
Stranger: i want to be a paediatric (ahh spelling) nurse :D
You: Make it so.
You: Go to a university, any you so desire, and study to become one.
Stranger: yeah.. :/
You: Trust me, you'll have a great time, and oh boy will you learn more than you've ever learned in your life.
Stranger: i'd like that i think :) its probably wrong to be teaching us that everything is to do with bible and things
You: It is, honestly.
You: There is so much majesty and wonder to be learned, and yet the bible is a collection of stories (written in different time periods) that can't accurately depict how much greater the universe is.
You: It's not a science textbook in any sense of the term.
Stranger: do you think (if you believed in God) He'd be mad at me..?
You: Not at all.
Stranger: haha, nope, that the bible is not :)
Stranger: oh. :O
You: The desire to expand and learn more is not a sin.
You: By the way, would you like to see something amazing?
Stranger: .. but questioning faith is considered as turning your back on god.. :( but i won't get into that aagain, because it'd just be a repeat of what i said, and i'd waste your time.. :P
Stranger: yes! :D
You: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zppa-Zkp74E
You: It compares the size of the star Betelgeuse to our solar system.
Stranger: wow!
Stranger: its HUGE!
You: Yep.
Stranger: that's so cool :D
You: Do you know what's even more amazing?
Stranger: nope, tell me, please :D
You: In a few billion years, our sun will become that big and swallow up everything in its path, including the Earth.
Stranger: .. :O whoa..
You: Mmhmm.
You: It's the natural lifecycle of a star.
Stranger: how do ye figure things like that out? :O
Stranger: every star eats a galaxy? :O
You: Lol, stars don't eat galaxies, only their own solar systems.
You: Eventually, they collapse in on themselves, forming a supernova and becoming a neutron star.
You: It's the most beautiful sight in the sky, a supernova.
Stranger: well that's something i didnt know :O
Stranger: you can see them?
You: If they appear, yes.
You: Especially if you have a telescope.
Stranger: that's really amazing :)
Stranger: does it look anything like a shooting star? i saw one of them before
You: Not even close, haha.
You: A shooting star is actually the dust from a comet tail. The Earth is simply passing through the trail the comet left behind.
You: What burns up in the atmosphere with a shooting star is a bit of rock and ice that came off of the comet.
Stranger: ice in the atmosphere? :O
You: Lol, not in the atmosphere, in space.
You: You know what a comet is, right?
Stranger: but how can ice... if there's no gravity..
Stranger: eh nope..
You: Okay, then, astronomy and physics 101.
You: A comet is a large conglomeration of rock and ice that typically orbits a sun. Halley's comet is the most common one we hear about. When it travels around the sun, the sun heats up the comet and causes parts of it to break off, creating a tail.
You: When the Earth passes through the tail in the Earth's orbit around the sun, all the ice and rock that came off of the comet burns up in the atmosphere as shooting stars, as they are typically called.
You: Are you with me so far?
Stranger: yep!
Stranger: i think. XD
Stranger: that's so interesting though.. its like there's a story behind everything lol you're so lucky to have all this information, you have a gift i think:)
You: No, I just read and like science.
You: You're just as smart as I am; you only lack the information I know.
You: Do you want to know about gravity?
Stranger: i say its a gift, you say it in such a nice way :)
Stranger: sure! if you wouldn't mind :)
You: There are very few people with gifts, and trust me, I'm not one of them.
You: All right!
You: Gravity is one of the most interesting concepts in the universe.
You: Everything with mass has gravity.
You: That means that even you have gravity.
You: But, since your mass is so small, the gravitational attraction you exert is minimal.
You: Gravity is directly proportional to mass, so the larger the mass, the more intensive the gravity.
You: Because of this, Jupiter has over 50 moons, and captures more every day because of its enormous gravity.
Stranger: 50 moons!!!
You: Gravity also allows a planet to have an atmosphere. This is why the moon, which has very little gravity, has no atmosphere.
You: Yep, 50.
You: Most of them are captured asteroids.
Stranger: whoa :O
You: If you were to attempt to land on Jupiter, you'd be crushed into something the size of a penny because of the intense gravity and pressure.
Stranger: so earth has a lot of atmosphere but not too much?
You: It has enough to sustain us.
Stranger: and we'd weigh less on the moon? :D
You: Correct!
You: Weight is the pressure of gravity combined with the mass.
You: The Earth's gravity is enough to hold down oxygen and hydrogen, two important elements for life.
You: Our mass never changes though!
Stranger: air is 78% nitrogen, isnt it? or something like that..
You: Yep!
Stranger: so the more gravity, the more pressure, the more you weigh?
You: Exactly!
Stranger: score! :D
You: Obviously, our bodies can only take so much since we're only accustomed to Earth gravity.
You: This is also why astronauts have to constantly work out; they're always in free-fall and don't feel the effects of gravity.
You: Work out in space*
You: Now, the sun is the most massive object in our solar system; it literally anchors down the planets in their orbits.
Stranger: work out as in exercise? or as in work while in space..?
You: Exercise.
Stranger: but i thought that some planets are bigger than the sun?
You: NOOOOOO
You: In our solar system, there is nothing bigger than our sun.
Stranger: in the whole world?
Stranger: wait, no,
Stranger: i mean the whole.. like the whole of everything ( idk the word XD)
You: In the universe, you mean?
Stranger: yes!
You: Ah, there are plenty of things larger than our sun in the universe.
You: The galaxy is one obvious example, as is other stars.
You: Look at this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS88G5WBcfQ
Stranger: umm, is the galaxy like another solar system?
You: Actually, this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0lxbzgwW7I&feature=related
You: That one is better.
Stranger: thank you! :)
You: The galaxy holds a multitude of other solar systems with stars, some very similar to our own, with planets orbiting them, likely very similar to the ones we have in our own solar system.
Stranger: aliens!!!
Stranger: and is there only one galaxy in the whole universe? :O
You: NOOOOO
You: There are billions upon billions of galaxies in our universe
You: More than we can ever see
You: Each with solar systems within them
You: Each with planets, and moons, and who knows, possibly intelligent life.
You: What else would you like to know?
You: I'm happy to oblige.
You: How about the formation of our solar system?
You: At least one of the theories, the more likely one?
You: Still there?
You: Well, I'm going to bugger off for now, but I encourage you to keep reading about this great universe we inhabit. I'd recommend reading Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot, Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time, and Hyperspace by Michio Kaku. They'd all be very enlightening. Also, if you don't already, watch some good science fiction, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation or Doctor Who. Good luck!
You have disconnected.