Interestingly, both fields of study grew from the same root. When early human cultures began to develop an agricultural base, it was very important to know when to plant and harvest certain crops, so as to maximize harvests. The ones who KNEW this were those who watched the skies carefully. They knew when the frosts were over, and when the rains were likely to begin. There may even have been a basis for people born at certain times of year having different personalities and characteristics than those born at other times of year. In earlier times, certain foods, especially fruits, vegetables, and berries would have been in season for only a few months each year, thus some were not always available to nourish a mother with a child developing in her womb. So, depending on when they were conceived, each individual would be a reflection of which vitamins and nutrients were abundant during their gestation, and which were deficient.
gaiagirl
JoinedPosts by gaiagirl
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21
Astronomy vs. Astrology
by Swan ini have always had a fascination with the universe and the night sky.
my grandfather bought a telescope on a lark, but soon he and my cousin grew bored with it and it was just taking up space.
so it was passed on to me.
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62
Should I teach my kids about Santa Claus? (Lie vs. Harmless Fantasy)
by AlmostAtheist inmy wife and i got on a discussion about something i never would've guessed we'd need to.
she wants to teach our new baby about santa claus, easter bunny, & tooth fairy, but i don't.
of course, as witnesses we never would have taught that, and i have to acknowledge that i may only be reasoning using that old set of values.. i don't want to look into my kid's eyes and tell her something that i know for a fact isn't true.
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gaiagirl
If you wanted to find some middle ground on this issue, you could tell your child "The end of December is a time when we celebrate the longest night of the year, by decorating a tree, and by exchanging gifts with one another." If your child is old enough to understand what the Solstice means, you could actually tell them something true. There is a wonderful childrens books titled "The Winter Solstice" by Ellen Jackson, with beautiful illustrations by Jan Davey Ellis, which shows how various cultures around the world observe the day. Cultures include Scots, Romans, Celts, Scandanavians, Hopi, Pueblo, etc. Highly recommended, as are her books on the three other quarter days.
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Best to worst...... as far as religions go.
by formerout ini have spent a fair amount of time in court lately.
lawyers and their so-called absolute "logic" is interesting.
they lie and call it "justified reasoning" in order to comply with their most important oath of doing the best for their client, axe murderer or not.
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gaiagirl
I would say that the "best" religions are those which encourage their members to be better humans, by which I mean to act with humane compassion toward others. I seem to see this more in liberal religions than in fundamentalist religions. Recognizing that Jesus was a liberal Jew who taught that observing minute rules were not as important as treating each other lovingly, I see liberal Christianity as superior to fundamentalist Christianity. Jesus stopped a group of fundamentalists from KILLING a woman suspected of adultery, even though it was within the letter of Jewish law. Liberals seem to promote treating each other in a more loving manner, while fundamentalists seem more preoccupied with observing rules and punishing those who break rules. I also recognize that there are liberal Muslims and fundamentalist Muslims, and can see which ones are creating all the news (hint: not the liberal Muslims).
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Anyone seen/read Brian Swimme's stuff?
by Markfromcali inhe's put out among others video series like the powers of the universe, canticle to the cosmos and the one that i'm interested in, the earth's imagination: "an exploration of the human psyche within the context of the cosmic process.
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gaiagirl
I've never seen any of his videos, but I read a book which he co-authored (with Thomas Berry), "The Universe Story: A Celebration of the Unfolding of the Cosmos", a history which shows how the Universe evolved over time, and presents it more as an organic, structured entity than a manufactured "thing". I would expect his video to be very beautiful.
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13
??the flood of noah's day....evolution?? can you take the bible literally
by red so deep inhttp://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-noahs-ark.html
lately in my research on the subject of the feasability of taking the bible literally, i ran across this very interesting article about the flood.
this website has some other great resources if the evolution/creation debate interests you, as well as some thought provoking articles on jw belief here:.
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gaiagirl
Given the contradictions contained just in the first two chapters of Genesis, it should be obvious that the Bible was written by people who simply did not have access to accurate information.
It is also obvious to anyone who has read the myths of any ancient culture other than that of the Hebrews that the myths contained in the Bible are not original, but borrowed from these other cultures. Since you mentioned the Flood in your original post, you should be aware of the similarities between the account in Genesis, and the much older account in the epic of Gilgamesh.
So, perhaps the question should be, "Can you take the account of Gilgamesh literally?"
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What do you think is going to happen in the future...
by Country Girl inour planet is chanigng so much.
there are wars, there is pollution, there is over pupulation.
what do you think is going to happen in the future?
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gaiagirl
The problem with trying to predict the future is that one can only extrapolate from current trends. This fails to take into account revolutionary developments which have often change the direction of cultural development completely. Lots of writers in the 19th century wrote of future socieities, and every one of them was completely wrong about almost everything they envisioned. Typically, they pictured a socieity much like the one in which they lived, with some of the "rough edges" smoothed over, and with technological developments which were extensions of things already existing even then. So, there were stories and novels written over 100 years ago in which people travelled in aircraft to distant cities, except the aircraft were supported by balloons, and propelled by steam engines. Or they had a machine to listen to music, except that it was connected to telegraph lines, instead of operating by radio waves. When the automobile was in its infancy, the idea was to REDUCE pollution (horse manure was a huge problem in large cities), and to be cheaper to operate than a horse. No one forsaw how large numbers of autos would create suburbs far from cities, or how many people would spend hours per day commuting to and from their job. And of course, no one forsaw the very different kind of pollution problems associated with cars. Right now, fundamentalists beliefs are very popular, although not so much JW's but others like Baptist. IF this could be depended on to continue, perhaps a prediction could be made, but it is just as likely that popularity will decline, and those people will be viewed as quaint. Right now, rap and hip-hop music is very popular, and if growth continued, it might replace other forms, however, it won't continue. It will grow until it reaches a saturation point, and then something else wil come along, and rap will seem "not cool anymore". Trying to predict what will happen based on "scripture" is even more problematic. There are ALWAYS events taking place which someone can point to and say "See, it is happening just like predicted, so THIS is what will happen NEXT (or SOON). There was an entire religious movement during the 19th century called "Adventism" when many, many people believed the "second coming of Christ" was right around the corner. This was what gave birth to religions such as Seventh Day Adventists, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, and others. One thing which all of these have in common is that, in every single prediction they have made, they have been wrong. Completely and totally wrong.
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13
Does hollywood affect peoples view of history and world events?
by sleepy inhow much do you think movies, effect people knowledge of history or even world events today?
there was a programme on channel4 a fews weeks back basically revealing conspiracy theroies about jfk assasination to be a load of nonsense.oliver stone defended his film (which this programe had torn apart) by saying well people know its just a film and dont believe everything in movies.
but his missed a vital point , what if the film is all a person knows of that event.
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gaiagirl
I'm quite sure that any popular film, television show, (or book) will tend to blend the perspective of viewers (or readers) with that of the director (author). When millions of persons see the same film, they often view that as "that's the way it really was", a comment I heard several times in reference to "The Passion" (which I've not yet seen).
In the case of some films, the reality is glossed over, and made less brutal, more romantic, i.e. "Gone With The Wind".
I'm sure that many people who hear the phrase "gladitorial combat" will think of Russell Crowe, and perhaps many who hear either "Achilles" or "Trojan War" will think of Brad Pitt.
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Men and their size........
by morty inwhy must men have the biggest tv they can cram in the living room?
i figured we had a nice size for now.
it is a 36 inch.
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gaiagirl
I watched a 13" screen for years, until I purchased a DVD player. The old set didn't have the proper connections on the back for video and audio cables, so I bought a 27" Sanyo, and I'm quite happy with it. The flat LCD screens are intriguing, but I have little desire for one at this time. Perhaps someday, when the current set wears out, I'll get a wall screen like the ones in Farenheit 451......
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Thought I'd read it all....
by Country Girl inthis is about one of the strangest "philias" i've ever read about.
do you think the witnesses would consider this "porneia"?
would a person be disfellowshipped for an amputation?
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gaiagirl
That sort of explains one of the villians in the recent movie "Hellboy". The character in question was a surgeon who, for reasons not clearly explained, got a thrill out of working on himself. Most of the time on screen, he wore a face mask, but when it was removed, he was a complete mass of self-inflicted surgical scars. He had removed his own lips and eyelids, as well. To say he was hideous would.....well, you just had to see for yourself.
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24
Is All of the Universe Everywhere
by Satanus inor, is it reflected in everything?
while waiting for my laundry at the mat, i noticed the reflections in the glasses in all the machine doors.
looking at different ones, i could see different areas of the place reflected.
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gaiagirl
If a hologram is cut in two, both pieces will contain the entire original image, i.e. the information contained in the original is duplicated in the resulting fragments. Some physicists believe the Universe exhibits holographic properties in that details of the greater whole is also reflected in the very small. This is necessary to explain some observed phenomena, including apparant information exchange between certain sub-atomic particles in a famous double-slit photon experiment.
The idea was illustrated humorously in a recent opening segment of "The Simpsons" which began with the family on the couch, then gradually zoomed out from their living room, showing the house, the neighborhood, the continent, the Earth, the solar system, the galaxy, clusters of galaxies, which turned out to be parts of molecules, which turned out to be part of Homer's head.
The thought is also summed up in the expression "As Above, So Below", which is widely used in the Pagan community.